Best of Bennet
August 2022
From the Principal
Welcome to our 22-23 school year! We are so excited to get started!
We look forward to continuing our collaboration with our grade 6 students and families as well as building relationships with our incoming grade 5 students and families!
Thanks for your partnership as we navigate the beginning of what promises to be a great school year!
With appreciation!
Joe Chella, Principal
When's the first day of school? Who is my child's teacher? What does my child need to bring to school?
Parents will be emailed with their student's homeroom teacher assignment soon. Please be sure your email, phone number and address are all up to date or contact our registrar - Heidi Turner at b39hturn@mpspride.org. Bus assignments take a week or more to update, so if you have moved you must update your address with the required documents as soon as possible to be sure your child is assigned the proper bus.
Schedules will be given to children on the first day of school. Don't worry, we won't expect students to know where they are going or how to get there at first. This is a big campus and is overwhelming for our new students, but they will learn to navigate it quicker than you think.
Please be sure your child has a reusable water bottle, as we will continue to encourage hydration in the class instead of multiple trips to the water fountains. A backpack, pens and pencils are about all they need as far as school supplies.
Can my child go to school today?
Has your child or a family member been in close contact with a known positive Covid person?
Does your child or a family member have a persistent cough, or other respiratory symptoms, shortness of breath, lung congestion?
Has your child or a family member lost the ability to smell or taste?
Does your child or a family member have a fever over 100 F prior to medication?
Has your child had diarrhea or vomiting within the last 24 hours?
If you have answered YES to any of these questions, your child should stay home and you should call the school absentee line.
If your absence is COVID-related please contact the school nurse for advice prior to sending your child to school.
Things to note on the calendar:
Of special note - in October we are once again starting with early release Wednesdays and students will dismiss at 1:15 on Wedndesdays from October 6 through June 7.
Our first sceduled day off is October 10th!
Are you in need of before or after school care?
We are Nut-Free this year!
Did you miss the tour?
What's for lunch?
SHOUT OUTS!
We are going to continue highlighting the positives this school year. Throughout the year please let us know who has made you smile, or been a wonderful role model for your child, went that extra mile, or was there when you needed a shoulder. This could be a student, a teacher, support staff, or even an administrator.
To get us started, I want to shout out to all the staff who worked this summer, either writing curriculum, working in one of our many summer programs, and even those of us whose "regular" job includes working the summers. You, whether you know it or not, have impacted someone's life this summer. Thank you for sharing your smiles, your patience and your talents with our children.
Your turn - I want to hear from parents and staff alike - email cberman@mpspride.org with your shout-out!!
The Bennet Bear Den
Nurse's Corner
Do you have medications you need to drop off for your child to take during the school day? Please call ahead and schedule a time to drop these off prior to school starting. You also need to include the Authorization for Administration of Medicine by School Personnel form, signed by your doctor. We can not administer medication without written Drs orders.
Any new incoming diabetic/seizure or other medically fragile students, please call the nurses office to discuss plans with nurse prior to school starting.
Bennet School Nurses
Penny Parent & Carrie Bowman
860-647-3582 (p)
860-647-6348 (f)
Attention Grade 6 Parents!!
Your student will be required to have a physical dated January 2022 or later and proof of tdap and meningococcal vaccines in order to be cleared medically for 7th grade. If they have not already had a physical during that time frame that you submitted to the nurse, please schedule one. You can request your doctor fax the paperwork to us at 860-647-6348.
Addressing this proactively saves a lot of time and energy for the nurses, parents, and their pediatricians come spring/summer when appointments book out months in advance. Questions can be directed to Christie Michaud at 860-647-8189 or cmichaud@mpspride.org.
Christie Michaud BSN RN
Manchester Public Schools
District Compliance NurseAttendance Line
Take a look at our Virtual Backpack!
REMINDERS - Water Bottles, buses and birthdays!
* Water breaks: It is helpful for students to bring a water bottle they can refill at the fountain. It is more hygenic than using their mouth at the fountains and means less disruption in the classroom.
*Bus behavior: Please talk with your child about bus rules and behavior. Behavior at bus stops should be the same as expected in school. Students should keep hands and feet to themselves and wait patiently at their bus stop. This means no entering other people's yards, no picking flowers, no running into the street, no wrestling with peers, etc. When the bus arrives, students should find a seat and remain seated until it is time to disembark. There is NO FOOD or gum allowed on the bus. Students should remain seated and talk quietly with a friend, no yelling or otherwise distracting the driver. Bus behaviors will be dealt with swiftly and may include assigned seating, bus suspensions, or other disciplinary actions.
*Only students that qualify for a bus may ride that bus. Therefore, you cannot send your student home on a different bus to go home with a friend. Thank you for understanding.
*Birthdays - In Manchester we do not celebrate birthdays with food or balloons. Please do not send these items in with your student.
Who's New at Bennet Academy?
New in the Nursing Office:
Carrie Bowman, RN comes to us from Buckley Elementary. She has been a nurse for over 25 years. Nurse Bowman has 3 children-ages 21, 18 and 17. She loves to take her golden retriever, Zeus, on long walks in the woods.
New in the Social Work Department:
Doug Klotzer joins us as a social worker, splitting his time between grades 5 and 6. Mr. Klotzer has been employed in this position for Manchester Public Schools since 2004 - serving previously at Manchester Regional Academy and Manchester Middle Academy. He also maintains a clinical practice at both area ECHN emergency rooms. Married with two children and an adorabloe pooch, Abi (pictured with Doug), he loves spending time with the family, playing live music and watching live football. Mr. Klotzer is really excited to be joining the awesome Bennet Academy team and looks forward to meeting you all.
New in Special Education:
Ms. Abigail Whalen is thrilled to join the Bennet Academy community as a Special Education teacher and cannot wait to get to know everyone! Ms. Whalen has been in education for the last 7 years in New York City as both a teacher and curriculum developer in both the elementary and middle school space. Teaching is her passion, as is scientific research! Fun fact: when studying biology in college, Abigail discovered and characterized a unique bacteriophage that was published as Whabigail7! Very cool!!
New in 5th Grade Humanities:
News from the Bennet Office:
Picking your student up early? Please call ahead and we will have your student ready. Let us know when you arrive and we will meet you at the door with your student to check your ID.
For all technology assistance (including Chromebooks, laptops and iPads), go to the IT Helpdesk or call / text 860-682-0607, Monday - Friday from 8:00 AM - 3:00 PM.
- Did you move? Please see the list of required documents. Contact Registrar Heidi Turner to update your information: b39hturn@mpspride.org or 860.647.8275. Remember we cannot change your child's bus information until you have provided your new proof of residency.
- New number? Please remember to update the registrar with any changes to your phone number or email so we can reach you! We send out newsletters and emails from the principal weekly and you do not want to miss anything!
- New email? If you are reading this on our app and not in your email it may mean we have old information. Please contact Ms. Turner with your new email address so you don't miss out!
A note from the security team.
Please be aware as you drive through our pick up/drop off area that students are everywhere! Students should be dropped off in designated areas. You should not let your student exit your car on Wells Street.
Please be sure to discuss pick up and drop off plans with your student to eliminate any confusion and keep your plan consistent. Thank you.
BUS ROUTES
The first week or so of school buses are known to run late, especially at the end of the day, so please do not panick. We try to inform parents of any significant delays, but the first week or two of school, as we are helping students find their correct bus, please plan on everything running late. We appreciate your patience and just know that once the kids get the hang of boarding their buses in a timely manner buses will be able to leave on time.
Is there something you would like to see in this newsletter this year?
Bennet Academy
Email: jchella@mpspride.org
Website: https://www.mpspride.org/Domain/9
Location: 1151 Main Street, Manchester, CT, USA
Phone: 860-647-3571
NEW DROP OFF AND PICK UP INFORMATION!!!
If your child is grade 5, you will turn onto School Street from Spruce Street. Just before the buildings, you will turn right into a staff parking lot, circle the lot dropping off your child with staff and exiting the lot turning right back onto School Street and then to Spruce Street.
For 6th grade families, you will turn down Wells Street from Spruce Street, turning right into our staff parking lot. You will then circle the lot, dropping off your child where indicated (we will have signs and staff in the area), exiting back onto Wells Street. There will be security guards directing traffic. Please be aware of students exiting cars. Once you have dropped off or picked up your child, please exit cautiously.
There will be no drop off or pick up allowed on Wells Street or at CVS.
***Please note - We ask that you access Wells Street from Spruce Street instead of Main Street.
Special Programs families and Mini-buses will be the only vehicles allowed to pull in front of the Franklin Building for drop-off. No other vehicles will be allowed to access the front of the Franklin building unless the time is past 8:15 a.m. Late students will be dropped off at the front door, ring the bell to be let in, and will receive a late pass before being sent to class. Parents do not need to accompany late students. If the tardy is due to a doctor's appointment, please get a note from the doctor for your child to have the tardy excused.
Please see map below.