Riverstone International School Newsletter
September 5, 2013
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 Dear Riverstone Community,
On behalf of the Board of Trustees, I am pleased to welcome you to the 2013-2014 school year. With record-breaking enrollment, stellar faculty and staff, and a vibrant community of families and friends, we are poised to capitalize on our past successes and will continue to identify opportunities for improvement as we embark upon the new school year. Our innovative educational philosophy is based upon the Five Pillars* and ensures that, through each student's journey at Riverstone, he or she will develop the necessary skills, creativity, and mindset to thrive in a rapidly changing, global arena.
The Board of Trustees has two primary roles: to provide guidance to the Head of School and to act upon its fiduciary responsibility to ensure the school's long-term sustainability. Please note that we are not an appellate board. Each fall, we welcome new members to the Board and prioritize our goals for the school year.
We would like to thank Will Northrop for his many years of service as a Board member. Will was instrumental in developing our 2009-2014 Strategic Plan and guiding last years' efforts to better define our purpose as an organization.
We also welcome our three new Board members, including Tory Goltry, Teresa Poppen, and Jerry Sturgill. Tory Goltry is a retired family practice physician and founder of The Cancer Connection Idaho. Teresa Poppen is the Executive Director and founder of One Stone, Inc. as well as former marketing executive in high-tech industries. Jerry Sturgill is a former Chairman of the Board of Trustees at Riverstone. He is currently a Managing Director at Headwaters MB, an investment banking firm; and was a Corporate Law Partner at Latham & Watkins and Stoel Rives LLP. All three have strong ties to Riverstone while bringing a wealth of experience to enhance our Board as a whole.
Our Board of Trustees also includes Mort Hardwick (Vice Chairman), Mark Liebich (Secretary), Peter Wachtell (Treasurer), Brian Bava, Michael Bergmann, Mickey Myhre, Jeff Russell, Ben Schwartzman, and Nicole Toeldte. Jennifer Dye is currently taking a year sabbatical from her responsibilities. Please take a few moments and visit the school website to read the biographies of our Trustees.
I look forward to sharing more about the Board of Trustees in future newsletters. Until then, thank you for being part of our Riverstone community.
Warm regards,
Kurt Liebich
Board of Trustees
*Riverstone's Five Pillars include Academic Excellence, Community and Service, Leadership by Example, International Understanding, and Outdoor Education. |
Back to School Nights are the best way to get a feel for your child's daily experience at Riverstone and what you both can expect for the upcoming school year. Please plan to attend!
Middle & High School Back to School Night Grades 6-12 **TONIGHT** Thursday, September 5 6:30 PM START Meet in the Elementary School Atrium (CHANGE OF VENUE) Parents will meet for an initial overview and then follow their child's schedule of classes in 10 minute blocks of time Elementary School Back to School Night Preschool - Grade 5 Wednesday, September 11 6:30 - 8:00 PM Meet in the ES Atrium **Child care will be available beginning at 6:15 until 8:00 PM in the Multi-Purpose Room** During the Elementary School open house, classroom teachers and specialist teachers will be giving scheduled presentations. For example, Preschool - Grade 2 will attend classroom presentations first and specialist presentations second. Grades 3-5 will attend specialists presentations first and classroom presentations second. |
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PARENTS' ASSOCIATION NEWS
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Ice Cream Social
The first Riverstone Ice Cream Social was a hit with students, staff, and parents! A big thank you to everyone who helped make this fun (and yummy) event a success!
And the winner is...
The votes have been counted and Riverstone's favorite flavor of ice cream was Cookie Dough! Followed closely by Mint Chip and Chocolate!
First PA Meeting Next Tuesday
The first PA meeting is next Tuesday, September 10 at 8:35 AM. Join us for coffee, tea and pastries while we discuss upcoming events like the Carnival and the Merci Committee.
This is a great time to learn more about volunteer opportunities and to find out the answers to any questions you might have.
Chairpersons Needed
We are looking for Chairpersons for the Variety Show Dinner on Friday, December 6 and the Fabulous Feast (in late January- early February).
Parents' Association Meeting
Tuesday, September 10
8:35 AM
Elementary School Multi-Purpose Room
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 We are putting the finishing touches on Riverstone's family and student directory. Parents should watch for the directory to be emailed in the next few days.
Thank you for your patience! With so many new families, putting it together has take a little longer than usual.
Contact Kathleen Gilton with any questions.
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BEFORE AND AFTER SCHOOL ACTIVITIES
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 Elementary School Activities
All Elementary School activity forms are due tomorrow! Programs begin next week, so please remind your children where they need to be going after school.
Tennis is full, however, there are many other great activities for your children to enjoy after school, including a late addition of Lacrosse.
Students will have the opportunity to be introduced to Lacrosse skills and enhance their knowledge of the game and rules. Join parents Mark Liebich and Beth Bartlett for the fun on Tuesdays from 3:45-4:30 PM. Boys and girls are welcome in Grades 3-5. Email Lisa Armstrong or stop by the ES front desk to sign up.
Middle and High School Activities Middle and High School activities will begin next week, September 9, and the following week depending on the activity. We are excited to get as many of our students involved as possible. Contact Tarrah Elam with questions regarding activities and start dates.
Students should sign up for a MS/HS activity using the sign up sheets posted by If you have questions, please contact Tarrah Elam.
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 The Riverstone morning bus pick up locations and departure times are as follows: 7:40 AM Downtown YMCA 7:45 AM 15th & Dewey 7:50 AM 10th & Brumback 8:00 AM Dona Larsen Park The current fee for the month of September is $90. We will be running the route for the month of September. At the end of the month, we will re-evaluate the route, schedule. and cost.
If you would like your child to ride the Riverstone bus, please contact Kevin Richmond, Business Director. |
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FALL CARNIVAL RAFFLE TICKETS
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 Ready for an evening of fun for the whole family? The Fall Carnival will be held Friday, September 20! Riverstone's Carnival is a community event so invite your friends outside of the school as well! To volunteer to be part of the fun, contact our Carnival Co-Chairs: Riverstone Fall Carnival
Friday, September 20
5:00 - 8:30 PM
Kennedy Gymnasium area |
| Due to the IB Diploma Programme exam schedule, graduation for the Class of 2014 has been changed to Thursday, May 29. The ceremony will take place at 4:00 PM in the Kennedy Gymnasium. Please mark your calendars to join us! |
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ELEMENTARY SCHOOL RAFT TRIPS
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Back-to-school rafting trips are a favorite community building activity for our Elementary students. Even if it's raining!
Please feel free to email Ben and/or download rafting information letter and permission forms from our website under the About tab.
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FALL TRIPS FOR GRADES 8-12
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 Please keep an eye on the school facebook page and Flickr page for photos from our fall trips. We are adding new photos and information regularly.
Watch a video about our Langer Lakes Fly Fishing trip here. Photos are also posted on Flickr.
Photos from our Mountain Biking trip will be posted on the school blog! |
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LISTEN TO KRISTIN'S CONVOCATION SPEECH
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 If you missed senior Kristin C's speech at our first day of school Convocation, you may download it here and listen to it while you drive home or have a few extra minutes.
Kristin beautifully describes the impact of having attended Riverstone since first grade; please take a few minutes and check it out!
Listen to Kristin's speech here. |
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J.A. AND KATHRYN ALBERTSON FOUNDATION GRANT
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Riverstone International School is one of 48 schools that was identified by the J.A. and Kathryn Albertson Foundation as demonstrating a motivation for innovation and a passion to implement the Khan Academy's learning experience in mathematics. As a result, Riverstone was selected to participate in their Khan Academy Pilot Program. As a grant recipient, Riverstone was able to enhance our wireless internet connections and purchase additional computers.
Given that the IB curriculum is well-established and focuses on the application of math skills, Riverstone students in Grades 3-8 will be using the Khan Academy to supplement our current math curriculum.
A local public school teacher using the Khan Academy is highlighted in a 2 hour special called TEACH that will air on CBS at 8pm ET/PT. Learn more here.
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 High School Volleyball has two home games next week. Tuesday, September 10, they play Notus High School and Thursday, September 12, they play Liberty Charter School. Both games are at Riverstone, starting at 4:00 PM. Come out and cheer on the Otters!
Middle School Volleyball is off next week due to school trips but will pick back up the following week with practices and games. During their first game against Compass, the scores were 11-25, 2-25, and 6-15. We lost the games but the girls showed great improvement as the night went on.
Please view the school calendar for game times.
Contact PE teacher and Coach, Demi Dlouhy, for more information about volleyball. |
 High School Soccer has their first game this weekend at 9:00 AM at Simplot Field #20. The full game schedule is now on the school calendar.
Come to the game and cheer on the Otters!
Contact Athletic Director, Abby Grafft, for more information. |
 Israel Carr, Riverstone Class of 2005 and Middlebury College Class of 2009, just moved back to Boise from Chagrin Falls, OH to teach MYP Humanities. Israel and his wife and daughter are looking for temporary housing (i.e. rent month to month) until they buy a home in the valley.
Please contact Israel at icarr@riverstoneschool.org if you have any leads or know of a housing situation that might match his needs. Thank you! |
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KEEPING EVERYONE AS HEALTHY AS POSSIBLE
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It can be difficult to know whether to keep your child home from school when they don't feel well. To help you, the following is Riverstone's Illness and Medication policy.
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For the protection of your child's classmates and staff, if any of the following signs or symptoms is present, keep your child at home for at least 24 hours after the last sign of symptom.
- Elevated temperature (100.0° or higher) Nausea/vomiting
- Diarrhea Unexplained rash
- Persistent headache Wheezing
- Inflamed/sore throat Earache
You may want to contact your healthcare provider if these symptoms persist. A student who shows signs of an infectious cold or who is unusually lethargic should be kept at home as a precaution.
When a student has a communicable disease, it must be reported to the school at once. Communicable diseases include: Chicken Pox, Head Lice, Impetigo, Pink Eye/Conjunctivitis, Ringworm, Scabies, Scarlet Fever, Strep Throat or Fifth Disease.
When the school becomes aware of students having been exposed to a communicable disease, the school will make every effort to contact families of the exposed students. While the goal is to keep students in school as much as possible, if a student is not feeling well, it is difficult to benefit from classroom instruction.
Upon returning to school, the student must bring a doctor's note verifying that the student has fully recovered and is no longer contagious. Without this note, the student cannot return to class.
Sometimes a child is fit to return to school, but still requires medication. On these occasions the medicine should be taken to the Division Director for safekeeping. The Division Director will administer medicines from the original medicine container with notification from a parent.
Children with asthma may need to have access to their inhaler at all times. If so, please let your child's teacher know so that an arrangement can be made.
Please contact your Division Director if you have questions.
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INFORM US IF YOUR CHILD IS NOT COMING TO SCHOOL
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Regular, punctual attendance is important to ensure that children make the best progress in school. Students should be committed and participatory members of the school community to derive the most positive benefits.
Attendance is critical to student success; therefore, students are expected to be in school the entire day, attending all classes and programs. Please try to make dentist and medical appointments outside of school hours.
If your child is ill or not attending school for any reason, please let us know at (208) 424-5000.
- Call Lisa Armstrong in the Elementary School.
- Call Robyn Olnes in the Middle & High School.
This will alleviate worries on our part and a call later in the day from the office. Thank you for your cooperation!
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WHAT TO DO IF YOUR CHILD IS LATE OR NEEDS TO LEAVE EARLY
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If your child is arriving at school late, or you need them to leave school during the day, your child must be signed in (or out) at the front office of the Elementary School or Middle School, depending on their division. If your child is returning during the day, please sign them back in.
Please look for the clipboards hanging by the doors to James Hamilton's office in the Elementary School and Alex Ide in the Middle and High School for the Sign In/Sign Out sheets.
By doing so, you help ensure your child's safety. We use this information during our emergency responses as well.
Thank you for your cooperation!
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VOLUNTEERING OR VISITING THE SCHOOL
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Parents or other guests of the school who are visiting for more than the few minutes it takes to drop off or pick up their children need to sign in at the front desk of the Elementary or Middle School.
All visitors will be given a visitor's badge to wear.
This is to ensure that we know who is in our building with our students; also helps us ensure our visitor's safety in case of emergencies. Thank you for cooperating! |
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ELEMENTARY SCHOOL SUBSTITUTE TEACHERS
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Do you know someone who would be a great substitute teacher for Riverstone's Elementary School (Preschool - Grade 5)? We are seeking qualified substitutes will who have:
- Experience as a classroom teacher
- A college degree/teaching certificate
- Excellent oral and written communication skills
- Excellent references
More information and specifics on how to apply, please visit the Employment page of our website: http://www.riverstoneschool.org/news-events/section-about/employment/ |
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JOIN RIVERSTONE'S FitOne TEAM
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 Join the Riverstone International School team and register for FitOne, formerly the Women's Fitness Celebration, that will be held on Saturday, September 21.
Sign up for whatever wave suits you (walking, running, strolling). You'll save money by joining our team! Look for "Riverstone International School" under the team names when you register.
Register early to save money!
Contact Riverstone parent and team captain, Lisa Hecht, if you have questions.
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FACEBOOK PHOTO OF THE WEEK
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 The facebook photo of the week was taken by Lisa Armstrong while on the Sawtooth Lake Fall Trip. Thank you!!
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Riverstone-International-School/585822794765761?ref=hl
Follow the great things happening (or about to happen) at Riverstone!
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