Reminders for Open House- Thursday, Sept. 1st

3:00-4:30- Last Names A-L; 4:30- 6:00- Last Names M-Z

Special Note: (Visitor Sign-In System)

*If your child will be new to KCES this year, please be sure to stop by the office during Open House to have your ID scanned in order to be entered into our Raptor system. This will help with signing in during your future visits.

Monday, September 5, 2022

Labor Day

Tuesday, September 6,2022

First Day of School for Kindergartners and First Graders

Wednesday, September 7, 2022

First Day of School for Second-Fifth Graders- ALL Students report to school

Wednesday, September 14, 2022

PTA Meeting Via Zoom

Thursday, September 15, 2022

Back to School Night (5:00-7:00pm)

Wednesday, October 5, 2022

Student Holiday

Friday, October 7, 2022

Interim Reports Available in Power School

Dear Kersey Creek Families,

Welcome back Comets! I hope that your family had a fun-filled summer! I am so excited to join this great team here at Kersey for the 2022-23 school year. As we begin this school year, I look forward to continuing to move Kersey Creek along the path of excellence. Our staff members have been working hard to prepare creative classroom spaces while planning for well-designed lessons to support our Caring Comets.

Our theme for this school year is We are Family- 6 Houses, 1 Family! As we get back to a more normal school year, we will be implementing the House System to continue cultivating a sense of community to enhance our academic programs. This model is inspired by the Ron Clark Academy in Atlanta, Georgia. Several schools in our local area have incorporated this model and have found that student engagement and sense of belonging have tremendously increased across their school environment. Please look for more information coming soon as to how we will sort our students into Houses in early October.

To stay informed about all things happening at KCES and Hanover County Public Schools, please be sure to sign up for all school messages. Log onto the HCPS website, go to the Parents & Students tab, click on sign up for messages. Be sure to sign up for Hanover County Schools and Kersey Creek. This will ensure that you receive all weekly messages from Kersey Creek as well as information sent from Hanover County Public Schools.

Welcome back Comets! We can't wait to see our Kindergartners and First Graders on Tuesday, September 6th. All other students ( 2nd- 5th graders) will be welcomed back on Wednesday, September 7th.

It was great seeing so many faces at our Popsicles with Principals event!

In partnership,

Mary B. Townes

Principal

Please do not hesitate to reach out to us if you have and questions or concerns. We want to make this the best year possible for you and your child!

Mary Townes/Principal- (804) 723-3440 mtownes@hcps.us

Aimee Sergent/Assistant Principal (804) 723-3440 asergent@hcps.us

Breakfast and Lunch Information 2022-2023

This year, students must pay for breakfast and lunch unless they qualify for free or reduced meals. Applications for meal assistance will be available online. You can also pick up an application at our Open House. Also, you can add money to your child's meal account by going to the HCPS website, clicking on to the Parents & Students tab, drop down to online services and click on Titan on the selection bar on the left.

Prices:

Breakfast- $1.75

Breakfast (reduced) $0.30

Lunch- $3.20

Lunch (reduced) $0.40

Milk (a la carte) $0.50

Lunch Visits at KCES

As you know, we are back to a more normal school year for the 2022-2023 school year. We look forward to welcoming our families back in our building for lunch after the first two weeks of school (beginning September 19th). We are respectfully asking that you allow us this time to establish routines and procedures with our students. We appreciate your understanding and support!

Arrival and Dismissal Procedures

Students may be dropped off at KCES beginning at 7:30 a.m. The designated area for drop-off is the loop in the front of the building. Please enter the loop from the far side of the parking lot and continue up as far as you can go. Once cars are stopped along the sidewalk, children may exit the cars. In order to prevent a traffic backup, all cars along the sidewalk should unload at the same time then exit and make room for the next group of cars. A staff member will be present beginning at 7:30 a.m. to ensure that students are supervised as they make their way into the building. Students should open the door and exit onto the sidewalk independently to prevent traffic congestion. Once your child exits the car, please wait until that line of cars is released. If you need to exit your car for any reason at drop off, please park in the parking lot and do so there.

Afternoon Dismissal for Car Riders

If you plan to pick your child up from school at dismissal, please park in the side parking lot. Please plan to exit your car at 2:30 p.m. This year, dismissal will begin at 2:30 p.m. and buses will roll out at 2:40 p.m. When it is 2:30 p.m., you may walk up to the side doors by the cafeteria. Someone will be there ready to check your driver's license as you sign your child out and call for your child/children from the cafeteria. Thank you for your assistance in making this a smooth and safe process.

Early Dismissal for Appointments

If you are picking your child up early for an appointment, please be sure to complete the Transportation Note and send in with your child on the morning of the scheduled appointment.

Procedure for Notifying Staff of Changes in Afternoon Dismissal Plans

If you know that your child’s typical dismissal plan will be altered, please fill out the “Transportation Note” available from the office. If an emergency arises and you need to make a last minute change, please call the school office at (804) 723-3440. Please do not email or text transportation changes, as this is a busy time of day. Please fill out the note to the office below to help facilitate any dismissal changes.

Attendance Reminders

When your child is absent, we must receive communication within three days of the absence for it to be recorded as "excused." Absences that are not substantiated by a note or phone call to the office within three days of the absence will remain "unexcused."

• At 5 unexcused absences, you will be contacted to develop an attendance plan to resolve attendance concerns
• At 7 unexcused absences, an attendance conference will be held to discuss continued attendance concerns
• If attendance does not improve, a referral may be made to School Social Work Services for additional support

How You Can Support Daily Student Attendance

• Set a regular bedtime and morning routine
• Lay out clothes and pack backpacks the night before
• Don't let your child stay home unless they are truly sick
• Keep in mind complaints of stomach ache or headache can be a sign of anxiety and not a reason to stay home
• Avoid medical appointments and extended trips when school is in session

Absences Due to Illness

If your child will be absent from school due to an illness, please report their absence by calling the KCES Sick Line at (804) 723-3441.

Returning to School After an Illness

In order to be present at school, a student should be free of fever, vomit, and diarrhea for a minimum of 24 consecutive hours without medication.

Medication

Hanover County’s medication policy prohibits the transfer of any type of medication, prescription or over-the-counter, by your child. A parent or guardian must bring all medications, unopened and in the original container, to the clinic. The parent or guardian must complete an “Authorization and Permission to Administer Medication Form.” Any medication a student must take at school for 10 days or more requires a doctor’s written order.

HCPS Transportation

It is important to note that bus passes will not be issued to ride a bus other than the student's assigned bus. Be sure that you have opted in for bus transportation if you would like for your child to ride the bus. Bus route information will be available at Open House.

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PTA NEWS:

Hello Comet Community,

We are so looking forward to this school year. We have some fun fundraisers planned and are looking forward to more activities together.

We wanted to send out a tentative schedule so you can plan for the meetings and see what we have on the schedule so far.

Our first meeting will be on Wednesday, September 14. It will be held via Zoom since we have Back-to-School night on the 15th.

Please fill out the volunteer form as soon as you can. The link is below:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScI2n-U5UDxRraqf0DALcHxuN7wgqAz2wa0M55_T0OqHqv8nA/viewform

Please sign up for your membership via Memberhub.

https://kcespta.memberhub.com/store

PTA Back to School Information