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Parent/Teacher Conferences – September 30th

This will be a ½ day of school for students.   We ask for 100% participation from parents as we continually work to provide authentic communication opportunities with the families of our students to ensure that important information is distributed as efficiently and as often as possible.  

Blessings in a Backpack

This program provides our elementary students who are on the federal free and reduced price meal program with a backpack of food to take home every Friday throughout the school year.

The Backpack will include easy-to-prepare, ready-to-eat foods such as granola bars, fruit cocktail, macaroni and cheese, soup, oatmeal, etc.

If parents are interested they should fill out form sent home in Friday folders or contact either elementary school office to request the application (6th grade student forms are available from Ms. Casteel’s office).  Enrollment in the program is confidential; only the school administrator and individual classroom teachers know the identity of the children.  The backpacks are color-coded with room and student numbers, not names. Once accepted into the program students will receive a backpack each Friday and will be asked to return the backpack to their school each Monday.  Volunteers collect the backpacks, refill each with food items and deliver the backpacks to the classrooms for the following weekend. If a child is absent at the end of the school week, his/her backpack will be ready for pickup upon his/her return to school.

There is no cost to participate in the program as funding has been secured through grants from The Pokagon Fund, the Wal-Mart Foundation and contributions from community members.

Helpful Information

Neighbor By Neighbor Assistance Program

Are you behind on rent because of Covid?  There is a new program that is called Covid Emergency Rental Assistance. If you qualify there is the ability to catch up on rent, the possibility of three additional months paid, help with internet bills and a portion of the utility bills.  Both the resident and the landlord need to fill out a form and electronically submit it to Emergency Shelter Services. Here are the forms you need: https://www.essberrien.org/rentalassistance If you need help with filling out the forms, call Neighbor by Neighbor at 269-231-0648. 

Attendance Procedures

According to our attendance procedures, it is important that families contact the school when students will be absent along with the reason for the absence.  Please remember to give your child’s school office a call in the morning if they will not be in school.

River Valley Elementary PTO

RV Elementary PTO Facebook: Please visit facebook.com/RiverValleyElementaryPTO/ for all the latest information on fundraisers, meetings, etc.

If you would like to help the PTO out this school year please contact us or/and come to one of the meetings.  We meet every 2nd Tuesday of the month alternating schools.  You can find this as an event on facebook page River Valley Elementary PTO.  You can contact us on messenger or email rvepto@gmail.com.  

Transportation Changes

If there is a change in your student’s transportation, the office must be notified via a note, phone, or email.  Students without proper notification will be sent home the way that they would under normal circumstances.

If you have a transportation issue after 3:00 pm, the transportation department can be reached at 269-756-7899.

Bus Expectations

Please view the expectations for riding to and from school on the school buses.  These expectations are non-negotiable as it relates to the safety and security of elementary students that utilize district transportation services.
> School Bus Expectation

Family Sports Pass Ticket Option

If you are planning on coming to many sporting events at River Valley it might be a good idea to consider our family pass ticket option.  This pass allows admission for everyone in the immediate family to enter all RV athletic events by simply showing the pass or telling the ticket taker the number for your pass. Each family pass costs $150 and is good for all home sports in all seasons! It is a great bargain for your family and a one-time cost for the whole year!

Volunteer Today!

We’re Working to Keep Our Schools Safe
Submitting your application takes less than five minutes; get started now!
Thank you for your interest in volunteering. Keeping our students, faculty and staff safe is a top priority. To help ensure this safety, background screens for volunteers are a necessity. We have contracted with BIB to conduct high-quality background checks on our potential volunteers using their Secure Volunteer technology.