Ballyshannon 411
Published: August 12
WELCOME TO BALLYSHANNON!
New schools always have some kinks to work out. We will hit snags along the way, but you have our word that we will move quickly to adjust, fix, and rectify anything that goes awry over the course of this first year.
That said, we will also do so many things right.
- Our SEL block is the first in our district and is modeled after the practices at Pearl-Cohn HS in Nashville but customized for our kids.
- We will start our year with a 3-day PBL (Project-Based Learning) event which culminates on Friday evening with a public display of our projects. We will then have four additional full-school PBL days this year as we eventually transition to more and more naturally-planned PBL as a part of our everyday teaching.
- We will be reporting our academic grades on a 4 point scale this year that communicates directly to you your child's level of mastery of each standard so you as a parent will always know if your child is mastering the grade level content or is struggling with specific concepts.
- Work skills will be separated from academic reporting and you will receive a separate report of your child's work skills that often is averaged into academic grades and confuses the reality of student progress. This will include organization, participation in class, and grit/perseverance. These are all very important skills for our kids as they progress to high school and will allow us to see specifically where they need to focus their effort on development.
And this is only the beginning. It's a building year...but we're hitting the ground running. Thank you for joining us on this incredible journey filled with opportunity.
Ballyshannon Staff
Family Handbook
STUDENT ONLY TOURS--MONDAY
5:30pm: 8 Green
6pm: 7 Orange
6:30pm: 7 Green
7pm: 6 Orange
7:30pm: 6 Green
Your team color is determined by your ENGLISH class color.
LOCKER PREP--WEDNESDAY FROM 5-7
5-6pm: All students with a TOP locker.
6-7pm: All students with a BOTTOM locker.
CAFETERIA MENU
School Hours
Breakfast: 7:10-7:30am
Tardy Bell: 7:40am
Buses, Walkers, Bike Riders dismiss: 2:25pm
Car Riders dismiss: 2:30pm
**Day one's end-of-day schedule for car riders could be running behind schedule based on the flow of bus/walkers/bikers. We appreciate your patience with us on the first day. :)
What will parent dropoff look like?
You may drop off kids beginning at 7:10am daily.
1. Pull into the FIRST entrance as you approach Ballyshannon.
2. Drive along the curb (avoiding the special needs bus loop on the right side of our building).
3. Pull to the crosswalk in front of the building.
4. Students should exit cars all the way back to the special needs bus loop to accelerate the car line.
5. DO NOT BLOCK THE SPECIAL NEEDS BUS LOOP.
- Students are tardy at 7:40am.
- Any student that arrives after 7:40am will be marked tardy, should enter the main office, and sign in.
- Please note that tardies do count toward excused and unexcused events. Students have 5 events excusable by a parent note.
**Mr. Demetrakis is recording a video to show you what this should look like. We'll post it here. Check back.
What will parent pickup look like?
1. The first car should enter the first entrance to Ballyshannon when you approach the school.
2. Pull along the curb, pass the cross walk, and drive all the way to the top of the lot.
3. All cars follow same pattern.
4. Do not block the cross walk or the special needs bus loop.
5. When students are dismissed, they will exit to cars. Students may use their phones after they exit the building so if you'd like to text them to tell them where you are parked, they will get your message when they walk out of the doors.
6. Cars will be dismissed once cars are loaded.
**Please note, if you are the first car in the line and your child is loaded but all of the other cars are not ready to leave campus, you will wait until everyone is loaded before we dismiss cars. Our SRO will dismiss the car riders.
**Mr. Demetrakis is recording a video to show you what this should look like. We'll post it here. Check back.
IMPORTANT CONTACT INFO
School Number: 859-905-2620
Assistant Principal: james1.demetrakis@boone.kyschools.us
School Counselor: meredith.palmer@boone.kyschools.us
School Resource Officer: mark.jump@boone.kyschools.us
Attendance: jill.stinson@boone.kyschools.us
Finance: holly.morgan@boone.kyschools.us
Volunteers: crissy.nelson@boone.kyschools.us
Health: heather.simpson@boone.kyschools.us
Cafeteria: mary.butsch@boone.kyschools.us
District 2 Bus Garage: 859-586-0878
Board of Ed: 859-283-1003
IMMUNIZATION REQUIREMENTS
Dear Parent / Guardian
This is an important reminder regarding immunization requirements and expired certificates.
Effective July 1, 2018 all students in kindergarten through twelfth grade must show proof of receiving two doses of Hepatitis A vaccine to attend school. However, at least one dose is valid for the first day of school. This is a two dose vaccine series that is spaced 6 months apart. Please discuss this with your child's health care provider. If your child has already had the vaccine they are not required to receive the series again. A current certificate must be provided to school showing the dates they were administered.
If your child's certificate has or will expire prior to August 15, 2018 a new certificate is required.
Questions may be directed to Pamela Simonson, LPN, the nurse at your child's school. 859-384-4500 (Longbranch Elementary) or (859) 905-2620 (Ballyshannon Middle). Please do not hesitate to contact me for any health concerns you have for your child.
CAFETERIA ACCOUNT DEPOSITS
For information about our school breakfast and lunch programs, contact Mary Butsch.
Monday
Student-only tours. See schedule above.
Staff in PD all day.
Tuesday
Staff opening day
Wednesday
Student's first day!!
Locker-prep from 5-7pm. See schedule above.
Thursday
Friday
We are Bally Night from 6-9pm
Weekend
Upcoming Dates
AUGUST
17: We Are Bally Night--School tours, presentation of student PBL projects, food trucks, movie in the courtyard. 6-9pm
SEPTEMBER
3: No school--Labor Day
20: Yearbook Photo Day
Text Updates
- All students and parents: @allbally
- 6th grade: @bally2025
- 7th grade: @bally2024
- 8th grade: @bally2023
- Positive messages: @BallyRocks
SOCIAL MEDIA
@ballyshannonms
@ballyshannonms
About us
Email: erika.bowles@boone.kyschools.us
Website: http://www.boone.k12.ky.us/29/Home
Location: 7515 Shamrock Avenue Union, KY 41091
Phone: 859-5551212
Facebook: facebook.com/ballyshannonms
Twitter: @ballyshannonms