Principal's Welcome Letter
Dear Mustang Families,
Welcome to the 2026-2027 school year! I am absolutely thrilled to return as the proud principal of Pima Butte Elementary School. It remains an honor and a privilege to serve this incredible community. The deep pride and commitment shared by our students, staff, and families are the very heartbeat of our campus, and I am energized to lead our school community into another fantastic year.
As your principal, I share your high expectations for academic excellence and positive character. I am deeply committed to honoring Pima Butte’s rich history of success while continuing to foster a vibrant, inclusive school culture. True success is a team effort, and preserving and enriching the vital partnership between our school and Mustang families is my top priority. Together, we will maintain the exceptional standards that define our school.
We are fortunate to have a diverse, remarkably talented staff dedicated to nurturing our young Mustangs into lifelong learners. By holding our students to high behavioral and academic standards, our educators teach the value of strong character and the importance of always striving for their personal best.
In 2023, Pima Butte Elementary school was again designated as an A+ School of Excellence™ by the Arizona Educational Foundation, after our initial recognition in 2019. We went through a comprehensive assessment process to identify areas of excellence in teaching, learning, climate, community building, and leadership. We’re extremely proud of this designation!
In addition to the A+ School of Excellence™ designation, Pima Butte Elementary was recognized by the US Department of Education as a 2020 National Blue Ribbon School Recipient as an Exemplary High Performing School. This distinction is a true reflection of the hard work and dedication of our staff, students, families and community.
Open communication and feedback is essential to the success of our school. In addition to Site Council and Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) meetings, I encourage you to contact me if you would like to discuss or share your ideas about building upon our successes or addressing challenges that are in need of our attention. You can contact me by calling (520) 568-7150 or sending an e-mail to: kvieira@musd20.org.
We will continue to provide a safe learning environment so that each student can contribute to the success of our school. To provide a secure environment, all parents and visitors are required to report to the Front Office and check in before going to other parts of the building, including classrooms. MUSD uses Visitor Aware to screen and register all visitors. We encourage you to complete your self-registration and save your visitor QR code before visiting. Visitor badges must be worn by all visitors while on campus. Parents/visitors must check out through the Front Office when leaving the school. Classroom visits must be prearranged through the classroom teacher and school administrator. Please obtain a visitor request form from our website or the front office if you wish to visit campus outside of class organized parent volunteer opportunities. Requests must be submitted for administrator approval at least 2 school days before visiting. Special deliveries for students (gifts, balloons, etc) are not permitted. Please see the student handbook for further information.
We strongly encourage students to be at school on time every day. Students who are absent, arrive late, or leave early miss out on important instructional opportunities. Please help us reinforce the importance of daily attendance and reporting to school on time. Try to avoid scheduling medical appointments during school hours as much as possible.
If you park in the parking lot to drop-off or pick-up your child, you must use the marked crosswalk located in the front of the school. PLEASE make sure to escort your child across the crosswalk. Do NOT drop them off in the parking lot. We need to keep all of our Mustangs safe! To avoid accidents, please use the Entrance Only driveway when arriving at Pima Butte and the Exit Only driveway when leaving Pima Butte. As a reminder, cars may not park along Rancho El Dorado Parkway in front of the school.
Occasionally the wash that goes through Rancho El Dorado starts flowing and, as a result, Rancho El Dorado Parkway may be closed at the wash on the north and/or south sides of the neighborhood. Therefore, you would need to use an alternate route to get to Pima Butte. When the wash is closed (to cars, bikes, and walkers), enter Rancho El Dorado from Smith-Enke Road at either Santa Rosa Drive or from Desert Greens Drive, and then follow Rancho El Dorado Parkway around (away from the wash) to Pima Butte.
ParentVue is a great way of keeping up with your child’s grades and progress in class, viewing attendance and other important student information. If you need assistance with your account, please contact the Front Office.
Parent Volunteers
Pima Butte is always in need of Parent Volunteers for various activities during the school year, such as Book Fair and Field Day. If you have time to volunteer, please contact the front office for more information. The PTO also needs volunteers for a variety of events, such as Santa’s Supper, Assemblies, and Water Day. To volunteer with the PTO, please email volunteersofpbes@gmail.com. We really appreciate your willingness to volunteer your time with us.
Pima Butte Yearbook
At the beginning of the school year (and throughout the school year), we will have informational fliers available about our yearbook. If you order your child’s yearbook early in the school year, you can take advantage of a discounted price. As the school year progresses, the cost of the yearbook will increase incrementally before pre-orders close in the spring. We will only have a very limited amount of extra yearbooks for sale at the end of the school year. Please pre-order your child’s yearbook to guarantee they receive one.
PBIS
We will continue to implement the Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) initiative, which is an approach to teaching and supporting positive behaviors and meeting the needs of ALL students. This school-wide approach to discipline focuses on building a safe and positive environment in which students can all learn. The foundation of PBIS at Pima Butte Elementary School is based on three building-wide expectations: “Be Safe, Be Respectful, and Be Responsible”. To be successful, our behavior framework needs to be a partnership between home and school. For more information on PBIS, go to: http://www.pbis.org.
School Communication
For the most up to date information, this year the district is using Parent Square. All classroom teachers will also utilize Parent Square to communicate with their families. It also gives families the opportunity to see schoolwide posts with the most current happenings on campus. You can also visit our school website for additional information.
Student Handbook
Families can visit our district website to view a digital copy of our handbook if you have any questions pertaining to our rules and regulations: Student Handbooks
Student Supplies
All supplies necessary for instruction, including textbooks, technology, and basic classroom supplies, (i.e pencils, paper, notebooks etc.), will be furnished at no cost to the students. Students are responsible for textbooks and technology issued to them for their use during the school year. If loss or damage occurs, parents and students will be expected to pay for such. If Parents/Guardians wish to donate classroom supplies please reach out to your child's teacher to see if there are any wish items that can be donated.
***Please note the following important information for the 26/27 school year: School starts at 8:35 am. and ends at 3:35 pm. Every Wednesday, we follow an Early Release Schedule with school ending at 1:35 pm for Kindergarten through 5th grades. The last day of every quarter (09/25, 12/18, 03/12, 05/27) and Parent Teacher Conference Days (September 23, 24, 25 and January 27, 28, 29) will follow the Early Release Schedule for all students (including Preschool). Please be aware that we have a two-week Fall Break (09/28-10/9), Winter Break (12/21-01/01) and Spring Break (03/15 - 03/26).
***There has been a change through food services this year. There will be a $1 charge for breakfast. Breakfast is served every school day starting at 8:05 am. When students arrive, they should enter the building through the Multipurpose Room (Cafeteria). Please note that students should not arrive before 8:05 am; however, students should be on campus by 8:30 am so that they can be in their classrooms when the tardy bell rings at 8:35 am. Any student arriving after 8:32 am should enter through the Front Office. In order to limit the number of adults on campus, families are only allowed in the cafe at breakfast on the first day of school. If students arrive through the front doors after 8:35am, they will be marked as tardy.
Our Lunch prices have also increased this year to $4.25. Please make sure to fill out your paperwork for the free and reduced lunch.
District Wellness Policy
Class parties held in an individual classroom by a single class will no longer be exempt from the nutritional regulations. Parents may no longer provide food items that do not meet nutritional standards; however, parents/teachers may use the option of having the MUSD Food Services Dept. provide healthy food items. Please contact the Director of Child Nutrition (520-568-5100 x1034) for more information.
End of Day Dismissal
Each student must have a current Dismissal Form on file to let our staff know how your child goes home each day after school. Any student who will not be using their default (tagged) method of dismissal for the day will need to be picked up in the front office at dismissal. These temporary dismissal changes should only be made in the event of an emergency and must be communicated in writing to our Front Office staff (PBESrecords@musd20.org) at least 1 hour before dismissal. Kindergarten and 1st grade students are not permitted to leave campus or unload from the school bus without being escorted or supervised by a responsible caregiver. To minimize dismissal disruptions and ensure student safety, we will not release students (except in the event of an emergency) through the front office during the last half an hour of the school day (after 3pm Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays and after 1pm on Wednesday/Early Release Days). Please meet your student at their designated dismissal location.
Contact Information
It is very important for your child’s teacher and our Front Office staff to have your most current phone number(s), e-mail address(es), and mailing address – especially in the event of an emergency. In the event your contact information changes, please update your child’s registration in ParentVue to reflect these changes or call/email the Front Office for assistance.
Meet the Teacher Night & First Day of School
Please mark your calendars for “Meet the Teacher Night” on Thursday, July 23rd. Doors will open at 5:30pm with the opportunity to Meet and Greet your child’s teacher. Families will enter through the MPR. If possible, you may be informed of your child’s assigned teacher prior to this event. In the event you are not notified, class rosters will be available when you arrive. Meet the Teacher concludes at 6:30pm. The first day of school is Monday, July 27th! Please note that this is new and it will be a full day of school.
I look forward to a wonderful new school year and want to take this opportunity to thank you for your support, collaboration, and participation in helping Pima Butte remain a school of excellence!
Sincerely,
Karen Vieira
Principal