Welcome back to the 2018-19 school year at Cherry Valley-Springfield Central School!  Students, I hope this is your best year yet! The consistent buzz I hear everywhere is students and adults getting ready for another year.  Secondary students are asking about their schedules and the elementary students are eager to select their school supplies. Soccer practices have started and the school itself is getting busier by the day with teachers getting ready for a fantastic year.

We have taken the summer to reflect on our successes and also on what we need to improve on as a district.  One of our overall concerns is mental health. We will be spending time exploring mental health and what that means as a school district. Our opening conference day will start with an introduction to trauma awareness in our schools.  Our goal is to work with our students and families so that we can support those in need and be mindful what our students deal with on a daily basis.

We have spent the spring and summer focusing on issues where we need improvement.  With that being said we have made changes to our attendance policy, cell phone policy, academic eligibility policy and afternoon dismissal. We will be reviewing these policies at Open House on Wednesday, September 19th, 6:00-7:30 PM. Open House will begin in the auditorium to review the changes, introduce new faculty and staff, and share our expectations.

• Attendance Policy:  Students in grades 9-12 will be held accountable to not surpass 28 absences for a full year course or 14 absences for a half year course.  A process of how students and parents will be notified has been developed so that everyone is aware when students reach specific benchmarks.
• Cell phone policy:  We have found cell phones to be a major distraction in the learning process and to our students overall health. Students will not be allowed to use their cell phones from 7:45 - 2:53. Consequences include a warning, cell phone brought to main office and student can pick up at the end of the day and/or parent pick up at the end of the day.
• Academic Eligibility Policy:  A shared decision team met over the summer to make recommendations to the present policy.  Grades will be reviewed at every 5-week notice and report card dates. Students who are failing two or more classes we be considered ineligible. Students will be required to meet with their teacher to create an academic improvement plan. For the next five weeks the student has the opportunity to prove that they are passing by submitting an eligibility sheet signed by their teachers that they are not failing two or more classes.  If they are not failing two or more classes they will be eligible for that week. Students will need to complete this form every week to show they are passing.
• Afternoon dismissal:  We have found that more and more students do not know where they are going after school or parents are calling after 1:00 to make changes.  We will no longer accept changes after 1:00. It is imperative that students know where they are to go after school. All notes of any changes should be sent in with your student in the morning.  Please refrain from calling the office to make the change. We have put in a new process of tracking changes and to get bus rosters updated on a daily basis for the drivers. Safety is our ultimate concern.  For anyone who comes to the office at the end of the day has seen how chaotic it is. Buses WILL NOT be held to find out where a student is to go. The student will go to the after school program. We will call after the buses have left to notify the parent of the situation. The parent will have to come pick up their child or ride the late bus home at 5:00.

We have a few new faces to welcome to our school this fall.  Our new cafeteria manager is Melissa Davidson. In third grade we have Jessika Bartlett, 4th grade Rebecca Sniffen and 6th grade Jessica Chapman.   xxxx will be joining our music department as the chorus teacher. We welcome them and we are excited to have them join our CVS family. Our next newsletter will include a photograph and a little info. about them.  

Our teachers have been in over the summer working on curriculum and initiatives.  The HS gym has been resurfaced and it looks amazing! The hallways have been waxed and all we are missing are the students. I encourage you (parents and community members) to get involved in the school. Volunteer, attend our events, or stop by my office for a chat.  Please know that you're always welcome.

In closing, I hope that you have had an enjoyable summer.  Please take the time to go through the newsletter as it contains useful information.  We are looking forward to September 5th when the students return to CVS. Until then, enjoy the remaining days of summer vacation.