IMPORTANT DATES TO REMEMBER

• October 19th ~ PTO Fun Run @ Mills Riverside Park --> REGISTRATION LINK

• week of October 28th ~ Student Pictures Delivered and Sent Home

• November 5th ~ NO SCHOOL (Election Day)

• November 6th ~ Picture Retake Day

• November 6th ~ Student Early Release Day/Staff PD

• November 7th ~ Virtual PTO Meeting

• November 21st  ~ UCS Lantern Walk 

• November 25th - November 29th ~ NO SCHOOL (Thanksgiving Break) 

Help Needed Fall & Winter Prep for the UCS Garden - We have a few remaining infrastructure projects for the Garden's renewal we'd like to finish before hard frosts set in.  The projects require point people.  If you're able to work with 3rd Grade Parent, Kristyn Achilich, to source, purchase (at least prior to reimbursement), and lead a project, please email Kristyn at kdachilich@gmail.com.  The PTO leadership is working on finding a date to do this work and will send an update as soon as we have one.  Our goal is to get these projects and resources set up prior to the work day so we can tackle them with many hands one weekend soon. For a quick look at all we need to do, read on!

• Trellis System for Grapes and Raspberries - we need 8-10 cedar 4x4 posts, some cable and cable tensioners to be ordered and picked up.  A donation of supplies would be appreciated, but we do have some funds!  This team would also need a couple of post hole diggers and drill sets.

• ADA Accessible Raised Beds - The Farm at Saint Michael's College donated many raised beds 3 years ago.  The cedar lumber was rotted but the metal corners are still very good.  We have three beds to build and add to the garden for our students with mobility support needs.  The beds should be 3'x5' and about 36' high.  Koenig Cedar on Limekiln Road is a great partner/source. In addition to the wood, we will need many many tiny screws.  This team would also need drills and a skill saw to square some of the ends.

• A Deck Platform between the Maples - Students from MMU's day of service planned and measured for this structure.  It will require a skilled deck builder's eye and planning for pressure treated lumber.  The team will need some build experience, drills, squares, and skill saws.  It is roughly 10'x14'.

• Welding the Metal Garden Gate/Structure Back Together - As the grape vine grew and grew over the last few years it pulled this metal structure apart.  We believe we have found all the pieces in the soil but it could use some TLC!  Welding skills and materials needed!

• Tractor Work to Move Soil to Cap the Hugelkultur - in the spring, then custodian, Doug Spofford, did an excellent job digging out the earth for all the old garden materials to become the base of a new ecologically diverse hugelkultur.  In the spring, the 1/2 and 3/4 students loaded all that old materials into the giant hole with the help of the summer fellows from the Leahy Institute for the Environment at Saint Michael's College.  There's a small amount of old wood to toss in, then a little tractor work to move the soil back on top of all the old wood.

• Rebuild the Stone Border - On the playground side of the garden, there was a stone border around those beds outside the fence.  We dug up and reclaimed lots of the rocks this spring, but with only 3 folks weren't able to complete the project.  This team would need many hands, a point person, and many shovels and wheelbarrows.  We'd also finally transplant the lillies and rhubarb Rhonda Drake dug out in the spring for this area as well as add the raspberries from inside the garden!

• A School-Garden Liaison - We are looking for a person to partner with Kristyn who would be the person on-site to help when teachers bring their students out to the garden, could organize the UCS community for work projects.  

Please read the District Illness Guidelines.  This will help you to decide whether or not to send your child to school.  Please feel free to contact the health office if you have questions about sending your child to school after an illness.  You can contact us at 802-858-6316 or ucshealthoffice@mmuusd.org

Periodic Reminder to Check Your Child for Lice and Nits

This notice serves as a reminder to check your child’s head for lice periodically.  Consider checking weekly.  Head lice are tiny, crawling insects that live in the human hair. They do not fly or jump. The females lay eggs called nits on the hair shaft close to the scalp, often at the nape of the neck and behind the ears. The nits are small, oval-shaped specks that can vary from whitish to brownish in color, and are firmly cemented in place and cannot be brushed or flicked away. 

Persistent itching of the head and back of the neck can indicate head lice. Most important is the examination of the hair and scalp, especially the nape of the neck and behind the ears, for nits. Lice outbreaks are common in school-aged children. Even the cleanest child can become infested. It is not a sign of poor health habits or being dirty.  If you discover lice or nits, ask your pharmacist or healthcare provider about treatment options. School nurses can also answer questions about head lice

Current COVID-19 Guidance

 If a person is COVID-positive, they may go back to normal activities after at least one day (24 hours) if:

• Symptoms are getting better overall and

• No fever for at least 24 hours (and are not using fever-reducing medicines).

• In addition, it is recommended to take extra prevention steps for the next 5 days after resuming normal activity: Practice good hygiene. Wear a mask. Keep physical distance. Improve air quality. Any of these prevention steps can help limit the spread of respiratory viruses. The more steps you take, the lower your risk of getting others sick. 

• The district has a supply of masks and antigen tests (limited supply) if requested.

• Please report all positive cases, student or staff, to the school nurse. 

District guidelines remain in place - If you are sick, please stay home.  Please read this link District Illness Guidelines. 

Additional Resources

Respiratory Virus Guidance Snapshot

Preventing Respiratory Viruses

The Y provides after-school programming at UCS.  HERE is additional information about the program.  The director this year is Harrison Griffith (HGriffith@gbymca.org). Harrison will alternate days between UCS and JES as we share such an overlap in the community. When Harrison isn't on site at UCS, Nick Irwin Testa, Assistant Program Director, will be at UCS.

We will keep our WEBSITE updated on a regular basis. We also invite you to follow us on our two main social media pages: TWITTER (X) and INSTAGRAM. I also encourage you to reach out to the classroom teachers as they all communicate in a variety of different platforms!