Spotlight on Success: August 2026

Hello Olympia School District families and community,

As we begin a new school year, I’m grateful for the opportunity to welcome our students, families and staff back to the Olympia School District. The start of each year gives us a chance to reconnect, refocus and look ahead, and I’m excited about the learning, relationships and experiences that will take shape across our schools in the months ahead.

Whether your family has been part of the Olympia School District for many years or this is your first, thank you for choosing to be part of our school community. We know families place trust in us when they send their children through our doors each day, and we are grateful for the opportunity to serve them.

As we prepare for the year ahead, we are also spending time thinking about the future of the Olympia School District. Our long-term planning work is a major focus and includes thinking about the role of technology in our classrooms, updating our Strategic Plan, planning future investments in our schools and facilities and examining how changes in enrollment and available resources may affect the number and configuration of schools we operate.

Some of these conversations, particularly those involving possible school consolidation or closure, are difficult. We know how connected students, families, staff and neighborhoods are to their schools. At the same time, we have a responsibility to look ahead and make thoughtful decisions that preserve strong programs, opportunities and experiences for students.

I encourage you to visit our Long-Term Planning page, where we will continue to share information, updates, planning documents, and opportunities to engage as this work progresses. We have also developed a Long-Term Planning Frequently Asked Questions page that addresses many of the questions we are hearing from families, staff and community members about enrollment, school consolidation and closure, facilities, funding and the planning process. We will continue to add to and update these FAQs as new questions arise and additional information becomes available.

I am excited to see our schools once again filled with learning, creativity, connection and all of the activities and traditions that make the Olympia School District such a special place. Thank you for your partnership and your continued support of our students and schools.

Here’s to a wonderful start to the new school year!

With gratitude,

Patrick

Somewhere between Seattle and England, with Hamnet playing on the airplane screen in front of her, Kristina Cummins felt the journey begin.

“It felt like I was leaving the world behind and entering into the world of Shakespeare,” said Kristina, a theatre teacher at Capital High School.

By the time she arrived in Stratford-upon-Avon, Shakespeare was no longer confined to the pages of a script. He was in the centuries-old buildings, the wooden floors beneath her feet, the performances unfolding onstage and the conversations filling each day.

The journey began with an email Kristina received in September 2025 from the Seattle Branch of the English-Speaking Union. Her name had been submitted as a strong candidate for the 2026 Shakespeare Birthplace Trust Experience, an opportunity she had not previously known existed.

Kristina had been sending Capital High School students to the English-Speaking Union’s Shakespeare Competition for more than five years. Each year, her top students have the opportunity to perform a Shakespearean monologue and sonnet before a panel of judges. She suspects that involvement placed her on the organization’s radar.

She submitted her résumé and soon learned that she had been selected to receive the approximately $6,000 grant. In July, she traveled to Stratford-upon-Avon for the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust’s Page to Stage program.

The experience brought together a cohort of Shakespeare and theatre enthusiasts from across the country, including middle school, high school and college educators, scholars, performers and English-Speaking Union representatives.

“One of the best parts of the trip was just being in community with these other Shakespeare enthusiasts,” Kristina said.

That community also gave her the chance to become a student again. Scholars from Stratford-upon-Avon and beyond led seminars and workshops exploring everything from Shakespeare’s life and sonnets to the music and instruments of his time.

“It was so refreshing to just soak up so much new knowledge,” she said.

Each day brought another layer of Shakespeare’s world to life.

Kristina walked through Shakespeare’s Birthplace and visited Shakespeare’s Schoolroom & Guildhall, where he is believed to have studied Latin, literature and rhetoric. She toured Anne Hathaway’s Cottage, explored the home of Shakespeare’s daughter Susanna and attended workshops led by scholars from the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust.

She learned about Shakespeare’s childhood, education and family, along with the social and political landscape he navigated as a writer. A workshop on music featured instruments from Shakespeare’s time, while other sessions explored his sonnets, plays and personal history.

The experience gave Kristina a more complete picture of the person behind the familiar name.

“Walking through houses that were built in the 1400s and 1500s—the same wood, the same walls, the same floor that Shakespeare walked upon—it just felt really magic,” she said.

That history was not sitting quietly behind museum glass. It was alive on the stages of the Royal Shakespeare Company.

Kristina saw Kenneth Branagh perform in The Cherry Orchard at the Swan Theatre. At another venue, her group attended the first preview performance of Game of Thrones: The Mad King, an ambitious four-hour production.

“It was spectacle and magic,” she said. “It was the most phenomenal thing I think I’ve ever seen onstage. It was just so inspiring and breathtaking.”

At the Royal Shakespeare Company’s The Other Place, she saw A Midsummer Night’s Dream, a production created in partnership with Unicorn Theatre and designed to make the story accessible to younger audiences.

“It was this beautiful, delightful interpretation of the text,” Kristina said. “I’m looking forward to when they publish their cutting of the script because it would be something that I would love to produce.”

The experience concluded in London with Much Ado About Nothing at Shakespeare’s Globe—bringing together the history, scholarship and live performance at the heart of her journey.

Kristina returned to Capital High School with more than photographs and memories.

“My brain is exploding with ideas of how I bring this into my class,” she said.

Some of those ideas will shape how her students study Shakespeare’s life, relationships and writing. Others will help students move beyond simply reading the language and begin making choices as performers.

She plans to use new strategies for helping students access Romeo and Juliet, explore the emotional and performative possibilities within Shakespeare’s sonnets and strengthen their preparation for the English-Speaking Union’s Shakespeare Competition.

Her advanced theatre students will begin the year with Shakespearean monologues.

“Day one, I’m throwing Shakespeare at my kids,” she said, before reconsidering with a laugh. “Well, after we build ensemble—so maybe day three.”

Kristina believes the techniques she learned will give students new tools to understand their characters, uncover meaning within the language and elevate their performances. Just as importantly, she wants them to see that Shakespeare’s works are not artifacts to be admired from a distance. They are living pieces of theatre, waiting for each new group of artists to interpret them.

The experience also reinforced something larger about the place of art in education.

“Everything on that trip was grounded in the arts—the art of music, the art of language, the art of architecture, the art of performance,” she said. “Those are the things that remind us about what it means to be human. Those are the ways we really connect with one another.”

In a theatre or music classroom, she explained, students must put down their phones, engage with one another, exchange ideas and be fully present. Theatre creates a shared language among people who may otherwise come from very different places—just as a shared love of Shakespeare connected Kristina with her cohort in England.

That is also the message she hopes to bring home to students considering a life in the arts.

“If this is what you really, really want to do, you really need to go for it,” Kristina said. “You need to keep theatre. You need to keep art in your life. You need to let it be a central part of your life.”

Kristina described returning from England with a renewed appreciation for Shakespeare and a desire to explore his work more deeply with students.

“I felt as if I stepped into history,” she said. “I return from this experience thoroughly inspired to continue to produce his plays with students in new and meaningful ways.”

The trip may have taken Kristina from Olympia to Stratford-upon-Avon, but its next act will unfold much closer to home—inside her classroom and on the Capital High School stage.

Kick off the new school year and football season at one of Olympia’s most cherished traditions, the Spaghetti Bowl! Join us Friday, September 4, for spaghetti, school spirit and a cross-town matchup between the Capital Cougars and Olympia Bears.

Spaghetti Feed: Start the evening with the annual Spaghetti Feed, hosted by the Rotary Club of Olympia and the West Olympia Rotary Club. Dinner is $10 per person, with proceeds shared between the two Rotary clubs. Tickets can be purchased online or at the door.

Please Note: Dinner tickets do not include admission to the football game.

Game Tickets: Game tickets can be purchased online through GoFan.

Please Note: Game tickets do not include dinner. Online ticketing fees may apply.

Game Details: After dinner, head to Ingersoll Stadium to cheer on the Capital Cougars and Olympia Bears in this cross-town classic!

The evening will also showcase students from both schools, including a special CHS and OHS band collaboration and performances from the cheer and dance teams.

Come hungry, wear your school colors and join us for a great night of food, football and community!

A special thank you to Olympia Federal Savings, our presenting sponsor, and the Rotary Club of Olympia and West Olympia Rotary Club for their support and participation in this beloved community tradition. We appreciate their partnership in helping make the Spaghetti Bowl a special night for our students, families and community.

More Matchups: Celebrate the Cougar and Bear crosstown competition throughout September:

Please Note: Check with your athletic office for other scheduled games.

As we begin a new school year, long-term planning remains an important focus for the Olympia School District. This work is about looking ahead, considering what we want learning to look like for our students, how our schools and facilities can best support that vision, and how we use our resources responsibly as enrollment and community needs change.

Our Long-Term Planning webpage brings this work together in one place. It includes information about three separate but connected efforts: our Strategic Plan Update, Bond Planning, and the district’s consideration of School Closure and Consolidation. The page also includes enrollment and school capacity information, planning documents, facility data and other resources that provide context for these important conversations.

We are also continuously updating our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page to address questions we are hearing from families, staff, and community members about long-term planning. The FAQ page will provide additional information about topics such as enrollment, school capacity, finances, the school closure and consolidation process and how these different planning efforts fit together.

We know these decisions and discussions matter deeply to our students, families, staff and community. We are committed to keeping our community informed as this work progresses and to providing opportunities to learn more and share feedback along the way.

New documents/resources, updates, meeting information and opportunities for community input will continue to be added to the page as they become available.

Join your Olympia School District friends and families for a fun Back-to-School Night with the Tacoma Rainiers on Wednesday, September 9! 

Come out to Cheney Stadium as the Tacoma Rainiers take on the El Paso Chihuahuas. The game begins at 6:05 p.m. Even better, Wednesday is an early release day, giving families some extra time to make the trip to Tacoma!

Be sure to arrive early to cheer on the Capital High School Chamber Choir as they sing the National Anthem, and Capital Assistant Principal Ja’Wanne Brown as he throws out the ceremonial first pitch.

This is a great opportunity to connect with other district families, celebrate the start of the 2026-27 school year and enjoy a night at the ballpark.

Event Details

Purchase tickets through the special OSD ticketing link. We hope to see you at the ballpark!

By Kelly Hart, Executive Director, Olympia Education Foundation

What happens when a student needs a pair of shoes, a teacher has a great idea that isn’t covered by the school budget, or a classroom needs books that will get kids excited about reading?

That’s where the Olympia Education Foundation comes in.

For decades, the Foundation has worked alongside the Olympia School District to remove barriers to learning and create opportunities for students. Through private donations and community support, it helps fund everything from basic student needs to creative and enriching learning experiences.

Through the Principal’s Emergency Fund (PEF), funding goes directly to OSD schools to help students and families with needs such as food, clothing, transportation and other essentials that can affect a student’s ability to learn.

Our Opportunity Grants support ideas from district educators and staff that go beyond what regular school budgets can provide, including projects in the arts, literacy, STEM, student wellbeing, family engagement and more. The first round of OEF grants for the 2026-27 school year have already been awarded, and the second round is now open through October 23, 2026.

The Foundation also supports literacy through Battle of the Books (BOB), helping put books into the hands of Olympia students and encouraging a love of reading across the district.

I joined the Olympia Education Foundation as Executive Director this summer, and much of my first few months has been spent listening and learning: meeting educators and community partners and looking for ways to build on the Foundation’s strong history.

One thing has become especially clear: this community is incredibly generous, and that generosity makes a meaningful difference for students. At the same time, needs for basics like food, clothing and transportation remain very real.

As we begin the 2026-27 school year, one of my priorities is ensuring district staff know which Foundation resources are available and how to access them. We also want to strengthen partnerships, better measure our impact and share more of the stories made possible by our community’s support.

We’d love more people to join us. We are currently seeking new OEF board members and volunteers to help support programs, events and connections across OSD schools.

If you are a district staff member who sees an unmet student need, connect with your principal or designated PEF contact. Have an idea for your students? Check out the current round of Opportunity Grants. Interested in volunteering or serving on our board? We’d love to hear from you.

Together, we can help Olympia students have what they need to learn, and opportunities to explore, create, participate and thrive.

The countdown to the first day of school is on, and we can’t wait to have everyone back! We’ve gathered a few back-to-school resources to help you and your student kick off the 2026-27 school year with confidence.

If your student plans to ride the bus to and/ or from school, please complete the transportation registration form as soon as possible to ensure your student has transportation on the first day of school. Forms submitted after this date may not be processed until late September.

Families are encouraged to complete a Free & Reduced-Price Meal Application for the 2026-27 school year.

Applying for meal benefits can provide more than breakfast and lunch. Qualifying may also help your student access additional benefits and reduced or waived fees.

Families can apply online through Skyward Qmlativ Family Access by selecting Food Service Applications and Start a New Application. You only need to complete one application per household. Paper applications are also available at school front offices.

Questions? Contact OSD Child Nutrition Services at (360) 596-7007

Stay connected with your school and the Olympia School District through ParentSquare. Parents and guardians with an email address and cell phone number listed in Skyward (Qmlativ) automatically have a ParentSquare account and will receive school and district updates, important alerts, event information and messages from staff all in one place.

We encourage families to download the free ParentSquare app and sign in to keep their account information and notification preferences up to date.

Do you plan to volunteer during the 2025-26 school year? Each year, volunteers must complete an online or paper volunteer application. For details about volunteering and access to the application, visit our volunteer page.

Keeping up with School Board meetings doesn’t have to mean reading through meeting minutes or watching an entire Zoom recording in BoardDocs. The Olympia School District’s Board Meeting Recaps offer a quick, accessible way for families, staff, and community members to stay connected to the Board's work.

These short videos highlight key topics, presentations, and actions from each meeting in an easy-to-watch, shareable format for social media. Recap videos are posted on district social media the day after each Board meeting, giving our community a simple way to catch up on the key topics covered.

You can watch current and previous recaps anytime on our Board Meeting Recap playlist on YouTube. New videos are added throughout the school year following Board meetings.

Olympia School District families have access to before- and after-school care through community partners that serve students across the district, including the South Sound YMCA and the Boys & Girls Clubs of Thurston County.

The South Sound YMCA is currently enrolling for its Y Care program for the 2026-27 school year. Y Care serves children ages 5-12 at locations across the district, with before- and/or after-school care available at some sites.

Programs provide students with opportunities to play, explore their interests, build relationships and participate in activities outside the school day.

A Y Care parent described the difference the program has made for their child and family: “Gabriel has been attending Y Care for two years. The program has been a huge support for our family. We especially appreciated the ‘Plan of Success’ meetings to identify his strengths and needs; it truly made us feel very supported. Since joining, we’ve noticed positive changes in him—he has become much more confident and social. He really feels like he belongs there.”

Families interested in Y Care can review locations, schedules, registration information and financial assistance through the South Sound YMCA. DCYF child care subsidies are accepted, and financial assistance is available.

Boys & Girls Clubs of Thurston County also provides after-school programming for OSD students of all ages at L.P. Brown Elementary School. The program offers a place for students to spend time after school, participate in activities and connect with peers and caring adults.

Families can find information about locations, program hours, membership fees, scholarships and enrollment materials on the Boys & Girls Clubs website.

Beginning Friday, August 28, 2026, families can log in to Skyward Qmlativ Family Access to view student schedules and class assignments for the 2026-27 school year.

Families should also complete the required annual student information update in Qmlativ. Please take a few minutes to review your student's information and make any necessary updates before the start of school.

Select “Sign in with Google Staff and Students” at the bottom of the Qmlativ login screen. Students should not enter information in the username or password fields.

For login or access questions, contact your school front office or Student Information Systems (SIS) Department.

The summer of 2026 brought another round of facility improvements across the Olympia School District, with projects ranging from roofing and flooring upgrades to critical electrical, HVAC and infrastructure work. Our Capital Planning and Construction team once again took advantage of the summer months to complete work while minimizing disruptions to students and staff.

Several projects were completed in time for the start of the new school year. At Madison Elementary, crews completed a full roof replacement, including removing the existing shingle roof and installing new roofing with ice-and-water shield underlayment. Boston Harbor Elementary received new carpeting and rubber base, while the Capital High School gymnasium floor was refinished with a new finish, stain and game lines.

Additional work included roof repairs at Garfield Elementary, where crews replaced roof valleys and valley venting and repaired translucent panels.

Other projects underway this summer include:

While some of these improvements are easy to see, others happen behind the scenes. Together, they help extend the life of our facilities, improve building systems and ensure our schools remain safe, reliable and welcoming places for students and staff.

We are grateful to our Capital Planning and Construction team, building administrators and staff and the many district departments and contractors who help coordinate this work each summer. We also appreciate the continued support of our community, which makes investments in our schools and facilities possible. Great work, team!