Welcome to School Year 2022-2023! We had a very busy summer preparing our school for the new year! We had facility upgrades, technology upgrades, curriculum upgrades, new furniture, and so much more! We are ready to welcome our students back on Tuesday, September 6th! Please reach out to us here at school at 603-236-7900 with any questions you may have.

Main Office Email: office@windhamacademy.org

Administrative Assistant Mrs. Laham's Email: bethany.laham@windhamacademy.org

Superintendent/Director Mr. Castonguay's Email: matt.castonguay@windhamacademy.org

Assistant Director for Student Services Mrs. Amacio's Email: sara.amacio@windhamacademy.org

My vision of our Charter School includes following the established Charter, allow the opportunity for our students to foster collaboration skills, strengthen social skills, and understand and apply the concept of "growth mindset." It is my vision for our students to come to school ready and prepared to learn in a variety of ways, follow our school rules, and be an active, positive participant in our school community. It is my vision for our teachers to promote small group and individualized learning so all students learn and grow at their own personal level. It is my vision for our parents to support strong academics both at school and at home and also be involved as best you can in our school community.

I look forward to continue promoting the wonderful community that is already established here at Windham Academy. Family involvement is vital for a school to achieve success. We invite you all to participate in important events throughout the school year!

It is my intention to foster self-growth and self-reflection with both students and staff here at Windham Academy! This approach is intended to promote a strong community inclusive of everyone. It is my goal that Windham Academy is not just a "good" school, but an "amazing" school. The work of an amazing school begins and ends with relationships. As the school leader, I will embrace a deep responsibility to develop relationships to best know the school community and its culture here at Windham Academy.

Open and frequent communication is also one of the hallmarks of an amazing school culture. As school leader, it is important for me to understand the need for consistent collaboration, input, and communication. To accomplish this, I will find regular opportunities to support our staff and build their capacity to create the most engaging and caring classrooms for our students. Additionally, involving parents in the work of the school will allow for an increased partnership that will in turn directly benefit our students. As parents, you can expect regular communication from your child's teacher through the Bloomz App (https://www.bloomz.com), Google Classroom (older grades) and email. At the school level, you can expect regular communication through my Smores (this is one!), website, website blog, and through our school's and Friends of Windham Academy's Facebook pages.

As you know, we highly welcome parent volunteers here at Windham Academy! To be able to volunteer, you must have your fingerprints (FBI Criminal History Record) completed through a LiveScan site in NH. The cost is $21.25. If you plan on being a volunteer at any time during the school year, it is suggested that you have this done as soon as possible. Here is the link with all of the information including how to register for an appointment: https://www.nhsp.dos.nh.gov/our-services/criminal-records/criminal-history-record-requests

*This is valid for three years. If you have previously volunteered at Windham Academy, please confirm that we still have your fingerprinting results on file by contacting the school at 603-236-7900 or Mrs. Laham at bethany.laham@windhamacademy.org. We MUST have your results on file in order for anyone to volunteer.

*Updating Student Information and Proof of Residency

*PTO

*Real School of Music

*YMCA of Londonderry

*Destination Imagination Registration

*Girls on The Run Registration (Grades 3-6)

**More details to follow.

**Information will be available at our Open House!

Windham Academy offers "Before School Care" each school day starting at 7:30am. It is available on a drop-in basis so there is no registration required. We do ask that if you think that you will be utilizing this service at all this year, to complete an ACH Payment Form so payment can be made directly to the school. The charge is $10 each day for your first child and $7 each day for any additional child. Payment is made monthly.

*Menu options will be posted in Boonli as well as on our web site for each month. You can order for a whole month or by the week. Orders are due NO LATER than Tuesdays at 11:59pm for the following week's breakfast and/or lunch. Please note that breakfast is only available if your child attends our before school care.

*Vegetarian options are available daily.

*If your child requires a special diet such as Gluten Free or Dairy Free, we must receive a letter from his/her doctor before we can allow ordering off of these special menus.

*All food is freshly prepared and delivered daily from Cravings of Nashua.

*There is a ONE time Registration Fee.

*All doors will be locked throughout the school day for student and staff safety.

*Any visitor must sign in at the main office and state the purpose for being at Windham Academy.

*All exterior doors now have alarms so if opened during the school day, an alarm will sound.

*We are currently upgrading our security equipment including cameras, alarms, panic buttons, etc.

All of our students and staff will be trained in ALICE Active Shooter Training this fall. It is very important that our students and staff are prepared for all different kinds of emergencies. We will have fire, shelter in place, lockdown, evacuation, and active shooter drills (now a law in NH) this year. https://www.governor.nh.gov/sites/g/files/ehbemt336/files/documents/20180705-school-safety-report.pdf. Additional information will be forthcoming. With our K-5 students, we will be using the picture book, "I'm Not Scared... I'm Prepared!" to help teach them about a scary subject - but not in a scary way. As a parent myself, it's very tough that we need to even think about this, but it is so very important that our students and staff are trained for this type of scenario. If you would like more information about ALICE, please visit: https://www.alicetraining.com/alice-training-for-schools/

It is the student's and parent's responsibility to know and follow our student handbook. There is a mandatory electronic form to complete to tell us that you and your child have reviewed the Student Handbook for the 2022-2023 School Year.

Please Note: Buses for Windham Residents will be utilizing the road in front of the school, as well as the cul-de-sac. There will be no parking except for staff in front of the school on Industrial Drive during this time.

When you come up Industrial Drive, take your first right into the parking lot. Drive the entire length of the parking lot and make a U-turn to your left to "curve" back alongside the building.

Morning Drop Off Begins at 8:25am. If you arrive prior to 8:25 YOUR CHILD MUST REMAIN IN THE CAR UNTIL STAFF ARE PRESENT OUTSIDE. Drop off will take place in a designated zone between orange cones. Please DO NOT drop off your child unless you are in the designated area. This is for the safety of both our students and staff.

Parents must stay in the vehicle during drop off.

Please have your child unbuckled and ready to exit the vehicle on the PASSENGER side. Staff cannot reach into the car to unbuckle or assist with coats, etc.

Anyone arriving after 8:45am must walk their child to the front office to sign them in as tardy.

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Parking WILL NOT be allowed in the cul-de-sac during morning drop off.

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*Last Name A-H Parent/Guardian Arrival in Parking Lot: By 2:45pm

*Last Name I-P Parent/Guardian Arrival in Parking Lot: At 2:55pm

*Last Name Q-Z Parent/Guardian Arrival in Parking Lot: At 3:00pm

1. There will be two lanes for cars in our parking lot for afternoon dismissal. When you arrive to Windham Academy, please take the first right into our parking lot if there is space and choose one lane. IT DOES NOT MATTER WHICH LANE YOU ARE IN.

2. The beginning of the pick up line will begin at the exit of the parking lot where the "Stop" Sign is.

3. Please pull up as closely as possible to the car in front of you. Please do not leave a lot of space. PUT YOUR CAR INTO THE PARK POSITION AND REMAIN IN YOUR CAR. If you arrive early in the first group (Last Name A-H), please turn your car off.

4. If you arrive and the parking lot lanes are full, please remain in line on the right side of Industrial Drive until cars begin moving forward. Please do not block neighbor lot entrances when waiting to enter the WA lot.

5. Students will be located outside in a specific "zone" depending on their grade level and will walk to their car from that zone. When the parking lot is full, students will be released and walk to their cars with the support of several staff members. Parents will remain in the car to expedite the process.

6. Once ALL students are in the cars located in the parking lot, staff will allow cars to exit. PLEASE be patient as cars will not be allowed to move until all students have entered a car.

7. Please continue driving slowly following staff members' directions.

8. Once the parking lot is cleared from the first group of cars, the second group of cars will form two lanes and follow the same procedures above.

**There will be several staff members throughout the parking lot for student safety. Please be sure to follow any directions given by staff members. PLEASE BE PATIENT during this process. It is our goal for dismissal to move as quickly yet as safely as possible. Thank you!!!

**Your child will receive a card from his/her teacher with his/her last name on it, PLEASE make sure this card is located on your car's dashboard during all school days at pickup time.

Please Note: Children who are not picked up by 3:10pm and who are signed-up with the YMCA After-School Club will be directed to the after-school program. Other students who have not been picked up by 3:10pm will be taken to the main office to await their rides. After 1 instance of a “late” pick up, a late fee of $20 will be charged to the family. After 3:30pm, the charge will be $1 additional for each minute.

This is an opportunity for parents to hear updates about our school community, provide input if needed, and ask questions directly to us. Please join Mrs. Amacio and me at our first in person Parent Coffee on Wednesday, September 28th at 10am here at school. We will be alternating between day and evening meetings throughout the school year so hopefully all parents have the opportunity to attend during the year!

The Windham Academy School Community will be celebrating Constitution Day on Friday, September 16th at 9:30am (Rain Date: Monday, September 19th)! Parents and community members are invited to attend! This ceremony will include a special flag raising, songs, special guests, and more. We will also accept a special plaque that has been made. We hope to see you there!

Please make special note of our no school days and early release days at 11:45am so that our staff may participate in important professional learning opportunities. We thank the Board of Trustees for allowing us to incorporate these extremely important days into our school calendar!