Liebe TCGIS Gemeinschaft! / Dear TCGIS community,

I want to extend a special invitation to you to attend the board meeting tonight. Among the many important things on the agenda is a presentation by Principal Elizabeth Zehnpfennig and Dean of Students Michael White on TCGIS’s response to student behavior. You will learn about Responsive Classroom and Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports that underpin our work with students, procedures for response to behavior, our tiered intervention system, supports for parents, and more. 

I hope you will be able to join us in person or via Zoom.

Herzlich

Kirsten

Note: If you don't see the calendar at the end of your Rundbrief, the message has been clipped and you must click "View entire message" to read the entire Rundbrief. Danke!

The board meets in Room 100 at 6:30 pm tonight; join in-person or listen via Zoom. We will recognize staff, students, and volunteers for their accomplishments and contributions towards TCGIS. 

On tonight’s agenda, we will hear presentations from the Parent and Staff Councils and the Executive Director’s report including a presentation from Principal Elizabeth Zehnpfennig and Dean of Students Michael White about behavior interventions and supports. All board meetings include updates from the six committee chairs. The board packet is available here and the Zoom link here.

Ice Cream Social, Saturday, May 13, 2pm-3pm, Micholandia; 861 45th Ave. NE, Hilltop, MN. Let’s meet at this family-owned paleteria that offers Mexican ice cream and snacks with traditional flavors. Please plan to buy your own treats for this casual family meetup.

Year-end picnic, Tuesday, June 13, 2023, 5-7 pm @ Midway Peace Park. Let’s meet up for a potluck picnic and playtime. Please bring a dish to share and favorite yard games.

Join us for a Scavenger Hunt! Saturday, May 13th, sign up here and we'll send you clues for a great search around Como Park. The PTO will be at the school playground from 10am-2pm and we'll have a few snacks and a prize for your finish!

SAVE THE DATE for our last meeting of the year. Sunday, May 21st! We'll have snacks, a great wrap up of the year - this is your big chance for feedback. Sign-up and more information coming next week.

TCGIS is considered a "premier partner" for the Goethe University's International Teacher Education (ITE) Program in Frankfurt am Main. Their ITE program was recently celebrated as a Hochschulperle, a "Pearl in Higher Education," by the Stifteverband for how it prepares future teachers with international experiences. Four current interns from the Goethe Uni., Anna Schwerdfeger, Ecem Üzüm, Marie Schaaf and Phil Habel, and Katharina Schirg were interviewed for UniReport (article in German).

We are seeking host families for 10 interns who will join TCGIS in August!

"Meet" our fall interns here! 



Ready to apply? Fill out the Host Family Application (deadline May 19).

Learn more: tcgis.org/host-an-intern

State History Day was Saturday, April 21 at the U of MN. TCGIS students received the following awards:

Topical prizes:

Hudson Warren: The History of Baseball

Felicia Cook: Global Studies

Honorable Mention:

Claire Olson-Crayne, Oliver Chesla, Lexi Cook

Elizabeth Seelig, Freida Steingraeber

Elsa Warren, Hudson Warren

5th place Group Documentary: Liam Doyle, Brodan Belling

3rd place Paper/National qualifier: Felicia Cook

1st place Paper/National qualifier: Theo Orsted

1st place Group Documentary/National qualifier: Eva Eakin, Zsuzsa Gallo, Evelyn Price

The National contest is June 11 - 15 at the University of Maryland. Congratulations, students! Your hard work paid off!

Registration for TCGIS Summer Camps closes on April 30! There are still spots open, and some camps need more campers to be able to run!

Maybe your student has a TCGIS friend who would like to join them!? Please share with your contacts! Visit the Summer Camp website for a full description of the camps and to register.

Vienna Community Arts studio offers lessons throughout the summer. If you are interested in continuing your music lessons or just want to try something new, we offer lessons in piano, classical guitar, ukulele, and voice. We also have summer choir opportunities. Contact Nancy or Herbert at infoviennarts@gmail.com.

Sign up for our spring sports and summer track-and-field April 1-30 on Infinite Campus (school store). All middle schoolers are welcome to join our sports teams. Current 4th graders (as rising 5th graders) may also sign up for summer track-and-field. Costs: $150, which includes USATF membership, meet fees, uniform rental. For more information, please check out our website and calendar. With questions, please contact Athletic Director Tabisz.

St. Catherine University's upcoming summer STEM Academy camp for girls is now accepting applications. The camp will take place on their beautiful campus in St. Paul. Students have two opportunities to attend the camp:

• June 20 to June 23
• June 26 to June 30

It is the same camp, but offered in two different weeks. There is no overnight stay and food and snacks are included. See the flyer here.

Last Saturday the D10 neighborhood community council organized an Earth Day cleanup of Como Lake. We had 33 TCGIS volunteers help out! Thank you to our volunteers for demonstrating our school's value of community. We hope for warmer weather for the next park cleanup on May 23!

It’s time to plan for our community garden! For the 4th year, TCGIS will tend a plot in the D10 community garden near Snelling and Como Avenue. We plant around the end of May and donate produce throughout the summer to the Keystone Food Shelf. Right now we are looking for commitments to donate plants for the garden in May. Are you starting seedlings with your kids? Plant a seed for TCGIS! Or buy an extra plant from the PTO’s plant sale! Sign up to donate plants or materials here. Stay tuned for info to come on volunteering to plant, weed, harvest, and generally help the garden grow through the summer. Questions? Contact Julie Alkatout.

Board Meeting Thurs., April 27 - 6:30PM, Room 100; Zoom

Finance & Facilities Cmte Meeting Tues., May 2 - 6:30PM; Zoom

Meet The Candidates Meeting Wed., May 3 - 6:30PM; Room 100 & Zoom

Communication & Outreach Committee Meeting Wed, May 3 - 12PM; Zoom

Governance Meeting Thurs., May 4 - 4PM; Google Meet

Fundraising Meeting Wed., May 10 - 8:30PM; Room 99

Diversity & Belonging Cmte Meeting Tues., May 16 - 4PM; Google Meet

Board Meeting Thurs., May 21 - 6:30PM, Room 100 & Zoom

Join us on Wednesday, May 3rd at 6:30pm to hear our three candidates talk about their visions for the school before the upcoming election the week of May 8-12, 2023. Read more about our candidates here! We thank the parent council and PTO for co-hosting the forum to meet the candidates.

This inaugural event will showcase the variety of cultures of our TCGIS families. Stop by the Korean table and play a traditional game, sample a favorite Syrian dessert, talk with Sami American families to learn about special traditions. Those and many more cultures will be represented with table displays in the cafeteria and atrium. Musical performances will be held in the Sporthalle and the Brick Oven Pizza food truck will be onsite. We hope you will join us! Please fill out this 3 question RSVP/survey to help the planning committee gauge attendance to plan the space and resource needs!

Would you like to volunteer during the festival? Sign up for a time slot and volunteer role here.

For teachers and families with upper middle school to high school students

Thursday, May 11 | 6–7 PM | Zoom

Germany is one of the most popular study abroad destinations. Join us for a virtual information session to find out all about studying in Germany. DAAD representative Hanni Geist will explain what you need to prepare for your international study experience, how to find a study program, what requirements there are and how the application process works. There will be 15 minutes reserved for Q&A. Held online via Zoom. Register here.

Families looking for quality preschool should look no further than the GAI’s German Immersion Preschool! The Kinderstube program focuses on experiential learning in a play-based, German immersion preschool setting modeled after a combination of the German Kita and the American licensed preschool program. Learn more here.

Watch Minnesota United FC versus 1. FC Kaiserslautern with your friends!

• When: Wednesday, June 28th at 7:30pm
• Where: Allianz Field, St. Paul

Tickets average $26, 29, 35 (depending on section). Click here to purchase your discounted tickets.

The board’s Diversity & Belonging committee would like to highlight upcoming events in the Twin Cities as opportunities for intercultural engagement- one our school’s core values. Click here to learn about highlighted events!

Mark your calendars! Middle Schoolers can celebrate the 2022-2023 school year on Friday, June 9th. DJ Erwin will join us again for the festivities. Tickets will be available for $5 online for purchase. We will once again have the fifth and sixth graders' dance be from 6:00-7:15 and our 7th and 8th graders from 7:30-9:00. Theme will be forthcoming!

4th Grade Parents, please read this information on the TCGIS Band Program, available to all middle school kids! On Thursday, May 25, all 4th graders will attend a band instrument showcase! Find information on instruments available here. 

Changes were made to the school calendar for the current school year, and then approved by the Board on March 2nd. A reminder that:

• May 26: Full instructional day for grades 7 and 8 ONLY. Grades K-6 will have no school. It will be an A day.
• June 9: Full instructional day for grades 7 and 8 ONLY. Grades K-6 will have no school. It will be a C day.

We are looking for leaders and members who are interested in the LGBTQ+, Modern Family, and Gun Safety affinity groups.

• LGBTQ+: This group is designed to be a space of support for parents and guardians who are either part of the LGBTQ+ community themselves or have children who identify as LGBTQ+. If you are interested to share experiences, build community or are looking for guidance as a member of this group or would even like to help lead it, please contact Michael White at mwhite@tcgis.org.
• Modern Family: This group is designed to be a space for single parent, foster, and blended families to share experiences, build community and provide guidance to each other. If you are interested in becoming a member or even would like to lead this group, please contact Elizabeth Zehnpfennig at ezehnpfennig@tcgis.org.
• Gun Safety: This group is designed to create a communication strategy to emphasize the importance of gun safety, especially safe gun storage, in private homes. These communication materials will be shared with guardians/parents school-wide on a regular basis. If you are interested in becoming a member or help lead it, please contact Trish Jewett and/or Craig Chapman.

April 30: Summer camp registration closes

May 3: School Board Meet the Candidates Forum

May 8-13: Teacher Appreciation Week

May 11: Festival of Cultures

May 13: Scavenger Hunt (sponsored by PTO)

May 21: PTO meeting

May 26: 7 & 8th grade school (K-6 no school)



TCGIS Google Calendar