Nutrition Services has made some changes to the September lunch menu. The menu is correct on their website, but if you printed the full monthly menu earlier this week, you may want to reprint it.

Click here to see the most recent menu.

The School Accountability Committee (SAC) is meeting from 4:30 – 5:30 p.m. tonight, Sept. 7, in the BFA Conference Room. Click here for the agenda or see the website. All are welcome to attend!

We have noticed some students have medications in their backpacks. Please contact the Health Room before sending medications into school with your student(s).

To review, below is a summary of our Medication Policy:

For elementary students (K-5), all medication, including over the counter, must be in the Health Room with the completed Medication Provider Form on file. No medication can be in the classroom or carried by the student.  

Middle school students (6-8) may be able to Self Carry medication on a limited basis. (Students may carry one dose of either Acetaminophen or Ibuprofen without a form.) However, most medications, including over the counter, are administered in the Health Room with the correct medical forms on file. Students should never share medication with their peers. 

All prescription medications must be provided in the original pharmacy labeled container. All over-the-counter medications must be provided in the original packaging and labeled with the student's name.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Mrs. Paulson in the Health Room or Mrs. Brown, our school nurse.

Nobel Peace Prize winner for nonviolent struggle to ensure women's safety and full participation in peace-building efforts, Leymah Gbowee, will be the keynote speaker for an upcoming fundraiser on Friday, Sept. 22, at the DCSD Legacy Campus. The event is sponsored by Global Village Academy, a DCSD-Authorized Charter School.

Gbowee, renowned as a Liberian peace activist, social worker, and women's rights advocate, received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2011. She will be honored during GVA's International Day Liberia celebration. At 10 a.m., Gbowee will engage with middle and high school female students in a transformational presentation at the DCSD Legacy Campus in Lone Tree.

Student tickets are available for $10 and can be purchased online here. This opportunity is open to all DCSD middle and high school female students.

The Community Events Committee (CEC) is excited to host students and their grandparent(s) or special adult from 6:45 – 8 a.m. TOMORROW, Sept. 8, at BFA's Goodies with Grandparents. The festivities begin in the Lightning (small) gym with coffee, juice and light morning treats—then students and their grandparents can participate in activities and take advantage of photo opportunities.

We ask that grandparents please arrive early, as this is a popular event, but no later than 7:30 a.m. to ensure they have time for treats and beverages with their favorite BFA student(s). Grandparents and students may begin leaving the gym at 7:45 a.m. and students should be in their classrooms at the normal time (8:10 a.m.).

Allergy Free options will be available upon request. Thank you to all who have signed up to volunteer and help make this event a success. We couldn't do it without you!

Parking Reminders:

To make it easier for our guests, we will allow grandparents to park in the lower lot upon arrival. Once the lower lot is filled, please park in the upper lot. Should the upper lot fill completely, overflow parking will take place in the “B” carpool lane. "A" carpool lane will remain open for regular morning carpool drop off.

For those not attending, morning carpool will take longer so please be patient.

Sponsorship sales have been extended through tomorrow, Sept. 8! They are limited in quantity, so be sure to get yours before sales close tomorrow! For details on the various sponsorship options and pricing, see the flier. Each year, sponsorships allow BFA to continue to grow and to meet the needs of our school, as well as our teachers, staff and students. 

Also, if you are a photographer/videographer, marketer, food vendor, or have another event related company, please reach out to Cassie Roberts. We are always in need of help with all the amazing events we have for the kids/families/teachers and would love to build a partnership.

If you have questions, please contact Cassie Roberts, sponsor committee manager. 

Do you know anyone interested in learning more about BFA? We’ve set up our K-8 grade tour schedule for the school year, and are looking forward to meeting prospective parents. Tours are scheduled from September through April, 2024. If you know someone who is interested in BFA but cannot make a tour, please share this video link to listen to what current and former students, teachers, parents, our Principal, and our former Board president have to say about BFA!

Questions about K-8 enrollment can be directed to Colleen Bobbin, BFA's director of admissions and records. If you know parents interested in BFA's preschool, they can go to our webpage or reach out to Lori Hafner, BFA's preschool director.

You asked, and we listened. The PTO is excited to announce NEW spirit wear options—and we think you’ll really like them! The PTO has partnered with locally owned and operated Denver Athletic to offer an easy way to individually order and pay online. The spirit wear store is up and running NOW through Friday Sept. 15. No orders will be accepted after the store closes.

Once the store is closed, all orders will be ready in approximately three weeks. Not only do we have classroom-approved sweatshirts, fleeces, and spirit day shirts, there are additional tops, shorts, hats, and more! Show off your school spirit and support the PTO by placing an order today.  

A few things to note when ordering through the new store:

• Orders are custom made. Denver Athletic does not offer any refunds, exchanges, or substitutions after store is closed.
• Inventory on the store is live. If any size or color is out of stock please check back for new availability.
• Please make sure you are ordering from the right size category for orders—youth, adult, etc. 
• The PTO recommends referring to the sizing charts in the item description.
• Due to global supply issues, Denver Athletic reserves the right to change your item for something of equal or greater value. If no acceptable substitutions are available, you will be refunded.
• Logos on item may not be an exact representation of size, placement, or color.

If you have any questions, please email Gen Townsend, PTO spirit wear committee manager.

Franklin Fest is back! This time-honored event is a great way to connect with the entire Ben Franklin community! We hope you'll join us for activities, food and games from 3 - 7 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 30, at BFA. Bring the whole family for an afternoon of fun! There will be bounce houses and inflatables for all ages, a dunk tank, face painting, balloon artists, and the ever-popular CAKE WALK! The afternoon also will feature a signature appetizer from Urban Village Grill as well as salads and pizza (gluten-free and regular) from Parry's Pizzeria! 

Tickets are on sale NOW through Friday, Sept. 22, via MySchoolBucks. Tickets are $15 per child, with a maximum of $40 for a family. Adults as well as siblings who do not attend BFA are FREE. Families who have completed and logged their recommended volunteer hours (30 hours per family or 15 hours per single parent household) for the current school year in Help Counter by midnight Monday, Sept. 22, will be given free admission to the event! 

We can't make this event happen without our volunteers! Volunteers spend a little time helping, then can spend the rest of the afternoon enjoying the event with their family. We hope you’ll consider volunteering to help staff the event or donating a cake for the cake walk! Volunteering for Franklin Fest is a fantastic way to support these types of amazing community events and earn hours towards your recommended family totals.

Please contact Ewelina Chrzanowski, PTO social coordinator if you have any questions. 

Mr. Redford, our licensed school psychologist, will host a parent seminar at 7 p.m. on Wednesday Sept. 20, in the Middle School Commons. The topic of discussion is Stress Management for our children. In the seminar, Mr. Redford will discuss how to identify stressors, what type of stressors may potentially be impacting our children (social media, post pandemic issues, suicide), coping mechanisms, as well as general mental health struggles. This is a great opportunity to become more informed, seek answers to your questions as well as connect with other parents in the BFA community. We hope to see you there!

Join the members of the PTO at their monthly meetings to find out more about what’s going on at BFA and get connected with other parents. Meetings are held at BFA on the second Wednesday of each month. Their first meeting will be at 6:30 p.m. next Wednesday, Sept. 13, in the Sanders Science Lab.

All BFA community members are welcome! Attendance at PTO meetings will count toward your family’s recommended volunteer hours. We look forward to seeing you there.

Want to learn more about the BFA PTO? Visit their webpage.

The 2023-24 yearbooks are on sale now. Be sure to order yours early for the best pricing! Right now, yearbooks cost $40 per book. (The price will go up to $50 after Winter Break.) And, as an extra incentive to order early, if you order by Sept. 15 you will get free icons (graphics) when you personalize the cover! 

You may also order a yearbook dedication (parent tribute ad) for your student. Dedications are $35 for 1/8 of page if you order by November 13. After that, the price for dedications will go up to $38 (if ordered by 12/31) and then to $40 (from 1/1 until the last day to order, 1/31). These ads are a fun way to help commemorate a great school year!

This year, we will be using a new company, Jostens, for our yearbooks. You can order and pay for your 2023-24 yearbook here, and your dedication here! See the flier for details.

Gradelink is a useful tool to help parents track their student's grades and stay on top of any missing assignments. Most parents received their individual login sheets at Back-to-School night. (For the Gradelink veterans--it has not changed.) But, ALL PARENTS should add their email to their Gradelink account as it will make your password recovery easier and is important for setting up alerts. Parents can set up alerts according to their preference; then they can use the information to praise their students for high achievement, and/or ensure they are aware of any grades that may not meet their expectations.

To learn more, watch this video about Gradelink.

Parents of students in grades 3-8 can monitor their child's online activity at school using Securly. BFA uses Securly for website filtering to adhere to the Children's Internet Protection Act. If you're new to third grade or the school, look for an introductory email from Securly in the coming weeks.

If your family has a recorder that is no longer being used, you can donate it to the BFA music program. Ms. Johnson has plans for our fifth grade students to use their recorders more frequently this year, so we would appreciate donations from families who do not have a fifth grader. Please send the recorder in with your student and ask them to deliver it to Ms. Johnson's classroom. Thank you!

We kindly recommend that you label items sent to school with your student--including your student's sweater, sweatshirt, coat, water bottle and lunch box. It would be ideal if items were labeled with your student's first and last name as we do have several families with the same last name.

Several times a year, we donate the Lost and Found items to charity because we cannot locate the owners. Our Student Council sifts through Lost and Found items and returns those that are labeled to the rightful owner; but sadly, each year many nice coasts, sweatshirts and water bottles that are not labeled end up in Lost and Found, and we cannot keep them indefinitely.

Thanks in advance for labeling all your items!

The Spirit Rock is an opportunity to share exciting events with our school community by painting your own message. Parents, students and staff may rent the rock to recognize a student’s birthday, show school spirit, wish a team good luck, thank a teacher, announce an event, etc. It is a great way to spread positive messages and increase excitement! The rate to rent the rock is $20 per day. All proceeds directly benefit the Ben Franklin Academy PTO!

Want to rent the Rock? Here’s how:

• First, reserve the date you want by visiting the Rent the Rock sign up. 
• Then, pay for your reservation through MySchoolBucks.

Have questions? Contact Lindsay Bullock, spirit rock committee manager.

Harper Arts is thrilled to be returning this school year to offer music lessons and coaching at BFA. Mrs. Harper has openings for lessons in piano, guitar and ukulele. Click here to indicate interest.