Missouri Ridge School

Five of our dedicated leaders came together for a principal meeting today and decided to embrace the spirit of the Homecoming "dress-up day" at their respective schools. 😎 From left to right, representing their schools with style and smiles: - Sara Faulkner, 5th Grade Principal at Bakken Ridge - Dina Norby, Principal at Missouri Ridge - Sadie Storbakken, Principal at Rickard - Meridith Johnson, Principal at Lewis & Clark - Audra Zimmerman, Principal at Hagan Thanks to their commitment to education and their school Homecoming spirit, our students are in great hands! 🙌

The Ridge PTO Fundraiser! Register and share NOW at Shopfund.com Students who share with 20 people through the online store will win the EARLY BIRD PRIZE PACK!!! (Coop stamp, Coop tatoo and New Golden Hero Coop!) Earn Coops for every 5 items sold up to 40! Get to 40 and receie the entire Coop Brigage PLUS the huggable plush Coop Slap bracelet! Online sales count for prizes! Check your students backpacks for the order forms and catalogs! Turn in money and order forms by Tuesday, October 3rd. *All frozen items will be delivered to school, even if ordered online. Questions? CONTACT: theridgepto@gmail.com or The Ridge PTO on Facebook

FOOD PANTRY Available to all District 7 Families at No Cost FRIDAYS 3:30 - 4:00 PM (Except Fridays when there is no school) Williston Middle School Central Campus COYOTE CENTER (main door) Shelf Stable Foods & Frozen Beef Questions/Donations Email: studentwellness@willistonschools.org

A huge thank you to all the parents who attended the Missouri Ridge Elementary School's Back-To-School FAMILY BBQ on Friday, 9/15! Parents were invited to join their kids for a BBQ lunch of hamburgers and hotdogs, followed by fun outside with bouncy houses and a petting zoo! A great time was had by all! Shout Out to the incredible Missouri Ridge PTO for hosting this fantastic event for students and their families! Thanks to the Missouri Ridge staff for their assistance in facilitating this valuable educational opportunity. A HUGE THANKS to the BBQ Sponsors: MonDak Portables LLC XTO Energy Handy Andy's Nursery Yellowstone River Beef Adkins Family Ellingson Family G-Style Transport Braaten Plumbing McDonald's Fort Union Supply and Trading Co. MARS of Williston KLX Energy Services Shift Services Capex Oilfield Services Green Thumb Weed Service Destiny Med Spa Safari Trampoline Ascend Automation Your generosity is the key to our success, and your support is GREATLY appreciated!

We are pleased to introduce our new parent handout highlighting our essential education tech tools for WBSD7 parents, PowerSchool and ParentSquare. PDF Version: https://5il.co/23z93 We are currently crafting a dedicated web page to welcome and assist our newest district families. Your feedback is important to us! What essential information and resources would you like to see included?🤔 Please share your thoughts in the comments below! 👇 #NewToTheDistrict #wbsd7 #CommunityFeedback WillistonSchools.org

📣 Calling all educators & community members! Williston Basin School District #7 is in need of Substitute Teachers to provide essential support our students. Your involvement can truly help shape their educational journey. Our substitute teacher positions offer a flexible schedule, allowing you to balance work with other commitments, while making a difference in our students' lives. Read on to find out how to join us and help our students succeed! APPLY:👩🏽‍💻🧑‍💻 WillistonSchools.org 🔸️HOW TO BECOME A SUBSTITUTE TEACHER: To become a substitute teacher, you will need to visit the North Dakota Education Standards and Practices Board website at nd.gov/espb/. The requirements to obtain a substitute license in North Dakota are: - Completion of an online application, including official transcripts documenting a minimum of 48 semester hours of college coursework (uploaded to application). - Three (3) positive personal/employment references with email addresses. Be sure to inform your references that they will receive an email reference survey. Applications without completed reference surveys will not be considered. - Successful background check completed through ESPB. - Valid Email account and phone number. The substitute license is $80.00 and is good for a period of 2 years. Williston Basin School District #7 will reimburse the license fee to the substitute after they have worked at least 145 hours for the district. The license expires on the applicant's birthday. The substitute license allows a person to be a substitute teacher grades K-12 in all North Dakota schools. After receiving your North Dakota substitute license from ESPB, please attach a copy of the license to your WBSD7 online employment application. Apply: WillistonSchools.org For questions, please contact: LuAnn Nelson Substitute Secretary Williston Basin School District #7 luann.nelson@willistonschools.org

Immunization Clinics will be held at each Williston Basin School District #7 school in September. All students must be up to date on immunizations or have a completed exemption form on file by October 1, 2023. *Exemption forms must be completed yearly To View Immunization Requirements & Immunization Clinic Schedule: www.willistonschools.org/page/immunizations For any questions related to immunizations, please contact our Director of Nursing: Lynn Douglas (701)572-0967 ext. 11573 For a Certificate of Immunization (exempt form), please contact: Upper Missouri District Health Unit 110 West Broadway Williston, ND 58801 (701)774-6400

K-5 Boys & Girls are invited to join Cub Scouts! Learn more at our open house Thursday, August 31 from 6:00-7:00pm in your school gym. Our family program is designed for making lifelong memories with your Scout while they learn values and important life skills. View Flyer: https://5il.co/23bnd

School Bus Schedule If your child is in grades K-8 and you registered them for busing, your child is accepted to ride the bus. Your bus stop is the one nearest to your residence. Times are approximate and may be subject to change as the school year progresses and the number of students on the buses change. Bus routes with only one stop also accommodate children registered with McKinney Vento. These busses currently do not have capacity for additional group stops. However, this is subject to change and may be modified during the school year. McKinney Vento & Special Education Students: If you are a parent/guardian to a child that is registered with McKinney Vento or SPED, you will be receiving a phone call with the approximate pickup/drop off time for your children, if you haven’t already. Thank you for your patience during this transition period and we look forward to the 2023/2024 school year! ~ Harlow’s School Bus Transportation FAQ's: willistonschools.org/page/transportation Bus Schedule PDF Version: https://5il.co/22ipw

Williston Basin School District #7 is working diligently to address previously overcrowded classrooms in our schools and ensure that class sizes are equitable across the District. This is not an easy task. However, it is necessary to make sure that classrooms do not have 29-30 students while others in the same grade have significantly less. The District is faced with considerable space challenges in our elementary schools due to student enrollment growth. We are doing our best to utilize the space that we have available to provide equitable class sizes. This means that principals of our elementary schools must contact families to notify them of school assignment changes. All elementary schools in our District provide supportive, nurturing, high quality educational environments for students. On August 11, 2023 we sent a communication to all families whose students were not yet enrolled for the 2023-2024 school year. We outlined in this communication that we cannot guarantee that their child will be placed at the same school that they were placed in the previous school year. We thank you for your patience and understanding as the District team works together to provide equitable and balanced elementary class sizes throughout the District. If you have not yet completed your child's enrollment process, please go to: https://wbsd7.ps.state.nd.us/public/home.html NOTE: Returning Student Registration can only be completed through the PowerSchool Parent Portal via an internet browser. You cannot use the PowerSchool App to access the registration link. For Questions/Comments: tinyurl.com/D7inquiry Williston Basin School District #7 WillistonSchools.org

Tomorrow is the Final Day for: Kindergarten Screening August 14 and August 15 8:00 am to 4:00 pm Lutheran Brethern Church 213 26th St E Williston, ND 58801 All incoming kindergarten students need to be screened for kindergarten readiness before school starts. No appointment necessary, first come, first serve. You will need to plan on staying with your student the entire time, which should take approximately 30 minutes. If your student was already screened this past screen, they do not need to do it again. If you have questions, please reach out to Dr. Begay at sheeresa.begay@willistonschools.org

‼ UPDATE ‼ We gave away ALL the Backpacks we had today! BACKPACK GIVEAWAY 🎒🖍 Free Backpacks with Supplies Available at the District Office 1201 9th Ave NW *Limited Supplies Available

📢Don't forget Kindergarten Registration is TODAY! Thursday, August 3rd 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. District Office 1201 9th Ave NW Upper Missouri District Health Unit will be available on these dates to provide immunizations to students. Student must be 5 years old by July 31, 2023 Must have: ▪Student's birth certificate ▪Student's immunization record ▪Parent/Guardian's photo identification ▪Proof of residency

Williston Parks & Recreation District Campus Club After School Program Campus Club locations will be at Hagan, Rickard, McVay, Lewis & Clark, Wilkinson, and Missouri Ridge Elementary Schools. ▪Hours are after school to 6:00 p.m. ▪An after school snack will be provided. ▪All Garden Valley students who are in Campus Club will be bussed to Missouri Ridge. ▪You must sign your student up by August 4th to reserve your spot. To register, go to: https://www.willistonparks.com/campus-club Questions? Please email Kirsten at kirsten@wprd.us

Kindergarten Screening August 14 and August 15 8:00 am to 4:00 pm Lutheran Brethern Church 213 26th St E Williston, ND 58801 All incoming kindergarten students need to be screened for kindergarten readiness before school starts. No appointment necessary, first come, first serve. You will need to plan on staying with your student the entire time, which should take approximately 30 minutes. If your student was already screened this past screen, they do not need to do it again. If you have any questions, please reach out to Dr. Arneson at victoria.arneson@willistonschools.org

Parent Teacher Conferences We need parent feedback! We are looking into changing our Parent/Teacher conference schedules to be more aligned with both teacher and parent needs. Please take a moment to fill out the survey: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdti8yRt0r8G3_ml-AOI1ZnlRQ1N-D4r6iDtIwkyNr8bpeRFQ/viewform

For the last day of school May, 25th there will be an early out. Students will be dismissed at 11am. 

Williston Basin School District Boundary Community Discussion will be held on April 26th and April 27th starting at 5:30 PM at Hagan Elementary School. What Will this discussion look like? WBSD#7 is utilizing RSP & Associates consulting firm to guide us through a boundary discussion and decision-making process. We will host two community forums in April where RSP will gather input and feedback from all stakeholders in the community on this topic. RSP will then provide this information for the District and the Board to use to make the best decisions they can for our students and community. Boundary Discussion Timeline Phase 1 (Spring 2023) Create attendance area for only Missouri Ridge K-5 Enrollment. Utilize elementary facility capacity efficiently to relieve over-capacity challenges at Hagan Elementary. Tentative Timeline March 2023: RSP completes 2022/23 Enrollment Analysis. March to April 2023: RSP begins drafting boundary concept(s) for Missouri Ridge Elementary (to serve K-5) April 2023: Administration provides feedback on Missouri Ridge boundary concept(s) April 26-27: Public input opportunities for feedback on Missouri Ridge boundary concept(s) May 2023: BOE approves Missouri Ridge boundary for implementation in 2023/24 school year.

Reminder that there is no school March 13th - 17th for all students! Enjoy your Spring Break!

Schools today face many challenges, not the least of which is communication. Ensuring accurate, timely and trustworthy communications with key stakeholders is integral to supporting student success. Because it is so important, Williston Basin School District #7 is administering the SCoPE Surveys, three surveys dedicated to evaluating the effectiveness of our communication with Faculty and Staff, Parents and Families, and the School Districts we serve. Please take a moment to complete this survey by February 16th: https://survey.k12insight.com/r/xocLb1