Dear Keller Families,
I hope this email finds you doing well and ready for the weekend. This past week the students were just outstanding with their approach each day. Throughout the week students took the ownership to take the necessary steps to get better, and be better. They focused on doing their best whether it be IAR testing or in the classroom. But most importantly, the students continue to put in the time and effort on a daily basis to achieve success, their goals, and WIN THE DAY!
As we look ahead to next week, we are excited to partner with Special Olympics and host the Polar Plunge event on Friday, March 15th. The Polar Plunge is a fundraising event that supports Special Olympic Illinois athletes across the state, helping to provide them with life-changing programming. We will have an assembly on Friday that will celebrate this event! Click here for our Polar Plunge Commercials.
As always, if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact our front office staff or me. Thank you for your patience, flexibility, and support and we will work “TOGETHER AS ONE” to ensure the success of our students.
Regards,
Tom Barbini
Principal
[email protected]
Important Dates to Remember:
- March 14: PTA Dine to Donate at Wendy’s
- March 15: Polar Plunge at Keller
- March 19: Election Day – no school
- March 22: Spring Break begins at the end of the day
- April 1: School resumes
- May 22: Half-day Inservice – no school in the afternoon for grades K-8
- May 27: Memorial Day – no school
2023 – 2024 Keller Calendar
The 2023-2024 Keller Calendar can be viewed here: https://keller.sd54.org/aboutkeller/calendar/. This calendar contains upcoming events for Keller.
2023 – 2024 District Calendar
The 2023-2024 District Calendar can be viewed here: https://sd54.org/calendar/. Please click on the link for the Spanish version of the calendar.
Keller Junior High Website
Click here to navigate to the Keller Junior High Website.
Keller Sports, Intramurals, and Clubs
Please encourage your child to get involved in our Keller Sports, Intramurals, and Club offerings that take place after school. Please visit our Sports, Intramurals, and Clubs page for more information about these activities. Students must maintain academic eligibility to participate in sports, intramurals, and clubs. For information regarding upcoming dates for sporting events, intramurals, and club sessions please click on the link to view the building calendar on the Keller webpage.
Students participating in interscholastic athletic programs, including intramural sports, shall have an annual physical examination prior to tryouts and participating in any scheduled practice or contest. Physicals are effective for one year from the date of the exam. The physical exam form for District 54 can be found by clicking on the link. For additional information on District 54 Junior High Sports and the Sports Parent-Student Handbook please click here.
Infinite Campus Parent Portal
Infinite campus is District 54’s student information system that connects parents to information. Through Infinite Campus, parents will have access to the Parent Portal. The Parent Portal provides access for parents to information regarding their child including paying fees, viewing assignments, attendance, grades, academic schedule, and teacher comments.
If you currently do not have a Parent Portal account, please email [email protected] or you can call our front office at 1-847-357-6500 and our secretaries can assist you. If you need help logging on to the Infinite Campus portal click here, email [email protected], or call portal support at 847-357-5110. If you have previously created a Parent Portal account and cannot recall your username or password, you can reset them yourself from the portal website by selecting forgot password.
Eighth Grade Graduation
As we approach spring, we wanted to provide an update on the eighth-grade graduation ceremony. We are excited to announce that this year’s event will be held 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. on Sunday, June 2, 2024 at Wintrust Field, also known as the Schaumburg Boomers Stadium. In order to accommodate all families, we will be limiting each family to six tickets. Students will sit on the field with their classmates, while families will sit in the stands. In the event of rain, we will hold our graduation ceremony on Monday, June 3, at 5:30 PM at Conant High School. A livestream of the event will be posted to the District 54 YouTube Channel for individuals who are unable to be there that day.
Boys Volleyball
Boys Volleyball try-outs are quickly approaching. 8th grade tryouts will be on Monday, March 11th from 2:15 – 3:45 PM. 7th Grade tryouts will be on Tuesday, March 12th from 2:15 – 3:45 PM. Any boy who is interested in trying-out needs to pick-up a permission slip from the cafeteria, front office, or from Coach Bedtke or Coach Theander. Permission slips and current physicals are due on Monday, March 6th at 2:15 p.m. Please email Coach Bedtke at [email protected] or Coach Theander at [email protected] with any questions.
Physical Examinations
If your child plans to try out for one of our athletic teams and/or participate in intramurals, per School Board Policy, current physicals are required of all students to be on file prior to try-outs and/or participation in any inter-scholastic or intramural sport. Please note that physical examinations are good for one year from the date of the exam. If you have any additional questions about your child’s physical, please contact our school. For your reference, please click on the links below for the physical examination form and for a list of clinics that offer physicals.
*School Physical Examination Form
*Physical and Immunization Resource List
5Essentials Survey
Once again we are reaching out to our families and asking you to participate in the annual Illinois 5Essentials Survey to provide us with your perspective and help guide our school improvement efforts. The parent survey will be available online through March 29th, at survey.5-essentials.org/Illinois. For more information, visit the District 54 website.
IAR (Illinois Assessment of Readiness)
Each spring, students in District 54 take federally mandated assessments (IAR) designed to help school districts understand how our students are growing academically. This year, the English Language Arts and Math Assessment for grades 3-8 will be given at school between March 6th and March 24th. At Keller we will be testing Math on Monday, March 3rd – Wednesday, March 5th. We will be testing English Language Arts Thursday, March 6th – Monday, March 11th.
ISA (Illinois Science Assessment)
Each spring, eighth grade students in District 54 take federally mandated assessments (ISA) designed to help school districts understand how our students are growing academically in science. This year, the Illinois Science Assessment will be given at school between March 12th and March 14th.
Polar Plunge at Keller on Friday, March 15th
On March 15, 2024 Keller is a part of the Cool School Challenge with the Polar Plunge. Members from Special Olympics along with our Keller staff will be hosting this event onsite at Keller from 9:00 – 12:00 PM. Click here for our Polar Plunge Commercial.
We are raising money for Special Olympics! Students can volunteer to raise money, if they raise at least $100 by March 13th, they will participate in the event on March 15 during the school day. Outside in the back of Keller they will be called down to jump into a pool. Students will then go directly into the locker rooms from the outside doors and change into warm clothes. They will miss approximately 15 minutes of class. (The official schedule will be released after students sign up.) Parents of students participating in the event on March 15th are more than welcome to attend. All Staff are excited for the day and encourage students to participate!
To register to take the plunge or donate to support a student plunger click on the link.
Illinois Youth Survey
On Monday, March 18th, our 8th grade students will be taking the Illinois Youth Survey (IYS). The purpose of the IYS is to better understand youth attitudes and behaviors that can impact student problems and academic success. It asks about topics like nutrition, physical activity, bullying, school climate, and alcohol and other drug use. Students will be asked to complete a survey (with no names or identification numbers) that will be confidentially administered during one class period. The survey is completely voluntary and privacy will be strictly protected. For more information, please visit the Illinois Youth Survey website at http://iys.cprd.illinois.edu.
The links below are to a notification form officially informing you that the survey is being conducted at Keller. This form will allow you to exclude your child from participation and only needs to be returned if you do not want your child to participate.
For more information about the survey, click on the links below.
Solar Eclipse Event on April 8th
On Monday, April 8, 2024, a total solar eclipse will cross North and Central America creating a path of totality. During a total solar eclipse, the Moon completely blocks the Sun while it passes between the Sun and Earth. The sky will darken as if it were dawn or dusk. For more information, please visit science.nasa.gov.
The Schaumburg area will not experience a total eclipse but rather a partial eclipse around 1:50-2:10 p.m. Keller Junior High is planning a viewing opportunity to allow students to experience this unique event.
Safety is always a top priority. We will take all precautionary measures to make this experience safe and enjoyable. It is not safe to look directly at the sun without specialized eye protection for solar viewing (Eclipse safety). Solar eclipse glasses will be provided for all students and staff participating in the viewing on April 8, 2024. Additionally, if you would prefer to not have your child participate in this event, please let us know by Monday, April 1, 2024. Students who do not participate in the solar eclipse event will participate in an alternate activity inside the school during the eclipse.
We look forward to this peak learning moment with our students. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out.
District 54 Severe Weather Response Plan
In order to help parents better prepare for the severe cold weather and snow we often get during winters in our community, please review the District 54 Severe Weather Response Plan.
PTA NEWS
Here is this week’s Keller Wildcat Newsletter!
- Dine to Donate at Wendy’sis the 14th
No Food Deliveries Allowed
With a focus on student and staff safety, District 54 will not allow food delivery services (including, but not limited to, GrubHub, DoorDash, and local restaurants) to our schools. We will continue to have hot lunch days, which are planned events, organized and supervised by school or PTA volunteers. However, we will no longer accept other outside food deliveries to keep our schools secure.
Spanish Speech Contest
District 54 is excited to announce its 12th annual Spanish Language Speech Contest on May 2, 2024 for students in third through eighth grade. Students who are interested in participating should prepare a written speech and submit it with an application and a video of them delivering the speech by March 15th. The finalists will be notified via mail the week of April 8. For more information or to submit an application, visit our District 54 Spanish Speech Contest website.
Kindergarten Registration
The countdown to an extraordinary journey has begun! Kindergarten registration for the 2024-2025 school year is now open! If you have a child who will be starting kindergarten in August 2024, we encourage you to visit our new Welcome to Kindergarten website and begin registration today. As a current District 54 family, you will register through your Infinite Campus Parent Portal account. If you do not have your login, please contact [email protected].
After completing the online portion of your student’s kindergarten registration, please call our school to make an appointment to turn in necessary documents. If you can, bring your future kindergartner with you, as we have a special surprise for them! District 54 is also asking for your help in spreading the word about kindergarten registration. If you know of a child who will be 5 years old by September 1, 2024, please encourage the family to register today by visiting the sd54.org/kindergarten website. The sooner students enroll, the sooner District 54 will know how many kindergarten teachers we need to best serve our kindergarten class of 2024-25.
English a Second Language Classes for Adults
District 54 is offering classes to learn how to speak English at Lakeview School. These classes are for all parents who are interested in learning basic English conversation skills as well as beginning reading and writing skills in English. Classes will be held from 4-6 p.m. on Tuesdays from February 6 through March 19. To register for a class session, visit the following registration form in your preferred language:
McKinney-Vento Act
The U.S. McKinney-Vento Assistance Act defines homeless children as those who lack a fixed, regular and adequate nighttime abode. In general, children or youth living in motels, transitional housing, shelters, the street, cars, parks, bus or train stations, abandoned buildings and other inadequate accommodations may be considered eligible for McKinney-Vento services. Please visit our website for more information.
Keller Junior High