Family Engagement & Inclusion Plan
Dear Northside Community,
Below are the details that outline the Northside Family Engagement Plan for 2023-24. To understand how working together can benefit your child, it is first important to understand the district’s and school’s vision, mission, and goals for student academic achievement.
Sun Prairie School District Vision: To be a high performing district of choice that reflects the cultures of our diverse community.
Sun Prairie School District Mission: Futures depend on us to inspire and prepare every child, every day by providing relevant, engaging, and innovative learning experiences in and out of the classroom.
At Northside Elementary, we are committed to developing authentic, trusting relationships that affirm and validate students, families, and stakeholders to support social-emotional well being. We continuously strive toward creating an anti-bias, anti-racist learning community that ensures all students and staff achieve high levels of learning.
We also have a Theory of Action that drives the short and long-term goals we are working toward as a staff.
Frequently Requested Information:
Who should I go to if I have a question about my child’s education?
Please start with your child’s classroom teacher. If the teacher can’t answer this, the teacher will advise you to reach out to the appropriate person.
What is the SCO and when do they meet?
Our School Community Organization (SCO) is made up of all Northside families. The SCO meets monthly on the second Tuesday of each month at 6:30-7:30pm in our large group instruction (LGI) room. All families are encouraged to attend the SCO meetings.
We are committed to working directly with our SCO Board to help guide and support our community building for our school. They put on a number of events for our Nighthawk families and also work in alignment with the District Parent Leadership Council (PLC) on bringing about more equitable experiences between all SPASD elementary schools.
How will the school share information about events and student progress?
Northside sends out a monthly newsletter on the first day of each month through Blackboard Connect messaging system. Blackboard can send emails, texts, and phone messages to you. The monthly newsletter will then be archived on the Northside web page under “Newsletters”.
Blackboard emails called “Parent/Caregiver Communication” will be sent whenever there is relevant information to share with families. Our website and Facebook page also will have information about upcoming events.
Peachjar is another venue we will use to inform families of school and community events. This will come in the form of an email, but can also be accessed via our school website under “Flyer Distribution in Schools”.
Teachers will share information with families about learning targets, student progress and special celebrations through email, apps like Class Dojo or Seesaw and work products/flyers sent home in backpacks. Caregivers will be invited to have a conference with educators in the first and third quarters of the school year. Elementary students in Sun Prairie receive report cards after the completion of each semester. You can access the report card when it is posted on your Infinite Campus Parent Portal.
When is 5th Grade Recognition and how can parents be involved? We hold our 5th grade recognition event in the morning of the last day of school. This year, that celebration will be on Friday, June 7, 2022 at 9:30am.
What should you do if you have a concern, question, or great idea? If it is a classroom concern, we ask that you go directly through the teacher first. If it’s something else and you are not sure where to start, call our main office for assistance at (608) 834-7103 or email Denetrice Sercye, our lead administrative associate, at dksercy@sunprairieschools.org.
How can you be more involved at Northside? A great place to start is reading communication from the school and attending school events. We will periodically have sign ups for events taking place. Classroom teachers will often remind you of upcoming school and classroom events in their weekly communication as well. You will find that your active involvement is what makes our school great.
Volunteering in the school does require a background check. Here is the link: volunteer application
What should I know about attendance? When your child is absent, please call the attendance line (608) 834-7100 and press #1 as well as call the classroom teacher. You can also email our administrative associate that oversees attendance, Cynthia Rusch, at ckrusch@sunprairieschools.org.
Why is attendance important? It is the caregivers’ legal obligation as Parent/Guardian to ensure their child from the age of 6-18 attends school regularly (Wis. Stat. sec. 118.16). Regular attendance greatly impacts academic success starting as early as preschool, continuing through high school years. Parents/Guardians play a key role in helping their child succeed with being able to get to school on time. Please take priority in ensuring your child's daily attendance.
What are school hours and dates? School hours for elementary students are 7:40 am-2:40 pm (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday), and 7:40 am-1:30 pm (Thursday). Students may come to school at 7:30 am or after, as supervisors are on duty at that time.
The first day of school for the 2023-24 school year is Tuesday, September 5, 2022. The last day of the school year is Friday, June 7, 2024.
SPASD School Calendars & Bell Schedules
Do SPASD schools offer breakfast and lunch? You can access the school menus through Nutrislice on the district District web page This is a mobile app and you can also access Northside’s menus here.
|
Breakfast |
|
|
Students |
$1.40 |
|
Adults |
$2.55 |
|
|
|
|
Lunch |
|
|
Elementary (Grades K-5) |
$2.95 |
|
Middle (Grades 6-8) |
$3.20 |
|
High School (Grades 9-12) |
$3.30 |
|
Adults |
$4.25 |
|
|
|
|
Milk |
$0.45 |
|
Entree |
$3.10 |
Northside Digital School Calendar is available on our webpage.
You can also link it to your own personal electronic calendar. You can access it here.
Northside Staff Directory is available on our webpage and right here.
You will be able to access a staff member’s email address and school phone number from that link.
If you have any questions or concerns about your child’s social and emotional health, start with your classroom teacher.
You can also access our student services team or community schools coordinator and they can provide you with resources and support.
-
Vicki Feltz, School Counselor
-
Rachel Bucheger, School Psychologist
-
Catherine Reierson, School Social Worker
-
Stacey Christenson, Community Schools Site Coordinator
Transportation: Have a question about bussing? Check out the transportation page on the district website.
Northside Clubs are right here. Club advisors will keep families posted on club progress through emails to club families.
Use the SPASD district webpage as a resource. It is very likely that you can find what you are looking for on the webpage. We highly recommend it as a go-to resource for our families.
Northside Elementary School Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/NorthsideElementary/
We look forward to a great year with you at Northside Elementary School!
Sincerely,
Jillian Block, Principal (she/her)
(608) 834-7101
Brooke Coy-Tchouani, Associate Principal (she/her)
(608) 834-7156