Debra St. Hilaire or “Ms. Saint” as she is known at the high school is our May employee of the month. Ms. Saint has worked for the Fern Ridge School District since 2008. In her own words here is some insight into this deserving educator:
Of all the adventures experienced in life, the most life changing and cherished is my son. Henrik transformed me the moment he was born, I knew him as though he’d been in my life for eons. He has allowed me to love deeper and more completely than I could ever have imagined while bringing me endless joy! At 22, Henrik’s a reflective and conscientious young man being true to himself in finding his path. Initially enrolled in Astro-Physics at UCLA, he’s completed two years of medical work at a hospital and clinic, and contributed to three medical research studies. He competed in cycling, Judo, picked up bouldering, and bought himself a violin to “stretch” himself, eventually performing with UCLA’s Game Orchestra. Henrik graduates in June with majors in Economics and French. He loves the challenge of programming and data crunching and we have our fingers crossed that he lands his dream ‘gap year’ job at Rand Corporation in Los Angeles.
Things that make me ‘tick’… crisp air on my face while the rest of me remains warm. I love snow, sun, hiking, cycling, extended meandering walk-a-bouts and animal trails that get me lost within familiar territory, cross-country skiing, and road tripping with the flexibility to change routes or destination or pace. I’m addicted to designing and remodeling my home, and having my own tools so I can complete projects without hiring them out. I forgive myself when I make mistakes and take the freedom to laugh at them as I learn. I love sleeping under the stars on my roof every night of summer!
What Elmira students give to me is complete and unexpected. These kids bring me so much joy that I literally tear up when talking about them to others. They are ‘present’ and real, and supportive of each other in spite of differences. They have made my life incredibly full and I love soaking up their energy and innocence. When I describe what I do to friends, it feels as though I’m talking about ‘playtime’ because I get to have so much fun while guiding and tricking students into learning. Teaching these kids is by far the most rewarding, challenging and satisfying of all my professions, and I am profoundly fortunate! Thank you for sharing your kids with me.
A public meeting of the Budget Committee of the Fern Ridge School District 28J, Lane County, State of Oregon, to discuss the budget for the fiscal year July 1, 2019 to June 30, 2020, will be held at the District Administration Office at 88834 Territorial Rd in Elmira, Oregon. The meeting will take place on Tuesday May 21, 2019 at 6:30 PM. The purpose of the meeting is to receive the budget message and to receive comments from the public on the budget. This is a public meeting where deliberation of the Budget Committee will take place. Any person may appear at the meeting and discuss the proposed programs with the Budget Committee. A copy of the budget document may be inspected or obtained on or after May 8, 2019 at the District Administration Office, between the hours of 8:00 AM and 4:00 PM. This notice and more information about the budget can be found at www.fernridge.k12.or.us.
FRSD schools will remain open on Wednesday, May 8th.
Dear Fern Ridge families,
Many of you may have heard reports regarding some Lane County School Districts being closed on May 8th. In Fern Ridge, schools will remain open.
The Oregon Education Association has called upon its members to make May 8th a “Day of Action” to advocate for legislative action to significantly invest in K-12 education so that Oregon schools have adequate resources to serve all students. Union’s planned activities include many districts participating in one-day teacher strikes (“walkouts”). In Fern Ridge our teachers and union leadership have elected to participate in this Day of Action in a way that is least disruptive to families and student learning time.
Our teacher union leadership has been transparent and communicating with me the last few weeks regarding their planning, and I recently have been informed that teachers that participate will be “walking out” after students are released on Wednesday, May 8th. This type of action shows their support for the larger “Day of Action”, while being least disruptive to our students and families.
The missed hours of work/professional development time will be unpaid strike time for teachers, or they must take a ½ day of their personal leave. The Fern Ridge School District and I share our teacher’s goal of convincing the Oregon Legislature to make a significant investment in education to provide smaller class sizes, more learning time, increased health and safety services and a well-rounded education. However, the district does not endorse or condone walkouts that disrupt the work day.
I have been informed that during this walkout many of our licensed staff will be at the corner of Territorial Highway and 126 sharing positive signs regarding supporting students and increased K-12 funding to serve all students.
If additional information becomes available, or something changes, we will communicate immediately with our families.
A big thank you to all of the Fern Ridge School District Secretaries! At VES, Lorie Haffner and Jessica Alansky, at FRMS Tammy Eutsler and Casey Anderson, at EES Dawn Northey and Brie Scriber, at EHS Tammy Boren, at the District Office Michelle Cook and in Special Education Mary Griswold. We all appreciate everything you do for the students, parents and staff in the Fern Ridge School District.
Congratulations to the 2018-2019 Fern Ridge School District Distinguished Service Award Recipients!
Awards will be presented in the cafeteria of Elmira High School on Thursday, April 18 at 7:00 pm
Daniel Kallio: Volunteer ~ Julie Cross: Classified Employee
Cameron Siegal: Educator ~ Jeff Thiessen: Confidential Employee
Paige Reichenberger: Emerging Future First Citizen
Paul Ossowski: Future First Citizen
Riley Chambers: Community Builder
There is no school for students on Friday, April 5 due to a teacher workday.
Have a great weekend!
Mark your calendars for May 30th and join us for a 3K Family Fun Run/Walk followed by a taco bar and health information fair! This event is sponsored by Coordinated Approach to Child Health (CATCH) and will be held at Elmira Elementary School.
More information on registration will be posted soon.
Join us for the Ultimate Falcon Pageant this Friday evening at 7:00pm in the Elmira High School main gym. Ultimate Falcon is a fundraiser that benefits both Mid-Lane Cares and the Elmira High School Booster Club.
Tickets can be purchased from any Ultimate Falcon competitor for $10 or you can purchase a ticket at the door for $12.
Tickets for students, children and over 65 are $8 each.
In September of 2012 Fern Ridge was fortunate to hire Billie Perrier as a classroom teacher at Elmira Elementary School. She and Kevin Perrier have been married for 12 years and together they have two daughters. Kenna is almost 3 and Tessa just celebrated her first birthday!
Mrs. Perrier has taught both Kindergarten and First grade at EES. Her passion for teaching and willingness to collaborate with peers is evident each and every day.
She is active in the Rural Schools Network Professional Development and is a Teacher-Leader with the Professional Learning Communities Initiative. She strives to create a safe and welcoming learning environment in her classroom for all of her students and has excellent classroom management skills. Her principal let us know that Mrs. Perrier is always looking to improve and often volunteers for extra activities such as serving on the reading committee, being a teacher representative on the EES Parent-Teacher Association and has worked on multiple grants for the school.
When asked what her favorite part of her job is, Mrs. Perrier replied, “Every day I walk into a room full of love and smiles plus I get to work with incredible people. It is truly an honor to be a first grade teacher, I get the privilege of teaching children how to read, which is magical.”
Mrs. Perrier’s love of teaching and dedication to her students help make Elmira Elementary an even better place for all students and staff. Congratulations Mrs. Perrier!
Now that the snow and ice have melted, our district is focusing on the impact the four snow days had on student learning.
The school calendar was revised to restore two school days in June. School will be in session on June 17 and the final day for students will be June 18. At this time, the calendar for Seniors remains the same and graduation will take place on June 7.
The Fern Ridge School Board unanimously approved the calendar revisions during their March 18 meeting. These changes will be updated to the district website calendar later today.
Thank you to our families for your flexibility as we work to ensure that we are providing as much learning time as we can for our students.