Riverstone International School
June 9, 2016
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Hi All, Well, this had been one heck of a year! I can honestly say that as I sat here a year ago, I would have never thought that so much would have gone on in the course of 12 months. The 2015-16 school year will long be remembered as a "before and after" watershed year for Riverstone. I am so thankful for the vision of our Board of Trustees, tremendous work of our staff, and the generosity of our community. Please take a moment to read this longer than normal letter of summary and thanks.
Firstly, we have laid the foundation (literally and figuratively) for a residential program for students. As you know, our community has hosted over 200 international students in their homes for the last 13 years. Because of a partnership formed with a local developer, we will add a beautiful new downtown space into the life of our entire community. "Riverstone House" is enabling us to attract students from all over the world who are looking to attend one of America's best private schools. I ask you all to embrace this new opportunity and welcome our first residential group with open arms.
And as to what just passed you on the road - yes, a former Riverstone modular classroom! At Sally Stewart's retirement party, I had a chance to reflect on our times spent teaching in neighboring classrooms in the eastern most modular. The discussions and classroom activities in Riverstone's modulars were always more important than how they looked. However, as we head into the future, we will now be able to engage our students in what will become a world-class facility, and able to better showcase our school to current and prospective parents and students. With the completion of "Phase 1" in the late fall, and the developing plans for the completion of the new Middle and High School over the coming years, Riverstone can be very proud that our facilities will match the ambition of our academics.
This was also a year in which our financial picture changed significantly. Under the leadership of Kurt and Treacy Liebich, we have held a successful endowment campaign. We have received over $1.2 million in contributions, which led to our receiving an addition gift of $1 million from the Malone Family Foundation. When we receive an additional $450,000 (in gifts already pledged or in new gifts), we will receive another $1 million from the Foundation. While we will always continue to seek gifts to increase our endowment, this will become a behind the scenes process in which we will engage individuals, foundations, and alumni personally.
Our endowment funds are already helping us launch a new discussion with current and perspective parents about the availability of tuition assistance and scholarships for families from a diverse level of incomes. We hope to make Riverstone affordable for those needing varied levels of assistance, from partial to full need. We want everyone to know that if a family is mission-appropriate and willing to commit to Riverstone, we are willing to do all we can to make it possible for their students to attend. Please help us to spread this word!
While all these exciting opportunities were happening, we kept our eyes firmly on what to matters to us most - our students. By any measure, we continue to outperform schools locally, nationally, and internationally. With the addition of a full-time counselor this year we were better able to focus on the health of our students and their ability to live up to our guiding principles. This will continue to be an area of focus for us. Our students continue to make the most of our inquiry-based learning whether they are gaining new information about a unit of inquiry or the capstone International Baccalaureate events (Gr 5 Exhibition, Gr 10 Personal Project, and Gr 12 Extended Essay). Our outdoor education program is a highlight of every year. If you went to graduation, or have taken some time to view the video you will know for certain that we have helped to launch another amazing group of young adults into the world - they became who they were meant to be, and we are very proud.
For me personally, this also marks my last year of having a child here. I look back at our family's 16 years of involvement with the school with nothing but gratitude. Laurel and I could not be more pleased with what Riverstone gave us. We thank the entire community; parents, staff, and students for the hand they had in shaping our children. We could not be more grateful to you all.
So, I ask you to head into the summer excited about where we are going. I promise you that next year will be better than the last, and our school will continue to teach our children in the best way possible.
As always, please sit close to your children this summer and enjoy!
Bob Carignan
Head of School
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SCHOOL SUPPLIES LISTS AND REPORT CARDS
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 School supplies lists will be shared in one of our summer newsletters before July 1.
Please watch your email inboxes for that notification as well as a notice from ManageBac on Wednesday, June 15 for a link to end of year report cards.
If you have any questions, please contact Andy Johnson or James Hamilton-Vail.
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END OF THE YEAR PARENT SURVEY
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We will be sending out a link to a survey for current parents tomorrow that will ask that you take a few moments to reflect upon the 2015-2016 school year. Your thoughts and impressions of the school, specific to this past school year, are valuable to us as we review our programs, policies, and practices, and look to the future. Please watch for this link in your inbox in the next few days. If you have any questions, feel free to email Kathleen Gilton.
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During the summer, the school will be open from 9:00 AM - 1:00 PM, Monday - Friday but will be completely closed Saturday, July 2 - Sunday, July 17.
Please feel free to call with questions or stop in at the Elementary School front desk during our open hours.
Rachel Pusch will be giving tours and meeting with prospective parents throughout the summer. Please encourage your family and friends to call (208.424.5000 x3) or email Rachel to learn more about Riverstone!
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SUMMER CAMPS - SIGN UP TODAY!
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A fun way to get back into the groove of school after asummerholiday is through Riverstone Summer Camps!
Camps are open to current students and non-Riverstone students. Encourage your child to bring a friend and enjoy a class together!
Options include:- Idaho Wild Camp
- Art through Science
- All Day Idaho Wild and Art Through Science Combination
- Cocinando for Fun
- Club Espaņol de Riverstone
- Co-ed Basketball
- All day Cocinando for Fun or Club Espaņol de Riverstone and Co-ed Basketball
- Writing with Purpose
- SAT Prep with Huntington Learning Center
Camps will take place the week of Monday, Aug 8 - Friday, Aug 12, with half and full day options.
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 Don't leave for summer without completing your student's enrollment! 19% of our currently enrolled families still have forms left to complete. After you signed the contract this Spring, did you remember to complete the additional enrollment forms (Student Health, Emergency contacts, Field trip permission, etc)? Have you logged into SchoolAdmin to check?
It is critically important to complete these forms as soon as possible. Working with the most up-to-date information makes a world of difference and we certainly appreciate your help.
Log into SchoolAdmin here to check your student's status and complete any remaining forms. Please email Sarah Taylor with any questions.
Forms are due ASAP!
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 Even though school is out for the summer, we are still open from 9:00 AM - 1:00 PM, Monday through Friday to give tours to prospective families, answer questions, and help however we can.
We always appreciate referrals, so please feel free to let friends or family know that we are still accepting applications and would be happy to talk to them about enrolling at Riverstone.
Please encourage friends or family to contact Rachel Pusch or Sarah Taylor.
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 Audrey R (Gr 4) and her sister Veronica R celebrated International Migratory Bird Day with their family at Ponderosa State Park last weekend.
They helped to hang up four bluebird and swallow birdhouses and saw a bald eagle, turkey vulture and a lot of tree swallows.
Sounds like a great way to kick off the summer break!
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 We still have a limited amount of Koenig Wine Magnums available to order. Each magnum is $100 and all proceeds go to the school. Email Sarah Taylor for more information if you are interested.
Thank you to the Koenig family and Koenig Winery for generously donating these special magnums to the school for the past several years!
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Steady progress on Phase 1 of the new Middle & High School building continues! This space will include combo science labs/classrooms as well as classrooms designed specifically to meet the needs of MYP and DP music students. Can't wait! Keep an eye on the Riverstone Facebook page and future newsletters over the summer for further progress!
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| This week's Facebook photo is of our annual Field Day in the Elementary School on the last day of school! Students, teachers and staff participated in a number of races and games to celebrate the school year together.
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