Dear Quarton Families,

November is here, and we’re getting closer to our Pie the Principal goal! Thanks to your generosity, we’ve raised $8,100 toward our $10,000 goal. This week, we’re revealing the first five students selected to do the pie-ing, look for their names below!

Tomorrow is our adult social wellness event at Body of Learning Studio at 11:30am. Additionally Screenagers screenings begin tomorrow, and our Book Fair and fall conferences are right around the corner. We’re also looking for volunteers to help shape next year’s PTA leadership through our Nominating Committee.

In this week’s Centennial Spotlight, we visit the 1960s and the story behind Quarton’s beloved bear statue. Be sure to save December 4 for Dress Through the Decades, too!

Thank you for all the ways you support our students, staff, and school.

Michelle Kastner - PTA President
Annie Treharne - PTA Vice President

• Pie the Principal: We’ve raised $8,100 toward $10,000! The first five student pie-ers are revealed in School News & Reminders. Donate here to support Grizzly Grants; $25 per student is suggested.
• Coming up: Parent Wellness Event - Nov 4, 11:30am; Book Fair & Conferences - Nov 11-12; PTA Meeting - Nov 20, 9:30am.
• Volunteer opportunities: Help at the Book Fair or Bandaid Center.
• PTA Nominating Committee: Help fill leadership roles for 2027–2028. Sign up here.
• Screenagers: Screenings begin this week! See Community Corner for dates and details.
• Dress Through the Decades: Save Dec 4 for a spirit day celebrating Quarton’s history, choose any decade!
• Math Pentathlon:Student sign-up is open! Grades 2-3 start Nov 20; grades K-1 start Jan 8. Both meet Fridays at 8 AM in the Bear Den. Details below.
• Polar Bear Ski Club:Register here, select “Tuesday,” and search for Quarton.
• Reflections: Entries are due Nov 4. Details here.

PIE THE PRINCIPAL: Help Fund Grizzly Grants! We’ve raised $8,100 toward our $10,000 goal! We’re raising funds by November 14 to provide materials requested by Quarton teachers & staff. A suggested gift of $25 per student would get us to our goal, and donations of any size are appreciated. Your donations will support:

• Kindergarten - winter gear hooks and curriculum storage
• 1st grade - math, reading fluency, and phonics centers 
• 2nd Grade - 3-D math shapes and literacy corner materials 
• 3rd Grade - curriculum storage and a classroom rug 
• 4th Grade - make-your-own solar cars 
• 5th Grade - puzzle tables, magnetic whiteboards, & classroom items 
• School-wide requests including - P.E. basketballs, VW Lab storage, a calming station, folding chairs, sensory supports, and math and ELA resources.

The pie lineup is here! If we reach $10,000, the following staff members will get pied at the November Town Hall: Mrs. Rosinski, Ms. Pirronello, Mrs. Dyar, Mr. Cameron, Mrs. Bloor, Mrs. Kastner, Mrs. Kniesteadt, Mrs. DeMott, and Señorita Zamudio.Let’s go for $12,000! Raising an additional $2,000 will unlock a special guest in the pie lineup and fund updates to the staff conference room and a special Basketball Jones assembly for our students.

Meet our first five student pie-ers! We’re excited to reveal five of the ten randomly selected students who will do the pie-ing at our November 24 Town Hall:

• William Minkin
• Leo Janutol
• Selene Shafou
• Rosie MacKenzie
• Michael Giaier

We’ll reveal more names next week! Students were selected whether or not their family donated. Click here to donate.

BOOK FAIR HELP: We need volunteers during the book fair held November 11 &12 from 1pm-7pm. Help parents find books and check out. Additionally we need support on Thursday evening closing up the fair. Packing up the fair can be done in 20-30 minutes with four volunteers. Please click here to sign up for any and all slots available. We appreciate community support!

BANDAID CENTER: Help support our school’s Band-Aid Center! Operated entirely by parent volunteers, the center provides care for minor injuries and assists students who aren’t feeling well during the school day. Sign up here to volunteer and help keep our students comfortable and cared for!

MATH PENTATHLON: Student Registration Is Open! Students in grades K–3 are invited to sign up for Math Pentathlon! Both divisions meet Friday mornings at 8:00 AM in the Bear Den.

• Division 2 (grades 2-3): Begins November 20.
• Division 1 (grades K-1): Begins January 8.

Both divisions will run through February. Students competing in the tournament will continue practicing until the tournament in April. Sign up your student here!

Contact Harry Pianko (harry.pianko@gmail.com) and Stephanie Lazar (Stephblazar@gmail.com) for more information.

HELP CHOOSE NEXT YEAR’S PTA LEADERS! We’re looking for volunteers to serve on the PTA Nominating Committee and help fill open executive board and committee chair positions for the 2027–2028 school year. The committee will meet several times during school hours over the winter months and will be voted in at our November PTA meeting. It’s a meaningful way to help shape the year ahead! Sign up here.

QUARTON POLAR BEAR SNOW CLUB: Join Quarton's Tuesday night ski club and get ready to ski, snowboard, & have fun with your friends at Pine Knob!

• Who: Quarton students 7 years old & up
• When: Tuesdays after school, January 5–February 23
• Where: Pine Knob – parents provide transportation
• Bonus: Parents who join the club receive discounted lift tickets!
• Bonus: Siblings under 7 years can buy a lift ticket at ½ off!

Register here by clicking on "Tuesday" and searching for Quarton.

Never miss an event! Subscribe to the 2026–2027 PTA Community Calendar to automatically add important dates, including school events, half days, days off, and more to your personal calendar. Simply click here and follow the prompts.

Quarton in the 1960s: Friends, Big and Small

As our centennial journey reaches the 1960s, we’re celebrating a familiar part of Quarton: our beloved bear statue!

Installed at Quarton in 1967, the small bronze sculpture is a version of Two Bears by renowned sculptor Marshall Fredericks. Known at Quarton as Friends, Big and Small, it has a special neighborhood connection: Fredericks lived nearby on Quarton Lake, and all five of his children attended our school.

According to Birmingham’s Marshall Fredericks sculpture tour, Quarton parent Mrs. W. J. McCarthy asked why he didn’t have a sculpture in his own neighborhood. Fredericks happily obliged, giving generations of Quarton students a piece of art to grow up with.

Bringing history into the art room: This week, Ms. Monville will work with students on a special art project honoring our bear statue. We can’t wait to see how they celebrate this part of Quarton’s story!

A little history in our Halloween fun: Our staff dressed through the decades for Halloween, paying tribute to Quarton’s first 100 years. Their costumes were a fun preview of our schoolwide Dress Through the Decades spirit day on December 4!

Do you have a memory or photo of Quarton’s bears? Share it with us at quarton100yr@gmail.com.

Historical source: Birmingham Marshall Fredericks Tour.

A big thank-you to the people who make Quarton such a special place!

• Dr. Roberson for taking the time to meet with our community, answer our questions, and help us better understand the 2026 Bond proposal.
• Our Room Parents and parent volunteers for planning and coordinating festive classroom Halloween parties and helping make the day so much fun for our students.
• Katalin Rosinski for the care, dedication, and countless behind-the-scenes efforts she puts into keeping Quarton safe, welcoming, and running smoothly. Even though October is officially National Principal's Month, we appreciate all you do for our students, staff, and families every day!
• All the Quarton Staff that got into the Centennial Spirit and dressed though the decades for Quarton' Halloween parties and parade

Thank you as well to our lunch and Band-Aid Center volunteers for caring for our students throughout the week. We have the BEARY best community!

Click on the images below to quickly access Membership Toolkit, the monthly Lunch Menu, the Meal Magic Portal (lunch account) and our donation website.