‍

‍

‍

‍

Fundraising Committee Corner

WOW!! The Fundraising Committee would like to thank the ISLA community from the bottom of our hearts for your incredible generosity and support over the last month. The committee put in hundreds of collective hours planning and preparing for an exciting campaign that would both build our community up and raise funds for our great school. We were blown away by the students' beautiful stories and efforts, and could feel the excitement in the air last Friday!

We are so excited to announce that together we raised over $63,000 for ISLA School - completely surpassing our $50k goal and blowing last year’s total of $43k out of the water!

Every class surpassed the 80% participation rate or came incredibly close which means that the entire school will get to celebrate together with a uniform free day! And with such an amazing turnout of participation from the entire school, we wanted to make sure that all our teachers are rewarded for their support - All classroom teachers will be getting a $50 credit to use at the Scholastic Book Fair this fall!

There were eight classes that hit the 90% participation rate, and those teachers will receive a $100 credit to use at the Scholastic Book Fair and their class will get an in-class pizza party. The final incentive was for students who raised money from ten or more donors - Can you believe that 65 students achieved this!?! Watch for their gift cards to be sent home next week in an envelope in their red folders.

We know that this school is incredibly special because of the community we choose to create.  Attending a charter school has great benefits and raising the funds to support the whole school is a true community effort. Congratulations again on showing up in your creativity and generosity, all while having FUN!

Thank you to all the parents and grandparents who volunteered last Friday, or stepped in to support during the after-school celebration. Thank you to this year’s Obstajog Sponsors: Grandview Tire & Auto and TrailHead Planners. But most of all - please take a moment and thank your students for their amazing accomplishment!

If you’d like to provide positive or constructive feedback about Obstajog, please feel free to fill out this survey to share your thoughts with the Fundraising Committee.

Checking for interest in a STEAM Extra Curricular

Our very own Adriana Maldonado is looking to offer a STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math) extra-curricular activity starting in January. She would like family feedback. She would like to offer a K-2 opportunity and a 3-5 opportunity. Click here to complete and interest form.

‍

‍

PTO COMMUNITY MEETING!!

The PTO Board is soexcited to host our first Community Meeting on Wednesday November 13th at 6pm!! Mark your calendars and stay tunedfor further info!!

‍

‍

‍

DDLM is just around the corner!

Come celebrate The Dayof the Dead with the ISLA community. This event is FREE to attend for allfamilies where you can enjoy music, dancing, crafts & activities! Moredetails to come.

¡DDLM está a la vuelta de la esquina!

‍
Vena celebrar el Día de Muertos con la comunidad de ISLA. ¡Este evento es GRATUITO para todas las familias dondepodrán disfrutar de música, baile, manualidades y actividades! Más detalles porvenir.

FAMFARE ORDERS NOW OPEN!!

Takea break from cooking and support ISLA with Famfare Kitchen! On Tuesday, October22nd, you can take home a hot, homemade, family-style meal from Famfare Kitchenand 15% of your order goes back to ISLA PTO!

Famfare Kitchen prepares hot,homemade meals for the whole family. Their mission is to help busy families eatbetter, together. Each meal serves 4-6 people and includes an entrée, salad,sides, and bread. You can even order frozen meals for another busy night!

"We love Famfare. It's one night a week I know my kids are eating something real and I don't have to do any of the work." - say moms everywhere.

Ordering is NOW OPEN!!

On the Menu:

●    HOT: Pork Carnitas Taco Bowls with HomemadeSalsas & Fresh Toppings

●     COLD: ClassicBeef Chili with Sweet Corn Cake  

Don’t forget to add freshly bakedcookies for dessert!

Orderhere: famfarekitchen.bottle.com

‍

‍

Remember to choose the 'FundraiserISLA' as your pickup location! Your cart will looksomething like this! I will have a table setup in the back parking lot area foryou to grab your hot meal to eat for dinner that night! They also offer colddishes that can be refrigerated or frozen to cook another day of the week!

‍

‍

‍

Torti’s Lost & Found

HUGE shoutout to parent Laci Haviland for her attention tomanaging the Lost & Found. You can view the latest video update here!! Make sure you stopby & grab any of your items ASAP!

‍

‍

Have a knack for marketing, maybe you enjoy writing or just want to be part of supporting our school??

The PTO Board is looking for an interested party (or multiple parties to co-chair) to shadow the Secretary & Communications position this school year and to take over moving into the ‘25-’26 school year.

General responsibilities & time commitment is one 60-90minute meeting per month, along with writing the PTO Corner update for the school’s weekly Noticias email. Myself along with the rest of the board can help provide context and templates if desired, but we’re also happy to see positions flex based on an individual’s skills, bandwidth & needs!! Happy to see what you might have to offer as our school continues to grow & expand in all sorts of ways!! Please reach out to Caitlin Edstrom at ptosecretary@isla.school with questions!!

Kudos to the Community

There are so many wonderful humans in the ISLA Community & we would really LOVE to give special shout-outs to those that deserve it!! Please check out this new page on the PTO Website to see these shout-outs!! If you’d like to share a positive experience you’ve had with a teacher, staff member, LA, parent, grandparent or even a student–Please complete this form (available in English & Spanish)!

Calendar of Events

October 17 and 18 - No School for Education MN conference
October 20 - deadline to place FamFare orders
October 22 - Pick up FamFare orders at ISLA
October 25 - Picture re-take day
October 25 - Pumpkin Carving with the LA's, 4-8 pm in the ISLA Cafeteria
October 26 - Dia de los Muertos community event, 11 am-2 pm
October 31 - Fall fiestas in the classrooms, check with your child's teacher for time
November 1 - No School, Teacher Workshop
November 7-8 - No School, Fall Conferences, Nov 7 - 12-8 pm, Nov 8 - 8 am-3 pm
November 13 - PTO Community Meeting, 6 pm

‍

Join NPH USA as we host Juan Manuel at ISLA on Monday, October 28th at 6 pm in the flex room.

Meet Juan Manuel Pineda from NPH El Salvador during his visit to Minnesota this fall! He will be at ISLA to share his story and perform music.

Juan Manuel joined the NPH family in El Salvador when he was almost 13 years old. Born with a cleft palate and having lost his legs in a house fire as a toddler, Juan had many physical struggles to overcome in addition to dealing with the trauma of losing his biological family at such a young age. At NPH he found a new forever family and discovered his musical talents. His travels to the US with student groups from NPH resulted in a connection with Shriners Hospital in Chicago where he would undergo several life-changing procedures. Juan also met a music producer in Chicago that helped record his songs that have now been heard around the world. Residing in his home country, Juan is now a thriving, independent 35-year-old.

In 2020, an author out of Chicago, IL published a book based on Juan’s life that we will have available for purchase. Additionally, learn how you can get involved with NPH by volunteering, sponsoring a child and traveling with us to visit our to one of our homes in Latin America or the Caribbean.

Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos (NPH) means “Our Little Brothers and Sisters” in Spanish. Founded in 1954 by Father William Wasson, NPH has transformed the lives of tens of thousands of the most vulnerable children and young adults, providing a nurturing family environment, education, health care, and vocational and life skills training. NPH USA helps children in Bolivia, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, and Peru achieve their full potential, becoming productive, caring leaders in their communities and breaking the cycle of intergenerational poverty. NPH also fills a vital, lifesaving role with its operation of St. Damien Pediatric Hospital, the only hospital wholly dedicated to pediatric and high-risk maternity care in Haiti, and the only Haitian hospital equipped to provide pediatric oncology care. You can learn more at nphusa.org.

Please don’t hesitate to reach out to Bethany Bradley with any questions you may have: bbradley@nphusa.org  Please RSVP on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/s661jvDtCAGrYPN3/?mibextid=9l3rBW

‍

‍

‍