Back-to-School Lock-Down Drill
Today SJS held our first lock-down drill of the 2024-2025 school year. As this was the first drill of the new year, our Pre-K and K-8 teachers were given advanced notice (so they could prepare their students in an age-appropriate way). For the next drill, only the Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten teachers will receive advance notice.
Each year, Saint James School works with our local law enforcement as well as a contracted security firm to review our school’s safety procedures. While lock-down drills are – unfortunately – a part of growing up in today’s world, they do afford teachers and students a formal opportunity to practice and discuss how to react should the need arise. We are very pleased to share that during today’s lock-down drill, students and staff reacted quickly so that everyone was in a secure “lock-down” state within seconds.
The safety and well-being of every student entrusted to our care is at the forefront of everything we do here at SJS. We wanted to bring today’s drill to your attention so that you may have a timely conversation with your student(s) about how to react in an emergency situation should you deem appropriate.
In the event of a true lock-down event at Saint James School, notification would be sent to families through our new rapid response system.
ChristLife Program
In today’s chaotic word it is so important that we – as adults – remain steadfast in our faith and help our children also come to know how impactful a relationship with Jesus can be. While SJS students get to practice and grow in faith each day, sometimes we – as adults – let life get in the way of our spiritual journey.
Our parish has been offering the ChristLife program for several years, and it consistently receives excellent feedback from the adults who participate, no matter where they are in life. The commitment is minimal, but the impact on you – and as a role model for your children – can be huge.
If you would like to learn more, please view THIS FLYER (<— click link) or stop by the ChristLife table after Mass on September 14th and 15th OR at the Parish Picnic on September 22nd.
From the School Nurse
Please note that the Saint James School Nurse will be conducting hearing and vision screenings over the next few weeks for students in grades K, 1, 3, 4, and 5. The nurse will reach out to you if there are any abnormalities.
Bus Reminders
*Please remember ALL students in grades K – 2 must have a parent at the bus stop to greet them in the afternoon in order for the driver to let them off. If the parent is not there, the student will be brought back to SJS and will be sent to aftercare until the parent can come retrieve them (aftercare charges will apply). The town does reserve the right to suspend bus privileges for repeat issues (since drivers have other routes they need to get to after dropping our students off) so please just be conscious of the time if you are working from home. A few reminder notes:
*Bus Stop times sent to families before the start of school are approximate. Please allow for 10 minutes on either side of the times listed.
*To install the school bus tracking app from First Student, follow this link: https://www.
*We anticipate a combined bus schedule again on Wednesday afternoons starting in October. That information will be forthcoming when we receive it.
Cherrydale Ticket Turn-In Day Tomorrow
Thank you to everyone who has helped get our fundraiser off to a strong start by registering their student and sending support invitations to friends & family! Tomorrow (Friday) is our first WILD THINGZ Turn in day!
Please have your student bring any tickets they have earned to school in an envelope or baggie, labeled with their name. They will be called to the office after morning announcements to receive their Wild Thingz collectibles. Don’t forget the Dunk Collectible Coupon on the fundraiser envelope if your student has earned 500 coins.
https://saintjamesschool.net/cherrydale2024/
Back-to-School Fire Drill
Today we conducted our first fire drill of the new school year. Following our established protocol, which had already been reviewed with students as part of our back-to-school routine, we are pleased to share that all classrooms were evacuated to their designated locations within a matter of minutes. Additionally, our protocol of utilizing color-coded signs and the classroom walkie-talkies allowed us to quickly determine that all Saint James School students and staff had safely exited the building.
The safety and well-being of every student entrusted to our care is at the forefront of everything we do here at SJS. We wanted to bring today’s drill to your attention should you wish to discuss it with your student(s) and perhaps also take this opportunity to remind your children of evacuation plans within your own household. We will practice fire drills occasionally throughout the year.
If there was a true emergency at Saint James School, our new emergency response notification system would be utilized to reach out to parents and guardians.
Elks Americana Workshop & Essay Contest
On October 5th from the Elks Club in Manchester is once again sponsoring an Americana Workshop for children in grades 2 – 6. The program is free with lunch included. If you are interested in having your child/ren participate, please refer to THIS LINK and the flyer below.
In addition, SJS students are once again encouraged to participate in the Elks Americanism Essay Contest for students in grade 5 – 8. This year the topic is “What Patriotism Means to Me.”
The Essay Deadline is December 15, 2024. All the Details are available HERE (refer to page two for the contest form).
Tonight: Grade 6 and NEW Middle School Family Orientation
Attention all Grade 6 parents and any families new to SJS this year in Grades 7 & 8:
Please join us on Thursday, September 5th at 6:00pm in the school gymnasium as we review important items to assist with your child’s transition to middle school. You will get information about Google Classrooms, Schedules, Communication, the Grading System, Chromebook Usage, and more.
Please note, grade 6 and new Grade 7/8 students are should attend this information session along with their parent(s)/guardian(s) when possible.
We look forward to seeing you tonight (September 5th) at 6:00pm in the school gym!
