RES Family Update

Calendar

October:

28 - Individual Fall Picture Day

30 - Halloween Parade - 9:30 AM

- 1 PM Dismissal For STUDENTS

- End of Quarter 1

November:

2 - Q2 Specials' Schedule Begins

3 - No School For Students

- BOE Meeting - 6 PM

4 - PTO Smencil Cart Day

11 - Q1 Report Cards Distributed

- PTO MOVE AND GROOVE - School Day Fun Run/Walk Fund Raiser

13 - Parent Conference Day - No School for Students

16 - 20 - Fall Book Fair

18 - Parent Visitation Day - AM Session 8:45 - 10:50 AM/PM Session 1:30 - 3:30 PM

25 - 29 - Schools Closed - Thanksgiving Break

The annual Ridgely Elementary School Halloween Parade is scheduled for Friday, October 30, 2026, beginning at 9:30 a.m. Students and staff will begin lining up in front of the school, by grade, starting at 9:15 a.m. Once all grades are in position, the parade will begin with the end of the line wrapping around to lead the way into town. The students will walk on both sides of Central Avenue before returning to school. The town of Ridgely and local businesses in our community are also involved in this event, providing treats along the parade route. We encourage parents to line the parade route to watch the parade. Following the parade, parents will not be permitted to enter the school.

If the parade is indoors due to inclement weather, unfortunately, parents will not be able to attend the inside parade.

When we return to school, students will continue with their school day. However, this day is a 1:00 p.m. Dismissal Day for students. Please plan for students to arrive home earlier than normal.

As you and your child plan for this school event, we request that students wear costumes that are appropriate for the school environment involving varying ages of children. Overly scary masks or costumes that display blood and/or violence are not permitted to be worn in the parade. Play weapons—swords, guns, knives—are also not appropriate at school, so please leave those at home.

Students who choose not to participate will remain at school where they will complete instructional activities.

Complete the OPT OUT slip below ONLY IF YOU DO NOT WISH TO HAVE YOUR CHILD PARTICIPATE in the parade and return it to school by Wednesday, October 28, 2026. We look forward to sharing this experience with your child. If a form is not returned, your child/children will participate in the parade.

Title I survey:

https://www.carolineschools.org/article/3037473

Our annual Student Information Update Form is officially open! This form allows parents and guardians to review and update their student’s information to ensure that we have the most accurate and up-to-date records.

The form must be completed through the Parent Portal using a web browser at carolinecps.powerschool.com.

Families, Staff, and Secondary Students:

By Maryland law, all staff and families, and secondary students (6th-12th grade) must receive a general schedule of safety drills at the beginning of the school year.

The following drills are practiced in all schools so that staff and students are prepared to respond quickly and safely in an emergency. These drills are based on the Standard Response Protocol developed by the iloveuguys.org, which provides common language and clear actions for school emergencies.

In addition, please note that lockdown drills require that everyone receive advance notice of the drill, notice that the drill has occurred, and a follow up survey to gauge the effectiveness of the drill.

Hold - In Your Room, Clear the Halls

Drills conducted in October and February

Used when the hallways need to be kept clear (for example, during a medical emergency or when there’s an issue in the hallway). Students stay in their classrooms and continue normal activities until the situation is resolved.

Secure – Get Inside, Lock Outside Doors

Drills conducted in October and February

Used when there is activity or a potential threat outside the building (such as police activity in the area). All exterior doors are secured, and everyone continues normal activities inside the building.

Lockdown – Locks, Lights, Out of Sight

Drills conducted in November and February

Used when there is a potential threat inside or very near the building. Classroom doors are locked, lights are turned off, and everyone moves out of sight and stays quiet until the all-clear is given.

Evacuate – To a Location

Drills conducted monthly as a fire drill

Used when it is safer to move outside or to another location (for example, during a fire, gas leak, or other internal hazard). Staff lead students to designated evacuation points.

Shelter - For a Hazard Using Safety Strategy

Conducted in September and February with one additional occurrence

Used when there is a severe weather event or

environmental hazard. Everyone moves to a designated safe area inside the building and follows protective actions.

Information about school safety and security may be found on our website. We appreciate your cooperation and understanding as we take the steps necessary to keep everyone safe in our schools. Should anyone have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact Mr. Sutton.

Welcome back! We’re so glad to have your children with us for the 2025–2026 school year!

To keep you informed and involved, we’re continuing to use Rooms, our two-way communication tool that helps you stay connected with your child’s teachers and school staff.

And this year, Rooms has improved some of their features:

• SMS Text Notifications
  You’ll now receive text message notifications whenever a new message or announcement is sent in Rooms. Each text includes a direct link to view the content in your mobile browser or in the app.
  
  → Click here to learn how to set your notification preferences.

• One Messaging Inbox
  Our school app has been updated to give you one, single place to see all of your messages across all children. From this inbox, you can read, reply, or start new messages. This feature is available through the CCPS App, available in the App Store and Google Play.
  
  

• Upgraded Messaging Features
  Our messaging experience now lets you react to messages with emojis, respond in threads, send photos and videos, mute group messages, and more!

Check out this overview of the new experience, or watch this short video (video in Spanish or click on Haitian Creole) to learn more about what’s new for this year.

We’re here to help make communication simpler, more consistent, and easier to manage this year! Please let us know if you have any questions.

Parents Right to Know:

The Federal Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) contains several provisions that promote a parent/school partnership through communication. One such provision gives parents the right to ask for and receive information about the professional qualifications of their child’s classroom teachers. A parent may request the following information:

• Any college or university degree, major or certification held by the teacher
• Whether the teacher is certified by the State of Maryland to teach a particular grade level or subject area
• Whether the teacher holds a conditional teaching certificate
• The qualifications of the paraprofessionals serving the student
  

If you would like to request the professional qualifications of your child’s classroom teachers or paraprofessionals, please submit a written request to the principal. The principal will provide the information to you within 30 business days of the date of your request.

Parents may also request information on the level of achievement and academic growth of their child, if applicable and available, on each of the State academic assessments.

Parents will receive timely notice if the student has been assigned, or has been taught for four or more consecutive weeks by a teacher who does not meet applicable State certification or licensure requirements at the grade level and subject area in which the teacher has been assigned.

Parents May Request Teacher Information:

The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) of 2015 provides parents of students attending Title 1 schools the opportunity to request information about the professional qualifications of their child's teachers. Parents of elementary students may request in writing to the school principal information about their child's teacher including college/university degrees of certification held, subject area of the teacher's degree or certification, and Maryland certification status. Additionally, if your child is served by paraprofessionals, parents may request their professional qualifications.

Parent Information Resource Center:

Parents are encouraged to visit our Parent Information Resource Center (PIRC) located in the lobby outside of the front office. The PIRC has a variety of parenting resources and informational brochures and flyers. These materials are all free. Parents can find the School Improvement Plan, RES School Family Engagement Compact, booklets from The Parent Institute on topics such as “Seven Habits of Highly Responsible Students; Help Your Child Balance School and Extracurricular Activities; and Helping Children Learn to Resolve Conflicts.” Parents can also find information regarding Caroline County Recreation and Parks, Caroline County Library, Imagination Library and Maryland Department of Health . Please be sure to check out our Parent Information Resource Center next time you come to the school.

RES is a progressive community of learners collaboratively supporting each other through intentional planning in a risk-taking and trusting environment, leading to rigor, student autonomy, and mastery of content standards in all learning settings.

Email: sutton.lee@ccpsstaff.org
Website: ridgelyes.org
Location: 118 North Central Avenue, Ridgely, MD 21660
Phone: 410 479 3243