Collegium Newsletter ~ May 18, 2015

Monday, May 18th ~ Day 1
Tuesday, May 19th ~ Day 2
Wednesday, May 20th ~ Day 3
Thursday, May 21st ~ Day 4
Friday, May 22nd ~ Day 5
Mon., May 25th ~ No School
Tuesday, May 26th ~ Day 6
Mark Your Calendar!
Monday, May 18th
Grades K-5: Crazy Hair
School Spirit Day
Academic Team Awards
Banquet @ Desmond
Hotel, 6pm
Tuesday, May 19th
Keystone Exam: Algebra
Hershey Park
Chaperone Meeting, 500
Bldg. 5:30pm
Wed., May 20th
Keystone Exam: Algebra
Grades K-6: New
Teacher Book Drive
Begins
MS Spring Concert, 515
Auditorium 6:30pm
Thursday, May 21st
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8 Grade Field Trip:
Washington, DC
Keystone Exam: Biology
Title I/R.A.P. Parent
Info. Session, 435 Conf.
Room 4:30pm
CCSHSA Meeting, 435
Conf. Room 5:15pm
Board of Trustees Public
Work Session, 435
Conf. Room 6pm
HS Spring Concert, 515
Auditorium 6:30pm
Board of Trustees Public
Meeting, 435 Conf.
Room 7pm
Friday, May 22nd
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8 Grade Field Trip
Returns from DC
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5 Grade Field Trip:
Hershey Park
Keystone Exam: Biology
Monday, May 25th
School Closed –
Memorial Day
Collegium Newsletter ~ May 18, 2015
500: (610) 903-1300, ext. 6106
150: (610) 903-1300, ext. 6811
515: (610) 903-1300, ext. 6372
535: (610) 903-1300, ext. 6602
CCS Board of Trustees: [email protected] or (610) 903-1300, ext. 7501
www.collegiumcharter.com
NEHS Book Drive
Exciting New HS Electives
The National Elementary Honor Society
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(NEHS) is sponsoring their 7 Annual Book
Drive in the 150, 500, and 515 buildings. The
purpose of their drive is to help new teachers
build classroom libraries. Beginning this
Wednesday, collection boxes will be available
in the 150, 500, and 515 buildings. The
rd
collection ends on June 3 . Please help
classroom libraries blossom and broaden
students’ reading selection by donating new
and/or gently-used books.
CCS is proud to announce a variety of new
elective courses offered for the 2015-2016
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school year! Throughout the week, all 8 th
11 grade students will receive information
detailing the new STEAM electives and
Virtual High School electives. Any student
interested in taking one of these electives
must complete a Submission Form and
return it to their school counselor by Friday,
nd
May 22 . For the Submission Form and
course
descriptions,
please
visit
http://www.collegiumcharter.com/documents/
STEAM%20Electives.pdf.
2015 PSATs
The 2015 PSAT/National Merit Scholarship
Qualifying Test will be administered during the
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school day on Wednesday, October 14 .
Collegium is administering the PSATs to
sophomores free-of-charge because it is
critical in fostering a college-bound mindset
and is a prerequisite for AP classes.
Freshman and juniors for the 2015-2016
school year can take the test for a $25.00 fee.
Registration information and paperwork will be
emailed and sent home with students. The
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registration deadline is Friday, June 19 . For
more information, please contact Mr. Davis at
[email protected].
Uniform Reminder
8th Grade Formal
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The CCS 8 Grade “Hollywood” Formal will
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be held on Friday, May 29 from 7-10pm in
the 515 cafeteria. Students may bring a
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guest from CCS that is in 7 or 9 grade or
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an 8 grade student from another school.
The Guest Permission Form must be
completed
and
returned
with
your
Permission Form along with the fee of $10
per student. Permission Forms are available
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from 8 grade homeroom teachers. All forms
and payments are due to Ms. Spangler by
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Thursday, May 28 . Students must dress in
school-appropriate formal-attire: shirts, ties,
dress pants, dresses, skirts, etc.
For safety reasons, students may not wear
open-toe shoes or open-back shoes, slippers, Mr. Winters’ Retirement Gala
sandals, or flip-flops. All shoes must be closed- CCS parents/guardians are invited to join us
at the Downingtown Country Club on
toe and closed-back.
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Wednesday, June 10 from 5:30-9pm to
Lost & Found Bins
Our Lost and Found bins will be emptied on honor our founder and retiring CEO, Mr.
nd
Friday, May 22 . Unclaimed items will be Winters. The Collegium community will be
donated to the CCS Uniform Resale Shop or a joined by a number of local politicians (from
all levels) in recognizing Mr. Winters’ many
local charity.
accomplishments. For more details and to
Reading Assistance Night
reserve
your
space,
please
visit
Please join us for a Title 1 Reading Assistance http://www.collegiumcharter.com/documents/
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Program event on Thursday, May 21 from GalaInvitation.pdf.
4:30-5:00pm in the 435 Conference Room.
Camp Collegium
Meet with CCS Reading Specialists, learn
about our Title 1 Program, learn ways to help Looking for summer fun? Camp Collegium
The Registration
your child become a more confident and has spaces available!
Form
is
posted
on
the
Camp
Collegium page
successful reader, and hear about fun ways to
of
our
website.
incorporate reading into summer break!
Donations Needed
Sewing at Home
Clean, baby food jars: Please send to “Mrs. Volunteers are needed to sew and donate
weighted lap pillows and blankets. If you can
Steines, 150 Building”.
help, please contact Mrs. M. Wilkins at
[email protected] and instructions will be
provided.
Collegium Newsletter
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Page 2 of 2
Character Counts
K- 5 Grade Character Development Program: Fairness, Responsibility, Respect, Citizenship, Trustworthiness, and Caring.
Here at Collegium, students are recognized by staff for their good character and their names and photos are added to the
Good Character Walls. We have new additions to our Good Character Walls: Ana Cortez-Ramirez, Olin Rubinow,
Caitlin Bailey, Marlee Bright, Charles Calle, Natalie Ventresca, Mohammad Ather, Leah Kopitsky, Sierra Jennings,
Allison Arpa, Davine Damulak, Jayda Bowden, Steven Scherzer, Beatrice Donzo, Jacenda Anderson, Cecelia
Newman, Emma Kim, and Olivia Wiggins.
Parent Survey Follow-Up
Thanks to the CCS parents/guardians who provided us with feedback during our annual survey. Over the next few weeks,
we’ll respond to some of the comments in our Newsletter.
Comment: “I really would like Collegium to get rid of the Keystone Exams. It puts unnecessary pressure on the teachers
& the students. Plus is it an accurate reflection of the student as a whole? Does being able to pass the Keystones make
the student a well-rounded student? To me it just proves they can pass a standardized test. What value is it adding to my
son's academic career? None. I appreciate the extra assistance Collegium offers to help the students pass the Keystones
but at what cost to the students & the teachers. How much valuable teaching time is lost preparing for one test? I think the
Keystones are ridiculous. A child can be passing all their classes but because they can't pass a Keystone exam they
might not graduate. That is absurd.”
Response: As a public school in Pennsylvania, Collegium is required to administer the Keystone Exams (and PSSAs).
We do not have the ability to eliminate state-mandated standardized testing. For more information about the Keystone
Exams, please visit http://static.pdesas.org/Content/Documents/Keystone_Exams_Parent_Overview-12-3-2013.pdf.
2015-2016 School Year
If your family’s plans for 2015-2016 change (moving, change of schools, etc.), please alert Collegium as soon as you’ve
made the decision. The sooner a current family advises us of their plans, the sooner we can enroll a new student for
2015-2016. Please do not rely on the new school to tell us…they often don’t reach out for a records transfer until after our
upcoming school year begins. As you can imagine, planning for students who don’t show up wreaks havoc on
Collegium’s planning and budget. If your child is not returning for 2015-2016, please contact Mrs. Novak at
[email protected]. Your decision will not impact your child’s 2014-2015 experience at Collegium.
150 Field Day Volunteers
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150 Field Day will take place on Thursday, May 28 & Friday, May 29 . This year’s theme is Road Trip USA! Parent
letters with the schedule and more information will be sent home in a few weeks. There is no parent viewing area, but we
do need lots of parent volunteers! All parent volunteers must have clearances up to date and on file with CCS. Want to
volunteer? Visit www.k1peccs.weebly.com to sign up.
Help CCS’s Technology Department
Here’s an easy way to help CCS’s Technology Department raise money…without buying anything!
CCS’s Technology Department has a recycling program for empty laser/inkjet cartridges and used cell phones. Drop off
the products in the collection boxes near CCS’s main offices. CCS sends the cartridges and phones to Funding Factory
and in exchange, CCS earns cash or our choice of technology products! Not only can you send in your cartridges, but
you can ask family, neighbors, and local businesses to help, too. Funding Factory will send each supporting business free
prepaid shipping labels for the return of collected cartridges and cell phones. Items donated by these supporting
businesses will also be credited to Collegium! Need your personal information removed from your cell phone before
donating? Contact Mrs. Leach at [email protected].
2014-2015 Yearbook
Order forms for the 2014-2015 K-12 CCS Yearbook are available on our website. The price is $65.00. Order now before
they are sold-out! The Yearbook includes a special senior class section, lots of photos, and is hard bound in full-color.
Community Opportunities
While CCS is not endorsing these or any other programs that occur outside CCS, we pass along information on community
opportunities that CCS families may want to explore.
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Cub Scout Pack 23: Boys in grades K-4 are invited to attend the packs Fun in the Park event on Saturday, May 30 at
Bell Tavern Park from noon to 3pm. For more information, please email [email protected].
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Diamond Cheer Allstars: Placements will be held for boys and girls ages 6-18 on Sunday, May 31 . For more
information, please email [email protected].
Raiders Starz Competitive Rec Cheerleading: Boys and girls ages 6-18 are invited to try-out during the week of May
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18 . For more information, visit http://www.raiderstarz.com/.
West Chester University Community Garden: All are invited to participate in the garden – planting, weeding, watering,
and harvesting help is needed. For more information, visit https://wcupasouthgarden.wordpress.com/.
All content for the newsletter must be submitted by 7:00am on Fridays via email to [email protected]. The Community Opportunities section will not
include information about non-CCS fundraisers or information from for-profit companies. CCS reserves the right to edit submissions and deny material
for submission if deemed inappropriate or if it is determined to be of little or no interest to CCS families.