A festive and fun Hanukkah party, our annual Hanukkah Under the Stars features the kid-friendly band Recess Monkey (returning by popular demand), delicious food vendors, Hanukkah trivia, games, and crafts. Co-sponsored by Jewish Day School of Metropolitan Seattle and the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle.

For more information, click here!

Our next SEED (Specialized Education and Excellence for Different Learners) meeting will be on Monday December 15 from 7-8 pm at the library at Islander Middle School. We are very excited to have as our guest Samantha Murphy, the Program and Community Relations Manager at the Washington Assistive Technology Act Program/UW Center for Technology and Disability Studies. Samantha will be giving a talk and demo about Assistive Technology. Assistive technology (AT) makes everyday tasks easier or possible. Come learn about free and low-cost services available to help individuals make informed decisions about the assistive technology that will best fit them and alternative ways of acquiring devices. A broad range of devices will be discussed in order to get people thinking about options for achieving personal goals with technology. Get hands-on with devices during the AT show-tell. All are welcome!

We hope you can make it!

SEED is a Mercer Island wide parent group for parents of children with educational needs different than the majority. This includes children with and without an IEP or 504. For more information or to join the SEED email list, please contact Holly Tabor at holly.tabor@seattlechildrens.org.

Once a year, the Washington State PTA (WSPTA), representing 900 schools units and 135,000 members, meets to determine its legislative advocacy priorities for the year. This year's meeting was held in Vancouver, WA on Oct. 24-25th.

The five issues that received the most votes and that established the WSPTA priorities for the upcoming legislative session are the following:

1)   Funding McCleary 

2)   Create Positive School Climates through Social   Emotional Learning 

3)   Increased Capital Funding 

4)   Increased Access to Higher Education 

5)   Breakfast After the Bell 

It has been a busy and productive fall for the Mercer Island School District. The recently formed Boundary Committee is reviewing options for new elementary school boundaries for the four elementary schools to determine which neighborhoods attend each school beginning the fall of 2016. The Boundary Committee will host a public preview with their preliminary recommendation on Dec. 10, from5:30 - 7:00 p.m., in the Islander Middle School library. I am hoping for a robust turnout at this public preview prior to the formal public hearing early next year.  Read more...