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As we enter week five of the school closure, and after hearing last week from Governor Herbert that Utah schools will remain closed for the remainder of the school year, I’m sure there have been challenges at home as you encourage and help your students with their school work.

I have two daughters who received their teaching degrees and taught at the elementary and high school level before choosing to stay home with their children. And even these trained teachers have told me of the challenges they are facing helping their children with at-home learning. Our six-year-old grandson, Easton, told his mother this past week, a lady who taught at Provo High School for five years, that she was not as good of a teacher as his kindergarten teacher at Brookhaven Elementary in Eagle Mountain. Ah, the unexpected collateral damage of COVID-19!

I have attached a visual collage of the Alpine Elementary Staff telling our students how much we miss them. Thank you to our Social Committee of Mrs. Chen, Ms. Johnson, Ms. Lizzy (Snyder), and Mrs. Weakley for taking the time to assemble this awesome collage. You have one guess as to which staff member had the plainest most ordinary sign.

And because we miss our students so much, our staff is going to do a drive-through car parade in city of Alpine neighborhoods on Wednesday, April 22. The parade will start at the school at 10:00 am. I will send all parents a parade route on Tuesday, April 21. We are encouraging parents who live out of boundary, or will not have the parade passing by their homes, to park their vehicles at the school, Creekside Park or somewhere that the car parade is passing to wave and say hello to our staff, while observing social distancing guidelines. You will be getting more details about the parade on Tuesday.

After conferring with students who signed up to participate in Battle of the Books, Mrs. Ruesch and the students have decided to do a virtual Battle of the Books  May 4 – 8.

Each student will receive an email invite with a link to join their battle. Each team will participate in one battle. The top eight scoring teams will battle again to determine the top two scoring teams. Those teams will compete in one more battle for 1st and 2nd place. Any student who does not want to participate is not obligated. Please contact Mrs. Ruesch at [email protected] if you have any questions.

The Alpine Eagles Running Club will continue through May 22. Parents can email weekly miles ran to Colleen Hodgkinson at [email protected].

If you have questions or concerns about your student’s online learning expectations, please communicate with your child’s teacher.

Outside the Principal’s Office.

On April 19, 1980, I made the most important and best decision of my life when I married Laura Lynne Call in the Salt Lake City Temple. COVID-19 put the kibosh on our Spring Break plans to travel to Hawaii, but my ever-creative wife had a surprise anniversary date planned for us on Saturday, April 18. We took a daylong trip down memory lane visiting all of the important locations in Provo and surrounding areas that were a part of our courtship. We went to her student housing apartment (was Pinveview, now Glenwood Apartments), special spots on the BYU campus, Wendy’s on State Street in Orem, Bridal Veil Falls, Sundance Canyon, Lavell Edwards Stadium (it was Cougar Stadium in 1980), and of course the temple in SLC. At each spot, and they all have stories that I don’t have time to share, we took selfies (Laura has aged much more kindly than I have in 40 years), and did some journaling about our memories of that specific time and location. We will share the photos and journal entries with our children and grandchildren, hopefully, giving them something to smile about while being homebound because of COVID-19. It was one of the best dates we have ever had, even in this socially-distanced world!

Have a great week, and as always, remember that it is a great day to be an Eagle!

I hope that all of the Alpine Elementary Community had a relaxing and healthy Spring Break. As we all do our best to follow social distancing guidelines, I am guessing your Spring Break was different from what you envisioned two months ago.

The Alpine School District recommends the following online homework guidelines for elementary age students:

K-3: 1-2 hours daily

4-6: 2-4 hour daily

If you have questions or concerns about your student’s online learning expectations, please communicate with your child’s teacher.

The Alpine School District is encouraging all employees, if possible, to work from home. Consequently, the main office will be closed until COVID-19 social distancing restrictions are lifted. Phone calls to the office will be forwarded to Office Assistant, Sheri Davis’s cell phone, enabling her to work from home.

We will continue to distribute free meals, both a breakfast and a lunch bag, Monday – Friday, 9:30 – 11:00 am, to all students in the Alpine School District. Alpine School District students can pick up free meals at any Alpine School District school. We have Chinese Immersion parents who live in other communities and transport their children to Alpine Elementary. Your student can get a free meal at the school closest to where you live, without having to travel to Alpine Elementary.

Congratulations on helping your students reach our school goal in the Million Minute Reading Marathon. Students reading for a million minutes is an incredible accomplishment!

Our school Social Worker, Gina Zupan ([email protected]), is available to meet with students remotely who are experiencing any mental health issues during these unprecedented times.

Alpine Elementary continues to receive 20% of the proceeds from Chick-Fil-A on designated Spirit Nights. And Monday, April 13 is the next Spirt Night at the Lehi-Pointe location.

Outside the Principal’s Office.

A 40-year wedding anniversary is milestone to be celebrated. Four decades ago, Laura and I were married in Salt Lake City after completing what seemed like a never-ending semester at BYU. We had planned on taking our first trip to Hawaii during Spring Break to celebrate the best 40 years of my life! (You would have to ask my wife if she agrees with that statement.) Needless to say, COVID-19 postponed those travel plans, but I was able to get some yardwork done, go on daily bike rides and spend uninterrupted time with my best friend over the break. Not Maui-like fun, but enjoyable nonetheless.

Undoubtedly, our new normal caused many of you to alter your original Spring Break plans as well. If you and your family continue to enjoy good health, and you are surrounded by those that you love, offer a prayer of gratitude and continue to press forward!

 Have a great week, and as always, remember that it is a great day to be an Eagle!

Remember when Governor Herbert announced a “soft school closure” on March 13? Although he didn’t use the phrase “hard school closure” last week when he announced that all Utah schools would be closed until May 1, I think we have transitioned out of the “soft closure” phase.

Last week the Alpine School District made the decision to close all schools to the public, meaning that parents and/or students will no longer be allowed to come into any ASD school.

We will continue to distribute free meals, both a breakfast and a lunch bag, Monday – Friday, 9:30 – 11:00 am, to all students in the Alpine School District. Alpine School District students can pick up free meals at any Alpine School District school. I know we have Chinese Immersion parents who live in other communities and transport their children to Alpine Elementary. Your student can get a free meal at the school closest to where you live, without having to travel to Alpine Elementary.

April 6 – 10 will be our Spring Break. Online instruction will not be offered during Spring Break, and there will be no meal distribution.

During these uncertain and unprecedented times, we did receive some good news  last week. Alpine Elementary will have a half-time counselor next year. We are able to hire a counselor that will be split between our school and Westfield Elementary because of the Teacher Student and Success Act (TSSA). The Alpine School District, with School Community Council approval, has made the decision to spend TSSA funds on helping our students with their Social and Emotional Well-Being. Having worked with a full-time school counselor while I was a principal in Oregon, I am confident that a half-time counselor will be a great asset to our school!

You know your children better than anyone. Though we do encourage you to schedule “school time” each day, there is certainly no expectation to have students doing school work for six hours a day. We apologize for all the emails coming your way, but teachers need to communicate with your students. If you have questions or concerns about the online learning expectations, please communicate with your child’s teacher.

As we enter week three of the school closure, we encourage all parents and students to follow al social distancing guidelines.

Outside the Principal’s Office.

Are the days starting to blur together for you? During this school closure time, I sometimes have to ask myself what day of the week it is. Friday night date night for Laura and me has certainly changed as we decide what restaurant drive-through we want to experience, and then ask ourselves is there anything on Netflix we want to watch. This past Friday night, the choice was Cubby’s. It took us 42 minutes from the time we got into the long line of cars until we received our food. The line at Chick-Fil-A across the parking lot was even longer! COVID-19 has changed all of our lives in multiple ways!

Laura and I had an anniversary trip to Hawaii planned for Spring Break. That obviously won’t be happening. We will celebrate quietly at home grateful for the good health we continue to enjoy.

Have a great week, and as always, remember that it is a great day to be an Eagle!

We enter week two of remote online learning and the never-ending tentacles of COVID-19. Can you believe how quickly our lives have changed in the past 10 days? This pandemic is impacting almost every facet of our everyday lives, including the way we do school. These are truly unprecedented times. Add an earthquake to the equation, and our world has literally been rocked, in more ways than one! Adversity and life challenges can bring out the best and the worst in people. And I have seen only the best from the Alpine Elementary faculty as they quickly mobilized to provide online instruction for your students. I am so proud and appreciative of the diligent efforts of our staff as they have quickly and without complaint figured out how to do school in a new way.

You know your children better than anyone. Though we do encourage you to schedule “school time” each day, there is certainly no expectation to have students doing school work for six hours a day. We apologize for all the emails coming your way, but teachers need to communicate with your students. If you have questions or concerns about the online learning expectations, please communicate with your child’s teacher. This online learning model is a work in progress.

I have attached flyers for a State of Utah Spirit Week that you and your children can participate in that will perhaps bring some joy and laughter to your homeschooling experience.

The big question is how long will the schools be closed. Over the weekend, the State Superintendent of Public Instruction, Sidnee Dickson, shared the following with Utah school leaders:

So parents only have to make one trip to the school, starting on Monday March 23, students can pick up a breakfast and lunch meal at the same time, 8:30 – 11:00 am, at the table set up by Nutrition Services by our front door. This meal service is provided to all students in the Alpine School District, including middle and high school students, free of charge. You can send your child or children to the school to pick up meals without a parent accompanying the student.

Please only send one student into the school to pick up meals so that we can follow social distancing protocols of no more than 10 people in a group, while maintaining a six foot distance between all individuals.

Also starting on Monday, our office will only be open 8:00 am – 12:00 pm.

This state was founded by a people, ancestors to some of you, who faced difficult challenges both in their migration west and in settling communities along the Wasatch Front. Faith and hard work enabled them to overcome the many trials they encountered. Those same attributes will enable us to successfully overcome all that this pandemic requires us to navigate. We will make it through these challenging times!

Outside the Principal’s Office.

Faith, family and exercise are my anchors during difficult times. All five of our children, their spouses and our grandchildren, like all Americans and people across the globe, have been impacted by COVID-19. Laura and I choose to be optimistic about future outcomes, even when there are questions about the health, job security and financial obligations of our family. Three times last week, I biked up to Pine Hollow Trail Head in American Fork Canyon, which is where the gate is locked and snowpack begins. As I pedaled up the mountain, I repeatedly said to myself, “Lead your family and school in love, faith and calm assurance that these trying times will make us all stronger, and that these difficult days will pass.” I truly believe that mantra!

Have a great week, and as always, remember that it is a great day to be an Eagle!

I usually send out the Eagle News on Monday morning, but with the announcement on Friday by Governor Herbert that we will have a two-week “soft closure” of schools in the state, I wanted to communicate with parents what that means for our students at Alpine Elementary.

Teachers will be receiving training on Monday and Tuesday, March 16 and 17, on how to best provide online instruction to students. Teachers will communicate to parents before 4:00 pm on Tuesday what the online learning expectations are for students in their classes.

Parents will need to determine if they have sufficient devices at home to accommodate the teacher’s online learning expectations. Chromebooks grades 3 – 6, or iPads grades K – 2, can be checked out from the school. Your child’s teacher will tell you how that process is going to work.

The Alpine Elementary office will be open 8:30 am – 3:30 pm each school day during the two-week closure.

The school will be providing daily “Grab and Go” breakfast, 8:00 – 9:00 am, and lunch, 11:00 am – 12:00 pm for all students who want to come to the school grab a meal and leave. As “Grab and Go” plainly states, the meals will not be eaten at the school.

This is definitely a new way of doing school, but when the World Health Organization announces that COVID-19 is a worldwide pandemic that has swept into 114 countries, we all need to take the necessary precautions.

Whether or not the school closures extend beyond two weeks will be determined by Governor Herbert and those leaders on his team as they receive updated health information from medical experts.

If there are families in need of food or basic household necessities, please let me know. There are community resources available to those in need. If you or your children need something, we can help!

Battle of the Books competitions have been postponed but will rescheduled, meaning students will have more time to read their books, an excellent learning opportunity during the school closure!

Briggs Ballif–4th Grade, Mrs. Vipperman

Outside the Principal’s Office.

Yesterday, Laura and I went to see “Seussical” at the Hale Theater in Orem where one of our former students had one of the lead roles as he portrayed Horton the Elephant. A delightful performance! I continue to ride my bike and eat at my favorite restaurants. First time since my volunteer service in Guatemala 40 years ago, that I have not been watching any sporting events on TV on a March weekend. Amazing how much time I now have to do other things! And this morning, Laura and I had our own church services, which was truly a spiritual experience! Don’t know if I would be able to say the same thing when we had all five of our children at home. In short, I make daily life choices that bring me and my family joy and fulfillment, and encourage all of our parents to do the same. And I have not been to “ground zero”, the paper products aisle at Costco or Walmart, so life is good!

We all learn new things during challenging times. Though I have never heard the phrase before, I now know what “social distancing” is, and will do my best to not get into anyone else’s personal bubble. I continue to be optimistic that we will all successfully navigate this time frame of school closures.

 Have a great week, and remember even during a pandemic and in a world that has changed for all of us, it is a great day to be an Eagle!

This will be short week for your students. Monday, March 9 is a Professional Development Day for teachers, meaning that students have the day off from school. And Friday will be a Minimal Day with students being dismissed from school at 12:35 pm.

Monday night will be our Chick-Fil-A Spirit Night, 5:00 – 8:00 pm at the Lehi location. 20% of proceeds will go to Alpine Elementary.

We have reached 778,850 minutes in our Million Minute Reading Marathon!  Our goal is to hit the million-minute mark by the end of March. We can do it! Click Here to Log your reading minutes!  If you would prefer a paper copy to enter minutes, your child can get one in the library from Mrs. Ruesch. Keep reading!

We are all reading daily updates on the impact of the Coronavirus (Covid-19) across the world. This is the letter sent out to parents last week by the Alpine School District.

The Alpine Elementary School Community Council will be meeting 9:30 – 10:30 am on Thursday, March 12. The agenda is attached and any parent is welcome to attend.

The following students were nominated by their teachers and recognized last week for consistently demonstrating what we call the 6 C’s: collaboration, communication, creativity, critical thinking, citizenship and character.

Piper Ainge–2nd Grade, Mrs. Blodgett

Charlotte Ashton–2nd Grade, Mrs. Wallace

Ruby Barrett–2nd Grade, Mrs. Andersen

Brynnlee Cann–1st Grade, Mrs. Liston

Hank Challis–2nd Grade, Mrs. Andersen

Sutton Fronce–1st Grade, Mrs. Faux

London Johnson–3rd Grade, Ms. Elder

Timmy Lyon–3rd Grade, Ms. Elder

Candace Mellor–4th Grade, Ms. Moore

Levi Moore–3rd Grade, Mrs. Chen

Ezra Nuttall–1st Grade, Ms. Tau Tau

Anna Packer–3rd Grade, Mrs. Chen

Brinley Raven–4th Grade, Mrs. Orgill

Stella Eve Riding–1st Grade, Mrs. Faux

Joshua Zhou Fu–2nd Grade, Mrs. Blodgett

The winner of February Box Tops by a huge margin, almost 200 more than second place, is Mr. Horan’s class with 233 box tops! They will receive the yummy mint brownie dessert pizza sponsored from Pizza Pie Café, Alpine Location. That brings our box tops total to $602.50.

Outside the Principal’s Office.

43 years ago, while attending Ricks College, I went to an on-campus concert featuring the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. The opening act that night was a young comedian named Steve Martin (prior to his Father of the Bride fame) who I remember being quite funny with his one-liners as he incorporated banjo play and creating balloon figures into his act. Saturday night, Laura and I watched Bright Star at the Hale Center Theater. The play, definitely not a comedy, was excellent with outstanding musical talent and a touching and engaging storyline. The playwright and musical composer? Steve Martin. Some would call that sequence of events serendipity.

Have a great week, and as always, remember that it is a great day to be an Eagle!

Friday, March 6 will be the final day of the second trimester of school. Can you believe that is already March and we are 2/3’s of the way through the school year?

Our 4^th graders will be performing their State of Utah program for parents at 9:30 am on Thursday, March 5 in the gymnasium. Later in the day, they will be performing in a school-wide assembly that begins at 2:30 pm.

We have reached 564,294 minutes in our Million Minute Reading Marathon!  Our goal is to hit the million-minute mark by the end of March. We can do it! Click Here to Log your reading minutes!  If you would prefer a paper copy to enter minutes, your child can get one in the library from Mrs. Ruesch. Keep reading!

Kindergarten registration week has arrived! If you will have a kindergartner for the 2020 – 2021 school year, we encourage you to register your student March 2 – 6. Kindergarten Registration materials will be available in our Main Office beginning today, March 2.

Many of our students have been participating in the Storytelling Contest over the past few weeks. Last week, two students were selected by adult judges to move forward to the Timpanogos Storytelling Festival. The lower grade winner was second grader, Gage Sterzer, and the upper grade winner was fifth grader, Maggie Myers. The runner-up participants were third grader, Hattie Jones, and fourth grader Jane Rasmussen. Congratulations to all of our students who shared a story in the competition!

The Alpine School District has designated April 6 as the snow make-up day for the February 3 Snow Day.

The following students were nominated by their teachers and recognized last week for consistently demonstrating what we call the 6 C’s: collaboration, communication, creativity, critical thinking, citizenship and character.

Taytem Adams–6th Grade, Mrs. Kaczmarek

Drake Anson–6th Grade, Mrs. Maczmarek

Kaci Beagley–1st Grade, Mrs. Faux

Charlotte Gerber–1st Grade, Mrs. Liston

James Gheciu–Kindergarten, Mrs. Aitchison

Lily Hancock–6th Grade, Mrs. Kuo

Connor Hertig–4th Grade, Mrs. Orgill

Jacob Mercado–1st Grade, Mrs. Faux

Kennady Pack–5th Grade, Mrs. Weakley

Jane Rasmussen–4th Grade, Mrs. Keller

Jacey Robbins–5th Grade, Mrs. Padgett

Madison Sardoni–2nd Grade, Mrs. Wallace

Ella Smith–4th Grade, Mrs. Vipperman

Joshua Struchen–1st Grade, Mrs. Liston

Louella Zurcher–5th Grade, Mr. Horan

March roars in like a lion,

So fierce,

The wind so cold,

It seems to pierce.

The month rolls on

And Spring draws near,

And March goes out

Like a lamb so dear.

                          ~Lorie Hill

50-degree temperatures on February 29 and snow and cold wind on March 1 reminded me of this oft-repeated poem, and our Utah Valley weather. I was able to bike from our home in Cedar Hills to Vivian Park on Saturday afternoon. Just an FYI to you hikers and bikers, still quite a bit of snow and ice on the Provo River Canyon Trail from Bridal Veil Falls up to Vivian Park. I needed to get on Highway 89 for that portion of the ride.

Have a great week, and as always, remember that it is a great day to be an Eagle!

Our Internet Safety Week was a great success! The Hank Smith and NetSmartz assemblies provided our students with lot of great information about how to make good choices with electronic devices and Social Media. I hope parents were able to have some discussions at home with their children about the power, both positive and negative, of Social Media, and how screen time on electronic devices can be monitored at home. We appreciate all our PTA did to organize Internet Safety Week!

There will be a School Community Council meeting at 9:30 am on Tuesday, February 25. The SCC meeting agenda is attached and all parents are welcome to attend:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1aAa1ChvfK487C0Z5klWIm6EqsZfBFXZXGHqUVaxG5i8/edit?usp=sharing

We have reached 500,000 minutes, half way to our goal, in our Million Minute Reading Marathon!  Click Here to Log your reading minutes!  If you would prefer a paper copy to enter minutes, your child can get one in the library from Mrs. Ruesch. Keep reading!

This is the final week, deadline February 28, to make application to our first grade Chinese Immersion Program. Here is the application. link:  https://forms.gle/vKuYYrFf5KGrqFWv7

If you will have a kindergartner for the 2020 – 2021 school year, we encourage you to register your student March 2 – 6. Kindergarten Registration materials will be available in our Main Office beginning March 2.

If you haven’t already heard, April 6 will be the day that we make-up the February 3 Snow Day.

The following students were nominated by their teachers and recognized last week for consistently demonstrating what we call the 6 C’s: collaboration, communication, creativity, critical thinking, citizenship and character.

Zander Allen–2nd Grade, Mrs. Andersen

Lila Crawley–1st Grade, Mrs. Liston

Reese Davidson–1st Grade, Mrs. Faux

Allie Gardner–2nd Grade, Mrs. Blodgett

Grace Hancock–Kindergarten, Mrs. Aitchison

Miles Hogan–1st Grade, Mrs. Faux

Luke Johnson–1st Grade, Mrs. Liston

Sean Kelly–6th Grade, Mrs. Monson

Evan Luby–4th Grade, Mrs. Orgill

Audrey McCann–2nd Grade, Mrs. Andersen

Sam Petty–2nd Grade, Mrs. Wallace

Rebecca Schmidt–6th Grade, Mrs. Kaczmarek

Ellie Slesk–4th Grade, Ms. Moore

Grace Verzello–Kindergarten, Mrs. Aitchison

Zane Vigil–4th Grade, Mrs. Orgill

Outside the Principal’s Office.

Saturday night was a great night to be a BYU basketball fan as the Cougs defeated on Senior Night, and the last home game of the year, the number-two ranked team in the country, Gonzaga. Four of our children are BYU grads, and the other is a BYU-Idaho graduate. And of course, our children grew up seeing and hearing me being an enthusiastic BYU supporter for the past 40 years. That family culture was evident Saturday night during the game as we, minus the BYU-I grad, were all texting each other about the ebb and flows of the game.  We had a son at the game, and children in Beaverton, Oregon, Eagle Mountain, and Rapid City, SD all cheering on the Cougars while communicating with each other electronically. Laura and I were babysitting our 18-month granddaughter (fortunately she was asleep in her crib for most of the game) as her parents went to the game. The exciting game and victory, combined with the family texts, made for a fun Saturday night. But I am guessing there were many of you who like our one daughter and daughter-in-law, have no interest in BYU sports whatsoever, and find other things to do with your time on a Saturday night.

Have a great week, and as always, remember that it is a great day to be an Eagle!

Our PTA has planned a great Internet Safety Week (formerly known as White Ribbon Week) for students and staff. We are excited to have well-known motivational speaker, Hank Smith, speak to our students about the importance of kindness on Tuesday. And we will have two NetSmartz assemblies on Wednesday. I have attached the Internet Safety Week plan that our PTA has developed, which includes some At-Home Challenges for students and parents.

We have reached 400,000 minutes in our Million Minute Reading Marathon!  Click Here to Log your reading minutes!  If you would prefer a paper copy to enter minutes, your child can get one in the library from Mrs. Ruesch. Keep reading!

The online application process for the first grade Chinese Immersion Program is now open and applications will be accepted until February 28. Here is the link:  https://forms.gle/vKuYYrFf5KGrqFWv7

If you will have a kindergartner for the 2020 – 2021 school year, we encourage you to register your student the first week of March. Kindergarten Registration materials will be available in our Main Office beginning March 1.

If you haven’t already heard, April 6 will be the day that we make-up the February 3 Snow Day.

The following students were nominated by their teachers and recognized last week for consistently demonstrating what we call the 6 C’s: collaboration, communication, creativity, critical thinking, citizenship and character.

Eliana Batchelor–3rd Grade, Ms. Elder

Tate Beal–5th Grade, Mrs. Weakley

Aiden Cluff–5th Grade, Mrs. Padgett

Juan Amor Garcia–5th Grade, Mrs. Hill

Olivia Heise–2nd Grade, Mrs. Wallace

Dallin Layton–6th Grade, Mrs. Reyes

Maverick Mantz–6th Grade, Mrs. Kaczmarek

Austin Nielsen–4th Grade, Mrs. Keller

Lexie Orgill–4th Grade, Ms. Moore

James Riding–5th Grade, Mr. Horan

Colin Spigarelli–3rd Grade, Ms. Elder

Jordan Struchen–6th Grade, Ms. Kuo

Jaxon Struchen–3rd Grade, Ms. Moore

Alton White–6th Grade, Mrs. Reyes

Grady Zito–4th Grade, Mrs. Vipperman

After weeks of riding the stationary bike in the gym, it was nice to bike Snow Canyon near St. George last Thursday afternoon. As I was pedaling out of the park, and the steepest part of the ride, toward Highway 18, the road from St. George to Veyo, I heard someone behind me say, “To your left.” And two gentlemen, I’m guessing in their 70’s, easily passed me as they were “pedaling” their electric bikes up the steep incline. A bit of a blow to my pride, but not enough that I want to trade in my road bike for an electric bike.

I debated internally whether to share the following, but I imagine the news will eventually get out somehow. At the statewide Utah Association of Elementary School Principals (UAESP) Conference that I attended in St. George last week, I was recognized as the state of Utah Elementary Principal Mentor of the Year. To be voted by my elementary principal peers as the school district honoree was recognition enough for me, but to win the statewide award was very humbling and unexpected.

Have a great week, and as always, remember that it is a great day to be an Eagle!

Thank you to all of our parents who attended Parent/Teacher Conferences last week. We are also appreciative to everyone who visited our Book Fair and for all of the grandparents and special guests who came to our school on Grandparent Day.

Tonight, February 10, 5:00 – 8:00 pm is our Chick-Fil-A Spirit Night. Just mention Alpine Elementary and 20% of what you pay for your meal will come back to Alpine Elementary.

We have reached 250,000 minutes in our Million Minute Reading Marathon!  Click Here to Log your reading minutes!  If you would prefer a paper copy to enter minutes, your child can get one in the library from Mrs. Ruesch. Keep reading!

The online application process for the first grade Chinese Immersion Program is now open and applications will be accepted until February 28. Here is the link:  https://forms.gle/vKuYYrFf5KGrqFWv7

Last Thursday, the snow, wind and low temperature resulted in a day of no outside recess. The sensation of cabin fever sets in, nerves are frayed, it is more difficult to focus on the desired learning objectives, each minute of the day seems longer and there is more attention focused on the clock, and many are “climbing the walls.” Not to mention the fact that the kids also want to go outside:)

Mrs. Orgill’s class was January’s Box Top winner with 126 box tops!  The 4^th graders in Mrs. Orgill’s class will get a pizza party, which is generously donated by Eckes Paving!

The following students were nominated by their teachers and recognized last week for consistently demonstrating what we call the 6 C’s: collaboration, communication, creativity, critical thinking, citizenship and character.

Oscar Ainge–6th Grade, Mrs. Monson

Neil Alexander–3rd Grade, Mrs. Duke

Alivia Barnes–4th Grade, Mrs. Vipperman

Spencer Bergquist–1st Grade, Ms. Johnson

Noah Goeckeritz–6th Grade, Mrs. Kaczmarek

Emery Goeckeritz–5th Grade, Mr. Horan

Eliza Hill–6th Grade, Mrs. Kaczmarek

Hallie Luby–6th Grade, Mrs. Kaczmarek

Ryker Nielsen–1st Grade, Ms. Johnson

Kael Owens–6th Grade, Mrs. Kaczmarek

Katie Proctor–4th Grade, Ms. Moore

Lizzie Pusey–5th Grade, Mrs. Weakley

Chloe Shephard–1st Grade, Mrs. Bailey

Violet Walker–1st Grade, Mrs. Bailey

Deakon Zentner–3rd Grade, Mrs. Duke

Anyone else besides me starting to get Spring Fever? I go to the gym almost daily to exercise, but the stationary bike is not the same as riding my bike in American Fork Canyon or other parts of the Utah Valley. Certainly, the recent snowfall is needed to increase the snowpack, fill up reservoirs, and meet the demand of summer water needs along the Wasatch Front, but I am anxious to bike the Alpine Loop as winter turns into spring.

Each year, as part of my evaluation process, I survey teachers, parents and one grade level (5^th grade this year) of students. I have attached the results of the recent surveys.

Have a great week, and as always, remember that it is a great day to be an Eagle!