Hello OCRS families,
We finally have a full week of school! Hopefully, the weather will be cooler this week and make it easier and more comfortable for students, teachers, and staff.
Congratulations to these Classes for Perfect Attendance!
One of our main goals this year is to improve daily attendance for all students. Regular and punctual daily attendance is essential to the overall academic, personal and social development of students and required by RI law.
Congratulations to Mrs. Moretti's 1st grade (2 weeks in a row!) and Mrs. Sisco for perfect attendance this past week! It's disappointing that with such a short school week we didn't have more classes with better student attendance. We're hoping attendance will improve this week with the forecast of cooler weather.
Daily attendance for all students in the school district is monitored and reported to the Rhode Island Department of Education. The cooperation of families in not scheduling personal appointments, activities, or vacations during school days is strongly encouraged whenever possible.
OCRS PTA Spirit Gear Available!
This past week an OCRS PTA Spirit Gear Flyer was sent home to all families. Please see a digital version of the flyer below to provide all families with the opportunity to purchase OCRS Spirit Gear for their student. The online Spirit Gear shop is open through Wednesday, 9/13. You can browse and submit an order at https://www.spiritgeardirect.com/GearDrive/Store.aspx?guid=0974d83e-8313-4882-af99-b38ff4f210b2. 10% of every purchase goes to the OCRS PTA to benefit the school. We encourage students and staff to show their OCRS spirit by wearing their Spirit Gear every Friday!
Please Update Your Student and Family Information
Now that school is in session, it is extremely important that we have the most up-to-date information to support your child and contact you in the event of an emergency. Please complete the annual student information update by Monday, September 11th. This process is online and can be completed in about 15 minutes by visiting the Parent Portal at https://bit.ly/SPSParent. Please note that it is easiest to complete this process on a laptop or desktop versus a mobile device. Once logged in, you will be able to:
- Confirm or change family information
Update phone or email contacts - Acknowledge annual policies such as Acceptable Use, Equipment Loan, Photo/Video Procedures, etc.
- Indicate if you DO NOT want your child's photo shared via school social media or posted on the school's website
Instructions to help families walk through the process are attached. If your family has never created a Campus Portal account and you need your "Activation Key"/GUID in order to create your account, please contact our school secretary, Mrs. Deus.
Families that experience issues or need technical support should call (401) 231-6606 extension 8132 during business hours or leave a message and a member of the district’s technology team will get back to you.
Parent Volunteer Training and Volunteer Opportunities
If you have reviewed the Volunteer Handbook and you are interested in possibly volunteering at school, we are offering Volunteer Training for any parent/guardian that has never completed a training session. To make it as convenient as possible for families, both training sessions will be offered online and will take less than 30 minutes. Please see the information below and you are welcome to join either session!
Wednesday, September 13 · 4:30 – 5:00pm
Video call link: https://meet.google.com/wcd-ygqu-oyh
Or dial: (US) +1 334-472-8106 PIN: 480 490 700#
Thursday, September 21 · 4:30 – 5:00pm
Video call link: https://meet.google.com/ozf-ieci-oyo
Or dial: (US) +1 541-649-2375 PIN: 172 211 283#
We would love to have some parents volunteer during 1st lunch to assist our youngest students with opening the items in their lunches (those Lunchables and Capri Sun packages are tricky!) First lunch is 11:30 to 11:55 each day, so let Mr. Barrette know if you would be interested in volunteering. You will need to have a recent (within 1-year) BCI on file and have completed the Volunteer Training.
Free/Reduced Meal Information
Here are links to Free/Reduced Lunch/Breakfast Application Packets in English (https://5il.co/22o2z) and Spanish (https://5il.co/22o30). If a family needs an application in another language please contact Kerri Dailey at kdailey@smithfield-ps.org. Families can also submit an online application at https://www.myschoolapps.com/Application.
Students with Free or Reduced meal benefits from the 22-23 school year will have a 30 day carryover period that will end on October 11th, 2023. Please complete and submit a new application as soon as possible to ensure that your child is able to receive meal benefits.
Families can find all lunch and breakfast information, including menus, on the district's website at https://www.smithfield-ps.org/page/school-meal-program.
Open House, Wednesday 9/20
The OCRS Open House is scheduled for Wednesday, 9/20 from 5:30 PM to 7:30 PM. Drop-in any time between 5:30 PM and 7:30 PM to meet your child's teachers, visit our classrooms, and see the great things happening at OCRS! There is no set schedule, so families can attend the Open House at any time during the two hours.
Students are welcome to come with their family to the Open House, but all students must stay with and be supervised by their family at all times. Also, please be aware that, while the Open House is a terrific opportunity for families to meet their child's teachers, it is not intended to be an in-depth parent/teacher conference or a discussion about specific issues and concerns. Parent/teacher conferences are scheduled to take place on December 13th and are a more appropriate time for comprehensive discussions about individual students.
We are looking forward to seeing you the evening of Wednesday, 9/20!
PTA Information
The 2023-24 PTA board members are:
President: Meghan Grande
Vice President: Amy Capece
Secretary: Laura Henriques
Treasurer: Michelle Greco
2nd Vice President/Hospitality: Jessica Santana
OCRS General Meeting Changed to Wednesday, 9/13 at 6:00 PM
The first OCRS PTA General Meeting will be held on Wednesday, 9/13 at 6:00 PM in the OCRS Media Center. The meeting was originally scheduled for last Thursday, but it conflicted with the Open House at Gallagher Middle School, so we moved our meeting to the 13th. We invite and encourage all interested OCRS parents to get involved in the PTA and the first step is to attend this year's kick-off meeting!
SSELAC Information and Activities
The Smithfield Special Education Local Advisory Committee has activities and meetings scheduled for the next few weeks. Here are the details:
- The first SSELAC meeting of the year is Wednesday, September 27th in the SHS Media Center starting at 6:30PM. The meeting will highlight a nonprofit organization that is VERY special because it is Smithfield's own, Gwen Glavet. Gwen is a 9th grade student working hard to make a difference.
- Friday, September 29th is Unified Day in ALL SCHOOLS and town-wide. SSELAC asks that everyone wears green to signify awareness, acceptance, and inclusion for all children with 504s and IEPs.
- Sunday, October 15th in the Police Community Room SSELAC will be hosting a FREE Basic First Aid and CPR class starting at 9AM. Space is limited, so those who want to participate must register. Link to register is: https://forms.gle/Uzsvrwwrp2Pg6WJH7
Upcoming Dates and Events
View and subscribe to the OCRS Public Events Calendar at https://oldcounty.smithfield-ps.org/o/old-county-road-elementary/page/monthly-calendar. Click on the "Add to Google Calendar" button to subscribe to the calendar using your own calendar app.
Volunteer Training, Wednesday September 13th at 4:30 PM
CHANGED: PTA General Meeting, Wednesday September 13th at 6:00 PM
Open House, Wednesday September 20th from 5:30 PM to 7:30 PM
Volunteer Training, Thursday September 21st at 4:30 PM
Unified Day (Wear Green), Friday September 29th
Thank you,
Mr. Barrette
EMA Cooling and Misting Station was popular!
