Thank you parents, students, teachers, and staff for your joy, enthusiasm, generosity, and dedication! This year we laid the foundation--literally and figuratively--for an even brighter future at HPS! As we enjoy the sunset of the 2022-2023 school year, we are poised for the dawn of a new era at HPS, and it promises to be one of beauty and impact! With the opening of our newly constructed classrooms set for the Fall, stay tuned for the opportunity to have your name memorialized in a brick of the new HPS construction!

Thank you for advancing our school mission to develop compassionate, engaged students who are happy to be at school. You embody the positive, community-driven culture that distinguishes our Hyde Park School Community. Parents, your dedication to your children and to this great school is its lifeblood. And because of you, this community is not just excelling but is happy in the process of doing so. Thank you! Have the restful and joyful Summer that you have earned!

For the past year you must have noticed a smiling face at the center of conversation on the HPS Playground. Our outgoing PTO President Ashley Hammond humbly, tirelessly, and happily devoted her time and effort to the school in concrete and immeasurable ways. And with her bright smile and kind manner, it's no surprise that she motivated so many people to follow her lead! This year, the Pumpkin Chuck saw a record number of pumpkins chucked; HPS held a book drive for the first time ever, donating dozens of boxes of books to local facilities in need; additional free community-building activities were added to the calendar; and the HPS Playground was expanded to include the ever-popular Turf Field! Thank you, Ashely, for being the Heart of it All!

Do you have a piano in good working order that's just collecting dust or piles of mail? If so, we'd gladly help you declutter and take the spare piano off your hands with an added bonus: the satisfaction of knowing that your piano will be a centerpiece of HPS music class for years to come! The current HPS piano is in need of repairs, and before making the investment, we figured we'd ask our community. You never know when someone is looking to rehome a piano!

Last Call for Kindergarten Teacher-Experience Playdates on sale from the Spring Celebration! Only three spots remain! These playdates are open to students who were in Kindergarten this past 2022-2023 school year in Mrs. Belcuore's or Mrs. Lavelle's classes. Playdates for Mrs. Forman's and Mrs. Neaton's classes already have sold out. To purchase this teacher experience, click here: https://event.gives/hpspto23/items (images below are just pics of available items, not links).

And 3...2...1... Here is the debut of the 2023 HPS Talent Show! Congratulations HPS Eagles! From the first to the last performance, every one of you put on a spectacular show! We're SO PROUD OF YOU!

The HPS PTO Board held elections at the May 4 General Meeting and is pleased to welcome its new and returning officers for the 2023-2024 School Year:

President: Hilary VanderMolen

Vice President: Michele Berry Godsey

Treasurer: Kevin VanderMolen

Vice Treasurer: Chuck Hamman

Secretary: Jen Eisenstein

LSDMC Representatives: Ed Paff, Jr. & Rachel Harrison

The CCM Prep Suzuki Strings Program at Hyde Park School is enrolling new students for the Summer and Fall! The Program is open to students in Grades K-6 and offers private lessons, group classes, recitals, and community concerts for students playing the violin, viola, cello (and maybe double bass if there is enough interest!)

Fill out this interest form to have a teacher contact you! https://form.jotform.com/231344316040038. Or email Dr. Grabell at joyce.grabell@uc.edu.

Happy Hyde Park School is committed to fostering a diverse, equitable, and inclusive environment that values, embraces, and supports all members of the school community. Our LSDMC is in the process of forming a DEI (Diversity Equity & Inclusion) subcommittee for our school and would love to hear from you! Do you have feedback about your children's and your own experience at HPS, dreams, or ideas around this important work? Please connect with Lisa Nolan (lisa.m.a.nolan@gmail.com), a current 1st grade parent and founding chair of the committee, and/or Alyse Averdick (averdia@cpsboe.k12.oh.us), School Resource Coordinator, to share!

Now Seeking: Hosts for the Fall Fourth-Grade Parent Social!

HPS Parent Grade Level Socials are themed adults-only parties that take place each Fall, usually at someone's house, and that act as the HPS PTO's first fundraisers of the year. Because the socials typically start in the last two weekends of August, we figured now is a good time to start recruiting hosts! And recruit we have: all Grade Levels are now covered, EXCEPT Fourth Grade (current Third Grade)! Of all the fun-loving, fabulous Fourth-Grade families, who will it be?? (4th grade for the 2023-2024 school year)

If you are interested in hosting the Fourth Grade Parent Social, please contact Caroline Gregoire at 513.260.9359. Caroline will share a signup with interested parents so that you can claim your party date.

We welcomed progress propelled by years of grassroots advocacy from our PTO and LSDMC members convincing the Cincinnati School Board to meaningfully invest in Hyde Park School. As a result, this year we have witnessed a massive building expansion project unfolding before our eyes and on schedule at a time when most construction projects are still backlogged from COVID. From the ground-breaking to the excavating to the roofed-structure now standing for all to see, Phase 1--which includes 8 new classrooms, a larger cafeteria, and the farewell to the trailer classrooms--is set to be complete by late Summer. Phase 2 will continue through the 2023-2024 school year and will include a new gymnasium among other new, needed, and well-deserved elements to Hyde Park School.

Field Trips: The HPS PTO spent $44,000 on field trips this year so that all students in all grades from K-6 could attend multiple field trips throughout the year at no cost to the student/family! Some years the field trip budget does not allow for all costs to be completely covered, and grade levels may need to seek contributions from families to cover field trip costs, especially the cost of buses. In these instances, the PTO provides field trip scholarships to students in need. But this year, we did it! We were able to cover all costs of all field trips!! Some of the field trip locations have included COSI, Ft. Ancient, Camp Kern, the Nature Center, the Children's Theater, the Cincinnati Zoo, the Cincinnati Cyclones, the Cincinnati Art Museum, the Cincinnati Sign Museum, Market Madness at the University of Cincinnati, the Holocaust and Humanity Center at the Cincinnati Museum Center, iSpace, Sharon Woods, Gordon Farm, and King's Island.

Turf Field: The HPS PTO was able to resurface the lawn area on the Observatory side of the school into a brand new soccer turf field and running track lanes. Now, instead of a perpetually-muddy haven for mosquitos that became unusable after any sort of precipitation (read: the former state of the Observatory side of the school prior to the turf field), HPS has a gem! Indeed, the turf field is the the crown jewel of the playground, in constant use at recess, at dismissal, at night, and on the weekends.

Classroom/School-wide Supplies & Initiatives: The HPS PTO funds the Hyde Park Heroes initiative by supplying our Heroes with their monthly yard signs and prizes. The Hyde Park Heroes initiative is a way to engage and teach our students about valuable character traits. And it is a major point of pride, positive reinforcement, and community-engagement! The PTO also provides weekly prizes for Bucket Ticket winners, another coveted morale booster! Additionally, the PTO provides teachers with requested supplies to enhance the classroom experience and engages the broader community through monthly restaurant nights, programs like Kroger Rewards, and school spirit wear sales.

Extracurricular Activity Opportunities; and Student Scholarships: The HPS PTO organizes dozens of extracurricular activity opportunities throughout the year from cooking club, to karate, circus club, yoga, art club, acting club, indoor soccer, speed and agility training, and more. And this year, the PTO brought back the School Musical for the first time since the 2018-2019 school year! Additionally, the HPS funds scholarships for students to participate in extracurricular activities. No student was turned away from an extracurricular this year due to prohibitive cost, and we are very proud of this point.

Events by Month:

When does an event actually live up to its hype? The HPS Field Day track record remains: it really was the BEST Day EVER! On behalf of HPS Athletics and the HPS PTO, thanks to the 150+ parent volunteers who made the event possible. And on behalf of everyone else, thank you to Jacquie Purcell and Mike Brugh for masterminding this day of constant fun, smiles, and joy! Last but not least, an additional thank you to LaRosa's for donating pizza for the entire student body and to Locals Apparel Co. for donating more than 550 shirts in six different colors and all sizes to outfit our entire student body as they were divided into their six color teams for a day of unforgettable fun!

May is Asian American, Native Hawaiian, & Pacific Islander Heritage Month. The month of May was chosen in commemoration of the immigration of the first Japanese to the United States on May 7, 1843, and to mark the anniversary of the completion of the transcontinental railroad on May 10, 1869, as the majority of workers who laid the tracks were Chinese immigrants.

Businesses and organizations across Greater Cincinnati are hosting events in celebration of this special month. Nearly all events are free, and many are family friendly! Check out the full calendar of events celebrating Asian American, Native Hawaiian, & Pacific Islander Heritage Month in Cincinnati.

Fall Sports Registration is open now through June 16 at the following link: https://hydeparkschoolathletics.sportngin.com/register/form/126806189

Hyde Park School Athletics is focused on developing well-rounded student-athletes. HPS Athletics are committed to teaching the foundational elements of the sports included in each program while providing a safe and fun environment.

The Soccer program is open to Kindergarteners through 6th graders. Kindergarteners are encouraged to play in our Lollipop Division which includes one practice per week and no official games. All other soccer divisions should expect 2 practices per week and 1 or 2 games per weekend.

Volleyball is typically open to 3rd – 6th graders. Players can expect 2 practices per week and 1 or 2 games on the weekend.

Running Club is offered as an evening activity, one night per week for our Kindergartener – 2nd graders. This age group focuses on general running activity, including all-around exercise and games. Our 3rd – 6th graders are grouped separately and typically practice one night per week as well. The focus here is running and building up to longer distances. Practice locations may vary.

Anyone in need of an athletic scholarship, please contact Jessica Leimbach at hps.athletics@outlook.com

If you have information that you would like included in a future newsletter, please send to president@hydeparkschoolpto.org (content included at PTO discretion).