Nashua News
August 2, 2023
Nashua's Mission
Nashua Elementary
School Hours: 9:15-4:10
Attendance Line: (816) 321-5162
Website: https://www.nkcschools.org/na
Location: 221 NE 114th St, Kansas City, MO 64155, USA
Phone: 816-321-5160
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100093753918404
Twitter: @NashuaES
Minnich's Memo
Dear Nashua Families,
Welcome to the 2023-2024 school year! As we embark on this journey together of entering a new school year, the Nashua staff and I extend a warm welcome to you and your family. We thank you for trusting our dedicated team to partner with you for a successful school year.
At Nashua, we strive to “Be a Star wherever you are.” At Nashua, being a star represents four important attributes, each of which reflect our core beliefs, and each of which we believe will help make every child successful as a student as well as in their life beyond school: Showing Respect, being Trustworthy, being an Active Learner and being Responsible.
We recognize the importance of relationships in everything that we do each day, and we work to nurture relationships between our students, staff, families, and neighborhoods. Nashua has an impressive record of achievement, and we intend to continue this legacy of excellence. Our dedicated educators have a common goal- to do what is best for students- and we are always looking for ways to achieve that goal.
I personally believe communication between home and school is essential in ensuring the best possible education for students. To be successful, communication must be two-way, where families and staff work together collaboratively, and it should occur openly and frequently. I encourage you to communicate with me or the staff by telephone, e-mail or in person. I value your involvement, including your suggestions, concerns and celebrations.
It is with great pleasure and honor that I serve as the principal of Nashua Elementary for the 2023-2024 school year. Thank you for embracing the Nashua team in your child’s educational journey. We look forward to working with you this school year to ensure an enriching and rewarding experience for your child!
Sincerely,
Ms. Courtney Minnich
Back to School Night - What to expect
On Thursday, August 17, we will hold Back to School Night from 4:30-6pm. Below are some details about what to expect.
First, plan to receive an email from your child’s teacher around noon on Aug 17, introducing themselves to you and your child so that you’re aware of which classroom to visit as soon as you enter the building. If your PowerSchool registration is incomplete or if your are missing any of the other info (birth certificate, immunizations, etc.), you will not receive an email or learn your child’s teacher until the process has been complete so please take time to do this before August 17th. More information on how to enroll your child is below.
I encourage you to begin your evening on the 17th by going to your child’s classroom to meet their teacher. Then, make sure you stop in the gym to receive dismissal tags. Next, stop by the cafeteria to see a few different booths set up, especially the PTA booth.
After that, make sure you take a moment to snap a picture of your child in front of the huge sign that will be placed in the grassy area at the front of the school. Sign Gypsies is bringing a huge sign for picture opportunities for families! With this being the last year in the current building, we want families to be able to have a picture with the school before we move to the new building next year.
**Due to the placement of this sign, please note cones will be blocking off a part of 114th St (right in front of the school) for parents to be able to stand back in the street and take pictures. If you are coming from the west, you will just need to go through the neighborhood north of Nashua to get to the parking lot. We appreciate your flexibility with this as we ensure the safety of our students and families.**
Also, the Doleicious truck will be at the front of the building. Dole whips and other treats will be available for purchase!
As a reminder - back to school night is a good opportunity to bring in your child’s school supplies, and we would like to especially encourage you to bring their backpack as we will be attaching dismissal tags to backpacks this evening.
Again, we are greatly looking forward to this exciting event and on behalf of all of our Nashua staff, we are so excited to meet your children as we prepare for a wonderful new school year.
Annual Powerschool Enrollment
Returning students - Online registration is now open for all returning students (students who completed the 2022-23 school year or students who attended Summer School this summer). We ask that all parents complete the online enrollment process prior to August 14th.
The NKC school's website has enrollment directions for parents. The link is https://www.nkcschools.org/Page/730.
Follow these steps to complete registration:
- If you already have a parent account created, follow the link in the Parent Portal to complete the registration process.
- If you do not have a parent portal account already created, click here for directions on how to create your account in the PowerSchool Parent Portal. You must first receive your parent access letter from your student’s building to create an account in Parent Portal to complete the registration process.
Forgot your password? See directions to reset your password here.
New Students to Nashua - Please click here to enroll for the 2023-24 school year. After you create an account, click on "New Student Registration 2023-2024".
In order to save time, it is important to gather required documents that will be needed for registration and ensure you have access to update your student's medical and personal information. The required documents include:
- Updated medical information including an up-to-date Immunization Record.
- 2 proofs of residency (mortgage/lease agreement, utility bill, driver's license, or personal property tax receipt)
- copy of birth certificate
- enrollment online at the following link: https://www.nkcschools.org/Page/6701
- records request completed
- Updated personal records. For example:
- Current home addresses
- Updated cell phone numbers to contact guardians
- Updated cell phone numbers for emergency contacts
To see the complete list of documents and access more information, please access the NKC New Student Enrollment page.
For students beginning kindergarten in the upcoming 2023-2024 school year who are new to the district, you should complete "New Students To Nashua" enrollment.
If your student attended a NKC Preschool program, you will need to fill out online enrollment in Powerschool as "returning students".
If your student attended K2K (summer school) this summer and you have already filled out the "New student" online enrollment, you do not need to do it again.
If you have questions about enrollment, please don't hesitate to call the office for assistance at 816-321-5160
Upcoming Events
Thursday, August 17 - Back to School Night 4:30 - 6:00pm
Tuesday, August 22 - First day of school
Thursday, August 31 - Parent Orientation Night - 6:00 - 7:30pm
Monday, September 4 - No School - Labor Day
Monday, September 11 - Patriot Day Celebration
Tuesday, September 12 - PTA Meeting - 6pm
Thursday, September 14 - Back to School PTA BINGO - 6-7p,
Friday, September 22 - No School - Staff Professional Development
Wednesday, September 27 - Picture Day
Here is the District Calendar
MARK YOU CALENDAR - Parent Orientation Night - August 31
Additionally, we are excited to share that Tina Biggs will be at Nashua this evening to talk to parents about Love & Logic Parenting. More information will come about the Love & Logic Parenting session.
Here is how the timing of this night will look. Please note that Tina Biggs will be doing a Love and Logic session at 6pm, 6:30pm, and 7pm, but classroom teachers will only be presenting to parents in their classrooms at 6pm and 6:30pm.
6:00-6:25 session 1 - You may visit the classroom teacher or the Love and Logic session
6:30-6:55 session 2 - You may visit the classroom teacher or the Love and Logic session
7:00-7:30 session 3 - Only the Love and Logic session is available at this time
School breakfast and lunch updates
How can I pay my student's lunch account?
Use the My Payments Plus website to make your payments online. If you would prefer sending a check, please send it with your student in a sealed envelope with your students name, teacher name and student ID number to the café or you can drop off your payment at our front office with the requested information listed above.
Free and Reduced Lunch Applications
This is also a good time to complete Free and Reduced Lunch (FRL) Applications.
A new application must be submitted every year.
You’ll notice a question in your enrollment process about FRL, but this is NOT an application, and you’ll need to complete this process online. We encourage every family to complete the FRL application process as quickly as possible.
Click here for more information. Here is the online Free and Reduced Application.
If you have any questions, please call Suzie Parker in the Food and Nutrition Services Office at 816-321-5868.
Attendance Reminders
As we begin a new school year, attendance information from the school handbook serves as a good reminder for how important this is to your child's success!
Regular attendance and punctuality help students develop and maintain a good attitude toward school and relate positively toward school achievement. Tardiness and absences can be upsetting for students, disrupting their schedules, requiring readjustment to the class routine, and interfering with learning. It is important that your child attends school on time, every day. School attendance for school age children is compulsory by Missouri law. State guidelines deem attendance rates of 95% or better as necessary for optimal learning. If attendance is below 93%, our school attendance team will work with your family to develop a plan for increased attendance.
• If your child is going to be absent from school, please call the school’s attendance line at 816-321-5162 by 9:30 a.m. on the day of your child’s absence. If no contact is made by 9:30 a.m., every attempt will be made to reach a parent or emergency contact to verify the reason for the absence to ensure the child’s safety and parent awareness of their child’s whereabouts.
• Parents will need to check students in through the school office if he/she is late to school.
• Keep your child home if he/she complains of severe sore throat or headache, vomiting, or has a temperature of 100 degrees or higher. Be sure that your child’s temperature is less than 100 degrees for 24 hours before returning to school.
• Report absences due to a contagious disease to the school health office so that precautionary measures may be taken for those who may have been exposed. When students are too ill to remain in school, parents will be notified.
• Perfect attendance means a child is present every minute of every day (on time),
regardless of the nature of an absence (i.e. Take your child to work day, verified illnesses, verified family emergencies, out of town). There will be monthly perfect attendance recognition from the office. Students with perfect attendance for the entire year will be recognized in May.
Portrait of a Graduate
North Kansas City Schools will continue to implement our Portrait of a Graduate initiative this year. This program is designed to teach students different life skills that they can use to be successful. We look forward to communicating engaging ways that students will be asked to utilize the competencies in their learning throughout the year.
You will receive more information about Portrait of a Graduate throughout the year, including how students will be recognized for the POG competencies, including our fun new yard signs that will be placed outside of students' houses!
Grade Level Teachers for the 23-24 school year
1st Grade- Ms. Aksamit, Mrs. Huebener, Mrs. Vroom
2nd Grade- Dr. Childers, Miss Holmes, Mrs. Newell (previously Ms. Shoening)
3rd Grade- Ms. Connors, Mrs. Fountain, Ms. Plummer
4th Grade- Ms. Crisafulli, Mrs. Munson
5th Grade- Mrs. Atkinson, Mrs. Lister, Mr. Rodgers
PTA Information:
A welcome from the PTA:
The PTA is so excited to welcome families back to Nashua! We will have a table set up in the cafe where families can learn more about how to become a PTA member, volunteer for a PTA position, and order yearbooks and spirit wear. Also, don’t forget that if you ordered a school supply box through the School Tool Box website, those will be available for pick-up in your child's classroom during Back to School Night as well!
PTA Meeting: Join us for the first Nashua PTA meeting of the school year at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 12 at the Nashua Library!
Register with the PTA website to receive emails and view protected tabs! We encourage all new and returning families to visit the Nashua PTA website at http://nashuapta.my-pta.org/. If you are a new family or not signed up to receive emails, please click “Register” on the homepage and submit your email address. The PTA shares emails on upcoming events and important items. The PTA will also have the staff favorites list and student directory on protected tabs that are only viewable if you log in to the website.
We look forward to another amazing school year! Please let us know if you have any questions.
Website: nashuapta.my-pta.org
Facebook: www.facebook.com/NashuaElementaryPTA
Twitter: twitter.com/nashuapta
President: Danelle Bohan, pta.nashua@gmail.com
Vice President: Rachelle Walker, vp.nashua@gmail.com
Secretary: Megan Micek, fundraiser.nashua@gmail.com
Treasurer: Lindsay Bradshaw, treasurer.nashua@gmail.com
Student Arrival
Car Rider Reminders
- Please ensure that your students are prepared to get out of the vehicle before you pull up to stop (ready to get out with backpacks, water bottles, etc.)
- If your child is reluctant to exit the vehicle, or if they are unprepared to exit the vehicle for any reason, please pull forward and to the left side while you resolve the issue, so that the line can continue to progress
- For safety reasons, students should exit the car on the passenger side.
- To avoid your child receiving a tardy and impacting their attendance, please attempt to complete drop-off before 9:12am
Car Rider Procedures
To ensure safety and fair, quick car rider procedures during arrival and dismissal, we ask that all families adhere to the car rider procedure on the map below.
Car riders will access their line from the westbound lane of 114th street by way of McGee street. The NKC buses will access the bus loop by driving eastbound on 114th street.
In addition, if you are lining up early for dismissal, we ask that you not block driveways and mailboxes along 114th street or McGee street.
Thank you so much for your cooperation, as this helps for a smoother dismissal for everyone.
Get to know the new principal - Ms. Courtney Minnich
I am thrilled to be joining NKC and the Nashua community for the 2023-2024 school year! I started my educational career in Guatemala where I taught English to kindergarten and first grade students. I then taught third grade for six years at Kellybrook Elementary in Liberty Public Schools. The past six years I have been at Kansas City International Academy where I have served as an ELL Specialist, Instructional Coach, and Assistant Principal.
I earned my Bachelor’s Degree in K-6 Education from Kansas State University and I am also licensed to teach K-12 English as a Second Language. I earned my Master’s Degree in K-12 Administration in 2014 and my Education Specialist Degree in Superintendency in 2023, both from Northwest Missouri State.
When I am not at school, I am usually spending time with my family (especially my 7-year old nephew, Jackson), exploring all the new Kansas City restaurants, walking my dog Stout, or cheering on the KC Chiefs! I also love being outside and traveling (when I can find the time!). I am looking forward to a great 2023-2024 school year!