Congratulations to Our Soundview Community!
Congratulations and thank you to each and every one of you for an exceptional Soundview Spring Benefit Event!
Dear Soundview Families,
Our Soundview Spring Benefit Event last Saturday was an incredible success, and I am overwhelmed with gratitude for our amazing community. Thanks to Ryan, the Soundview board of trustees, the Soundview Parent and Guardian Association, faculty, staff, and the families and friends of our school. We met our total annual fundraising goal and raised over $155,000 at this event! Your generosity ensures that Soundview can continue to provide an ethical, rigorous, and compassionate education in our neighborhood, which includes an ongoing commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB), the International Baccalaureate, and keeping our tuition accessible. Thank you for your incredible support and commitment to Soundview’s mission. You can view photos from the event by visiting HERE.
For those who were unable to attend but still wish to make a difference, you can contribute by making a gift HERE.
During the event, we also premiered our new video, showcasing our school and emphasizing the importance of belonging. This video is the first project in a Soundview brand refresh. We look forward to sharing more new materials with you in the fall. For now, I invite you to enjoy the video HERE.
Last Friday was also the middle school Spring Fling where the students enjoyed some good treats, music, dancing, and socializing. View photos from this event below.
The 2024-2025 school year class placement process for rising first and third- graders begins next week. Soundview’s goals are to keep students with their teachers for the full two years of their respective pods, as well as create diverse learning communities within classrooms and pods. You will receive more information in next week’s Toddle announcements, including a survey to capture your input and insights. Finalized 2024-2025 class lists will be distributed in late June.
Here are the April and early May reminders and opportunities:
Celebrate our incredible teachers during Teacher Appreciation Week, happening from May 6th to 10th. Look for more information soon from our Soundview Parents and Guardian Association. The schedule of appreciation includes:
Coffee, tea, and doughnut delivery to teachers on Monday.
Thank you cards and collaborative flower pots on Tuesday.
Stock the teacher’s lounge snack supplies on Wednesday.
Pizza lunch for teachers on Thursday.
Community ice cream social after school on Friday.
Support our eighth-graders’ Community Projects:
I’m excited to share information with you about Oliver and Tricia’s Community Projects. To learn more and read Oliver and Tricia’s letter click HERE.
And, a note from our own eighth-grader Skye about her Community Project:
Hello!
My community project serves the visually impaired, specifically the more than 1,000,000,000 people in the world who can’t afford glasses due to extreme poverty. Without access to glasses, it’s difficult for these people to work, learn, play, and even just move through the world. Visual impairment is a disability, even though it is often invisible, and people living with it deserve the necessary accommodations. A single pair of glasses can change a life.
To help address this issue, I am hosting a school-wide glasses drive in partnership with the Lions Club, an organization that distributes glasses to people in need. A donation box will be in the entrance hallway from Wednesday, May 8 to Friday, May 17. All glasses, regardless of style, condition, or prescription, including sunglasses and reading glasses, can be donated.
Thank you,
Skye
Around the world and in different communities, April is a month of recognition and awareness:
April is Arab American Heritage Month! During this time, we celebrate Arab Americans throughout the past and present, and recognize their invaluable contributions to our country. It also serves as a time to combat Anti-Arab bigotry and to challenge stereotypes and prejudices. You can learn more about this HERE.
April is Alcohol Awareness Month, an opportunity to update your knowledge about alcohol use disorder (AUD) and the adverse impact of alcohol misuse on health and society. Alcohol-related problems continue to take a heavy toll on individuals, families, and communities. Researchers estimate that each year there are more than 178,000 alcohol-related deaths, making alcohol a leading preventable cause of death in the United States. In addition, more than 200 disease and injury-related conditions are associated with alcohol misuse. You can learn more about this HERE.
Each April is designated Limb Loss Awareness Month and celebrated around the world as a time to recognize those living with limb loss and limb difference. Limb loss and limb difference affects people of all backgrounds, socioeconomic statuses, genders, races, ages, and other demographics. More than 5.6 million Americans are living with limb loss and limb difference, based on a recently published study, and you can learn more about this HERE.
Thank you again to our amazing community,
Chris
Chris Watson, Soundview Head of School
One more thing…
On April 26th, 1994, voting began in South Africa's first all-race elections, resulting in victory for the African National Congress and the inauguration of Nelson Mandela as president. The election was the first fully democratic election in the country’s history. It was the first time that people of all races could vote in a national election. The election marked the end of the apartheid system, which had kept people of color separate from whites. You can learn more about this HERE.
