Lower Pottsgrove Elementary School
Back to School Newsletter- Part 2 August 15, 2022
Welcome Back!
Summer Tour Dates: The building will be open for self-guided tours on Thursday, August 18 from 2-4 PM and again from 6-8 PM. The Student Leaders will also be on hand to give guided tours if you prefer. Our New Student Welcome Night will be on Monday, August 22 from 6-8 PM. Student Leaders will be available for guided tours or you may take a self-guided tour of the building. Please note, teachers may or may not be present during these events, these events are not Back to School Night. Administration will be at all events to answer questions.
We are collecting school supplies to support local students in need of materials. Please bring your items to any of our Open House events and drop the supplies in one of the collection boxes in either the upstairs or downstairs lobby! All donations collected will go to support students in the Pottsgrove Community! We will be collecting school supplies as well as new or gently used backpacks.
Student iPads will be distributed in classrooms once the school year is underway.
Staff Update:
We are excited to welcome the following staff members to the LPES family:
Mrs. Melody Dunn will be starting as our new Assistant Principal in early October.
Mrs. Kathryn Bussenger will be taking over in fourth grade for Mrs. Kaercher in room 35.
Mrs. Jacqueline Fulmer will be taking over in fourth grade for Ms. Bainbridge in room 31. Mrs. Fulmer will be joining us in early October. We are in the process of securing a substitute to cover the class until she is able to start at Lower. Details will be communicated directly with the families of the students in this class.
Ms. Allison Marcus will be filling for Mrs. Puglia in room 2 when Mrs. Puglia goes on FMLA in early September. Ms. Marcus will be starting the school year with the class as well.
Ms. Lori Pupillo and Mrs. Nicole Hall will be joining us as Duty Aids.
We are still working to identify a nurse, Math Intervention Tutor and additional Duty Aids.
If you are interested in being a Duty Aid, please contact our Human Resources department at 610-323-2277, ext. 1012.
Arrival and Dismissal
Arrival: The school day begins at 9:00 AM. Students being dropped off by a parent may arrive at 8:30 AM. Students should not arrive prior to 8:30 AM. Parent drop off is in the rear of the building near the main office entrance. The portico entrance is for busses only. Upon arrival, students should report to their assigned classroom or to the cafeteria to get breakfast. *PLEASE NOTE, BREAKFAST IS NOT SERVED ON THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL.
Dismissal: The school day ends at 3:25. Parent pick up is in the rear of the building near the main office. Please be patient with the staff as they ensure the safety of each child. Car tags will be distributed by the second week of school, in lieu of a car tag, please feel free to post a sign with your son or daughter's last name to aid staff. You will also be given a parent pick up form by staff to be completed and returned to the school. This lets us know who is authorized to pick up your son or daughter. The form can be returned to the teacher. *The parent pick form is linked below for your convenience. Please print and complete the form and send it in to your son or daughter's teacher.
Car Line Procedures: Please enter the parking lot via the paper recycling dumpsters (entrance closest to Keim Street). In the morning, please drive around to the back of the building and follow the directions from staff, pull forward as far as you can before your child exits the vehicle. Parents should not park and exit the vehicle to keep the line moving. Children should exit on the right side of the vehicle for safety reasons.
In the afternoon, use the same entrance noted above and follow the line of cars to the right into the side parking lot. This allows the line to flow more smoothly and attempt to keep traffic off Buchert Rd. Staff will be on hand to direct traffic. Car line can be a source of great frustration for many parents, while we understand that you may have other places you need to be, our NUMBER ONE priority is the safety of our students and staff. Thank you in advance for your patience and understanding.
Interested in Band or Orchestra? A note from Mrs. Hyde!
We want your child to be a part of our amazing music program here at Lower Pottsgrove and now is the time to sign up for band and orchestra!
To get your child signed up, please do the following:
1. Sign your child up HERE.
2. Obtain an instrument for your child. Pottsgrove uses the Zeswitz Music Company for instrument rentals www.zeswitzmusic.com Instruments rented from Zeswitz are delivered directly to our school. Please rent an instrument by Friday, August 26th at the latest.
If you have any questions please email Kristen Hyde at kristenhyde@pgsd.org
The 22-23 Elementary Handbook can be accessed at the link below.
Thank You Mrs. Kraichely!
PTA
School Supply Collection
More Important Reminders for LPES Families!
Save the Date: Back to School Nights will be held as follows:
Grade 3- Monday, August 29 6:30 PM
Grade 5- Tuesday, August 30 6:30 PM
Grade 4- Wednesday, August 31 6:30 PM
More details will be forthcoming prior to the events.
At this time, we have been told that the Pottstown YMCA will not be running before and after care programs in Pottsgrove Schools. There are many other local day care centers that offer before and after school care that are transported to school via Pottsgrove buses.
If this is something you are interested in or want to know more about, please contact the
YMCA directly. See below for the contact information.
Patty Perri
BASE Team Leader| Boyertown and Pottstown
Greater Philadelphia YMCA
144 Holly Road, Gilbertsville, PA. 19525
(p) 610.369.9622 ext. 3308 (w) www.philaymca.org
Breakfast and Lunch Update:
We will begin serving breakfast on the second day of school, August 25. There will be no breakfast available for students on August 24. Lunch will be served beginning August 24.
Over the course of the past two years we have been able to offer breakfast and lunch to all students at no cost to families. The program that allowed that to occur is no longer in place. Therefore, students wishing to get lunch and/or breakfast at school will be required to pay for the meals. Lunch will be $2.70 per day and breakfast will be $1.70 per day. If you wish to apply for free/reduced lunch status, you must complete a new application. Please use this link to access the application on the Pottsgrove School District website
https://www.pgsd.org/Page/10005 Applications should be completed as soon as possible.
Student lunch accounts can be set up on My School Bucks. Balances are carried over from one year to the next. Please refer to the information letter below for details on how to set up an account.
Please see below for information on how you can connect with Mrs. Manzon, our district Social Worker.
Lower Pottsgrove Elementary School
Email: tkoehler@pgsd.org
Website: www.pgsd.org
Location: 1329 Buchert Road, Pottstown, PA, USA
Phone: 610-323-7510