Kelly Newsletter

Dear Kelly Families~

The 2024-25 school year is just around the corner and it’s time to welcome both our new and returning students and families to Kelly School. Our building has been buzzing with activity this summer as a large crew has been working on the installation of a new HVAC system. The project is currently on track for completion prior to the school year starting. It will be great for our primary classrooms to finally be air conditioned! We are excited for our families to see and experience our "cool" teaching and learning environments when we come together for Open House on Monday, August 26 from 3:30-5:30pm. It will be a great time to welcome our new families and reconnect with old Kelly School friends. At Open House, you will be able to meet your child's teacher and drop off school supplies. We will also have tables set up in the gym to deposit money into your child's lunch account, meet the nurse, visit with our PTO, purchase spirit wear, and get additional information about the upcoming school year. We can't wait to see everyone!

As we look forward to the upcoming school year, we want you to know that our entire staff is eager to begin working with you as a partner in your child’s education. It’s going to be another successful academic year for our Kelly Cougars.

Please take some time to read through the information below. I realize it's lengthy, but the information included is relevant to the beginning of the school year and pertains to a wide variety of topics.

Looking forward to seeing you all very soon~

Kelli Tannahill

Principal

School Day:

The first day of school is Tuesday, August 27th. The school day is from 8:25am-3:00pm. The first bell rings at 8:20 am. School begins at 8:25 am. Breakfast is offered 7:40-8:15am. Students coming to breakfast must enter the building using Door 16 which is in the north parking lot.

Arrival/Dismissal:

We ask that students be dropped off between 8:15-8:20am at their designated door. As a reminder, there is no morning supervision on the playground. If your child arrives early and does not attend breakfast, he/she will be unsupervised until 7:55am. Entryways will be supervised by paraprofessionals from 7:55-8:20.

At the end of each school day, older siblings will meet their younger siblings at their classrooms and will exit the building together at the youngest sibling's door. Teachers will walk their classes to their assigned doors at 3:00 for dismissal.

Students riding the bus or childcare vans will be dismissed through Door #1.

ASSIGNED DOORS:

Door 1: All Kindergarten

Door 2: Cebula, Miller, Restad, Klingler

Door 4: All 3rd Grade, Kossan, Sorensen

Door 5: Aubol, Pederson

Door 11: All 5th Grade

Door 13: All 1st Grade

Door 16: Special Education Bus

Nothing is more important than the safety of our students. For those of you returning to Kelly School, you are aware that the congestion in our parking lots at arrival and dismissal time can be a source of frustration.

We are asking all families to review and follow the traffic flow procedures outlined in the maps below. They have been designed to ensure the safety of all and to expedite the arrival and dismissal process.

NOTE: TRAFFIC ONLY FLOWS ONE DIRECTION IN THE NORTH PARKING LOT. Please adhere to following this traffic flow pattern at all times. Traffic should only flow into the north lot from Oak or 29th and out onto Cherry Street before, after, and during the school day. The same traffic pattern must be also be followed on early dismissal days as well. Please do not exit the north parking lot onto Oak Street. This slows down traffic by causing congestion and puts our students who walk across the parking lot at risk.

Thanks in advance for your cooperation in advance.

Kelli

If your student plans on returning to Kelly School please make sure you complete the registration process in the Parent PowerSchool Portal. This needs to be done for every child-new or returning.

How do I get started?

If you have not already done so, you will need to create a PowerSchool Single Sign-On Account that links all your school-age children to the same account. If you need the information to set up your account, please contact the school office.

Visit https://grand-forks.ps.state. nd.us/public/ and log into the PowerSchool Parent Portal. From the Parent Portal:

1. Select the student you wish to register at the top.

2. Select the Registration (24-25) link on the left side of the screen.

3. Agree to the terms and conditions

4. Click Begin Forms

For schools that have bus routes, parent(s)/guardian(s) will be able to sign up for regular route busing for the 2024-2025 school year while completing registration in PowerSchool. If you have completed the signup and require a change to your information, please contact your respective schools’ administrative staff to update any information.

Your child's assigned teacher will be available to view on August 21st. Lists will be posted at the main entrance of the school and will be visible in Power School as well. As we work to finalize class lists, please know that although you may be able to see them in Power School before the 21st, these lists are only drafts and changes may occur. To view your child's teacher on August 21st, go to the Parent Power School Portal at https://grand-forks.ps.state.nd.us/public.

Note: Teachers, specialists and administrators have spent numerous hours considering many variables while creating class lists. Changes will unlikely be made once lists are posted. Each child's academic and social emotional needs, personality traits, and learning style are taken into consideration when assigning him/her to a classroom teacher. Thank you for your trust and support in this area.

The Early Dismissal Program

This year, Kelly School will offer The Early Dismissal Program. This program operates from 1:30-3p.m. on early dismissal Wednesdays for the 2024-2025school year. This program is free and is being offered in cooperation with Grand Forks Public Schools ENCORE program. Registration is required and you can register your child on the night of the open house. If you were enrolled last year, their enrollment will not carry over.

For additional information on the ENCORE program, please visit https://www.gfschools.org/departments/encore-program

Thank you,

Kayla Erickson, Director of ENCORE

PARAPROFESSIONALS NEEDED FOR THE SCHOOL YEAR!

We have full-time positions available for paraprofessionals at Kelly School supporting students in our autism classrooms. We would love for you to join our Kelly Team! If you are interested or know someone who may be, please contact LuAnn or Kelli at 701-746-2265.

Monday, August 26th-Open House 3:30-5:30pm

Tuesday, August 27th-1st Day of School

Monday, September 2nd-NO SCHOOL

Tuesday, September 10th-School Pictures

Wednesday, September 18th-1:30 Dismissal

Wednesday, October 2nd-1:30 Dismissal

Thursday, October 3rd-PT Conferences 4:00-7:00

Friday, October 4th-No School for Elementary and Middle Schools

Friday, October 4th-PT Conferences 8:00-4:00

Tuesday, October 8th-PT Conferences 4:00-7:00

• The cost of student's lunch is $2.20, reduced is $1.20. The cost of student's breakfast is $1.20, reduced is $0.00.
• Please click on this link for the Fee and Reduced Lunch Application: https://www.myschoolapps.com/
• IF YOU QUALIFIED FOR THIS PROGRAM IN THE PAST YOU WILL STILL NEED TO COMPLETE THE FORM FOR THE 2024-2025 SCHOOL YEAR.
• You can check your child's lunch account balance and meal purchases or pay for your child's lunch by going to myschoolbucks.com. It's super easy and convenient.
• In accordance with the Grand Forks Public School Wellness Policy #6175 we strive to be superior in our nutrition standards. This means that no fast food or other restaurant food is allowed in the lunchroom for any student.
• Our district campuses are PEANUT & TREE NUT restricted. We have children in our building that have severe life threatening allergies to peanuts, nuts and products that have peanut or nut traces in them. Please check labels when packing school lunch or snacks for your child.
• If paying by check, please make the check payable to GFPS or Grand Forks Public Schools.

Grand Forks Public Schools will once again use Teacher Lists to share 2024-2025 school supply lists with our families! This free tool allows families to find and shop their student's supply list easily with the convenience of one-click shopping or in-store pickup from several national retailers, including Target and Walmart. Please click on the link https://app.teacherlists.com/schools/48669-j-nelson-kelly-elementary

If you'd rather complete your shopping in-person the supply list is below.

We ask parents to pay for Device Protection (for both Chromebooks & iPads) and intramurals online through MySchoolBucks.

Create your free account today and never worry about having to send cash/checks to school with your student again. Visit myschoolbucks.com or download the app today to get started.

How do I enroll?

• Go to www.myschoolbucks.com and click enroll now.
• Create an account for yourself and your children. You will need to know your student’s district ID number, date of birth, school and grade.
• Provide credit or debit card information.

Why should I sign up for this service?

• You can view your child’s cafeteria purchases.
• You can sign up for free e-mail notifications when the lunch account is low in funds.
• You may prepay their lunch account without sending money to school.
• My SchoolBucks will charge a $2.49 service fee when adding money to a lunch account.

The Grand Forks Public Schools is in a contract with Valley Busing for the 2024-25 school year.

• There will not be a charge for the bus for the 2024-2025 school year.
• During PowerSchool registration, you were asked if you would like your student(s) to ride a regular route bus to/from school during this school year.
• If you have completed the PowerSchool registration process, but now have decided to add busing, please call the school office @ 701-746-2265.
• Kelly School only has an afternoon bus route available for our general education students. A morning route is not operated within our school's boundary lines.
• If you have any questions regarding district busing, please visit https://www.gfschools.org/link-2/resources/transportation

• If your student needs any medication given at school, a Medication Authorization Form must be filled out and signed by the health care provider and the parent/guardian. This is required for all medications including inhalers and over the counter medications.
• Parents or guardians may drop off student medications along with the corresponding Medication Authorization Form at Open House.
• Medications must be in their original containers.
• Students are not permitted to bring any over the counter or prescription medications to school in their backpacks and take it without adult supervision. All medication must be administered by authorized personnel in our school office.
• Additional GFPS Medical Information and Forms: https://www.gfschools.org/departments/nursehealth-office

Grand Forks Public Schools believes that regular school attendance is the joint responsibility of the student and their parent(s)/guardians(s), and it is essential for student success in school.

The school system shall abide by compulsory attendance requirements in state law for students ages seven through sixteen. In order to comply with and enforce these requirements, the Grand Forks School Board establishes the following attendance policy:

Students shall be in attendance a minimum of 160 days per school year to be considered for grade promotion.

In order to ensure that a student has completed what has been determined to be sufficient for course work completion towards graduation, school work missed by the student during an absence shall be made up regardless of the reason for the absence.

Students in grades K-5 whose poor attendance has caused a notable deficiency in learning may be retained at their present grade level if such a course is advantageous to the student. This decision is made in accordance with the Retention Procedure.

Building administrators are granted the right to make exceptions to this minimum standard. For more information please visit: https://www.gfschools.org/link-2/resources/stay-in-school

Student Absence: If your child is absent or late, please call the attendance line by 8:30am.

701-746-2269-attendance line

701-746-2265-school office

Telephone Calls: Calls do not ring into the classroom during school hours to minimize interruptions. Messages for students can be left on the teacher’s voicemail.

Peanut/Tree Nut Restricted: When sending a snack or packing a lunch, please remember to check labels to make sure it does not contain or have any traces of peanuts/nuts. We have students with severe peanut allergies in our building.

Birthday Snacks: Due to the increase of students who have severe food allergies and the higher levels of severity, we no longer celebrate student birthdays with a “birthday snack” in our schools. Parents are welcome to find other non-food items to send to school if they wish. Please discuss with your child’s classroom teacher for ideas or preferences.

Arrival:

The first bell rings at 8:20 am. School begins at 8:25 am. Breakfast is offered 7:40-8:15 am. All students coming to breakfast must use Door 16.

Dismissal: The safety of our students is a top priority for us at Kelly School. As per district policy, schools will have parents meet their child(ren) at a designated location outside the school at dismissal time.

• Teachers will bring their students to a location outside the school at their classroom’s assigned door. Students will meet their parent or person picking them up at a prearranged meeting place near the assigned dismissal door.

• Older siblings meet youngest sibling at youngest sibling’s assigned door.

• Bus/Daycare van students will walk through the school to Door #1 to board their bus or van.