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Table of Contents
Welcome December!
2024 Lee Club Info
Principal Sielo
BookPeople
December is upon us!
Fami-Lee I'm putting the December 2024 calendar at the top because the next two weeks are going to fly by so this issue of the Rundown is going to be short and to the point!! As you know we had to cancel / postpone Lee Movie Night due to anticipated inclement weather. There is still a ton happening though.
For those wondering we plan to launch our holiday school-wide gifting using GiftCrown in the coming days. This is an opportunity for you to contribute to a gifting pool that will be split among all teachers and staff at Lee. It is the perfect way to say thank you for a spectacular year. More details very soon!
2024 Lee club info
Mark your calendar because Lee Club info will be sent out tomorrow 12/7 via Konstella
Lee Club signups will take place on 12/15 @ 8:00 PM (central time).
Welcome Back Principal Sileo!!
Principal Sileo has already been hard at work supporting our Roadrunners and community. Did you see she sent out a couple of key communications?
12/8-12/13: BookPeople Family Night
by Wyeth Slagle, Lee VP of Fundraising
Shop at BookPeople (or order online) between December 8-14 and 20% of proceeds will be donated back to the school. All you have to do is mention Lee Elementary!
And on December 11, we are hosting family night at the Bookpeople store.
From 5:30-7pm, we're inviting everyone to the bookstore so we can shop teacher wishlists, get some holiday shopping in, AND have story time with Mrs Larsen (5:45p) and Ms Kis (6:45p).
Hope to see you there!
12/13 - PTA Meeting
Don't miss this opportunity to hear from the PTA and meet other Lee caregivers!
Lee PTA Meeting
Lee Cafeteria
8:00 AM
Remarkable Roadrunner
I'm resurrecting last week's Remarkable Roadrunner because we're about to launch the afterschool clubs for Spring 2025. Simone has truly elevated the process through trial and error and given our Roadrunners some amazing opportunities!
This week we're calling attention to Jessica Hoffman, PTA President & Simone Harlow, PTA Vice President of Enrichment -- two special members of our Lee community who go above and beyond on everything they do!
Thank you Dani Monahan, Lee staff member for submitting this nomination! It is always a treat to see what kind of impact our Roadrunner family has on one another.
"Simone and Jessica are approachable and easy to work with! I appreciate their organization for all of the Lee Club Sponsors' signups and work together to collect and distribute funds for us! You made it so easy for us, and that motivates me to want to do more for the Lee community."
Want to nominate someone in our community to showcase their good work in or out of the classroom? Fill out the Remarkable Roadrunner Nomination form. Any Lee Community member can nominate anyone else in our Lee Community!
Lee Cares: Holiday Giving Project for Families in Need in AISD (Deadline: December 12)
by Lindsay Engelman, Lee Community Cares Chair
Lee Elementary PTA is partnering with Communities in Schools for a holiday gift giving project to provide much-needed household items, clothing and gift cards to families at Wooten Elementary, just a few miles north of our own school. In particular, by purchasing gifts from this Target registry or this Amazon registry, we are helping a household made up of two families living together trying to make it through a hard time while one of the mom’s is going through cancer treatment.
How it works: Wooten Elementary's Communities in Schools' social worker identified several families in greatest need - we are fulfilling items for two children of one of those families. The volunteer group supporting Communities in Schools wraps and brings everything to the school before winter break and the Communities in Schools team delivers everything so it's coming from people they already know and trust. This is just one of many supportive programs CIS provides year-round.
How to Help: The best ways to help are to 1) shop online or 2) donate cash
1) Shop Online
Purchase items from this Target registry or this Amazon registry to be delivered to Lindsey Engelman, 8303 Loralinda Dr, Austin, TX 78753.
Deadline to receive items is December 12th
2) Donate $5 /10 / $25/ $50 /other
Venmo @lindsey-engelman Note: Wooten
Deadline to donate is December 12th but the sooner the better!
The Final Pitch: Now more than ever it feels like we can and should dig into the local causes that we care about. No matter what else is happening in the world, Lee can show up with kindness, generosity and caring.
Questions? Email communitycares@russellleepta.org
We thank you in advance for supporting our AISD community!
FREE Amy's Ice Cream!?!
by Sarah Farrell, Lee PTA VP of Membership
We are so close to hitting our goal of 250 PTA members! Sign up today to enter a raffle for 4 FREE Amy's Ice Creams.
PTA membership is easy! It's only $8 for the year and takes 2 minutes of your time. You are not required to volunteer.
Texas PTA Rally Day - Feb 24, 2025
by Kelly Griswold, Lee PTA Advocacy Chair
Texas PTA is hosting a Rally Day on Feb. 24 from 8:30 am - 2 pm. The day will start out with a caucus in the morning, followed by a march to the capital and meetings with legislators in the afternoon. Raising basic student allotment, recapture reform, and voucher opposition are part of AISD’s priorities for this legislative session. Interested in attending? Please rsvp here so we can start to plan logistics: sign up here
Join us at the PTA meeting on Friday, December 13 at 8 am, where we’ll have Daphne Hoffacker (Advocacy Chair for Austin Council of PTAs) sharing information about Rally Day, the upcoming legislative session, and more.
AISD Draft Budget Reduction Planning
AISD has presented a three-year budget proposal to the Board of Trustees - which you can find here.
Despite the passing of Prop A, without the Texas legislature increasing basic student allotment during this upcoming legislative session, district leaders must find $92 million to eliminate the budget deficit.
The current plan keeps cuts farthest from the classroom and preserving the student experience. Options previously discussed such as librarians, counselors, nurses and planning periods are off the table — at least for the upcoming school year.
We still have two legislative sessions ahead of us, where we could see an infusion of funds that could keep us from considering those more painful cuts down the road.
You can provide feedback on the current budget plan during the following dates. Both meetings will be available in English and Spanish.
AISD Board Runoff Election - Early Voting through Dec. 10
At Large Position 8 on the AISD Board of Trustees is currently in a runoff election. You can see more about the two candidates here
Dec. 10 – Last day of early voting
Dec. 14 – Election Day
Voting locations can be found here
Get your Yearbook TODAY!!
24-25’ Yearbooks are on sale now!!
Custom pages are not due at time of order. You can go back and complete that step later.
Each book order includes 2 customized pages for your individual yearbook.
If you have any questions please reach out to Selena at historian@russellleepta.org
If you take photos at any Lee event that you think might look great in the yearbook, please send them to us at: photos@russellleepta.org
Did someone say 20% off holiday cards?
Don't forget that Minted offers us 20% off AND they give a percentage of the proceeds back to the school.
All you have to do is use code FUNDRAISERUSSELLLEE to get the discount and participate.
Lost & Found
With the cooler weather finally here, PLEASE label your roadrunners jackets and hoodies. The L&F rack will not be out this Friday due to high chances of rain. Want to join the L&F team? email lostandfound@russellleepta.org
L&F will be out in front of the school every Friday at dismissal (weather permitting)!
Join the Weekly Bike Bus
Fami-Lee - hop on Lee's weekly Bike Bus!
The group departs at 7:20 AM every Wednesday morning from Fresh Plus.
RSVP on Konstella here (optional) to add this to your calendar and subscribe to updates.
Questions? email the Bike Bus leader, Jillian Del La Torre Copeland,
PTA Vice President vicepresident@russellleepta.org
Lee Calendar
November calendar should be in backpacks next week!
12/8-12/14 |📚 BookPeople Receipt Share
12/11 | 📚 BookPeople Spirit Night
(keep your eyes posted for our special lineup!)
12/13 |📝 PTA Meeting
12/18-12/19 | 🎭 Celebrations
12/20 | 🎉 Grade Level Winter Parties
2/27 | 📸 Group Picture Day
Lamar Middle School Presents Annie!
Tickets are on sale now for Annie Jr. presented by the Lamar Middle School theater program. The best part... two Lee Alumni are in the show!! Congrats Lexie Yankeelov and Anika Bonser!! Come out and support two former Roadrunners while enjoying a great show! GET TICKETS HERE
Anie Jr, presented by Lamar Middle School
January 30th - February 1st
AISD Performing Arts Center
Volunteer w/Mr. Peckham!
This is a 30 minute commitment that can be fun and easy with 2 or more people working together! Let's bring back the fun music and happy morning atmosphere! Volunteer today!
If you have a non-Lee parent willing to volunteer like a grandparent contact communications@russellleepta.org to get them on the schedule!
VOLUNTEER HERE| Looking for context for this ask? see the rundown here.
Thanks for reading this week's Roadrunner Rundown. As always feel free to share your comments or feature suggestions with Clarissa at communications@russellleepta.org or online here.
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