Ewing Marion Kauffman School

We have incredible news to share. Out of more than 34,000 applications, our very own senior Koree was one of 300 students selected for the Bill & Melinda Gates Scholarship! This scholarship guarantees a full ride to any college she chooses, and in this case, she has chosen Stanford University. She is the first student in EMKS history to receive this honor! Many of us know her as Future Doctor Koree and she’s well on her way to that title and more.

To our community: these last days, weeks, and months have been filled with difficult moments and we know that social media newsfeed are stacked with painful news because we live in a world broken by systemic racism. We also know our students are continuing to work incredibly hard and accomplish so much during and despite this. Our community is deeply impacted by the trauma and violence that has happened but is still SO much more than that. In the coming weeks, we look forward to sharing moments of joy and celebration with our students and community.

Excited to see students Tahraji and Jayden read four of Langston Hughes’ poems and share their thoughts on his legacy during a conversation hosted by the Kansas City Public Library. RSVP to the event in the link below!

Today, a couple of our upperclassmen are learning safety protocols required at the Builders Union Apprenticeship Program. They are hearing more about a program that would support them to become journeymen after a 4-year apprenticeship; additionally, they would get 30 credit hours through this program (supporting them in pursuing an associates degree) and ultimately become project managers.

Our small group of 7th graders back on campus have gotten into their routine -- which, for Rodnie and Brandon, includes chess over breakfast most mornings. :)

Representation matters. Welcome to our new President-Elect and Vice President-Elect. @nytimes

Our fall report card conferences were last week, and we are SO grateful for the partnership between our incredible families and teachers. (Thank you also to all the families who took our feedback survey - we are reading every response and will share some of our favorites!)

#ThrowbackThursday to our Girl Talk event, which brought local Kansas City female leaders to Kauffman School to speak on panels about what it means to be Black or Brown leaders in various industries, careers, and communities!

Coming into today, we know our community is feeling a range of emotions about yesterday’s election and the wait time for results. We believe that, as a school community, it is important to pause and process as a team. This morning, students will be in morning meetings talking about their reactions to the election and their hopes and desires about leadership in our country. Here is what they will hear from us in class, and we want you as our larger Kauffman Community to hear as well: No matter what happens politically, we are a community and school that cares deeply about each of you, believes in you, and will continue to support you however we can.

Election Day Civic Engagement: Kauffman School students, staff, and family members are passing out water bottles and hand sanitizers at polling stations, supporting our voting community members! #govote #communityengagement

REMINDER KAUFFMAN COMMUNITY: Today, Tuesday, November 3rd, will be an "Asynchronous Learning Day" - a day without scheduled classes. Students will have work to complete in their Google classrooms, but we will not be meeting in Zoom because of the flexibility it will offer our community to engage with election day in whichever way they choose to do so.

Last week, four Kauffman School seniors found out they are finalists for the QuestBridge National College Match scholarship (the most students in EMKS history!). If they become a Match Scholarship Recipient, they will be granted early admission to one of QuestBridge's college partners with a full four-year scholarship, worth over $200,000. We are ecstatic to celebrate students who have been recognized thus far - proud of you all!

We might not be together on Halloween this year, but we hope that our community has a safe day if you are celebrating! (Pictures of our now 10th graders when they were middle schoolers back in the day!)

High school senior Khalil shares why he chooses to vote. Like Khalil, we encourage our community to share your voice in the upcoming election. #MakeAPlan to vote using resources here: https://www.vote.org/

#ThrowbackThursday to our Trick or Treat Street hosted by the UMKC Honors Program - this was a yearly tradition in partnership with UMKC. We are grateful to continue to work with local colleges, nonprofits, organizations to provide unique in-school and out-of-school opportunities for our PREPsters!

Families, it is an honor to know and work with your students. We love conferences because they give us an opportunity to celebrate their successes and plan for their future growth. This Thursday and Friday are regular school days for students, and in the afternoon, we look forward to meeting on Zoom at your scheduled conference time! As always, let us know if you have any questions.

Reminder to our community that we are continuing free meal distribution - please "share" to spread the word about pick up locations and times.

Coach Spencer is combining wellness, laughter, and Halloween today for your #WellnessWednesday tip. (Side note: she'll direct you here for more Halloween laughter: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sCK6dw6xnTY)