Principal's Newsletter
January 18, 2012
Dear Edison Families & Friends:
Happy New Year! I hope everyone had an enjoyable and
restful winter break. Students, staff and I are all happy
to be back and we are looking forward to continued
successes in 2012. I would like to congratulate Alicia
Allen and Pilar Estabrook on their recent election as
parent
representatives on our School Site Council for the
two-year term of January 2012-December 2013. Luis Mancia
has been elected as an alternate, as well. Congratulations
and thanks to them in advance for their service. Parents
are welcome to attend the public meetings. Please look for
meeting dates and agendas posted in the office or email me
with any questions.
Unfortunately,
California continues to face financial challenges. The
Governor has implemented mid-year cuts to this year’s
State budget to address the shortfall; however Torrance
Unified School District (TUSD) does not anticipate further
cuts this school year. While the Governor has called for
mid-year budget cuts, TUSD will utilize reserves to meet
our 2011-2012 financial commitments. We will have to
follow developments with the Governor’s proposal for the
2012 State Budget to determine how TUSD will be affected
in future school years. For additional information, you
can visit www.TUSD.org or www.cde.ca.gov.
The cuts have been deep over the last several years and have had a significant impact on programs throughout the District and at Edison. If you would like to help, there are many ways to support Edison in these tough times and some can be done without spending additional money. Click on the Fundraising link on the homepage of Edison’s website, www.EdisonElementary.org, for suggestions. Additionally, many employers have matching donation programs. You may also check with your children’s teachers for their wish list items and the office can always use unopened reams of copy paper (white, bright or pastel colors) and tissue. Thank you for your continued support!
If
you are not currently receiving weekly emails from me
regarding Edison news and events and would like to, please
email me with your name, your child’s name and your email
address. I will add you to our group list. It’s a great
day to be at Edison! Go forth Eagles and let’s make it a
great year…
Sincerely,
Dr. Lahr
Principal
elahr@tusd.org
Estimadas Familias y Amigos de Edison:
¡Feliz Año Nuevo! Espero que todos hayan disfrutado y descansado durante las vacaciones de invierno. Los estudiantes, el personal y su servidora estamos felices de estar de regreso y esperamos continuar con éxito este 2012. Me gustaría felicitar Alicia Allen y Pilar Estabrook en su reciente elección como padres representantes en nuestro Consejo Escolar para el periodo de dos años de enero 2012 a diciembre 2013. Luis Mancia ha sido elegido también para alternar. Felicidades y gracias a todos ellos de antemano por su servicio. Todos los padres son bienvenidos a asistir a las juntas públicas. Busquen las fechas de las juntas y las agendas en la oficina o envíenme un correo electrónico si tienen alguna pregunta.
Desgraciadamente, California sigue teniendo dificultades financieras. El gobernador ha implementado recortes de medio año a este presupuesto estatal anual con el fin de manejar el déficit; sin embargo, el Distrito Escolar Unificado de Torrance (TUSD) no anticipa más recortes este año escolar. Mientras el gobernador ha solicitado recortes en el presupuesto de medio año, el TUSD utilizará sus reservas para cumplir con los compromisos financieros de 2011-2012. Tendremos que ver lo que sucede con la proposición del gobernador del Presupuesto Estatal del 2012 para determinar de qué manera el TUSD será afectado en los futuros años escolares. Para información adicional, visite www.TUSD.org o www.cde.ca.gov.
Los
recortes han sido profundos durante los pasados
años y han tenido un impacto significativo en
programas por todo el Distrito y en Edison. Si le
gustaría ayudar, hay muchas maneras de apoyar a
Edison durante estos tiempos difíciles y algo se
puede hacer sin tener que gastar mucho dinero. Entre al
enlace de Fundraising (recaudación de fondos) en la
página principal del sitio web de Edison,
www.EdisonElementary.org, y haga sugerencias.
Además, muchos empleados tienen programas de
donación en común. También puede ver
la lista de artículos que necesita el maestro de su
hijo (a) y la oficina siempre podemos aceptar paquetes de
500 hojas de papel para copias (blanco, colores brillantes
o pastel) sin abrir, así como pañuelos
desechables. ¡Gracias por su continuo apoyo! Si
actualmente no está recibiendo cada semana correos
electrónicos de mi parte acerca de las noticias y
eventos de Edison y le gustaría recibirlos,
envíeme un correo electrónico con su nombre,
el nombre se su hijo (a) y su correo electrónico.
Lo agregaré a nuestra lista.
¡Es
un gran día para estar en Edison! Adelante
Águilas y hagamos de este un gran año….
Sinceramente,
Dr. Lahr
Directora
elahr@tusd.org
October 2012
Dear
Edison Families and Friends,
Congratulations are in order for Torrance Unified School
District (TUSD) Elementary Teacher of the Year, Mrs.
Branley, who teaches a first and second grade combination
class in Room 11. Mrs. Branley was honored at a TUSD
School Board of Education meeting on October 3rd and a PTA
Council luncheon on October 5th. We are fortunate to have
her as part of our faculty. Congratulations and thank you
Mrs. Branley!
Thanks to all of our families for returning registration
forms and emergency kits promptly this year. It was nice
to see many of you at Back-to-School Night. I hope you
enjoyed the evening and had a chance to hear about the
exciting plans your child’s teacher has underway. This
year opened smoothly with approximately 550 students
attending Edison. New this year is our move to Friday
assemblies in efforts to increase classroom instructional
time. We appreciate your support in bringing students to
school on time and leaving by the bell so that teachers
and students may begin their day promptly.
This month teachers and School Site Council members are
developing Edison’s Single Plan for Student Achievement.
We have reflected on last year’s progress toward school
goals and established new goals for academic growth.
Although, Edison had a slight drop in overall performance
as measured by California’s Academic Performance Index
(API) to 848, we are well above the State’s target of 800
with several grade levels and groups outperforming their
targets. We have much to be proud of as a school! To hear
more about Edison’s achievement, academic programs and
parental involvement goals, please attend Coffee with the Principal
on October 20, at 9 a.m. in the Café.
Safety and emergency preparedness are top priorities at
Edison. This month we will focus on fire prevention and
being prepared for earthquakes and other emergencies.
Fifth grade students will receive Basic Aid Training on
October 13th sponsored by the Torrance Fire Department.
Edison will participate in the “Great California Shake
Out” with an evacuation drill on October 20th, as well as
our own fire evacuation drill later in the month. Please
ensure that you have established an evacuation route and
meeting spot at home in the event of an emergency. October
is a good time to check the batteries in your smoke
detectors and replenish your emergency supplies. We are
doing the same at school and will practice evacuation
drills on a regular basis throughout the school year.
Save the date for two additional assemblies this month with Red Ribbon Week kicking off on Monday October 24th and our Halloween Parade on Monday, October 31st. More information will follow in the Wednesday Communication Packet and on the school website at www.EdisonElementary.org.
It’s
a great day to be at Edison. Go forth Eagles and have a
great month!
Sincerely,
Dr. Erin Lahr
Principal
September 2011
Dear
Edison Students and Families:
Welcome
to the start of the 2011-2012 school year at Edison
Elementary! I want to extend a warm welcome to all
returning parents and students, as well as new families
joining our school community. We are very lucky at
Edison to have both high quality teachers and support
staff who are well trained to make a positive difference
in your child’s life. They are experts in providing
a positive learning environment and balanced instructional
program to meet the physical, social, emotional and
academic needs of your child. Student learning will
continue to be our top priority, where all students
belong, have access to high quality instruction, and reach
their full potential.
At
Edison, we believe the education of your child is a
three-way partnership between the school, parent and
child. When families and the school work together, a
positive attitude about school is developed and children
tend to be more productive. We want to work closely
with you to ensure the success of your child. In
turn we ask that you do everything in your power to make
sure that your child arrives at school on time each day,
rested and ready to learn. With regular attendance
and working together we can make a powerful and positive
difference in the life of your child.
Please make note of the
Arrival Schedule:
8:20-8:50 a.m.
Cafeteria opens only for students purchasing breakfast
8:35-8:50 a.m.
Playgrounds open
Student
safety is a top priority at Edison and in efforts to
improve safety and security on campus we encourage
families to use the valet drop-off in the North High
parking lot. Please enter the valet line safely and
slowly when traveling east on 182nd Street. Do not
enter turning left from 182nd Street as this presents a
traffic hazard. Students having breakfast must
report directly to the Cafeteria with all materials and
backpacks. Students arriving at 8:35 a.m. may hang
up their backpacks at their classrooms and report directly
to the appropriate playground. Please refer to the
enclosed arrival and dismissal procedures for detailed
information, which are attached and found on our website
at www.EdisonElementary.org.
Our
Parent Teacher Association (PTA) is a very active group
and a key ingredient to our team effort in educating all
children. Parent volunteers assist staff by
volunteering in classrooms, helping to organize and
prepare materials, working in the library and by helping
raise funds to support our students. Our goal is to
have each child’s family become a member of the PTA.
We hope that if you are not yet a member of the PTA that
you will join this year, get involved and enjoy the
journey with us. Thank you in advance for your
support!
In an
effort to ensure communication between school and home, we
will send home information regularly via email and
correspondence with students. Please ensure that you
list your email address on the Emergency Contact Card
(green) so that you will be included on timely emails of
important school information and safety alerts. Save the date for our
first morning assembly of the year on Friday, September
16 and Back-to-School Night on Thursday, September 22.
Let’s have a successful and rewarding school year!
Sincerely,
Erin Lahr, Ed.D.
Principal