22-23 Important Dates/Information

Please join us for our next SAC meeting this Tuesday, November 8 from 6:15pm - 7:30 in the library or by way of Zoom.

Zoom Link, Meeting ID: 856 1051 3905, Passcode: zf8W0e

Dear NRE Community - 

We survived the sugar crash after Halloween! Did you? Students were very tired on Tuesday and were on a sugar kick which is always a strange combination. 

I have done a bit of reflecting this week as I can tell most adults are exhausted trying to keep up with everything, this includes teachers and parents. I was thinking back to 2020 when the world went on orders to stay at home. During this time, our entire world shifted. We checked in on each other, spent more time with family, and some were able to spend time outside (in the backyard, hiking on trails, biking etc). I wondered after this order ended would our world go back to the hustle and bustle or would we learn that it was best to slow down for a bit? 

Things I loved about 2020 (I know it was awful but I try to look for the positive and yes, running a building remotely or hybrid was awful and so was not seeing our students in the building every single day). I loved spending time with my family playing cards, talking, and watching The Wonder Years. I loved getting extra snuggles from my dog Charlie who is an English mastiff. I loved cooking every meal for my family when normally everyone is rushing out the door. I liked grocery shopping for my elderly neighbor every single week for a full year because it filled my bucket taking care of him. I loved delivering groceries to our families in need because I knew they would be able to eat each week. I loved spending time checking in with family members more frequently to make sure they were healthy and happy. What did you love? 

While it's easy to focus on all the things that were terrible during the lockdown, there were things that were nice if we look hard enough. I had hoped that when we were "free" again, as a society, we would slow down a little more and take more time on the things that are important. My hope is as a society or even as our little NRE community, we can continue to take time for things that are important. Playing a board game as a family with no technology, writing letters and sending thank you notes through the mail, taking a hike with loved ones and furry friends if you have them, and just being present in the moment. When is the last time you had a cup of coffee, tea, or hot chocolate and relaxed during the entire cup before it went cold? Yeah, I cannot remember the last time I did that either but here is what I do every November: Each evening at the dinner table with my family, we record the top 5 things about our day. There is no complaining, negative talk, or I wish this but instead I'm thankful for ____, I liked _____, and another positive was _____. At the end of November, I give each person their collection of positive thoughts for the month and we realize each day wasn't that bad because "What you look for, you will see." Look for the positive things and you will see great things happening.

One last thing I have been doing is sitting outside with my senses and I am mindful for 5-10 minutes. I close my eyes and I think 5 things I can feel (i.e. my feet on the ground, my belt by my stomach, or the wind going through my hair) and then 5 things I can hear, 5 things I can smell etc. By the end of the 10 minutes, I feel calmer and more present in the moment. I hope you have some time to try this too.

At the end of week, please know I am thankful for our community, our families, our teachers, and of course, our students. We are very lucky to live in a beautiful state and I look forward to being thankful this month of November and finding all the positive things that are happening around me. 

~Katie Lynch

The Proud Principal of NRE

How DCSD Determines Snow Days and Delays

Español 

November 3, 2022

Dear DCSD Staff and Families,

I hope you are staying warm on this chilly evening. I wanted to take a moment to let you know that our amazing Snow Team is closely monitoring the incoming winter storm. With this being one of the first storms of the season, I thought it would be a good time to quickly provide a little more information about how we determine when a delay or closure (snow day) is needed versus when we decide to keep schools open as normal.

Calling snow days (or not) is always a challenge! Years ago, when I first became a school leader, I had a recurring dream that during a terrible storm I decided to call a snow day. In my dream, I wake up the next morning to melted snow, a blue sky, birds singing, and…an overflowing inbox. :-)

The decision to close, delay or keep a school open during inclement weather is never taken lightly. We always keep the safety of our students, staff, and parents top of mind. Factors including snowfall, wind chill, road conditions and more are all taken into consideration. While conditions can vary across our district, many of our families and staff travel across the district to get to school, so closure decisions generally apply to the entire school district (unless otherwise indicated). Please watch this video to learn more about what goes into a snow day decision. You can also find more information on our website.

We often hear from families that they would prefer DCSD call a delay or closure in advance (such as the evening prior) so that they can make arrangements for child care, or to miss a day of work. At times, it’s easy to predict the evening before that weather will warrant a delay or closure the next day. However, calling a delay or closure in advance also comes with some trade-offs, such as more risk that the call to delay or close could end up being the wrong call (Colorado storms are known for being much worse or much more mild than forecasted). We take all of this into consideration when evaluating weather conditions.

Should a snow day or delay be called, we send an email and text to our families and staff (generally no later than 5 am), and we also post the information on the DCSD website, social media channels, and local news stations. If you don’t hear from us, then school is open as normal (if you attend a DCSD charter school be sure to check in with them for their status).

Please keep in mind that on days when our Snow Team is activated but a delay or closure is not called – we respect the decision of our parents to keep their child home, if necessary. Please call your child's school and this will be an excused absence.

For those students (and adults alike) who choose to place spoons under their pillows or wear their pajamas backward tonight, we will see how this storm develops :-)

Thanks for taking the time to read this and have a wonderful evening!

Erin Kane

Superintendent

Douglas County School District