Pinewood Logo

August 28, 2020


Dear Pinewood Panther Families,

Welcome Back! I hope you are enjoying a wonderful summer. I also hope you are relaxed, recharged and you are ready to start a new school year. I am so delighted that you are part of our amazing learning community. I welcome and value your positive energy and dedication to excellence in education, and I look forward to partnering with you and your children, even if it is starting at a distance.

All signs point to an incredible and productive school year. Our skilled and devoted staff has been planning and preparing for your child(ren) all summer. Our new enthusiastic office team is registering families, ordering needed materials and updating student files. Our hard working and conscientious custodians have spent the spring and entire summer thoroughly cleaning our campus. And, our much-appreciated PTSA is gearing up to welcome families, provide volunteer opportunities, and offer online opportunities. We are indeed a joyous and caring community with the common goals of nurturing responsible, caring students and promoting high-level learning. The platform (brick and mortar or via online) doesn’t matter as our dedication to your child(ren) is foremost. 


Staffing

Each year brings change and this year is no different in that regard...except maybe just a little more change than usual. This includes a few additions to our staff. We are delighted to welcome several new members to our Pinewood family:

  • Marian Gonzales is our new assistant principal. She comes to us from Ketchikan, Alaska, where she served her community as a principal and educator. She will be at Pinewood on Mondays and Tuesdays.

  • Ruth O’Neill is our new office manager. She has been with Marysville and comes to us from the Equity, Diversity & Indian Education department.

  • Lynda Luikko is our new office assistant. She has been with Marysville and comes to us from Marysville Getchell. 

  • Michelle Parsons is our new psychologist. She has been with Marysville and is now returning to Pinewood. 

  • Cameron Hollenbeck is our new custodian. He has been with Marysville and comes to us from MMS and Quilceda. 

  • Jason Fallihee is our new P.E. teacher. He had left for a year and is now back! 

Each of our new staff members brings a solid skill set and has a deep devotion to our students and community. Please welcome them when you come by!  

We lost some valuable members of our teams well. Most were due to retirement and new opportunities: Office Manager Mary Gadwa; Office Assistant Karen Dickson; Teachers Tom Pollino, Margo Lawrence, Marji White, and Leo Clapp;  Custodians Bruce Johnson and Adam Mandas; Psychologist Kelley Whitener. Additionally we have several paraeducators and kitchen staff that have been furloughed and we hope to bring them back when our students return!  For a complete list of staff please visit our Pinewood website.


Facilities Update

Our facilities are old, but well cared for and safety is always a priority when we make improvements. First, we repainted our parking lot area to better delineate parking, drop-off and student walking spaces and lanes. We have chosen not to redo our parking lot as it would not improve the flow nor would it increase parking spaces. This would not be a good use of taxpayers' money. We put new roofs on several portable classrooms, redid our indoor speaker system and added speakers outside. We also painted a majority of our classrooms. 

Due to COVID19, we added hand-washing stations throughout the campus, have upgraded our HVAC filters and will change them more often, teachers have personal protection equipment on hand, and we are setting our classrooms up  for social distancing with the hopes of students returning sooner than later. Lastly, our custodial staff is constantly cleaning all touchpoints. 

Student Placement

A great deal of time, effort and thought is going into the process of student placement for the 2020-2021 school year. We met all summer with district leaders, administration, staff and families to make sure Continuous Learning 2.0 is focused on essential standards and all schools are aligned. We will use Google Classroom as our platform and Zoom as our video conferencing tool. 

We know you are excited to find out who your child(ren)’s teacher is. With some families attending Marysville Online (the complete yearlong online home-schooling option in partnership with Edgenuity), we are double checking our class lists to make sure they are each balanced academically and socially. Therefore, we have asked teachers to not reach out yet. 


Family-Teacher Conferences/Soft Start

Your child(ren)’s teacher will reach out to you on Thursday, September 3, via email inviting you to sign up for a family-teacher conference through your student’s Google Classroom. The District will be turning on Skyward and Clever (which is how you access your student’s Google Classroom) on September 3rd. In your student’s Google Classroom there will be a Google form sign-up sheet with times to meet during what we are calling our “soft start.”  These family-teacher conferences will be held on September 9, 10, and 11. This is a time to build relationships and find out your needs, as well as a time for you to ask questions/get clarifications. 

The second week of school, September 14 through September 18 will be a week of building community, as well as learning expectations, norms, and class rules. Students will also learn about the on-line tools and schedules. True academics will start on September 21. 


School Supplies 

The school supply list per grade-level is on our Pinewood website. Please purchase supplies if you can. However, if you cannot we will have a basic package for you to pick up during our “soft start”, September 9, 10, and 11. The school supplies will be handed out in a drive-by fashion from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., and again from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m., each day. This will include: 

  • 2 pencils

  • notebook paper

  • glue sticks

  • crayons

  • colored pencils

  • scissors

  • highlighter 

  • spiral notebook or composition book 

  • Erasers

  • Whiteboard, eraser, dry erase marker 

Your teacher may have additional items, like curriculum, to provide you with and you will get those items at the soft start (September 9, 10, 11).  Your teacher will communicate with you if they will be providing these additional items to you in person at your family-teacher conference or if you will need to pick these additional items up out in front of the gym/cafeteria from Mr. Fallihee and Mr. Busby. This might be the case if you are Zooming with your teacher as opposed to a face-to-face.


Chromebooks

The District has enough Chromebooks for students in third through twelfth grade. They ordered additional ones over the summer, but so did everyone else. They are scheduled to be here next week but our technology department will need time to tag them and prepare them. Therefore, we are hopeful that students in kindergarten through second can use a family member’s device. If not, please alert your teacher during your conference time. 

If you already have a Chromebook for your student(s), regardless of grade, that is great. Please keep using them. If they break or need any kind of care, contact the district office, 360.965.0200 or email after hours at chromebook-help@msvl.k12.wa.us.  

If you need a Chromebook for your third through fifth grade you can pick one up at Pinewood during our soft start, September 9, 10 and 11, from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. and again from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.  Just simply come into the gym/cafeteria to do the paperwork.

If you need a Chromebook for your kindergartener through second grade, please be patient with us and we will let you know when the deployment will happen. Again, please alert your teacher during your family-teacher meeting that you will schedule via Google Classroom once your teacher notifies you on September 3rd. 


Getting Ready/What You Can Do

As you prepare for school here are some things you can do to get your students ready:

  • Develop a consistent schedule for bedtime and the school day

  • Discuss expectations around school work

  • Set up a study space away from distractions and one that allows your student(s) to keep all their supplies in one spot

  • Teach your child(ren) how to be a self-advocate and ask for help when it is needed and/or speak up when they are confused

We are excited to partner with you this school year. ALL of our staff are committed to working hard to make school a positive experience for EACH student, and this year is no different in that regard. Pinewood is eagerly looking forward to enriching your child’s life. 

Better Together Always,

Mica Harasek

Pinewood Principal