ECA's Report Card
At ECA, our vision is that school families Love God, Value Learning, and Serve Others.
Spring Break is Almost Here! Important Things Coming Up! Please Read the WHOLE Newsletter!
Next week, there will be no school. The week after that (April 1-5), students in grades 7&8 will be in Washington DC for a history trip. Mr. Gaylor and Ms. Lidia will be gone on that trip with students. What does that mean for you? When classes resume after Spring Break, students in grades K-5 will have slightly different schedules with Mr. Gaylor and Ms. Lidia gone. For students in grades 5&6, Mr. James will be the grade 5/6 teacher for the week. This will also be the last ECA newsletter until Sunday, April 7. There is lot’s of important information in this newsletter that covers the next three weeks. Do you want to see how you the parents and students see our school? Read on! Do you like to save money in reenrollment fees? Read on! Do you want to know how swimming lessons will happen in April? Read on! Do you want to stay in the know? Read on!
The Fall Survey Results are In from John Hopkins University School Survey!
Teachers, parents, and students have one important thing in common: we know and understand report cards. But what about a school’s report card? As teachers, parents, and students, were you able to have a voice in our school’s report card? Just how are we doing?
Back in the Fall, ECA participated in an anonymous survey done by John Hopkins University. Teachers, parents, and students were all able to be part of a survey. The results are in. Just how did we do? On a scale of 1-5, are there areas where our focus paid off? Are there areas where we can focus our attention on improvement as we move forward? As you look at the results, you may notice there are some groups that aren’t represented. Different questions were given to different groups. The results shown reflect that.
The survey looked at three main components in our school: school climate, academic climate, and social / emotional competency. At ECA, we love God, value learning, and serve others. How did our mission statement fit with the survey results. Well, it all starts with school climate. It had eight parts. The closer to 5/5 on each part, the more positive experience. Without a positive school climate, everything else doesn’t work.
Note: The higher the grade, the less experience students are having with the problem. 3.98/5.00 suggest a more positive experience for students surveyed.
The next key part was academic climate. It had three parts. The closer to 5/5 on each part, the more positive experience. Our goal as an educational institution is to prepare students for an educational future.
The next key part was social / emotional competency. It had five parts. The closer to 5/5 on each part, the more positive experience. Student perceptions of the school environment were a key part to this last part.
So what does it all mean? Where do we go from here?
Our school will be having another opportunity for teachers, parents, and students to have a voice in our school’s “report card” late in the spring. If you would like to have a voice, we encourage you to watch your emails for a link to the anonymous survey. Principals in the Pacific Northwest met with a representative from John Hopkins University. This survey is used by thousands of school all over the USA. The representative shared with us that results higher than 3.75 are very good results, and as they move closer to 5.0, it shows a positive school experience.
We have put a lot of energy these past three years into developing our school culture. It is one of our highest marks. We recognize growth is the goal. Academic climate was at 3.85. We would like to see that higher. As a staff, we will be intentional about further developing our implementation of standards in all subject areas. Our staff will look at the best curriculum for helping students develop understanding. We are already looking at additional tools that will improve reading and math skills across all grades. We value your input and it drives our focus to improve. Thank you for helping us grow, and we encourage you to be part of the spring survey coming soon.
Getting Ready for Our Next School Year!
One of the things that happens at school behind the scenes during spring is making a budget for the upcoming school year. Because we are part of a large conference with many schools, we have to have voted school budgets by the end of the year. Staff contracts and program obligations are set in the spring for the upcoming year. What does this mean for you? Every school in the Oregon Conference has a reenrollment period. During this time, schools ask families to pay a reenrollment fee to reserve their spot for the upcoming year. This year’s deadline to reserve a spot at a discounted family fee of $50 is Friday, April 12. The following week, I will meet with our school board and we need to have firm enrollment numbers for a presented budget on April 18. Families that reenroll after April 12 will be charged a family reenrollment fee of $150. Plan now. You can let us know your plans for next year by clicking on the link below and reserving your spot for next year.
Make-up School Days Are Finalized and Scheduled
With current warmer weather and former winter ice storms a thing of the past, it’s easy to forget how we missed a week of school due to ice. We have already made up many of those days. Here are the dates for the remaining makeup days. They will all be on Fridays and all will be 8:00 - 12:30 times. During these remaining two Friday makeup days, Home & School will provide an additional hot lunch.
Friday, April 18
Friday, May 3
Our Last Week of School Before Spring Break
This Thursday will be our last day of school before Spring Break. It will be the end of our third quarter also. Classes will resume again on Monday, April 1.
Swimming Lessons for Grades K-4
During the weeks of April 8-12 and April 16-18, students in grades K-4 will have swim lessons at the Willamalane Swim Center on Mohawk Boulevard in Springfield. The swim times M-Th will be from 9:30-10:30. Parents are welcome to come and watch children. On Friday, April 12, we will be having swim lessons, but they will be from 12:00-1:00. On that one Friday, parents should make arrangements to pick up their K-4 children at the Willamalane Swim Center after lessons are over. For students in grades 5-8 staying at school, classes will be over at 12:30. It will be our “normal” half-day Friday, so there will be an after school AG program until 2:30 at the school campus.
No School on Monday, April 15 - ConferenceTeacher In-service Day
All full-time staff will be at a state-wide conference on Monday, April 15. There will be no classes. Classes will resume the rest of the week, Tuesday, April 16 - Friday April 19.
8th Grade Bottle Drive Fundraiser
AG Program - Monday’s Science Class
Our AG Classroom Program will be tomorrow, March 18. Students in grades K-2 will be participating. Students will be outdoors doing a variety of things with Mr. Wyatt Johnson. Throughout the year, there may be a few rainy days. Boots and gloves are great things for working outdoors on Monday Science Days. Water bottles are great things to have outside too. Students in Kindergarten are in class with Mr. Wyatt from 1:15- 2:15 and students in grades 1-2 are with him from 2:15-3:15. Here is a schedule of the days and classes:
Monday, March 18 - Grades K-2
Monday, April 1 - Grades 3&4
Monday, April 8 - 5&6
Monday, April 22 - Grades 7&8
Monday, April 29 - Grades K-2
Monday, May 6- Grades 3&4
Monday, May 13 - Grades 5&6
Monday, May 20 - Grades 7&8
Hot Lunch Program
The updated menu for each month is posted at the beginning of every month on the school website. Here is the menu for this month.
Please place all orders for each week before Monday morning at 8:45.
Simply type your child’s first & last name.
Select the option that fits the order for the week.
Choose your payment method.
Click Submit.
Prices for meals:
students in grades K-2 - $5,
students in grades 3-8 - $6.
Just a reminder… our hot lunch menu is posted on our website.
http://www.emeraldchristian.com
Christian Counseling Available - Free Resources:
The NAD (North American Division of SDA) has recently shared new resources for children and teens that offer a safe and anonymous place to talk or text. Here is a news release from the NAD.
We’re excited to announce the launch of www.aruggedjourney.org our newest NAD site providing free online mentoring for guys. A Rugged Journey joins www.gorgeous2god.org (for young women) which has grown in its scope and ministry since its beginning in 2017.
These sites, along with their counterparts on social media, provide free help to our teens/young adults in a space they can ask questions without judgment or fear. The questions are answered by a team of dedicated Seventh-day Adventists at AIM on the campus of Andrews University.
In addition to the confidential Q & A, positive content is provided through videos, posts, etc.
www.gorgeous2god.org/ FB: gorgeous2god/ IG: @gorgeous2god
www.aruggedjourney.org/ FB: aruggedjourney/ IG: @aruggedjourney