ISSUE: 005 / JANUARY YEAR: 2022
HICKORY BEND ELEMENTARY SCHOOL I pray everyone had a safe, restful, and memorable holiday break. After a few months of going strong and focusing on both academic and social emotional learning, it was time that our All-Stars took a respite to enjoy family and a couple of days to sleep in late! As we enter 2022, this is a perfect time to reinvigorate our sense of Focus and Commitment towards excellence. Our PBIS incentives will continue to be a highlighted reward for our students, both as individuals and collectively as a grade level. Our “Expectation Stations” are due for a second round as a way to remind our students of how to behave in the various areas of the building. Academically, we look forward to benchmark testing that gives us insight as to how our students have progressed and how we can tailor instruction moving forward. Our 3rd graders are looking forward to taking the IAR (Illinois Assessment of Readiness) in the Spring. We are working every angle to ensure our students are indeed ready for this very important state exam. During these brutally cold few weeks in our calendar year, it is important to remind our families that attendance in school is the best way to support learning and growth. Chronic absenteeism is defined as missing 10% of school. In our district that boils down to about 17-18 days which is only about two (2) days per month! Please, please, please work at all costs to insure your student is in school daily. If you can pull the young ones from their warm beds and get them to school, we are confident that we can take care of the rest. Along with wishes for a “Happy New Year,” I offer our firm commitment to ensuring every student has an equal opportunity to grow at Hickory Bend. 2022 will host some of our BEST days by far. Ronisha Dubose | Principal