Community e-Newsletter

March 28, 2021

Special Notice: School Start Time Change info

The White Bear Lake Area School Board continues to discuss the proposal to change student start and dismissal times to be implemented in the fall of 2021-22. Information about the proposal can be found on the district website here. including presentations and communications related to the discussion, details of a March 30 informational meeting about the topic, a list of Questions & Answers, and a Submit a Question button.

screenshot of School Start Time Change website

Informational Meeting

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Mar 30 2021

School Start/Dismissal Time Change informational meeting (Meeting in-person, viewable via electronic means)

6:30 PM - 7:30 PM

DC Community Auditorium (4855 Bloom Avenue, WBL)

Student News

Important connections

The District's new Parent Teacher Home Visit program, which allows educators to communicate more effectively with students and their families, and give more individual attention to the needs of each student, was recently highlighted by the White Bear Press. The program was launched with the help of a $15,000 grant from the Education Minnesota Foundation. Read the full article here.

WBLAHS grad Bridget Hovde was recently highlighted in the White Bear Press for her work helping older Minnesotans set up COVID-19 vaccine appointments. Hovde's efforts are paying off for hundreds of others, as she estimates she’s booked more than 400 appointments since she first began at the very end of February. See the article here.

District publication continue to connect community members with information and resources as well. The March-May issue of The Voice, the Senior Program's quarterly newsletter, covers important updates, resources and opportunities for older adults (age 55+) in the community. The Community Services Summer Catalog is currently available online, with multiple opportunities for community members of all ages. The printed piece will be arriving in residents' mailboxes soon. The March issue of the district's School Nurse Newsletter covers COVID-19 basics and reminders including symptoms and testing, face coverings and masks, and basic precautions. The district's partnership in the Many Faces Many Stories collaborative offers the greater community access to various learning activities throughout the month of March. Find opportunities here.

Students in Sunrise Park Middle School’s Automation and Robotics Class are making important classroom connections through coding lessons. Students are preparing for upcoming project creating dragsters that will speed down the hallway. Find fun video footage of the classroom activities in this week’s video highlight here.

The district's March Mental Well-Being Series event was a White Bear Lake School/Community Cultural Well Being & Healing Event - A Digital Intentional Social Interaction (dIZI). Attendees co-created self and community care. Mark your calendar for the last series event of the year, Parenting After a Pandemic. The virtual event take place via Google Meet the evening of April 22. Find additional information on the Mental Well-Being page of the District website.

Otter Lake Elementary students recently enjoyed a research workshop in which the fourth grade teachers and the media specialist helped students prepare to participate in a Geogineers Project. The activity was funded by a Brosious grant from the White Bear Lake Area Educational Foundation. The elementary students’ learning is bound to help them with research endeavors for years to come. The activity was covered in the March 19 weekly video.

Fourth graders at Willow Lane Elementary voluntarily picked up trash along school grounds last week. The idea for the outdoor service activity came up during a classroom discussion about paying kind acts forward, at the request of an anonymous donor who is making it possible for all Willow students to purchase an item at the school's upcoming Book Fair. The recent support complements a donation the White Bear Lake United Methodist Church (WBLUMC) has made for the past few years, raising funds for Willow's first and second grade students to purchase books at the Book Fair. A fun request made by the recent donor was that each student finds a way to pay this act forward by performing a kind act for someone else. The students have taken the request to heart and have brainstormed many ways to pay the generous kindness forward.

Superintendent Kazmierczak's last "Coffee with Dr. K" event of the year will take place from 4:30-5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 6 in the front lawn of District Center. There is no set agenda, so stop by for an informal chat. Let us pour you a cup of joe!

Learning fun

Vadnais Heights Elementary students are celebrating a love for reading by participating in book-related March Madness events. One of the activities classrooms are participating in is a Book Battle Book Bracket. Students vote on books that have been selected and paired by teachers, with a champion ultimately being named the champion. Another activity is that Mystery Readers have been sharing stories reflecting the "Mirrors vs. Windows" concepts: Windows means that you can see into someone else’s life or perspective. Mirrors means you can see yourself within the story.

Students in the district’s Tamarack Nature Preschool program, housed at Tamarack Nature Center, spent time outside in the snow this week and learned how to tap maple trees. A photo of their recent experience was included in a recent White Bear Press article about the Minnesota pasttime. Read the article here.

Hugo Elementary students recently collected boxed goods for the Hugo Food Shelf, donating items like cereal to help those in need. When the collection is finished, students will celebrate by watching a domino run of all of the items collected. The activity was featured in this week’s issue of “The Week in 62.4 Seconds.”

WBLAHS - South Campus choirs performed a virtual concert of "All the Way Home" earlier this month. While high school students are back to in-person learning these days, with students who choose to continue with distance learning doing so, the virtual performance allowed audience members to enjoy a beautiful performance from the comfort of their homes. Enjoy the performance here.

screenshot of students singing in virtual conference

Students at Vadnais Heights Elementary recently had a week of dressing up, with days of pajamas, favorite team clothes, fancy/favorite outfits and workout clothes. Thursday’s theme was “Dress like what you want to be when you grow up.” The students’ career choices were varied and impressive. They have bright futures ahead of them!

Awards and accomplishments

White Bear Lake Area High School’s two M3 Challenge math teams were both given awards for being in the top 100 submissions in the country this year. The team of Aaron Barton, Wyatt Fish, Tate Johanning, Alex Toner, Anika Volker were placed in the top 100 in the country. The team of Micah Anderson, Alex Dufresne, Eric Hosch, Anna Ryan, and Claire Schneider were placed in the top 50 in the country and were awarded $1000 for their paper in the applied math competition.

White Bear Lake Area Schools Assistant Superintendent Tim Wald was honored last week with an Outstanding Central Office Leader Award from the Minnesota Association of School Administrators. See the MASA press release here.

Area Learning Center students Shannen Gustavson, Kaitlyn Friederichs, Amber Schmidt, Kendrell White, Matilda O’Malley, Melanie Cramblit, Katy Alonso, Joe Schrankler and Marina Norcross participated in a letter-writing campaign to Minnesota law-makers through MAAP STARS (Minnesota Association of Alternative Programs Success Teamwork Achievement Recognition Self-Esteem). The students wrote letters about why alternative schools are important and asked the law-makers to support two bills, one for funding for the MAAP STARS student leadership program and one to increase funding for alternative programs. Additionally, some of the students’ letters are being published in The Alchemist, a yearly publication of art and writing from alternative students across the state of Minnesota, this Spring.

Orange and Black

A recent Minnesota Hockey Journal highlight had splashes of orange and black, celebrations of the historic Hippodrome, and mentions of the importance of classroom and life lessons. Read the full article here.

Students in grades 6-12+ were back to in-person learning last week, with distance learning still available for those who choose it. Students at Transition Education Center were be greeted by excited staff members in Bear Wear and by decorated classroom doors.

Activities Update

Bears Wrestler Matt Sloan placed sixth at State. See the article here. The Gymnastics Team placed second in state and had three individual state qualifiers. See a White Bear Press article here and enjoy a highlight in last week's "The Week in 62.4 Seconds" video here. Two M3 Challenge math teams from White Bear Lake Area High School were both given awards for being in the top 100 submissions in the country this year. Area Learning Center students participated in a letter-writing campaign to Minnesota law-makers through MAAP STARS (Minnesota Association of Alternative Programs Success Teamwork Achievement Recognition Self-Esteem).

Please contact the Communications Department (651-407-7695) to submit Student News for inclusion in future publications.

The Week in 62.4 Seconds

Enjoy The Week in 62.4 Seconds videos highlighting weekly district activities throughout the school year.

School Board News

Upcoming Meetings

The March 22, 2021 School Board Work Session Meeting will be conducted in person at District Center, with social distancing measures being put in place.

The remainder of the 2020-21 School Board meetings will continue to be viewable via electronic means. Livestream links are available on the district's online calendar and will be posted on the Meeting Materials page the week prior to each meeting.

Past Meeting Highlights

March 22 Work Session

March 1 Regular Meeting

District News

General Information

Family Notices

Important updates - Along with other email updates, White Bear Lake Area Schools has recently shared a couple of important notices with families. Please see links to the messages below:
- March 23 message - School start time discussion, March 30 info meeting
- Feb. 23 message - School start and dismissal time discussion
Coffee with Dr. K - The last "Coffee with Dr. K" event of the year will take place from 4:30-5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 6 in the front lawn of District Center. There is no set agenda, so stop by for an informal chat. Let us pour you a cup of joe!
Staff & Community Mental Well-Being Series - District staff and families are invited to attend presentations sponsored by the district, in conjunction with district partners, that are focused on mental well-being throughout the school year. All of the presentations will begin at 6:30 p.m. and will be streamed live with the ability for live participation. The sessions will also be recorded for later viewing.
- The next session is scheduled for April 22. Additional information about the district's Mental Well-Being program and the event series can be found here.
2022-23 Calendar - The School Board recently approved the 2022-23 School Year Calendar. See the calendar here.
Travel Guidance from MDH - White Bear Lake Area Schools recommends that families follow the MDH guidance regarding out of state travel. Please find the full MDH guidelines here. If you travel, learn how to protect yourself and your family here. COVID-19 testing is important. Find your local testing sites here. Families can order a COVID-19 test in advance for use after travel through the Vault Health website. Find District Guidance to Families on Spring Break Travel compiled by our nursing staff here.
School Linked Mental Health Services - Find information about School Linked Mental Health Services available to our families here.
Support Hub - The District launched a Support Hub last spring in order to provide families with resources to address barriers & enhance well-being. This comprehensive resource gives families and community members access to information for essential services including crisis response, basic needs, mental health and wellbeing, physical health, social emotional learning and more.
Receiving district messages - District-level emails are being sent from the communications@isd624.org email address. If you are not receiving emails from this account, it is possible that the email address is currently blocked in your email account. Find instructions to unblock the communications@isd624.org email address in different email platforms here.
Distance Learning Meal Pick-Up Information:
- Free meals are available for all children ages 18 and under through June of 2021. Weekly pick-ups are available at locations throughout the district on Wednesdays, with both morning and evening time slots available, and on Friday mornings.
  - Meal pick-up times and locations are available here.
  - To take advantage of the opportunity, families should pre-order meals each week using the Meal Order Form for distance learning pick-up so Nutrition Services staff know what to prepare.
  - Menus are available online at https://isd624.nutrislice.com/
- Contact the Nutrition Services Department at NutritionServices@isd624.org or 651-407-7524 with any questions.
Free or Reduced Applications - Even though free meals are available to all for this school year, it is still very important that families who may qualify for free or reduced-price meals complete the meal application as soon as possible. The meal applications not only qualify your family for free meal benefits, but also provide additional benefits that may include discounts for: internet access, college application fees, sports/activities fees, and AP test registration fees.Please check out this flyer for more information. Contact the Nutrition Services Department at NutritionServices@isd624.org or 651-407-7524 with any questions.
COVID-19 information:
- Contact Tracing - In order to facilitate the district’s COVID-19 contact tracing, it is important that families and staff members let us know through this form of a COVID-19 diagnosis. Please also call your school’s attendance line (for students) or submit an absence in Skyward (for staff) if you have been diagnosed with COVID-19.
- Dashboard - The district's COVID-19 Info & Dashboard page lists the 14-Day Case Rate By County, District COVID-19 Cases Weekly Reporting, and Process for Individual Notifications. We have recently added local information to the dashboard, including by-school numbers of students and staff members who are confirmed cases of COVID-19 and who are quarantined as close contacts.
- Notifications - White Bear Lake Area Schools will continue to ensure that all who are directly affected are appropriately notified in accordance with health department guidelines and privacy laws. A close contact notification and request to quarantine will be sent to all identified close-contacts. A general notification of a positive case in the building will be sent to: all building staff (including traveling and classified staff members) and all students attending the same school.
- Bears Protect Bears - Find information about the White Bear Lake Area Educators’ “Bears Protect Bears Commitment” here. Remember the important steps of social distancing, wearing masks, washing hands, and staying home when sick.
- Mail order saliva test information from MDH - The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) has asked that we share that the state’s mail order pilot test is now open for anyone in Minnesota to access. Staff and families can use the mail order form to access the saliva tests. Testing is free for every Minnesotan, whether or not you have insurance. If you do have insurance, you will need to provide your information so your insurance company can pay for your test. If your insurance does not pay for COVID-19 tests or does not pay enough, the state will cover the cost. If you do not have insurance, the state will pay for your test. You will not receive a bill.
- Community Testing Sites - Find COVID-19 Testing Locations on the MDH website here.
Bear Care Health and Wellness Clinic Appointments - The Bear Care Health and Wellness Clinic located in North Campus (5045 Division Ave., White Bear Lake, MN 55110) is now offering online appointment scheduling. Use this link to schedule an appointment. The clinic is open on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 2-6 pm. All health services are FREE and available to all children in the White Bear Lake Area School District.
- Call us at (651) 653-2923 or email BearCare@BearCareClinic.org. Click here to schedule an appointment.
- Available services include:
  - Health assessments and sports physicals
  - Influenza vaccines
  - Rapid strep throat testing
  - Ear infections and pink eye
  - Rapid mono testing
  - Urinary tract (bladder) infection testing
  - Mental health counseling
  - Teen health
  - Chronic illness management and referrals
  - Family health support
  - Curbside COVID-19 rapid tests (must make appointment)
Equity Action Plan - The Office of Equity and Engagement is beginning year-long work on an Equity Action Plan this fall. See information here.
Many Faces - Check out Many Faces events that are happening this fall that will focus on building community through conversations.
Career Pathways Newsletter - Please enjoy the February 2021 Career Pathways Newsletter!
Requesting an interpreter - Find more information about requesting a call with an interpreter in the language your family speaks.
We Are Hiring! - White Bear Lake Area Schools is hiring for a variety of positions, offering both school-day and out-of-school-time hours. Full- and part-time options are available, and many positions offer flexible hours if needed to accommodate family schedules. The district is seeking paraprofessionals, community services and recreation staff and coaches, and more. Find the online application page here.
Stay connected! - Join White Bear Lake Area Schools' social media circles - Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
Calling all baby models - We're looking for "Born to be a Bear" photos! Email photos to us here and you may find your little one featured in District publications!

Awards and Honors

Outstanding Central Office Leader Award - Assistant Superintendent for Finance and Operations Tim Wald was recently honored with the 2021 Outstanding Central Office Leader Award from Minnesota Association of School Administrators (MASA). See the MASA press release here.
March Recognitions - The following March celebrations are ongoing:
- March - National Nutrition Month, Music in our Schools Month, Women's History Month
April Recognitions - The following April celebrations are ongoing/upcoming:
- April - National Poetry Month, Math and Statistics Awareness Month
- April 1 - April Fools’ Day
- April 2 - Paraprofessional Appreciation Day
- April 5-9 - National Library Week
- April 6 - National Library Workers’ Day
- April 18-24 - Public School Volunteer Week, Administrative Professionals Week
- April 21 - Administrative Professionals Day

Please contact the Communications Department (651-407-7578) to submit District News, General Information, Opportunities or Awards & Honors for inclusion in future publications.

Community Services

The WBLAS Community Services and Recreation Department provides a wide range of services and opportunities that enhance the quality of life for all members of ISD 624.

Community Services Updates following the Governor's Executive Order can be found here.
Seasonal Catalogs - Seasonal catalogs are available now! The Community Services Summer Catalog is currently available online, with multiple opportunities for community members of all ages. The printed piece will be arriving in residents' mailboxes soon.
Digital Backpack - The Community Services Department distributes electronic flyers on the 1st and 3rd Thursday of each month. Flyers include announcements from the school district, as well as local organizations. Those who wish to request distribution of a flyer should email the files to Director Tim Maurer at tim.maurer@isd624.org.
Senior Program
- The White Bear Area Senior Center Craft Corner Spring Boutique will take place from 9 a.m. - 7 p.m. on Friday, March 19 and on 9 a.m. - 3 p.m. on Saturday, March 20. See the flyer here.
- Check out the latest edition of The Voice.
- Stay informed about the latest community offerings for seniors in the community with these three guides:
Community Bridge - Check out opportunities this July through September in this Community Bridge Consortium edition. The Community Bridge Consortium is an adults with cognitive disabilities program supported by the North St. Paul-Maplewood-Oakdale, South Washington County, Roseville, White Bear and Mahtomedi School Districts.

Senior Program Updates

The White Bear Area Senior Center is a program of the White Bear Lake Area Schools Community Services & Recreation Department.

General Update re: Senior Program following Governor's Executive Order (see complete post here)
- Meals on Wheels will continue, following COVID-19 safety guidelines and social distancing measures
- Footcare Service & Driving Safety Training courses will continue, following COVID-19 safety guidelines and social distancing measures
- Social classes/clubs/gatherings suspended until January 4, 2021
The Voice - Check out the latest edition of the The Voice to learn about exciting upcoming opportunities.
Resources Guides - Stay informed about the latest community offerings for seniors in the community with these three guides:
FREE Activity Pass for Senior Community Members (age 65+) - White Bear Lake Area Schools offer a variety of activities - home athletic contests, concerts, and theater productions to name a few. Join us! Please fill out this application and you will be sent the pass in the US Mail. If you have questions, please contact Rachael Markuson at 651-407-7563 or rachael.markuson@isd624.org.
Be a Bear! The district currently has many staff openings available! Find the online application page here.

Support WBLAS Students

Over the Edge Fundraiser - The WBLAHS Ambassadors are participating in an Over the Edge Fundraiser in support of One Heartland. See their presentation here.
Boys' Golf Team fundraiser - The Boys' Golf Team is selling the Minnesota Golf Card. This card is for 2 for 1's for golf at over 150 golf courses statewide and much more. The cost for the card is only $35. When you use the card once it is paid for already. You can use the card over and over throughout the year. If you are a golfer or want to gift it to a golfer, it's a winner. Contact Coach Nasvik if interested and he will make sure to get you a card. Email him at craig.nasvik@isd624.org
Visit the WBLAHS online store - The WBLAHS online store offers a variety of fun Bear Wear items for purchase, including apparel and accessories.
The White Bear Lake Area Educational Foundation (WBLAEF) is an independent, non-profit corporation promoting excellence in education in White Bear Lake Area School District 624 schools.
Be a Bear! - White Bear Lake Area Schools is hiring for a variety of positions, offering both school-day and out-of-school-time hours. Full- and part-time options are available, and many positions offer flexible hours if needed to accommodate family schedules. The district is seeking paraprofessionals, community services and recreation staff and coaches, and more. Find the online application page here.