Elementary Newsletter

Friday, January 31st

Friday, February 7th

Friday, February 14th

Monday, February 17th

Friday, February 28th

Friday, January 24th- SCHOOL IS IN SESSION

Thursday, February 13th- Valentine's Classroom Celebration

School begins at 8:00am and students are dismissed at 3:10pm

Announcements begin in the gym at 7:45am. Students are encourage to attend at 7:45 a.m. for announcements.

Your student brought home the conference sign up sheet yesterday. Please take a moment to fill out your request. If you complete your preferences here, there is no need to return the paper form. All requests are due by tomorrow, Thursday, January 23rd.

The lottery for the upcoming 2025-2026 school year will be held next week. Siblings of current students must have an application turned in. Please apply at https://greeleyschools.schoolmint.net/

All applications are due before Tuesday, January 28 at 4:00pm.

Order a hand delivered Val-O-Gram for only $3 each or 10 for $25.

They can be purchased through the front office until February 6. Exact change only, please.

Val-O-Grams will be delivered Thursday, February 13th.

Valentine’s Day is near!

What is a Val-O-Gram?

It is a special treat that includes a full size Hershey candy bar and a can of Crush soda.

Send one to whomever you would like for Valentine’s Day!

The Kids Heart Challenge has begun! We can't wait for you and your student to learn some of these amazing heart healthy habits and lifesaving skills! By participating in Kids Heart Challenge your student will collect donations to help other kids with special hearts while having fun and learning how to keep their own hearts, bodies and brains healthy. Our goal is to raise $3,500.00 for the American Heart Association. The last day to collect donations is on 1/27/25.

Any visitor who is not employed by Union Colony Schools will have to check in at the front office with a photo government issued identification card. The card will be run through the Raptor system; this system is designed to help maintain safety on campus, which will print a photo identification badge for approved visitors.

Have you paid your family technology fee? A $25 fee per family was due at registration. This is an annual technology fee to help offset the cost of technology devices and platforms. Please log in to Infinite Campus to check if your family fee has been paid. You can pay by card in the Infinite Campus Parent Portal or with exact cash only in the office. Contact Adriana if you have any questions at 970-673-4997.

What: Union Colony Elementary School now has a FREE food pantry for all UCE families!

Where: Union Colony Elementary School Office

Who: The free food pantry is open to all UCE families

When: The food pantry is only open on Monday’s 1:30 - 2:30 & Tuesday’s 9:00 - 10:00.

How: Parents/Guardians must come into the UCE office. You must bring your own bags ( only 2 bags per family, the size of a plastic bag from a grocery store. We do not provide bags) You will not be allowed to take food without a bag. Please only come during the pantry hours of operation - food will not be given out at other times. UCE will restock the food pantry when new shipments are received on Tuesdays - once food is gone, it is gone until the following Tuesday. Food will not be sent home with students.

The mornings have been cold. Please be sure to send your student with a jacket or sweater to school. We will be going outside for recess and are often outside for PE or other classroom activities.

Students may bring snow boots if they would like to play on the field on days that there is snow on the ground.

Our attendance goal for all children is 95%. To achieve this goal, our students must have fewer than 15 absences in a school year. The time a student is out of class due to being tardy or checking out early can add up. 4 tardies/early check outs will count toward a full day(s) of absence.

Regular school attendance is one of the most important aspects of a student's educational program. Additionally, there is a strong correlation between consistent class attendance, parental involvement and academic success. Student attendance is the responsibility of the parent/guardian.

Excused absences are defined as any absence from school due to temporary illness or injury, and any other reason deemed acceptable by the school administrator.

An unexcused absence is defined as an absence that is not covered by one of the foregoing excused absences or any absence not reported to the school by a parent/guardian within 48 hours.

Regardless of the absences/tardies being excused or unexcused, student will be considered for an attendance plan if attendance is below the goal.

Please contact the office if you have questions or concerns.

Below are procedures for keeping students, families and staff safe while dropping off or picking up students before, during and after school. There have been a number of “close calls” where students have almost been hit - we want to keep everyone safe but we can not do that on our own - WE NEED YOUR HELP. The UCE Traffic Safety Plan (listed below) is on page 5 in the Student Handbook which can be found on the school website: unioncolonyschools.org

TRAFFIC SAFETY PLAN
The Traffic Safety Plan above has been established by Union Colony Schools in order to ensure safety for students and promote efficiency. Please drive responsibly. Watch for students at all times and follow prompts from school staff monitors. Vehicles should access school property by entering in the east driveway and exiting through the west driveway. Adults dropping students off for school or picking them up are expected to follow the traffic safety plan. Do not drive across the lot even if the lot is cleared of parked cars. Double parking (parking behind a parked car in a marked parking stall) to drop off or pick up students is never permitted. All students who are being dropped off or picked up by parents shall be loaded/unloaded from the vehicles along the right hand lane adjacent to the sidewalk

Parents be prepared and informed. Winter is quickly approaching which could mean closures or delays. Please visit our parent resource page for weather related plans and other important parent information.

https://www.unioncolonyschools.org/parent-resources

In the event Union Colony Schools must close, delay the start of the school day, or release early due to weather conditions the following methods of communication will be used. Parents and guardians must ensure their email address and phone number/s are current and updated in Infinite Campus. Union Colony will use a digital communication platform that relies on current and correct contact information.

Building Closure, Delay, and/or early release

1. Union Colony will send a text and email to all parents/guardians and staff before 6am the morning of the potential closure/delay.

2. Union Colony Elementary and Preparatory campuses will send individual messages to all families and staff using individual building communication the morning of the potential closure/delay.

3. Union Colony will post all relevant information on our Facebook page and home page of our website https://www.unioncolonyschools.org/home.

4. Union Colony will always close, early release, or delay the start of the school day if District 6 chooses to close, early release, or delay the school day due to severe weather.

5. Union Colony may choose to close, early release, or delay the school day due to weather on some

days that District 6 chooses not to.

After school events and Activities

1. In the event Union Colony has a weather related closure all school sponsored events will be cancelled.

2. In the event Union Colony has a weather related early release all school sponsored events will be

cancelled.

3. In the event Union Colony has a weather related delay all school sponsored events will be a day time decision.

Before and after school childcare

1. Please contact your provider for more information on how they will handle weather related events.

In the event there is a prediction of inclement weather please call the main office the day before for closure or delay information. Elementary School (970) 673.4997 or Preparatory School (970) 673.4546.

If Union Colony chooses to close, delay, or release early the main offices will be closed or delayed. Please leave a message and someone will return your call as soon as we re-open.

Help us spread the word!

Current Families, we need your help!

Do you know any families with a four-year-old?

They may not realize they can receive FREE preschool every day!

Please refer them to us so we can get them signed up and take advantage of this amazing opportunity!

ABC Child Development Centers - Bright School -Age Centers

(970)352-2222 Ext5

Union Colony Elementary School

970-673-4997 (M-F 7:30 am - 4:00 pm)