H1N1 Notice for Parents

H1N1 Vaccination Clinic UPDATE

All school-based H1N1 vaccination clinics have been canceled by the Washtenaw County Department of Public Health including the two schedule in Ann Arbor at Huron and Pioneer.

A mass vaccination clinic for high priority groups is scheduled for Eastern Michigan University (EMU),

Convocation Center on Thursday, Nov 5th from 10:00 am to 7:00 pm. The Center is located at 299 North Hewitt Road, Ypsilanti MI 48197.

According to CDC guidelines, high priority groups eligible for H1N1 vaccine while supplies remain limited

include:

• Pregnant women

• Household and caregiver contacts of children younger than 6 months of age

• Children from 6 months though 4 years of age

• Children and adolescents aged 5 through 18 years who have medical conditions associated with a higher

risk of influenza complications

• Health care and emergency medical services personnel with direct patient care

Individuals within these priority groups should live, work or attend school in Washtenaw County. Specific

documentation of underlying medical conditions is not necessary; health care and emergency services personnel

should bring their employment identification.

Student Council Update: Time For Salvation Army Food Drive

From the King Student Council:

It is time for The Salvation Army's Annual Food Drive. The food drive starts on Monday, November 2 and ends Monday, November 30. The reason for the food drive is to provide food bags and baskets to those in need in Washtenaw County. We need your help! To donate, please send in ANY non-perishable food items to your King School classroom during the month of November. Our goal is 100% participation this year. Please consider sending in at least one item and feel free to send in many more. Thank you for your support!

Indian Group Performance

All King students are welcome to participate in the Indian group performance for International Night. If your child is interested, please email sguduri@gmail.com  and come to the first practice on Wednesday, November 4th, at 6:00 p.m in the King multi-purpose room.  If you have any questions, contact Sujata Guduri at sguduri@gmail.com 

Count Your Blessings This Fall

The flu season is approaching and as we all scramble to get ourselves and our children vaccinated, it is a good time to discuss with our children how fortunate we are to have access to basic medical care and vaccinations. Each October students at King school participate in the UNICEF fundraiser called "Trick or Treat" for UNICEF.  Donations allow UNICEF to provide clean water, education, vaccinations and medicine to children around the world who need it most.  Your child can collect donations in the orange box sent home in the Friday folder and return them  to school by November 16.   Submitted by Rachel Sabb, Community Action Network Chair

King School Clothing

A huge thank you to everyone who ordered King School Clothing!  The clothing was delivered to each classroom last Friday and should have been brought home by now.  We had over 325 pieces of clothing ordered...which made sorting & checking each order quite a process.  
 
Please check your order.  If I made an error...either gave you the wrong item or forgot an item, please let me know so that I can correct the mistake.  All errors should be sent to Susan Gechter at susbg@comcast.net  by Friday, October 30.  Thanks!!

Letter From Dr. Roberts Regarding School Funding

October 23, 2009

Dear Ann Arbor Public Schools Parent/Guardian:

With all of the news this week coming from Lansing regarding school funding, I have been getting questions regarding the specific impact on funding for our school district. The State School Aid bill signed this week by Governor Granholm reduced funding for all school districts by $165 per student. The Governor also vetoed the Section 20j line item in the School Aid bill that further reduces funding for the Ann Arbor Public Schools along with 39 other school districts in the state. The veto of Section 20j reduces our funding by an additional $233 per student. The total reduction in funding for our school district in the State School Aid bill signed this week is $398 per student which equals 6.6 million dollars in lost revenue for our school district for the current 2009-2010 school year.

We also received notice today that the state has determined that based on the Department of Treasury's projections there are insufficient revenues in the State School Aid Fund to fund the recently signed budget. Thus, the Governor has issued a proration order that reduces funding for schools by an additional $127 per pupil that will take effect in 30 days unless the state finds additional revenues for the School Aid Fund. This additional reduction in funding will mean another 2.1 million dollars in lost revenue to our school district this year.

The Ann Arbor Public Schools stands to lose 8.7 million dollars in funding for this school year. Losing any funding four months into our fiscal year and two months into the school year creates a significant hardship for the school district. Losing almost nine million dollars in funding is completely unacceptable. Addressing a loss in funding of this magnitude in mid-year creates significant difficulty for the school district.

I would encourage you to contact both the legislature and Governor to help them understand that reducing funding to our schools by almost nine million dollars is unacceptable. They need to stop playing political games and work together to address the state's budget in a way that adequately funds education for our students. You can contact Governor Granholm at 517-373- 3400, Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop at senmbishop@senate.michigan.gov and House Majority Leader Andy Dillon at andydillon@house.mi.gov . If you have any questions please let me know.

Sincerely,

Todd Roberts

King of Hearts 5K Starts At 1:30 - Hope To See You Here!

Ms. Lake's Class Worked On Paragraphs And Revision Today . . . NICE WORK!

Washtenaw School Millage, From Mr. Karr

On November 3rd, parents will be asked to vote on a countywide school millage. This is a 2-mill tax increase with proceeds going to the Ann Arbor Public Schools as well as the other nine school districts in Washtenaw County based on the number of students in each district.

With state funding for education decreasing and the projection for an even greater funding shortfall, it is important for community members to understand the county-wide education millage proposal that will be on the ballot November 3rd.

You can get more information at a2schools.org and click on the milllage information link.

Thank you,
Kevin

Washtenaw Schools Millage Update

The Washtenaw Schools millage election on November 3rd is just a few weeks away. This millage will keep our schools open and help keep our community thriving.

The state still does not have a final budget, however, the House and Senate last week approved a School Aid Budget with a $165 per pupil cut in funding to local districts. This is in addition to the $15 million shortfall Ann Arbor is already predicting for the 2010-11 school year (and the $16 million in cuts the district has made over the past four years).

By law, our only option to raise revenue for our operating budget is to pass a millage with all the districts of the WISD. 100% of the money raised stays within Washtenaw County. The WISD does not receive any funds. Ann Arbor will receive more than $11 million annually for five years. Ann Arbor Schools, and our community, are stronger when the surrounding districts are on solid footing with strong school systems.

Want to get involved? We need help getting the word out before November 3rd. If you'd like to help canvas, please contact me Terri Brodkey at: TBrodkey@gmail.com, King millage building coordinator. If you are able to canvas just 2 hours, it could make a world of difference. Bring your kids along! I plan on bringing my three boys with me. Canvassing is 1-3 pm on: Saturday, October 24; Sunday, October 25; Saturday, October 31; and Sunday, November 1.

Note from King PTO: To allow the King Community to make their own decision as to how to vote on the WISD Millage Enhancement issue, the King PTO has decided to remain neutral and neither support nor oppose it. However, the King PTO will continue to include approved informational messages from outside organizations regarding the millage enhancement.

King Of Hearts 5K This Weekend!!! - 10/25 @ 1:30 PM

The 6th Annual King of Hearts 5K Run/Walk is in 5 days... Sunday, October 25th at 1:30 at King!   Come participate in grade level dashes, run/walk with your family through King neighborhoods, enjoy good conversations with other King Families, and much, much more!

Pre-ordered race t-shirts & water bottles will be sent home with your child this week.  Remember that this is a family event -- all children must be accompanied by an adult throughout the entire event! 

If you haven't pre-registered, it's not too late.  You can register on Race Day for $10/family and the fee helps cover the various costs to host the race. 

 
Don't forget to wear your King of Hearts shirt on Sunday.  Looking forward to you joining us - all the cool people are going to be there so why not you?

  
And don't forget that we are still looking for foodstuffs to be donated (bagels, water, etc) by grade level!

  
Contact Kevin Behmer at kevinbehmer@sbcglobal.net for any further information or questions. 

Turkey Trot Time - Volunteers Needed

The Turkey Trot is a fun, healthy activity and everyone is invited to  walk, skip, hop, trot or run on the King playground track. This is a non-competitive event and parents are welcome to walk/run with their children. A schedule of when individual classes will 'trot' will be announced closer to the event. In lieu of a turkey, children will enter their name in a drawing to win prizes. 

 

2-3 parent volunteers are needed each hour in the gym to serve cider and donuts as the children come in from their 'trot'. Please call or e-mail Laurie Galia to volunteer, 996-9946 or lquain@umich.edu .

Attention 4th and 5th Grade Creative Writers!

Spaces are still available in the Creative Writing Workshop!

Bring your creativity and your great ideas-for adventure stories, poems, graphic novels, plays, or any type of creative writing.  You'll get to work with writers and writing teachers, discover how to take your creative writing to the next level, and have lots of fun, too.

It's on Wednesdays, after school until 5pm, beginning October 21st and ending December 2nd.  Ask at the school office for an extra sign-up sheet, or contact Camille Ziolekacziolek@oaklandcc.edu   

School Millage Information Presentations Scheduled

Please join us at one of these information presentations on the
Washtenaw Schools Proposal:

Thursday, October 15, 7 p.m.
Huron High School, Little Theater

Monday, October 19th, 7 p.m.
Pioneer High School, Little Theater

Bagels and Buns - 10/16 @ 8:15

Join us for Starbucks coffee and a conversations.

Please come enjoy a cup of coffee and a bagel in the company of other
King school parents.

Bagel and cream cheese - $1
Bun - $2
Orange juice - 50c.

Nice Paragraphs!

Mrs. Gracey's class recently finished writing personal narratives, and they are now hanging in the hallway. If you look closely at the picture you can see the shape of some very nice paragraphs, something they focused on during second grade and during this writing unit.

Keep up the GREAT WORK!

PTO Meeting Tongiht - 10/13 @ 7 PM

Please join us at our monthly PTO meeting tonight (Tuesday) at 7:00 pm in the King School Library.  See you there!

Heads Up - Holiday Gift Card Opportunities Coming Soon

Every year it seems the holiday's hit the stores earlier and earlier.  We'll jump on the bandwagon by reminding you that for the 2nd year in a row you will be able to order gift cards to your favorite stores through the King PTO to give as gifts, or just use yourself.  You pay face value - the stores donate 2-20% to the school.  (We averaged 9% last year).  An order form with more details will come home at the beginning of November - so keep your eyes open.  If you have any questions please contact Alena Stocking,alenastocking@gmail.com  or 734-973-3155.

Grocery Card Program Update - KROGER

Thank you all for your recent orders for participation in the grocery card program.  3-5% of all your grocery program purchases support the King School PTO when you use your card.  This IS THE EASIEST way to support the school - it costs you nothing - just the mental note to pull it out and use it at participating stores.

Kroger has a new program this year.  You are required to register your card online atwww.krogercommunityrewards.com .  If you have a Kroger card from years past - you MUST register this card for the contributions to be made to King.  Follow the online instructions to register - and when asked for an "NPO" number  - enter 84978.

Any questions - contact Alena Stocking,alena.stocking@gmail.com  or (734) 973-3155.

Last Week to Help Our 5th Graders

Orders due Friday, October 16th. Your support of Sally Foster and Tupperware is needed to send our 5th graders to Space Camp.  Sally Foster offers a wide range of gift wrap and gourmet treats for all occasions. Return the order form your child received, or visit www.SallyFoster.com The King account number is 253608.   New this year, we are offering Tupperware.  Choose from the "fundraiser catalog", a selection of Tupperware's best selling items, or order any product from Tupperware's full line at www.kingschool.tupperwarefundraising.com .  Don't forget to back-click to the homepage to maintain the link to the King account.   Please forward the links to family, friends and co-workers.  If you have questions contact LauraBoudette@yahoo.com . Thanks.