Letter from Principal Losee
Hello Burroughs Families,
Welcome to the 2024-2025 school year! We are excited to welcome back our families on Wednesday, August, 21st for students in Grades 1-5. Kindergarten and Pre-K families, please check the information sent to you by your child’s teacher for their official start date.
I would like to introduce myself to everyone. My name is Robert Losee and I am excited to be the new principal of John Burroughs Elementary. I have been working for Columbus City Schools for the last 27 years, with the last 14 years as a principal. I spent many summers here on the Westside with my family so when I was selected to join the Burroughs staff I was honored.
In addition to myself being new to Burroughs, we will also have a new secretary, Ms. Reams. Please stop in and introduce yourself to both of us. We are looking forward to working with our families to make this year one of the best years ever for your children.
Student room information can be found in Infinite Campus. It is important that all families take the time to update their contact information in the parent portal on Infinite Campus. Having updated phone numbers, emails, and emergency contacts is important. School communications will come to families by texts, calls, and emails, and if your contact information is out of date, you may miss out on important information. Please also ensure that the emergency contacts you have listed in infinite campus are still who you wish for us to contact in the event you are not available. We will reach out to these contacts when we deem it necessary. In addition, the only people who will be allowed to pick up any student during the school day are the people listed in Infinite Campus. If the person you send to pick up your student is not listed in Infinite Campus, your student will not be released to them. Everyone picking up a child MUST show a picture I.D. Information on how to update and access your parent portal is attached to this letter.
Please take a minute and review our New updated Parent/Student Handbook. We have updated this document to include information about calling your child in sick, including a google form you can complete to call them off and a QR code to the document. We are hopeful this will help families notify us of students who are too sick to attend school.
We are also making a change to our student dismissal procedures to better ensure our families exit together and in a timely manner. Dismissal begins at 3:15 PM. When picking your child up at the end of the school day, please stay in your car, and pull into the parking lot on S. Richardson Ave. Line up along the curb pulling up as close to the car in front of you as possible and all the way down the sidewalk. Students will then come to your car to load. After your child is in your car, please wait until a staff member dismisses all of the cars. This will ensure our students stay safe while dismissing for the day. Once we get the process down, this should allow cars to exit the parking lot quicker. If you are walking to pick up your child, please stand on the sidewalk in front of the main doors on S. Richardson Ave. Students will dismiss through these doors and come to you.We know that this change will take some time to get used to and for us to get it down, please be patient with us at dismissal, we truly want safety to be our top priority. We will do our best to have staff out to help guide families on the first few days.
Breakfast
Breakfast is offered to all Columbus City Schools students daily free of charge. Breakfast begins at 8:45 AM everyday. If your child is going to be late for school, you must call the school by 9:15 AM to order your child a hot lunch. If the call is made after 9:15 AM, the child MUST pack a lunch.
ATTENDANCE - Every Day Counts
Tardiness
Students arriving at school after 9:00 AM are marked tardy.
A note signed by the parent/caregivers stating the reason for tardiness is required.
If your child is going to be tardy, please contact the school prior to 9:00 AM to request a lunch or pack them a lunch.
Excused Absences
Serious accident or illness
Death of a relative
Religious holiday
All other absences are considered Unexcused Absences.
Parents need to call, email, or complete the online Student Absence Form for the school by 9:00 AM to report student absences. Upon return from an absence, the following procedure is to be followed: (if the parent did not complete the online Student Absence Form already) A written note signed by the parent, stating date(s) of and reason(s) for absence from school. Please send the note to school with your child the day they return to school.
We have recently received news that the water line work being completed by the city along S. Richardson will not be complete by the start of school. The crews have promised that access to the school will be possible, but please expect delays. The work should be finished by early September. Please be patient with the work crews and plan for extra time for drop off and pick up. We will work with families that arrive late due to this circumstance.
All of this important information will be uploaded to our school website at https://www.ccsoh.us/BurroughsES
I am looking forward to getting to know all of our students and families.
Robert Losee
Principal
1st Day of School
Kindergarten STARTS August 26. Kindergarten families will be contacted to schedule a kindergarten readiness assessment before they start. Please do not bring your kindergartener to school before August 26 unless you have an assessment appointment! Parents of Kindergarteners - you can walk your student to class on August 26. Enter through the playground doors and you'll sign-in in the building.
The first day of Pre-K is September 5. You child’s pre-school teacher will be in touch with more information.
Dismissal
Dismissal begins at 3:15 PM. DISMISSAL is VERY different this year. Please read this carefully! We will be starting a car pick-up line this year and will not be using different doors for different grades!!!
When driving to pick your child up at the end of the school day, please stay in your car, and pull into the parking lot on S. Richardson Ave. Line up along the curb pulling up as close to the car in front of you as possible. Students will then come to your car to load. After your child is in your car, please wait until a staff member dismisses all of the cars. This will ensure our students stay safe while dismissing for the day.
Bus riders will dismiss through the front of the school on to Sullivant Ave where their buses will be waiting.
Daycare van riders will dismiss through the playground doors with car riders, but will head toward Burgess Ave. where their Daycare vehicles will be waiting.
If you are walking to pick up your child, please stand on the sidewalk in front of the main doors on S. Richardson Ave. Students will dismiss through these doors and come to you.
All visitors should sign in and wear their visitor’s badge while in the school. Please sign out when
you leave. The doors will be locked the entire day. When picking up your child early, please go to
the front office and sign your child out. The secretary will call the classroom for the student to
report to the office.
For the safety of our students, students will NOT be dismissed between 3:00-3:15, for any reason. If
you MUST pick up your student early from school, please pick them up prior to 3:00. Only parents,
guardians, and authorized adults listed in Infinite Campus may sign a student out prior to 3:00pm.
A driver's license, State ID, or picture passport are required to sign a student out of the
building. If the parent/adult does not have a driver's license, state ID, or passport, and is not known
by the office, they will not be able to sign their student out. The office will not be able to call a
parent at the time of release for permission.
Walkers should cross at the supervised crosswalk at South Richardson Avenue and Sullivant Ave. Crossing at Burgess Ave and Sullivant is NOT safe.
All students must be picked up no later than 3:30pm.
Community Partners
We have an active site-based council with support from the following organizations:
- Dublin Dance Centre
- Engage Community Development Corporation
- Faith Community Church
- Hilltop Library
- John Burroughs PTA
- Linworth United Methodist
- Nationwide Children's Hospital
- Children's Tutoring Initative
JOHN BURROUGHS IS A TITLE I SCHOOL
- John Burroughs is a Title I school that receives Federal Title I funding to support academic achievement.
- Title I funding is spent on supplies, materials, staffing, and programs to support student achievement.
- As a parent of a student attending a school that is receiving Federal Title I dollars, you have the right to know the professional qualifications of the teacher(s) and instructional paraprofessional(s) who instruct your child. Federal law requires every Title I school district to comply and to provide you with the requested information in a timely manner. We are happy to provide this information to you. At any time, you may ask.
Charity Newsies Clothe-A-Child Program Taking Applications
Charity Newsies provides children enrolled in school from Kindergarten through 12th grade in Franklin County with brand new clothing. We serve children by providing them with socks, underwear, pants, shirts, a coat, hat and gloves. Children attending schools with dress code requirements receive compliant clothing. For children who attend schools with uniform requirements, Charity Newsies provide a uniform voucher.
The Charity Newsies Clothe-A-Child program is designed for families in need of back-to-school clothing assistance. Qualifying families may submit one application per child per school year. Applications are submitted on-line only. In-person applications are no longer accepted.
Click the link below to fill out an application today!
Any questions regarding the application or the Clothe-A-Child program should be directed to clothing@charitynewsies.com.
Burroughs Elementary
Email: adouglass@columbus.k12.oh.us
Website: https://www.ccsoh.us/burroughses
Location: 551 South Richardson Avenue, Columbus, OH, USA
Phone: 614-365-5923