Indian Hill Elementary School Newsletter |

January 9, 2026

Weekly Video Celebration

Lead like a Brave!

Welcome Back Braves!


We hope everyone had a peaceful break and we hope you are feeling rested and ready for all that 2026 may bring!



We asked our Braves to share one goal for the New Year. Click below to listen to their aspirations for 2026!


CLICK HERE!

 

Important Dates

  • January 9 - Report Cards available Online
  • January 19 - No School - Dr. Martin Luther King Day
  • February 13 - No School - Professional Develpoment
  • February 16 - No School - Presidents Day

Bulletin Board

Making Leaders At Home and At School


IHES is proud to partner with our families in providing our students with leadership opportunities here at school as well as at home. Come back each week for thoughts and tips on creating strong student leaders.



Click Here

CAPA Winter/Spring Registration is Open!

CAPA is offering a Winter/Spring session at the Elementary School called Page to Performance.


This class will focus on bringing characters to life! Students will learn foundational acting skills through scene work. They will experiment with acting choices, movement, voice inflection and so much more! This is a perfect class to be creative as well as gain strength and confidence in becoming a young actor/actress. Our teaching artist will guide them along the way with games, acting scenarios and constructive critiques. The class will culminate in a showcase of their work so you can see it all come together from Page to Performance.


7 WEEK Winter/Spring SESSION

Mondays 3:45-4:30 p.m.

February 2, 9, 23

March 2, 9, 16, 23


Register Here


Parents Of Walkers - IHES Needs Your Help!


Your child’s safety is our top priority.


We have noticed an increase in both pedestrian traffic and parked cars along S. Clippinger, which has become a safety concern during dismissal. To help keep everyone safe, we ask that families who do not live on S. Clippinger or within walking distance of the school use the car rider line for pick-up. 


Car riders are dismissed promptly at 3:32 p.m.  Our staff is experienced and efficient in moving vehicles through the line quickly and safely.


In addition, to further support a safe and orderly dismissal, IHES will begin releasing walkers at the same time we call bus riders—approximately 3:40 p.m.


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Thank you for your support and cooperation as we work together to ensure a safe and smooth dismissal process for all our students. Together, we can make sure every child ends their school day safely and happily!

Important!

Please Read!


We want to remind parents to avoid stopping in the crosswalk or in front of the sidewalk ramps.

These spaces must remain clear for the safety and convenience of all our students, parents, and guests.


During normal pick-up and drop-off times we have staff available outside to help ensure that your students safely enter the building.


During other times please avoid blocking the ramp in front of the building while watching your child enter. 



If you need to enter the building your car must be parked along the curb at the loop or in a regular parking space. Thanks for your attention to this important matter!

Important Attendance Reporting Information!



We want to inform you that starting this school year, you will receive an automated phone call/text/email message from the attendance office if your student is marked absent from school 90 minutes after school begins.


Please know that if this notification does not align with what you know about your child’s attendance, we encourage you to contact the school before becoming concerned. Occasionally, a student may be late to class, or there may be a clerical error or misrecording that prompts the alert.


As always, we kindly ask that you notify the school in advance of any planned absences via Pick Up Patrol or our attendance line (513-272-4707) if your child is absent unexpectedly.


Below is the message you will hear if your student is marked absent:


“Hello, this is a message from the attendance office at Indian Hill Elementary, calling to inform you that your student <> <> was absent today. Please contact the attendance office of your student’s school at (513-272-4703) to report the absence, or send a signed note upon returning to school. If you have already contacted the school office, you can disregard this message. If you would like to replay this message, please press the star key. Thank you.”


We appreciate your partnership in ensuring accurate attendance records and supporting your child’s learning.


We Need You!!



Are you looking to get involved here at the ES? Wondering how you can help during the school day? The ES is looking for Parent Volunteers in the Lunch room all year!

Click here to find a time that works for you!

2025/26 Student Fee Update


Payment Portal is open!


The annual student fees for the 2025-2026 school year will be as follows:


3rd- $75

4th- $60

5th- $60


Checks for annual fees should be made out to the Indian Hill Board of Education and forwarded to your child’s homeroom teacher. School fees may also conveniently be paid by using PowerSchool.


A link to PowerSchool can be found on the Indian Hill website under the Student & Parent dropdown.


Time to Eat!


Do your children live for pizza on Fridays? How about breakfast for lunch?

If you have frequent (or occasional) school lunch buyers in your family, click the link below for a some helpful information from our food service provider Aramark.

Bon Appetit!


Click Here

Birthday Lunch Protocol


Birthdays are the best! Here at IHES, we love celebrating your child's birthday with shout outs on our daily announcements and classroom birthday songs!

We know you want to celebrate their big day too. Sending or dropping off a special lunch for your birthday child is totally fine but, PLEASE do not send in food to share with classmates.

As per our Food Allergy Plan, sharing food at school is not allowed. Thank you for helping us keep all of our students healthy and safe!

Wellness Wednesdays

Here at IHES the staff and students participate in Wellness Wednesdays.

We do this by setting aside Wednesdays as an intentional day (or a moment in the day) each week to remember to take a breath, find moments of mindfulness, slow down, reset, and recharge. Each month's Wellness Wednesday has a different theme and activities.


This month's Wellness Wednesday theme is Problem Solving/Decision Making.

Join the IHES Birthday Book Club

Would you like to celebrate your child's birthday in a lasting way at our school? Our library has a Birthday Book Club, which provides families a unique opportunity to honor your child's special day.

     Families are asked to donate $15.00 to our Birthday Book Club to help underwrite the cost of a new book. The birthday child may then select a new book which has already been ordered for our library collection. There are always many wonderful titles from which to choose. Summer birthdays are celebrated either at half birthdays or in the spring. 


The library will put a

birthday bookplate in the front of the selected book to identify this title as a lasting gift for our school's collection. What a wonderful way to emphasize the importance of reading with our Students!


Interested in joining our club?

Email Mrs. Sara Jones, IHES Librarian.

fruits and veggies

Healthy School Snacks



It is our goal for students to have healthy and safe snack options within the classroom that include fruits, vegetables, and some grains. 

 

·       Examples: rice cakes or crackers, plain popcorn, Pirates Booty, garden veggie straws, Made Good products

 

·       Non-Examples: pretzels with peanut butter, hard boiled eggs, cereals or cereal bars, granola bars 

 

We appreciate any and all efforts to provide snacks for your child that are the least intrusive to the teaching and learning environment (i.e., ease of opening, particular smells, allergen-free products). 

 

Thank you in advance for your assistance. If you have any questions about snack time, please contact your child's teacher or Mrs. Joyce- 513-272-4703 -gayle.joyce@ihsd.us

Transportation Change Reminders!

 Pick Up Patrol (PuP) is used here at IHES to manage student dismissal and for parents/guardians to communicate transportation plans to teachers and school staff. If you are not using PuP, we ask that you begin ASAP. Knowing your child's daily transportation plans ensures that we get your child home in a safe and timely manner.


If you are already using PuP, thank you! Here are a couple of tips on using the program:

  • Make sure your child's default (aka daily) plans are up to date
  • Any daily changes must be entered by 2:30 p.m. (if a change comes up after this time please call the office 513-272-4703)
  • Teachers will follow whatever has been entered in PuP unless you have contacted the office with a change

IHES - Where We Find our JOY!

Quick Links

Our Team

Whitney Buell, Principal

Whitney.Buell@ihsd.us

Twitter: @IHElementary

 

My #IHPromise - to be a servant to our students, staff, and community; I strive to provide continuous improvement to prepare our students for a promising future. 


Nate Eigher, Assistant Principal

Nate.Eigher@ihsd.us 

Twitter: @EigherIH


My #IHPromise - to collaborate with students and the community to establish a supportive setting that empowers every student to maximize their goals.

IHES Snapshot

Indian Hill Elementary School

6100 Drake Road

Cincinnati, OH 45243


Classes Begin: 8:55 a.m.

Dismissal: 3:30 p.m.


Phone: 513-272-4703

Fax: 513-272-4708

Attendance: 513-272-4707

School Safety: 513-272-4701

Transportation: 513-272-4531


We are a campus committed to kindness; click here to report an incident, and administrators will be notified.