Indian Hill Elementary School Newsletter |

August 29, 2025

Weekly Video Celebration

Lead like a Brave!

How can you still be a leader when things are hard?


Click below to find out what our ES student leaders have to say!


CLICK HERE

 

Important Dates

  • September 1: No School - Labor Day
  • September 4: Picture Day
  • September 19: Homecoming Game
  • October 10: No School - Staff Development
  • October 13: No School
  • October 14: No School - Conference Day
  • October 16: Picture Retake Day
  • October 23: Conference Night
  • October 31: Halloween

Bulletin Board

Important!

Please Read!


As we look to the next school year, 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 had a great couple of weeks back at school!! We hope your students are as happy about being back as we are!!

Parents - make sure to check out these helpful QR codes to our frequently used apps:


 

Club Sign-ups are Here!

Click Here to Sign up!

 


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!

Thursday, September 4!

Don't forget to bring your smiles!

2025/26 Student Fee Update


Payment Portal will open on 9/29/25!


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.


NSTEM at IHES!


We’re excited to share an opportunity for our IHES students to join the National STEM Honor Society (NSTEM), an organization dedicated to recognizing excellence and sparking innovation in STEM.


Parents are invited to a virtual informational session on Monday September 8, from 7:00–7:30 p.m. to learn more about NSTEM’s mission, specifics about the program at IHES, and how your child can get involved. Please see the attached flier for details, and reach out to Amanda Sopko (amanda.sopko@ihsd.us) with any questions. We hope to see many of you there!  


Click Here for More Info

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

Important Safety Message

for all Car Riders!


The beginning of the school year is upon us! We want to remind all users of our car line to please make sure your children and pets stay securely in the vehicle. Our staff's primary focus is to ensure all our students get in/out of cars safely and in a timely manner.

Children and pets should not be leaning out of car windows or sunroofs!

Thanks for your help!

 

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!

Important Information


Office Phone #:

513-272-4703

Office hours:

7:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.

School Hours:

8:55 a.m. - 3:35 p.m.


  • Please make sure your child's belongings are labeled with their name.
  • Please remember to use Pick up Patrol for all transportation change notifications.
  • If your student is going to be absent or late call our automated attendance line: 513-272-4708


Visit Our Website

As a reminder, our District website is a great place to find information, such as partner groups, the directory, this year and next year’s academic calendar, and department/program information, such as the District’s gifted identification plan. 

 

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 Kindness.

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

School Fees and Lunch Payments

My School Bucks is an online payment program where you can load money on to your child's lunch account and School Fees. Never used My School Bucks before? Need a refresher? Click the link below.

*Any school Fees already collected will be applied as soon as possible.


Please disregard messages if you have already paid*


Click Here

KGS Academy Indian Hill Enrolling for 25/26

Before School Care 7:00 - 8:30 a.m.

After School Care 3:45 - 6:00 p.m.

Grades K-5

Located at IHPS

KGS Academy Indian Hill is owned and operated by Tami Lanham, an IH parent.



Email tami.lanham@ihsd.us or call Tami at 513-207-8889.


A Message From Our Transportation Deptartment

2025-2026 TRANSPORTATION SCHEDULES



Stopfinder is the all-in-one, easy-to-use app for viewing & sharing your student’s TRANSPORTATION SCHEDULE for the 25-26 School Year!


Learn more about the app HERE Call the Transportation Department to request assistance with the Stopfinder App. You can reach them at 513.272.4531 


If you haven't requested bus transportation yet, find the form  HERE!


        https://www.indianhillschools.org/Transportation.aspx

  https://www.indianhillschools.org/StopfinderParentApp.aspx

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

Important!!

Traffic Pattern for Car Rider Drop Off and Pickup!

IMPORTANT INFORMATION 

If you choose to drive your child to school, our drop off/pick up circle is in the front of our Arts and Athletics Wing this year.


Please Do Not Drop Students off in front of the building unless it's after 8:55 a.m.


  • Enter the Elementary School (ES) driveway across from South Clippinger and take your first right. 
  • Follow the traffic pattern behind the gym and then loop back to the front of the wing. There will be school personnel there to greet you and your child. 
  • Please do not get out of the car and make sure to have students get out on the passenger side of the car. Staff will assist students.
  • Follow the traffic pattern to exit the ES using the same driveway directly across from South Clippinger. (See map to the side or click link)


Click Here for the map!



*If you need to sign your child out from the office early, we ask that you do so before 3:10 p.m. This allows for a smooth dismissal for all of our students who are leaving at the scheduled time.

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.