Collegium Newsletter August 15, 2016
Welcome to the weekly digital Newsletter for Collegium Charter School. Just like popular social media feeds and timelines, access our Newsletter content by scrolling down to the end. For best results, orient mobile devices horizontally (sideways).
Mark Your Calendar!
Collegium follows a 6-day rotating schedule for all students. This type of schedule reduces the effects of scheduling changes on classes that do not meet daily. For example, instead of your child's schedule going from Monday to Friday, he/she will have a schedule for each of the following: Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4, Day 5, and Day 6. The “Days” are published here in our weekly Newsletter and on the homepage of our website.
Monday, August 15th - Day 1
- First Day of School For Students - Welcome Back!
Tuesday, August 16th - Day 2
Wednesday, August 17th - Day 3
Thursday, August 18th - Day 4
- Board of Trustees Public Work Session 6:00 pm - 7:00 pm @ 435 Conference Room
- Board of Trustees Regular Public Meeting 7:00 pm @ 435 Conference Room
Friday, August 19th - Day 5
CCS Calendar: Collegium uses an online calendar that provides families with access to all events currently planned for the year. The link to the calendar is below and on the Calendars page of our website. The calendar allows users to create reminders for events which will send alerts if event details change. Keep in mind - our calendar is not static - changes to events will occur. We recommend checking the calendar on a regular basis.
Arrival & Dismissal Reminders
- During arrival and dismissal, always have your building-specific vehicle placard(s) displayed when on campus. Forgot your placard(s)? Be prepared to present photo ID to CCS staff.
- To ensure the safety of our students, parents must stay in their vehicles during arrival and dismissal. Do not enter the school buildings during arrival and dismissal. Maps and videos of the dismissal routes are on our website. Review your route(s) ahead of time and know your route(s) when you arrive on campus. Please share this information with anyone who may be driving your child.
- Be patient with the buses – they may be arriving early and late to the bus stops during the first few weeks of school. If you are concerned because your child’s bus is more than 20 minutes late, please contact the bus company for your school district. They will make direct contact with your child’s bus and let you know when it will arrive. These numbers are on the Transportation page on our website. Please don’t call CCS - by contacting the bus company directly, you will get the information you need.
- It will be hectic during the first two weeks or so, but after that, things will be running smoothly. Please be patient and follow the instructions of CCS staff.
Attendance Reminder - If your child is absent, please call to let us know and send in a signed excuse note with your child on the day he/she returns.
Campus Glossary
We recognize that it can be tricky keeping up with our grade levels and six CCS buildings. Here’s a glossary to help you keep track:
- Elementary - refers to grade levels K-6.
- MS - refers to our Middle School students, grades 7 and 8.
- HS - is for our High School students, grades 9-12.
- 150 = 150 Oaklands Blvd. This building is home for 3rd grade, 2nd grade, (7) 1st grade classes, and (9) kindergarten classes.
- 468/486 = 468 Thomas Jones Way and 486 Thomas Jones Way. These buildings are home for (7) 1st grade classes and (9) kindergarten classes.
- 500 = 500 James Hance Court. This building is home for our 4th-6th grade classes.
- 515 = 515 James Hance Court. This building is home for our 7th and 8th grade students.
- 535 = 535 James Hance Court. This building is home for our 9th-12th grade students.
- 435 = 435 Creamery Way. This building is home to our administrative offices and no classes are held in 435.
Campus Main Office Extensions
- 468/486 Building: 610-903-1300 ext. 6401
- 150 Building: 610-903-1300 ext. 6811
- 500 Building: 610-903-1300 ext. 6106
- 515 Building: 610-903-1300 ext. 6336
- 535 Building: 610-903-1300 ext. 6602
Cougar Gear Sale - On the 3rd Friday of each month, CCS students are encouraged to show their school spirit by wearing Cougar Gear. What’s Cougar Gear? Cougar Gear includes CCS t-shirts, sweatshirts, etc. with our logo, usually from a CCS team, club, event, or fundraiser. New Cougar Gear t-shirts will be on sale in August and we'll share a link soon.
Volunteer at Collegium - Volunteer opportunities are shared in the weekly Newsletter and often teachers will send requests home with students. Some companies will allow employees to volunteer during their work day and others match volunteer hours with donations or allow mentoring in the workplace. Investigate what your company can do for Collegium! Almost all volunteer opportunities require volunteers with clearances on file with CCS - a PA Child Abuse Clearance, a PA Criminal Record Check, and an FBI Fingerprint Clearance.
These background checks are processed by departments of the state of PA and can take up to 4-6 weeks to be returned to you. CCS suggests that parents who anticipate volunteering submit these required items in the very beginning of the school year. The FBI Fingerprint Clearance must be completed through the PA Department of Education, select "Register Online" once you use the link provided above. Volunteers do not have to request a paper copy of this background check. Instead, once fingerprinting has been completed, email your Registration ID number using the link below. For more information about volunteering, please review the Volunteering page of our website.
Help Wanted at Collegium: Full-Time Receptionist
School-year only, summer hours not guaranteed, but possible extra hours available during the summer. Preference will be given to those applicants with receptionist/related experience. Position includes a comprehensive benefits package and competitive salary. Send resume to HR or complete our application and submit to HR.
An Easy Way to Help Raise Money!
Help CCS’s Technology Department raise money...without buying anything. Our Technology Department has a recycling program for empty laser/inkjet cartridges and used cell phones. Drop off the products in the collection boxes near CCS’s main offices. CCS sends the cartridges and phones to Funding Factory and in exchange, CCS earns cash or our choice of technology products! Need your personal information removed fromyour cell phone before donating? Contact Mrs. Leach.
Above Image: HSA Co-Presidents Jaime Tomb (left) and Alysia Fulford (right).
The CCS Home and School Association (HSA)
Serving in a capacity similar to a Parent-Teacher Association (PTA) or Parent-Teacher Organization (PTO), our HSA owes its success to the efforts of our many parent, teacher, and staff volunteers!
HSA Summer Read-a-Thon Continues
Our HSA will use the proceeds from the Summer Read-a-Thon to benefit their many programs on campus: field trip scholarships, uniform scholarships, teacher supply funds, etc. Ready to start reading and raising money? Check out the information!
HSA Volunteer Opportunity
Volunteers are needed to pack and distribute Kidstuff coupon books on Saturday, August 27th from 10:00am-2:00pm. Please join us in the 435 Building to pack and deliver boxes of books to classroom buildings. This volunteer opportunity is only for adults and MS/HS students. Clearances are not required. Ready to help? Sign-up below. Questions? Need more information? Email the HSA directly.
All content for the Newsletter must be submitted by 7:00am on Thursday via email to slake@ccs.us. Our Community Opportunities section will not include information about non-CCS fundraisers or information from for-profit companies. CCS reserves the right to edit submissions and deny material for submission if deemed inappropriate or if it is determined to be of little or no interest to CCS families.