Month: January 2017

Dear Saklan Parents,

Yesterday, we held an all-school earthquake drill. Saklan students did an outstanding job of following the prescribed procedures of duck and cover and then evacuating the building in an orderly fashion. To simulate what might happen in a real earthquake, we had one student hide in the restroom, which required our search and rescue team to go back and find her.

Being prepared in an emergency is something we take seriously and practice regularly at Saklan. Every month we do an earthquake, fire or lockdown drill, and our faculty and staff have done an outstanding job in emergency preparedness. After every drill, we do an evaluation and look for issues and improvements. After yesterday’s drill, we discovered that a visitor had signed into the guest book but failed to sign out. In a real earthquake, this might have resulted in a team going back in to search for the missing person. This told us that we need to be more attentive with documenting visitors on campus.

Today, after school, we will run a bus evacuation drill. It is important for our students to also know how to exit from the bus in the event of an emergency. More information on our safety procedures can be found in our Crisis and Preparedness Plan, which is found on RenWeb.

Another safety issue that we are working on is the crossing from the parking lot at Willow Spring Church to the campus. The need for an official crosswalk has been brought to the attention of the town of Moraga, and we are working with Moraga Public Works to address this concern. Until we get this situation resolved, please be exceptionally careful when crossing School Street to and from the parking lot.

Many thanks to the parents that came out to our Town Hall this morning. My compliments to all the Board Members, PA Officers and staff, all of which made excellent presentations. The slides will be posted on our website next week.

Have a great weekend!

Peter

Dear Saklan Parents,

Despite the abundance of rain, students have been having a lot of fun at Saklan. January is Spirit Month with a full schedule of different themes around which games and activities have been organized. Last week we had Sports Day and students came dressed in their favorite team attire. With this we had a very exciting three-legged race with lots of participation and laughter. This week was Crazy Hair Day, and the student body went……well crazy! My compliments to our Student Council and to Kim Parks for putting together this program.

Yesterday, we had our Moving Up Day for students in Pre-K through Grade 5. With the re-enrollment season ahead of us, students had a chance to meet their future teachers, see the next classroom, and get a taste of what it will be like at the next grade level. Next week, we will be sending out re-enrollment contracts. We have again built in an early enrollment discount, which effectively keeps the tuition at this year’s level. We are very eager to have all of our students back again next year, and do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions about our programs. Please share your experiences with your friends and neighbors who might be looking for an outstanding school with a supportive community. While we have been stepping up our marketing every year, your referrals are still our biggest promotional tool. So please continue to spread the word about Saklan.

This Sunday, our Parent Association is organizing a community dinner at Fuddruckers in Walnut Creek. It starts at 5:00PM and is for the whole family. Unfortunately, I will be away from Saklan for a couple of days, participating in an accreditation team visit to another independent school, and will not be able to participate. Please, also remember our Town Hall next Friday morning at 9:00AM. Besides hearing a wealth of information about the state of The Saklan School, Mrs. Chaffey and her students will give us a small taste of what will be presented at our annual concert.

Have a great weekend!

Peter