MIHS News – February 7, 2021

2/7/2021 5:13 pm

What’s New This Week!

Principal’s Message

Watch Principal Kelly’s video message, which includes information about Black Lives Matter Week and Black History Month, an update on the transition to in-person hybrid learning and the plans for athletic team practices and seasons. 

 

Parent Edge

Presentation: Curiosity & Questions – Engaging in Difficult Conversations

 

Virtual Presentation: March 18, 2021 at 7:00PM

Current issues provide a great opportunity to engage others in rich conversation, share important values, encourage deeper understanding of the news, and disrupt bias and prejudice.

 

Mercer Island community members are invited to join this workshop to reflect on bias, engagement, and communication. The workshop is facilitated by Anti-Defamation League Education Director, Scotland Nash EdD.

 

Discussion points include:

• What are your spheres of influence?
• What are the necessary ground rules for meaningful and respectful dialogue?
• Incidents of hate are on the rise, what are strategies to talk about them at the table?

Register Here

 

Brought to you by MI Youth and Family Services, ParentEdge, MIHS DEI Committee and MI PTA Council.

Questions? Contact MIHS PTSA Diversity Equity and Inclusion Committee Chairperson Lauren Leahy

Staff Appreciation

February 12^th is the Chinese New Year and marks the start of the Year of the Ox. An amazing team of Chinese American families (led by Jianlan Song and Yijiao Hong) organized an incredible Staff Appreciation event.  They have assembled an amazing tea-time themed goody bag with a tea thermos, tea, traditional gold coins, mini mochi, pineapple cake, and a lovely thank you note in a gift bag for each staff member.  

 

We would like to thank the following parents for donating items: Liwen Bao, Sheri Blumenthal, Jackie Brown, Debbie Burke, Sammy Chan, Carrie Chen, Henry Chen, Guiqing Dong, Sheri Edwards (Dalton), Carmen Van Eeden, Irene Geisner, Haifeng Guo, Linhui Hao, Shan Heng, Yan Hong, Yijiao Hong, Joyce Huang, Dan Jiang, Yan Jiang, Bin Li, Jennifer Li, Nina Li, Tianrong Liu, Xi Liu, Jing Lu, Jodi McCarthy, Zivit Shechter Nissim, Anne-Christine Poncelet, Jessie Rong, Monica Shah, Jean Shi, Vivian Shi, Lynn Tonglao, Ping Wang, Tali Wang, Tracy Wang, Ying Wang, Diana Wiseman, Caifeng Wu, Helen Wu, Yanting Wu, Nan Xiao, Judy Xie, Rachel Yu, Katie Zhang, Kaitlin Zhong, and Yongzhong Zhu.

MIHS staff members have started off the new semester and continue to support all of our kids through uncertain times.  

 

Sincerely,

Irene Geisner and Jennifer Selby
Staff Appreciation Co-Chairs

PTSA News and Announcements

Parent Edge

Parenting in Place Masterclass Series
February 17 – APRIL 7, 2021
8 part program (via Zoom) 
Watch live on Wednesdays 5PM (PT) or view the recording

 

Are you burned out, concerned about your child’s well-being and wondering how your family will manage during the winter as we near a year into the pandemic? 

The Parenting in Place series comes from a group of parenting experts, therapists, authors, educators, and neuroscientists who’ve joined to share their very best strategies and ideas for how you and your family can thrive in the coming months.

 

This series is available to Mercer Island residents at a discounted rate of $10 (a portion of the registration fee for Mercer Island residents is being underwritten by MI Parent Edge & Mercer Island Youth and Family Services). Special rate available to the first 200 to register! Click here to register and learn more details about each week’s topic.

Mock SAT/ACT Tests

Over the course of the school year, MIHS PTSA provides 6 testing opportunities as a chance to practice a real test, become familiar with a testing environment, and help identify which testing platform is best for each individual student. All this in a ‘Mock’ situation where tests are not recorded or submitted to any high school or college organization. This is a perfect chance to ‘try out’ these tests.

 

Note: the final two Mock tests are an SAT on Saturday, February 27 and an ACT on Saturday, April 3.

Register and/or learn more about the PTSA sponsored Mock SAT/ACT tests.

From Mercer Island PTA Council

Dear Mercer Island Parents and Community Members,

 

Happy new year! We hope that you and your families are having a positive start to 2021!

 

First, we would be remiss in not recognizing that these continue to be challenging times for many parents, teachers, and students. We especially want to acknowledge the disparate impact the pandemic is having on families and students of color. Consistent with our commitment to equity, we are working to advocate and support the entire Mercer Island community to stay diligent in its prevention practices during this pandemic to help MISD move forward with its plan for a safe return to in-person learning.

Now, we would like to take this opportunity to provide an update on the various Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion initiatives that are being led by our PTA and other partners across the island. We know that DEI is a subject that many of you are passionate about, so we are pleased that there is so much commitment and activity to report. And, we hope that you are inspired to get involved or continue your involvement. Continue reading here….

PTSA Advocacy

Our Washington State Legislature is in session, and PTA Advocacy is in full force! We are focusing on the WSPTA legislative top five: increasing access to nursing and mental health support staff, preserving education funding, closing the digital divide, support for students with disabilities, and preventing and reducing gun violence and suicide. We also support equitable services for highly capable students, emergency preparedness, and mitigation of climate change, as well as a host of other student- and child-related issues. Learn more here and here and here.

 

Be brave, Be involved, Engage in Advocacy: sign up for newsletters and action alerts and learn ways to advocate for schools and children. Questions? Reach us at:  advocacy@mihsptsa.org.

Presidents Letter

Dear MIHS Families:

 

Registration season for the 2021-2022 school year has officially begun! This Wednesday, Feb 10th, MIHS will be hosting a virtual curriculum fair for current 9-11th grade students during Islander Hour. The curriculum fair schedule can be found HERE. Students will have until 11:59 PM on Sunday, February 28th to enter their course requests in Skyward.

 

Mid Winter break begins next weekend and we hope this is an opportunity to relax and recharge. Please consider the following in your plans.  Our District has made the decision of a phased return of students and teachers to attend school in person with Hybrid learning.  Kindergarten, 1st and 2nd grades have already begun hybrid schedules, and the rest of the grades are anticipated to phase in over the coming weeks and months.  

 

At MIHS, a small group of students have been attending school in person regularly, and many athletic groups, clubs, and activities have returned in person or are in the process of beginning in person.  Our official fall sports season is coming up quickly:  football begins February 24, and all other fall sports are currently scheduled to begin March 1. It’s more important than ever for us to do our part to implement safety protocols outside of school to support this return for both our students and teachers.

 

There are 2 things we can do now to show support of our returning students and staff:

1. Please follow community health guidelines.  Practice social distancing, remember to fill out the daily health attestations for students in school, and be honest about how your student is feeling.  If your student is ill – STAY HOME!
2. Please take a minute to reach out to your teachers and counselors and send them a personal note of positivity and gratitude.  We want them to feel our support, both verbally as well as through our willingness to do our part.

MIHS is hosting 2 upcoming Parent Information Nights. This is an opportunity for the MIHS Administration to answer your questions regarding the return to in-person hybrid learning. The meetings will be held Monday, February 22^ndat 7:00PM and Monday, March 1 at 7:00PM via Zoom. Meeting link for both Nights HERE.

 

4 main areas of focus:

1. What will instruction look like? 
2. Physical safety of students/staff in the building? 
3. I am worried about my child who has been at home for a year.
4. Athletics/Activities/Clubs. 

We appreciate the questions we have received so far.  Please continue to send us your questions (president@mihsptsa.org) and we will forward them on to the administration. There will NOT be an opportunity to ask questions from the floor during the meetings, and we want to make sure all questions are included!

 

Please mark your calendars for our upcoming PTSA Membership Meeting – Friday, February 26, 2021 @9:30am.  We will be voting in our nominating committee.  Meeting announcement and link will be sent out separately.

 

The Annual YFS Foundation Breakfast is coming up this Wednesday, February 10th at 7:30am.  We hope to see many of you virtually at this great community event.  Your support of YFS is critical for helping them maintain many vital social services for the Mercer Island community, including of course our wonderful mental health counselors, Chris Harnish and Ariel Schachter.

 

Have a great week!

Stacy Nakata and Debbie Burke
MIHS PTSA Co-Presidents
president@mihsptsa.org 

MIHS News

Schedule this Week

This week is the normal Red Learning Schedule.

There will be no school February 15-19 due to Mid-Winter Break.

Join Speaker Angela Tucker via Zoom with MIHS

Angela is a speaker, educator, mentor and consultant for children and adults of adoption. She has made several films and has a podcast that interviews adoptees from all backgrounds in an effort to shift societal perceptions about adoption. The conversations explore how adoption often reveals something new about racism, religion, immigration, trauma, and the many layers of unconventional families.

Join Angela Tucker via Zoom for an informative conversation on the topics covered in her film Closure.

• When: Wednesday, February 10th
• Time: 12:00pm – 1:00pm
• Download PDF for zoom link.
• Homework: Watch Angela’s documentary Closure currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video. View for more information.

Yearbook Order Deadline – March 1st

Don’t miss the opportunity to reserve a 2021 yearbook! Deadline is March 1.

The year — regardless of how abnormal it is — is flying by. We all rely on social media to capture moments, but yearbooks preserve those memories forever, and our yearbook staff is working hard to include so many aspects of this year in print. We cannot order additional books after the deadline, so order yours today.

 

To order, go to https://wa-mercerisland.intouchreceipting.com. And thank you for supporting the MIHS yearbook program.

Grab and Go Meals

Check out the school district’s Food Services webpage for more information.

Community Opportunities*

SPEAK UP FOR A NEW INCLUSIVE PLAYGROUND!

Mercerdale (“Train Park”) is going to be remodeled – and the City wants to hear from you!  Please see the invitation below for a Virtual Meeting to gather community input.

Let’s make it truly inclusive. We don’t have an accessible playground on Mercer Island; the nearest one is in Bellevue, and you can learn more here. Let’s advocate for everyone to be included. This will be an interactive meeting where you can bring your ideas to the table!

 

NOTICE OF VIRTUAL MEETING
Mercerdale Playground Renovation – February 8, 2021

Notice is hereby given that the City of Mercer Island invites park users, residents, and child advocates to participate in a virtual public meeting for the Mercerdale Playground Renovation on Monday, February 8 from 7:00 to 8:30pm, using teleconferencing technology provided by Zoom. The meeting purpose is to explain the project goals and seek input from park users regarding play equipment options. This work is funded by the City of Mercer Island. For questions, contact Paul West at 206.275.7833 or email at paul.west@mercerisland.gov.

 

Meeting Link: Join Zoom Meeting
Meeting ID: 852 7024 1487
Passcode: 470052

One Tap Mobile: +12532158782
Meeting ID: 852 7024 1487

 

Thank you!!

MIYFS Newsletter Relaunched

MIYFS has relaunched its newsletter; it will continue as the MIYFS Monthlyin 2021. You can find great community information and resources in this newsletter. Click here for the initial newsletter and to sign up for the monthly email.

MIYFS “Rise Up!” Virtual Fundraising Breakfast

February 10, 2021 | 7:30 am

 

Register now for the Mercer Island Youth and Family Services (MIYFS) 19^thAnnual Virtual Fundraising Breakfast! Held online (breakfast.miyfs.org) on February 10, the virtual format offers a unique opportunity for all Islanders to log in and learn more about the incredible work of MIYFS. Rise Up! Roll out of bed, stay cozy in your pajamas – and join MIYFS Foundation for an online program that promises to be full of fun surprises. There is no better way to start your morning than celebrating and supporting your friends and neighbors!

 

The event’s Master of Ceremonies is actor/comedian (and MIHS alum!) Joel McHale, special interviews with KUOW Radio host (and MI resident!) Bill Radke, and keynote address by 21+ year MI School District employee Kelly John-Lewis.

 

We need MIYFS now more than ever. Our island’s families, businesses, and nonprofit organizations are hurting – and the pandemic will have lasting effects on our community for decades to come. MIYFS is our island’s sole full-service, on-island social and human services provider. MIYFS offers a broad variety of programs, services and expertise that support the wellness and human service needs of all Mercer Islanders. It’s time to “Rise Up!” to support MIYFS. Register today!

 

Want to show your support for the MIYFS “Rise Up!” Virtual Breakfast NOW? Great! Purchase and wear a “Rise Up!” face mask (available for $10 onlineand at the following local retailers: Island Treats, Island Books, Studio 904, Cascade Frames, and Terra Bella)! And show us your jammies! Submit a photo of your family/pets cozy in pajamas holding these signs, and upload pajama photos here – and/or tag them with #riseupmiyfs on social media! Take a peek at others planning to support MIYFS in their PJs at breakfast.miyfs.org!

 

 

*Mercer Island High School PTSA (MIHS PTSA) and the Mercer Island School District have neither reviewed nor approved the programs, personnel, activities or organizations announced in these flyers or websites.  The participants agree to protect, indemnify, and hold harmless the district and MIHS PTSA, including elected and appointed officials, employees, agents, staff and volunteers, from any and all claims, liabilities, damages, expenses, or rights of action, directly or indirectly attributed to the activities.  Permission to distribute this information and or flyers should not be considered a recommendation of the programs by the school district or by the MIHS PTSA.  These are neither school district nor MIHS PTSA sponsored activities.

 

For additional news, please click on What’s New on our website, where you can scroll through all of our news posts.