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Principal's Message 5/20/24

PRINCIPAL'S MESSAGE: 

 

Good Evening, Stallion Families!

This week we are celebrating Mental Health Awareness with a fun spirit week.  If you are on school grounds this week, we invite you to join us.  Post-COVID, we have seen an increase in student mental health needs and emotional dysregulation.  Please make sure you are talking as a family, setting good examples for your children in regard to caring for mental health, and if you need assistance, please reach out to our school counselors Sara Morlock (smorlock@wcpss.net) and/or Carolyn Sears (casears@wcpss.net).  They have resources and will help you connect to the support you need.  🙂

  • Monday- Mental Health Awareness Monday- Wear GREEN for mental health awareness!  

  • Tuesday- Thinking Cap Tuesday- Wear a fun hat to represent positive thoughts!

  • Wednesday- Workout Wednesday- Wear your favorite sports team, favorite exercise gear, etc. because staying active helps us feel good!

  • Thursday- Thoughtful Thursday- Wear tie-dye or something bright and colorful to represent all the emotions we feel!

  • Friday- Feel Good Friday- Wear pajamas to feel chill and lower your stress levels!

Upcoming Events

  • May 22- Art and Music Night

  • May 22- End of PTA Silent Auction (Get your bids in now!)

  • May 27- Memorial Day Holiday- No School for Students or Staff

  • May 30- June 7 EOG Testing

  • June 6- Stough PTA General Membership Meeting via Zoom @ 7:00pm

  • June 11- Grade 5 Promotion Ceremony

  • June 12- Last Day of School

 

Shout outs!

  • On Saturday, Ms. Mariella and I were honored to attend the graduation ceremony and reception for Ms. Leslie Yang as she completes her 5th and final year as an Ambassador Teacher with Participate Learning, the organization that sponsors the visas for our international teachers.  Leslie came on staff at Stough in the fall of 2019 and has been with us for a season in history that no one could have predicted or imagined.  Leslie, we are so proud of the work you have done!  We are grateful for all you have shared with us over the years, and you will forever hold a special place in the hearts of our students, staff, and families.  We will welcome you back to our community at any time.  We love you!

  • On Friday of last week, we welcomed Senator Gale Adcock to Stough Magnet Elementary School for a tour of the school and the opportunity to talk about all that makes this community so special.  Senator Adcock jumped in to lead the dragon dance, took a ton of pictures, talked to some students, and repeatedly expressed how proud we should be of our school community.  I have a few people to thank for making this event so wonderful:

    • Thank you to Arianna and Ollie, our students who welcomed the Senator and helped her check in as a safe visitor.

    • Thank you to Ms. Jenny Zhao and our fourth grade Mandarin students for performing and teaching our senator how to lead the dragon dance.

    • Thank you to Mr. Seydric Williams, Dr. Lisa Thompson, and Ms. Sheri-Golden Perry from WCPSS central office for joining us on our school tour and answering a lot of the Senator’s questions.

    • Last but not least, thank you to Ms. Mariella for showcasing our students and our magnet theme so beautifully, and to our school custodial staff for making our building sparkle and shine.

  • On Thursday of last week we met with our rising 3rd grade Mandarin parents to talk about the shifts our program makes in grades 3-5.  Thank you to Ms. Jenny Zhao, Ms. Judy Ouyang (From Participate Learning), and Ms. Gevetta Lawrence for hosting this meeting with me.  Please feel free to see the presentation linked below if you missed this meeting.

 

Positivity Project: May 20- End of the Year: Other People Matter 

  • This week and for the remainder of the 2023-2024 school year, we will be reviewing the 24 character strengths we’ve learned as part of the Positivity Project.

  • Please use the following link to access the family newsletter for this week.

 

Art and Music Night: May 22nd- THIS WEEK!






Story Walk- Crowder Park

  • This month’s story walk features a book written in English and Chinese

 

Sun Bucks Program

  • North Carolina’s Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) and Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI) are excited to launch USDA’s new SUN Bucks program for eligible students to address the summer hunger gap. SUN Bucks will help provide access to nutritious food for many children across North Carolina starting in summer 2024!

  • SUN Bucks will provide grocery-buying benefits to qualifying families with school-aged children during the summer months. Benefits can be used to buy healthy food at places like grocery stores, farmers markets, and some online retailers. Additional information and resources are available on the SUN Bucks website.

 

Safety Concerns- Dismissal for Walkers

  • Please be reminded that walker passes and walker dismissal are for students who are WALKING to and from school.  As I left campus for a school board meeting this week, I saw many walker students loading into cars that were parked in visitor spaces, outside by the loading dock, and in handicapped spaces.  This is a major safety concern, and for that reason, it will not be allowed.

  • If you are not walking to/from school, you need to join the carpool line or have your child ride the bus.  I am respectfully asking you to honor this process.  I do not want to be the principal who stands outside and directs you to the carpool lane.  That conversation feels bad for both of us.

 

Lost and Found

  • We have MANY items in our Lost and Found.  We encourage families to take a look in lost and found the next time you are on campus… you might be surprised to find items that belong to your children.  All items will be bagged and donated at the close of the school year (June 12).  

 

Enrollment for the 2024-2025 School Year

  • If your family is currently enrolled at a Wake County Public school, and has moved to a new address, please check here for your base school.

    • If your base school changed, contact the new base school for your next steps.

    • If your base remains the same or your family has magnet status, please submit new proof of residence to your school.

    • This is only for families who have moved to a new address.  🙂

  • If your family is completing a new enrollment for the 2024-2025 school year, complete the online enrollment, follow the steps , then submit an online enrollment.

    • Once the online application has been submitted, Ms. Brunda will reach out for next steps.

    • The online application and enrollment documents must be submitted to get your student ID # activated to apply for other special program schools.

  • If any of your family member will not be attending Stough for 24-25 school year Please let us know ASAP

 

Save the Date- 5th grade promotion ceremony and celebration

  • The 2024 Promotion ceremony for 5th grade students will be held on Tuesday, June 11th in the gymnasium from 10:00-11:00 am.  Each student will be given 4 tickets to the event.  Please plan accordingly.

 

EOG Testing

  • End-of-Grade Testing Schedule for 2024 will be as follows

    • Thursday, May 30- Test for students with 1-on-1 accommodations

    • Friday, May 31- Math test for students in grades 3-4-5.

    • Monday, June 3- Make-up testing

    • Tuesday, June 4- Reading test for students in grades 3-4-5

    • Wednesday, June 5- Science test for students in grades 5

    • Thursday, June 6- Make-up testing

    • Friday, June 7- Make-up testing

 

Spring is Here!  Let’s talk about dress code.

  • One of the best measures of how much your child has grown over the winter is the fit of their clothing come springtime.  All of the sudden, shorts and shirts that fit last summer are too short, too tight, too small.  I know how busy and hectic morning routines can be.  I want to remind you to be intentional about looking at what your child is wearing, especially if you have an older elementary student.  Please make sure students are appropriately covered with no exposed undergarments or bare midriffs, even when they remove layers of clothing like hoodies or jackets.  Thank you!

 

Cell phones

  • We are beginning to see an increasing number of students using their cell phones during the school day.  The expectation is that students do not have cell phones on campus.  With that said, I do understand they are needed for safety reasons in some situations.  Please speak to your child about cell phones expectations.  We are not going to search for cell phones.  If a cell phone rings during class, or if a student has a cell phone out of their book bag during the school day, we will follow protocol:

    • First offense- teacher confiscates a cell phone and turns it into administration.  Cell phones will be returned to students at the end of the day.

    • Second offense- teacher confiscates a cell phone and turns it into administration.  Cell phones will be returned only to a parent/caregiver.

    • Third offense- teacher confiscates a cell phone and turns it into administration.  Cell phones will be returned at the end of the school year.

 

Stough Magnet Elementary PTA

  • Stough PTA Online Auction ENDS WEDNESDAY, MAY 22! 

    • STOUGH PTA SPRING AUCTION 24 - CLICK HERE!

    • We're so excited to have the Stough Staff involved in our online auction this year! Basketball playdates, cookie baking, movies, friendship bracelets, lunch with the teacher... there's something for everyone here! 

    • Our online auction ends this Wednesday at 10pm (after Art & Music night). Be sure to get those bids in now! You can follow along using our socials @ptastough, stoughpta.com or in our PTA member emails!

    • The Stough PTA Spring Auction is our second largest fundraiser of the year and helps fund our programs to start next semester strong. Prize pickup by Friday, May 24 @ carpool or by arrangements through stoughpta@gmail.com. 

  • Stough PTA General Membership Meeting June 6 @ 7pm via Zoom!

    • Be sure to save the date for our final general membership meeting of the year! We'll gather online to elect our officers and present our budget for next year!

 

 

Have a wonderful week!

Mrs. Jodi Lay 

Principal, Stough Magnet Elementary School