Volunteer to help Mrs. Bennett in art class with the student art projects that will be sold at the Informal Art Show.

Help is needed to mount the artwork and to assist the students with documenting their reflections on their artwork. Sign up here:  

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0D4FAAAF22A5F58-informal

Carsonie's: 1725 W. Lane Ave., Upper Arlington

February 8, 9, and 10 from 11 a.m.-10 p.m.

15% of their sales will go toward Wickliffe PTO. This includes take-out or dine-in orders at any time of those three days! 

Mention the Wickliffe PTO to make sure sales are applied to our fundraiser.

The PTO provided lunch on Thursday, January 27, for the teachers and staff members. Local Cantina catered a taco/nacho bar at a significant discount to help us thank our teachers and staff. Thank you Local Cantina! Please check out Local Cantina's new location in Upper Arlington on Lane Ave.

MARK YOUR CALENDAR: The Spring Flower Sale starts on February 22!

We can order the amazing plants from Foertmeyer and support our school. Flower pickup is tentatively scheduled for May 6, 2022.  All the details coming soon!

Coming soon! Our inaugural Informal Art Show will be held 6-8 p.m. on March 1, 2, and 3 at Wickliffe. This is a family-friendly event where you and your family can see your child’s individual artwork displayed and purchase it to bring home at a later date. If purchased, it will be framed and ready for display at home. The cost will be $30 for each child’s artwork.

Without our usual Informal Affair event, the Informal Art Show is now our biggest fundraiser this year. We need our Wickliffe community to come together and make this art show a success for our school!

In order to make this event as safe as possible, masks will be required. Additionally, we have organized the event so that families can be more spread out:

• March 1 - Families with last names starting with A through I
• March 2 - Families with last names starting with J through Q
• March 3 - Families with last names starting with R through Z

If your last name falls on a night you are unable to attend, please feel free to attend the night that works best for your family. And if you are unable to attend any of the three nights, please don’t hesitate to reach out if you still want to buy your child’s framed artwork.

There will be raffles for teacher experiences, business donations, and beverage wagons! Raffle tickets will be available to buy on the nights of the event, but you can also purchase raffle tickets early. The PTO will be selling raffle tickets on the website starting February 14. So, be on the lookout if you want to purchase tickets ahead of time to avoid the line at the event.

We look forward to seeing you and your families at the first-ever Informal Art Show! All proceeds benefit our children. We are excited to continue to provide fun-filled events with the goal of raising money for the cultural art and educational enrichment programs for our Wickliffe students.

Chef Mike is looking for an adult helper every day during school lunch to help the students through the lunch line. If you are interested in volunteering please sign up through this link: 
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0D4FAAAF22A5F58-lunch

"Helping Chef Mike is rewarding and fun!" - parent volunteer

The City of Upper Arlington Parks & Rec Department has a new financial assistance program called PLAY UA. This webpage has more information regarding specific departments (aquatics, recreation & activities, senior center and tennis): https://upperarlingtonoh.gov/parks-recreation/play-ua-financial-assistance-program/. Residents can apply now and be eligible for discounts on Parks & Rec programming (including day camp - registration for this popular program begins Tuesday, February 1).

The teachers and staff members are in need of another microwave. There is one microwave in the teachers lounge but the line gets really long at lunch and a second microwave would be wonderful! Do you have a microwave in good condition that you could donate? Are you interested in purchasing and donating a microwave for the teachers and staff? Please contact Jen Waddell at jenniferawaddell@yahoo.com.

Walking Club is back, starting February 8, and is offered to all students during their lunch recess to get moving and earn feet! 

• When: Tuesdays and Thursdays during lunch recess.
• Where: Outdoor loop when recess is outdoors and in the gym when recess is indoors. Volunteers will be onsite to supervise and guide students on their path. 
• How: Each student will receive a note card that volunteers will mark at the end of each lap. Five laps = a foot charm (that can be kept on the walking club bracelet). We will accept $1 donations to cover the cost of the bracelet. Students will keep their bracelet until the end of the year while they continue to collect charms! 

Through the generous donation of a Wickliffe family, we have hats, coats, and gloves available. Please reach out to Angela or Felice if your family needs any of these items. It takes a village and I am proud to be part of a community that takes care of each other.

Food for Thought

When I was in my doctoral program at The Ohio State University, my favorite class was the one on interprofessional collaboration. Through the readings, discussions, and case studies, I learned to value the perspective of others and in particular those who are as committed as I am to the wellbeing of children.

I recently read this article “Reasons for HOPE” by Dr. Robert D. Sege, a pediatrician from Tufts Medical Center in Boston, and it reminded me of why I enjoyed that class so much. Seeing this pandemic through the eyes of a pediatrician was enlightening. As the title implies, Dr. Sege is looking at our children and families through a strengths-based lens as we are living with this virus. He reminds us of resilience and the family-level protective factors which promote opportunities for our children to flourish.

It is always my hope that sharing these articles with you will provide you *food for thought* and that the insights of a professional from a different discipline will broaden all of our perspectives.

As always, I welcome your thoughts and insights. If there is any topic that you would like me to explore, please reach out to me at fkassoy@uaschools.org. 

Felice (and the rest of the counseling team)