Principal Kent Vallier

December 13, 2024

Greetings Orchard Hill Families,

On behalf of our entire staff, please accept our best wishes for a wonderful holiday season. As you know, Friday, December 20th, is our last day before the two-week recess. The first day back will be Monday, January 6th. As we wrap up December, I wanted to share some important information with you:
 

• Regular attendance rates to date are at 68%. That’s 4% lower than a few months ago. Remember, our goal for the year is 75% regular attenders. If there are circumstances that are hindering regular attendance, please let us know and we can help! Thank you for your efforts in this endeavor.

• As you know, child/adolescent smartphone use has been getting a lot of attention recently. I’ve included a great resource for families thinking about smartphones for their kids. Waituntil8th.org is a great website with all kinds of information and research about smartphone use. Please check it out if you’re considering smartphone use for your Hawk!

• Our new Orchard Hill shirts are in! All students will receive a free Orchard Hill T-shirt, so be looking for those to come home.

• Hawks will enjoy a special assembly on Monday, December 16th at 8:15am. The NED (Never give up, Encourage others, Do your best) show will be here with some fun Yo-Yo tricks and a meaningful message for all students. If you’re free, you’re sure welcome to watch! Yo-Yos will be on sale for several days following the show.

Warm Wishes,

Kent Vallier

Principal

October 15, 2024

Greetings Hawk Families,

As we enter the seventh week of this school year, I am updating you all on our progress toward higher student achievement by more consistent attendance. As you’ll recall from our open house event, regular attendance greatly increases our students’ academic achievement. Oregon defines regular attendance as attending 90% of the school days. As of today, students missing three or fewer days are considered “regular attenders”.

As a school, we currently have 74% of students who are regular attendees. This is great news and marks an improvement of about 10% over last year! Great job, Hawks! Our goal for the entire 24-25 school year is to finish at 75% regular attendance. If we keep this up, I’m optimistic we’ll meet that goal, and, more importantly, realize an increase in student achievement!

If you ever have questions about attendance or your child’s individual performance, please never hesitate to contact me or any of our staff.

Warm regards,

Kent Vallier, Principal

September 23, 2024

Greetings Hawk Families,

I hope this letter finds you well. I'm excited to share some updates and important information with you.

Before I share our upcoming events, I'd like to extend a heartfelt thank you to all the families who attended our recent open house. Your presence and participation demonstrated your commitment to your child's education and our school community. The energy and engagement you brought to the event were truly inspiring, and it was a pleasure to connect with so many of you in person.

• Mark your calendars for October 2nd! We'll be participating in the Pirate Country Parade in Phoenix. This fun-filled event is always a highlight of our fall activities. We need a flatbed trailer for our school float. If you have one and are willing to pull it through the parade, please call our office.
• School picture day is scheduled for October 3rd. More details will be sent home soon, but please make a note of this date.
• Our first PTA meeting will be held tomorrow, September 24th. Your involvement is crucial to our school's success, and we strongly encourage your participation. We have several important topics to discuss and decisions to make.

As you can see, we need your support to make our school community even stronger. Whether it's attending the PTA meeting, helping with the Pirate Country Parade, or volunteering in other capacities, your involvement makes a significant difference. Thank you for your continued support and partnership in your child's education.

Warm regards,

Kent Vallier, Principal

August, 2024

Dear Orchard Hill Families,

Welcome back to another exciting school year at Orchard Hill! As we prepare to embark on this new academic year, I want to extend my warmest greetings and share how thrilled we are to have your child back in our classrooms. We hope you have enjoyed a restful summer and are ready for a year filled with discovery, growth, and learning.

Our dedicated team of teachers and staff has been busy preparing for a dynamic year ahead. We have been working hard to enhance our curriculum, incorporate new teaching strategies, and ensure that our school environment remains a place where every child feels safe, valued, and inspired to learn.

Communication between home and school is essential for your child’s success. Please keep an eye out for updates from your child’s teacher and don’t hesitate to reach out if you have any questions or concerns. We encourage you to participate in school events, volunteer opportunities, and parent-teacher meetings to stay involved in your child’s education.

We also want to remind everyone of the importance of maintaining a positive and respectful school community. Let’s work together to create a nurturing environment where every student feels supported and motivated. As we look forward to the year ahead, let us embrace the challenges and celebrate the achievements that come our way. Together, we can make this school year one of our best yet.

Thank you for your continued support and partnership. We are excited to see our students back in the classroom next Tuesday, September 3rd, and to welcome new families into our school community. Here’s to a fantastic school year!

Warm regards,

Kent Vallier
Principal

August 2026

Dear Orchard Hill Families,

Welcome to a brand-new school year! We are so excited to welcome our Hawks back to school and look forward to another year filled with learning, growth, friendship, and fun.

At Orchard Hill, we believe that our school is at its best when students, families, and staff work together. Better Together. This year, we will continue focusing on strong learning, meaningful family partnerships, and helping every student have the opportunity to succeed.

One important part of student success is simply being at school. Our state testing data shows a clear connection between regular attendance and stronger academic achievement. Students who attend school consistently have more opportunities to learn, practice important skills, build relationships, and stay connected to the wonderful things happening in their classrooms.

Of course, we understand that children get sick and that families sometimes face circumstances that make absences unavoidable. Our goal is not perfect attendance. Our goal is to work together to make sure students are at school and learning as often as possible.

We are looking forward to a fantastic year and can't wait to see our students back on campus. Thank you for trusting us with your children and for being such an important part of the Orchard Hill community.

We are better together!

Warmly,
Kent Vallier
Principal, Orchard Hill Elementary