
The CPES BobChat
October 1, 2023
How Do We Respond in Safety Situations? (Part 2)
Last week, I explained "Hold" and "Secure" drills. We want you to know how we keep our staff and students safe so you can apply these principles to your home and community settings. Here are our other three drills from the Standard Response Protocol. 3. Lockdown--During a lockdown, the threat is determined to be within the building. We gather students quickly from the halls, lock the doors, turn off lights and get out of sightlines. After the threat is removed, authorities come to each classroom, unlock the door, and provide further instructions. If classes are outside in a lockdown, they immediately go to predetermined offsite locations and secure themselves there. 4. Evacuate--This procedure is in place if it is decided that the school is unsafe for teaching and learning to occur for the rest of the day. This could be done when there is a fire or weather related event that affects the school. Know that in this situation, students would not be released at the school to parents. Students would be transported to a common pickup point and parents would go there for their children. Parents would be informed by phone what to do and where to go. Children being reunited securely with their families would be the highest priority in this procedure. 5. Shelter--This is when students are held in school in safe locations due to bad weather or an environmental issue. This happens when it would not be advisable for students to be outside. If you are on our campus during this drill, you will be invited to come inside and shelter in place with us. As you would imagine, we may shift from one drill to another based on the conditions of the safety event we are managing. If you are at Cherry Park during these drills, we ask that you follow our lead so we can keep everyone (including you) safe. We hope that you can use these ideas as you think through how you might keep your family safe in your home and throughout the community. We appreciate all you do to help us maintain a safe and secure learning environment. As always, if you see something, be sure to say something.
Strength and Blessings,
Mr. Maness
CPES "Of the Year" Winners
Spanish Immersion Story by WCNC
Lexi Wilson from WCNC
Notes and Reminders
1. Bobcat Dash on October 27--The PTO is excited to host the 4th Annual Bobcat Dash Fun Run this October! This is our only school Fundraiser and we need everyone's help to make it successful. Please consider Sponsoring the Bobcat Dash or asking your place of employment for a Sponsorship. You can click on the Bobcat Dash Sponsor Letter button below for more information. The Pledge Forms for students to collect donations will go home at the beginning of October. Our goal this year is to raise enough money to complete the turf installation on the playground. This will benefit every student in the school. Please send all questions about Sponsorships or the Fun Run in general to the PTO at cherryparkelementarypto@gmail.com.
2. School Improvement Council Nomination Form--Please complete the questions below in the link if you wish to submit your name for the ballot for School Improvement Council Elections for Cherry Park for 23-24. Terms are for two years and we will be electing three new members to our SIC. Meetings are on the second Monday of the month from 5:30-6:30 PM. Please do not nominate someone else (although you can encourage them to run). Please submit this form by the end of the day on Sunday, October 1. (Any parent can attend SIC meetings. This election chooses voting members of the SIC.) We encourage having a diversity of members who can represent all perspectives of our families. (The SIC ballot will include your name, how many children you have at CPES and your chosen language program.) You can click on the button below or this link: https://forms.gle/XtxobcseUUqnMPMr8
3. WCNC Story--On Thursday, Lexi Wilson from WCNC came to Cherry Park to learn about our immersion language program as a part of Hispanic Heritage Month. If you'd like to view the story, click on the following link: https://www.wcnc.com/amp/article/news/education/rock-hill-schools-offers-dual-language-program/275-dad1612b-63a7-4016-aa87-03a8c0cd9c5a Pictures are above as well.
4. Recognition for Staff Members "Of the Year"--On Wednesday, the District recognized all our staff members "Of the Year." We are appreciative of May Dunovant as our Support Staff of the Year, Kristina Stroud as Support Professional of the Year, and Kelly Watson as Teacher of the Year at Cherry Park. We have so many of our staff who could be "Of the Year" winners every year.
5. Second Grade CogAT and Iowa Testing--The Iowa Achievement test will be given to second graders October 10-11. The CogAT (Cognitive Abilities Aptitude Test) will be October 16-18. Parents received information through Parent Link on Friday. These tests are administered to all second graders in South Carolina as qualification for Gifted and Talented classes that start in third grade.
Parents, please note that all Bobcat Dash Sponsorship Forms are due Friday, October 6. Also, Monday, October 9 is a Professional Development Day for teachers and it is a student holiday.
School Calendar
October 1--School Improvement Council Nominations Due
October 6--All Bobcat Dash Sponsor Forms are Due
October 9--Teacher Professional Development Day (No Students); 5:30 School Improvement Council and 6:30 PM Parent Teacher Organization Meetings
October 10-11--Second Grade Takes Iowa Achievement Tests
October 13--Picture Day
October 16-18--Second Grade Takes CogAT Tests
October 20--Half Day for Students (Students will be dismissed at 11:00)
October 27--Bobcat Dash
Parent Organizations
Parent Teacher Organization--This group has three main goals: Raising funds for the school, appreciating the staff and securing volunteers as needed. The Cherry Park PTO is a 501c3 tax deductible organization. Meetings are held at Cherry Park on the second Monday of each month at 6:30 PM (right after the SIC meetings.) All parents are invited to attend. All financial records are distributed and updated at each month's meeting. Officers this year are Amanda Winters (President), Emmanuel Daniel (Vice-President), Celia Kerr (Secretary) and Michelle Dawkins (Treasurer).
Previous Newsletters for 23-24 School Year
"How Do We Respond to Safety Situations? Part 1" September 24, 2023 https://www.smore.com/n4c67
"How Can I Volunteer at CPES?" September 17, 2023 https://www.smore.com/7v8ky
"What CRAzy Model Do We Use for Math Instruction?" September 10, 2023 https://www.smore.com/kfbg7
"What Do We Need to Know about Arrival?" September 3, 2023 https://www.smore.com/fc0kd
"Did You Know that a Bobcat 'ROARS?"' August 27, 2023 https://www.smore.com/0g7qv
"What Do We Need to Remember as We Start Back" August 20, 2023 https://www.smore.com/yrt38
"Techno
logy Forms and Fees"--August 25, 2023 https://www.smore.com/72qcg
"How Can We Work Together to Keep Everyone Safe?" August 13, 2023 https://www.smore.com/6cbtm
"How Can Checklists Help You Start a New Year?" August 6, 2023 https://www.smore.com/0jyx61
"Who Are the Newest Hires and What Are the Latest Changes with Technology?" July 30, 2023 https://www.smore.com/z6qnp
"What's the Latest News at Cherry Park" July 16, 2023 https://www.smore.com/w9pth
"Challenger Be Great Academy Update" June 23, 2023 https://www.smore.com/8hqka
"What Staffing Changes Have Been Made at CPES?" June 18, 2023 https://www.smore.com/e0vr2