Weekly Blog 1/16

Dear Wines Families,

There are a number of important pieces of information this week. Sorry for the long message!

Mark Your Calendars
• January 21st: No school in honor of the Dr. Martin Luther King holiday.
• January 22nd: We will have our annual MLK celebration at 1:30. Every student will participate. All are welcome (please note that parent seating will be extremely limited).
• January 29th: No school for students. (This is a professional development day for staff. This date was not on the original PTO calendar sent home earlier this year).
• January 31st: International Night (More information later in this message).
• February 11th: Parent Involvement Day (More information and an invitation coming soon. We hope to see all parents for at least part of the day).

School Security
At the PTO meeting last night, I discussed the current safety procedures in place at Wines in the wake of the tragedy in Connecticut. While we have not made any large changes, we have made some small changes and we have reviewed and “tightened” our existing procedures. You have likely noticed that only one front door is open during the day. That door can be locked from the office with the push of a button. In addition, all interior doors are now kept locked so they can be easily closed and secured in the event of a lock down. Please be sure to ALWAYS have a visitor badge on when you are in the building—even if you are a regular volunteer. I have been asked many times about the possibility of installing a camera at the front door and keeping the door locked at all times. This is something the school district is looking into.

International Night
International Night is coming!  On Thursday, January 31, Wines will host a fun and informative event showcasing the many cultures of the Wines community. We need students to create and present projects, parents to assist with cultural crafts and activities, young performers to entertain with multi-cultural acts, and everyone involved to contribute their favorite ethnic dishes for an international buffet! Please sign up online at www.SignUpGenius.com/go/20F0C4FAFAA2EAA8-volunteers. Please contact Shireen Syed (shisy786@yahoo.com) or Annemarie Dolan (akilburndolan@comcast.net) with any questions.

Girls on the Run-Spring 2013
Registration is now open for Girls on the Run for Spring 2013. Our Wines site is almost full, unless we can get more coaches. If you want to sign your daughter up, please add her to the waitlist at Rec and Ed and complete the registration on the GOTR website. If we can find two more full-time coaches (parents, grandparents, family friends, high school or college students), we can accommodate more girls at our site. Please contact Jennifer Hall at a2halls@gmail.com or (734) 213-6037 if you are interested. Registration fees for daughters of coaches are waived by GOTR. Spring session starts March 12. The Wines team meets on Tuesdays and Thursdays after school until 5:30. Open to girls in grades 3-5. Come join the fun!

Thanks!

David