Summer Update

August 14 - Fall Sports Begin

August 14 - Board of Education Meeting

August 22 - Opening Day

August 26 - FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL!

September 2– Labor Day Holiday – Schools Closed

September 20 - Early Dismissal – Teacher In-Service

Hello TCPS Families!

This is our Summer Update! I hope you’re having a fantastic summer, because WOW is it flying by!

The wonderful thing about being a part of this community is that I see many students, families and staff during the summer. Whether it’s in the grocery store, at the gym, or a community event - I see you spending time with friends, family, and doing the things you enjoy.

The TCPS team has been very busy not only charting the course for the upcoming year but celebrating and reflecting on the impact that was made with our students this past school year. Last week our Leadership Team had an inspiring week-long retreat, learning about ourselves as leaders, as well as those we lead, and how we impact them.

The Board of Education held its monthly meeting on Wednesday, July 17th. They approved the updated Student Attendance Policy 10.2, and several other revised policies were moved to second and third reader. These are available for your review and comment on the Policies page of the TCPS website and are linked in this update.

Please look for information from your child’s school about laptop pick-up and back to school conferences. As a reminder, the first day of school for all students is Monday, August 26.

I am so excited to begin my third year as your superintendent and I can’t wait to see our students and staff return next month. Enjoy the rest of the summer and remember it’s always a great day for success at TCPS!

The Talbot County Public Schools Board of Education is in the process of adopting a new platform for Board meetings. This platform, known as BoardDocs, will share the meeting agendas and documents from the Board meetings with the public and will also provide live coverage of the Board meetings to our community. For the months of July and August, 2024, while the Board transfers platforms, we will be unable to share the documents or provide live coverage of the Board meetings. The public may attend the Open meetings of the Board and view the documents at the meetings. The agenda is available for view on the Talbot County Public Schools website (linked below). Minutes of the meetings will be provided to the public on the new platform. We apologize for any inconvenience to the public. We should be back to our normal course of doing business for our September meeting. Please direct any questions you may have to Faith Brundige, Executive Assistant to the Superintendent, at faith.brundige@talbotschools.org or 410-822-0330.

We had many students involved with the Plein Air events from July 12th through the 21st. TCPS Teachers Christina King and Anna Madachik held a Plein Air camp through the Avalon theater / Avalon Foundation in which 19 TCPS students participated.

The Next Generation Art Contest took place over the July 19th weekend. Violet Masone was awarded 3rd place in the 12 and older category, and Isaias Herrera Felipe was awarded 2nd place in 11 and younger category. Congratulations to all of our talented students!

Many thanks to our high school students who volunteered for the camps, including:

Alexis Herrera Felipe

Karen Alvarado Andrade

Kayla (Ollie) West

Joe Pierson

On July 9, 2024, an automatically generated email was sent to all families, requesting the completion of an “Opt-In” form that pertained to your child’s transportation for the upcoming school year. This is a reminder that this form needs to be completed by the deadline of August 2, 2024.

The reasons for the implementation of this process this school year are as follows:

• Bus Routing Efficiency - By completing the form, we are able to more efficiently route students across the county. Families that notify TCPS that they do not need bus service allow the department to remove unneeded stops from our routes, which can help support reduced ride times for all students. To date we have received responses for more than 1,400 students, 280 of which have declined transportation services.

• Driver Shortages - There continues to be a national shortage of school bus drivers. An additional benefit to completing the Opt-In form is that the information will allow for the potential consolidation of bus routes, which may reduce the number of drivers needed.

If you have not received the Opt-In email for your child, please contact your school and ensure that your contact information is correct in PowerSchool. For families that do not have an email address, it is important to make your school aware so that information can be distributed through alternative means.

Thank you in advance for your help with this initiative.

With the new school year approaching, now is a great time to think abut safety. Join the 350 parents, teachers, and students who have already made the important decision to enroll in SafeTime. The app is designed to both empower us all with a super easy social media integrated tool to alert the proper authorities if we see something suspicious, AND to raise student self-esteem via the creation and exposure to fun, positive messaging.

• Certified Nursing Assistant Instructor
• Secondary Science Teacher
• School Social Worker
• Special Education Teacher
• Occupational Therapist (MSSEC)

• School Bus Driver | salary range: $23.51 - $31.77 per hour
• School Bus Assistant | $16.38 - $22.19 per hour
• Instructional Assistant
• Substitute Teacher
• Custodian

2024 Youth Sports Programs for Perkins Family and Easton Family YMCA

FC Tred Avon Fall Soccer: Ages 2-13

· Season Runs August 26-October 26 with one weeknight practice and Saturday games

· Early Bird Registration runs April 1 - June 30: $75 Members / $100 Participants

· Standard Registration runs July 1 - August 1: $85 Members / $110 Participants

· Sponsors and Coaches needed. Discount may apply to registration fee with coaching commitment

Youth Basketball: Ages 3-12

· Season Runs October 21 - December 21 with one weeknight practice and Saturday games

· Early Bird Registration runs August 1 - September 8: $75 Members / $100 Participants

· Standard Registration runs September 9 - October 6: $85 Members / $110 Participants

· Sponsors and Coaches needed. Discount may apply to registration fee with coaching commitment

Indoor Soccer: Ages 2-11

· Season Runs January 11, 2025 - March 1, 2025 with Saturday practices and games

· Early Bird Registration runs October 7 - November 17: $75 Members / $100 Participants

· Standard Registration runs November 18 - December 18: $85 Members / $110 Participants

· Sponsors and Coaches needed. Discount may apply to registration fee with coaching commitment

Contact:

Perkins Family YMCA Programs:

Tracy Eutsler - teutsler@ymcachesapeake.org or

Jennifer Dean - perkinssports@ymcachesapeake.org

Easton Family YMCA Programs:

Bunky Murray - jmurray@ymcachesapeake.org

FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE IS AVAILABLE

The Talbot County Public Schools neither endorses nor sponsors the organization(s) or activity(ies) contained herein. The views contained herein are those of the author and are not necessarily shared by Talbot County Public Schools. The availability of this material is provided as a community service.

This year TCPS is going “cashless” for tickets for all of our athletic events using GoFan. You can purchase tickets ahead of time online or at the gate using a credit or debit card. GoFan accepts Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Discover. Tickets can also be purchased at the gate using Apple Pay and Google Pay. Admission to all events at the Easton High and St. Michaels High Stadiums and Gymnasiums is $6 (children 6 and under are free). Cash payment will not be accepted at the gate.

Tickets can be purchased using the following links:

Easton High

St. Michaels Middle High