The Bulldog Bulletin

We firmly believe that education is a partnership between the school and the home. Your involvement, communication, and support are vital to your child’s success. Throughout the year, this newsletter will serve as your bi-weekly guide to celebrate student achievements, share classroom highlights, and keep you informed of important dates.

Warmly,

Dr. Danielle Moran, Principal

We are looking forward to the first day of school on August 24th. Please be sure to reference the Middleton Welcome Packet, which was emailed to families on August 14th. If you haven't yet, remember to log into your Parent PowerSchool account to see who your child's teacher is.

New this year, we've added a bike rack near Door 4 on Madison Street (behind the dumpster area) for students who would like to ride their bike to school. Please be sure your child wears a helmet and locks their bike to the rack. We kindly request just bikes be ridden to school and no e-bikes or e-scooters.

As your new principal, I bring 25 years of experience in education. Over the years, I have had the privilege of serving as a teacher, assistant principal, principal, and Director for Elementary Instruction in various school districts. These experiences have shaped my core belief: every child deserves a welcoming, inclusive environment where they can thrive academically, socially, and emotionally. I am a mom of 2 teens and a German Shepherd rescue dog. We enjoy the outdoors, camping, hiking, and driving around our town in our 1966 Dodge Dart convertible! Looking forward to a great school year and meeting the Middleton families and students!

I am very excited to be a new assistant principal at Middleton Elementary School this upcoming school year. For those of you who do not know, I was formerly a learning coordinator in the District 73.5 office over the past two years. In the spring of last school year, I really enjoyed getting to know the students, staff, and families during my time as acting assistant principal. The students and staff demonstrated positivity and energy that is a key component of a safe and successful school. I hope to bring my years of experience as a building leader to Middleton to be a part of our school and district improvement efforts. I am the father of a 16 year-old professional actor and a 20 year-old poet. My wife and I also take great pride in raising our three cats. Please don’t hesitate to reach out at any time through email or phone. I look forward to meeting more families this year while continuing to support students and teachers. Here’s to a great year!

I am excited to spend time working with the wonderful students at Middleton this year! I spent my early career working in elementary schools throughout Chicago, where the pure joy found in those classrooms was truly invigorating. That experience ignited a passion that shaped my core belief: All students deserve a high-quality education regardless of their background, zip code, or any other factor that makes them unique. For the past three years, I’ve had the privilege of serving this district as one of the assistant principals at McCracken Middle School. On a personal note, I’m a father of three amazing kids and grew up right down the street from Middleton in the Evanston community. I look forward to seeing your children's smiling faces throughout the building this year and being a positive influence on their school experience!

🍎Mr. Dykes is scheduled to assist with McCracken and Middleton.

• McCracken Schedule: Mondays, Wednesdays and some Fridays
• Middleton Schedule: Tuesdays, Thursdays and some Fridays

At Middleton, we encourage all students who do not ride the bus to walk to school if possible, as it is a healthy and safe way to start the day. Click here for the safe walking routes to school.

For all students, safety remains our absolute priority during daily arrival and dismissal times. We ask families to maintain a secure environment by strictly adhering to our designated zones and traffic flow. To be good neighbors, please do not park at the private school across the street and walk to get your child, as that is not Middleton property. Always cross streets at corners; especially along Madison, it is highly unsafe to cross in the middle of the street where cars are actively dropping off and picking up. For your safety, crossing guards are stationed at St. Louis & Madison and Central Park & Madison. Thank you for your patience and cooperation in keeping our Middleton community secure.

1. We strongly advise cars to drive south down Kimball Avenue and then turn right onto Madison to join the car drop off lane. This will keep traffic flowing smoothly in one direction and will avoid cars trying to cut into the line.
2. To access the car drop off lane, drive west down Madison Street and pull all the way up into the drop off lane. Please put your car in park and then your children may exit out the right side of the car.
3. Please look for the Middleton staff wearing orange vests, who will guide you into the drop off lane.
4. All adults need to stay in cars to facilitate an efficient, moving car line. Only let students out on the sidewalk side of the street; they should never enter or exit vehicles on the traffic side. If car seats block the way, please move the front passenger seat forward or have your child crawl over to exit safely.

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In this first week of school, we are working hard to make sure students get to the right bus lines and are all accounted for. You can help by contacting mdoffice@sd735.org by 2:00pm if you are changing your child’s dismissal.

• The bus lane is located behind Middleton at Drake Alley. No cars are permitted in this area.
• Special education transportation and buses will drop off in front at Door 2.

1. If you are walking your student along Drake Alley towards school, please do not use the east sidewalk along the houses. All of our buses are pulled up in the Drake Alley circle, and no one should be walking through the circle drive at any time.
2. If you are walking to pick up a student, please meet on the grass near the basketball blacktop outside of Door 5.

New bike racks are located behind the dumpers near Door 4, at St. Louis and Madison. Please be sure to lock your bike and wear a helmet.

Bike Rules:

• Walk your bike once on school property; no riding on the sidewalks on school grounds
• Be aware of pedestrians; pedestrians always have the right of way
• We kindly request just bikes be ridden to school and no e-bikes or e-scooters

Middleton partners with the Skokie Park District for before and after school care, called the SPACE program. Care is available starting at 7am and ends at 6pm and you must be registered to participate. Drop-in or occasional care is not available through SPACE. To learn more about the SPACE program, click here.

If your child is in the SPACE program:

• Drop off is at Door 2
• Pick up is at Door 12
• SPACE Parent Handbook 2026-27
• For Middleton specific questions, reporting absences, and pick up, please contact the following numbers, only AFTER the program begins for the school year: (312) 982-1487 or middletonspace@skokieparks.org

We kindly ask for families to follow these guidelines for outdoor morning line up. Parents and guardians should say goodbye to their child outside and will not be permitted inside the school.

Grades 1-2:

For the first three days of school (August 24–26), our first and second graders will meet on the Drake Alley blacktop, where teachers will be waiting with signs to walk the classes inside through Door 6. Doors open at 8:15 AM for a soft start. Beginning August 27, students can enter independently through Door 4 or Door 6 starting at 8:15 AM and head straight to their classrooms. If your child wants to purchase a school breakfast, teachers will happily guide them right to the cafeteria.

Grade 3: line up begins at 8:20 AM on the blacktop at the basketball nets and enter at Door 5.

Line 1: Conn

Line 2: Kasten

Line 3: Malone

Line 4: Riaz

Line 5: Stamos

Grade 4: line up begins at 8:20 AM on the blacktop near Drake Alley and enter at Door 6.

Line 1: Kinsella

Line 2: Siliva

Line 3: n/a

Line 4: Tsesis

Line 5: Tucker

Grade 5: line up begins at 8:20 AM on the blacktop near Madison Avenue and enter at Door 4.

Line 1: Ellis

Line 2: Harris-Ridker

Line 3: n/a

Line 4: Lowery

Line 5: Scurek

Students in grades 3-5 who want to purchase breakfast should enter through Door 4 at 8:20am. Staff will guide students to the cafeteria.

• Running Club Registration Fall 26/27 (3-5)

• Students in 2nd-5th grade will participate in the MAP test for Reading and Math on Wednesday, September 2nd and Thursday, September 3rd.

• Students in 2nd-5th grade will participate in CBM testing between Monday, August 31st and Friday, September 4th.

• All students in 1st-5th grade will participate in Math Auto between Tuesday, September 8th and Friday, September 11th.

• Students in 1st grade will participate in the Early Reading and Early Math assessments on Wednesday, September 2nd and the assessment on Thursday, September 3rd.

Thank you for encouraging your child by making sure they get a good night’s rest, eat a healthy breakfast, and arrive at school on time with a charged iPad or Chromebook. Contact your child's teacher with questions.

The Middleton Garden had a busy summer! The raspberries, cucumbers, and tomatoes are coming in beautifully. Thank you to Betsy Seff and Margaret Page, district #73.5 parents, for partnering with Middleton staff, Tim Peng, Erin Gregg, and Hetal Thakkar in supporting the gardens! We look forward to sharing future updates and opportunities to get involved! If you haven’t visited, stop by and take a peek along St. Louis and Madison to see the Gilbert Garden, and when you are in the building, take a walk through the courtyard native pollinator garden.

• Fire Drills: Practicing fire drills helps keep us safe in the event of a real emergency. We are required to have 3 fire evacuation drills per school year. (9/29 and 10/20/26)
• Bus Drill: Learning how to evacuate a school bus will help keep students safe in a situation that involves a bus or accident. (8/27/26)
• Evacuation Drill: Practicing an entire school evacuation is helpful in the case of dangerous conditions inside the building such as a gas leak. It's really important we are prepared to keep your children safe. (9/24/26)
• Lockdown Drill: In the extremely rare case of dangerous threat inside the building, we practice how to keep students safe. The state of Illinois requires this once per year. (10/15/26)
• Severe Weather Drill: Practicing for severe weather helps students be prepared in the case of a tornado or dangerous storm. The state of Illinois requires this once per year. (3/11/27)
• Contact your child's teacher or Mr. Dykes with questions.

We were delighted to welcome our newest students and first-grade families to our Welcome Night on August 12th, which was followed by Popsicles on the Playground with many members of our Middleton community. Thank you to everyone who joined us for such a memorable evening; your presence truly made it a spectacular start to the school year!

If you are a new family but were not able to attend, you can view the presentation slides here. Please reach out to the Middleton office if you have any questions that we can answer.

Parents and guardians are welcome to visit their child's classroom and learn more about our curriculum during our Back to School Night on September 3rd.

August 23: at 1:00-3:00: Back to School Bash at Middleton

August 24: First Day of School (arrival at 8:20)

August 27: Bus drill

Sept. 3: Running Club begins

Sept. 3: 5th Grade Parent White Pines Info Meeting at 5:30pm and Back to School Night at 6:00-7:00pm

Sept. 24: Evacuation drill

Sept. 30: Picture Day (retakes will be on November 4)

Oct. 15: Lockdown drill

District Website

Middleton Website

Monthly Calendar and Year-long Calendar

SPACE: before & after school care

Community Bulletin Board

🎒 MORNING ARRIVAL

• 8:15 AM • Grades 1–2 Soft Start
  Early entry for primary classrooms.
• 8:20 AM • General Arrival
  Doors open for all other grades.
• 8:30 AM • Late Bell & Morning Tardy
  All doors close. Check in at front office.

🚌 AFTERNOON DISMISSAL

• 3:00 PM • Standard Dismissal
  Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday.
• 2:00 PM • Early Release Tuesday
  Weekly staff professional development days.

📝 IMPORTANT REMINDERS

• Be on time. Late arrivals after 8:30am must be signed in by a parent in the front office.
• Safety first. Follow designated drop-off and pick-up lanes.

Click here for an all Staff Directory.

School Office: (847) 673-1222

Dr. Danielle Moran, Principal: dmoran@sd735.org

Dr. Perry Finch, Asst. Principal: pfinch@sd735.org

Mr. Trevor Dykes, Asst. Principal: tdykes@sd735.org

Sarah Cardenas, Administrative Assistant: scardenas@sd735.org

Heather Rubio, Administrative Assistant: hrubio@sd735.org

Kim Durband, Nurse: kdurband@sd735.org

Sara Shapiro, Enrichment Coordinator: sshapiro@sd735.org

SPACE: (312) 982-1487 or middletonspace@skokieparks.org

IEP/504 contacts:

• For questions related to your child's IEP, please contact your child's case manager.
• For 504 plan related questions, please contact our school psychologist, Marcella Gonzalez: mgonzalez@sd735.org.
• Dr. Kristen Moore, Director of Student Services: kmoore@sd735.org

8300 St Louis Ave, Skokie, IL 60076

(847) 673-1222

https://www.sd735.org/middleton