Lea Express for Friday, October 4

Posted on October 22, 2019
Categories: Lea Express

 

SCHOOL EVENTS & ACTIVITIES

There was no Lea Express last Friday. Please review the updates below for this week:  

Leveling Updates
Due to the large number of students enrolled in 4th and 7th grades, we have added an additional section in each of those grades.  The families of 4th grade students should have received a letter this past Wednesday. The families of 7th grade students will receive a letter today.  If you have any additional questions, please contact the main office at (215)400-7660.

Pretzel Sales!
Pretzel sales have resumed!  Pretzels will be sold each Wednesday and cost $1.  Please be sure to send money in with your students if you’d like them to have a pretzel treat.

Mock Interviews for 7th & 8th Grades
Next Friday, we’ll have Mock Interviews for our 7th and 8th grade students to practice interviewing skills and prepare our 8th graders, in particular, for High School interviews.  Please ask your 7th and 8th grade students to come to school dressed professionally and prepared to participate!

Interim Reports
Interim Reports for Quarter 1 will be sent home between Tuesday, October 22nd and Thursday, October 24th.  Please be sure to check your student’s book bag on those dates.

Picture Day
Picture Day forms for Kindergarten through 7th grades were sent home this week.  Forms for our 8th grade students will be sent home next week. Please check with your students and complete the forms.  Picture Day is on Wednesday, October 23rd.

AFTER-SCHOOL PROGRAM INFORMATION

Afterschool Program Enrollment
This school year, Lea will have the following after-school program options for our families:

  1. Grades (K-4): Lea University-Assisted Community School (UACS)
    The UACS after-school program for students in Grades K-4 started programming on Monday, 9/16. Families can contact the UACS Director, Arttia Watts, at 215-435-0314, lea-nettercenter@sas.upenn.edu, or visit her in Room L-4 for enrollment information.
  2. Grades (5-8): Lea University-Assisted Community School (UACS) Sports Program
    The UACS after-school program is also offering a sports-focused program for students in Grades 5-8. UACS started programming on Monday, 9/16. Families can contact the UACS Director, Arttia Watts, at 215-435-0314, lea-nettercenter@sas.upenn.edu, or visit her in Room L-4 for enrollment information.NOTE: Grades 5-8 students must choose between the UACS Sports and PAEP STEAM programs–they CANNOT enroll in both programs.
  3. Grades (5-8): Philadelphia Arts in Education Partnership (PAEP) STEAM Program
    The PAEP after-school program is a STEAM-focused program (science, technology, engineering, arts, and math) for students in Grades 5-8. PAEP will start programming on Wednesday, 10/2. Enrollment packets for the PAEP after-school program are available in the Main Office. Contact Ms. Evans (taevans@philasd.org), Mr. Brown (antbrown001@gmail.com), or Mr. Rich (rjliuzzi@gse.upenn.edu) with any questions.NOTE: Grades 5-8 students must choose between the PAEP STEAM and UACS Sports programs–they CANNOT enroll in both programs.
  4. Extracurricular Clubs (“EC Clubs”)
    After-school extracurricular clubs sponsored and led by Lea teachers will start programming in October. Enrollment packets for extracurricular clubs are available in the Main Office or from the teacher sponsors of each club.NOTE: Students CAN enroll in an EC Club and one of the after-school program (PAEP STEAM or UACS Sports) as long as they maintain consistent attendance with both their after-school program (PAEP STEAM or UACS Sports) and their EC Club.

FAMI-LEA INFORMATION

School Advisory Council (SAC)
The Lea SAC met on Wednesday 9/18 from 4:30-6:00 pm in the Lea Library. Our focus continues to be advocacy for Lea’s many needs with regard to resources. Most urgent is the question of facilities. With 580 students currently in the building, facilities issues–with plumbing, roof leaks, lead and asbestos abatement, building security and accessibility, and a continued lack of air conditioning in some classrooms–take on a particular sense of urgency. We heard that Principal Savage is in conversation with senior SDP leadership regarding these problems, and the SAC will be organizing among parents to bring attention and action to these issues.

On the staffing front, in the classrooms, the leveling process has been completed. This year we are likely to gain teaching staff, although it seems that we will not gain enough to address overcrowding in classrooms, particularly in 7th grade. We also heard that due to district-wide staffing problems, we will not have enough crossing guards, with our 47th and Locust intersection not considered unsafe enough to warrant one. Parking for teachers continues to be a problem, and we were frustrated to hear that the SDP was unwilling to move forward on accepting a generous offer of free parking from a neighbor due to liability issues.

The SAC also discussed our ongoing mission and priorities, especially with the upcoming comprehensive facilities review being conducted by the School District. We intend to be an active voice in these discussions, and make sure that we lift up parents’ and families’ voices around issues of equity and a fair distribution of resources for all of West Philadelphia neighborhood public schools. Please get in touch with any member of the SAC if you have ideas or would like to be more involved.

Our next meeting will be on Wednesday, October 16, at 4:30pm in the school library. All Lea parents, guardians, and family members are welcome to attend SAC meetings!

2019-2020 SAC meeting dates: 2019: 10/16, 11/13, 12/11 | 2020: 1/8, 2/12, 3/11, 4/1, 5/6, 6/3

Home & School Association (HSA)
On Tuesday, 9/17 from 3:30-4:30 pm in Room 106, the Home and School Association (HSA) held their first monthly meeting of the school year. Many thanks to the parents and guardians who joined us for the meeting!

This year, HSA communication will be centered around Class Dojo and our Facebook group (https://www.facebook.com/leaschoolhsa/). We’ve organized ourselves into 4 committees that support our students, our families, our staff, and our community:

  1. For our students, we are organizing a new Lea shirt design competition! Submissions were due October 2, and the Lea community will vote which one should be this year’s shirt. We are also working with Mrs. Clarke to stock the Lea Store with goodies from the funds we’ve raised with Scholastic during our annual book fair. This year’s book fair will be held the week of 11/18!
  2. For our families, we continue to collect gently-used uniform donations in all sizes for student use. Also, this fall, we will be introducing a new cool-weather Lea-branded item for purchase, so be on the lookout for the preorder information soon!
  3. For our staff, we are still trying to help solve the lack of a parking lot! This has been a very complicated process and is ongoing. Also, we are encouraging students and families to recognize our facilities staff on October 2 for National Custodian Appreciation Day!
  4. For our community, we are asking for more crossing guards at arrival and dismissal hours. Keep an eye on our Facebook page for phone numbers and a helpful script to advocate for the safety of our children!

Our next meeting is Tuesday, 10/15 at 3:30 pm in Room 106 (monthly HSA meetings are held on the 3rd Tuesday of every month). If you have ideas or questions about how to get involved in the meantime, email us at leahomeandschool@gmail.com!

2019-2020 HSA meeting dates: 2019: 10/15, 11/19, 12/17 | 2020: 1/21, 2/18, 3/17, 4/21, 5/19

Volunteering at Lea
If you are a parent, guardian, or family member of a Lea student and you wish to volunteer at the school (including chaperoning field trips), you are required to attend a mandatory Volunteer Orientation Training with our Family & Community Engagement Liaison, Mr. Brown (antbrown001@gmail.com) and Community Partnerships Coordinator, Mr. Rich (rjliuzzi@gse.upenn.edu). The remaining training dates are as follows:

  1. Friday, 11/22/19, from 1:00-3:00 pm
  2. Friday, 1/24/20, from 1:00-3:00 pm

Academic Parent Teacher Teams (APTT)
This school year, Lea will be continuing the Academic Parent Teacher Team (APTT) model for family and community engagement in Grades K-2! APTT (https://aptt.wested.org/) is a classroom-based, teacher-led, data-driven family engagement model focused on supporting children’s academic goals by linking home and school learning. Classroom teachers in grades K-2 will invite families to participate in three 75-minute group meetings and one 30-minute individual, family-child session during the school year.

The first of these APTT meetings for Grades K-2 will occur on Wednesday, 10/23 beginning at 4:00 pm. Childcare and snacks will be provided. More information is forthcoming, and we hope to see all of our Grades K-2 families on October 23rd!

Parenting Plus Café
Today, we held the first session of our Parenting Plus Café program, which is a free parent/guardian learning program and support group that includes parent learning and life skills training. The Parenting Plus Café is 12 weeks long (Oct 2019 – Dec 2019), and meets every Friday morning in the Lea Library from 8:30 – 10:30 am. Contact our Family and Community Engagement (FACE) Liaison, Mr. Brown (antbrown001@gmail.com), and/or the program facilitator, Ms. Denise (dalessan@devereux.org) with any questions.

Give Kids Sight Day
Does your child need glasses? The Eagles Eye Mobile will not be coming to Lea this school year like in years past, however, Give Kids Sight Day is coming up! Children under age 18 can receive free eye exams and 2 free pairs of eyeglasses on Saturday, 10/5 from 8:30 am – 1:00 pm at Jefferson Alumni Hall at 1020 Locust Street. For more info, see below and refer to: gksd@pccy.org, 215-563-5848 (ext:21), or https://www.pccy.org/resource/give-kids-sight-day/.