J. Graham Brown School
Bear Essentials
September 8, 2021, Issue #6
Embedded Files
Principal's Message
Principal's Message
Dear Brown School family,
This is a group of our Star Students from August 2021. If you are new to our school family, we recognize Star Students on most weeks; these are students who exemplify following our school-wide expectations. This year our students are doing a fantastic job being respectful, being responsible, being safe, and always pursuing excellence!
Open House for Current Students is going to look different this year, but the good news is that you will have an opportunity to visit most classrooms in person. Make sure you read below to learn more about the date/time and format of our Open House for each teacher/school level.
Love,
Dr. Angela
Quick Links
Quick Links
This Week's Essentials
This Week's Essentials
Open House for Current Students
Open House for Current Students
To reduce the number of families visiting our school and classrooms at the same time, Open House will be organized differently this year. Open House will be stretched across a two-week period so that the number of people coming in will be smaller. Open House is an optional family activity; if you feel uncomfortable coming into our school due to a health concern or any other reason, please do not feel obligated to participate.
Cubs Corner (K-2)
Cubs Corner (K-2)
Kindergarten
Kindergarten
Carrie Mook
Last Names A-I: 9/13 from 3:15 to 3:45 PM
Last Names K-Z: 9/15 from 3:15 to 3:45 PM
Mayra Williamson
Last Names A-G: 9/14 from 3:15 to 3:45 PM
Last Names H-Z: 9/16 from 3:15 to 3:45 PM
1st Grade
1st Grade
Aruna Keswani
Last Names A-L: 9/13 from 3:15 to 3:45 PM
Last Names M-Z: 9/14 from 3:15 to 3:45 PM
Jennifer Funk
Last Names A-Kn: 9/15 from 3:15 to 3:45 PM
Last Names Kr-Z: 9/16 from 3:15 to 3:45 PM
2nd Grade
2nd Grade
Susan Backner
Last Names A-M: 9/13 from 3:15 to 3:45 PM
Last Names N-Z: 9/14 from 3:15 to 3:45 PM
Nichele Washburn
Last Names A-Le: 9/15 from 3:15 to 3:45 PM
Last Names Lo-Z: 9/16 from 3:15 to 3:45 PM
Junior Bears (3-5)
Junior Bears (3-5)
3rd Grade
3rd Grade
Samantha Priest and Andrew Boling (families will visit both teachers)
Last Names A-Mc: 9/13 from 3:15 to 3:45 PM
Last Names Mi-Z: 9/15 from 3:15 to 3:45 PM
4th Grade
4th Grade
Randy Cox and Kathy Crawford (families will visit both teachers)
Last Names A-L: 9/14 from 3:15 to 3:45 PM
Last Names M-Z: 9/16 from 3:15 to 3:45 PM
5th Grade
5th Grade
Lauren Heckman Wolf and Tyler Jones (families will visit both teachers)
Last Names A-G: 9/16 from 3:15 to 3:45 PM
Last Names H-Z: 9/17 from 3:15 to 3:45 PM
Middle School
Middle School
6th Grade
6th Grade
Stephanie Eilers, Cindy Garwood, Dr. Mike Brame (families will rotate through all three teachers)
Last Names A-G: 9/22 from 3:15 to 3:45 PM
Last Names H-Z: 9/23 from 3:15 to 3:45 PM
7th/8th Grade
7th/8th Grade
Laura Viergutz, Erin Vachon (9/23 only), Torri Martin, Randi Skaggs (families can visit each teacher as they wish)
Last Names A-L: 9/22 from 3:15 to 3:45 PM
Last Names M-Z: 9/23 from 3:15 to 3:45 PM
High School
High School
Neysa Jones, Jason Linden, Stacy Pendleton, Joel Prestigiacomo, Alex Murphy, Jake Amettis, Dr. Kat Mattingly, Mike Moreland
Last Names A-G: 9/20 from 3:15 to 3:45 PM
Last Names H-Z: 9/21 from 3:15 to 3:45 PM
Exceptional Child Education
Exceptional Child Education
Tina Densford
9/14 from 3:15 to 3:45 PM (with 4th grade)
9/20 from 3:15 to 3:45 PM (with high school)
9/21 from 3:15 to 3:45 PM (with high school)
9/23 from 3:15 to 3:45 PM (with middle school)
Elisa Pitmon
9/13 from 3:15 to 3:45 PM
9/15 from 3:15 to 3:45 PM
Chris Thomas
9/16 from 3:15 to 3:45 PM (with 1st grade)
9/23 from 3:15 to 3:45 PM (with middle school)
Related Arts, World Language, Career/Technical Education
Related Arts, World Language, Career/Technical Education
Heather Anderson, Jessie Magee, Stacy von Roenn, Matt Davis, Norah Wakefield, Kate Duff, Gregory Grazette, Curtis Moss, Tamika Carr-Briggs, Terrilyn Fleming, Christi George, Laura Sebastian, Ryan Hudson, Amanda Klakamp
All Students: 9/16 from 6:00 to 7:00 using Zoom
School Photos
School Photos
Socially-Distanced school photos will occur the week of September 7-10. You can find the schedule by clicking here.
College Field Trip
College Field Trip
On October 7, 2021, 11th graders will be visiting the Spalding University campus. We need approved parent chaperones to attend.
If you are interested please email norah.wakefield@jefferson.kyschools.us.
JCPS – Revised COVID-19 Testing Procedures
JCPS – Revised COVID-19 Testing Procedures
CONTACT TRACING | Starting today, families will be notified if their student is a close contact of a COVID-19 case through text messages and email. If you are not already receiving JCPS text messages and emails, please text the letter "Y" to 67587. If you have any further questions, please reach out to your school directly to update your contact information, including your cell phone number and email address.
Click here or above to learn more about this new notification process.
Masks for Students
Masks for Students
Please make sure that you are sending your student to school each day with a mask per JCPS requirements. It is helpful to also send an extra mask or two in your student's backpack in case they need to switch one if it get's wet or dirty. We appreciate your help in keeping all of our Brown Bear students and staff safe!
School Fees
School Fees
School registration fees were assigned in My School Bucks on Friday, September 3rd. Families should see an invoice in their My School Bucks account. Please note that you will need an account to access the invoice. You can create an account through this link. Also, please note that families with free/reduced lunch status will NOT receive an invoice.
This is the first in a series of fees that will be available on My School Bucks. The next series of fees will be course fees for electives. Please look for them in the coming weeks.
Student IDs
Student IDs
Over the next two weeks, Josh will continue to take pictures for student IDs in the cafeteria from 7:30-7:50 AM each morning. To prevent a crowd from forming, we are using the schedule below:
Tuesday, September 7th: 10th Grade Last Names M-Z
Wednesday, September 8th: 9th Grade Last Names A-G
Thursday, September 9th: 9th Grade Last Names H-Z
Friday, September 10th: 8th Grade Last Names A-L
Monday, September 13th: 8th Grade Last Names M-Z
Tuesday, September 14th: 7th Grade Last Names A-J
Wednesday, September 15th: 7th Grade Last Names K-Z
Thursday, September 16th: 6th Grade Last Names A-G
Friday, September 17th: 6th Grade Last Names H-Z
Cultural Connections
Cultural Connections
Many of our Jewish families at Brown are celebrating Rosh Hashanah this week, which is the Jewish New Year. Read about this important celebration at this blog post Rosh Hashanah 101 and an article from the History Channel.
Lockers
Lockers
All students should be assigned a locker by the end of this month. Students will have staggered times throughout the day in which they can access their lockers in order to assist with social distancing. Any student who still has items in their previous locker from March 2020 will be sent home with those items today.
SBDM Update
SBDM Update
The parent representatives on the council would like to set up caseloads by grade level. This would enable more efficient communication and more effective representation and would improve opportunities for parents to provide feedback. The caseloads are as follows.
Camara Douglas - grades K-3 - cudoug07@gmail.com
Walter Zausch - grades 4-6 - walter@zausch.com
Ashley Chesman - grades 7-9 - ashley@chesmanfamily.com
Felicia Alfred - grades 10-12 - felicialalfred@gmail.com
If you would like to be added to these parent representative's caseloads, please send them an email.
Family Resource Youth Service Center
Family Resource Youth Service Center
Hello! I am Elona Mack, and I am Brown/Central FRYSC Coordinator. Need help? Your FRYSC is here to provide assistance. Click HERE for community resources.
Please contact me with questions or concerns.
Email: Elona.mack@jefferson.kyschools.us
Phone: 502-631-9146
Family Matters
Family Matters
National Center for Families Learning and Jefferson County Public Schools are working with families to transform their schools and community. Activate! promotes leadership through participatory democracy, economic opportunity, social justice, and equity. Apply now to join this amazing group!
Parent Teacher Student Association (PTSA)
Parent Teacher Student Association (PTSA)
Win a Courtyard Pizza Party for your Class! STARTS THIS WEEK!
Win a Courtyard Pizza Party for your Class! STARTS THIS WEEK!
Join the PTSA for just $5 and help your child’s class win a pizza party in the courtyard! The more members of your family that join, the better chance your child’s class has to win! The contest starts today!
Parents, grandparents, aunts/uncles, middle and high school students, and any other family members may join for just $5.00 per person. Click here to join by October 10th.
JOIN THE 2021-2022 PTSA!
Open to all Parents/Guardians, Faculty/Staff, Students (5th grade+), or Grandparents. Join Here
JOIN THE 2021-2022 PTSA!
Open to all Parents/Guardians, Faculty/Staff, Students (5th grade+), or Grandparents. Join Here
PTSA Meetings for 2021-2022, 6:00PM
September 21, 2021
October 19, 2021
November 16, 2021
December 14, 2021
January 18, 2022
February 15, 2022
March 15, 2022
April 19, 2022
May 10, 2022
Support PTSA fundraising efforts, Read about Members, etc. - CLICK HERE
Walter Zausch, PTSA President brownptsa.president@gmail.com
Membership Drive: SWAG BAG Drawing
Membership Drive: SWAG BAG Drawing
Join the PTSA and earn a chance to win a J. Graham Brown School Swag Bag!
All new memberships through the end of September will be entered for a drawing of a gift bag of Brown School merchandise, clothing, and other goodies.
August's winner will be announced here in Bear Essentials. Parents, middle/high school students, and even grandparents are eligible to join the PTSA and enter the drawing. Membership is only $5.00 and benefits our school in so many ways.
Click here to join.
Reflections
Reflections
Show us your creativity. Participate in Brown PTSA Reflections. More information: https://bit.ly/BrownReflections
Counselors
Counselors
Christy Teague, Elementary School Counselor / christy.teague@jefferson.kyschools.us
Robin Cash, Middle/High School Counselor / robin.cash@jefferson.kyschools.us
Tip of the week: Make sure you are regularly checking your child's academic progress throughout the school year through Parent Portal.
ELEMENTARY (K-5)
ELEMENTARY (K-5)
Miss Christy's Core Counseling Curriculum (CCC) Lessons began last week! Click HERE to see the lesson and schedule of visits. Also check out Miss Christy's Virtual World for more resources.
The qualifying test for the Advance Program, the CogAT (Cognitive Abilities Test) will be given on October 21, 2021. All students in grades 3 and 4 will take this test. Students in grades 5 and above who are not yet identified as Advance Program are highly recommended to take this test. The deadline to request to take this test for grades 5 and above has passed. However, you may email Christy Teague at christy.teague@jefferson.kyschools.us if you want your child to test. If your child is already taking Advanced level courses in middle/high school, the student is most likely already an Advance Program student and does not need to take this test. Contact Christy Teague at christy.teague@jeffersonkyschools.us if you have any questions.
MIDDLE/HIGH (6-12)
MIDDLE/HIGH (6-12)
This week and next students will receive a lesson from Erika's Lighthouse about Mental Health Awareness. HERE is a letter to parents that explains about the program. Please use this as a way to have a discussion with your student about their mental health!
*Schedule change request: The window has closed for schedule change requests for the fall semester. If requests were not honored it was often due to there being no available seats on a roster. Different grade levels and classes have different class sizes. Robin will continue to process requests sent before 8/24 if possible. Students requesting E-school style classes should be enrolled within the next week.
Athletics
Athletics
Fall Sports:
The Lady Bears soccer team is ready to go after a week off to practice last week.. They will be back in action on Wednesday 9/8, to defend our trophy in the annual "BearCat Cup" at Waggener.
Boys soccer is having a great season, and they are excited for the challenges ahead for this week. They will take on Collegiate on Wednesday 9/8 and St. X on Thursday 9/9. Go Bears!!
High School volleyball picked up their first win of the season last week, beating Western in 2 straight sets. They will be in action at home on Wednesday 9/8 against Seneca and at Beth Haven on Friday 9/10. Go Lady Bears!!
Middle School volleyball played their first game of the season on Monday 8/30 and won the JV game against Stuart. The varsity team played hard but came up just short. They will play Noe on Wednesday 9/1 at Brown.
Middle and High School Cross Country has their first meet today, Wednesday 9/8 at Champions Park. Go Cross Country Bears!
Elementary Cross Country had a great meet yesterday at Charlie Vettiner Park.
Golf has also had a lot of weather issues but will be back in action today, Wednesday 9/8 against Central and Atherton at Shawnee Golf Course.
High School Fall Coaches:
Cross Country- David Jaggers- david.jaggers@jefferson.kyschools.us
Girls Soccer- Josh Luttrell- rja172307@gmail.com
Boys soccer- Steven Phillips- steven.phillips@bullitt.kyschools.us
Volleyball- Kathleen Mattingly- kathleen.mattingly@jefferson.kyschools.us
Athletic Director- Justin Leonard- Justin.leonard@jefferson.kyschools.us
Middle School Sports:
Elementary and Middle School Spring Sports:
Cross Country- Cross Country- David Jaggers- david.jaggers@jefferson.kyschools.us
Golf- Barry Bridges- abbridges@aol.com
Volleyball- Anna Obryan- ajobry01@gmail.com
Athletic Director- Matt Davis- matthew.davis@jefferson.kyschools.us
Click HERE for an updated staff directory
Community
Community
LIBA Youth Advisory Board 2021-2022
LIBA Youth Advisory Board 2021-2022
Join the Louisville Independent Business Alliance Youth Advisory Board (LIBA-YAB)!
Join the Louisville Independent Business Alliance Youth Advisory Board (LIBA-YAB)!
The Louisville Independent Business Alliance is looking for dedicated, enthusiastic high school students to join the newly-established Youth Advisory Board. LIBA-YAB will help Keep Louisville Weird and provide opportunities to develop leadership skills through training and hands-on experience.
LIBA-YAB Mission: LIBA-YAB will develop ideas to promote LIBA’s mission with high school and college-age residents of the Louisville area.
What is the LIBA-YAB?
The LIBA-YAB is a youth-led active group of high school students who represent their peers in LIBA’s planning and decision-making for a one year commitment (September 2021 - July 2022). Members can gain service hours through participation.
What does the LIBA-YAB do?
Produce social media content that speaks to their peer group.
Staff tables at community events, educating consumers on the mission of LIBA.
Create and execute one major project each year. (this year = High School Job Fair)
The YAB may decide to take on additional projects, depending on the interests of the group
Participate in the monthly YAB meeting, where you will meet a variety of teens from across the city.
What are the LIBA-YAB goals?
● Empower members with the core values of leadership, accountability, and service.
● Learn the importance of independent businesses in a community and how to support them.
● Communicate the importance of independent businesses to peers.
● Provide members the opportunity to take leadership positions.
● Grow accountability, professionalism, and communication skills.
● Actively communicate at events & meetings.
Who should apply?
High School students (grades 9 -12) able to commit for the 2021 - 2022 school year and:
● Are able to dedicate 20 to 40 volunteer hours throughout the school year.
● Are able to volunteer occasionally at events.
● Are motivated, passionate and take initiative.
● Are interested in gaining formal communication skills and professional mannerisms.
● Have leadership skills or interest in developing leadership skills.
● Have a positive attitude, passion for learning.
How do I apply?
● Complete the online application form by September 21.
● If under 18, have parent/guardian complete permission form
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