TRES Retriever Report August 18, 2023

Fri, 08/18/2023 - 11:06am

Message from Dr. TRESler and Mr. Hiel:

Dear Retriever Families,

We were excited to welcome the teachers back yesterday! Their enthusiasm and energy for this upcoming school year is evident! We would like to share a big THANK YOU to our custodial team! With the three summer construction projects, they have been working tirelessly to prepare the building for our TREaSures!

We worked hard this summer to hire educators who meet our high expectations of student care. We would like to welcome our new staff members who are joining our dedicated team:

  • Michelle Sauro, PreK Special Education
  • Aubrey Phamdo, First Grade Teacher
  • Gina Knoblock (Sirenne), First Grade Teacher
  • Katherine Batzler, Fifth Grade Teacher
  • Anna Moss, .6 Art
  • Taylor Eng, .6 Music
  • Morgan Lanni, Special Education
  • Tre Bell, Student Assistant
  • Athena Sauro, Student Assistant
  • Monica Schmitt, Media Para
  • Jacob Ragland, General Education Para

We are thrilled that these new staff members chose TRES to be their school home and are looking forward to working with them!

It is bittersweet to share that Nick Serkes, 5th grade teacher, will be leaving TRES, but we are happy that he will remain in the TRES community. We wish him all the best in his new split position as a social studies teacher at Folly Quarter Middle School and Glenelg High School!

Please be sure to carefully read the information in this newsletter about our new school times, along with our arrival and dismissal procedures.

Warmly,
Dr. Tiffany TRESler, Principal TRES
Mr. Kory Hiel, Assistant Principal TRES

Upcoming Events

Please visit the TRES calendar webpage to view important upcoming dates.

  • August 21, 3:30 - 4:00 p.m. - Kindergarten Meet the Teachers on the TRES Playground. Kindergarten students and their parents/guardians are invited.
  • August 23, 6:30 - 8:00 p.m. - PreK and Kindergarten Back to School Night. This event is for parents only.
  • August 25, 9:00 -10:15 a.m.- New Family Welcome for Incoming 1st-5th Grade Students. This event is for families who are brand new to TRES and have not yet had a child who has attended school at TRES. Children are encouraged to attend with parents.
  • August 25 - Open House - This event is for children and parents to meet their teacher and you can drop off your school supplies! Due to limited parking at TRES, please join us at your assigned time, and do not stay past your assigned time.
    • PreKindergarten Students: 9:00 - 10:00 a.m.
    • K-5th Students last name beginning A-J, and New Families: 10:15 - 10:45 a.m.
    • K-5th Students last name beginning K-Z: 11:15 - 11:45 a.m.
  • August 28 - First Day of School for K-5 Students.  Doors open at 8:30 a.m. Late bell rings at 8:40 a.m. Parents are not permitted to walk students to class.
  • August 31 - First Day of PreKindergarten. Parents are not permitted to walk students to class.
  • September 4 - Schools/Offices Closed, Labor Day
  • September 6 - 7:00 - 8:00 p.m. - PreK-2nd Grade Standards Based Information and Reporting Parent Information Night
  • September 12, 6:30 - 8:00 p.m. - Grades 1-3 Back to School Night
  • September 13, 6:00 - 6:30 p.m. - G/T Back to School Night. This event is for 4th and 5th grade students who are participating in G/T math.
  • September 13, 6:30 - 8:00 p.m. - Grades 4-5 Back to School Night
  • September 15 - Schools/Offices Closed
  • September 25 - Schools/Offices Closed

News and Information

PLEASE COMPLETE YOUR STUDENT(S) FAMILY FILE. You will need to complete to be able to view your child's homeroom teacher beginning August 23rd.

Every year HCPSS parents must complete a Family File for each child. HCPSS utilizes Family File for parents/guardians to complete emergency information. Parents/guardians must verify and/or update information for each child, and can do so by logging in to HCPSS Connect PARENT ACCOUNT and selecting the MORE OPTIONS tab on the left and then clicking on Family File.

Once logged in, you will be asked to update or provide the following information:

  •  Student Information
  •  Parent/Guardian Contact
  •  Emergency Contacts
  •  Medical Information
  •  Arrival/Dismissal Procedures and Transportation Options
  •  Photo Approval
  • Data Confidentiality
  • Student Creative Work Approval
  •  PTA/PTSA Directory

Again, it is imperative that you complete the Family File in order to receive the name of your child's teacher for the upcoming school year.

FAMILY FILE USER GUIDE (ENGLISH)
FAMILY FILE USER GUIDE (SPANISH)
FAMILY FILE USER GUIDE (KOREAN)

TRES Arrival and Dismissal Procedures and Times
Students can begin to enter the building at 8:30 a.m. and the late bell rings at 8:40 a.m. Students must remain in their cars with parents until a staff member is present on duty in the car loop. Breakfast is optional and available for purchase (may be at a free/reduced price - see information below about how to apply for free or reduced meals). Students will be provided adequate time to eat breakfast. Students are dismissed at 3:10 p.m.

We would like to thank those members of our community who completed our survey about our arrival and dismissal procedures last spring. Overall the feedback was positive. A common theme was that the car loop is quicker when parents adhere to our procedures. A few reminders:

  • No left turns in or out of the car loop/parking lot during arrival and dismissal
  • Parents, stay in your cars while in the car loop
  • Students should be ready to exit/enter cars from the passenger side of the car onto the sidewalk
  • Pull your car all the way up to either the top of the loop or close to the car in front of you before your child exits/enters your car
  • For dismissal, have your child’s name written clearly, boldly, and legibly on the provided mirror tag

Text Messages
To comply with wireless carrier requirements, parents/guardians must opt into receiving HCPSS and school text message alerts. Standard data fees and text messaging rates may apply based on your mobile plan. If you are unsure if you have already opted in, text the word “YES” to 67587 from the cell phone number on file in HCPSS Connect.

Please contact your child’s school if you have questions regarding your information in HCPSS Connect.

TRES is Hiring! Join our Team!
Our school still needs one more Daily Building Substitute who works each day at TRES only. The daily rate for a substitute is determined by degree status, and teacher certification is not required for this position.

To learn more, please call TRES: 410-313-2560 or email Tiffany Tresler at tiffany_tresler@hcpss.org.

Volunteer Training Required for Volunteers and Visitors
Anyone volunteering at school in any capacity, and parents joining their children for lunch, are required to complete volunteer training prior to their first visit.  Please visit HERE for more information.  Thank you in advance for your gifts of service and time.

Food Services Information
It is important to apply for Free and Reduced Meals if you qualify; a Free and Reduced Meals application is REQUIRED to qualify.  Apply HERE. If you do not qualify for this program, breakfast will be $2.00 and lunch will be $2.80. We have paper copies of the application available in the front office if you would like to pick one up.

New! Student Meals & Payments
New for the 2023-24 school year, HCPSS no longer will use Nutrislice for school menus or MySchoolBucks for payment. Instead, we have a new parent site for all things food and nutrition. LINQ Connect is a secure, online portal that allows families to make online payments to their child’s meal account, monitor their child’s account, schedule automatic recurring payments, set up low balance alerts, submit a Free and Reduced Meals program application, and more.

Please note: MySchoolBucks meal balances were automatically transferred to LINQ Connect. If your child had a balance at the end of the 2022-23 school year, when you add your child to your profile, that meal balance will be displayed.

School Supplies - Special Requests
You can view the TRES School Supply list HERE. If you need supplies for your student(s), please contact Tiffany Tresler at tiffany_tresler@hcpss.org. We have several filled backpacks available to share.

Staff would appreciate donations of tissues and/or disinfectant wipes for classrooms and offices.

Free Back To School Vaccination Clinics
Please see the attached fliers for information.  Clinics are August 28th and 29th from 3:00 - 7:00 p.m. at the Howard County Health Department.

BTS Vaccine Clinic.pdf 

BTS Vaccine Clinic Spanish.pdf 

TRES PTA

Welcome back!  The TRES Parent Teacher Association (PTA) is looking forward to making our 25th year as wonderful as possible.  Help us by joining the PTA at www.trespta.com   Everyone who joins receives a commemorative 25th year magnet and access to either a digital or paper directory that is super helpful for planning playdates and parties.