East Update

View the newsletter and calendar as a .pdf file here

  • Fall Pictures will be taken on Monday, August 30. Information was emailed and is available on the school website. Online orders are encouraged. To request a paper copy for orders, please contact the school office. 
  • Did you know that every parent or guardian of a student at Unity East is a member of our PTO? The East PTO (Parent-Teacher Organization) meets the first Wednesday of each month in the library at our school. The first meeting is on September 1 at 6:30pm. All are welcome to help plan and discuss events at East! 
  • We are glad to welcome new staff to our school this year! We have Jill Coy joining us as a special education aide, Nicole Shields as a social worker, Kate Young as a speech-language pathologist, and Leah Buhr as a special education teacher. Welcome to East! 
  • Several students at East have peanut or other nut allergies. To reduce the risk of exposure, all classrooms at East are peanut/nut free. Please do not send products containing peanuts or nuts for classroom snacks or parties. Students may bring items in their lunch with nut products. 
    • This year students can bring birthday treats that are individual, pre-packaged, store-bought snacks that the teacher can pass out (eg. cosmic brownies, cheez-it bags, fruit snacks, etc). Students may not bring cakes, cupcakes, homemade items, or items not individually wrapped.
  • East is excited to host Let Me Run, an afterschool running program for boys in grades 4 & 5. The program will begin Sept. 21, with afterschool practices on Tuesdays and Thursdays for 7 weeks. For more information or to register, visit https://illinois.letmerun.org/team
    • Girls on the Run, an afterschool running program for girls in grades 3-5, is planned for spring. 
  • Part of our back-to-school routine at East is practicing our safety plans for every type of emergency. Over the course of the year, we conduct three evacuation drills, a tornado/shelter drill, a bus evacuation drill, and a law enforcement drill.  More information will be sent home regarding the law enforcement drill, which is scheduled for late October.
  • Fall Parent-Teacher Conferences will be Thursday, October 21, 3:00-9:30pm. Sign-up links will be emailed out and posted on the school website on October 1. 
  • Rocket Fridays: Every Friday, East celebrates school spirit by wearing our Rockets gear. First quarter we also have our homecoming spirit days the week of September 27. More information will come from our Student Senate about spirit days. 

We are looking forward to a great year at East!

-Jim Carver, Principal