Elsie Rogers Express

Hello Roadrunner Families!

Welcome to the 2022-23 school year! We are thrilled to welcome back our returning families as well as give a warm welcome to our new Elsie Rogers families! I am hopeful that your summer was fun filled and relaxing. With that being said, I am ready to open these school doors! It is the best feeling in the world when these halls and classrooms are filled with students.

This year we will be kicking off a new PBIS (Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports) initiative, R.O.C.K.star Roadrunners. Students will learn the importance of being Responsible, Open minded, Courageous, and Kind. More to come about this throughout the school year!

When I have something to communicate, I will be sending out a "SMORE" newsletter, just like this one, entitled "Elsie Rogers Express ." Please take the time to read the information in the newsletters as there is always important general information, upcoming events, and reminders that will be helpful to you throughout the school year!

As we begin school on August 17 (PennPals & Kindergarten, August 18), I am certain that our days will be filled with fun, excitement and rigorous learning opportunities. The Elsie Rogers Staff is committed to helping your child succeed in his/her learning journey. I hope you as parents will continue to be part of P-H-M's triangle of success!

We have several new staff faces at Elsie Rogers this school year. Please join me in welcoming these newest members of our staff family:

• Miss Makenna Kaniewski - Kindergarten
• Miss Taylor Feller - 1st Grade Teacher
• Mrs. Emily Marine - 4th Grade Teacher
• Mrs. Lisa Pecina - 5th Grade Teacher
• Ms Meg Gabbard - Resource
• Jen Ray - Teaching Assistant
• Laura Wright - School Psychologist
• Meghan Murphy - Lead Preschool Specialist, PennPals

Important Dates:

August 15

Elsie Rogers Back to School Night

This event will be held OUTSIDE! See below for further details.

August 17

1st Day of School - Grade 1-5

Kindergarten Orientation - 9:30 - 10:30

August 18

1st Day of School - Grades Pre-K (including PennPALS) and Kindergarten

Please be in touch with me if you have any questions or concerns throughout the school year as I am here to serve the Elsie Rogers Community!

Sincerely,

Christy Campbell,

Principal

Mark your calendars for Monday, August 15! We invite you to stop by Elsie Rogers between the hours of 6:00 PM - 7:30 PM to kick off the school year! The Kona Ice truck will be on site providing a FREE classic Kona Ice treat for all Elsie Rogers students as well as staff. Adults will have the opportunity to purchase a treat if they wish. The playground will be open and sprinkled with our fabulous staff members for a meet and greet setting.

Kinderarten orientation will take place on August 17 from 9:30-10:30. We invite incoming K students as well as a parent/guardian to this gathering. Families will report to the cafeteria upon arrival. We will begin as large group, and then dismiss the students with staff for a classroom activity. Adults will then spend some time with our staff learning the ins and outs of a kindergarten year!

We are excited to invite families to grade level open houses this year! Please mark your calendar and plan on spending some time wtih your child's teacher on the date and time listed below:

Kindergarten and Second Grade: Wednesday, August 24 @ 6:00 PM

First Grade and Fourth Grade: Tuesday, August 23 @ 5:30 PM

Third Grade and Fifth Grade: Tuesday, August 30 @ 6:00 PM

This opportunity will provide you with information as to what the school year will look like for your child and how we as a team can work together to make it successful!

This year P-H-M WILL be charging for school lunches. If your child would like to purchase a lunch, the cost will be $2.25. If your child would like to purchase a breakfast, the cost will be $1.25. Menus are available using the link below.

Use THIS LINK to find out more information about lunch services.

Elsie Rogers Lunch Scheudle:

Kindergarten - 10:15 - 10:40

First Grade - 10:45 - 11:10

Second Grade - 11:15 - 11:40

Third Grade - 12:15 - 12:40

Fourth Grade - 11:45 - 12:10

Fifth Grade - 12:45 - 1:10

If you would like to visit your student for lunch, we welcome you! Please take a moment and preview the guidelines below:

• Parents MUST call the front office to reserve a spot at least 24 hours ahead of the time they want to come as space is limited.
• We can only offer this opportunity on T, TH, and F. Mondays & Wednesdays will NOT be availabe due to the guest lunch space being occupied.
• Parent and their student will enjoy lunch in the PAR (Project Activity Room).
• We can only have 4 visitors per lunch because of space availability
• Parent/Visitor will need to follow the meal, drink, and technology guidelines provide in the student planner/handbook.
• If adult guests would like to purchase a school lunch, we DO NOT take credit. Cash is the form of payment and Miss Michelle can not make change for anything larger than a $10.00 bill.
• Lunch Guest Opportunites will begin October 3, 2022

On August 12th you should receive an email from our Skyward Family Access that will give you your username so that you can establish a password. Once you log into Skyward your child’s class placement (teacher name) will be visible. Also within Skyward Family Access, parents and guardians will see a number of buttons to click. These are the back to school “forms”, and replace those that in the past we asked parents to complete with pen and paper. These include: Informational documents, Free/reduced meal applications, Emergency contact forms, Consent to Publish/Photograph, Health information, Immunization record sign-offs, the Chromebook parent packet, Handbook certification, and permission forms for the mandatory curriculum and SEL lessons. Please take time the first week of school to login and complete these online forms. A few additional forms will be sent home with your child the first week of school, which must be completed and returned to your child’s teacher.

Please make sure that you have family access set up in Skyward. It is extremely important that information be updated for health reasons and school communications.

Setting Up Family Access In Skyward

Your family may be eligible for assistance paying for cafeteria meals and school fees.

Households that meet the financial guidelines of the National School Lunch Program are eligible for free or reduced meal prices, as well as a discount applied to textbook rental fees. To receive this support parents must apply annually and provide information that serves to verify household income. The application is easy to fill out (choose online or paper format) and it includes a place to indicate that you also want to apply for textbook assistance. Please make sure to submit only one form (application) per household, even if the children are in different schools.

(Applications for the 2022-23 school year will be accepted beginning July 1st, 2022)

We encourage ALL Elsie Rogers parents to apply online at this website: www.schoolcafe.com.

Applying online is faster and easier than using printed forms, and your benefits will start sooner!

The transportation department is using the routing platform EZRouting. Please click this link to set up your parent portal.

Please use the email for the primary contact on your child’s Skyward account as your login ID to allow the system to link you automatically.

• As a security precaution, EZRouting will confirm the contact information before allowing you to set up your parent portal.
• If you don’t have an email on your Skyward account, please use the primary contact phone number as your login id.

Each morning buses begin to arrive at approximately 8:15 am. They will pull up to Door B in no specific order. Students who arrive on the earliest buses must remain seated on the bus until they are greeted by staff members. Students who will enter the building at 8:25.

If your child is a car rider, please do not drop them off before 8:25. Staff members will greet students in the front circle drive upon arrival. All students should exit their vehicles on the right side. In the event that your child arrives after 8:40 am, parents MUST park in the visitor’s lot and escort their child inside the building to the front office and sign him/her in for late arrival.

If your child is a walker, he/she must have a current permission slip on file in the office. Walkers should not arrive before 8:25 am.

Students riding the buses are dismissed at 3:05 pm. Students who are car riders and walkers must wait inside the school until the buses have left before they can exit the building. This is done for safety reasons. Parents arriving to pick up their child, should, upon entering the school property, make an immediate right turn into the staff parking lot, north of the building. Proceed through the lot to the back exit and then form a line along the driveway. Once buses are gone we will ask that the line pull all the way up to the staff member on duty at the front of the school. Please make sure your cell phones are turned off and REMAIN IN YOUR CAR. If your child needs assitance, please speak with a staff member who is on dismissal duty for loading options. Please check out the additional information regarding dismissal procedures in your Back-To- School envelope.

If you are considering volunteering at Elsie Rogers anytime throughout the school year, each adult must have a current background check on file as well as have completed the online bullying training. Please use the link below (Forms for Parents), scroll to "Volunteering" to find the forms you need to complete. Background checks can take some time so we encourage you to fill out the forms now rather than wait. Please contact the front office if you have any questions, 574-259-5231.

Attached below is a letter from our superintendent, Dr. Jerry Thacker. Meadow's Edge receives additional federal funding in line with our free and reduced lunch populations. In compliance with federal law, I have included the Parent’s Right to Know letter. Please note that all teachers at MEE are highly qualified by the standards of the Indiana Department of Education. We take pride in hiring outstanding teachers, and look forward to the experiences your children will have with our educational staff.

Title I Right to Know Letter

P-H-M is committed to helping students reach their fullest potential, which includes the whole child! Please visit the PHM website HERE for various valuable parent resources to help you in supporting your child.

As part of the new Indiana law HB-1093, schools are limited to three days of eLearning. P-H-M Teachers Association worked collaboratively with P-H-M Administration to plan for the 2022-2023 school year. Penn-Harris-Madison School Corporation will use, if warranted, three weather related days as needed throughout the year. If additional makeup days are required, they will be added to the end of the school year calendar beginning on June 2. Principals will communicate with parents eLearning expectations and possible calendar adjustments throughout the year.

The Safe School Helpline® is a confidential way to report student concerns about threats, suicide, drugs, bullying or anything that threatens the safety of our schools. It's Available 24/7. Click to watch a video on how to get in touch with Administration anonymously 24/7/365.

Four Ways to Report to the Safe School Helpline®

Call: 1-800-418-6423 ext 359

Text: TIPS to 66746

Online: SafeSchoolHelpline.com

Mobile App: Download the FREE app from the GOOGLE PLAY STORE and the APPLE APP STORE

The app makes it easy to anonymously report a safety or mental health concern using your mobile device to text, call, or submit an online form.

Email: ccampbell@phm.k12.in.us
Website: https://elsierogers.phmschools.org/
Location: 56219 Currant Road, Mishawaka, IN, USA
Phone: 574-259-5231
Twitter: @ElsieRogersES