Mr. McKnight, Assistant Principal
Welcome Mr. Kristian McKnight to our administrative team! Mr. McKnight comes to us from Butterfly Ridge Elementary where he served as Assistant Principal. He lives in Carroll County with his wife, two beautiful daughters and sweet pup, Bear.
DATES to REMEMBER
Thursday, August 8: Schoology is expected to be updated with 2024-2025 teacher assignments. Emails will also be sent to families with teacher assignments and access codes for parents. Kindergarten letters should arrive at houses the week of August 5th. If you do not have this information by Monday, August 12, please contact the school.
Monday, August 19: Open House: Come meet your teacher and see our beautiful school!
This is a quick meet and greet!
Last Name A-L: 1:45-2:45
Last Name M-Z: 3:00-4:00
*Due to traffic and parking, we ask that you adhere to the scheduled times.
Wednesday, August 21: First Day of School for Students! Arrival begins at 8:45am.
Wednesday, September 11: Grades K-2 Back to School Night 6:00-7:00 pm
Thursday, September 12: Grades 3-5 Back to School Night 6:00-7:00 pm
**Back to School Nights will include two 20-minute sessions with the classroom teacher. Both sessions will be the same so please attend one. More detailed information to come.
Arrival & Dismissal Routines
Welcome Back! We are very excited to have over 1,100 students in our building! That is more than several high schools and even our own Oakdale Middle School.
Our number one job is to ensure every student is safe during arrival and dismissal and we need YOUR help! Please read the following carefully and be extra vigilant of the staff members directing you. Please do not yell or question the staff members- if you have a question or concern, please contact the front office to speak to an administrator.
Arrival is from 8:45-9:10. Late students must enter the front office with their adult to sign them in. Dismissal begins at 3:45.
CAR RIDER ARRIVAL: *see this MAP for a detailed map of our arrival and dismissal patterns
Students should not exit their car unless they are in the coned area at the sidewalk curve closest to the school (staff will guide you). DO NOT let students out at any other location other than these areas.
Students should have all of their belongings ready for when they get to the “drop off area” within the cones.
Parents may not exit their vehicles. Staff will assist students. If you need to get out with your student, please park in the designated parking spots.
Please be mindful and pay attention to both the crossing guards and the staff members moving traffic.
**Please note: after dropping off your student you will exit the parking lot and will only be allowed to turn right onto Oakdale School Road. You may not go straight onto Oakdale Village Rd. This is for traffic pattern safety of walkers, buses and other cars and has been charted out with the help of the Sheriff's office.
CAR RIDER DISMISSAL:
For the safety of all students, we will provide a car rider tag with your child's car rider number that needs to be placed inside the windshield visible to duty staff when you arrive to pick up your child. For the first few weeks, please create your own tag with large, clear print with your child’s first and last name, grade and teacher. The numbers will be the same as last year, so you can reuse it if you have it.
Students will need to memorize these assigned numbers as this is how they will know when to exit the building.
Please place your car rider tag in your front window. Duty staff should be able to quickly walk through the line and write down the numbers that have been provided.
Staff will direct you on when you can exit the car rider line. Please proceed with caution and be mindful of crossing guards as you exit.
WALKERS Arrival and Dismissal:
All walkers should enter and exit school property by using the crosswalks paying close attention to the crossing guards.
Do not walk through the parking lot. If you are riding to the school in a car, the expectation is that you will go through the car rider line.
No one may enter the building with their student(s). Please go to the main office if you are scheduled to volunteer and have completed the volunteer training.
Kindergarten “Walkers” will be dismissed at 3:45 and grades 1-5 will be dismissed at 3:45.
BUS RIDERS Arrival and Dismissal:
Please review the FCPS bus stop information HERE which will be available after August 12th.
Please support your student by reviewing their bus number with them so they begin to memorize it. They will be called from their classrooms and exit through the gym to board their bus.
If a bus is running late, you can check it HERE.
Volunteer & Visitor Training
If you plan on coming into the school to visit, volunteer, attend parties and/or chaperone a field trip, you MUST complete the volunteer training. FCPS has adjusted several aspects of the volunteer training to increase safety for our students. The new training includes two 45-minute modules with a follow up quiz. This must be completed at least 72 hours before the event. If you do not complete the volunteer training, you will be unable to enter the school building beyond the front office. Please see information below from FCPS.
. . .
This year, FCPS has enhanced the volunteer process to prioritize the safety and security of our students, staff and community. As a result, we have added additional training to be completed by all volunteers across the county. These trainings will ensure our volunteers are equipped with the necessary information they need to partner with our schools.
Effective Monday, July 15, 2024, family and community members interested in volunteering should begin the volunteer process by visiting our new FCPS Volunteer Webpage. Applicants will be directed to:
- Register for a guest account on Unified Talent (instructions available online)
- Complete and pass two training modules on Unified Talent.
- Complete the registration application in the Volunteer Center.
- Await school approval on application.
- Sign-up for volunteer opportunities facilitated by individual schools.
The volunteer training and registration process is completed annually for each school year. Volunteers must complete the process before being signing up for volunteer opportunities. FCPS encourages family and community members interested in volunteering to complete the process early as processing times have increased to 72 hours.
For technical support in Unified Talent, volunteer applicants may contact unifiedtalent@fcps.org. For all other volunteer related questions, volunteer applicants may contact: FCPSVolunteers@fcps.org. FCPS is grateful for the generous support from our family and community volunteers.
Oakdale Phone Number Change
Beginning on July 1, 2024, Oakdale Elementary School's phone number changed to a new telecommunications system.
The new OES phone number for the main office is (227) 203-1420.
School based staff can be reached by calling the school's main number and choosing the appropriate option from the call menu or by dialing a staff member's extension at any time:
- Front Office
- Attendance
- Counseling Office
- Health Room
- Cafeteria
Phones calls to classroom teachers will be directed directly to their voicemail during the school day.
Front Office Reminders:
A parent/guardian is required to come in to the office to sign their child in if they arrive after 9:10 am. It is for your child's safety that this is an expectation.
If you need to pick your child up early, please arrive at the school before 3:15 pm this allows the front office staff to focus on a safe and orderly dismissal.
Reminder: All absences need a parent note or they are unexcused and marked unlawful. Be sure to include the child’s first and last name. Even if you have called the school to report an absence, we still require a note upon returning to school. Please send the note to Oakdale.ES@fcps.org.
If your child is leaving early or has an appointment, a written note to the office is appreciated. This not only lets the teacher know to have them ready, but assists the office staff with identifying the parent/guardian of the student and prevents delays.
Any changes in your child's transportation home needs to be shared with the front office. Please send a note or call the office. If you email the teacher please also email the office at the following email address Oakdale.ES @fcps.org.
Oakdale PTA Corner
Please join the PTA!! We need YOUR help to make it a successful year!
https://oakdalepta.membershiptoolkit.com/
PTA Executive Board
2024-2025
President: Noel Leslie
Vice President of Membership: Meg Hasenzahl
Vice President of Fundraising: Vacant
Treasurer: Jackie Kennedy
Vice President of Communications: Linda Venezie
Secretary: Dina Azer
Hospitality: Stephanie White
FCPS Link for Information Regarding Bus Transportation
FCPS has provided a link for parents to
view whether your child's bus is late or not running.
