Halilts Newsletter: October 6, 2025

Happy October, Orca Community!

We've been in school a whole month now and students and classes are working hard while having fun! It is amazing how quickly everyone settle back into the structures and routines of our school days. It is truly a joyful place, and my joy bucket is filled every day with greetings, stories, smiles, and random bits of information that I couldn't possibly do without. Halilts is such a wonderful place to be!

I was at a wedding at Lake Crescent and not able to make the Harvest Festival but heard it was loads of fun! I am especially sad I missed the Pumpkin races! Thank you to our PTO, BISD Food Services, and all the volunteers for making this event happen! 

Thank you for bringing your students to school and having them arrive on time! Regular attendance is so important as classes build their communities and new friendships form. We will start sharing attendance updates each month.

On 10/16 at 10:16, schools and communities across the state come together for the Great Shake Out! This will be our October safety drill, when we will practice what to do during an earthquake.  It is also a good time to focus on this at home. Review your family's plan and make sure your emergency contacts are up to date at school.

Finally, mark your calendars for conferences on the October 30 and 31! Sign-up via Skyward starting on Wednesday, Oct. 10. Remember there is no school on conference days.

Enjoy our fall weather and I will see you around!

Sincerely,

Rhonda

Conferences are around the corner!

Parent-Teacher Conferences will be held on Thursday, October 30 and Friday, October 31 both in-person and via Zoom.

Sign-ups for Conferences open on October 8 at 3:00 pm through Skyward Family Access.

NOTE: There is no school on October 30 & 31 due to Fall Conferences.

If you need assistance signing-up, please contact your student's teacher or Sheila Jakubik @ 206-780-3010 or sjakubik@bisd303.org.

What an amazing start to the year we’ve had at x̌alilc! It is thrilling to see students enjoying the school year. Many events are in the works, and volunteers are essential! Consider signing up for one of the awesome events below.

PTO Meeting: Join us on  October 10th at 9:00am in the library, or on Zoom (fingers crossed for no internet outages!)

Special guest, Megan Livingston will share about Bainbridge Youth Services and Ms. Walton will provide building and district updates. Say hello, meet one another, and learn more about all we are doing for the students and staff of Halilts!

Please reach out if you have any questions!

Annalisa Alberti and Lisa Sipprell

PTO Co-Presidents

halilts.president@bainbridgeptos.org

We are looking for a few volunteers to join us on Friday, October 10th to help pump up our students for the Move-a-thon!

We'll visit classrooms to give a quick, fun presentation (don't worry—talking points are provided) to explain the event and get kids excited to show school spirit and raise funds for Halilts!

This is a great volunteer opportunity if you're looking for something enjoyable and low-time commitment. Volunteers must already be an approved BISD volunteer.

Email halilts.presidents@bainbridgeptos.org if you want to help!

Annalisa Alberti and Lisa Sipprell

We are looking for volunteers to help in the library! Volunteering is a wonderful way to connect with students and support a love of reading.

Library volunteer jobs include:

Classrooms that have requested support are listed in the Sign-up Genius. All volunteers must be an Approved BISD Volunteer.

Thank you for supporting our readers and keeping our library a vibrant place for learning!

The school year is in full swing, and it’s the perfect time to show appreciation for our amazing Halilts staff! 

You can help by signing up to contribute to the coffee cart (drop off & wishlist options available). Thank you for supporting our wonderful team.

CLICK HERE TO SIGN-UP.

The Harvest Festival was a wonderful opportunity to celebrate our school community, the harvest season, local farms and our school garden!

Now that fall has arrived it's time to clean up our garden for the season. Join us for our annual fall garden clean-up Sunday, October 12th from 10am-12pm. We'll pull old plants and put in our cover-crop to help our soil stay healthy through the winter. 

Bainbridge Island School District offers services to students who have been identified as highly capable. Highly capable students are those who perform or show potential for performing at significantly advanced academic levels. Services are provided for students in grades K - 12.

Fall Referral Window: September 29–October 10, 2025. Highly Capable (HC) referrals are welcome during our fall window for students new to our district (since February 2025) in grades 1–11. (Referrals for Kindergarten and currently enrolled BISD students will open during our spring window.)

If you’d like your student considered for HC services, please visit our BISD Highly Capable page for the timeline, program details, and the referral form.

Please complete the BISD referral and email documentation (e.g., assessment scores, grades, placement letters) to Whitney Skarbek at wskarbek@bisd303.org.

Deadline: Submit the referral (and any supporting documents, if applicable) by end of day Friday, October 10, 2025.

Questions or need assistance? Contact Whitney Skarbek at wskarbek@bisd303.org.

8: Conference Sign-ups go live at 3:00 pm

9: School Board Meeting @ 5:45

10: PTO Meeting @ 9:00 am in Halilts Library

10: Kick-off for Move-a-thon Fundraiser

15: Unity Day - Wear Orange

21: Picture Retakes

24: Move-a-thon!

30: School Board Meeting @ 5:45

30-31: Conferences - No School

Looking for things to do around town? Visit our Community Events page for local happenings, classes, and family activities—updated regularly.