Center School Newsletter

September 8, 2024

This week:

Wednesday, September 11 - Center School Open House

@ 5:30 - 7:00 pm

CORI Forms

CORI forms will be processed in the office from 5:30 - 7:00 pm during Open House. If you would like a paper copy of the CORI form to fill out before Open House, please send a note to your child's teacher or click on the doc for the PDF to print at home.

Please bring your driver's license to be photocopied.

Center/OHS School Council

We are looking for parents and a community member to join our joint Center/OHS School Council. We meet once a month from 3:15 - 4:15 pm.

School Councils have four major areas of responsibility to assist principals in:

Adopting educational goals for the school that are consistent with local educational policies and statewide student performance standards
Identifying the educational needs of students attending the school
Reviewing the annual school building budget
Formulating a school improvement plan

Please email Linda Ashley, Principal, if interested. lindaashley@oldrochester.org

Important: Please complete the PowerSchool Forms including Nurse Emergency Information

Annual forms (in the General tab) are now available in PowerSchool for all families to complete for each student(s), including information for the nurse’s office. The information in these forms is populated from information you have previously provided, so in most cases, it’s a quick review and update as needed. Please login to PowerSchool using your parent account and click on Forms in the left menu. The '‘General’ tab should open with the annual forms for you to review and update as needed.

 After reviewing and/or updating, please be sure to submit the form so we know everything is

up-to-date!

 Forms are mobile-friendly, but for the best experience, please utilize a computer.

 Annual forms are required by all families, even those that may have recently registered and

completed enrollment forms.

Click here to login to PowerSchool.

If you have any questions, please contact Erin Monteforte, School Secretary. erinmonteforte@oldrochester.org

Student Handbook Reminders:

Mattapoisett Student Handbook link

Attendance: Full days of attendance are essential to the learning process. If a child is to be out of school, parents/guardians should call the nurse’s office at 508-758-2521 before 9:00 am on the morning of the absence. Please provide the following information in the message that you leave on the voicemail: student’s name, teacher, and reason for absence. If a call is not received and a student is absent, the School Office uses the Blackboard Connect messaging system to contact parents/guardians at home or work. After any absence, students should present a parent’s note indicating the reason for the absence to the School Nurse.

Absences are “excused” for only the following reasons:

Bereavement
Hospitalization
School-sponsored trip
Documented court or legal commitment
Obligatory religious holidays
Illness substantiated by a note (Five days or more of continuous absences for medical reasons must be corroborated by a physician’s note).
Weather so inclement as to endanger the health of the child

A child may also be excused for other exceptional reasons with approval of the Principal or designee.

In instances of chronic or irregular absence reportedly due to illness, the school administration may request a physician's statement certifying such absences to be justified.

Excessive absenteeism can occur because families take vacations during school time. This is strongly discouraged. Teachers will not provide assignments prior to vacations taken during school time. After students return to school they will be made aware of missed assignments, making them up as soon as possible. Missed assignments are factored into students’ grades.

We are glad to be back at school playing at recess and making new friends at lunch!

Breakfast and Lunch Information:

Although one lunch and one breakfast each day are free this year, we still need families to complete the free and reduced lunch application forms. These forms need to be completed every year. The online forms can be found by using this link: orrschoolmeals.com

Breakfast is served each day from 8:15 - 8:30 AM.
Additional milk can be purchased for a fee.

Milk costs .65 cents (Please note that students will need to pay for milk if they bring their lunch.)

Please help your student bring a healthy snack each day, packed separately from their lunch.

Please contact Mrs. Balsis, our school nurse, with any questions regarding allergies. jaimebalsis@oldrochester.org

Student Absences: It is important for us to know if your child will be absent from school. Please call 508-758-2521, Press 2 for the School Nurse, and leave a message by 8:30 AM. Thank you!

As part of our arrival procedures, if parents/guardians do not notify us of their child's absence, we will call you to ensure your child's safety.

Visitors: All of our schools continue to use Raptor Technology for all visitors entering our buildings. All visitors and volunteers are required to have a valid driver’s license or Massachusetts-issued identification card to be scanned upon entering the building for any reason.

CORI Forms: CORI forms are valid for one calendar year. The Old Rochester School District requires all volunteers to complete the CORI process before they are permitted to volunteer in classrooms or attend field trips. The forms must be completed in person at the school, and a government-issued photo ID must be presented.

Your child's safety is our primary concern! Your cooperation and support with the following procedures are greatly appreciated.

Morning Arrival:

School doors open at 8:15 AM, and school begins at 8:30 AM.

Car Arrival: Parents/Guardians may drop off students from 8:15 AM until 8:30 AM. Please use the Hammond Street entrance and follow the drop-off line around the side of the school. Please follow staff members' directions to assist with your child’s safe arrival. For safety, please have students exit the vehicle on the right side, closest to the school.

Late Arrivals: Parents/guardians must come into the school to sign their student in at the office if they arrive after 8:30 AM.

Bus Arrival:

Buses drop students off beginning at 8:15 AM at the front entrance.
Bus schedules are posted on the Old Rochester District website under transportation. Please check your child's bus schedule, as bus routes may have changed since last year.

Bus Dismissal: Students are dismissed at 2:45 PM—students board buses between 2:45 and 3:00.

Parent/Guardian pick-up. Staff members dismiss students at the school's side entrance beginning at 2:45 PM when their parent/guardian's vehicle pulls up next to the school.