New Albany Parent Connection

Dear New Albany School families,

Welcome back to school! We hope you have had a fun-filled summer with your family. New Albany School’s administration, facilities department and support staff have worked diligently throughout the summer to prepare for another exceptional educational experience for our students. We have refurbished two preschool classrooms as well as six K-2 classrooms, giving them new flooring, lighting, and paint. In addition, we are excited to announce that we added a new parking lot in the rear of the school! This new lot will provide the much needed space for our staff and visitors.

As the school year approaches, our teachers are returning to the buildings to work their magic and create engaging learning environments. All we need now is our students! Our school year starts on September 7th for students and we eagerly await their arrival.

This newsletter will provide important information for our families each month and we encourage you to review the resources to learn more about our school community. We look forward to another school year full of learning and adventure!

September 4: Labor Day

September 7: First day of school for students

September 8: CEHASA Welcome Back Family Gathering 5:30-7:00PM

September 11: 9/11 Observance

September 15: First Day of Hispanic Heritage Month

September 15-17: Rosh Hashanah

September 19: Back to School Night 6:00PM (In-Person Only)

September 24-25: Yom Kippur

September 26: BOE Meeting 7:00PM @ CMS

Upcoming events...

October 9: School Picture Day

Our home and school association invites NAS families to attend a welcome back gathering on Friday, September 8th. The event will take place on New Albany School's recess fields from 5:30-7:00PM.

We hope this event provides students with some fun playtime,

as well as the opportunity to make new friends.

Snacks will be provided along with some fun music.

We hope to see you there!

On this day, we pay tribute to those lives lost, as well as the families that were affected from this tragedy. We also honor the survivors along with the first responders who made gallant efforts to protect and serve.

The people we lost that day are not just names or numbers. We remember them today for not only who they were, but for what they could have become. They were irreplaceable to their families, instrumental in their jobs, woven into the fabric of their community, full of life and potential.

Lives cut short – pain that can never be properly described in words. Suffering that will never fully heal. And no words that anyone else will ever say can fill the gaping hole.

But we the living, we have a solemn duty to honor their memory, their legacy. To honor and remember them – not just today but every day.

#NeverForget

September 15 to October 15 is celebrated nationwide as National Hispanic Heritage Month. It traditionally honors the cultures and contributions of both Hispanic and Latino Americans as we celebrate heritage rooted in all Latin American countries. During this month and throughout the year, the history, heritage, and accomplishments of Hispanic and Latino Americans of past and present are recognized.

Rosh Hashanah, literally the “head of the year,” is the Jewish New Year. It is a time of inner renewal and divine atonement. Rosh Hashanah begins at sundown on Sunday, September 15 and ends at sundown on Tuesday September 17. This holiday is celebrated with candle lighting, festive meals, and prayer.

We wish all who celebrate a Happy Rosh Hashanah!

Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, is known as the holiest day of the Jewish year. L’shana tova!

This night provides a valuable opportunity to learn more about your child's classroom experience. You will have the opportunity to meet your child's teacher and learn about your child's daily schedule and classroom procedures. Any questions pertaining to your child's daily activities or teacher procedures can be addressed at Back to School Night.

We ask that you please refrain from "conferencing" with your child's teacher at this time. If you need to schedule a time to meet with a teacher, please send a quick email and they will be happy to speak with you one on one.

More detailed information will be provided prior to this open house.

Should you need to send medication to school, please contact Mrs. Socha to arrange a time to drop it off. She can be contacted by phone (856) 786-2284 ext. 6832 or email sochac@cinnaminson.com.

If you need to submit immunization and/or physical forms, please send those in to school with your child or you may drop them off between 8:00 am and 4:00 pm.

For more information, you may visit the nurse's page on our website: Click Here.

Please take note of our school hours:

Full Day​​​​​​​

Kindergarten, MD, T1, 1 and 2 - 9:06 - 3:34

Full Day Bright Eyes (BE) - 8:55 - 3:25

AM Bright Eyes and IPK - 8:55 - 11:25

PM Bright Eyes and IPK - 12:55 - 3:25

Single Session​​​​​​​

Kindergarten, MD, T1, 1 and 2 - 9:06 - 1:25

Full Day Bright Eyes (BE) - 8:55 - 1:10

AM Bright Eyes and IPK - 8:55 - 11:05

AM "BE/IPK" Students - will be dropped off 10 minutes earlier than normal.

PM Bright Eyes and IPK - 11:05 - 1:10

PM "BE/IPK" Students - will be picked up 2 hours earlier than normal.

2 Hour Delay​​​​​​​

Kindergarten, MD, T1, 1 and 2 - 11:06 - 3:34

Full Day Students - will be picked up 2 hours later than normal.

Full Day Bright Eyes (BE) - 10:55 - 3:25

PM Bright Eyes and IPK - 12:55 - 3:25

NO AM Bright Eyes or IPK on 2 Hour Delay days

PM "BE/IPK" Students - will be picked up 15 minutes later and go home regular time.

Our # 1 priority, at all times, is the safety of our students. Arrival and Dismissal times are a hectic time of day as we ensure that our 640+ students get to where they need to go. We are requesting your cooperation and assistance during this time so that each one of our students exits the school building and returns safely home or to their after-school care.

Please take note of these important procedures:

* ALL dismissal changes for the day must be communicated to the main office no later than 1:00 pm. Those changes should be emailed to nasmainoffice@cinnaminson.com and the office staff will note the change on the daily dismissal form.

*If you need to pick your child up from school at any time before dismissal, please let the main office know via phone or email. Any student getting picked up after 3:20, without prior notification to the office, will be dismissed as a walker.

Anyone picking up a student at the end of the school day (between 3:00 pm and 3:25 pm) may park in an available parking spot. If there are no available spots, they must park on New Albany Road and walk up to the school via the footbridge and sidewalk. Students marked as "walkers" are dismissed to their designated locations and signed out to you from the kindergarten or library door.

STUDENT ARRIVAL/AM DROP OFF

In order to maintain safety for staff on duty, our buses, and families, we encourage parents to be mindful of the bus traffic pattern and avoid blocking the main entrance loop so that our buses can get into and out of the lot as quickly and safely as possible.

• Park along New Albany Road and walk children across the bridge OR

• At or after 8:50 AM, drive to the student drop off area in the rear of the building.

• Parents must remain in their vehicles.

• Students should NOT be let out of the vehicle before the yellow safety dropoff zone.

• Students must exit from the passenger side of the vehicle.

• After 9:00 AM, drive around the loop in front of the school and drop off to the main entrance.

• Students arriving late must stop in the main office so attendance can be updated.

STUDENT DISMISSAL/PM PICK UP

Students who are picked-up by a parent or guardian on a regular basis will be dismissed before the buses leave. Kindergarten and MDK students will be dismissed at the Kindergarten entrance, located to the left of the building. MD1-2, T-1, 1st, and 2nd grade students will be dismissed from the library entrance. Once they are checked in by our staff, they will be dismissed to parents/guardians. All designated daily walkers should have a yellow sign that can be brought to school by the parent/guardian and shown to the staff at pickup. If you arrive by 3:25 PM, you may park along New Albany Road and walk up to the building and form a line at the side entrance to the library or by the kindergarten door to the left of the building. You may enter the parking lot with your vehicle only after the buses have departed.

Families are expected to adhere to one pick-up/drop-off schedule for the duration of the school year. Students who attend SAC on a part-time basis will be transported to their home or another predetermined location on the days they aren’t scheduled to attend SAC. To minimize safety concerns associated with last-minute transportation changes, all pick-up and drop-off schedule changes must be made within 30 days advance notice. Emergent situations (i.e. - change of job, illness, etc.) will be handled on a case-by-case basis as they arise. Parents will still be able to take advantage of SAC on half days.

Please arrange through the office staff if a child is to be picked-up every day or a certain day of the week. If you plan to pick-up your child earlier by coming into the building, you must sign them out in the main office no later than 3:20 PM. After that time, “pick-ups” will be at the library and Kindergarten entrances. At no time are parents/guardians permitted to take a child out of a line or off the bus without first signing him or her out in the office.

We will not allow our students to leave school property without proper supervision. Students are dismissed to buses or must be picked-up by a parent/guardian, or a responsible person, age 18 or older, and approved by a parent/guardian.

A STUDENT WILL NOT BE RELEASED TO ANYONE OTHER THAN A DESIGNATED GUARDIAN UNLESS THE OFFICE HAS AN EMAIL OR WRITTEN NOTE STATING WHICH INDIVIDUAL WILL BE PICKING UP YOUR CHILD. THE PERSON PICKING UP YOUR CHILD MUST BE PREPARED TO SHOW PHOTO IDENTIFICATION.

Many students may miss a few days of school each year without long-term consequences. However, when students miss too many days, the effects are almost always negative. Chronic absenteeism is defined as missing 10 percent or more of school days due to absences for any reason (both excused and unexcused absences). It can translate into students having a difficult time learning to read by the third grade, achieving in middle school, and graduating from high school. Every day a student is absent is a lost opportunity for learning.

We are continually working to make our school environment a place where everyone is safe, healthy, and ready to learn. Attending school regularly helps children feel better about school and themselves. Families can start building this habit in preschool so they learn right away that students go to school on time, every day. Good attendance will help children do well in high school, college, and in their careers. Unless your student is running a fever, vomiting, or has diarrhea, it is very important that they are at school each day.

Help Your Child Succeed in School: Build the Habit of Good Attendance Early.

School success goes hand in hand with good attendance!

New Albany September Lunch Menu - Click Here

The cost of a student lunch is $2.60 and milk is 0.50 cents. You may send in cash or a check, made payable to Cinnaminson Lunch Program. Please mark the envelope containing the cash or check with your child's full name and homeroom teacher OR you may use our online lunch system to make a credit card payment. You will be able to view your child's lunch purchases, account balance, and amount due on the Lunchtime School Payment Portal.

In order to create your child's Lunchtime School Payment Portal account, you will need their student ID #. You can locate the number on the Genesis Parent Portal or call the main office. For more information on the Lunchtime School Payment Portal, Click Here.

If you need to translate your forms to your home/preferred language, please see this resource: Translating Forms in the Parent Portal

The Cinnaminson Elementary Home & School Association (CEHASA) is dedicated to enhancing the environment in our schools. Every parent/guardian is a member of the association. Getting involved benefits you, your children, our schools and our community. This is a opportunity to give back to our children through programs provided by Home & School during the school year. Volunteers are needed in order for these programs to run smoothly and efficiently. The success of the Home & School activities depend on the members who generously volunteer their time and talents. It doesn't matter how much time you have to commit. We are grateful for any amount of time that a parent can give. Think of all the good you can do by getting involved. You will help your children and our schools. You may even learn a little about yourself. You can use your talents to make a difference and make some new friends along the way. Any amount of time you can donate is appreciated and helpful. As events are formed, they will be added to the Sign Up Genius.

1. Go to signupgenius.com
2. Go to Find a Sign up
3. Enter cehasa@cinnaminson.com in the email field
4. Pick a program or activity that you would like to volunteer for and sign up with your first and last name and email address.

You can contact CEHASA and find out about current events by:

• Following us on Facebook: Cinnaminson Elementary Home and School
• Following us on Instagram: cinnaminson_elem_cehasa
• Sending us an email cehasa@cinnaminson.com

Follow us on Twitter: @NewAlbanySchool

Like us on Facebook: @NAScinnaminson

Follow us on Instagram: newalbanyelementaryschool

Email: nasmainoffice@cinnaminson.com