Dear CFCI Families,

A quick reminder after this final weekend of Family Information Sessions (we held 3 amazing sessions with 70+ people at each one - thank you for spreading the word!) - If you have a child who is a sibling and is not currently enrolled, you must fill out an application for each child you are trying to attend the school next fall.You do not have to fill out an application for any child who currently attends but you must complete an application for any child not currently enrolled. Unfortunately there are no exceptions, so please fill out the application prior to Monday, February 12th. Thank you!!

Fill out Lottery Application Here!

This coming Friday, February 9th - please join the Partnership as they host their Annual CFCI Family Bingo night from 6-8pm. We hope you will come and have fun together as a family with some pizza and bingo!

We are also getting ready for some mid-winter fun with the following:

• February 7th - Sign up due for Coaches for our Riptide Runners Club

• February 21st - Empowered Parenting (childcare provided by our 8th graders!)
• February 23rd from 5:30-7pm Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader?
• March 6th - ALICE Information Session for Parents/Guardians (childcare provided by our 8th grade!)
• April 13th 6-9pm CFCI Adult Prom

We hope you have a great week!

Kim and Susan, Co-Directors

Lisa C, Ben P, & Kelly - Coordinators

Lina & Ben R - Front Office

Dear CFCI Families,

We have a family who could really use your help right now...a 4th grader whose family lives near Market Street/Indochine Restaurant could use help with transportation. If you might have an extra space in your car and would be willing to help get this student to and from school, it would be greatly appreciated. Please reach out to Olivia Horne for more information!

As part of CFCI’s continuing partnership with families to nurture and support students’ health, wellness and potential, we are offering a workshop series this winter/spring through our Family Education Series..."Empowered Parenting".

The series will kick off Wednesday, February 21st from 6-7pm, with a workshop for parents and guardians exploring and experiencing "Empowered Parenting." Our guest speaker Buffy Andrews, will lead us in learning more about building good communication, providing support and information, building knowledge and being open to working in partnership. Gain practical and useful tools to enhance connection with your children, as well as professional resources for knowing where to turn when you feel out of your element.

Coming up:

Wednesday, March 27th, 6-7pm - Managing Child Stress and Anxiety

Wednesday, April 17th, 6-7pm - Childhood ADHD

Over the past year, our staff has worked on evaluating and improving our Safety Plan. Part of this plan was to train all staff members on a widely recommended approach to safety concerns known as ALICE. We completed a full staff training in August of 2023 and have been meeting monthly with our Safety Team members to strategically plan full-school implementation. For more information about ALICE and some additional sponsored resources, please access this link.

Our next step is to inform our families about the ALICE approach. We will be holding an ALICE Information Night on Wednesday, March 6th from 6:00-7:00 p.m. All family and community members are welcome to attend, but it is important to note that this is an adult-only event. We will be offering childcare with the help of our 8th grade teachers and students. Our 8th grade students will be collecting donations for this service that will go toward the cost of their annual Washington, D.C. field trip. The recommended donation amount is $10 per child.

In order to appropriately plan for this event, we are asking that those interested in attending fill out the RSVP form linked below. We hope to see you there. However, for those who cannot attend, we will be sharing a link to a recording of the presentation.

Link to RSVP: https://forms.gle/8BgUXrHJoLAEfVPi6

We need volunteer coaches to help run our 2024 Riptide Runners program (you do not have to be a “runner” to coach!) Our ability to accept students into this running club is dependent upon how many coaches are willing to help! Please see the attached document for details and complete the form by Wednesday, February 7th if you'd like to coach! Student registration information will be sent out in the next few weeks once we know how many coaches we have secured to help. Thank you! Kelly Rooney & Kayla Rotatori

Mark your calendars for some great performances!

First up: Our amazing 1st,2nd, and 3rd grade summer songs piano recital!

Wednesday, May 15th in the CFCI Multi-Purpose Room

1st Grade @ 5:00pm

2nd Grade @ 6:00pm

3rd Grade @ 7:00pm

Then, join us for our 4th and 5th grade ukulele concert! This year, because of it's popularity we found a space that would hold all of our wonderful performers and their families. We will NOT be holding this concert in the CFCI MPR. Leland Cultural Arts Center provides us with a bigger stage, as well as more room for our audience!

Thursday, May 16th @ 5:00pm at Leland Cultural Arts Center

Why should your child learn the art of ceramics?

In today's fast-paced environment, kids are developing shorter and shorter attention spans. They are in need of a shift in focus. Ceramics classes are a practice in art, science, patience, and perseverance.

1- Artistic Expression: Encourage creativity by allowing kids to express themselves through clay. From crafting imaginative sculptures to designing functional pottery, each project is an opportunity for self-expression.

2-Scientific Understanding: Introduce fundamental concepts of ceramics, such as the properties of clay, the transformation during firing, and the chemistry behind glazes. Connect the dots between creativity and scientific principles to stimulate curiosity and a holistic understanding of the art form.

3- Patience and Perseverance: Cultivate patience as students navigate the intricate process of working with clay. From molding and shaping to the delicate art of glazing, participants will learn the importance of taking their time to achieve the best results.

4- Respect for the Process: Emphasize the significance of each step in the ceramic-making journey. From the initial design phase to the final firing, instill a sense of respect for the process, teaching students to appreciate the time, effort, and craftsmanship involved in creating ceramic art.

Visit our website today to learn how to begin your child's path of self-discovery through the ceramic arts!

Monday 4-6pm

Ages 8-18

www.ArtCentered.squarespace.com

#ArtCentered #artcenteredilm #artistanniemac #abbatearts #annemccombie #clay #ceramics #ceramicsforkids

Thank you!!

Anne McCombie

The Board of Directors and the Leadership Team would like to share the update on our Strategic Plan - Vision 2026. This is our three year plan that we created this past year to look at our school and determine the best goals to focus on to make improvements that are in the best interest of our students. Please see the Mid-Year Review presented to the Board during its January meeting. We hope you take a few moments to read through and if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to Dr. Susan Graziano or Kim McCormick.

We would like our families and learning community to be aware that we are in the beginning phase of a two year process for renewing our school charter which expires in June of 2025. The first phase includes a visit from the NC Office of Charter Schools which will take place on February 29th, 2024. This will be a virtual visit which will include a presentation by the school along with 4 meetings with representative groups from the school including: The Board of Directors, Parent/Guardians, Faculty/Staff, and Administration. We are looking forward to sharing the good work that is happening in our school every day and will keep you informed of the process as we continue along our path to renewal. Thank you for your interest and support! If you have questions, please reach out to our Board of Directors Chairperson, Dr. Dana Stachowiak, Kim McCormick, or Dr. Susan Graziano.

We reopened our volunteer portal. Those interested in volunteering at CFCI who are not current volunteers may apply by accessing the link below and completing the application. We will keep the application open until 2/16/2024. If you have any questions or concerns about the volunteer application process, please contact Ben Rose at brose@cfci.net. Link to Volunteer Application: https://securevolunteer.com/cape-fear-center-for-inquiry/home

Our middle school dance has always been a highlight of CFCI for our students. This year we are in dire need of a dance chair and volunteers committed to making this a memorable experience for our students. Please reach out to the partnership (partnership@cfci.net) ASAP if you can help plan the dance!

The Lottery Application is officially open for the 2024-25 school year! We invite families with siblings of students currently attending the school to apply now. In addition, if you have friends or family that would be interested in applying to to our school, please forward them the link here: Lottery Application Link

We have scheduled 3 Family Information Sessions with the final date:

• Saturday, February 3 from 10-11am

The lottery will close on Monday, February 12th at 8am and will be run on Wednesday, February 14th, 2024 at 9am! We look forward to a robust application period and appreciate you spreading the good word about our school to friends, families, co-workers, and neighbors. Thank you!

We want to let families and staff who live on the other side of the bridge know about an upcoming bridge lane closure that will impact arrival and dismissal routes/times starting in the new year. If you haven't heard about the it yet, please take a look at the following article: Cape Fear Memorial Bridge Lane Closures Beginning January 28th. We hope that by providing you with this information you will be able to plan ahead. If you need morning care, Superlative Club is available beginning at 6:15am. See link below.

As the temperatures dip and then rise dramatically in our North Carolina Coastal Environs, please know that we do our best to make appropriate decisions for having our students participate in outdoor activities as much as possible. Here are the temperature guidelines we use to determine if it is suitable for our students to be outside for an extended period of time. Remember, we need your help when the weather is cooler - dress appropriately (hats, mittens/gloves, and a warm coat) when cold and bring a water bottle to keep hydrated when it is warm outside. Thank you for your support of our teachers and students in our quest to get them out into the fresh air!

THESE POLICIES WILL BE POSTED AND AVAILABLE ON THE SCHOOL’S WEBSITE.

CFCI believes that parent/guardian and family involvement must be pursued and supported by our community, in homes, schools/colleges/universities, neighborhoods, businesses, faith congregations, organizations, and government entities by working together in a mutually collaborative effort. As such, the Board is committed to developing policies to involve parent/guardians in school and in their child’s education effectively. N.C.G.S. § 115C-76.20(b)(3).

Mrs. Horne and Nurse Jenn have some exciting news to share!

You can now find school counseling and health related information under the Resources tab at cfci.net.

The School Health and Support section includes the counseling page, school health requirements, information on medication at school and illness, chronic health conditions, concussion and screenings.

Please take a few minutes to check it out.

Thanks!

Have you got a question about CFCI? We want to try and answer it for you or find someone who can! Email kmccormick@cfci.net if you are curious and would like to know more about CFCI!

For the next month or so, our learning community is diving into learning about Self-Management

Self-Management is the tool we use to set and achieve personal and educational goals.

After completing these lessons, students should be able to:

• Describe and celebrate something they have accomplished
• Distinguish between long-term and short-term goals
• Describe why learning is important in achieving personal goals
• Evaluate the action steps taken to accomplish a goal
• Identify resources that help them achieve their goals, i.e., home, school, and community support