Dear NIS Families,

As part of our ongoing commitment to keeping our students and staff safe, we regularly conduct safety drills throughout the year. These include drills such as Fire Drills, Lockdown Drills, and Building Secure drills. We approach these drills in a developmentally appropriate way, ensuring that our students understand their importance while helping them feel safe and secure.

In the coming weeks, we will be conducting a Lockdown Drill to help our students and staff practice what to do in case of an emergency that requires them to safely lockdown. It’s important to note that students will be informed prior of the process for a lockdown drill by their teachers, that it will be announced as a drill, and that there will be emergency personnel present to assist with the process.

In addition, as a district, we have adopted a new system for visitors entering the building during school hours, in which a parent/volunteer will need to present a valid license to receive a sticker. This is part of our ongoing efforts to ensure a safe and secure environment for all students and staff.

After the drill, we will send a follow-up email to help you process the experience with your child. Our school counselors, School Resource Officer (SRO), assistant principal, and I are also available if you have any questions or feel that your child may benefit from discussing any concerns the drill might raise.

Thank you for your continued partnership in keeping our school community safe.

Sincerely,
Becky Janda
NIS Principal

The upcoming weeks continue to offer opportunities for you as families to participate in your child's school experience in the following ways.

1. Open House for students/families will be held on Thursday, October 10th from 5:30-7:00 pm. This will be a great time for you and your child to visit their classroom, specials and see some of the amazing work they have already done. This is not a time to discuss your child's needs or growth individually as this can be done by setting up an appointment with your child's teacher or participating in the parent conferences in early December.

2. As a school council we reviewed the Family Survey from last year and determined that having two NIS Family Nights this year at strategic times of the year would hopefully allow for increased participation and fun. To that end please reserve the following two dates:

• Thursday, November 7th from 5:30-6:30 pm- NIS STEM Night (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math)
• Thursday, February 13th from 5:30-6:30 pm-NIS Multicultural Literacy Unified Arts Night

We will be sending out more information as these dates get closer and may be asking for participation from families to make the nights even more special for our students.

3. Parent Conferences: Families will be invited to sign up for times on either Wednesday, December 4th or Wednesday, December 11th to meet with your child's teachers for a parent conference to share ways your child has grown and will continue to grow this year.

All visitors must check in at the front office upon arrival at the school.

During school hours, visitors are required to present an ID for a visitors badge. You may not enter the school without a valid form of ID and a visitor's sticker.

We just wanted to give a quick reminder about parking in the mornings.
There are now staff parking spots in the Backus Lane parking lot. If you are dropping your student off in the morning, please be mindful that you do not park in a numbered spot.

In the event you park in a numbered spot, there is a good possibility that the teacher assigned to that spot will park behind you and block you in so that they are available to welcome students. If that happens, please come to the front office to let us know.

Welcome back to the 2024-2025 school year!! I hope everyone had a great summer and is ready to learn.

As the students start to settle into their classes and routines, I will begin doing the mandatory screenings for all students. Third grade has vision and hearing. Fourth grade has vision, height and weight. Fifth grade has vision and then in the spring scoliosis screenings. I will start in the next few weeks. If your student wears glasses, please make sure they are wearing them at school every day. I also need them for their vision screening.

The Covid policy we had in place for last school year is still in effect. Stay home until your symptoms have improved and you have been fever free for 24 hours without any fever reducing medication. Test your student before returning to school and if still positive, then he/she must wear a mask in school until day 10 of their illness. Covid Policy Although this is a policy for Covid, the same could apply to any illness, especially the flu. Please keep your students home if they are not feeling well. One of the best ways to help keep them healthy is to get vaccinated against the flu and covid.

Take Care and Stay Healthy!

There have been several unsafe conditions created with cars coming into the Surfside Road parking lot to drop off or pick up children. This is NOT the correct location for drop off or for pick up. Please ONLY use the Backus Lane entrance/exit to reach the drop off/pick up circle.

October 10 - NIS Open House

October 14 - No School - Indigenous Peoples' Day

October 16 - Early Release at 12pm

November 5 - No School - Staff PD Day

November 11 - No School - Veteran's Day

November 26 - Early Release at 12pm

November 27 - 29 - No School Thanksgiving Break

Celebrating a birthday is such an exciting day for our students and we want them to be and feel special on their celebration day. However, at NIS families and students are encouraged not to bring in sweet food items to celebrate their birthday with their class. There are some great alternatives to bringing in sweets that may contain allergens or abundant amounts of sugar. We would like to encourage you to donate a birthday book to your child's classroom library in honor of their birthday. Other fun ideas include bringing in a special pencil, a healthy treat like a fruit tray or a sticker for everyone in the class.

In addition families and students cannot bring in balloons or other large items to celebrate.

NPS Vision Draft

We commit to provide equitable, inclusive, and challenging learning experiences where every student and adult feels seen, heard, valued, and respected.

NPS Mission Draft

Nantucket Public Schools, in partnership with a caring community, will create a dynamic and equitable learning environment which engages each of us to be inspired learners and responsible citizens, prepared to meet local and global challenges.

NPS Core Values Draft

Nantucket Public Schools values collaboration, communication, and reflection that supports:

• Equitable access to multiple pathways for individual and collective success.

• High expectations and a student-centered educational approach that integrates academic progress, extra-curricular participation, personal responsibility, and community involvement.

• Inclusive and sustained family relationships that respect all cultures and the experiences each child brings to our schools.

• Challenging ourselves to embrace and advocate for the needs of every student, adult, and family within our school community.

30 Surfside Road

Nantucket, MA 02554

Telephone: 508-228-7290

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