Beginning of School Year Update

Dear Families,

I hope that you have all enjoyed a great summer break. It is hard to believe that we are less then a week away from the beginning of the 2012-13 school year. The entire educational team has put a lot of work into preparing for the start of school and are looking forward to another great year together with our new and returning families.

Below are some notes, updates, and reminders as we approach the start of school on Monday. 

Welcome Packets
By now you should have all received welcome packets in the mail containing the school calendar, class introduction letters/supply lists, parent handbook, and other important forms and documents. If you have not, please contact the school office at 386-462-2886 or at office@bhaktischool.org right away so we can get this information to you.

Lunch Program
Thank you to everyone who participated in the survey we conducted over the summer regarding our proposed new lunch program. It was clear from the responses that there is great interest in school provided lunch but that the price and monthly commitment needed to get the program off the ground made it difficult for enough families to commit. As mentioned in the survey, we needed at least 30 daily lunch orders to launch a school sponsored program. We fell short of that goal but there was enough interest to try to do something. Instead of a school run lunch program, Radha Dainton will be preparing lunches as an extension of her catering business. She will be sending out lunch order forms soon and will begin prasadam lunch service by September 4th.

Campus Improvements
Although we will be making major updates to the school campus in preparation for our new middle school next year, we did want to get a few projects done this year:

• Cement walkways are being installed along the most trafficked areas around the school. These paths will provide a means for students and families to walk from the pick-up/drop-off and pedestrian entrances of the school to the main entrance and school office without getting bitten by ants and tracking mud and dirt.

• A new student lunch area is being established on the south-west area of the school. A covered deck is being constructed and new easier to clean tables will be setup. Overall, our students will have a new space to have lunch and other outdoor activities that is more sanitary and that provides better protection from the elements and bugs.

• Balance beams and log stairs are being installed in the Bhakti Bhavan play area. These new apparatus were donated by the Early Learning Coalition and will provide some new fun activities for our active young students.

Campus Beautification Work Day
Speaking of campus improvements, Bhaktivedanta Academy's annual campus beautification work day is this Saturday, August 18th from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. We need lots of help to spread mulch, pressure wash, landscape, paint, and many other tasks as we make the final preparations for the start of the new school year. Lunch will be provided for everyone, but we need to know how many to expect, so please call the school office at 386-462-2886 or use the online form to tell us if you are coming.

Gardening
With guidance from an experienced gardener in our community, Tapasvini Peattie, each class will be establishing and maintaining garden boxes with vegetables and flowers this school year. Our students are always very enthusiastic to work outside and with the help of a local expert we are looking forward to some great crops this year.

Spanish Program
We are very excited to launch our new Spanish program led by Radha Dainton. Due to the hard work of the families who participated in our holiday fudge and cookie sales effort along with a generous donation from His Holiness Hridayananda Maharaja, we have purchased all the materials needed to offer a comprehensive Spanish language program for our lower and upper elementary students. 

Title I Tutoring
I am happy to say that Jasmin Ackermann will be continuing to work with students in our after school tutoring program this year. This particular program is federally funded via Title I. Due to an increase in funding, we will be able to further expand the program to serve even more students in need of some additional help in reading and math.

Parent Orientation
Our family welcome meeting and orientation will be held on Friday, August 17th at 6:00 p.m. Attendance at this very important meeting is required for new families and highly recommended for families of returning students, so please plan on attending.

I, along with the rest of the teaching and support staff are looking forward to seeing you all very soon and continuing our efforts to provide a quality Krishna-centered educational experience for all our students.

Yours in service,

Visvambhara das
Head of School