BISD Newsletter - November 5, 2025

The early election results* are in and our Supplemental Levy is passing with a decisive 65.28% of “YES” votes! This school election passage rate is one of the highest in our state.

This Supplemental Levy will provide critical funding for BISD as we continue our path to financial stabilization, and I am tremendously grateful that our local voters continue to place a high value on public education. Thank you to the Bainbridge Island Public Schools Supporters (BIPSS) team for their advocacy and their strategic planning to get the word out about the election — from seeking endorsements to organizing the sign-waving campaigns and all the championing in between!

 

I continue to be amazed at the strength of our community. We have proven time and time again that we know how to pull together in support of our students and schools. 

With Gratitude, 

Amii Thompson

BISD Superintendent 

The Instructional Materials Committee (IMC) plays an important role in our district’s academic decision-making process. The IMC reviews and recommends core instructional materials for adoption to the School Board, following superintendent-established procedures.

The committee includes certificated staff, administrators, parents/guardians, and community members who are appointed by the superintendent and approved by the Board of Directors. The IMC is facilitated by Whitney Skarbek, Director of Teaching & Learning.

There is currently one open community representative position on the IMC for a two-year term (2025–2026 and 2026–2027 school years).

You may submit your application form electronically or turn in a hard copy to the District Office.

The Bainbridge Band Boosters invite the community to the 11th Annual Community Swing Dance on Saturday, November 8 at 6:30 p.m. in the Bainbridge High School Commons. This all-ages, family-friendly event will feature three hours of swing dancing to live Big Band Jazz music performed by the award-winning Bainbridge High School Jazz Collective.

The evening will include free swing dance lessons, a silent auction, and the chance to experience live jazz performed by BHS student musicians.

Proceeds from the event will support BISD Bands at Bainbridge High School, Woodward Middle School, and Sakai Intermediate School.

Tickets are $50 for adults and $20 for students with a school ID. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit www.BainbridgeJazz.org

BISD will conduct a test of our emergency alert system on Thursday, Nov. 13 at 5 p.m.

This routine test helps ensure that we can quickly reach staff and families by phone, text, and email in the event of a real emergency or weather-related closure.

If you receive a message that day labeled “TEST MESSAGE”, no action is needed. It simply confirms that your contact information in ParentSquare is up to date and our system is functioning properly.

If you do not receive the test message, please check your ParentSquare settings or contact your school’s office to confirm your contact information.

To manage your settings in ParentSquare - please use this link:

Thank you for helping us make sure we can communicate quickly and effectively in any situation.

Snow on Bainbridge is beautiful—but it’s also complicated. Our island’s hills and microclimates mean that one school bus might be facing icy switchbacks while another is driving under blue skies.

Before calling a “snow day” (or, more often, an “ice day”), our team carefully considers several factors:

We weigh all of this—and sometimes still wish we had a crystal ball. Thank you for your patience and understanding as we do our best to keep everyone safe, warm, and informed.

If you are signed up to receive this newsletter, you are registered in ParentSquare which we use for emergency alerts. For those registered, the system sends the message based on your communication preferences (you have the option to select how you would like to be notified). However, the system is “smart” and sends an automated phone call if your preferred communication method fails for some reason. If you do not register, you will only receive messages via email. To learn more about setting up your ParentSquare account, please review this document: Parents/Guardians Instructions for Activating ParentSquare  

For more information, visit our Inclement Weather Info & FAQs at bisd303.org/weather