The FAST Flyer

As we continue our journey through another exciting school year, I want to take a moment to recognize the incredible dedication of our teachers, staff, and support team here at FAST. Their commitment to nurturing and guiding our students is truly commendable, and I am grateful for their hard work each day.

As partners in your child’s education, we all share the same goal—to create a positive, safe, and supportive learning environment. Our staff strives to meet the needs of every student, often going above and beyond to ensure their success. However, this work is not without its challenges, and kindness, patience, and mutual respect go a long way in maintaining a strong and collaborative school community.

I kindly ask that when communicating with our teachers and staff, whether in person, over email, or by phone, we all take a moment to approach conversations with courtesy and understanding. Our team is always happy to assist and work with families to address concerns, but respect and kindness must remain at the core of our interactions.

Thank you for your continued support in making FAST a welcoming and respectful environment for all. Your partnership means the world to us, and I appreciate everything you do to help us maintain a positive and uplifting school culture.

With gratitude,

Mary H Miller, MA. Ed.

Principal

As you have probably heard, the Fulton County Tech Competition was held on February 2. The results are in and FAST had an outstanding showing at the event. 19 of the 30 FAST students who presented their project at the competition placed in 1st-3rd place. Seven of those students took first place and will be going on to compete in the Georgia state competition. Please join us in congratulating these impressive students.

Your voice matters! Help us create a safe, supportive, and thriving environment for our students by participating in the Georgia School Climate Survey.

This quick, anonymous survey gathers feedback on our school’s learning environment, safety, relationships, and overall climate. Your insights directly influence decisions to improve programs, policies, and culture—and impact school ratings with the State of Georgia.

Please take a few moments to complete the survey by March 31, 2025. https://survey.gadoe.org/FM?sid=447B545A

Please respond as your participation directly impacts your school ratings with the State of Georgia.

Thank you for your partnership in making our school the best it can be!

Kindness Week is a special time where students engage in activities that promote empathy, generosity, and friendship. Through school-wide initiatives, we encourage acts of kindness, appreciation for others, and a spirit of giving that extends beyond just one day. This approach ensures that every child feels valued and included.

FAST Charter is excited to announce that we will be adopting a local stream to help monitor water quality and we need your help. If you are interested in becoming certified and volunteering to help with this program, please sign-up. More information about training dates will be sent to volunteers who sign-up.

Georgia Adopt-A-Stream is the state's volunteer water quality monitoring program. Our volunteers select a site along a local stream, wetland, lake, or estuary to adopt. They regularly monitor their site and submit monitoring data to our online database. Types of monitoring include chemical, bacterial, macroinvertebrate, visual, and amphibian monitoring.

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F0C48ADA92DA5F58-54639375-adoptastream

We are excited to announce that this year’s yearbook is now available for pre-order! Our yearbook will be filled with special memories, class photos, and highlights from the 2024-2025 school year.

To reserve your student's yearbook or purchase an ad, please visit: https://shop.memorybook.com/ and reference School Code: 246825M. All users will have to Register the first time they access the site.

If you haven’t already, please take a moment to complete our Intent to Return Survey. Your response helps us plan for next year by giving us an accurate count of returning students, which in turn allows us to determine how many seats we have available for the lottery. We ask all families to respond to this by the end of the week with your current plans -- we understand that things can change, you can always update us later on.

If you have a child who will be new to FAST next year, you’ll have the chance to indicate that while reserving your currently enrolled child’s spot. The website will guide you to the lottery application for any new siblings.

Important Reminder:

• All siblings who are not currently enrolled at FAST must apply for the lottery.
• Sibling spots are not guaranteed and depend on seat availability.

Please ensure you complete the lottery application process for any siblings who wish to join FAST. Currently enrolled students do not need to enter the lottery.

https://www.abcenroll.com/fastk8-intent-to-return.html

The International Arts & Culture Festival is a vibrant celebration of the diverse cultures within our FAST community. Our family- and student-driven event will feature cultural booths, exciting performances, delicious food, and a fashion show, all highlighting the unique traditions and talents of FAST families. This is our biggest and most popular PTO event of the school year and is not to be missed!

Important Dates:

• Passports are on sale! Each student will need a passport to attend. Parents and children under 4 are free with student passport purchase.
• February 21 from 5-8pm: FAST's International Arts and Culture Festival

How Can You Get Involved?

1. Plan the Event: Join our planning committee to coordinate activities, decorations, and logistics.
2. Perform: Showcase your talent and share your culture through a performance!
3. Host a Culture Booth: Represent your country with a booth featuring music, art, crafts, or food. Each booth comes with a $50 stipend to help with materials. Participation is not limited to countries—families can also represent specific regions or individual states in the U.S.

Volunteers also enjoy special parking and VIP lounge access, complete with dinner.

Whether you have a little or a lot of time to give, your support will make these events unforgettable! Please reach out to ptoevents@fastk8.org with any questions or learn more.

Book your mini photo session with our fantastic business partner and fellow FAST parent!

Feb. 14-21: Random Acts of Kindness Week

Feb. 17: Presidents' Day (SCHOOL CLOSED)

Feb. 18: PD Day (STUDENTS OFF)

Feb. 21: International Night

Feb. 28: Out of uniform day

March 3-4: PD Days (STUDENTS OFF)

FAST leverages various means of communications to keep our families up to date with what is happening at school. Since most people are on social media, we post to different platforms to keep you up to date. If you aren't already following us, check us out on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.

All students are expected to be in full uniform every day. The full uniform code can be found on our website at: https://www.fastk8.org/fast-apparel-and-supplies/

Students who are not in full uniform will have their parents contacted.

As a reminder students are not permitted to use their cell phones or Bluetooth devices throughout the day. Students who have a cell phone out after school begins at 7:40am through 3pm will have their phone confiscated for the day. Please remind your students of this policy so that you will not have to come to the office to retrieve their phone.

ABSENCES: Please report student absences to both attendance@fastk8.org and your student's homeroom teacher. You may send doctors' notes for absences directly to attendance@fastk8.org

CURRICULUM/CLASSROOM CONCERNS: If you have questions or concerns regarding your child's class, your first point of contact should be your child’s classroom teacher. If further clarification or assistance is needed, you can contact the respective assistant principal (anesha.james@fastk8.org or elementary or demetria.walker@fastk8.org for middle school.)

TRANSPORTATION CHANGES: If your student will have a change to their afternoon transportation (whether it is for a day or long-term), please be sure that you are communicating any changes to your student's afternoon dismissal to both their homeroom teacher and Ms. Cadogan (gail.cadogan@fastk8.org).

If your child is not feeling well, we encourage you to keep them home to avoid spreading illness at school. Please keep in mind that if a student is running a fever they are expected to remain out of school until they have been fever free without the use of medication for a full 24 hours.

Students must be in homeroom by 7:40am each day. Please be sure that you are allowing time to navigate carpool and your student to get to class on time. If you arrive after 8am, you will need to come into Innovation Hall to sign in your student.

Early dismissals are not permitted after 2:40pm (M-Th, 1:40pm Fridays). If you need to pick up your child for any reason, please plan accordingly.

Please remember that FAST is a nut free school. Students should not bring any foods for lunch or snack that contain any nut products including, but not limited to, peanut butter or almond butter.

This is a serious risk to those students with severe allergies. Your cooperation in this matter is appreciated.

To keep up to date with the most recent information available from our district offices, please click on the image below.

Email: info@fastk8.org
Website: www.fastk8.org
Location: 11365 Crabapple Road, Roswell, GA, USA
Phone: 678-321-1100
Facebook: facebook.com/FASTK8.School/
Twitter: @fastk8charter

The FAST Flyer is the electronic newsletter at FAST. Feedback is always welcome. If you have any questions, please call the school (678-321-1100) or email the FAST Communications Director at marie.emerson@fastk8.org.