GLOW Students & Families,

As we wrap up the end of 1st semester, and anticipate the new year ahead, we find ourselves both in reflection of our time spent together and in anticipation of all that is to come. Thank you for continuing to partner with us as we work to provide unique opportunities to prepare your daughter to graduate from high school, go to college, and be successful in whatever she wishes for her future.

Please check out the latest news from GLOW, as well as information about how you can help us ensure student privacy at school.

However your family spends this holiday season, we wish you rest, safety, good health, continued traditions, and time spent with the ones you love!

Wishing you all a great week ahead!

Kate B. Tayloe

Principal

Each day our students and staff recite our GLOW Sisterhood Pledge. This is a daily opportunity to recommit ourselves to our core values at GLOW Academy. In the pledge's opening lines we recite that "we will respect ourselves and each others' needs." In this line students and staff pledge to respect ourselves as individuals, our school, and all other members of the school community. One of the ways we respect each other is by respecting the privacy of those in our school community. This week in Leadership Advisory, teachers will be discussing with students how we compromise this core value at GLOW through inappropriate social media use.

In the past several weeks, students have created a variety of Instagram accounts related to GLOW. Most are private accounts that we find to be harmless and good natured; however, our concern is that these accounts are in violation of our school cell phone policy (see below). Some of these accounts also include our school logo as the profile picture for the account, indicating that the account is owned/promoted by the school itself. As you might imagine, this is difficult for the school to regulate and time consuming to monitor; however, we are prepared to investigate further if these accounts are not removed.

At this time, we are choosing to use this as an opportunity to educate our students by reminding them of our school policy on cell phones (see below), student privacy, and digital citizenship, and we are requesting that the accounts be removed.

Please discuss with your child the negative impacts of creating and posting to these accounts and ask your child to delete any GLOW Instagram accounts that they may have created.

We appreciate your support as we try to reign in this behavior and ensure that privacy is maintained for all members of our school community.

GLOW Academy Cell Phone Policy:

Cell phones should not be seen or heard throughout the day. Students should keep cell phones in their backpacks, turned off/on silent throughout the day. Exceptions will be made when directed by the teacher for educational purposes. Students ARE allowed to check their cell phones at lunch; however, students do NOT have permission to photograph or video record other students/staff to share electronically or post on social media.

We enjoyed seeing so many students and staff participate in our Holiday Spirit Week last week! As we ensure a strong finish to 1st semester and wish our high school students good luck on exams and end of course tests, we are "back to business" in school uniforms this week.

Please ensure that you student is in compliance by meeting our expectations for school uniforms.

High school exams begin on Monday, December 13!

During the week of December 13, students will be taking course exams, as well as state mandated End of Course (EOC) Exams for English II, Biology, Math I, and Math III.

At the beginning of this week, each high school student will receive their personalized exam schedule, so they know what to expect, can prepare, and so your family can plan accordingly.

A few notes about exam week:

• Monday & Tuesday (Dec 13-14): All high school students should be in attendance for a normal schedule. Students who are taking teacher created exams for their courses will have an opportunity to complete these exams during their regularly scheduled classes (Monday: 1st & 3rd Period Exams; Tuesday: 2nd & 4th Period Exams & Eng II EOC). In the classes not giving exams, students will have an opportunity to review for upcoming exams being administered later in the week.
• Wednesday (Dec 15): The ONLY high school students who will come to school will be those students taking the BIOLOGY EOC. All other students should attend remotely, using this opportunity to complete any missing assignments in Canvas.
• Thursday (Dec 16): The ONLY high school students who will come to school will be those students taking the MATH I or MATH III EOC. All other students should attend remotely, using this opportunity to complete any missing assignments in Canvas.
• Friday (Dec 17): The ONLY high school students who will come to school are those who missed an exam earlier in the week and require a MAKE-UP EXAM. All other students should attend remotely, using this opportunity to complete any missing assignments in Canvas.

The middle school will operate on a normal schedule during the week of December 13. If you have any questions, please reach out to Ms. Cannon at lcannon@glowacademy.net.

8th and 9th grade students are invited to visit Washington D.C. on an overnight college tour and sightseeing trip with the College Bound Department at GLOW. The trip is scheduled for Thursday, March 24 - Saturday, March 26th, 2022. A link to the digital 1-page flyer can be found at https://bit.ly/3EEDyoc. If you have any further questions, please contact Ms. Jahleese at jhadley@glowacademy.net or Ms. Lexi at ashank@glowacademy.net.

This month 7th graders are working to earn a party! Your 7th Grade GLOW student has a ticket in which they will earn weekly rewards as well as a party on the 17th. Please encourage your student to work to follow our expectations for responsible, respectful, safe, and kind behavior to earn this super fun-filled reward!

ALL requests for schedule changes will be processed electronically this semester. Please review this GLOW Spring 2021 Semester Schedule Change Request Form for the requirements and to fill out a request. ALL requests must come through this Google Form. Emails, phone messages or other requests will NOT be processed. Thank you in advance for your cooperation as we adopt this new process for schedule changes.

As we prepare to round out the 1st semester, EVERY DAY COUNTS! Please ensure that your child is at school and ON TIME each school day between now and the end of 1st semester. While some of the dates listed are work days for Teachers/Staff, please note that December 20-January 4 are Holidays/Non-Instructional Days for students.

Congratulations to Mrs. Nancy Smith, our Front Office Coordinator, who is transitioning into her new role as Data Manager at GLOW! Mrs. Nancy will still be spending some time at our front desk and will be available if you have any questions as it relates to her previous role or her new role as Data Manager. You can reach Mrs. Nancy by email at nasmith@glowacademy.net.

We ask for your patience during this time as we will have a new front office assistant beginning in January, and are utilizing temporary support in the interim over the next two weeks. We thank you for your continued patience and understanding during this transition.

Congrats to our newest GLOW Drivers! We are excited to see so many more students driving to school now that they have their learner's permit. If you are driving to or from school and need to change drivers at drop-off or pick-up, we ask that you kindly pull into a parking space in our parking lot to do so; the people behind you in line will be grateful! Thanks much!

Parents,

We have had the opportunity to talk to several of you who have inquired about our decision to continue with breakfast and lunch outside as the fall and winter months bring colder temperatures. We hear you!

We enjoyed almost 8 weeks of ZERO COVID diagnoses and quarantines, but our streak was predictably broken as a few positive cases impacted our school community following Thanksgiving Break.

We feel it is important to continue our efforts to mitigate the spread of COVID as we navigate the holiday season, prepare high school students for upcoming exams, and wish to have all students enter Winter Break healthy and able to enjoy time with family throughout the holidays. Because breakfast and lunch are the only two times of day when students are not required to wear masks, we feel it is important to continue with our outdoor plans, EXCEPT when temperatures require that we move students indoors for these meals.

As a result, we have put the following measures in place for the remaining weeks of 2021, and if possible, in the early weeks of January 2022. If temperatures require us to move indoors in January, we will do so. Our hope at this time is to just get through the anticipated holiday COVID spike. We will then transition to indoor breakfast and lunch for the remaining winter months.

BREAKFAST/MORNING:

*NOTE: We are utilizing 45 degrees as our threshold because it is currently the threshold being used by our community's local public school district (NHCS) for students to be outside in the morning...and NHCS doesn't have the outdoor heaters that we utilize at GLOW.

• Temperatures AT or BELOW 45 degrees - Students will pick up breakfast from the hot breakfast cart and go straight to their classrooms.
• Temperatures ABOVE 45 degrees - When students arrive, heaters in each zone will already be running. Students will pick up breakfast from the hot breakfast cart and eat in their assigned zone until entering the building at 8 AM.

LUNCH:

• NOTE: With the exception of a few days next week, the weather outlook shows lunchtime temperatures in the 60s and 70s between now and winter break.
• On typical days between now and winter break, supervising lunch teachers at each zone can choose to utilize the heaters OR they can move tables from the shade of the outdoor classroom spaces into the sun of the courtyard, as needed, depending on the current temperature. (NOTE: Wednesday, December 8 currently shows colder temperatures in the mid-50s combined with rain. As a result, we will plan to move students inside for breakfast and lunch if this forecast holds true.)
  
• On typical days, students who eat school lunch will go through the cafeteria line to pick up their hot lunch and then report to their assigned zone to eat lunch.
• Students who pack their lunch will report to their Lunch Zone to eat by the heaters or in the warmth of the sun.

We appreciate your flexibility and understanding as we work to mitigate the spread of COVID while also ensuring our students are comfortable and warm at breakfast and lunch.

We are excited to announce that GLOW Parent are starting a Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) for GLOW Academy! A Parent Teacher Organization gives parents and teachers the opportunity to work together to supplement and enrich the educational experience for all students, and we are excited to be engaging with our parents in this way at GLOW! If you are interested in being a part of the GLOW Parent Teacher Organization or learning more about what a PTO can do, please contact Jen Mathis at 910-223-4487 or at jwilsonmathis@gmail.com.

Parents,

As the weather gets cooler, your GLOW Girl may need to update her uniform. Custom Logoware has long sleeve polos, cardigans, sweatshirts and jackets on their site. You can order HERE.

Also, remember that our uniform requirements have been updated to include a plain navy crew neck sweatshirt (no hood) and a plain navy cardigan sweater.

You can find our Uniform Requirements HERE.

GLOW Academy is pleased to announce that students may bring their personal devices to school for instructional use during the school day. The purpose of the GLOW’s BYOD program is to extend and enrich the learning environment. The use of technology to provide educational material is not a right, but a privilege provided by teachers and administrators under their directives. When abused, privileges will be taken away. When respected, the personal device will benefit the learning environment as a whole.

In order to begin using a personal device:

1. Student and Guardian must print, sign, and return GLOW's BYOD agreement found here: ENGLISH or SPANISH. Agreements can also be picked up from the front office at GLOW.
2. Email technology@glowacademy.net to let Mr. Matthews that you would like to bring your own device. He will collect this signed agreement and connect your device to the network.

Students and parents/guardians participating in the BYOD program must adhere to all policies, particularly the Network and Internet Acceptable Use Policy.

There was a time when we fever/chills, shortness of breath, fatigue, loss of taste or smell, and cough were the most typical symptoms of COVID. While these symptoms still apply, we wanted you to be aware that more recently those who have tested positive for COVID-19 have presented with what are lesser known symptoms including headache, nausea or vomiting, and sore/scratchy throat. It is also possible for students to have these symptoms one day and not the next, but to still be positive for COVID-19. As a result, it's important that if your child develops any symptoms of illness that those be taken seriously as possible symptoms of COVID.

If your child develops any symptoms of illness at school or at home, they will need a negative COVID test to be able to return to class/school. We are happy to conduct this testing at school while your daughter waits for you to pick her up. You can find more School COVID Testing information below. If you keep your child home from school due to illness, please contact the school so we can provide you with guidance regarding your next steps. We appreciate your cooperation and transparent communication to keep our students and staff safe at GLOW.

We have COVID testing available at GLOW! This means that when your child becomes ill at school, we can save you a trip to the doctor by testing them while on campus. It also means that we will get quick results that can enable your child to return to school more quickly.

In order for us to test your child we will need your permission to do so, as well as a completed parent registration in the COVID Testing portal. We encourage all parents to pre-register their child, as this will be one less step for you to complete in the event that your child is unwell and needs to be picked-up from school. Please read the Important Notes below and pre-register your child at the link below this post.

A FEW IMPORTANT NOTES FOR PRE-REGISTRATION:

• Screen 1: click "For a Minor/Guardianship"
• Screen 2 will ask about symptoms. Hopefully your child is not currently experiencing any symptoms of COVID, so click the last option at the bottom that reads "the patient is not experiencing any of these symptoms."
• Screen 3 will ask about exposure. Hopefully as you pre-register your child, she has not knowingly been exposed to COVID, so click "No" or "I don't know"
• Screen 4 begins the registration so that your child to be tested in the future, if needed.

When we call to inform you that your child is ill, we will ask if you would like her to be tested. If you have already pre-registered, nothing more will be needed from you. We will have her rapid test completed and will share those results when you arrive for pick-up. If the rapid test is negative, we will send it off for a PCR test. Those results will be received in 24 hours and we will call you with those results. You can read more in the letters we sent out a couple of weeks ago: ENGLISH and SPANISH

The instructional school day at GLOW begins at 8:05 AM. Students who are not in their classrooms ready to learn at 8:05 AM will be counted tardy. Please ensure that your morning routines allow for students to be on time for school each day.

While we feel it is important for students to be on campus for the full instructional day, we understand that there will be times when your child has an appointment that requires you to check her out of school early. Because the safety of your child is of utmost importance, please ensure that you bring in your Driver's License or another Photo ID. Students cannot be checked out early until we confirm the identity of the adult who is checking her out of school.