Hawks Happenings

It is hard to believe that November is already here! I know that many of us wish we could forget the month of October and Hurricane Helene entirely. It is difficult to see all that people are going through due to the impact of this disaster. Thank you for your patience with our disjointed school schedule and thank you for all you have done for your family and others during this time.

I am so thankful that we are getting back to a regular school schedule. This has been a good week of transition but regular schedule is always best! Remember that on Monday, November 4, we will return to a normal school day.

• The campus opens at 7:15 for early morning car riders and bus riders.
• Our classrooms open at 7:35 for students.
• The warning bell rings at 7:55 AM.
• The tardy bell rings at 8:00 AM.
• Students who are not in their classroom at 8 AM will need a tardy slip from the office to enter their classroom. This is part of our Safe Schools procedures. We must ensure that we have an accurate count of all students on campus.

Over the next few weeks, our school teams will be discussing what we need to reschedule and what needs to be skipped. For example, the NBES School Improvement Team may decide to reschedule an Open House event but it will be impossible for our 4th grade team to reschedule their field trip to Chimney Rock due to the damage sustained there. We will keep you informed of all school events and happenings.

On November 7, your child's teacher will send home reports from assessments that were completed at the Beginning of the Year and before hurricane. Please review those reports and make note of any questions you have. Teachers will begin scheduling Parent-Teacher Conferences soon and they will be happy to answer your questions then.

Before the hurricane, we were prepared to send home mid-term reports to grades 1-4 because we were half way through the first nine weeks. We are no longer sending home those reports. Students will not receive report cards until after the first semester is over which will be on January 24th. A midterm report for students in grades 1-4 will be sent home on November 22nd since this will be halfway through the first semester.

Thank you for all you do to support North Buncombe Elementary School! We are proud that our students are growing, learning and succeeding here at NBES!

Working Together,

Mrs. Heidi Allison

Counselors and retired school personnel helped to support our students and staff when we came back to school! We welcomed NC counselors from Winston-Salem, Clemmons, Rockingham, Hamlet, Morehead City and Norwood! Here is an article written by our Superintendent Dr. Jackson regarding the support Buncombe County Schools received: https://www.ednc.org/school-districts-join-together-to-support-students-and-staff-after-hurricane/

Remember to reach out if you feel that your child still needs to process the recent events with someone. Our NBES School Counselors - Mrs. Benfield and Ms. Telfair are always happy to help!

NBES will participate in a Thankfulness School Spirit Week on November 18 - November 22. Please see the information below for activities for each day.

The Buncombe County School Board Policy related to Attendance (4400) has been revised. Part of these revisions found in 4400-R require that a daily phone call is made to parents of students who have been marked absent with an unexcused absence. This means that if your child is marked absent at school using the code 2A, then you will get a courtesy call that evening at 6:15 PM to inform you of the absence and to encourage you to send in an excuse note if applicable. Please know that we do not want to overwhelm you with calls from NBES but this is a required component of BCS Board Policy. The exact wording is included below for your information. Thank you for working with us and communicating with your child's teacher when your child is sick so we can code absences appropriately.

These calls will begin on Wednesday, November 6th.

Good evening. This is a friendly call from North Buncombe Elementary letting you know that _______ was marked absent today. If you have not already communicated with your child's teacher, please do so within 10 days so we can ensure this absence is coded correctly. We hope to see your child back at school soon. Thank you.

What happens when we must close our buildings to students due to inclement weather?

• If a weather event is truly severe and impacts power or the internet in our area, the day would be a ‘no school’ day where no instruction would occur.
• For significant but less severe weather events, we are able to utilize a certain number of remote learning days that will count toward our state-mandated instruction per year. This means we will not have to make up those days later in the school year.

What happens during a delayed start?

Should a minor weather event cause us to delay starting school for students, you will receive more specific instructions that day to let you know when to drop your child off or have them at the bus stop.

• The bus schedule and campus opening adjust to match the time delay.
• For example if we are on a two hour delay, bus pick up times are two hours later and the building opens at 9:15 for student drop off.
• Breakfast is served on a two hour delay but not on a three hour delay.

What happens during an early dismissal?

Should we have to send students home early due to a weather event, students will eat lunch before they leave. The district will let families know when they can begin picking up students or expect them on the bus. We’ll also include information for after-school activities and athletics. If a parent is delayed in picking up their child from school, the child will be safe and supervised until the parent arrives.

Please note that it is our policy that if weather is impacting more than two districts, the schedule change will impact ALL BCS Schools.

We want to remind you of the various ways you can receive weather and emergency notifications.

• The fastest way to receive notifications is through the Buncombe County Schools app for your smartphone or tablet. Simply download the app and turn on push notifications. Visit buncombeschools.org/app to download the app for iOS or Android.
• Please follow Buncombe County Schools on social media. (@BuncombeSchools)
• Also, our local TV stations post the most up-to-date closings and delays on-air and online via their weather ticker.
• Please ensure your phone number and email address are correct. This information should be verified each school year. You can check that in the PowerSchool Parent Portal.
• Finally, if you don’t have internet access, you can call our weather hotlines for updates: 828-255-5939 (English) or 828-255-5948 (Spanish).

Please log on to buncombeschools.org/notifications to learn more about the ways you can stay informed during severe weather or emergency situations! We also maintain a list of inclement weather daycare providers in our area.

What is Remote Learning?

Remote Learning can be used during inclement weather events to keep students learning even when they are at home. Remote learning would be asynchronous on the first day of the weather event and synchronous on all subsequent days of that weather event. Any work assigned must be made up within five days.*

• Asynchronous means that the teacher will assign tasks that will be completed online or on paper and there will be no live teaching.
• Synchronous means that there will be a blend of live virtual instruction and independent work.
• Should an isolated area of the county be severely impacted by a storm or your family has extenuating circumstances, please work with your school and teacher to make up the work.
• If we expect a weather event, all students to take their school-issued device home with them.
• This year we are using Google Meet for any live teaching.
• Right now our plan is to meet with students at 10 AM on Google Meet. Teachers will explain the assignments for the day which may include some lessons. Then the students will have time to work on their assignments. The class would meet back at 2 PM to check in on how their work time went and get answers to any lingering questions.

How do I prepare for Synchronous Learning Days?

• Let us know if you need a Hotspot. A Hotspot provides reliable Internet access at home. This is filtered Internet access just like students would have at school. If your family needs this support, please click on the image to the right or contact Ms. Woehl with any questions at angela.woehl@bcsemail.org or (828) 645-6054.
• In November, we will start "Technology Tuesdays". Students will take home their device and chargers on designated Tuesdays and have a very simple assignment to complete. The fully charged device and the assigned charger should come back to school on Wednesday.
• One of the first assignments should be to connect to the Internet at home. BCS Devices have to use the Zscaler Content Filter. Students do not often have to login to Zscaler so they may not remember their Zscaler Content Filter login if/when they are prompted at home or on a loaner pool device, etc.

• The Zscaler username is the student uid@k12bcs.net (not a valid email address)(ex. 1234567@k12bcs.net) It may prompt you for a "Microsoft" login, which will be the same, student uid@k12bcs.net and it doesn't normally require a password due to Azure single sign-on, but if it does, use your computer password (current my.ncedcloud.org password).

• More info on Z-Scaler: https://www.buncombeschools.org/page/zscaler-security-certificate

Technology Tuesday days - November 12 and November 19

Link your Advantage Card to NBES to help support our school each time you shop! Remember to sign up EACH year!

https://www.ingles-markets.com/tools-for-schools-link

ALL parents and visitors to campus must sign in at the office and obtain a visitor sticker (or a volunteer pass if applicable). Make sure to WEAR the visitor sticker in a visible area on your shirt.

Visitors will only be allowed to visit a classroom (during instructional time) if the visitor has scheduled the visit with the teacher beforehand or if the visitor is a scheduled volunteer. Instructional time begins at 8 AM.

NBES welcomes volunteers! There are many ways for individuals to volunteer at our school. All volunteers must fill out an online volunteer application and be on the approved volunteer list before volunteering.

Level 1 Volunteers - General volunteer - never supervising students

Level 2 Volunteers - Volunteer who supervises/gives directions to students or serves in a leadership role (such as PTO board). This level is required for any parent attending a field trip. This level requires a background check (conducted by Buncombe County Schools).

Parents may get a link to complete a volunteer application by calling the main office at (828) 645-6054. Mrs. Clubb, Mrs. Fender or Mrs. Honeycutt can help you with this process.

November 2 - Daylight Savings Time Ends - Set your clocks back!

November 4 - Regular school hours - 8 AM until 2:25 PM

November 5 - No School due to Election Day

November 7 - Beginning of the Year Assessments going home

November 11 - No School - Holiday due to Veterans Day

November 12 - Technology Tuesday - we will send home devices and chargers! Please send them back on Wednesday fully charged!

November 18 - November 22 - Thankfulness Spirit Week!

November 19 - Technology Tuesday - we will send home devices and chargers! Please send them back on Wednesday fully charged!

November 21 - PTO Meeting at 8:30 AM in Trailer 6

November 22 - Kindergarten Tours for 2025-2026 enrollment

November 27 - 29 - Thanksgiving Break

December 5 - Kindergarten Tours for 2025-2026 enrollment

December 19 - PTO Meeting at 8:30 AM in Trailer 6

December 19 - 4th Grade Program

December 23 - Jan 3 - Winter Break

January 6 - Students return to school

Growing, Learning, Succeeding at NBES!

Email: heidi.allison@bcsemail.org
Website: https://nbes.buncombeschools.org/o/nbe
Location: 251 Flat Creek Church Road, Weaverville, NC, USA
Phone: (828) 645-6054
Facebook: www.facebook.comNBuncombeES

Instagram: @northbuncombees