Kegonsa Family Newsletter

We were so delighted to see you all at family conferences! We hope that you enjoyed our updated and refreshed building. 1962 never looked so good.

School starts on Tuesday, September 3. If you are a kindergarten parent/guardian, please drop by our library at 7:45 to meet other K parents and our parent group.

The adventure begins! - Erin

After you drop off your children on the first day of school, please stop by our library to meet other kindergarten parents and our wonderful members of Working for Kids, our parent group. We will welcome parents into the building through the main office at 7:45 AM. We look forward to seeing you there!

Are you looking for a supportive community of parents to share tips, experiences, and encouragement? Join the Kegonsa Working For Kids Parent Group! They meet on the second Tuesday of every month. It’s a fantastic way to connect with other local families and make new friends!

1. Go to https://kegonsa.ptboard.com/
2. Click on the "Sign Up" link (from your mobile device, click the top right menu, then "Sign Up")
3. After signing in, enter code 8XBXSY to join!

WFKs Meetings are the second Tuesday of every MONTH, 6:15 - 7:15. CHILDCARE is PROVIDED.

August 27th - Back to School Old School Cool Carnival (5:00 - 7:00 PM)

October 4th - Gilly's Grand Prix Fun Run Fundraiser

(K&1: 12:15-1:00 PM / 2&3: 1:05-1:50 PM / 4&5: 1:55-2:40 PM)

October 18th - Kegonsa Fall Festival (5:30 - 7:00 PM)

November 25th - December 20th - WFK Giving Tree (Details coming soon!)

February 13th - Kegonsa Family Game Night (5:30 - 7:00 PM)

April 11th - Kegonsa Spring Fling Dance (5:30 - 7:00 PM)

Office hours: 7:00 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.

School hours: 7:45 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. Doors open at 7:35 a.m.

Please try to get your student to school by 7:35 every day. It gives your students ample time to get to their locker, chat with friends, and grab breakfast. We start our morning meeting at 7:45 and it is hard for kids to walk in late to the classroom when everyone is already begun the day.

If students are not in their classroom at 7:45 they will be marked tardy.

If a student is absent or tardy, parents and/or guardians must contact the school by either calling the school attendance line or sending a note to the office.

To leave an absence message, please call 877-5200 and listen to the attendance line prompt. Provide your name, child’s name, homeroom teacher, date of absence, and reason for absence.

When a student is absent and the parent/guardian has not contacted the school, an automated message will be sent to your phone(s) and/or email advising you that your child is not present in school. If you do not confirm the absence, your child will be marked with an “unexcused” absence. For further information regarding the School Board of Education and the State of Wisconsin policies for student Attendance, please consult the 2023-24 Stoughton Area School District Legal Notices and Student Policy Handbook.

A student may be excused by a parent/guardian for ten full days per school year. The parent or guardian must call the school to excuse the absence. These absences are considered parent-excused absences.

• Partial days combine to contribute to the 10 excused absences a student may have each year. The following explains a ‘partial’ day: Arriving later than 8:30 a.m. or departing earlier than 2:15 p.m. would count as one half-day absence. Two half-days would combine into a full day.

• Any absences beyond the ten parent excused absences will be considered unexcused unless the absence is included in the list of excusable absences below.

Students who have accumulated 5 or more unexcused absences per semester are considered by the school board and the State of Wisconsin to be habitually truant.

• At this point, a meeting between school staff and the parent/guardian would be held to develop an attendance improvement plan. We understand that various barriers may prevent regular attendance, and we are committed to working with you to overcome them.

• When the attendance improvement plan is made, the student’s attendance will be monitored and is expected to improve. If no improvement is made, the school may file with the court that the student is habitually truant. The parent/guardian may receive a fine of over $500.

Students can be excused for these specific reasons:

• Medical, dental, counseling or other professional appointments that cannot be scheduled outside the school day may be medically excused with proper written documentation from the provider.

• A court appearance or other legal procedure that requires the student’s presence.

• An emergency in the family or other crisis that requires the student to be absent

• A death in the immediate family, or funerals for relatives or close friends.

• Religious holiday.

• Absence from school during a period of suspension or expulsion.

• Approved school activities during class time.

• Special circumstances that show good cause and which are approved by the school principal.

Bus arrival: Students arriving by bus will enter the building at 7:35 a.m. All students will enter the building at 7:35 and proceed to their classrooms. If you have any questions regarding transportation, please call 608-877-5062

Kindergarten and 1st-grade students should be dropped off at the west circle driveway (located near the K-2 wing of the building). Kindergartners and first graders will enter through door #3.

2nd - 5th-grade students should be dropped off at the main entrance drive starting at 7:35 a.m. They will enter through door #1. We have outside supervision beginning at 7:30.

Notes about drop-off:

• *If you have a K-1 and 2-5 students, you can drop them off at the main entrance.

• Staff members in both circle parking lots will greet your children at their car door to ensure their safe arrival into the building.

K-1: will exit the building with their teachers through door 3 (West Entrance)
2-5: Students in 2-5 who are being picked up by car or foot will leave through door 1(front entrance)
*K/1 siblings may join 2-5 students at the main entrance. Please communicate the plan with the teacher of the youngest sibling.

Kegonsa Drop Off after 7:45 am

Kegonsa mid-day arrival/departures

• Parents/guardians should contact the office in advance with the time of pick up, name of the person picking up, name of the student(s), and their teacher.
• Parents/guardians may need to show ID at pick-up time.

Kegonsa Elementary School implements the Raptor System as a safety and security measure. During school hours, all doors will be locked. Visitors must enter through the main door at the front entrance, where the front office staff will buzz them.

SECURED ENTRANCES – All of our doors will be locked during the school day from 7:45 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. When a visitor comes to the building during the school day, please look to the right of the doors. You will see a small camera and buzzer to alert the main office of your arrival. At this point, the visitor will wait for an office staff member to buzz him/her into the building. Once buzzed into the building, the visitor will proceed to the office.

RAPTOR – Once a visitor enters the office, he/she will present state-issued identification to an office staff member. If it is the visitor’s first time visiting a building, his/her ID card will be scanned into Raptor. Raptor collects the ID photo, name, date of birth, and first four digits of the license number on the identification to perform an instant sex offender background check against databases in all 50 states. Once that person’s ID is scanned, he/she is entered into the system. The office staff member will identify whether the individual is visiting the building or volunteering in a specific area or classroom. Once this information is entered, a visitor badge will be printed with the visitor’s name, picture, and destination in the building. When the visitor is leaving, he/she must stop back in the main office to check out.

Students Picked Up From School - A note or a phone call must be received from the parent or guardian for your child to be picked up by you or someone else after school, for an appointment during school hours, or if you will change the normal after-school route home. If you need to call the school with this information, please call the Kegonsa Office (877-5200) to leave a message; do not leave a voicemail for the teacher or a message on the school attendance line. So that the office staff has sufficient time to deliver your message to your student, please contact the school before 2:45 p.m.

Bus Notes - A note for the bus driver, signed by Kegonsa office staff, is required when

• There is a change in where your child will be dropped off.

• When your child will be riding a different bus.

• Any time a friend rides home with your child.

• Any time your child rides home with another child on the bus.

Recess Notes - Parents and guardians are asked to refrain from sending notes requesting that their child stay in for recess unless they have a doctor’s note.

Kegonsa School has an inclement weather policy. Students are not allowed to go outside when the weather conditions harm their health and safety. Our policy is that the children will not go out for recess whenever the wind chill is below -5 degrees.

If you’ve ever considered making extra money by helping as a substitute in the school, Lauren at ESS would love to share some information with you! ESS is hiring for several substitute positions in SASD. To learn more about these opportunities or the steps needed to start your sub career, you can email Lauren at lamburn@ess.com or give her a call at 608.607.7326.

ESS partners with SASD to provide substitute teachers, aides, and more. You can find them on Facebook at ESS WI. From now through September 13th, please like/follow ESS WI for an entry to win a $50 Amazon gift card! For an extra entry, please like and comment on a post (one additional entry for every new post you like and comment on). For another additional entry, share one of our posts! (one additional entry per share).

Our winner* will be announced on Monday, September 16th!

*additional winners may be chosen based on the total number of entries

Ms. Conrad, Principal (877-5201)

Mrs. Nelson, Dean of Students (877-5222)

Mrs. Southern, Front Office Admin Assistant (877-5202)

Mr. Schultz, School Counselor (877-5229)

Mrs. Menon, School Psychologist (877-5276)

Mrs. McDermot, School Social Worker (440-0270)

Mrs. Hart, Health Assistant (877-5204)

Email: erin.conrad@stoughton.k12.wi.us
Website: http://www.stoughton.k12.wi.us/page.cfm?p=619
Location: Kegonsa Elementary School, Vernon Street, Stoughton, WI, United States
Phone: 608-877-5202
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/stoughtonschools/
Twitter: @WeAreStoughton