Letter to Families & Staff; 09-23-2022

Letter to Families & Staff; 09-23-2022

RCS Communications

September 23, 2022

Dear Families, Students & Staff,   

We hope that everyone had a wonderful week of school here at RCS! If you have any questions as we settle into the 22-23 school year, please reach out to your student's building. We like to send letters to families, students, and staff that contain important and new information from our district. This letter includes: 

New Information=

  • Bring your Family to P.E. Week Returns, Oct. 3-7
  • High School Open House
  • Upcoming Important Dates 
  • Board of Education Information Brochure
  • 21-22 School Year Grade 3-8 NYS Testing Results 

Important Reminders =

  • Don’t forget to turn in your Free & Reduced Price Meal Applications
  • RCS COVID-19 Management Plan 22-23
  • District-wide Emergency Early Release Drill on Friday, October 7 
  • Student Information Update Form

Reminders =

  • RCS Celebrations & Stories
  • Clubs & Activities 
  • 22-23 District Calendar
  • RCS District Fundraiser Page
  • RCS Welcomes Interim School Business Official Tammy Sutherland 
  • Direct Links

New Information

Bring your Family to P.E. Week Returns, Oct. 3-7: The RCS Physical Education Department is thrilled to bring back the Bring your Family to P.E. Week from Monday, October 3 through Friday, October 7. Each building will be finding unique ways to promote physical activities for students and their families. If it has not been shared already, specific information from each school building will be sent home next week.

High School Open Houses: This year, RCS returned to in-person open houses for all schools. The final open house for this year will be our High School next Thursday, September 29, at 6:00 p.m. (updated time), click here for more information.

Upcoming Important Dates (Click here to access the RCS calendar): 

This/Next Week:

Later in the Month:

  • Mon., October 3 - Fri., October 7: Bring your Family to P.E. Week
  • Tuesday, October 4: Middle School Fall Picture Day
  • Wednesday, October 5: High School Picture Day 
  • Thursday, October 6: AWB Fall Picture Day 
  • Friday, October 7: Emergency Early Release Drill (All students release 15 minutes early)
  • Friday, October 7: End of Q1 five-week interim period (MS/HS)
  • Friday, October 7: All BOCES Career and Technical Education campuses closed 
  • Monday, October 10: Columbus Day & Indigenous Peoples Day - No School & District Closed
  • Wednesday, October 12: PSAT for Juniors
  • Friday, October 14: PBC Fall Picture Day
  • Mon., Oct. 17 - Fri., Oct. 21: Homecoming Week, School Bus Safety Week, and School Board Recognition Week 
  • Tuesday, October 18: Staff Development Day, Early Dismissal PK-12
  • Wednesday, October 19: Board of Education Meeting & High School Recognition Awards at HS, 6:00 p.m.
  • Thursday, October 20: High School Band & Chorus Fall Concert and Tri-M Music Honor Society Induction; 7:00 p.m.
  • Friday, October 21: RCS Spirit Day! Wear your best green and gold!

Board of Education Information Brochure: We have created a Board of Education Information Brochure that is available to be printed off our website here or at a Board of Education Meeting. The brochure covers the responsibilities of the Board, as well as how meetings are run and how to participate. Click here to view the brochure. 

21-22 School Year Grade 3-8 NYS Testing Results: The Northeastern Regional Information Center (NERIC) will be mailing home results from the 21-22 New York State Grade 3 through 8 tests over the next month. These results will not be coming from RCS. If you have any questions regarding the results once you have received them, please reach out to your student’s teacher. If you do not receive them by November 1, please contact your student's school building. 

Important Reminders

Don’t forget to turn in your Free & Reduced Price Meal Applications: Breakfast and lunch were free for all students last year due to The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and New York State (NYS) provided the entire state with the funds necessary to allow for that to happen. The USDA and NYS have chosen not to provide the funds again for the 22-23 school year. At this time, RCS does not currently qualify for free breakfast and lunch for all students based on our district's demographics. Although not free for the entire district, based on family size and income, your family may qualify for free or reduced-price meals. Turn in your free and reduced-price meal applications today to see if you qualify. Please click here to read more about free and reduced-price meal applications. 

RCS COVID-19 Management Plan 22-23: Last week, we shared with families specific information regarding our COVID-19 Management Plan for the 22-23 school year. As always, families are urged to keep students home from school who are ill, regardless of whether their symptoms are COVID-19-related. Families can view or download the RCS COVID-19 Protocols Quick Guide for determining when their child can return to school (click here). Read the full COVID-19 guidance for the 22-23 school year here.

District-wide Emergency Early Release Drill on Friday, October 7: All schools in New York State must complete an emergency early release drill, once per year, that requires us to evacuate our students and staff at least 15-minutes before their regular dismissal time. This drill helps prepare us in the case of an emergency that would require us to transport our entire district home or to another location prior to the end of the school day. 

Our drill is set for Friday, October 7, 2022. Here are the plans for each building:

  • Middle & High School: Students will be released at 1:42 p.m. BOCES CTE is closed this day, please click here for more information regarding the options for CTE students. HS athletes who have practice or a game will report to the HS athletic field bleachers and MS athletes who have practice or a game will report to outside of the MS gym. 
  • AWB & PBC Elementary Schools: Students who get picked up will be released at 2:35 p.m., and students who take the bus will be dismissed at 2:45 p.m. Please remember that students will be getting home early. For students in Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten, someone does need to be home to greet them when they get off the bus. The after-school programs at each elementary will be held.

Student Information Update Form: Last week, student information update forms were sent home with each student. View the photo below to see a sample of what the form will look like. Please review all of the information, and note any changes directly on the printed sheet. Additionally, please answer the questions listed on the back. We are requesting that the forms are returned to the school as soon as possible. If you have any questions or have lost your student’s form, please contact your student’s main office. 

Reminders

RCS Celebrations & Stories: There is a lot of exciting and interesting stuff happening at RCS! Check out what has been happening around our district here.

Clubs & Activities: The fall is the perfect time for students to get involved in the clubs and activities at their school buildings. Here are the different options for each building:

22-23 School Year Calendar: The digital RCS Calendar for the 22-23 school year is now available on our website. Please click here to learn more. 

RCS District Fundraiser Page: Last year, we launched our District Fundraising page on our website, you can access it here. This is a central location for our school community to view current fundraisers and details about each. There is also a google form for organizations to submit their pre-approved fundraisers to be listed on the webpage. Click here to see a list of the current fundraisers!

RCS Welcomes Interim School Business Official Tammy Sutherland: Read more about our Interim Business Official, Ms. Sutherland, here. 

Direct Links:

If you have any questions about anything covered in the letter, please reach out to your student’s building for clarification. Thank you.