It was great to see so many of you at Open House last night! We are excited to get back to it. I wanted to share a few reminders with you going into tomorrow as well as some news.
Construction at SMS: As you probably noticed there is a lot of work going on at SMS. We planned to have it all finished long before school started, but unfortunately construction of the wall and replacement of the school did not begin until this week. On top of that we had a couple water issues that came up. We can begin school, but traffic at pickup and drop off might be a little congested. Please be patient as we begin the new school year. Special thanks to Mr. Frebis who has been been going above and beyond to deal with all the issues that popped up.
Pickup and Dropoff: For those of you not familiar with our procedures, I will try to explain it the best can. I promise once you see it, it will be very easy.
Dropoff: Students should be dropped off at the school between 7:35 and 7:55. Please do not drop them off before that as we cannot ensure that students will be supervised before that. Mr. Hyde will be standing in front of the school every morning, and you can pull right in front of the school and he will open the door for your child so you do not even have to get out of the car! You can then exit down Hemp Alley. (I realize being the first day, that many of you will want to walk your child in, and that is ok. You may park on the hill, but there wont be much room there, so you might have to find parking below the church and walk them up) Again, please be patient. Any student dropped off after 7:55 should be walked into the office as they are tardy after 7:55.
Pickup: We ask that cars do not line up before 2:00. If you are picking up the line may begin in Hemp Alley, starting at the Rosary Garden. There may also be two lines of cars facing the school on Market St as far to the Church side as possible, leaving enough room for an emergency lane on the side of Market opposite the Church. You may also park below 4th street, but beware the buses pull up in front of the Church and must be able to turn on to Market, so it is important that you do not park too close to the intersection as the buses have to have room to make the turn. We will dismiss bus riders first, then car riders. After the buses leave and all students have made it to their vehicles, Mrs. Kelly will direct traffic down the back alley to exit. If you are in a hurry, I would suggest parking at the bottom of the hill and walking up to get your child so you do not have to wait for the line of cars. If we all work together on this it honestly works quite well.
Buses: For those of you that ride buses, first, there will be no Ripley bus tomorrow as RULH does not begin until Thursday. We apologize for the inconvenience. I spoke with Mr. Heslar yesterday, and he will be picking up students at St. George around 7:20 tomorrow, and drop them off there around 3:10. The SMS bus will also run it's normal route tomorrow. We will leave the Home Place at 7:10, I will likely be at Marathon around 7:30 and in the afternoon will drop off around 3:05 and then go through Russellville. For the safety of our students, please remember not to pull out of the pickup/drop off zones until the buses have left the parking lots!
Paperwork: This is another gentle reminder about getting your eforms completed on OptionC. These are mandatory for all of our families, we are at 55% complete, so please work on that. If you have trouble logging in, feel free to contact me and I will help you. Also, those of you receiving scholarships, please turn in your award letters. If you did not receive one, please let me know and I will check into it.
Golf Outing: The golf outing is 4 weeks from this Saturday. We have a long way to go. Participation from all of our families is required. Please work on those sponsors, teams and prizes!
2nd Grade: As most of you have heard, we had to pivot in 2nd grade due to unforeseen circumstances. Miss Kacy is still the 2nd grade homeroom teacher and will teach Math, Social Studies and Science. We are happy to announce that Mrs. Gwendolyn Boone has been hired to teach English/Language Arts to our 2nd grade friends, and will be supported by Mrs. Offutt, Mrs. Wallace, and Mrs. Pedigo. Mrs. Boone will not be able to begin right away, as we have to wait for background checks and license to come through, so beginning next week, Mrs. Nina White will begin the year as the 2nd grade ELA teacher and stay until Mrs. Boone is ready to go, ensuring a smooth transition.
This time of year, I often reflect back on all the first days of my 23 years in education, especially the past nine as principal. I remember in our Opening Meet & Greet in 2016 (yes, we used to be able to get all of our families together in the Church to begin the year), we had 58 students and I remember saying to our parents, "This is our chance, to make an amazing place to raise our kids together." I am so proud of all we have accomplished over the past nine years, and although I am thankful that my daughters had the opportunity to benefit from SMS, I am also a little jealous that they have graduated and aren't here as our school grows, and becomes even stronger. Together we have built a wonderful Christ-centered environment for our children, and we must continue to work together to not only carry on but grow this legacy for our children and grandchildren. I take this vocation very seriously, and I can tell you, there is no way this works without the Grace of God, and all of us coming together in His mission. Thank you for choosing to share the journey with us. Let's make it a great year.
-AA