Awards Time for Irving PTO

At the February 19, 2015 Park Board meeting, the Irving School Parent/Teacher Organization, the Ridgeland Common Working Group and Dan Jordan were the recipients of Community Service Awards from the Park District of Oak Park in coordination with the Illinois Park And Recreation Association and the Illinois Association of Park Districts. Community Service Awards are presented annually to individuals and organizations in recognition and appreciation of their outstanding contribution and unselfish devotion for the advancement of parks, recreation and leisure in the community and the state of Illinois.

The Irving School PTO led a Village-wide effort to bring a new U10 synthetic turf soccer field to the school through fundraising efforts and developing partnerships with the Park District, School District 97, Oak Park AYSO and Chicago Edge. Current and former Irving PTO members recognized include Laura Crawford, Margaret Jeschke, Jassen Strokosch, Barbara Hoffman, Barbara Metric, Juliane Kelly, Michelle Chapman-Rienstra, and Reshma Desai, Claudette Bravo, Tom Bassett-Dilley, and everyone on the Design and Planning Committee.  Also on hand to accept the award were John Hodge, Principal, and current PTO Co-President, Lori McConnell.

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL THE AWARD RECIPIENTS!!

Tech Night With District 97
Dear Parents,

We hope that you have heard about our tech night at the Oak Park Public Library on Wednesday, February 18th, 6-8 p.m.  The D97 teacher librarians and Oak Park Public Library staff (including yours truly!) will be showcasing all the online applications and databases that are available to our kids through both of our institutions.
Need help with resources for that academic fair project?  Want to travel light this spring break by downloading ebooks on your device?  Need help using the OPPL site to access music and online resources?  Then this is the event for you!
You will learn how to download books, and search for information through curated databases. Library staff will also be on hand to show you how to use other applications like those to access music, magazines and video content.
There are a few things that you may consider doing before the meeting to make this a great experience!
  • Make sure you have you library card and PIN number (there will be OPPL staff on hand to help you with your card if it is not updated)
Please let me know if you have any questions.  We hope to see you there!
Katie Noonan
Teacher Librarian

Washington Irving Elementary
Oak Park, IL

Cuyler Bus Loading Zone

Dear Irving Families,

I understand and appreciate that unpredictable weather and busy schedules create a variety of challenges for all us, especially when traveling to and from school. However, I am writing to remind everyone that parking on the west side of the Cuyler in front of the building is prohibited. This space is specifically reserved for loading and unloading our buses.

When other vehicles occupy this space, it poses a serious safety risk for our students, staff, parents/guardians and neighbors. In addition, dropping off or picking up students from a vehicle on Cuyler further impacts student safety and traffic congestion.  The Oak Park Police Department has informed us that vehicles that are illegally parked in this area moving forward will be ticketed. 

We ask that you please adhere to the parking guidelines that have been established by the Village of Oak Park in cooperation with our school and the district. These guidelines are as follows:

1. There are NO PARKING restrictions on Cuyler, (from Garfield to Roosevelt) except for the loading zone for the buses that is located in front of the school. There are also no parking restrictions on Ridgeland (from Harvard to Roosevelt).  If you drive your child to school, please park your car away from our bus- loading zone and walk them to the school grounds.

2. To ease congestion on Cuyler, we recommend carpooling and public transportation. We also ask that you avoid taking up every spot on the block as a courtesy to the neighbors who live directly across the street from the school. If you see that there are only one or two spaces left on the block, please consider driving to the next block on Cuyler or to Ridgeland.

3. Please make sure you check all of the posted signage on streets surrounding the school before parking your vehicle. For example, Ridgeland is a no parking zone in the winter when the snow is more than two inches deep.

4. When snow is in the forecast, we recommend calling the Village’s parking hotline at 708-358-7275 and pressing “1” for a message regarding snow parking bans. These messages are updated on a daily basis at 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. when it is snowing.

Please contact me if you have any questions or concerns about this issue. Thank you for your attention and cooperation regarding this important safety matter.

Regards,

John Hodge

Principal