ATTENDANCE MATTERS: It's first thing in the morning and you're suddenly not feeling well enough to get your children to school. Do you have a backup plan? Transportation issues are one of the biggest hurdles families face when it comes to attendance. We know that even missing two days of school per month affects a child's academic success long term. Now that we are into the first week of school, we encourage you to revisit or create your Family Help Bank (available here in many languages) which is a list of family members, every day helpers such as other parents, neighbors and friends who can help out, as well as occasional helpers who are willing to help out in a pinch, and finally a list of potential helpers from your community who would help out if you asked.
SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION NEWS: If you didn't get a chance to see it on Tuesday, you can watch Superintendent Jeannine Nota-Masse's Back to School interview here on Channel 12 and catch a glimpse of our Eden Park Elementary School classrooms as they tour the school. We are so excited about our projects and so pleased to be leading the state in the work that we are doing!
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No School, Labor Day
9/5/2022
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No School, Primary Election Day
9/13/2022
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No School Rosh Hashanah
9/26/2022
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HOW CAN WE HELP YOU: If you are in need of any of the following resources, we hope that these links below will help you. If you have a need that is not listed here, please reach out to your school administration and they can help to point you in the right direction!
- School sports physicals are available at a $25 discount until September 14. For more information click here.
- Affordable internet: Is your family in need of affordable internet? "The Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) helps to ensure that families can afford the broadband they need for work, school, healthcare and more. The benefit provides a discount of up to $30 per month towards internet and eligible households can also receive a one-time discount of up to $100 to purchase a laptop, desktop computer, or tablet from participating providers if they contribute more than $10 and less than $50 towards the purchase price." Learn more here.
- LOOKING FOR A TUTOR: You may not be yet, but as time goes on, you may be looking for some extra help for your child. Check out tutor.com for free tutoring options made possible through our partnerships.
- CLOTHES FOR SCHOOL: Clothes to Kids RI is offering qualifying families in need from grades K-12 or working toward their GED the opportunity to shop for free clothes. Families who are in crisis due to natural disaster, poverty, homelessness, or displacement can qualify. Each child will receive 5 tops, 4 bottoms, 5 new underwear, 5 pair new socks, a pair of shoes and a coat. For more information, hours, guidelines and eligibility, click here.
STAY IN THE LOOP! If you've read this far down in the newsletter, that means you are utilizing one of our many means of communications here in Cranston Public Schools and we are grateful to you! This Family Message goes out each Friday afternoon, recapping our week and giving you a heads up to anything coming up on the horizon. Additionally, you can check out our website, our mobile app, and find us on social media (Twitter and Facebook). We always encourage you to look to us for your news in order to make sure that the information you are getting is correct.
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September 2, 2022
Dear parents and guardians,
Just like that, we're into the month of September and the first full week of school has ended. We were so happy to see so many smiling faces on Monday and Tuesday as we started the new school year, and we hope that everyone has enjoyed their first week of school. If you need any help now, or at any time, in order to have a successful school year, please be sure to let your teacher or administrator know so that we can help connect you to the resources you might need. In our left sidebar there are some resources listed as well. We are proud of the collaborative efforts from all of our community partners which help all of our students have a successful PK-12 education in Cranston Public Schools.
Our newsletter each week is filled with lots of reminders, updates and good news for you, so be sure to read to the end!
- We'd first like to emphasize the calendar dates to the left and remind everyone that there is no school on Monday, September 5 due to the Labor Day holiday, no school the following Tuesday, September 13 due to Primary Election Day, and no school on Monday, September 26 for Rosh Hashanah, as our schools are polling locations. Please be aware of these days and have child care arrangements ready if necessary.
- School lunch applications for free and reduced lunch pricing are available to be filled out now. Lunch is no longer free for all students as it was during the pandemic, as the federal waiver has expired. You can learn more about the importance of filling out the application even if you don't think you qualify, here in English and Spanish. Fill it out here at myschoolapps.com.
- Being on time for school is important every single day. Having trouble remembering whose pick up and drop off times are when? Use this handy guide to remind you.
- SAVE THE DATE: As we mentioned in last week's newsletter, the new Cranston location of the Paper Store will be having a grand opening on November 12 and 13. Ten percent of the proceeds from sales on those two days will be donated to the Cranston Public Schools! Teachers and students who show a valid school ID can also receive 15% off their entire purchase that weekend. Be on the lookout as that date gets closer!
- If you haven't had a chance to view our Back to School slideshow, you can see it below and hear "Lead me On," by CHSE grad Nate Poshkus. You can also watch it on our website here.
Have a wonderful long weekend!
Sincerely,
The Cranston Public Schools Leadership Team
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GOOD NEWS!
CONGRATULATIONS TO: all of our schools for a great first week of school! We loved seeing all of the photos this week and are happy to be able to share them with you here.
CONGRATULATIONS TO: the new administrators in our CPS buildings! The Cranston Herald has begun a new series, spotlighting who's who and who's new in our schools. You can read "Familiar Places, New Faces" here.
CONGRATULATIONS TO: our athletes at CHSE and CHSW who were highlighted in this week's Cranston Herald sports section. Read about the Falcons here and the Bolts here.
ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT
CONGRATULATIONS TO: recent Cranston High School East grad Jeny Daniels who is featured in the "Humans of Cranston" column in this week's Cranston Herald. Read more about Jeny and her perspective as a recent CPS grad who's headed to the University of Rhode Island in the days ahead.
ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT CORRECTION: Last week's spotlight about Constantine Coclin was accidentally listed as being about George Coclin. Thanks to Constantine (and to his father George) and his family for their understanding! They were thrilled to hear that Constantine's good news was spotlighted in this new section of our newsletter!
WELLNESS CORNER
It's fall allergy season and seasonal allergies are often a reason why students are chronically absent from school. They also often lead to asthma flareups in students who have asthma. Additionally, it is coming up on flu season and now that we have less people in masks, germs can be spread more easily and we will see a rise in cold and flu numbers in addition to our COVID-19 numbers. How can you tell the difference between COVID, the flu, a cold and allergies or asthma? Check out this chart to help you.
MENTAL HEALTH RESOURCES:
Kids’ Link RI™ is a behavioral health triage service and referral network. A program offered in collaboration with Gateway Healthcare, Lifespan, Hasbro Children's Hospital and Bradley Hospital, Kids’ Link RI is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week to help triage children and youth in need of mental health services and refer them to treatment providers.The free, confidential phone line, 1-855-543-5465, connects parents and caregivers to an experienced clinician that can help them access children’s services in Rhode Island, and determine the best place to go for treatment and counseling.
Contact Kids’ Link RI™ if your child is:
Feeling excessive anger or sadness.
Lashing out at siblings, friends, and adults.
Having behavior problems at school.
Having severe worries.
Hurting himself/herself or others.
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