Do you know someone who would have a positive and lasting impact on the future of BFA?

Nominate yourself or someone you know to serve on the BFA Board of Directors! Board members are committed to the success of BFA. They set policies and have oversight over

financial matters of the school while focusing on the long-term strategic direction to ensure the school's continued success.

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 the education of our students. 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. 

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 on March 1,

2024.

If you have any questions, please visit the Elections webpage, or email any of the Board members.

Haley Maglieri, President (haleym@bfacademy.org)

Adam Lucero, Vice President (adaml@bfacademy.org)

Sarah Nisbet, Treasurer (sarahn@bfacademy.org)

Mette Castor, Secretary (mettec@bfacademy.org)

Keri Street, Director (keri@bfacademy.org)

Stephen Bentley, Director (stephenb@bfacademy.org)

Melody Matthews, Director (melodym@bfacademy.org)

All are welcome to attend the FREE middle school performance of Roald Dahl's "Matilda" at 7 p.m. on Friday, March 1, and Saturday, March 2, at BFA. Our BFA performing arts students and tech crew would love to show off all their hard work!

Each year, the Student Council selects a worthy charity to support as part of our mission to be civically engaged and give back to our local community. This year, the Student Council chose to support The Colorado Cancer Foundation, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization that focuses on treatment and palliative care, as well as medical research and education at the University of Colorado (CU) Anschutz Medical Campus in Aurora, CO. According to their website, the foundation has given more than a hundred thousand dollars to oncology research, while providing life-saving support to men, women, and children in need throughout the State of Colorado.

Middle school Charity Week will kick off on Monday, March 11. Students can participate in fun, themed dress-up days all week, and we’ll close out the week with Middle School Dodgeball for Dollars on Friday, March 15. The two biggest fundraisers for Charity Week are Dodgeball for Dollars and sales of the Charity Week 2024 t-shirt. Last week, the student council asked middle schoolers to design this year's t-shirt. The winner of the t-shirt design contest is eighth grader Livi Calahan! Congratulations, Livi!

T-shirts are available in MySchoolBucks from today through 3 p.m. on Friday, March 1. To have the shirts ready to hand out during Charity Week, we cannot extend the deadline so late orders will not be accepted. The shirt will be white, and the design will be printed in blue and red. Elementary and middle school students may wear the shirt to school with uniform bottoms starting on Monday, March 11, through the end of the school year. Next year, students may wear the shirt on Spirit Days. The cost of the t-shirt is $20. The class with the highest t-shirt sales will win a pizza party! All proceeds, less the shirt printing cost, will go to The Colorado Cancer Foundation. Thanks for supporting Charity Week! 

Get ready for the second family-friendly Engineering Night for the 2023-24 academic year, hosted by the BFA STEM Committee!

The committee will host an Egg Drop Competition from 5 - 7 p.m. on Thursday, March 14, at BFA. This is a FREE event open to all BFA students and families!

For the event, competitors will design contraptions to protect their eggs from breaking when dropped from various heights. The event will include an informational presentation and a preview of competition rules; along with time and materials for competitors to design their egg-safe contraptions. Some light snacks will be provided during the event and prizes will be awarded to our event winners. 

Sign up to participate in this free, fun, STEM-tastic evening of friendly competition at BFA! 

Don’t miss out! Bring your thinking caps, teamwork, and a little

ingenuity for this fun and brain-tingling night. 🧠

Are you looking for a way to get more involved in the BFA community? The Community Events Committee (CEC) is always looking for volunteers to help plan their events. They host meaningful events that bring together our community, including: the Back to School Picnic, Kindergarten BooHoo/Yahoo, Goodies with Grandparents, Veterans Day, Muffins with Mom, Doughnuts with Dad, Teacher Pie Drive, and MORE!

As the CEC starts to plan for the 2024-25 school year, they hope to fill a few open officer positions:

• Chair - the Chair serves as the lead of the CEC. This position oversees and works with all committee positions and event leads. He or she will be responsible to report the progress of each event at monthly CEC meetings and will be the primary communications coordinator with the Principal as well as the liaison to the Board.
• Vice Chair - the Vice Chair will assist the Chair and perform such duties as assigned to him or her by the Chair or Board.
• Secretary - the Secretary shall keep records of and maintain files of all minutes/agendas/voting records, and ensure the information on the BFA website is accurate and updated.
• Community Relations - this role is responsible for developing relationships with community partners and vendors including, but not limited to, food and beverage, entertainment, and outreach activities.

For full position descriptions, please see page four of the CEC bylaws. All of the above are two-year voting positions.

If you would like to apply for any of these positions, please send an email to CEC@bfacademy.org no later than Wednesday, March 27, with your name, position of interest, and a brief description of why you are interested and would be successful in the position. Elections will be held in April and new officers appointed in May.

If you are interested in becoming more involved, but don't want to take on an officer role, they are also looking for event leads. As an event lead you would lead or co-lead one of their various events and oversee event logistics such as the budget, facility needs, and work alongside our Communications Officer for volunteer and communications needs. They also are always looking for general volunteers - assist where you can, when you can. They'd love to have you participate in any way that works for you!

Mark your calendars, the next CEC meeting will be at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, March 5. (Stay tuned for location details.) Attend the meeting to learn more about the open positions, the committee or simply find out additional details regarding how you can get involved in other ways.

BFA elementary students voted for the following books as their top three picks for the Colorado Children's Book Award (CCBA):

#1. "Creepy Crayon!" by Aaron Reynolds

#2. "Those Are Not My Underpants!" by Melissa Martin

#3. "Knight Owl" by Christopher Denise

Ms. Williams will submit our votes to the CCBA committee and they will add these to the other schools' totals. In three to four weeks, we'll share which book won the award!

Thank you to all of the volunteer readers who came in the past few weeks to read all 10 of the nominated books to classes.

Hearing and vision impact learning, so it’s essential to conduct screenings and, if necessary, re-screenings. Next Wednesday, Feb. 28, we will re-screen students for hearing; in addition, we'll conduct initial screenings for students who missed the previous hearing and vision tests.

Vision Screenings Make-Ups: 

If your student was absent for the initial screenings, please have them wear their prescription glasses or contacts on Feb. 28. You will receive a letter with instructions ONLY if your student does not pass the vision screening.

Volunteers Needed:

We would appreciate six volunteers to help during this time. To sign up to help, click HERE.

Girls Soccer tryouts will be held on the following dates:

• Tuesday, March 5, from 4-5:15 p.m.
• Wednesday, March 6, from 7-8 a.m., and
• Thursday, March 7, from 4-5:15 p.m.

Anyone interested in trying out should register on MySchoolBucks. Tryouts will be outside on the turf so please dress accordingly and bring water. Players will not have access to the inside of the school during this time. If weather does not permit us to be on the outdoor turf, we will move tryouts to the following week, same days and times. Please email Coach Svensen with any questions. 

Ben's Brigade will host a Guys Night Out from 7 - 10 p.m. TONIGHT, Feb. 22, at Main Event in Highlands Ranch. Come enjoy billiards, laser tag, bowling, arcade games and a buffet. And, hang out with other BFA guys! There are still a few spots available, but space is limited so please RSVP to let us know if you plan to attend.



Contact Curtis Anderson and Justin Mayhall, Ben’s Brigade co-committee managers to learn more.

The PTO will host a Used Uniform Sale from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 24, in the Lightning Gym. All uniform pieces will be $5 at the sale, or 5 pieces for $20. The PTO's goal is to continue to support our children, staff and families by offering affordable uniform options while simultaneously funding the PTO. Important Note: If parents bring their student(s) to the sale, they MUST stay with the parent at all times and not roam the halls. 



Volunteer Opportunities:

Looking for volunteer hours? To help, sign up HERE or contact Jessica Kostelecky, PTO uniform buy back committee chair. Clothes will need to be sorted and organized prior to the sale, which can be done at home.

Mark your calendar for the PTO’s February Spirit Night! It’s from 3:30-8 p.m. TOMORROW, Feb. 23, at Tiger Den Tea House (44 Springer Drive, Highlands Ranch). Tiger Den will donate 20 percent of all orders placed to the BFA PTO!

Be sure to tell the cashier that you are there for the BFA fundraiser. Or, if you order via the Clover app, let the cashier know when you pick your order up. Please spread the word.

We hope to see you there!

Please ask your student(s) to check the Lost and Found, or stop by school between 8:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. to check on behalf of your student(s). All unclaimed items that are not clearly labeled with a current student's name will be donated on Friday, March 15.

It’s time to start considering where you are going to register your children for summer care and, most importantly, summer FUN!

BFA will offer summer camp again this year. We’re excited to offer this popular program as the kids love spending the day with their friends doing fun activities, and parents appreciate the peace of mind of knowing who is caring for their child. Registration is NOW OPEN and is $35 per child. The registration fee includes one summer camp t-shirt and one day pack.

This registration does not guarantee your child a weekly spot—you’ll sign up for those later; however, it helps us know how many kids plan on attending so we can formalize staffing.

For questions about summer camp, please email Leigh Savoy, BASE director.

Landsharks offers a non-competitive youth program to introduce running to young athletes in a safe and fun environment. The focus is on self-improvement, being an encouraging teammate, and making new friends. The Spring Track series is a fun-based program open to students in Kindergarten through sixth grade. Practices consist of running games and track workouts with a strong focus on fun. Practices start on Tuesday, April 9. See this flier for all the details!