Weekly Update
A Message from Principal Simpson
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Dear Parents,
I have so much to share today. I hope everyone has had a good week; it was a short but busy one here at school.
First of all, I want to thank all of you for your generous donations to the Boosterthon DanceFit fundraiser! Thanks to all of you, we are very close to our goal. The kids are having so much fun and are excited about the event tomorrow. We all sincerely appreciate your support of our school through this fundraiser.
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We have several families returning to in-person learning next week, and I thought this would be a good time to review some of our COVID-19 protocols. If a student experiences any of the symptoms of COVID for more than 48 hours, we will require a negative PCR COVID test for him/her to return to school. Symptoms of COVID can range from fever, cough, and body to aches to milder symptoms of runny nose, stuffy nose, headache, stomach ache or sore throat. Click here for the flowchart we are required to follow to allow students to return to school. It is essential that you report symptoms to us, especially if they start over a weekend. By reporting symptoms and length of symptoms, we can better advise as to whether or not a test is required.
I also have a COVID update for the school. We have a presumed positive student case as well as a positive staff case in sixth grade. All sixth graders, along with several staff members, are quarantined through next week. There also was another staff member who tested positive this week. This positive case led to several individual quarantines as well as a fourth grade cohort quarantine. We have notified all close contacts of any of these exposures.
I’ve had a few questions about the new shortened quarantine rules. In January, we decided to adopt this procedure for shortened quarantine times: Students and staff may test day eight after exposure. If they test negative, they can return after day ten. This shortened quarantine is available to individual students and staff quarantining as well as any middle school cohorts that are quarantining. Due to logistical concerns, we will not offer the shortened quarantine to elementary cohorts required to quarantine.
A couple of months ago, we asked families to nominate teachers and other staff members for the Douglas County Foundation Apple Awards. I am pleased to announce that Genevieve Gibson, our eighth grade social studies teacher, and Holly Long, our Kitchen Manager, are our Apple Award Representatives this year! These nominations are well deserved and I hope you’ll join me in extending congratulations to Ms. Gibson and Mrs. Long!
Tomorrow is the last day to submit nominations for our Board of Directors. If you would like to be more involved in the policies and decision-making at BFA, I encourage you to run for the Board! It’s truly a rewarding and worthwhile way to give back to the community.
I hope everyone has a good weekend! As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please email me.
Sincerely,
Mrs. Simpson
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This Friday, Feb. 19, is the end of the second trimester. Report cards will come out on Gradelink by next Friday.
Our next remote learning day is Wednesday, Feb 24.
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Tomorrow Final Day for BFA Board Nominations |
Do you know a leader who is passionate about maintaining the success of our school? As announced earlier this month, there will be (2) open director seats on the BFA Board that will be filled this spring. Filling these positions with qualified leaders, who are dedicated to our mission and vision is critical to the future of our school and our students' education.
We hope you will consider the broad range of skills needed for the position as outlined in previous communications and consider nominating yourself or someone else with the requisite experience. After all, it's a wonderful feeling to know you have an impact on the future of our children.
To nominate someone (including yourself) for the BFA Board, click here to complete the nomination form. Nominations must be submitted online by 11:59 p.m. (MST) tomorrow, February 19.
If you have any questions, please visit the Board webpage, or email any of the Board members listed below. Thank you for your consideration!
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Your Opinion Matters - More than Half our Families Still Need to Respond! |
The School Accountability Committee (SAC) would like your feedback on this school year. So far we've only heard from 215 families, which means more than half of our families have not responded. We believe that every opinion matters so please complete the Parent Satisfaction Survey TODAY!
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DanceFit TOMORROW; FINAL Evening to Donate! |
The BFA DanceFit event is tomorrow and our students are so excited! THANK YOU to all of our families who have been working hard to raise funds for our school. So far, all of your ‘shares’ and donations have added up to $34,406 or 76% of our goal! But we still need your help to reach our goal of $45,000. There is only one day left in the program. That makes tonight the LAST NIGHT FOR DONATIONS before DanceFit!
Here are the stats for the classroom leaderboard so far:
Elementary:
Pre-K: McConnell/MWF at 60.01 Pledge Per Minute (PPM) Danced
Kindergarten: DePasse at 105.25 PPM
1st grade: Bauer at 108.32 PPM
Middle School:
6th grade: Babb at 75.17 PPM
7th grade: Poleschook at 30.67 PPM
8th grade: Dychus at 23.58 PPM
Your students will receive their DanceFit t-shirts at school today. Students can wear their DanceFit t-shirt to school on Friday with (school appropriate) athletic pants/shorts.
See the flier for additional information about how to participate in DanceFit; and, in case you need some incentives:
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10 percent of every dollar pledged and collected from each class will go back to that classroom for teacher use.
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The top two middle school classes (grades 6-8) and top two elementary and pre-school classes (preschool-fifth grade) will receive a pizza party sponsored by the PTO.
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When we reach our goal of $45,000 for STEAM enhancements including stage lighting and sound improvements, the entire school will receive a Dress of Choice Day!
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Families can earn up to two hours volunteer time for their efforts in registering, sharing, and/or raising funds for our DanceFit fundraiser. A category of DanceFit has been set up in HelpCounter for families to record their time.
The PTO is incredibly grateful for your support of our school and the DanceFit fundraiser.
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All Students Welcome to Participate in Math Masters! |
The STEM committee is organizing a Math Masters Session at 10 a.m. next Wednesday, Feb. 24, via Zoom. All students in grades 5-8 are welcome to attend and improve their mathematical thinking and problem solving skills by trying their hand at a series of age-appropriate math problems. Then join on Zoom with Niketa Saboo, a professional engineer and mathematician, to work through the solutions and get some tips on improving your mathematical know-how.
Sign up to participate today! Links to download the math problems and connect to the Zoom are on the SignUpGenius website.
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Parents Welcome to Attend SAC Meeting |
Would you like to be involved in reviewing policies that drive the direction of BFA? If so, please join SAC members at their monthly School Accountability Committee (SAC) meeting as they review: Field Trip Policy, Non-Discrimination Policy, and Student Discipline Policy. The SAC is meeting at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, Feb 25, via Zoom. The details of the Zoom meeting are available on the BFA calendar. If you would like information about serving on the SAC or participating in the Zoom meeting, please contact Woody Haynes at SAC@bfacademy.org.
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If you have any paper clipped Box Tops, it’s time to turn them in! Please bring them to school by Thursday, Feb. 25. Your student(s) can drop them in the box right inside the front doors by the office, or give them to his/her teacher.
And, don’t forget to keep scanning or emailing in your receipts. You can scan your receipts with the Box Tops app. Or, if you’re shopping online, you can forward your email receipt to: receipts@boxtops4education.com, using the email address that’s associated with your Box Tops account.
For more information, click here or email Alaina Tinney, Box Tops committee chair at: bfaboxtops@gmail.com. Thank you for helping us reach our Box Tops goal!
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Spirit Wear Store NOW OPEN;
BFA Masks in Stock!
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The PTO store is open now through the end of February, and we just received a shipment of BFA masks. Shop now for gaiters, water bottles, wireless phone chargers, car magnets/decals, and more! Make sure your kids have sweatshirts for chilly classrooms and fleece jackets or vests for recess. Find all your items at MySchoolBucks.com. The store closes on February 28.
Orders will be delivered and sent home through your child's classroom. Masks and gaiters are not returnable. If you are a remote family, please contact Rachael Hamburger, PTO spirit wear chair, to coordinate delivery.
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Sign up for King Soopers Rewards Program |
We all need to buy groceries and most of us need gas for our vehicles; but did you realize that with just a few minutes of administrative work, you can support BFA while making all these regular purchases? Here's how:
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Sign in to your digital account at King Soopers Community Rewards. If you haven't already, set up your account and link your King Soopers card or phone number to your account.
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Click on Community Rewards, Enroll Now and search for Ben Franklin Parent Teacher Organization OR enter our code, XN773. Click Enroll.
- Next time you check out at King Soopers or City Market, scan your card (or enter your alternate ID) and BFA will get money back from your purchase.
Last year, our earnings from October to December equaled $2,075.89. Please keep linking your card to BFA, shopping, and scanning!
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Youth Education and Safety in Schools Seminar |
Parents are welcome to attend the upcoming Youth Education and Safety in Schools (Y.E.S.S.) Parent Academy, which will be presented virtually from 5:30-7 p.m. on Wednesday, March 4, via Zoom. A 30-minute question and answer session will follow. This session will cover Human Trafficking with a guest speaker who is a subject matter expert and trafficking survivor. Please RSVP to attend—this is a very important topic that ties in closely with risky online behaviors.
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Mission:
Our mission is to create young adults with character like America's founding Renaissance man, Benjamin Franklin: well-read, scientifically curious, and civically engaged.
Vision:
Our students will excel academically through a challenging, sequenced curriculum that emphasizes math, science, the arts, and literacy. We will be a data-driven institution, focusing on individual students. Our students, teachers, parents, staff, and leaders will be held accountable for the success of our school. Finally, we recognize that an education is incomplete without fostering social emotional development, character, sports, and nature.
13 Virtues:
Temperance, Silence, Order, Resolution, Frugality, Industry, Sincerity, Justice, Moderation, Cleanliness, Tranquility, Purity and Humility.
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Ben Franklin Academy
2270 Plaza Drive
Highlands Ranch, CO 80129
www.bfacademy.org
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Main Office Phone: 720-383-4519
Email: info@bfacademy.org
Attendance Phone: 720-432-9239
Email: attendance@bfacademy.org
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