Sandpiper Spotlight: November 2010

Posted on November 9, 2010 by RSCA

Sandpiper students reached out to help children at Crestmoor Elementary School last month who were victims of the San Carlos fire. For over three weeks, the students brought loose coins to school and deposited them in a huge jar in the school office — collecting $800 in total! Crestmoor had five families directly affected by the fire. Principal Linda McDaniel and student council representatives visited Crestmoor and presented them with $800 of gift cards to Safeway and Target stores. Sandpiper students also made cards which were passed around the whole school for the families. The collection effort and presents fit in with Sandpiper’s Character Counts program — focusing on fundamental character traits education, including caring about others.

Over 60 percent of Sandpiper’s 498 children walked or biked to school on International Walk to School Day, October 6th. Sandpiper’s Green Team is offering backpack charms as incentives to walk or bike to school throughout the year.

Sandpiper parent Tracie Pon spearheaded a Halloween costume drive where dozens of costumes were donated to Shelter Network, which provides housing and support services for homeless families. In addition, Sandpiper parent Taneshia Smith and her daughter, Maliya, sewed 16 tutus and stuffed them in princess bags with wands and masks and cards naming each costume a different fairy.

— Bonnie Wolf

Sandpiper Spotlight: October 2010

Posted on October 8, 2010 by RSCA

Sandpiper is delighted to announce that the official Sandpiper API test scores are in and Sandpiper has continued its upward trend, achieving 947 (of possible 1000), a 12 point increase over 2009! These scores not only are a reflection of our children, but of our outstanding teachers and administration, as well as the extraordinary parent involvement at our school. Academic Performance Index (API) scores, released on September 13, are one unit of measure to show whether or not schools meet state requirements under the Public Schools Accountability Act of 1999. With this score Sandpiper proudly accepts the title of the top performing school in the Belmont-Redwood Shores School District. Please join us in celebrating the success of our students in their performance on the test and our teachers for their dedication to providing rigorous instruction and results. API scores for all public California schools can be found at www.cde.ca.gov/ta/ac/ar/

Thanks to funding from School Force, the school board was able to revise the school district budget to include music and science in the elementary school program this year. These positions were cut last Spring in anticipation of budget shortfalls this year. Sandpiper Principal Linda McDaniel and school district administration conducted interviews for these positions in late summer — and we are so pleased that they have been able to hire two very qualified and experienced educators on such short notice! Sandpiper welcomes Christopher Della Pietra as our music specialist and Nicole LaCount as our science specialist.

We also welcome our new administrative assistant, Christine Klups. Mrs. Klups is excited to get to know our staff, students and community. She brings a wealth of experience to her new job and is looking forward to working at Sandpiper. Anne Ho, who was laid off last Spring due to the unfortunate budget cuts, will return to her position as office assistant at Sandpiper for four hours a day. We are fortunate to have the support from our superintendent, Dr. Emerita Orta-Camilleri, who recommended a reinstatement of Mrs. Ho’s hours. Sandpiper Elementary School continues to be the largest elementary school in the district with an enrollment of 497 students. The additional staffing support will ensure a prompt response to your telephone calls and providing service to our students, staff and community.

If you think you saw a children’s bike race early in the morning on September 29, it was just our third graders biking to school for the 3rd Grade Bike Rodeo! Sandpiper’s PTA Green Team and the third grade teachers joined together to educate students about bike safety, rules of the road and to help with helmet fitting and bicycle checks. They had a special visit from professional bike race Maryann Levenson for a special bike safety assembly!

Sandpiper Elementary Prepares for Potential Disaster

Posted on October 5, 2010 by RSCA

In January 2010, Sandpiper Elementary School’s principal, Ms. Linda McDaniel, created a Disaster Preparedness Committee (DPC) whose mission is to prepare the school campus and students for a potential disaster or other emergency. Ms. McDaniel and the committee’s chairperson, Ms. Kathy Lee, recruited members from a wide range of backgrounds. The committee includes Sandpiper teachers, PTA members, and Redwood Shores Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) members, some of whom leverage their professional knowledge of radio communications, a physician, a fire captain, and a police officer.

The DPC quickly generated a plan of action for updating emergency supplies, developing procedures and logistics, and revising the school safety plan. Backpacks containing teacher support supplies (e.g., flashlights, gloves, first aid kit, student informational cards) were installed in every classroom. Lists of other emergency items such as water barrels, radios, tarps, crowbars, and sanitation supplies were compiled, in order to care for the students and independently maintain the school site for the state recommended 72 hours after a disaster.

Generous donations from the Sandpiper PTA and the Redwood Shores Community Association (RSCA) allowed initial purchases to be made, including a newly installed emergency supply shed. An earthquake/fire drill has been conducted, and a plan for parent reunification is almost complete.

A campus walkthrough with Captain Rick Kehr and his team from the RWC Fire Station 20 here in Redwood Shores helped to determine the most appropriate post-disaster meeting places, pickup areas and emergency vehicle logistics.

The DPC also established networking contacts with emergency and disaster preparedness officials in the Redwood City Fire Department, Belmont-San Carlos Fire Department, San Mateo County Office of Emergency Services, and other school districts.

Parents and community members are invited to make donations to the Sandpiper Disaster Preparedness Fund by writing a check payable to the “Sandpiper PTA” and dropping it off at the school office. Please be sure to write “DPC” on the memo line of your check.

The DPC is looking forward to continuing work on its multi-year plan to keep the Sandpiper community safe!

— Mike Mancusi

Sandpiper Spotlight: September 2010

Posted on August 21, 2010 by RSCA

The new school year at Sandpiper is in full swing with 510 students enrolled at Sandpiper. Renewed energy and excitement were in the air as students met their new teachers and reconnected with their friends after the summer break. Everyone had an opportunity to mingle with old and new friends at an ice cream social sponsored by the PTA.

We are thrilled that — for the first time since 2005 – kindergarten classes have been reinstated at Sandpiper with 100 Redwood Shores kindergarteners! We also welcomed back many first through five grade students this year who previously attended Belmont schools because of the continued space limitations at Sandpiper.

The Sandpiper community extends a hearty welcome and best wishes for a successful first year to the new Redwood Shores Elementary School community. We look forward to collaborating with parents, teachers and staff at RWS Elementary — our sister neighborhood school here in the Shores. Thank you Redwood Shores taxpayers for making it possible for every Redwood Shores elementary student to attend a neighborhood school in Redwood Shores.

Sandpiper’s Green Team enthusiastically kicked off its activities to help our students be clean, green and ecofriendly as we continue to support the Cool the Earth program. Activities include Walking School Bus: also known as International Walk to School Day, where neighborhoods of children are encouraged to walk to school together, trashless lunches: encouraging reusable containers and drink bottles, Nike Re-Use-A-Shoe: collection bins for recycling of rubber soled athletic shoes, Ecophones: collection bins for iPods, digital cameras and video cameras, and empty ink jet cartridges.

Thanks to the Girl Scouts and Cubs Scouts for their hard work in planting beautiful flowers in over 25 planter boxes throughout the school campus. They are lovely and add a lot of color and charm to the school!

Finally, as Sandpiper encourages children to walk and bike to school whenever possible, we’d like to remind motorists to please be cautious at stop signs and crosswalks. Remember that our traffic laws provide that a pedestrian must be totally out of the crosswalk — safely on the curbside, before a motorist may drive through the crosswalk.

Sandpiper Spotlight: August 2010

Posted on August 13, 2010 by RSCA

We hope you have been enjoying this beautiful summer. Our teachers and staff have been busy preparing for another great year, and look forward to meeting new families and welcoming old friends. Please note the following important dates on your calendar:

School Supplies: A list of back-to-school supplies for each grade level can be found on the Sandpiper website ( http://sandpiper.brssd.org ). Online ordering is also available through Aug. 10 — please check website for more information.

Sandpiper Playdate: All are welcome to join us on Sat., Aug. 21 from 11am-1pm at the lower grade playground near Room 22. Don’t forget sunscreen!

Registration Packet Pickup: Held on Fri., Aug. 20 in front of the Sandpiper school office — New Sandpiper Families only from 4pm to 5pm; Returning Sandpiper Families from 5pm to 6:30pm. Stop by to pick up important forms from the District and PTA. If you cannot attend, please arrange for a friend to get it for you.

Student Registration: All families must turn in their District forms prior to the start of school. For your convenience, a special registration event will be held on Mon., Aug. 23 in the Sandpiper Community Center. Doors open at 3:00pm and close promptly at 7:00pm. Please allow 30 minutes to process your paperwork. Remember to bring your checkbook if you wish to purchase yearbooks, spirit wear, etc.

Kindergarten Kickoff: Incoming Kindergarten families are invited to drop by school on Tues., Aug. 24 from 3pm-5pm for a special event sponsored by Kids’ Posh Parties.

2010-11 Bell Schedule: Please drive carefully and watch out for kids in the crosswalks! Kindergarten starts at 8:25am /dismissed daily at 12:30pm. 1st- 5th grades start at 8:35 am. 1st – 3rd grades dismissed at 2:45pm on Mon./Tue./Thurs/Fri. 4th and 5th grades dismissed at 3:10pm on Mon./Tue./Thurs/Fri. 1st – 5th grades always dismissed on Wed. at 12:30pm.

The first day of school is Wed., Aug. 25 and will be an early dismissal day (12:30 pm). Parking is extremely limited, so we encourage all families to enjoy the warm weather by walking or biking to school if possible. We look forward to seeing you soon!

The Origin and Funding of Sandpiper Elementary School

Posted on June 14, 2010 by RSCA

As community discussion has intensified over the last several months about the size, shape, and equity of the proposed school bond tax, certain “urban myths” have taken on a new life. The purpose of this article is to shed light on the facts about how Sandpiper Elementary School came to be and de-bunk the myth that “Belmont paid for most of Sandpiper.” This myth, if left uncorrected, could distract the community at a critical time in funding the public school system. The factual basis for this article comes from extensive interviews of those who were directly involved in the development of the Shores, examination of public records, and information provided by staff at San Mateo County (Office of the Treasurer, Controller, Assessor, Education, Elections, and Records), Belmont-Redwood Shores School District (the ‘District’), and Redwood City.

Fact: Sandpiper Elementary School would not exist today had it not been for the continued generosity of the master developer, personal intervention by Redwood City Council, and significant financial support of Redwood City.

Fact: Shores and Belmont taxpayers have shared in the funding for construction of Sandpiper Elementary.

Fact: The District could have significantly reduced the financed amount for Sandpiper had it not already depleted more than $3,500,000 from the 1987 sale of the original school site in the Shores (given to the District in 1969 by the original Shores master developer for $175K) and hundreds of thousands more in School Impact Fees (a/k/a “developer fees”) collected from 1987 onwards as the Shores was built out.

The Origin of the First School in the Shores:

In 1968, the first General Plan for development of Redwood Shores was approved. In 1969, Leslie Properties, Inc. (the original master developer) sold a 6.75 acre parcel (known as the “Dory Lane parcel”) to the District at a deeply discounted price of $175K to encourage the District to build a school in Redwood Shores at a date as early as possible. Instead, in 1987, the District declared the property as “surplus” and offered it for sale to Redwood City who agreed to purchase 2 acres for the price of $362K in 1988 (now Marlin Park). The District sold the remaining portion to PenCal Properties for $3.32M which brought the District’s total profit to over $3.5M. (PenCal Properties developed the homes along what is now Harbor Colony Court and Dory Lane.)

During the period from 1987 to 1995, there was neither in-ground construction that benefited Shores students (who attended Nesbit Elementary in Belmont) nor a neighborhood school as originally planned by the master developer.

By 1995, the Shores student population had reached a critical number and the District finally acknowledged that the Shores required a local school. However, the District had no funds and attempted unsuccessfully to get Redwood City to require the master developer (now Redwood Shores Properties) to donate a second school site to the District as a condition for approval to develop Area G (seven neighborhoods). The master developer refused believing that it too would be declared “surplus” and sold.

At this point in 1995, Redwood City’s City Council became actively involved in shaping a deal that would make the first school in the Shores a reality. First, the master developer gave Redwood City “free and clear” title to 11 acres (then known as Sandpiper Park) for use as a school and related facilities.

Redwood City sold 3.89 acres of Sandpiper Park parcel to the District for a school site for $2.95M. The City used the rest of the site (7.17 acres) for a community center and sports fields and reserved the $2.95M (from the sale of the school site) in a sinking fund to support future maintenance and operations costs of the sports field and community center. The City also invested $2.98 million on construction of Sandpiper Community Center including half of the cost of the multi-purpose room that would be used by the District as part of normal school operation. In addition, the City used $1.25 million of General Improvement District 1-64 funds to construct the portions of the sports fields that would be used as part of a public park (with the District sharing the cost of joint playfields). Lastly, the City entered into a Joint Use Agreement with the District that allowed the District to use the community center, sports fields, and parking lot as part of school operations.

The District, having no ready funds, took out a loan for $6 million, using 89% of it ($5.34M) to: purchase the Sandpiper school site; construct K-3 school for 250 students, day care center, joint use sports fields, and up to $1M of the cost of a multi-purpose room in the community center; and, obtain a license to use the City’s facilities as part of school operations. The District paid the annual debt expense using developer fees and funds that it received from Belmont Redevelopment Agency. [NOTE: This is the basis for the urban myth that “Belmont paid for most of Sandpiper.” However, today’s outstanding principal is $5.6M — which is $300K more than the cost to build the first phase of Sandpiper (K-3). So, it is more accurate to say that the loan to finance the entire first phase of Sandpiper is still outstanding. This District-wide debt could have been largely avoided if the District had reserved the proceeds from the sale of the first school site as well as School Impact Fees paid over the many years by developers in the Shores for the original intended use — the construction of the first school in the Shores.]

In 1997, the voters approved a District-wide bond ($12M) and less than half used for expanding Sandpiper to K-5. Since this bond was District-wide, Shores and Belmont taxpayers have shared these bond payments.

In summary, Sandpiper Elementary School became a reality due in large measure to the continued generosity of the master developer and substantial intervention of Redwood City and its Council. Both Belmont and Shores taxpayers have shared the funding for construction of Sandpiper Elementary. The new Redwood Shores Elementary School, in contrast, is funded 100% by Shores taxpayers for the next 30 years.

–Submitted by Carole Wong, President of RSOA

Sandpiper Spotlight: June 2010

Posted on June 14, 2010 by RSCA

May was a busy month filled with academic testing and end-of-year activities.

Leveraging a grant by the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors’ Math and Science Innovation Award, Miss Fauce expanded her Science students’ knowledge of anatomy with digestion tract labs, dissections, and an assembly by the Lawrence Hall of Science.

Sandpiper families also enjoyed a beautiful instrumental music and choral concert featuring more than 200 of our 4th & 5th grade students. We appreciate the dedication and passion of our music teacher, Mrs. MacAllister.

The PTA recently hosted Teacher Appreciation Week to thank the staff and teachers for their dedication throughout the school year. There was much to celebrate! With your generous donations to the School-Force Education Foundation, several positions at Sandpiper have been reinstated for the 2010-2011 school year. Our sincere appreciation to every family and business for their continued support!

API (Academic Performance Index) scores are one of many instruments used to measure a school’s performance. The 2009 scores were recently released and Sandpiper students came through with flying colors and a score of 935 — the highest ranking in our School District. Kudos to our students, and the strong partnership which exists between our Principal, PTA, staff, teachers and families.

The PTA wishes to invite all new families to the Sandpiper Summer Playdate series. Playdates will be held on June 26, July 24, and August 21 from 11:00am-1:00pm on the play structures (near Room 22). Please bring a picnic lunch, blanket/chairs, and sunscreen.

Sandpiper Spotlight: May 2010

Posted on May 11, 2010 by RSCA

We hope the community enjoyed visiting Sandpiper last month during Open House. It’s always a treat to meet our neighbors and “show off” our talented teachers and students!

For past six years, the Nesbit community has welcomed our Kindergarten students with open arms. On April 21 the Sandpiper PTA hosted a Nesbit Appreciation Day to show our gratitude for their flexibility and dedication to our students. We know the friendships made at Nesbit will last for many years to come.

April was very busy as our entire community rallied together to raise $3 million to preserve valuable programs, teachers and staff. As of this submission more than $1 million has already been raised for the School-Force Education Foundation. In addition, thousands of letters have been sent to local and State officials asking for their support of public education. Regardless of the outcome, we thank our students, teachers, staff, parents, and local businesses for coming together in an unprecedented effort to protect our schools from budget cuts — today and in the future.

We know that behind every successful school is an involved community. This year alone Sandpiper families donated more than 24,000 hours of their valuable time in and around the classroom. We are proud to announce this year’s PTA Service Award recipients, which consists of parents, teachers, and local businesses. These individuals have worked tirelessly not only for Sandpiper, but for every child across our School District.

Honorary Service Award: Lisa Chavez
Very Special Person Award: Beverly Notte, Susan Griffin, and Mindy Shelton
Friend of the Community Award: Alan Sarver and Crystal Springs Catering

Please join us in congratulating these truly inspirational individuals!

— Submitted by Suzanne Pritchard, PTA President

Sandpiper Spotlight: April 2010

Posted on April 19, 2010 by RSCA

Have you designed a new product recently? Our students have! In March all students spent the day with Junior Achievement, the world’s largest organization dedicated to educating students about work readiness, entrepreneurship and financial literacy through hands-on programs. Each grade level participated in creative exercises in which they designed a product and developed a sales, financial and marketing plan. It was very exciting to see the creativity of our future business leaders.

Sandpiper students celebrated National Reading Month during the Reading Power Read-A-Thon, a fundraiser for the School-Force education foundation. For two weeks, children tracked their hours spent reading in a heated competition to see which grade would reign supreme. Congratulations to all the children, and their sponsors, for their dedication to reading!

All Pro Dads held its second breakfast of the year, welcoming dads (and moms) to an hour of quality time with their children before school. Sandpiper is home to the only All Pro Dads program in Northern California, encouraging parents to be positive and engaged role models to all children.

The Disaster Preparedness Committee continues working towards its goal of building a 7-day emergency supply inventory for the school. Although this effort may take a year or more to achieve, several short-term milestones have been identified including “Grab & Go” backpacks for every classroom, and school-wide training and drill exercises. We encourage all families to develop their own emergency plan at home. Many resources can be found at www.redcross.org, and local training is available through the CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) website at www.redwoodcity.org/fire/disaster/signupforCERT.html.

The community is invited to visit Sandpiper at the Open House to be held Wednesday, April 28 at 7:00pm. In addition to classroom exhibits, there will be an Art in Action showcase in the multi-use room. Please bike or walk as parking will be limited.

— Suzanne Pritchard, PTA President

Sandpiper School Update

Posted on February 8, 2010 by RSCA

ENROLLMENT

Sandpiper is very excited to open our doors once again to Kindergarten students. School tours took place during January & February with Principal McDaniel and PTA President Suzanne Pritchard. Sibling registration will begin February 22 at 9:00 am.

Registration for New students (including incoming Kindergarten) begins at the school office on March 1 at 9:00 am. Registration forms will be made available at that time. PLEASE NOTE that school begins at 8:35 am at Sandpiper.

If you do not already have children attending Sandpiper, please avoid using the parking lot and drive-thru until after 8:45 am. Additional traffic will cause a delay in instructional time for our current students. Children who are enrolled and attending school in our district already do NOT need to re-register.

Additional details (including Redwood Shores Elementary) can be found at http://sandpiper.brssd.org.

SAFETY DRILLS

Student safety is our number one priority and we regularly conduct drills with our faculty, staff and students to ensure everyone is well prepared in the event of an emergency. Additionally, our PTA maintains an emergency supply kit for every student to provide short-term assistance. To take our plans one step further, Sandpiper is forming a Disaster Preparedness Committee to update the school’s crisis plan. If you have experience with emergency preparedness planning and would like to serve on the committee please contact the school office.

STUDENTS SHARE HOLIDAY CHEER

Sandpiper Elementary School students drop off presents for children in need served by Family Service Agency of San Mateo County. The students delivered over 200 presents for children receiving treatment for abuse and also those receiving subsidized child care at the San Mateo-based nonprofit. In addition, numerous students collected toys, groceries, and generously donated gift cards to donate to those members of the community most in need over the holidays.

rsca_sandpiper-feb2010

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