Dear Downes Families,

I am so happy to be Principal of the school where I began my educational journey as a kindergarten student.  I have so many wonderful memories of my time here at Downes,  It is my greatest wish that your children move forward with the same kind of memories.

We now have Chinese Immersion from grades K-5!  Our very first group of Chinese Immersion students left for middle school in the 2019-2020 school year.

Downes is extremely proud to say that we are a National PTA School of Excellence. We are only one of two in the state and one of only 278 throughout the entire country!!  What a wonderful honor that is. We are so lucky to have a wonderfully supportive and involved PTA.

There are always many school events coming up. Please look to your PTA calendar and the monthly newsletters.  I always look forward to celebrating many of our students at the Shark of the Month Luncheons each month.

Each year we hold the Shark Pride Stride Walkathon fundraiser – the only major fundraiser we do.  Each year we look to beat the previous year's total! Some of the proceeds go to supporting the school with technology, instructional materials, furniture and to subscribe to educational programs.  

Just a few words regarding arrival and dismissal – during arrival, we ask that you pull as far around as you can and have your children ready to depart the car. Also, please have them get out on the passenger side by the sidewalk and wait until you are next to the sidewalk before allowing your child to exit the car.  If you need to get out of your car or your children aren’t ready, we ask that you please park in a parking space in the side lot or in the neighborhood so we can keep the line moving and avoid cars passing other cars. At dismissal, we appreciate your patience in waiting to drive around to pick up your children and not passing each other. I think you will agree that waiting a few extra minutes is worth it to keep our children safe. You will see that pretty quickly, most days, all cars have exited the parking lot by 3:30.

My door is always open if you need to come in and talk about your child.  Also, please feel free to contact me via e-mail or phone with suggestions or compliments for our staff.  We are a team and you are a valued member of this team!

Thank you for all you do to support your children and our school,

Anne Park