School Year 2019-2020 End-of-Year Events

We all went home on Thursday, 3/12, expecting to come into school the next day and making jokes about Friday the 13^th. Who knew that 3 months later, almost to the day, I’d be writing to discuss your next & last opportunity to come into school for this year! Next Tuesday, the final set of RLP assignments is due, and then Friday, 6/19, is the last official day of the school year. During the 3 days from 6/17-6/19 we have a variety of activities planned, which we hope will help provide some sense of closure and let us move into summer. Please read each of the 3 items listed below.

 

1.)  Personal belongings – on 6/17, 6/18, and 6/19 students will be able to sign up for an appointment to come to the school to collect any personal belongings. SIGN UP HERE! I will be limiting the total number of people in the building in line with the Governor’s recommendations for building occupancy. Masks are required to enter the school and gloves are recommended. It is also recommended to bring a bag to carry item home in. Families with more than one student should just sign up once and all come at the same time. Please email me if you need to come at a specific time that is not available on this schedule & I will make arrangements.

Students…

• will be able to empty lockers & collect projects from classrooms
• must return locks & any school books from home or from your lockers (or pay $5 replacement fee)
• must clean out gym lockers & return gym locks (or pay $5 replacement fee)
• can check lost & found. Any items left over will be donated.
• Can pick up medications/EpiPens from the Nurses’ Office
• During your visit, 8^th grade students will also receive their Certificate of Completion, your 8^th grade t-shirt, and a gift package from South PTO!  It’s not the Appreciation Assembly we always look forward to, but we are so proud of our graduating 8^th graders, and we’re sending them off with some treats to remember their time at South!

I hope that students will also be able to pick up Yearbooks during this time, but the company has not been able to confirm delivery before 6/19. If they are available, 6/17-6/19, students who ordered a yearbook will be able to get them; if not, I will let you know when they arrive so you can pick them up at South. (This information was what held up my communication about the end-of-year events, as I’d been hoping to coordinate a socially-distant yearbook signing opportunity, but unfortunately the company has suffered partial shutdown of both their printing and shipping/handling departments, so I guess I have to accept that these matters are beyond my control. Information will come out as soon as I have it!)

2.)  Reverse Parade – It is a tradition at South for the staff to come outside at dismissal on the last day of school and wave goodbye to the buses as they drive off for the summer, and while that has obviously been disrupted this year, we want all students to have an opportunity to see your teachers and wave goodbye for the summer! On Wednesday, 6/17, from 4:00-6:00 PM, South faculty & staff will be lining the driveway, waiting to hoot & holler & wish you all “a wicked good summah!” We hope all students, grades 6-8 will swing through the driveway and say hey! In addition, we hope our 8^th graders will decorate your cars, as this is your special goodbye to South! Families are encouraged to write your child(ren)’s full name on signs on both sides of car, because sometimes it’s hard to see who’s in there waving back at us! There is no need to sign up in advance, just come on by whenever you can!

3.)  Grade 8 Virtual Appreciation Celebration – On Thursday evening, 6/18, I will be posting a virtual graduation ceremony for our 8^th grade students. It’s not the event we had hoped for you all, but it will be an opportunity to celebrate your achievements and give you a send-off to high school! The virtual graduation will be posted on the school’s YouTube channel (search YouTube for “Damon Rainie” as it’s linked to my email account) and on the South website.

Report cards will be mailed home during the week of 6/22. If you have any questions or comments, please don’t hesitate to contact me.