Fall 2018

Welcome to the 2018-19 school year and welcome to the new River Grove School Website!

We are thrilled to launch our website with its more streamlined, user friendly format. At Open House our teachers will provide an overview of the website and classroom web pages for all families. We look forward to seeing you at that event. 

Our twitter feed is easily viewed from the main page of the new website. Twitter is a way for the district to keep families and community members up to date on all of the activities taking place in the school. Please follow us @rivergrove85_5, #rgroyals, #WeAreRG.

I hope you had a wonderful summer and spent time enjoying family and friends. RGS staff took time off to do the same, especially to have fun at the River Grove Riverfront Fest, however, summer is also a busy time for accomplishing behind the scenes planning work. Thanks to that work, we are beginning the school year celebrating new and updated programs and processes, all focused on providing outstanding opportunities for #WeAreRG students and families.

Dedicated RGS teachers came together in June to plan two new programs.

The Jump Start Summer School was held in early August. It was designed to start some students two weeks early in order to jump start their learning. We served over 60 students in 1st through 8th grades.  Students enjoyed their time while getting early support from their teachers.

A New Teacher Mentor Program kicked off with the New Teacher Institute Day on August 3. With retirements and teacher changes each year, we want to be sure we are supporting teachers new to RGS. Each teacher, in their first and second year, will be assigned a veteran mentor to support their growth and development.

A scheduling committee came together to create a new and improved student schedule. This schedule allows for age appropriate lunch periods, the correct amount of instructional minutes and an intervention period to either support or extend student learning. Families will hear more about this at Open House.

The Board of Education’s strategic planning process continues, and will enter year three of the five year plan. Here are some accomplishments:

• Building and Grounds- the landscaping surrounding the building was refreshed, the playground was sealcoated, and part of the building was tuckpointed to keep it in safe condition.
• Public Relations/Communication- the new website was launched, a new teacher to parent communication plan was developed and the district will begin translating important documents into Spanish, Polish and Ukrainian.
• Curriculum- brand new English Language Arts (reading and writing) materials were purchased and will be used for the first time this fall. Families will receive a preview at Open House.
• Technology- the new website was launched, along with the installation of a new server and wireless access points, our 6th through 8th grade students will have a 1:1 Chromebook plan so that they keep their Chromebook with them for the entire school day cutting down on the time it took to check in and check out Chromebooks each period, and students will have the opportunity to work with Evo robots as we increase opportunities for coding and digital innovation.
• Safety- there will be a new visitor check in process and new visitor passes designed to keep students safe and allow staff to know who is in the building, improvements were made to the fire alarm system, this year new latches for the outdoor gates will be explored. 

The Board of Education accomplished these improvements and updates without overspending and ending the fiscal year in the black.  Being a small district and having limited state and local resources, a balanced budget is not an easy accomplishment. I congratulate the Board on their fiscal responsibility and dedication to the students, families and tax payers of River Grove.

We are welcoming five new teachers to the River Grove School family. Please see the RGS Staff Updates section to meet our new teachers.

I look forward to seeing you at one of our fall family or sporting events!!

All my best,

Dr. Rashid

#WeAreRG!