If your child is entering Kindergarten and you speak another language at home, we would like to invite you to attend the EL Kindergarten Information Night, Tuesday, February 26th.  The program will take place from 6:00-7:00 p.m. at the Professional Learning Center, 524 E. Schaumburg Road.  Childcare is available for ages 3 and up.

During the evening, you will have the opportunity to learn more about the programs for English Learner Kindergarten students, Dual Language Programs in District 54 and the language assessment process.   If you, or someone you know, will have a student attending Kindergarten in September, we hope that you will join us for this informative night.

Winter has arrived!  Thank you for sending your children to school with boots, hats and gloves so they are comfortable on these cold days.  In order to help parents better prepare for the severe cold weather and snow we often get during winters in our community, I wanted to share with you the District 54 Severe Cold Weather Response Plan. District 54 makes every effort to keep our schools open, but circumstances beyond our control (such as Chicagoland winters) sometimes dictate that we close.

Please know that every decision we make revolves around what is best for our students. In deciding whether to close school for the day, our top concern is whether we believe the more than 15,000 students we serve can get to school safely (whether they walk, take a bus or ride in a car). District 54 refers to the National Weather Service (www.weather.gov) to monitor weather advisories and warnings. Currently, the site is predicting an arctic air mass will bring a period of bitterly cold conditions Thursday night into next week. To help you prepare for that possibility, here are our cold weather guidelines.

Wind Chill Warning

• A wind chill warning is typically issued when the wind chill will be -30 degrees Fahrenheit or colder OR the actual air temperature is -15°F.
• Classes and extracurricular activities will be cancelled.

Wind Chill Advisory

• A wind chill advisory is typically issued when the wind chill is -20 degrees Fahrenheit or colder.
• Schools will be open, but students will not go outside for recess or PE.

Most importantly, remember that parents and guardians ultimately make the decision whether to send their children to school. If you decide to keep your child home on a day in which the weather is extremely inclement, the absence will be considered excused and your child will be given every opportunity to make up missed work. If we were to close school, we will call and email all District 54 families (students and staff) by 6:30 a.m. that day (at the latest). District 54 often waits until the morning to cancel school, because the weather in the Chicagoland area is constantly changing and we hope that we can have school.

More information can be found online at https://sd54.org/resources/schoolcancellations. Thank you for working with us to keep District 54 students safe.

Once again we are reaching out to our families and asking you to participate in the annual Illinois 5 Essentials Survey to provide us with your perspective and help guide our school improvement efforts. The parent survey will be available online through March 15, 2019, at https://survey.5-essentials.org/Illinois. Thank you!

Dirksen yearbooks for the 2018-2019 season are available for purchase online.  The cost of the yearbook remains the same as last year at $20. Online orders allow for customization of two pages with personal photos and memories specific to your child and provides the option to upgrade to a hardcover for an additional cost of $6.00. To purchase & customize your yearbook, go to www.TreeRing.com/validate

• Enter our school’s passcode: 1014114021334006
• Returning families may already have account information established and can login as a “returning customer” and update their child’s information for the current school year and proceed with ordering without needing the school passcode.We will provide opportunities to place orders via cash or check periodically throughout the year, however only online ordering allows for customization or upgrade options.