HUSKY PRESS

Early Start/VPI (Virginia Preschool Initiative) is a FREE, full-day preschool program for children who turn 4 years old by September 30, 2025, and need an extra year to prepare for success in kindergarten. This program is designed to reduce disparities among young children upon formal school entry and to reduce or eliminate risk factors that lead to early academic failure.

Acceptance into the program is determined by eligibility criteria, not on a first-come, first-served basis. The application for the 2025-2026 school year opened on February 10, 2025, and will remain open through May 23, 2025. For additional information and details, visit www.spsk12.net.

The 2025 Virginia Department of Health (VDH) immunization letters are now available for parents/guardians of rising Kindergarten, 7th-grade, and 12th-grade students.

For rising Kindergarten students, this information can be found on the SPS website by selecting Families and then selecting Kindergarten Registration.

Also, this information can be accessed at https://www.vdh.virginia.gov/immunization/requirements/

Suffolk Public Schools will be participating in All District Reads and reading the book, Little Rhino My First Team. We will be our kick off on Tuesday, March 18, due to our school picture day. We are asking students to wear baseball attire. In addition, we will be having Spirit days in conjunction with our Spelling Bee. See the attached flier.

Dear Parents and Guardians,

We are excited to host Career Day at Hillpoint Elementary and are looking for the first 25 parents and community members to be presenters! This is a wonderful opportunity to inspire our students by sharing your career and professional journey.

To be a Career Day presenter, you must complete and be approved through the SPS Raptor volunteer application before participating. Only approved applicants will be allowed to sign up to present. Next, you must sign up to be a Career Day presenter on April 11th.

If you are interested, please sign up as soon as possible—spots are limited to the first 25 approved volunteers. Please see the attached flyer and use the QR Code to register to be a presenter or you can use this link - Sign up to be a Career Day Presenter

For more details and to sign up, please contact Ms. Riddick at robbinriddick@spsk12.net.

Thank you for helping us make Career Day a success!

Kind Regards,

Robbin M. Riddick,

School Counselor

Important Hillpoint Clinic Reminders:

If your child is sick or has a fever, stay home.

Continue to do daily temperature and symptom checks at home before coming to school. Students should remain home until improved, Free of vomiting and/or diarrhea, and No fever for 24 hrs. Fever should be gone 24 hours without child taking fever reducing medications.

If you have any questions or need assistance please contact Nurse Connolly at 757-923-5252

Parents, if your child is currently enrolled in the early start program, you should have received an email from PowerSchool with a link to register for Kindergarten for the 2025-2026 school year. Please utilize the emailed link to complete the Kindergarten registration and do not start a new registration. Parents, note that the email was sent to the address listed in eSchool, which is the email you provided during registration. If you are unable to locate the email in your inbox, please check your spam or junk folder. Thank you & we welcome your baby to Kindergarten! ~Mrs. Sanders 🦄 ~

Parents -

Our Annual PBIS Sneaker Ball is on Friday, April 4th. We are in need of donations to make this event a successful celebration for our students. If you are able, we are asking each grade level to donate the items listed below. We appreciate your support in making this event a success, you may send items in with your students or drop them off at the front kiosk.Please ensure you let staff know your donation is for PBIS.

Thank you!

Students will be bringing home their March Reading Logs over the next few days. For every 10 minutes of independent reading or reading with someone at home, they will color a shamrock on the log. At the end of the month, parents should sign the log and return it to the classroom teacher. Students who complete the log with a signature will receive a token for our school book vending machine.

We appreciate your help in encouraging our students to read and engage with the book vending machine!

King's Fork High School is looking to introduce more young athletes to the wrestling and believe this could be a great opportunity for students who may be interested. Please see the flier below.

1. Praise Effort and Strategies: Focus on praising your child’s effort and the strategies they use, rather than praising their intelligence. For example, say, “I’m impressed with how you solved that problem,” instead of “You’re so smart.”
2. Encourage Persistence: When students face challenges, praise their ability to keep trying. This helps them view setbacks as opportunities for growth.
3. Avoid Praise for Things Outside Their Control: Discourage attributing successes or failures to factors like luck or intelligence. Instead, highlight how their effort and strategies led to the outcome.
4. Provide Specific Feedback: Be detailed in your praise. Instead of just saying "good job," explain what they did well (e.g., "I like how you broke down the steps to solve that problem").
5. Promote Challenge and Goal-Setting: Encourage your child to seek challenges and set high goals. Praise them when they take on tough tasks and stay persistent.
6. Use Failures as Learning Opportunities: If your child struggles, don’t comfort them with “not everyone can be good at everything.” Instead, focus on what they can learn from the experience.

By focusing on effort and strategies, students are more likely to develop resilience, intrinsic motivation, and higher academic achievement (APA, 2025)

Dear Parents,

As we approach Spring and warmer weather, we kindly remind you to review the SPS Dress Code Policy. Your support in ensuring students leave home in appropriate attire is greatly appreciated.

Please note the following from Section 9-11.8 of the School Board Policy:

Student attire impacts the teaching and learning environment. It can either promote a more effective educational environment or disrupt the educational climate. To minimize safety risks, disruptions, and distractions, all students in Suffolk Public Schools must adhere to dress regulations set by the School Superintendent (Adopted March 8, 2012; Ordinance Number 11/12-15; Effective Date: July 1, 2012). Legal Authority ─ Virginia Code §22.1-78 (1950), as amended.

For further details, please see the full dress code policy below, along with the attached Student Code of Conduct.

Thank you for your cooperation!

🛑 Please do not move any parking lot cones or drive-through an area where a cone was moved.

🛑 Prior to 9:24 please do not let students out of your vehicle to walk across the parking lot independently. You’re expected to wait in line and drop students at the curb.

🛑 Starting at 9:24 parents should plan to park and walk their student to the door to sign a tardy slip beginning at 9:25.

Students exiting the car should do so on the passenger side, not the driver side.

Students should also be able to open their own door, however, if they're unable, please turn on your flashers and we will know to come assist.

🛑 Anyone needing to go to the office or the nurse's office before 9:25 is required to park in the parking lot.

🛑 No one should be parking along the drop off area.

We want to share some important reminders about school hours, traffic safety, and dismissal procedures to ensure everything runs smoothly for our students, staff, and families.

Student Arrival & Attendance:

• Arrival: School doors open at 9:00 a.m. Students should not arrive before this time, including waiting by the main entrance. The instructional day begins at 9:25 a.m. Students arriving after 9:25 will be considered tardy.
• Attendance: We understand that doctor’s appointments and other commitments may require students to miss school. We ask that, whenever possible, appointments are scheduled with our school hours in mind to minimize disruptions to learning.

School Hours:

• Office Staff: 8:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
• Teachers: 8:50 a.m. – 4:20 p.m.
• Students: 9:25 a.m. – 3:50 p.m.
  • Drop-off begins at 9:00 a.m.
  • Early Release: 1:15 p.m.
  • Dismissal: 3:50 p.m. (PikMyKid, walkers, and bus riders)

Parking Lot & Traffic Safety:

• Parking: For the safety of everyone, please follow all traffic rules and parking directives. Park in designated spaces and avoid parking along the sidewalk.
• Bus Parking Lot: Parents are not allowed to enter the bus parking lot during the school day. When using the parking lot for drop-off or dismissal, please enter and exit by making a right turn only.

Walker Dismissal:

• Parents wishing to have their child walk home must complete the SPS Notice of Disclaimer form and receive approval each year. Students in Early Start, Kindergarten, or those who do not live in the immediate Hillpoint Farms neighborhood will not be approved for walker dismissal.

Dismissal Changes:

• Requests to change your child’s dismissal method must be submitted in writing. Phone requests will not be accepted.
  • A signed parent note sent with the student or an email to the office staff and classroom teacher is required.
  • The email must include a picture of the front and back of the parent/guardian ID and be sent by 12:00 p.m. to ensure we can accommodate the change.
  Office Staff Contacts:
  • Administrative Assistant: Jaime Sanders – jaimesanders@spsk12.net
  • Bookkeeper: Susan Pendleton – susanpendleton@spsk12.net

Consistent and punctual attendance is essential for your child's academic success. Regular school attendance helps ensure that students can fully participate in learning and achieve their best. Excessive absences can significantly hinder progress.

If your child is absent, written documentation from a parent or guardian must be submitted to the teacher on the day the student returns or within five (5) school days after the absence. This documentation is required to excuse the absence.

Please be aware that school board policy states that elementary students who miss more than 20 unexcused days in a school year may be retained in their current grade.

We appreciate your attention to this matter and your support in ensuring your child's success.

We believe in fostering strong communication between home and school to support your child's success. We encourage you to maintain an open line of communication with your child’s teacher. However, please be mindful that during instructional time, it may be difficult for teachers to speak directly with you. We recommend scheduling a convenient time to contact the teacher, or you can always reach out via email.

If you need immediate assistance and it’s urgent, please contact the main office. Our front office staff will help direct your call to the appropriate person. While administrators are available to address concerns, we encourage you to first discuss any issues with the classroom teacher. In cases that require immediate attention, administrators will make every effort to meet with parents as soon as possible.

We strive to respond to parent emails and phone calls within 48 business hours.

We’re excited to share more about our Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) initiative. PBIS is a research-based approach that helps improve student behavior and academic success. It focuses on teaching positive behavior, reducing disruptions, and creating a better school culture for everyone.

PBIS isn’t a one-size-fits-all program, but rather a framework of proven strategies that help us support students in making positive choices. It focuses on setting clear behavior expectations and teaching students the right way to behave, which reduces time lost to office referrals and suspensions.

At Hillpoint, we emphasize our PBIS motto: "Be Safe, Be Respectful, Be Responsible." Students and staff follow a behavior matrix that outlines expectations for each day.

We ask that you support your child in following these behaviors at home, too. Please take a moment to review the HES Behavior Matrix together. We look forward to celebrating positive behavior with your child throughout the year!

Thank you for your continued support.

Join the HES PTA today! Joining the PTA helps to build a stronger Hillpoint Elementary community! Support us today!

Click the link below to join!

$6 for staff

$10 for families

Each day, 5 time slots are available for families in each grade level to join your child for lunch. Please see the details below, and click the attachment below with more details.

Sign up by clicking the link below:

• You must sign up to have lunch with your student
• You must bring your own lunch--lunch will only be provided for students
• Two adults allowed for one time slot--please sign up for one slot at a time
• You must adhere to scheduled times
• 5 slots available for grade level

Please contact your child's teacher for specific lunch times.

At Suffolk Public Schools, ensuring the safety of our students and staff is a top priority. As part of this commitment, we conduct regular safety, intruder, and lockdown drills, including monthly fire drills and random metal detector searches, to monitor what is being brought into the school and to prepare for any emergency situations.

Additionally, we ask for your support in ensuring that your child comes to school with only the necessary items in their book bag and lunchbox. Please remind your child not to bring toys or other non-essential items unless instructed by their teacher.

Thank you for your cooperation in helping us maintain a safe learning environment!

On July 9, 2024, Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin issued Executive Order 33 to establish cell phone-

free education to promote the health and safety of Virginia's K-12 students. Executive Order 33 is focused on eliminating cell phone use during instructional time and addressing the mental health issues arising from children's social media and cell phone addiction, such as increased anxiety and depression. As a result of this Executive Order, Suffolk Public Schools will be cell-phone free from “bell to bell” beginning January 6, 2025.

The use of cell phones, including but not limited to making calls, sending text messages, browsing the internet, and accessing applications, is strictly prohibited within classrooms and during the school day. Students should turn off and stow their cell phones before entering the building. With input from educators, parents, and legal guidelines, our SPS Cell Phone Policy ensures a balanced approach to technology use within our classrooms and school grounds.

🟢 The link to the full policy is below. Families, please ensure your child follows the cell phone policy, which is in line with both state and SPS guidelines.

We are committed to ensuring our students’ safety both at school and on the bus. To help with this, we partner closely with the Transportation Department and need your support to ensure students are safe, on time, and follow the expected behavior while riding the bus.

Bus Safety Expectations:

• Be on time at the bus stop.
• Remain seated at all times and keep the aisle clear.
• Keep the bus clean – food and drinks are not allowed.
• Respect others – use kind, respectful language and keep hands and feet to yourself.
• Follow the student code of conduct

Buses:

• Riding the bus is a privilege and can be revoked for inappropriate behavior. If this occurs, parents will need to provide transportation for their child.
• Bus Departures: Buses depart at 3:50 p.m. Students must ride their assigned bus unless a written notice is provided by 12:00 p.m. Bus changes cannot be made over the phone.

If your child misses their bus, you cannot drive them to a different bus stop. For example, if your child rides Route 3 and misses the bus, they cannot be taken to a stop for Route 8. However, the bus driver may allow your child to board at a stop on the same route.

If you have concerns about bus service, please bring them to the bus driver or the school administrative team. For some issues, you may need to contact the Transportation Department directly. Here’s how:

Transportation Department Contact Information:

• Phone: (757) 925-5573
• Options Available:
  • Option 1 - Dispatch
  • Option 2 - Routing
  • Option 3 - Safety and Training
  • Option 4 - Accounting
  • Option 5 - All Other Calls

Transportation Supervisor: Jessica Allen (Southern Supervisor) supports our school. If unavailable, you can leave a message at their direct extension.

For additional information, we’ve also included a link to the Transportation FAQs for your reference.

Thank you for helping us ensure a safe and respectful experience for all students!