North Dickinson County School - 2019/2020
Nordic
News
Farewell Drive Thru
The North Dickinson Staff would like to say goodbye for the summer to the students on Wednesday evening, June 3, 2020 from 5 - 6 PM in the school parking lot. Staff will be outside to wave and bid their students farewell and are hoping that parents will drive their children through the parking lot for a wave and a 143. At that time parents can drop off any school materials that need to be returned to the building.
Well, here we are in the middle of May still
quarantined. I do not think any of us imagined that we would still
be here. If you are like me and my family, you and your children
have probably had good days and bad days, and lots of days in
between. I generally try to stay positive and upbeat, but one day, I
felt like I had had enough and I was having a particularly bad day.
Later that day I checked my e-mail and read a blog post from a
motivational speaker I follow named Jon Gordon. I’d like to share
something out of his blog that helped me.
The post was titled, “Its OK, to not be OK.” Part of the post said
this:
Being positive doesn't mean you suck it up and put a fake smile on
your face. It's okay to go through a wide range of emotions and feel
the stages of grief. You might have felt denial, anger, sadness,
acceptance and meaning over the last couple of months. Actually you
might even feel these stages and emotions in the course of a day.
It's okay to be scared, frustrated and feel down. You just don't
want to stay there too long and allow these feelings to take you
down a spiral staircase of depression and despair. The key is to
find the optimism, hope and faith to keep going and create a better
future. This is not about seeing the world through rose colored
glasses. This is knowing you have the power to overcome the thorns.
You have the power to shift your perspective and turn your pain into
purpose and struggle into strength.
One of my favorite parts of this article was the title – “Its Ok, to
not be ok.” There isn’t a book on how to deal with a global pandemic
and no one knows the “best’ way to go through all of this or to help
our children go through this. It did help me, however, to realize
that it’s ok to have bad days. I hope that it helps you to hear it
too. I also hope you remember that you too, have the power to
overcome the thorns.
I also wanted to remind everyone that I am here and available to
talk with your child if they need it. Any of our staff would be
happy to reach out to your children through a phone call or a Zoom
meeting. I’ve had people apologize for contacting me or “bugging me”
(I think because I am working from home most days). Please know that
you will not be bothering me if you ask me to contact your child.
Every opportunity I have had to connect with a student over the
phone or through a Zoom meeting has brightened my day and has
probably helped me more than it helped the student. With that being
said, please do not hesitate to reach out to me if you feel like
your child needs it. My cell is 221-5446 and my e-mail is
ajungwirth@go-nordics.com.
I know it has been awhile since we have seen each other, but please
know that as a staff we are all still here for you and we think of
you all every day! We miss you! 143 Nordics! Mrs. J
Mr. C’s Kindergarten Class
I appreciate everything that all of you have done. I understand that
when the weather is getting nice that the littles have other things
on their mind, but please keep them reading.
Drivers Education
We will be updating on drivers education as the governor opens more
up and we have more information as to when we will be able to hold
classes.
From the desk of Mrs. Inglese
Once again, I would like to thank all of the parents, grandparents
and community members for your support in this time. The staff,
Board and administration are so proud of all of the work our
students have been doing in this difficult time. We cannot tell you
enough how much we appreciate all that you have done and continue to
do to help your children be successful. At this time, we are still
unaware as to what graduation will look like. We have sent a survey
out to the seniors to see what is most important to them as far as
graduation is concerned. As soon as we know what we can/cannot do we
will communicate with our seniors, their parents and the community
and we will make sure that their commencement ceremony is a
memorable one.
Financial Times
As many of you are aware, the Michigan Department of Education gave
a presentation to the State Board of Education warning that the
state is predicting a multi-billion dollar decline in tax revenue
due to COVID-19. With that being said, lawmakers are claiming that
school districts could face cuts of 10 to 25 percent in their per
student funding. As a small district, we have seen some difficult
financial times in the past and have worked very hard to make sure
that regardless of what is going on financially, our students
receive the best education available. It cannot be stressed enough
that no matter what happens, we will strive to continue to offer the
best for your children. Our staff is extremely dedicated to the
children and the school district; and I believe that I can speak for
all of them when I say they will continue to be dedicated no matter
what happens in the future.
Pandemic (P-EBT) Benefits
We have been receiving calls from parents who are receiving Pandemic
EBT (P-EBT) benefits. The schools do not have anything to do with
this, but I am hoping to answer some of your questions. The
following Q/A comes from the MDE website link:
https://www.michigan.gov/mde/0,4615,7-140-66254_99536---,00.html
Most Common questions:
Q. Will there be an email or phone number available for parent
questions regarding the P-EBT cards?
A. If you have any questions, please contact 1-833-905-0028.
Q. I have multiple school-age children, how much will our family be
eligible for?
A. The pre-loaded P-EBT card will come in the mail and will be in
the oldest school aged child’s name, not the parents name. Keep the
card for ongoing benefits you may receive. The combined benefit
amount for March/April is $193.80 per child and will be available by
the end of April. The combined benefit amount for May/June is
$182.40 per child and will be available by the end of May.
Q. If someone has had their income change or is experiencing
unemployment, should they fill out a new Free and Reduced-Price Meal
Application?
A. Yes, we are advising all schools to collect Free and
Reduced-Price Meal Applications for households that are experiencing
unemployment or a sudden job loss. Schools should reach out to their
communities and advise households to fill out a new Free and
Reduced-Price Meal Application. Households will also be able to
carry over this benefit for 30-operating days into school year
2020-2021.
If you have any questions regarding this, we will try to help and
you are more than welcome to call the school, but will probably have
more success receiving answers by calling the 833 number listed
above.
1st Grade
Hello first graders! First, I’d like to say how proud I am of you!
This has been a crazy year and you are all handling it very well.
Thank you for keeping in touch with me. I love all the letters,
texts and messages I get from you. Please continue to send them. I
promise to always write or text back! Remember that the best thing
you can do to get ready for 2nd grade is to read a little each day!
Make it a part of your routine. 10-15 minutes before bed is a great
time to read! I challenge you to read a couple chapter books this
summer. You can totally do it! Read a few pages every night.
To my first grade parents: Thank you is not enough! Every day I woke
up thinking of all of you trying to juggle all of this. Please know
that I am SO appreciative of your effort to stay in touch with me. I
don’t think I would have survived the last weeks without seeing and
hearing from your kiddos! I hope to see your families out and about
this summer. You are rock stars! – Mrs. Mattson
2nd Grade
Thank you to all the 2nd grade parents for everything you have done
to keep your child on track to finish out our school year from home.
I appreciate all the hard work and sacrifices you have made. Even
though I miss seeing everyone face to face, it sure has been a joy
to receive all your emails, cards and letters. If we were still in
school, Jennifer Solka from the Marquette Alger Regional Educational
Service Agency would have visited our classroom several more times
to teach her PENut (which stands for PE and Nutrition) lessons.
Unfortunately, she was only able to visit our class in person one
time, but she brought excellent fitness and snack ideas. Since she
obviously can’t come back to our classroom, she sent a link for me
to pass on to families. If you are interested in getting some tips
on healthy snack and ways to stay active while at home,
visit https://www.smore.com/pxrf8.
Be safe, be well & continue to be in touch!
143 –Mrs. Mattson
3rd Grade
I am sending one last homework packet this week. If you would like
more materials for over the summer, please feel free to contact me.
I would like you to continue to send me homework from each subject
Through June 3rd, which would have been our last day of school. That
would include Reader’s Notebook pages, math chapter review, and
science chapter vocabulary. Please continue to check
Thinkcentral.com for a guide on the homework and click done when
your child has completed the assignment.
Please continue to have your child read over the summer and practice
math fluency with basic addition, subtraction, multiplication, and
division. 20 minutes each day reading and 10 minutes with math a few
days each week will make a difference when they start 4th grade.
Thanks,
Mrs. Abby Grunlund agrunlund@go-nordics.com
(906) 282-6775
E-Mail Accounts for Seniors
Seniors are reminded that their Nordic e-mail accounts will be
disabled this summer. Please make sure you use a different e-mail
account for college application.
4th Grade
Parents/Guardians, I hope this letter finds you and your family well
and that you are managing the challenging times we are currently
living in.
I know that, amid all the uncertainty and fear right now, it’s
overwhelming to suddenly take over as your child’s teacher. Don’t
worry — they’re learning just fine with you in charge. I know it is
not easy taking on this new role for your child, while maintaining
your homes, families, and jobs of your own. I want to say thank you
for all you are doing at home to support your child.
5th Grade
First, I want to praise all the 5th grade students and their parents
for continuing schooling at home. You have taken this difficult
situation and have done a fantastic job with it. My hope was that
the work assigned wouldn’t be too overwhelming, and that most could
be completed with little or no help from parents. I pray that this
was the case. We are almost to the finish line!
Next, having to change the mode at which students have learned, I
think has been beneficial. Discipline to complete tasks by oneself
and the use of technology to learn, are skills many, if not all,
students will need not only in the school years to come, but beyond
into their futures.
Last, the fifth-grade student's schoolwork will change slightly in
the final weeks of school. Students will continue with Khan Academy
for math and language arts for the remainder of the school year. For
history, there will be 2 more weeks of Khan academy, then I will be
sending them some videos to their emails to watch with one question
they can reply to me in a forum on the email. In science, for the
remainder of the year, students will receive a couple videos per
week with a question to respond to in the email forum. All will be
explained in emails sent by me.
Again, thank you so much for your efforts and I hope all is well
with you.
Thanks for listening,
Michael Lindholm
Mr. Faust's classes:
6th/7th Geography
8th Grade History and Health
H.S. Novel and Cinema as History
H.S. Critical Issue
Please remember to check your Nordic email for notices, assignments
and etc... I want to thank many of you students for doing this on a
regular basis and turning in assignments in a reasonable amount of
time. I have spent a great deal of time tracking some students down
without any reply. Remember, that completing course work is your
responsibility not anyone else's. If you are struggling with a
class please contact me and I will attempt to work with you within
reason as I have already done this with other students. This week I
have given several classes the opportunity to make up work with no
new assignments until next week. All past due work is to be turned
in on Friday. I have sent emails to individual classes that
communicated this same message.
Mr. Faust
Music Department
On behalf of the Nordic Music Department, I would like to
congratulate our Senior band members: John Briggs, Chrissy Bruette,
Hannah Clark, Cuyler Crites, Skye Ledzian, Ricki Mattson, John
Mayfield, Savannah Parent, Cameron Schultz, and Mollie Steinbrecher.
I’m extremely proud of your accomplishments and thank you for your
leadership and dedication to the Nordic Band Department! We wish you
the best as you graduate!!!
Ms. Anderson
Yearbook
It is not too late to order your copy of the 2019-20 yearbook.
Prices have increased to $40.00 beginning May 15, 2020. You can
still order by sending money to the school, make sure to mark Attn:
Yearbook. Since our yearbook club has been unable to take any
pictures since March, we are asking for your contributions more than
ever to make it possible to finish the book. Any pictures that you
have from when school was in session or pictures of your children
working at home are appreciated. You can send pictures to
athoune@go-nordics.com.
Board Elections
This November four of our school board member’s terms expire. If you
are interested in running for the school board please contact the
Dickinson County clerk for specific information on the procedure to
run, not your local municipal clerk. The reason for this is because
our school district crosses several different political
jurisdictions. If you have questions regarding serving as a Board
member, please contact the District Office. You must either file
nominating petitions or pay a $100.00 fee and you must complete and
file an Affidavit of Identity. The deadline for all paperwork must
be completed and submitted no later than July 21, 2020 at 4:00 p.m.
You pick up and then file all completed paperwork with the County
Clerk office that is located in the Dickinson County Courthouse.
Bond Proposal-August 4 Election
By: Michael Roell, Business Manager
The North Dickinson School District will have a request for millage
on the August 4, 2020 election. The millage request will ask the tax
payers to consider a 1 mill tax increase for 3 years for the
purchase of school buses, acquiring and installing instructional
technology and instructional technology equipment and re-equipping
the school building. The district again plans to reduce the levy on
the 2 mill sinking fund to 1 mill for the 3-year period to keep the
property taxes in check.
Immunization
Summer is a good time to review your student’s immunization record
and schedule appointments before sports and extra-curricular
activities begin again. They may need to receive immunizations
before they start school again in the fall or leave for college. New
immunizations are recommended and your student may not be fully
protected from all vaccine-preventable diseases.
North Dickinson Cheer Program
A cheer camp is in the works for late summer, it will be held in
conjunction with other local cheer programs. The camp will be
available to all 9-12th graders interested in fall cheer. Any
student interested is to contact Veronica Nord at 906-221-3217.
ND Prom 2020
The Junior class is looking to reschedule prom at a later date. We
are looking forward to be able to celebrate together. Details will
follow.
Miss Anna’s Classes
8th Grade Science: Thank you all for adjusting so well to the change
of the educational process. From the work that the 8th graders have
done thus far, they have transitioned quite easily from Khan Academy
to creating PowerPoints and writing reports. I appreciate everyone’s
efforts.
7th Grade Science: Very good job with keeping up with all of the
school work 7th graders! Your efforts are really appreciated.
6th Graders: You are doing a great job keeping up with all of the
different expectations that have been placed upon you. Keep up the
good work!
Mr. Mattson
Hello again Nordics. Hope all of you are well. Hopefully all this
craziness will go away sooner rather than later. I just wanted to
say I hope everyone is trying to make the best of this crazy
situation. Seniors-----congrats and good luck on future endeavors!
It was a joy having you all as students and athletes. Keep working
hard, it will pay off. To all other students---keep on working hard
and remember that summer is right around the corner!
Hey Nordics!!!!
Mr. Siegler here. I hope that everyone is doing well. I appreciate
everyone's patience in this time of “new normal”. I want to say that
I am very impressed with both the students and the parents
throughout this process. This is not easy for anyone, and we
appreciate your continued patience and support. I look forward to
seeing each and everyone of you as soon as possible!! Keep up the
good work. Continue to Row The Boat, and remember that we will get
through this together as a family!! Again, I look forward to seeing
you soon…..Stay safe and healthy!
143
Mr. Sig
Special Education
Dear Nordics,
I miss seeing all of you! I have been checking in weekly with your
parents and I am so proud to hear how well all of you have been
doing on your school work. I look forward to seeing you next
school year and hearing all about how you and your family made the
best of this quarantine time and the virtual learning/home school
experience. Again I miss you all and hope you have a safe and fun
filled summer.
Sincerely,
Ms. Hord
Homework drop off
The school is open on Mondays from noon to 1:00 PM to drop off
homework. If you are unable to get to the school, there is a drop
box at the BP in Sagola that you can put your child's work in and it
will be picked up by a staff member and brought to school. Other
homework drop off times will be available by appointment. Please
contact the school office if you need to schedule a time.
