NewsFlash | Skate Party Tonight, Last Call for JYJ Spirit Wear, and Library Volunteers Needed

Posted on by Cyndi O'Neil

Remember! Registration for TEK clubs is this morning, Wednesday, in the JYJ Media Center at 8 a.m. Fall TEK Clubs will run for six Wednesdays from Oct. 18 – Nov. 29. Cost is $135.

 

Last Call for Joyner Spirit Wear!

Order now and hide it away for the holidays! THIS FRIDAY is the last day for Joyner Spirit Wear orders and this is the only Jagwear sale for the school year. Click to view the options: short-sleeved tee, long-sleeved tee, and sweatshirt. You can click here to download an order form.

Library Volunteers Needed – Sign Up Here

Love books, love kids? This is the volunteer opportunity for you! Ms. Hale is helping out with the morning news so she needs extra help in the library during the morning rush. Ideally this means a daily volunteer between 8:00 and 8:30 to help the kids get their books checked out. Go here to sign up.

She could also use help checking in books and getting them back on the shelves. Books can be checked in and shelved anytime during the day. Even 15 minutes can make a big impact. Please drop in when you have a few minutes — no need to sign up for helping out with shelving books.

 

Spirit Night at United Skates of America TONIGHT

Come on out tonight and show us your moves! Joyner is having a Skate Party at United Skates (2901Trawick Rd Raleigh) tonight, Sept. 27, from 6-8:30. p.m. Admission is $3.50, skate rentals are $3.50, and 100% of admission proceeds go back to the Joyner PTA.

 

Teacher and Staff Appreciation This Friday – Updated Link

Apologies for the broken link last week – please click here to find out what staff members your child’s class will be appreciating this year.

For those new to Joyner this year, rather than appreciating our teachers and staff only once a year, we provide lots of opportunities to tell them how fabulous we think they are! Every early release day is also a Teacher and Staff Appreciation Day, and each one will have a fun theme. Click here for the full year of themes (but don’t worry — we’ll give you a heads-up as they come).

The first early release of the year is this Friday, Sept. 29. The theme is Our future is so bright, we gotta wear shades! Students can use a yellow theme and write what they love about Joyner.

 

Please Be Safe at Morning Drop Off

A friendly reminder from our neighbors: The alley beside the townhouses directly across from the school on Lowden Street is a private alley. Joyner parents should not park there to drop off in the morning or use it as a cut-through. Many of us will remember the terrible incident last year when a dog was hit. Students may also be using that alley to walk to school. Please be safe!

 

Support Joyner with Your State Fair Ticket Purchase

Here’s yet another way your family can support Joyner and have fun doing it! Buy your State Fair tickets online in advance of the fair and use Joyner’s school code. The State Fair will donate $2 to the school for every adult ticket purchased using Joyner’s code and $1 for every child ticket.

To buy your tickets, click here, then enter 456 under “Membership” at check-out. For Joyner to benefit, you must purchase your tickets online in advance of the Fair, by Thursday, Oct. 12.

Odyssey of the Mind Application is Live

The online application for Odyssey of the Mind is now live, through next Monday, Oct. 2. Click here to learn about this year’s “problems” and here to apply. If you weren’t able to attend the informational meeting, email joynerom@gmail.com with any questions about the program.

 

Impact of Smaller Class Size Legislation on Joyner – Update

We received some questions this week about the impact of the class size legislation on Joyner students. To our understanding, current Joyner magnet and transfer students would not be affected by the strategies proposed to reduce Joyner’s enrollment. In future years, there may be fewer magnet slots offered to incoming students, and there may be no new transfer students accepted at the school. Click here for more details from Wake County Public Schools.

How can I share feedback?

You can share your feedback on our public discussion forum. There are comment threads related to each of the new schools and other proposed assignment changes. Please provide feedback in the appropriate section.
WCPSS staff and school board members will be monitoring this feedback and considering ways it might be included in the proposal. Questions will be answered in an FAQ that we will post on the feedback site. WCPSS will also hold two public information sessions: Oct. 6 at Holly Grove Middle School, 1401 Avent Ferry Road, Holly Grove, and  Oct. 9 at the future South Garner High School campus, 8228 Hebron Church Road, Garner. Doors will open at 6 p.m.; the meeting will start at 6:30 p.m.

What is the timeline? 

After reviewing all parent feedback gathered online and at public meetings, WCPSS staff will make adjustments to the proposal. These will be reflected in Draft 2 of the proposal, which will be presented to the Board of Education on Oct. 17. The board will discuss the proposal at one or more meetings in October and November. They will also hold a public hearing about the proposal. We will announce the meeting dates on the discussion forum. The Board of Education will consider final changes before they vote on the final student enrollment plan in late November.

Why all the fuss? 

Joyner is one of 27 Wake County elementary schools whose enrollment may be limited, starting next year, because of a new state law that aims to lower class sizes for kindergarten through third grade. The class size legislation calls for K-3rd classrooms to average roughly 17 students by 2018, compared with an average of 21 children this past school year. In order to meet these new requirements, Wake County would need to create space for the equivalent of 559 classrooms and 9,500 students — or about 14 new schools.

While well-meaning (who doesn’t like smaller classes!?) the legislation is having some unforeseen consequences — like larger classes for 4th and 5th grades, more trailers, and converting art and music spaces into regular classroom space. And in 27 Wake County elementary schools, those steps won’t be enough. Wake County school administrators have proposed additional strategies in some schools, including Joyner, to reduce enrollment. The strategies proposed for Joyner include closing the school to transfers and reducing magnet slots. Click here for the list of all 27 schools and the proposed strategies.

Want to know more? Watch a recent episode of Education Matters about the coming impacts of the new class size legislation.

 

Kiwanis Park Volunteer Opportunity

Kiwanis Park is a huge asset to Joyner Elementary as we use it for recess, special events, field day and the 5th grade kickball game. There are exciting plans for a major renovation this year, but the funding has fallen a bit short. You can pledge to help by converting volunteer hours into savings for the project!

Joyner parent Jen Schrage is partnering with Kiwanis to help raise the additional needed funds via cash or volunteer pledges, and pledges must be in by October 1. Pledges to volunteer count at $23.56/hour. Go to  http://www.signupgenius.com/go/9040c4cabaa29a13-pledge to sign up or donate. Contact Jen at theschragefamily@yahoo.com with any questions.

 

Screenagers Showing at Hayes Barton Baptist

Hayes Barton Baptist Church will be hosting a showing of Screenagers for the community on Sunday, Oct. 1, at 6:00 p.m. (doors open at 5). Screenagers is about the impact of the digital age on children and how to help them minimize harmful effects and find balance. Childcare will be provided for children up to 3rd grade. Children 4th grade and older are encouraged to attend the screening with their parents. The event is free, but reservations are requested at http://www.HBBC.org/screeenagers.This is not a Joyner- or PTA-sponsored event.

 

Quick Links

Calendar Items

  • TONIGHT! Sept. 27: Joyner Spirit Night at United Skates of America, 6-8:30
  • Sept. 29: Early release and Teacher Appreciation
  • Oct. 6: Wake County public information session #1 on proposed enrollment changes, Holly Grove Middle School, 6:30 pm
  • Oct. 9: Wake County public information session #2, future South Garner High School campus, 8228 Hebron Church Road, Garner, 6:30 pm.
  • Oct. 13: Joyner Jamboree
  • Oct. 20: Early release and Teacher Appreciation
  • Oct. 31: Teacher workday (no school)
  • Nov. 9: Science-Go-Round
  • Nov. 10: Holiday (no school)
  • Nov. 16: JY Joyner Foundation Dance-a-Thon

The NewsFlash is produced (almost) every week by the Joyner PTA communications chair. Have an announcement to include in a future edition of the NewsFlash? Submit your article via this form. And don’t forget to follow us on Twitter @pta_joyner.

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