#ThisIsCheltenham
Friday, May 11
Welcome to the CSD weekly News Share — a District recap of the recent week's top stories, updates, initiatives and NEED TO KNOW INFORMATION. Do you know a community member who would like to receive this directly? Invite them to visit cheltenham.org and click on the eNEWS icon on the front page to register. #thisischeltenham
Kindergarten Registration Continues through May 24
Kindergarten registration runs through Thursday, May 24 and you can register your child from 8:30 a.m. - 3 p.m. at the Administration Building (2000 Ashbourne Road, Elkins Park, PA 19027). There are no appointments on Friday, May 18 or Tuesday, May 15 due to staff professional development. Prior to making an appointment, complete and submit an online application. You must be a Cheltenham Township resident to register. To make your readiness screening appointment, please contact Ms. Kate Shevlin at 215-881-6322 or Ms. Dominique Peters at 215-881-6330. After May 24, 2018, kindergarten registration will be done during the summer registration session, which will include all new K-12 students. Those dates and times will be posted when available.
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District Retirees Recognized
CSD honored this year’s 25 retirees with a reception and public recognition at the May Legislative Board meeting. Representing nearly 500 years of service to the district and averaging a tenure of a little more than 19 years, retirees were given a glass plaque, engraved CSD pen and certificate. The 10 retirees in attendance received their gifts and were lauded for their time, hard work and dedication. Retires included (years of service in parentheses): From Administration, Dr. Ray Bavi (10.5) and Lynn David (nine); from CHS, Connie Berger (25.5), Eileen Birzes (31), Bruce Drozd (19), Carole Ellerkamp (27), Patricia Graber (15), Elizabeth Higgins (21), Lisa Paul (22) and Richard Topper (22); from Cedarbrook, Russell Bender (24), Kathryn James (15) J. Raymond O’Brien (18), Robin Rosenberg (17) and Elizabeth Winarski (12); from Elkins Park, Denise Allen (22.5), Roberta Jacoby (32), Phyllis Murr (25 years), Marsha Snyter (22), and Linda Wagner (20); from Glenside, Donna Brandley (12), Ronald Felder (25) Jenette Oddo (3), and Jody Rickel (21); and from Wyncote, Dean Looney (14).
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CES Fourth Grader Earns AAA School Safety Patrol Award
Cheltenham Elementary fourth grader Lincoln Thomason earned the Mid-Atlantic Foundation for Safety and Education’s Outstanding AAA School Safety Patrol award on Tuesday, May 1. One of eight students to receive this award from among more than 93,000 regional safeties, Lincoln works at his post by the front door on a daily basis, holds the door for his schoolmates and tells them “good morning” or “have a great day!” Read more>
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2018 Summer Voyage Program: Innovating through Engineering
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Cheltenham Elementary Hosts Mindfulness Open House
As part of their Mindful May celebration, Cheltenham Elementary School teachers Stephanie Jacobs, Rebekah Taboada, Patrice Gyza, Ann Marie Tobar, Dan Levy, Wade Huggins, Dan Ward and Jodie Pellish hosted a Mindfulness Open House on May 8 where families participated in mindful stations designed to foster calm, focus and awareness. The teachers also shared mindful videos, meditation and activities with Cheltenham families. These educators invited Cindy Goldberg, Cheltenham School District Mindfulness coach, into their classrooms early in the school year and have embedded mindfulness into their classroom cultures. The Cheltenham School District is at the forefront of bringing holistic experiences, including mindfulness, into the lives of students and staff. To learn more, visit www.cheltenham.org/mindfulness. Read more>
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Wyncote Takes a Google Expedition
Google stopped by Wyncote Elementary this week to share its Expeditions app, a virtual reality teaching tool that lets students lead or join immersive virtual trips all over the world and get up close with historical landmarks, dive underwater with sharks and even visit outer space! Through the app, teachers and students “explored” different expeditions like being at sea, plants being pollinated, the human skeleton, landforms and more. The app uses augmented reality to explore different scenes. During the expedition, teachers can pause the app and share information and ask questions. After having a chance to try several expeditions, the students and teachers gave feedback on how to improve, what to keep and any ideas that came up during the trial.
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Teacher Appreciation: Lounge Makeover
What’s a great way to show a school’s teachers just how much they are appreciated? With a PTO- sponsored teacher lounge makeover, of course. With this in mind, Myers PTO reached out to Amy Cuker of Down2earth Interior Design to re-conceptualize the teachers’ lounge. The process wasn’t quick but the results were worth the wait. Earlier this month, teachers were called down to the lounge for coffee and breakfast to find the room totally redone. One new feature includes Myers Elementary T-shirts framed as colorful, personal wall art (photo above). The t-shirt colors generated a bold and lively color scheme. Thanks to the generosity of the Myers parents who raised money at last year’s boosterthon, and other fundraisers, PTO upped the budget a little bit to upgrade the sofa and the chair to commercial grade furniture, so it will hold up for many years. Read more>
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Career Day at Glenside
Glenside Elementary hosted more than 50 parents, CSD staff and community members for Career Day on Wednesday morning. Led by school counselor Gabe DiBerardinis, the event included parents in careers ranging from software engineer, job coach and actuary to athletic director, firefighter and architect. Career Day participants visited different classrooms, made presentations about their work and fielded questions from the students. The students were encouraged to dress as the career to which they aspire and a handful of third graders served as school ambassadors, guiding guests to the rooms where they would speak. In addition, students took career interest inventories, created business cards and had their pictures taken for a career day mural.
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CSD Students Volunteer at Broad Street Run to Support #SEANstrong
Almost 100 middle and high school students, staff and parents volunteered at the Broad Street Run’s Jackson Street water station to cheer and hand water to runners and walkers, but also to show support the Sean F. Hogan Sr. Foundation. An early alarm was necessary for the volunteers, but they were eager to back the cause by Cedarbrook English teacher Patty Hogan after her husband Sean passed away in 2013. “Teaching kids the importance of giving back for a purpose fills me with pride,” Mrs. Hogan said. “My students are aware of my loss and the work of the foundation. I hope I am an example of resilience for them and, through my example, teach them not to give up, continue to do good for others and try to make the world a better place. To join the #SEANstrong movement, email info@seanstrong.org or visit www.seanstrong.org. Read more>
Keystone Testing Schedule
With Keystone Testing approaching rapidly, we wanted to share the testing schedule. May 17-18 and 21-24 are designated as Keystone Testing days. On the first four days, school will operate on a 3-hour delay schedule. On their respective testing days, students will report to school at the regular arrival time (7:27 a.m.). The chart below identifies days your student will be testing and what time to report to school on days they are not testing.
Make Up Testing
If a student is scheduled to take a Keystone Exam and is absent on that testing day, he/she will make up the missed exam on one of the following days: May 18, 21, 22, 23, 24 or 25. Please direct any questions to District Assessment Coordinator Dr. Ray Realdine at 215-881-6335.
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Mindful May Opportunities for Support
Mindful May is underway for Cheltenham School District staff and students. Staff members who practice Mindfulness each day get to enter their Mindful May Calendar into a building drawing for a lovely mindfulness basket. Each basket contains gift cards from local businesses along with a few mindful treats. Business supporting Mindful May include Massage Envy, Marco Polo, Mr. P’s Pizza, Pizza Box, Dovetail Artisans, Amma Yanni Yoga, Flow Bath and Kitchen Design, Abington Club, JTown Hot Yoga, Berta Sawyer, Sparkle Nail Salon and Curds 'n Whey. If you are a business owner who would like to support the district's mindfulness work, it's not too late. Contact Cindy Goldberg for more information. To learn more about CSD's Mindfulness initiative, visit www.cheltenham.org/mindfulness.
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Stay Informed | Policy Updates
Co-chairs Julie Haywood and Joel Fishbein hosted committee member Dan Shultz, Superintendent Dr. Wagner Marseille and other administrators for a Policy Committee meeting on April 25. Policy topics included transportation, recording devices on buses, disruptive behavior, student surveys, and student safety. See full presentation for details. The next meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, May 30 at 8 a.m. in the Administration building and is open to all Cheltenham township residents.
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Stay Informed | Facilities Committee
During the May 2018 Facilities Committee meeting, Dr. Ray Bavi updated the school board on the status of the Cedarbrook construction project, which is 94 percent complete. The scope of work for the CHS choral/band room HVAC project was discussed at length and tabled because of a lack of bids. View full presentation for more details. The next Facilities Committee meeting is scheduled for June 5 at 7 p.m. and is open to all Cheltenham township residents.
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Run the bases with the Cub Club at Baseball's Annual Marathon Game
Kindergarten through fourth grade students are invited to Cheltenham’s Cub Club event at the CHS Baseball team’s annual Marathon Game on May 19 from 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. at the High School. While the varsity and junior varsity squads play their 100-inning game, Cub Club members will have a meet and greet with the CHS baseball players and coaches, as well as have the opportunity to run the bases in between games. For more information about Cub Club, contact Terri Kelly or Brandi Millis. Register online for the Cub Club event>
The family-friendly marathon game includes music, featuring CHS graduate DJ Dee-Square, bounce house and ballpark concessions. All proceeds support the CHS baseball program. Make a contribution>
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Calendar Reminders
Inclement weather on Wednesday, March 21 forced the cancellation of an early dismissal/faculty meeting. Recognizing the importance of the time faculty spends together, the Cheltenham School District has rescheduled that January date for Monday, May 14. The professional development day for teachers and staff scheduled for Tuesday, May 15 and early dismissal on Wednesday, May 16 will still occur as scheduled.
Early dismissal times for May 14 and 16 are as follows:
CHS - 1:25 p.m.
Cedarbrook - 2:03 p.m.
Elkins Park School - 2:37 p.m.
K-4 Schools - 2:45 p.m.
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It's Official: Final Student Day June 20
Under the authority of Section 1504 of the "Pennsylvania Public School Code of 1949," the Department of Education has approved the District’s petition to increase its 2017-2018 Act 80 days by two, meaning the final student day will remain as scheduled on June 20, 2018.
See below for a rundown of important end-of-school dates:
June 14: High School Commencement
June 19: K-4 4th Grade Move up Day
June 20: Last student day, Elkins Park Move Up Assembly, CBK 8th Grade Promotion
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Start of School Year Reminder
Please note, Cheltenham School District kicks off its 2018-19 school year before Labor Day. First day of classes is Monday, Aug. 27, 2018. View Calendar>.
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Foundation Offers Innovation Grants for Cheltenham Teachers and Staff
Cheltenham teachers and staff are encouraged to submit applications for Cheltenham School District Foundation’s innovation grants by the Tuesday, June 12 deadline. This year, the Foundation looks to disperse more than $23,000 to make innovative and creative instructional programs designed to enhance and enrich the educational experiences of the students and staff in the Cheltenham community come to life. The multi-faceted Foundation grants initiative provides diverse program support, integrating and supplementing CSD’s regular instructional programs. Many of these programs provide unique approaches to learning, some are offered outside of school hours and are separate from the curriculum and academic program. Apply now>
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Sports Physicals for 2018-2019
Athletics physicals for the 2018-2019 school year should be completed on or after June 1, 2018, and will be effective, regardless of when performed through May 31, 2019. Students must submit their physical forms as soon as possible after May 31, preferable by August 1 if they want to participate in any fall sports. On the day the physical is completed, ask the physician to stamp Section 6 of the PIAA physical form. We will only accept the completed PIAA physical forms for participation in after-school athletic programs. Download physical form>
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Vaccination Clinic for Rising 7th and 12th Graders
The Office of Student Services has arranged through Detweiler Family Medicine and Associates of Lansdale to conduct a free vaccine clinic at Cheltenham High School for rising seventh and 12th graders on Monday, June 4 from 3 to 6 p.m. for students who may still be in need of particular vaccinations. Register your child online> | Read more>