Northpoint Newsletter

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The countdown has reached single digits!!! The building has been buzzing this week as staff get ready to welcome students to the new year. It was great to see so many of the students back in the building today to meet their teacher! It’s always fun to see how much they have changed in three short months! If you have any questions following meet and greet, please contact the main office or reach out to your child’s teacher directly.

With the first day of school just five short days away, please take a few minutes to have a conversation with your child(ren) about how they are feeling about school. Also, if on the first day of school, your transportation plan is different than the rest of the year, please make sure your child’s classroom teacher is aware. We want to make sure each child knows how they are getting home on that first day of school!

We can’t wait to see all the students back next Tuesday, September 3 at 9:10 a.m. for the first day of school!

Enjoy these last few days of summer!

Tyler Nelson

Northpoint Principal

Students may be dropped off starting at 9 a.m. Due to safety reasons, we are unable to have students dropped off prior to 9 a.m. without adult supervision. Students will wait outside until the bell rings at 9:10 a.m. at which time students will enter the building. Students that are eating breakfast may enter the building at 9 a.m. Northpoint staff will provide supervision outside from 9-9:20 a.m.

There are two options for arrival and dismissal for students that are dropped off and picked up. Please review and choose the one that works best for your family.

Walk-up Option

Walk-up/Arrival

• Families may park in the parking lot and escort their student to the front of the building using the crosswalk starting at 9 a.m.
  

Walk-up/Dismissal

• Families may park in the parking lot and wait in front of the building. Students will be dismissed starting at 3:55 p.m.
  

Please do not drop off or pick up students in the parking lot and have them cross the street alone.

Drive-up Option

Drive-up/Arrival

• Students may be dropped off starting at 9 a.m.

Drive-up/Dismissal

• Students will be dismissed from the gym at 3:55 p.m. under the supervision of school staff to meet their parents in the drive-up line. Northpoint will provide a sign to post in your window during dismissal. Please include your child’s first and last name, and their homeroom teacher. We count on this information to help the process go as efficiently as possible. Parents may begin to line up in front of the building no earlier than 3:35 p.m.

Please practice the following in the drive-up line during arrival and dismissal:

• Stay in your car while dropping off students
• Pull as far forward before dropping off your students
• Students must exit curbside
• Please follow the traffic flow and do not pass other vehicles
• Do not block neighboring business driveways when waiting

Find our Spring Lake Park Schools School Handbook for 2024-2025 at SpringLakeParkSchools.org/schoolhandbook. The handbook is a guide for families and students on the practical aspects of school – start and end times, procedures for absences, transportation, meals, policies and more. Please review the information and refer to it, as needed, throughout the year and contact your school as you have questions.

As we enter a new school year, there are several important things to know about school meals:

• Breakfast and lunch meals: Each student will continue to get one breakfast and one lunch free of charge each day at school.
  
• Purchase of additional food items: During lunch, students have the option to purchase additional food items (second milk, extra entree, bottled water, etc.) if they have funds in their account. You can add funds to a meal account through Campus Parent Portal, or by sending cash or check with your child or directly to your school. If you do not want your student to purchase additional items, please complete this form and email it to foodservice@district16.org.
  
• Educational Benefits Application: Although no application is required to receive meals at no cost this school year, filling out the application for Educational Benefits is still important and it is critical families who may be eligible complete an application each year. By completing the application, students may receive free or reduced fees for a number of school programs. Applications have recently arrived in family mailboxes. We did a district-wide communication to families earlier this week encouraging families to complete an application. Please note, if your family already received an approval letter for the 2024-2025 school year, you do not need to re-apply for educational benefits.

Learn more about school meals on the Nutrition Services webpage.

• Bus Tracking (MyStop app): We use MyStop, which is web-based application available to parents and students that allows them access to live bus GPS information. Using a smartphone, tablet or desktop computer, parents and students can view the current location of buses on routes and the estimated time of arrival at their neighborhood bus stops. Learn more about MyStop.
• Bus Safety: It is very important all students and families understand our bus safety rules:
• Stay out of the “Danger Zone” around the bus
• o Follow the driver’s instructions
• Be on time for the bus – five minutes early
• Always sit down and face forward
• Be courteous. No pushing, tripping, swearing or yelling.
• No eating or drinking
• Keep your bus clean. Do not damage the bus.
• Keep your head and arms inside the bus window
• Never throw objects inside or out of the bus
• No animals on the bus
• Plan to ride the bus: For students who ride the bus, please plan for your student to ride the bus on the first day of school to help us work out all our routines and eliminate as much confusion as possible. The transportation department appreciates your patience as we navigate the beginning of a new school year.
• Transportation webpage and contact information: Find all transportation information on the transportation webpage. For any questions regarding transportation, please contact the transportation department at transportation@district16.org or 763-600-5590.

At the beginning of each year, we provide families with important notifications. Many of these notifications align to our school district policies and practices. Please take a few minutes to review the information and take any actions that align with your family’s preferences.

These notices cover:

• Media permission and directory information
• Technology responsible use policy
• Student Behavior and Attendance Expectations
• Data privacy
• Supplemental student accident insurance

Review these notifications on the back-to-school hub under Annual Required Notifications. Please direct any questions to the main office of your student's school.’

• Tuesday, September 3 - First Day of School: for grades K-8 and Lighthouse students, orientation for grade 9 students and grades 10-12 students new to the high school
• Wednesday, September 4 - First Day of School: for returning grades 10-12 students who are not new to the high school
• Monday, September 9 - Northpoint PTO Meeting, Northpoint media center, 6:30-7:30 p.m.
• Saturday, September 14 - "Start your Engines" Community Event, Spring Lake Park High School, 11 a.m.-1:30 p.m.
• Monday, September 16 - Grupo de Padres Hispanohablantes de SLP reunion, 5 p.m., Woodcrest Spanish Immersion School
• September 23-27 - Homecoming Week
• Friday, September 27 -
• Northpoint PTO Sponsored Fun Run
• Homecoming Football Game, Panther Stadium, 7 p.m.
• Wednesday, October 2 - Live on 65: After Hours Big Band – Buy tickets

Now through September 6, save 20% of Panther Gear at the store and online with code 24Kickoff. The store, located at Spring Lake Park High School, will be open Wednesday, August 28 and Thursday, August 29 from 1-3 p.m. and Thursday, September 5 from 4-8 p.m.

• Back to School hub
  
• Get Ready to "Start Your Engines"
  
• Fall programs available for all!
  

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