MIHS News – May 23, 2021

5/23/2021 1:00 pm

PTSA News and Announcements

Graduate Grams – a Wonderful Mercer Island Tradition!

It’s time to order your 5^th grader, 8^th grader or graduating Senior a Grad Gram, a 30-year Mercer Island community tradition!  Each Grad Gram is personalized, printed on parchment paper and mailed on your behalf to the student’s home.  Anyone can order a Grad Gram to send a congratulatory message to their deserving graduates.

 

Proceeds from Grad Grams sales supports the Mercer Island Community Scholarship Program which is run by the MI PTA Council. This annual scholarship program honors graduating MIHS seniors that are identified by MIHS teaching staff.  To raise funds for the scholarships, Grad Grams are sold to the community at large. 

 

Students love receiving these personalized certificates from family and friends. Each Grad Gram is $6 – order yours today! Orders are accepted through June 16th.

Now Accepting Applications for the Nancy Schaps Memorial Grant

Since 1996, the Schaps Family has funded grants that recognize a Mercer Island child who has suffered the death of a parent or who is currently experiencing the terminal illness of a parent. The Grant also includes Mercer Island children who have a parent serving on active duty with the military. The Grant award of up to $500 will be given to an elementary, middle, or high school student to be used for an activity or other purpose that will aid a child or youth’s adjustment to this difficult life change. For more information, please visit the Nancy Schaps Memorial Grant via MI PTA Council. Grant application deadline is May 30th.

Presidents Letter

Dear Islander Families,

We hope you are looking forward to a wonderful, long holiday weekend and are getting ready for the final push of the school year! Counting this week, there’s only 4 weeks of school left until summer break and just 14 school days until our seniors graduate on June 10th!

Be sure to check out Principal Kelly’s latest updates. His May 3 Letter focuses on Graduation and Prom, and his May 6 Letter includes updates about Islander Hour lessons, the current outside-of-school senior game, and homework and tests.

Each year our PTSA formally recognizes a handful of “SUPER” parent volunteers and staff who go above and beyond. We were pleased to celebrate these amazing individuals at our last PTSA General Member Meeting for the year on Friday, May 21st. Congratulations to the following:

• Outstanding Advocates:  Kelly John-Lewis, Clay Laughery
• Outstanding Educator:  Laurie Schwartzberg
• Outstanding Community Partner:  Einer and Marilyn Handeland
• Volunteer Service Awards:  Jennifer Selby, Irene Geisner, Kim Comstock
• Senior Volunteer Service Awards (graduating parents): Charlene Steinhauer, Deb Voss, Susan Empey, Karen Zimmer, Greta Stednick
• Golden Acorn:  Elizabeth Evans
• Lifetime Honorary Membership:  Jackie Brown, Ivy Suzuki-Jaecks

We’d like to send a special thank you to our MIHS PTSA nominating committee:  Jola Jensen, Erin Gurney, and Sophy Yang for their dedication and hard work in recruiting the PTSA 2021-2022 Executive Board.  Thanks also to all the volunteers who have stepped forward to take on a PTSA leadership role next year.  Here is the new slate that was officially voted in at our May 21 PTSA General Member Meeting:

 

The Elected Slate of Officers for 2021-2022 is:
Co-Presidents: Debbie Burke and Maria Alberto
President Elect: Stephanie Kornblum
Co-VP Communications: Suzanne Riley and Alison Monen
Co-VP Operations: Sheri Blumenthal and Danielle Orr-Bement
Co-VP Outreach: Christine Nakano and Bob Do
Co-VP Advocacy: Tanya Aggar and Gail Morrison
Secretary: Kim Thomas
Co-Treasurer: Elicia Lott and Lisa Beebe

In addition to the elected Executive Board, our PTSA Board of Directors includes our DEI appointed Chair positions. Thank you to our current year Co-Chairs Kelly John-Lewis, Lauren Leahy, Eunyoung Kim, & Sandy Sun who have all agreed to continue in this important role next year.

Congratulations to our incoming officers. The PTSA is fortunate to have such amazing, strong leaders! We are confident that they will carry the PTSA mission forward in amazing ways.

Senior Parents – the Senior Graduation Lei sales deadline has been extended to May 27th! The Hawaiian symbol of love, honor, friendship and celebration, leis are traditionally presented by MIHS friends & family to graduating seniors to wear during their graduation ceremony. Lei scholarships are available. Please go HEREfor more information and to purchase your lei(s). Leis will be distributed right before the ceremony as senior students are dropped off at Northwood Elementary School.

Want to celebrate a special Senior (class of 2021), 8th grade graduate (Class of 2025), or 5th grade graduate (Class of 2028) in your life? Here are some fantastic options available to send “congratulations!”. You can order a Yard Sign to benefit MIHS Cheer, order a Legacy Brick through MIHS PTSA, send a Grad Gram through MI PTA Council, and order a Customizable “Pretzel Thingy” box from Island Treats through Mercer Trade Inc., led by the MIHS international entrepreneurship class (Google Form HERE and Pay HERE).  Details for all of these are found on the Senior page of our PTSA website.

 

Go Islanders!

Debbie Burke & Stacy Nakata
MIHS PTSA Co-Presidents

MIHS News

Schedule this Week

This week is the Hybrid Learning Schedule.

Principal’s Message

Principal Kelly’s May 14 email

Greetings Islanders! 

 

As optimism increases for a return to normal social activity, it was great to hear that 87% of the Mercer Island population over 16 years old is vaccinated. We also look forward to serving as a host site for vaccinations for those 12 and over tomorrow morning.  

 

While we acknowledge and appreciate the CDC announcement that vaccinated people do not have to wear masks in most settings, we are maintaining our requirement that all students, staff, parents, and guests must wear a mask at school and school events. We believe that this abundance of caution is justified given the importance of continuing school and its related activities in the most reasonably safe environment.  

 

We will notify our school community if and when there are any changes to our policy or practice. As always, we hope to see you at an event in the near future, and we look forward to a full return to in-person learning to start next year. 

 

Respectfully,
Walter Kelly, Principal

 

Read Principal Kelly’s  May 3 letter, which includes announcements about graduation and prom, and looking forward to the spring sports getting underway, and his May 6 letter, which includes updates about Islander Hour lessons, the current outside-of-school senior game, and homework and tests.

Mercer Trade Inc. Online Store

Graduation Treats
Hello Mercer Island, happy graduation season! As we wrap up this crazy year, celebrate the graduates of the class of 2021, 2025, and 2028 with a customizable “pretzel thingy” box from Island Treats! Boxes will be themed to match the student’s next step (e.g. College/University, MIHS, IMS) and contain 4 pretzel thingys each. To purchase a box first fill out this Google Form and then go here to buy your box(es). Thank you for your support!

Grab and Go Meals

Grab and Go Meal pick up sites are back outside. Islander Middle School pick-up site is located outside of the main office entrance. This is a walk up site. Mercer Island High School pick-up site is located at the west driveway entrance of the school, between the grass field and the building. This is a drive-through location but walk ups are also welcome! Check out the school district’s Food Services webpage for more information.

Community Opportunities*

Volunteer Opportunity for High Schoolers – Join the MICF Student Board and Help us Market the Directory

The MI Community Connection Directory is an effort of MI Community Fund and partner organizations to help spread the word about board opportunities with the intent to be inclusive and provide a “directory” of community organizations who want to embrace the mission of diversity and inclusion to attract a broader representation of our MI community to board and leadership positions.

MICF is formalizing its program for student volunteers, which they’ve named the MICF Student Board. Expanding its board to include some younger, student voices is one more way they are working toward board diversity.  Students who volunteer will be exposed to the workings of the MICF board and will hopefully learn and grow from the experience.  MICF Student Board members will not only get a great title for their resumes, they’ll also get signed volunteer hours. 

For more information, please go to MICF Student Board Information – Sign Up Now – Google Docs, which includes a clickable link to the Google Form for high schoolers to indicate their interest.

League of Women Voters Climate Action Survey

Parents and students, we need you for climate action! Did you know that Mercer Island has a goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 50% by 2030? This will require civic engagement!  Mercer Island CAN has a mission to ensure that every Islander is aware of the climate goal and has an opportunity to contribute ideas and have input. Please help by taking this short survey before the end of May: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/MICAN2021

 

Together we can make our community and world a better place.  You can learn more and get involved by visiting Mercer Island Can!

 

Mercer Island Can! is a project initiated by and part of a multi-city climate effort of the League of Women Voters of Seattle-King County.

Mercer Island Girls Basketball

Are you looking for a great summer opportunity for your daughter?  Would you love for her to get exercise, exposure to positive female role models and have tons of fun?!  Mercer Island Girls’ Basketball is offering a really fun opportunity for girls ages K-8th grade!!  Jr. Hoopsters Summer Camp is back!!  Come and learn from the MIHS High School Players and Head Coach, Lindsey Blaine.

 

When:                  
4-8 Graders: June 22-25, 2021
K-3 Graders: June 24, 2021
4:30-6:30pm at PEAK

 

Go to migb.org for more information. To register please click on the link for your player’s 20/21 grade level.

 

Questions?  Please contact Julie Newcomer at juliepnewcomer@hotmail.com.

Ergon Student Exchange – Host Family Needed!

Host Marco, an Italian exchange student, and give your child a friend to share life with

There are now reasons for hope, with mass vaccination speeding up in the United States. Marco shares this hope and looks forward to his dream coming true of his exchange at MIHS in the  2021-22 school year. Click here to learn more about Marco and how to become a host family. Also, visit www.ergon-se.org or e-mail  info@ergon-se.org for more information. 

MIYFS Newsletter Relaunched

MIYFS has relaunched its newsletter, the MIYFS Monthly. You can find great community information and resources in this newsletter. Click here to sign up.

 

*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.