Connections - September 11, 2020

Learning Focused

Technology in the remote environment

District technology leadership is keenly focused on student success and connections in the remote learning environment. We know the technology must run as problem free as possible. To this end, district technology teams are actively engaged in ongoing work, on a daily basis, with Microsoft executives and their technical teams across the product line. The goal and focus of this ongoing work with Microsoft is to optimize services for students, staff,and families utilizing the Microsoft 365 platform and Classroom Teams. This work builds on the reconfigurations and enhancements done with Microsoft in the spring to improve speed and connections to Microsoft/LWSD services. 

 

Reminder: Microsoft Classroom Teams video tutorial for families

Need help using Microsoft Classroom Teams? Lake Washington School District (LWSD) has created a video tutorial to help families navigate this online learning platform. Visit https://www.lwsd.org/help/classroom-teams-support

For additional, self-guided support, feel free to look through the below documents to help you navigate the Classroom Teams platform:

As always, feel free to reach out to your student’s librarian for any help navigating technical issues you may be having like forgotten passwords. 

Additional Help Resources:
Helpdesk is open! 7:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m., 7 days/week.
Families Contact: Family Technology Access at ftaccess@lwsd.org, 425-936-1322
24x7 Parent Help email address: parentquestions@lwsd.org 

 

New and international families virtual welcome event

Lake Washington School District, in coordination with Lake Washington PTSA, is hosting two virtual welcome events for our new and international families. This is a great opportunity for families to learn about our district and to increase engagement. Below are the details for both events:

  • Part 1: Wednesday, September 16, 4:00 – 6:00 p.m.
    Topic: Social, Emotional & Community Support for Students & Families
    Join here: tinyurl.com/welcome-2020-part1
  • Part 2: Wednesday, September 23, 4:00 – 6:00 p.m.
    Topic: Navigating the School System: Academics in LWSD
    Join here: tinyurl.com/welcome-2020-part2

Live captions for the event will be available in Chinese, Hindi, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish and Vietnamese. You can find the full agenda at www.lwptsa.net. If you have any questions, please e-mail Council FACE VP Danit Erlich at face@lwptsa.net

 

Pandemic EBT:  Emergency Schools Meal Program – Deadline is September 11

Your children may be eligible for a new food assistance program called Pandemic EBT (P-EBT). P-EBT provides families with funds to make up the cost of meals while school was closed. This benefit is for ALL children in Washington who receive free or reduced-price school meals. These benefits will be on an Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) card which is used like a debit card to buy groceries.

For additional Information about the P-EBT Program, visit the OSPI website here: k12.wa.us/PEBT

The deadline to apply is September 11, 2020.

For more information about the LWSD meals program, other meal sites and resources in the community, please visit https://www.lwsd.org/fall-2020/grab-go-student-meals.

 

Child care space still available

Child Care

We know that some families and staff members still need child care. Space is still available for families and staff who need to use this resource. The district has worked with community partners, YMCA and Boys & Girls Clubs of King County to provide emergency child care for students in grades K-5. In addition, our district extended day program will provide care at select sites. Each provider will have multiple locations to choose from.

These childcare services provide emergency or critical support for families that cannot otherwise be with their children during the day due to work responsibilities outside of the home.

Visit the LWSD website for more information.

 

Forty-eight LWSD students named National Merit Semifinalists 

The most ever for Lake Washington School District
Forty-eight Lake Washington School District (LWSD) high school seniors have been named semifinalists in the 66th annual National Merit Scholarship Program. That is the most ever for LWSD. The National Merit Scholarship Corporation announced the semifinalists today. 

Sixteen thousand high school seniors nationwide qualified. About 15,000 semifinalists are expected to advance to the Finalist level. More than half will win a National Merit Scholarship. These students will be able to continue in the competition for 7,600 National Merit Scholarships, worth more than $30 million.

See the full list of semifinalists here.

 

LWSD adds AudioEye to website for accessibility

AudioEye icon

Lake Washington School District (LWSD) is committed to providing access to all individuals seeking information on our website, including persons with disabilities. In September 2020, LWSD adopted AudioEye, a leading Web accessibility solution, to ensure that people with disabilities have equal access to the information on our websites and to meet the requirements of the Americans With Disabilities Act

What is Web accessibility and why is it important?
When not coded properly, websites can be difficult or impossible to access by people that rely on assistive technologies to navigate the digital world. Websites must be designed, developed and maintained in a manner that accommodates users with diverse abilities – in a manner that focuses on user-first, universal design principles.

In the same sense that a building must provide certain physical accommodations - ramps, rails, wide doorways, elevators - websites should provide accommodations in the digital space.

Why AudioEye?
The AudioEye solution aims to improve the usability of the web – providing everyone with an optimal, customizable and fully inclusive digital experience.

First and foremost, the AudioEye technology helps ensure that Lake Washington School District websites are optimized to provide an accessible user experience by conforming to WCAG 2.1 Level AA. In addition, the AudioEye technology includes a toolbar, which includes a suite of free assistive web personalization utilities that allow visitors to customize their user experience.

To activate the AudioEye toolbar, click on the AudioEye icon located on the right side of the screen.
To learn more about AudioEye's accessibility features, please visit www.audioeye.com.

 

Reminder and update: Fall grab and go meals now available – Meals are free for all children Age 1-18

Student Meals

Lake Washington School District is offering free meals to all children ages 1-18.

UPDATE! Starting Tuesday, September 8, we added delivery locations for meal pickup and will be providing meals daily. Please visit the website for more information: https://www.lwsd.org/covid-19/grab-go-student-meals. Meals are free for all children ages 1-18.  

The menu is available here.

Meals should be ordered in advance and are available for pickup Monday through Friday. Friday pickup includes meals for Saturday and Sunday.

The new locations and times for meal deliveries are

  • Audubon Elementary – 11:15 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. 
  • Avondale Park & The Colony @ Sunset Park – 11:35 a.m. – 11:50 a.m. 
  • Juanita Trace – 12:00 p.m. – 12:15 p.m. – 12:30 p.m. 
  • Kirkland Heights Apartments – 11:40 a.m. – 11:55 a.m.
  • Lake Washington High School – 11:15 a.m.  - 11:30 a.m.
  • Redmond Elementary – 11:15 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. 
  • Redmond Ridge Apartment Office – 11:15 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.

Families may also pickup a meals at the following schools from 11:15 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.:

  • Finn Hill Middle School – 8040 NE 132nd St, Kirkland 
  • Inglewood Middle School – 24120 NE 8th St, Sammamish 
  • Kamiakin Middle School – 14111 132nd Ave NE, Kirkland
  • Redmond Middle School – 10055 166th Ave NE, Redmond
  • Rose Hill Middle School – 13505 NE 75th St, Redmond
  • Timberline Middle School – 9900 Redmond Ridge Dr NE, Redmond

If you are unable to pick up meals at one of these locations, please fill out this survey regarding future pickup locations. Please note, by filling out this survey you are providing information that will help us in making decisions and does not guarantee your requested delivery location will be added.

According to the USDA press release from August 31, USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) is extending a suite of nationwide waivers for the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) and Seamless Summer Option (SSO) through the end of 2020, or until available funding runs out.

For more information, or to place an order, visit: https://www.lwsd.org/covid-19/grab-go-student-meals.

 

Reminder: View the 2020-21 school year calendar 

The 2020-21 LWSD school calendar is available on the district website. Here is a direct link to the PDF of the calendar from the site (Spanish). 

 

Reminder: Student health plans and immunization records

Families received notification recently about documentation for individual health plans (for students with life threatening conditions), medications, and immunizations.  We recognize that there has been some confusion regarding this requirement due to fact that most students will be participating in remote learning.   

We have adjusted the due date for families whose children will be participating in remote learning to submit this information. The new date is October 5. This applies to most of our families. We recognize that some of our families may find it challenging to obtain doctor appointments or paperwork at this time. If there are issues with having this information ready by October 5, families can work with their building nurse. Though, we do not know at this time when all students will return to in-person instruction, having paperwork will help us to be prepared for when we do. 

A limited number of students with special education services will be receiving in-person instruction at the start of the year. Any student receiving in-person instruction or participating in childcare in district schools should plan to have their documentation and medications turned in prior to their first day in a school. Dates for these services are as follows: 

  • September 8: Students receiving special education services who participate in Learning Center, Transition Center and Transition Academy Programs 
  • September 10: Students receiving special education services who have been identified to participate in in-person Intervention Center or Resource Programs 
  • September 14: Students receiving special education services who participate in early learning/preschool programs 

A child’s immunizations must be up to date and paperwork for medications, individual health plans as well as all required medications must be provided before a child can attend school in-person per state guidelines. Students will be unable to attend school in-person or participate in childcare in district schools if their immunizations are not in compliance or if they have not provided the necessary paperwork and medications if their child requires them.   

If you have any questions, please contact your building nurse.

 

Reminder: Advanced Placement exam registration information for 2020-21 school year

College Board has new ordering deadlines, late fees and cancellation fees. To meet the College Board ordering deadlines, Lake Washington School District students will register for AP exams from September 1, 2020 to 4:00 p.m. on September 25th. The payment window for all exams will be October 1, 2020 through October 30, 2020. We encourage all students wanting to take May 2021 AP exams to complete the registration and pay for their exams during this registration window. CollegeBoard has suspended the cancellation fee for the 2020-21 school year. Students may cancel an exam at any time throughout the course!

For students that may still be deciding in October if they want to take AP exams in May, LWSD is offering a LATE AP Exam Registration window from February 1, 2021 through end of last lunch on February 19, 2021. Students who register during the late AP Registration window will incur a $50 per exam late fee in addition to the $96 per exam fee. 

Read more about the Advanced Placement exam registration
 

District Announcements

Reminder: Teen Startup event application deadline 

Teen Startup Challenge

The LWSD Teen Startup Challenge is designed to promote student startup ideas and venture creation. The challenge provides the opportunity for high school students to win prizes and learn from local business leaders. Finalists will present their ideas and business plans and receive invaluable feedback from successful professionals. The application for this event is now midnight on September 28, 2020. Visit www.lwsd.org/teen-startup to learn more about this event.

Visit www.lwsd.org/teen-startup to learn more about this event. 

 

Building on Success

Building on Success is Lake Washington School District's long-term plan to reduce overcrowding, accommodate growing enrollment and continue to provide quality learning environments and experiences for our students.

Commons expansion at LWHS is complete

LWHS Commons Expansion

When students return to Lake Washington High School, they will notice a brand new space as they climb the main staircase. A second floor above the main level of the commons will provide expanded seating for students during lunchtime. The new space, which was constructed during the summer, gives students a bird’s-eye view toward the window in the commons area. 

The project was funded by the capital projects levy approved by voters in 2019 to accommodate our growing student population. A 20-classroom addition was also completed this fall and an auxiliary gymnasium will open in fall 2021. Learn more on our Building on Success page

 

Student & Staff Success

2020-21 First Day of School

Although our school buildings are closed to the majority of our learners, students and staff will be engaged in many fun, unique and creative learning opportunities in their remote setting. We know this first day of school will look different from previous ones, but we want to celebrate that our students and staff are back together. Check out our Facebook page for pictures of our staff and students during the first week of school. 

 

Just for fun

We've Got This coloring sheet

We've got this! Calling all LWSD students! We’re asking student artists to color in our "We've got this" coloring sheet. Then, take a picture of yourself holding the sheet when you are done, and post to the LWSD Facebook page to share with the rest of our community! 

Here's a link to the coloring page.

 

Work with us

Careers at LWSD

LWSD is always seeking great talent for positions throughout our district. Check out the LWSD website for job descriptions and postings

 

Remember...

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