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Ridgetop Family Weekly: 1/9/26

Posted Date: 01/09/26 (03:55 PM)
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Families,

It was so good to see all of our students this week as they came back from break! It has been a busy week back with our Winter II sports season starting, grade level assemblies, as well as starting our new Before School Routine.

Looking forward we got other great things coming up. Our ASB has been hard at work getting ready for our MLK Assembly next week Friday, students have been working hard to finish out the semester, and as I write this, I can hear our cheerleaders tirelessly practicing to get ready for their first competition!

Lot's of great stuff going on as we get toward the end of the semester. Have a great weekend!
 


Shaun Takenouchi
 

Upcoming Events


View the full events calendar 📅
 

Raider Staff Spotlight 🔦

Each week we will feature staff members at Ridgetop so that families get to know OUR Raider family better.

Raider Staff Spotlight: Jessica Cox, Teacher, smiles with two people in stadium seating.

Mrs. Cox

What is your role at Ridgetop?
- 7th Grade WA State Studies teacher and 7th/8th grade Debate teacher

What is the most unusual food you have ever eaten?
- Great question... I don't think I've ever eaten anything too crazy! I think one of the more interesting styles of foods I've ever eaten was Ethiopian. It was fun to eat with your hands and the Injera (a type of bread) was delicious.

What is your favorite holiday tradition?
- I love watching Holiday movies! I'm a sucker for the Hallmark channel!

What is your favorite breakfast cereal and why?
- I don't eat a lot of cereal, but if I was, I'm a fan of Cinnamon Toast Crunch. I love how the milk tastes after you've eaten all the cereal. 

Tell us how you either LEARN, LEAD, or GROW in your life, in your personal life or as an educator. 
My goal for life is to always be willing to learn and grow as a person. I'm at my happiest when I'm learning a new skill. Many of my friends and family know that I consider myself a "lifelong learner" and my curiosity always pushes me to new interesting skills or projects. 

Mrs. Dru

What is your role at Ridgetop?
- Drama, Dance, and ELA teacher

What is the most unusual food you have ever eaten?
- Octopus! 

What is your favorite holiday tradition?
- Find the pickle on Christmas morning, and a scavenger hunt with lots of puzzles and clues to find the last gift!

What is your favorite breakfast cereal and why?
- Ohs. I could eat 3 bowls in one sitting, at any time of day or night. It's even delicious on ice cream! My younger brother lives in North Carolina, and they don't sell Ohs in his region. I send him cereal in the mail ... it's THAT good!

Tell us how you either LEARN, LEAD, or GROW in your life, in your personal life or as an educator. 
- Theatre is the gift that keeps on giving in my life. As a young actor, and then university student, professional actor, teaching artist, and now teacher and director, I have learned SO much about myself and about life through the stories and people I've come into contact with because of theatre. This summer, I plan to apply to direct the district's summer musical, "The Little Mermaid!" I can't wait to work with our community's 8-18 year olds, as well as local musicians and artists to keep leveling up in my work and leadership in the performing arts. It's my FAVORITE thing to do. 

New Before School Routine Starts Monday! 🚶🏽‍♂️

**It was a great start to this and it was fun to see so many students walking the halls.

We have noticed with over 830 students this year, our school can be very crowded in the morning before school starts. We are going to be starting a new routine for students when they come back from the break. They are going to learn more about it in Advocacy this week as well.

Students will have one of three options.
  • Eat breakfast (Once you are done eating, you should do one of the following below.)
  • Walk the halls
  • Go to their 1st pd class IF their teacher is there and is letting students in.

Students should not sit outside class doors or congregate in the pods/halls. Students should not leave their backpacks and other items in the halls as well. If students choose to leave their backpacks and other items in the classroom, those items are still their responsibility.

The library will also be a quiet, tech free space for students before school. Please click here to see our new Library Expectations for the before school time frame.

Snowball Dance Happening Soon! ❄️

The annual RMS Snow Ball Dance will be taking place Friday, January 23 from 6:00 to 8:00pm in the cafeteria. 

Tickets go on sale Friday, January 9. Students must purchase a ticket to attend. Only RMS students may attend the dance. Tickets are $5 with ASB and $7 without. Tickets may be purchased online or at the ASB window before school or during lunches. Tickets must be purchased no later than 2:15pm on Friday, January 23rd.

To purchase tickets online, please visit https://wa-centralkitsap.intouchreceipting.com/signin
Username: Student ID
Password: Student’s last name with the first letter capitalized (ex. Smith)

Students enrolled in our Fee Waiver Program receive free entry; however, they must still go to the ASB window to be added to the ticketholder list. Students may also ​reach out to their counselor ​for ​financial assistance.

Please contact Ms. Lauth if you have any questions via phone: 360-662-2900 ext. 2923, email: KenzeeL@ckschools.org, or at the ASB window.

Electronics and Chromebook Usage

One of the things we are looking at as we come back from the break is our current policy around electronics (phone, earbuds) and Chromebook usage at school. We have seen how these devices can impact a student's education and we want to ensure that we are aligned with our other middle schools to continue to promote positive interaction between our students and to help them be successful Raiders.

More to come on this next week!

Lost and Found 👕

Our Lost and Found is definitely getting really full. We will be donating any leftover items right after the 1st semester is over so we can start fresh for the 2nd semester. Please have your students come and claim their items soon!

Hidden in Plain Sight

Families, we wanted to share this virtual opportunity from our Student Assistance Professional.

I wanted to share an exciting opportunity coming up on March 12th from 6:00–8:00 PM: Hidden in Plain Sight. This is a virtual event designed for parents, caregivers, and other adults to learn about current trends, how to spot common warning signs, and how to start important conversations with youth.

January Focus

This year, every month we are going to have a specific character focus that we are working on as a school. Each week, we will be focusing on different aspects of being a professional student.

For the month of January, we are focusing on Perseverance. We are working on setting goals and being able to stick to them. Each week we will have activities for students to work on to support this.

Purchasing Yearbooks and 8th Grade Baby Photos 📸

Please purchase a yearbook for your Raider NOW through Feb. 1st. They are back on sale for a short time for $35. We sold out last year so buy one now! We seek PET photos from ALL grade levels:)

We also seek 8th grade baby photos. The deadline for these will be March 1, but please don't wait...the designers are excited to work on their spreads. and we may run out of space. Please email photos to beckym@ckschools.org.

Thank you parents and guardians!!

Becky Marshall, yearbook advisor

Student Withdrawal From Ridgetop 🚚

Planning a move or withdrawal? Please contact our Registrar, Kim Nededog, at 360-662-2900 ext. 2940 at least three days ahead of your student’s last day so we can help make the transition smooth.

Sports Weekly 🏀

Here is a link to our sporting events for the coming week.

Would you like to be an Adult Mentor for our students? 🙋🏼‍♂️

Ridgetop is in need of adult mentors. All it takes is 1 hour per week to make a difference in a student's life. The goal of the mentoring program is to develop positive relationships between schools and students, parents, and community.  All mentors receive training on how to support students with goal setting, and peer relationships.

Mentoring takes place on school property. Mentors may play board games, draw, practice flashcards, read, discuss grades and study habits, or just spend time talking. If this sounds like something you can do, please get in contact with our building coordinator Jeff Kahler@ jeffreyk@ckschools.org. Adult mentors make a huge difference in a youth's life.
 

Quick Links

Ridgetop Raider school mascot


[Friday, Jan 9 at 4:47 PM]
Sorry for any confusion around the date tickets for Snowball Dance needed to be purchased by. It has now been updated. Thank you.