Banning Lewis Academy Newsletter
Information for Kindergarten-12th Grade (January 21, 2022)
What's Happening at BLA!
Elementary School:
What we have been up to…
- We began archery in PE classes. It has been so much fun to watch!
- Kids Heart Challenge Road Trip with the American Heart Association was in full swing this week.
Thank you…
- Full Board Charcuterie for doing a wonderful spread of meats, cheeses, and sandwiches for our staff!
- Mrs. Stangle for making our staff soup!
- To our Literacy Week Committee that is planning a fantastic week of events for the week of March 1st. More information to come!
Reminders…
- February 9th -- Class Picture Day
- February 18th – e-Learning Day
- February 21st – President’s Day – No School
Updates…
- Student of the month for January will be postponed until February to reduce to number of non-instructional related events during the spike in the pandemic. Our goal is ensuring students and staff are learning in-person and keep everyone safe. We will have 2 students from each grade level for the event in February.
Prep-MS/ HS:
We had an amazing Middle School assembly to launch Stallion Stables for the second semester! Students wore their Stable Shirts and celebrated all the amazing things we are accomplishing at BLPA Middle School. Stable representatives presented their Stable Flag to represent their Stable group. Additionally, we were able to recognize students that Achieved Honor Roll first semester and celebrated individual student achievement through academic awards nominations by teachers. Students were recognized in front of their peers and will receive a certificate to bring home later this week!
High School Academic Awards ceremony is coming up January 28th at 6pm in the gym at BLPA. Parents of eligible students received emails this week. Students received invitations on Friday during school.
- Concurrent Applications due to Mr. Wilkinson by February 11th!
Letter From a Leader: Jennifer Even, Middle School Assistant Principal
Our Banning students are busy building community and learning!
It has been amazing to watch our students see the value in building community with each other as they LEAD the herd inside the school walls of Banning. It is even more amazing to see them not stopping there but reaching far outside of their school walls too. This school year our students have led the way in partnering with several different organizations. That partnership focused on the sole reason of desiring to give back to others. From The Ranch to The Prep, here are just a few ways our amazing community of stallions has been able to give back and make a difference within our surrounding community.
Students participated in Citywide Serve Day, cleaned the school grounds, fundraised to purchase items for NICU Personal Care Kits, fundraised to sponsor two children from A New World Child Placement Agency in Aurora, CO and purchased personal gifts for them for Christmas, donated to Care and Share almost 1,000 pounds of food, also donated toys to Toys for Tots, books for a book drive, and a plethora of socks for a sock drive, made thank you cards for doctors and nurses, participated in Jeans Days to raise funds for: Breast Cancer Awareness-Susan G. Komen of Colorado, Ronald McDonald House Charities of Southern Colorado, FREE Veteran’s Day, Children’s Hospital of Colorado Springs, Care and Share Food Bank of Southern Colorado.
And they are not done yet! They have other opportunities planned to give back such as a Staff Night Out, making of fleece tie blankets for Children’s Hospital, K-12 American Heart Challenge, Jeans Day fundraising for Humane Society of the Pikes Peak Region, National Sclerosis Society and so much more.
It brings great joy to watch our students #banningtogether while continuing with the TRADITION of giving back!
Go Stallions!
Safety and Security Survey
Please take a few minutes to complete the survey regarding the safety and security at BLA. The purpose of this survey is to gauge BLA Stakeholders’ interest in pursuing a full-time dedicated security official on school grounds primarily located at the secondary campus (The Prep). The scope of this position is to assist administration at the school to monitor parking lots, hallways, bathrooms, and student common spaces while maintaining visible presence.
Banning Lewis Academy (BLA) currently utilizes school deans, administrators, building facilitators, and teachers to respond to and plan for the safety and security needs of the school. BLA consults with District 49 Security, Colorado Springs Police Department, and El Paso County Sheriff's Department when dealing with circumstances that may require their support.
This survey is brought to you by the BLA School Accountability Committee (SAC), which is open to parents and community members to join in partnership with BLA. There is posted information weekly in the Smore Newsletter sent to families.
Re-Enroll for the 22-23 School Year!
It is time to re-enroll for the 2022-23 school year! If you have not done so already, please complete our online survey before February 10th, 2022 to inform us of your re-enrollment decision. You will only need to submit one survey for your family. All current Banning Lewis Ranch and Preparatory students are included as part of re-enrollment. Students promoting to middle or high school do not need to complete a new registration as seats are held through re-enrollment.
If you have any questions regarding reenrollment or the application process, please contact Mrs. Amanda Mangold, Registrar for Banning Lewis, at 719-638-3040 ext. 255 or via e-mail at amangold@blracademy.org
Winter Weather is Coming!
We are approaching the winter season when delays and cancellations begin to happen. Here is what to know:
- We follow D-49. If they call a 2 hour delay/cancellation, BLA will as well.
- BLA will send out an email, text blast, alert news stations, & post on Facebook, in addition to FlashAlert (instructions below)
- Create a new account
- Choose Colorado Springs/Pueblo
- Go to Private/Charter schools
- Choose Banning Lewis Academy
Parents, Please Join Us on the SAC!
The School Accountability Committee (SAC) is a group of BLRA and BLPA parents, teachers, and administrators who discuss topics mandated by the State of Colorado: review school performance and improvement plans, approve BLA’s use of Mill Levy tax funds, and make recommendations to the School Board for budget priorities.
We have developed a survey on school safety that went out earlier this week. Please complete the survey and have your voice be heard!
Next meeting will be in February via Zoom. Look for date and time in next S'more newsletter!
Find info here:
Banning Lewis Academy
Email: info@blracademy.org
Website: https://blracademy.org
Location: Banning Lewis Ranch
Phone: 719-638-3040
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BLRAcademy