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Table of Contents
Week two is done!
Fami-Lee!!
Week 2 is almost in the books and we have a long weekend ahead!! But don't relax yet, Lee has some big updates and important Calls to Action below.
Roadrunner Rally is up and running - Please donate here.
Konstella Updates
We are still verifying parents who were not added in the first round. If you filled out the Konstella Access form, front office staff will review/verify and then you will get a new invite from me. This process takes time so we appreciate your patience.
Turn on your Konstella notifications, turn on your device push notifications & Sync your calendar
See our website for instructions on how to turn on your Konstella notifications AND how to turn on your iphone or android push notifications to ensure you ensure you are receiving the most up to date information about your Roadrunner in a timely manner.
Continue scrolling on our website for how to sync your calendar, use the directory, and how to send direct messages.
FIND INSTRUCTIONS HERE to turnon notifications
For all the folks who were invited but did not "register" I will push button to remind you later today. Please register.
If you have any other questions, please let me know! communications@russellleepota.org
Lee Clubs Registration
Quick Facts about Lee Clubs registration...
The Lee Clubs Registration link will be shared 2 ways:
russellleepta.org - The link will be posted to our school homepage at exactly 8:00 PM on 9/1.
Konstella - A Konstella post will be scheduled to go out at exactly 8:00 PM on 9/1.
May the odds be ever in your favor!
REMINDER: Registration will be first come first served while spots last & payment will be due immediately! See the FAQ page for more information.
SCHOLARSHIPS: Mr. Peckham has a limited number of club scholarships in hand so if you believe that your roadrunner has a need, speak to Mr. Peckham directly for assistance.
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Vendor Clubs info...
Vendor Clubs - Registration is open! Sign up today!!
Roadrunner Rally Coming in Hot!
Thank you so much to the caregivers who have donated so far...one week into school and we've received just over $10,000 in donations!
As you may have seen, we have big fundraising ambitions this year and need your support to help us reach our $148,000 goal! Roadrunner Rally is one of 2 major fundraisers for this school-year and is your opportunity to donate and help fund some of the amazing opportunities the PTA creates for our school.
Suggested RRR donation is $150 per child, but any and all donations are appreciated!
Please donate today: roadrunnerrally.hellofund.io
Traffic Help!
by Aaron Peckham, School Counselor by day (traffic hero by morning)
Fami-Lee before we get to Mr. Peckham's ask, can I just say that this is an honest to goodness urgent need. Mr. Peckham NEEDS a partner(s) to share the load with!
THE ASK
We need 1-2 people from 7:15-7:40 M-F to collaboratively direct traffic and cross students/parents in the morning. Can you volunteer any number of days throughout the year to either stand with Aaron and direct traffic or to partner with another volunteer to do this? Any adult able to wear a brightly colored vest and hold up a STOP sign will be a vast improvement over the current situation which is dangerous and unsustainable. The goal is to always have two people working the traffic so you will NOT be alone.
THE REASON
Drop off at Russell Lee requires hundreds of children to be dropped off in a 25 minute time period, and there is only one four way intersection (Harris/Hampton) by which parents can access drop off zones for the school. Without a traffic director in that intersection, cars and pedestrians must coordinate safe crossing, which directions to turn, and negotiate with neighbors that are not dropping off.
A few years ago, former principal John Hewlett began to direct traffic during drop off- this improved parents’ ability to access dropoff zones in a safe and timely manner. However, after John Hewlett left the school there became a need for another person to step in and perform the same function. Aaron Peckham, our school counselor, has been filling this volunteer role for the last two years. For the second half of last year, Mr. Hewlett was able to come back and volunteer his time in the morning to assist with directing traffic in the morning in addition to Mr. Peckham. This collaboration resulted in the quickest, safest, and most efficient dropoff pattern that the school has had in years.
When Mr. Peckham is the only person directing traffic in a four way intersection, it is overwhelming and unsafe for Mr. Peckham, people crossing the road, and drivers dropping off children.
When there are two people actively directing traffic, there are enough eyes to monitor all four crosswalks and all four roads simultaneously. By placing the “left turn only” sign in the center of the intersection and positioning one person on each side of the sign, it is significantly safer and easier to monitor both car and foot traffic effectively.
You might be wondering why the crossing guard can't help... they aren't trained for this. We need 2 people dedicated each morning to directing traffic.
Traffic flow chart:
We are working on sharing this call for help and traffic flow with local neighborhood community newsletters/boards so if you have a connection please let us know.
OTHER WAYS TO HELP:
Call 311 or use their online form to ask for a 4-way traffic stop at the intersection of Hampton & Harris. (I did this today and it was very easy but the more people that call the more seriously they will take our need!)
Lee Merch - Limited Edition
Limited edition t-shirts are available on pre-order now! Grab yours while you can! There are three designs:
Yellow classic, grey classic, & navy blue & red '23-'24 school shirt design
Pre Order deadline 8/30
Pickup Week of 9/23
Kids Shirts $15
Adult Shirts $20
FALL CARNIVAL NEEDS YOU
The Fall Carnival team is meeting on Saturday at 10am @ Central Market. We're looking for core volunteers to help lead up making Carnival happen. Join the team and spread the word to your community!
Have a teenager that needs volunteer hours? Do you love decorating haunted houses, selling t-shirts, handing out cotton candy, etc... we have a job for you! No volunteer job is too small!
questions : fundraising@russellleepta.org
OTHER WAYS TO HELP: email Wyeth at fundraising@russellleepta.org to join our local business outreach team for donations, sponsorship, and support
Shop with Lee...and never visit Lost&Found
Purchase labels with Mabels Labels and you won't have to visit Lost & Found! AND the school recieves a portion of the proceeds. It's a win-win!
Visit campaigns.mabelslabels.com and search for Lee Elementary
Shop with Lee: Minted
Shop with Lee! Minted offers year-long discount of 20% off their products (get those holiday cards early!) and a portion of the proceeds are donated back to the school.
Use code: FUNDRAISERUSSELLLEE
Library Lines
by Mrs. Day
Great second week this week.
All Chromebooks distributed!
All Classes came to the library for a brief intro and check out. Please check with your child about what day they came to the library. That will be their library day. Everybody comes to the library every week, so library books are due on the same day every week. Students may still renew the books, but please help your child remember to return their library books on the correct day.
Summer Reader Celebration is Friday Afternoon!
75 students turned in their reading log and got to celebrate.
Our top readers were Nethra G (4th gr) with 18,900 minutes, Joe V. (5th gr) with 16,608 minutes, and Maple Norwood (4th gr) with 14,329 minutes.
Congratulations to all our readers!!
Lee News from ART & PE
Ms. Wilborn and Coach Wyss both sent out Konstella newsletters so check those out. They both shared this year's calendar that shows when your Roadrunner will be in which Special as well as other relevant information.
Roadie Work Day
September 14 | 9-12
Looking for a 1-day volunteer commitment? Roadie Workday is coming up on September 14th from 9-12. This is your chance to paint walls, rake leaves, do minor repairs, hang posters, etc... Our Roadie Chair, John Hewlett will walk the school grounds to see what looks to be in disrepair that we can handle and also work with teachers and staff to identify small jobs around the building and we'll tackle as many of them as we can in a few hours. FYI kids and helpers of all skill levels are welcome to participate!
Walk-ins welcome but signing up helps us plan for projects!
Room Rep
Room Reps are caregivers who act as a liaison for the teacher, administration, exec board, and other key stakeholders. They relay timely information to other caregivers while creating and fostering community through communication and chat groups. This person will also support the teacher in planning and executing classroom parties and activities along with other room reps in the same grade.
Classes still in need of volunteers
4th Rolling
5th Hernandez
6th Price
Room Rep Orientation will be on September 9th so please don't delay!
Questions? email communications@russellleepta.org
Membership Minute
Did you know that students can be PTA members, too?! Your kiddo can make a difference in our community and our school through involvement in the PTA.
The first 15 students that join get a FREE kids meal from Dish Society!
Volunteer Highlight
A special thank to our Roadies Committee Chair John Hewlett. He is leading the effort this school-year to keep our campus beautiful.
The number of programs, projects, events, etc that are run on volunteers is nearly immeasurable and also essential. Thank you to everyone that takes the time to do something extra and thank you to John for coming back in his FINAL year as a Lee parent to take on the Roadies!
Lost & Found Updates
Fami-Lee - gentle reminder to label your Roadrunner's items! There are already a few things on the Lost & Found shelves this week! Please also remind your roadrunner to stop by the L&F shelves in the 2nd grade hallway to claim their lost items.
See images below! I included images BEFORE & AFTER our Lost & Found Chair, Saundra Edwards came through and organized everything to showcase what a huge difference volunteers make to our entire school! Now, it is so much easier for your Roadrunners to easily find their missing items. Want to volunteer? let us know!
Lee Calendar
August & September Calendars
9/1 @ 8PM - Lee Clubs Registration opens!
sign up link will be sent out closer to registration
9/2 - NO SCHOOL - Labor Day
9/5 @ 6-7pm - Back to School Night
For caregivers to learn about the year's procedures, expectations & curriculum from their student's classroom teacher. Details will be provided by the school leadership team.
9/9 @ 6-7PM - Room Rep Orientation
9/14 @ 9-12PM - ROADIE WORK DAY
9/17 @ 3:30-4:30 PM - CAC meeting - Lee Library
9/20 @ 8-9AM - PTA Membership Meeting eLee Library
Arrive early for coffee & mingling
9/23-9/27 @ TEACHING ASSISTANT APPRECIATION WEEK
9/25 @ Chuy's Mueller - Lee Spirit Night! ***NEW
details to come
9/26 during morning arrival - ROADRUNNER RALLY COFFEE CHAT
9/27 @5-7PM - Loteria Night @Lee Cafeteria
9/28 - Parking Lot Fundraiser eLee Parking lots
9/30-10/4 - CUSTODIAN APPRECIATION WEEK
Exec Meeting!
We held our first Exec Board meeting! Thank you Cornucopia for the gift of snacks! And thank you Mrs. Day for allowing us to use the Library after hours. Our first meeting ran long and we had a few folks that had to join via zoom but as always we are happy and eager to dedicate our time and efforts to supporting Lee. Warm welcome also to our Substitute Principal Placker and teacher reps, Diego Rincon (Essential Areas), & Patricia Draughn (3rd-6th).
Have a question & don't know who to ask, reach out to anyone on the Exec Board and we'll do our best to point you in the right direction.
Jessica Hoffman, President
Jillian DeLaTorre Copeland, Vice President
Clarissa Peña, Vice President of Communications
Simone Harlow, Vice President of Educational Enrichment
Wyeth Slagle, Vice President of Fundraising
Sarah Farrell, Vice President of Membership
Elise Price, Treasurer
Selena Melancon, Historian
Diana Cruz, Secretary
Kristy Orr, Parliamentarian
Principal's Coffee
We had a great turnout for the 1st Principal's coffee of the year with our Substitute Principal Mrs. Placker.
One of the biggest topics today was Mr. Peckham's impassioned speech calling for volunteers to help with the morning traffic issue. Thank you to all the people in the room willing to show support and hopefully sign up to volunteer on one or more days. We'll organize a more official sign up and send it out in the coming days. For now if you want to join Mr. Peckham on any day just let him know.
Another big topic was Lunch Recess and where it went... Principal Placker can share more about the school's need to satisfy certain AISD policies and also our lack of sufficient staff to monitor outdoor lunch recess but know that many options have been considered and the door is not closed entirely to change. But the challenge is real and needs thoughtful consideration and commitment.
For anyone currently interested in volunteering for lunch duty held in the cafeteria - a formal sign up for volunteering will go out but feel free to also email Mrs. Placker.
For potential future outdoor recess volunteering - if this becomes a possibility, a formal sign up will be circulated.
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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