White Mountain School

It is that time of year when temperatures are dropping below freezing and snow and ice are forming around the region. As of Friday, October 18th full winter gear will be required on flights from villages to hubs (Nome and UNK). Winter gear includes winter boots, snow pants, winter coat, gloves and hats are required to be worn not just carried or stored in a backpack. This requirement is for all students and staff traveling on school related trips, including charters, BSSD plane and seat fare.

Teacher Workday on Friday, October 18th. No school for students.

Today is Indigenous People’s Day. A partial message from President Biden: "On Indigenous Peoples’ Day, we honor Indigenous peoples’ strength, courage, and resilience. We celebrate the vast contributions of Indigenous communities to the world. And we recommit to respecting Tribal sovereignty and self-determination and working to usher in a new era of our Nation-to-Nation relationships." "On Indigenous Peoples’ Day, we recognize that it is hard work to heal the wrongs of the past and to change course and move forward, but together, nothing is beyond our capacity. May we take pride in the progress we have made to establish a new era of Tribal sovereignty and Indigenous self-determination — one grounded in dignity, respect, and friendship." But let us not forget: we are Indigenous people every single day. Each of us carries the strength of our heritage and the stories of our people within us. We have the power to celebrate ourselves, our cultures, and our way of life every day, not just today. It is a day to honor how we live daily and seasonally. It is how we incorporate that into our homes, relationships, food, how we build our community and school with our time honored values. Knowledge of Language Sharing Respect for Others Respect for Elders Cooperation Love for Children Hard Work Avoidance of Conflict Respect for Nature Spirituality Humor Knowledge of Family Tree Family Roles Hunter Success Domestic Skills Humility Responsibility to our Tribe We honor Indigenous peoples’ strength, courage, and resilience. And we respect Tribal sovereignty and self determination and working to usher in a new era of our people here in White Mountain. As we reflect on our rich history, let’s also open our hearts to one another. Let kindness and joy flow throughout our school. Support one another, share stories, and embrace the beauty of our diverse cultures. Together, let’s uplift each other and recognize that our identity is a source of strength and pride.

White Mountain School has two open seats on our AEC. Please consider running for one of our spots. If interested, please visit our office to sign an Affidavit of Candidacy. Elections will be held October 1.

Congratulations to the first of our Students and Staff members of the month! GO WOLVES!

AKStar Scores have been released and will be mailed home to you in the coming weeks! Once they arrive and you have a chance to look them over, feel free to reach out with ANY questions or concerns.

BSSD is HIRING Administrative Assistant for Student Activities. For interested applicants click the link https://www.bssd.org/page/currentclassifiedopenings or scan the QR code for more details.

Weather permitting we will host our Back to School Picnic at Scow John on September 3rd. Please join us at 11:00 am. See you there!

Please join us Thursday, August 29th at 2:45 for a brief meeting on our Migrant and Title 1 Programs. Open House will immediately follow. 2:45-4:00. See you there!

See you tomorrow!

Parents and Families, As our new school quickly approaches, I would like to take a moment to let you know how grateful I am to be back in White Mountain for the school year. Fantastic things are happening at BSSD and I am excited to be a part of your child’s education. There will be a few changes this year as part of a district wide endeavor to encourage and maintain positive communication between communities and school staff. Those new initiatives are: Apptegy Rooms Communication - School staff will no longer be able to use their personal phones to communicate with parents. Our new electronic communication tool will allow two way messaging, announcements, assignments, or photos to be shared. We will share more information with you during our Open House. (Date pending) Chain of Command - To strengthen communication between teachers and parents, all questions or concerns regarding your student should first be directed to the teacher. Our teachers are happy to answer any questions you may have. If you have further questions after speaking with the teacher, please reach out to me. I am here to serve! PowerSchool/Grades - Parents and secondary students should be accessing PowerSchool and checking student grades weekly. This will give you an idea of what work your child is completing and how successful he/she is on assignments. You can get log in information from our office. We will also be ready to help you get logged in at our Open House event if you would like clarification on how to use PowerSchool. Teachers enter grades weekly by Tuesday of the following week. We are also requiring parents and students to sign a form acknowledging that you have read and understand our Student Handbook. This form will come home with normal back to school informational paperwork. You may access our Student Handbook through the White Mountain School website, clicking Menu, then clicking on Student Handbook. You may also click this link: https://whitemountain.bssd.org/o/white-mountain-school/page/student-handbook Please take the time to read and review with your child(ren). Students should be reminded of our policy on Bullying behaviors and on the zero electronics usage policy during school. If you do not have internet access, our office would be happy to provide you with a printed copy. At this time our gym floor is being resurfaced. Our gym will be closed for a few weeks during this process. We will make a community announcement when it is again ready for use. Our Open House event will be scheduled once the gym opens. We will also be dismissing school at 1:30 every Friday to allow for Professional Development opportunities for our teachers. Thank you for your continued support of our school. I can’t wait to see all of our students next week! Sandy Savell Principal, White Mountain School

Families, Please review the BSSD electronics policy for our school. Students who have electronics at school will be required to leave them with the office or with each teacher upon entering class.

We can't wait to see you! School resumes on Wednesday, August 21st.

Please read the attached letter from Tammy Dodd, BSSD Superintendent, regarding last night's devasting loss in Stebbins.

It is School Staff Appreciation Week at White Mountain School! THANK YOU to all of our School Staff Members! Your dedication to our students does NOT go unnoticed.

White Mountain School is having a Family Literacy Night on Thursday, April 18th at 7:00 p.m. This event is to encourage families to enjoy reading together. If you have a toddler or a student in grades ECE - 5, please join us for this event!

ARE YOU LOOKING FOR FREE MEALS FOR CHILDREN DURING THE SUMMER? MEALS TO YOU CAN HELP! Register now or scan the QR code. Application window: April 1, 2024 - April 30, 2024. For more details about Food Bank Alaska and registration, click the link provided below. https://foodbankofalaska.org/help/mtya/

White Mountain School would like to congratulate Jadyn Barr on his acceptance into the Rural Alaska Honors Institute Summer Program for 2024! Jadyn will have the opportunity to earn an average of 9 college credits during the six weeks he is there. Way to go Jadyn!

Congratulations to all the winners on 2024 Academic Decathlon Winners held at White Mountain.

Volleyball Update. Savoonga is a GO.