CGS Weekly Message for 25-26
10/20/2025-10/24/2025
Good afternoon,
Happy Sunday!
Thank you to everyone that came out to support our PVC's Trunk or Treat event on Friday night! It was such a blast seeing all of our kiddos dressed up for Halloween and seeing all of them having such a great time with the activities that were available. Special shout out to Mrs. LeVan, Mrs. Oliver, and Mrs. Jones for leading this event!! More pictures and details can be found below in our PVC section of the newsletter. Thank you again to all of our families who participated and brought your students!! #CGSCommunity!
REMINDER: CGS is CLOSED for a teacher workday on Monday, October 20th for Fall Parent/Teacher Conferences. Please reach out to your child's teacher(s) for more details on how to sign up!
Thank you to all of you that attended this month's board meeting. That was the largest participation and attendance we've had at one of our CGS Board Meetings! Thank you for coming out to support our school and share your concerns and thoughts regarding CGS. Our board of directors' will be sending out a response to the general population regarding some of the concerns brought forth from the meeting later this week. Please be on the lookout for that memo.
IMPORTANT:
One of the items voted on in Tuesday night's board meeting had to do with daily attendance. Previously, students had to be on campus by 11:30 A.M. or not check out from school until 11:30 A.M. to be considered "present" for the day. This is now INACCURATE.
Based on our 2 bell schedules that have been created this school year with our new student information system (Infinite Campus), this now changes the time that students must be checked into school and the time they must stay before checking out of school to be considered "present" for the day. These times are different for both campuses based on the instructional day schedules but we've simplified it to make it the easiest of a transition for our CGS Families. Please see below:
- Late Check In:
- Beginning on 11/3/25, all students will need to be checked into school by 10:30 A.M. in order to be considered "present" for the day.
- Early Check Out:
- Beginning on 11/3/25, all students must stay at school until 12:00 P.M. daily prior to checking out early in order to be considered "present" for the day.
If you have any questions, please reach out to our registrar, Ms. Walther at marissawalther@cgsnc.org.
Save the Dates:
- 10/20/2025: School Closed/Teacher Workday! Parent/Teacher Conferences (K-12)
- 10/22/2025: NC Center for Safer Schools Wear Orange for Unity Day!
- 10/24/2025: High School Students Theater Performance at 7:00 P.M. at the K-8 Campus
- 10/24/2025: FCA Sponsored Worship Night at New Life at Hocutt Church
- 10/31/2025: Senior Drape/Tux Portraits @ 9 AM at the HS Campus
Looking further ahead:
- 11/1/2025: Campus Clean Up Day!
- 11/11/2025: No School! Veteran's Day Holiday!
- 11/24/25-11/28/25: No School! (Mental Health Days (11/24 and 11/25) and Thanksgiving Holiday (11/26-11/28))
Reminder- Check out our CGS Directory for questions regarding anything CGS! You can also reach out to us at info@cgsnc.org for questions.
Don't forget to check out our website at www.cgsnc.org and our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/cgsgrizzlies for updates!
Schedule
School Day:
K-8: School starts at 7:45 A.M. and ends at 2:45 P.M.
(students may arrive as early as 7:15 A.M.)
9-12: School starts at 8:00 A.M. and ends at 3:00 P.M.
(students may arrive as early as 7:30 A.M.)
K-8 Campus Updates
Greetings Grizzly Families!
Thank you ALL for supporting our Parent Volunteer Committee in Friday's Trunk or Treat! We are overjoyed by their commitment and dedication to our school community. Additionally, we appreciate your partnership, responsiveness & support! Couldn’t have done it without you- Thank You! #CGSRocks
Parents of PM Car riders,
We do need your help, especially with our Middle School Grizzlies! We have found that our students are talking, using devices and therefore not hearing their names being called. This holds up the line and causes the line to back up. While we understand it is the end of the day, school expectations and rules still apply. Therefore, we solicit your help and support in asking you to remind your Grizzly of the following:
- Students should come into the cafeteria or Little Gym, sit quietly and listen for their name.
- During this time, students should refrain from working on assignments, projects, or from using electronic devices and talking.
Thank you in advance for your assistance!
As always, thank you for your continued support. We look forward to seeing you tomorrow for conferences. Have a restful evening!
All the BEST,
Leah Spencer
#GrizzlyPride
High School Campus Updates
Greetings Grizzly Families,
Our Seniors had a BLAST at their Senior Field Trip last week. Thank you to our student advisors for making that event happen!
We look forward to a great week!
All the best,
Dr. Morris
High School Student Advising Information and Opportunities:
Senior Class of 2026
SENIORS--The Park Scholarship Program at NC State University
The Park Scholarships program brings together students with outstanding accomplishments and potential in scholarship, leadership, service, and character.
THE PARK SCHOLARSHIPS PROGRAM is a four-year scholarship valued at $124,000 and covers:
- Tuition, fees, and room and board
- Books and personal expenses
- $2,000 computer stipend
- Enrichment grants to fund study abroad, research projects, service activities, conferences, and more
- Guaranteed invitation to join the University Honors Program
THE PARK EXPERIENCE INCLUDES
- Professional training in leadership, public speaking, and business etiquette
- Educational trips, retreats, and seminars
- Faculty mentors and a network of more than 1,100 accomplished Park Scholarships alumni worldwide
Applications for the Park Scholarships program and admission to NC State are both due by 11:59 p.m. ET on Saturday, November 1, for consideration for the Park Scholarship. For more information:
SENIORS--IT IS TIME TO GET READY TO APPLY TO COLLEGE!!!
CommonApp opened August 1st for 2025-2026. Be sure to create an account with your personal email address. Dr. Morris serves as the counselor for those applying to college. Please see the presentation linked here for important information to support your senior year college application journey. The CollegeWise CommonApp Guide is available to assist you in creating your account.
SENIORS--FREE College Planning and Paying Resources
Sallie Mae shares resources to assist in planning for college. Please see the links below.
- Applying to college checklist
- 1-2-3 approach to paying for college
- Scholly® Scholarships by Sallie
- Filing the FAFSA®
- Decoding financial aid offers
- Comparing financial aid offers
- Help your student pay for school (comparing Parent PLUS Loans and private student loans)
- It’s never too early to start thinking about scholarships! A scholarship that’s quick and easy to apply for is Sallie’s $2,000 No Essay Scholarship. It takes less than two minutes to enter, and no essay is required. Better yet, they give out a scholarship monthly, so students can enter every month!
Reminder: Senior Drape/Tux Photos will be on October 31st at 9 AM at the HS Campus
Senior Parent Checklist for College Applications
Senior Student Checklist for College Applications
College for North Carolina (CFNC) Resources
NC Countdown to College (C2C) is a year-long initiative to increase the number of students who pursue post-secondary education by assisting high school seniors with the college admissions process (residence, FAFSA, and applications) and ensuring that each participating student submits at least one admissions application.
Register: www.cfnc.org/apply-to-college/nc-countdown-to-college
Free Application Week: October 20, 7:30am—5pm, October 26, 2025
ECU Fall Open House
This campus-wide event is hosted by the ECU Office of Undergraduate Admissions. During this event, prospective students and their families will have the opportunity to tour campus, attend information sessions, explore academic programs, and meet current students, faculty, and staff. See attached flyer for details.
Date: Saturday, October 25, 2025
Time: 9am—2pm
Location: ECU Campus, Greenville, NC
Register: bit.ly/4mzwKyf
School Nurse Updates
Please continue to sanitize, wash hands frequently and notify the school nurse of any student illnesses or injuries. Thank you!
Please see the letter below from Nurse Corbett.
Please reach out to Nurse Corbett with questions at angelacorbett@cgsnc.org.
MTSS (Multi-tiered System of Support)
Please see the attachment for information related to our MTSS services at CGS.
TAG (Talented and Gifted Program)
Please see the attachment for information related to our CGS TAG program.
Parent Volunteer Committee at Clover Garden School
The PVC would like to extend a heartfelt thank-you to everyone who helped make our Trunk or Treat event this past Friday such a fun and memorable evening for our school community. It was wonderful to see so many families, students, and staff come together to celebrate and enjoy the night.
A special thank-you to all of the families who donated candy, to the Gerrienger family for generously providing the hayride, to those who hosted trunks, and to our amazing volunteers who helped make the event possible. We’re especially grateful for our Student Council members and Junior Civitan students for lending their time and energy to support this event.
Thank you again for helping make Clover Garden such a special place. We’re so appreciative of your support and community spirit!
All Things Parent Volunteer Committee (PVC) – Click Here!
Want to get involved at Clover Garden? Click here to read the latest updates from our Parent Volunteer Committee! Learn how you can order Boo-grams, get involved with the upcoming Community Garden, and see what’s coming up for the month of October.
Trunk or Treat Event- Friday, 10/17/25
Shout out to our amazing PVC for hosting a fun Trunk or Treat night! It was a blast seeing our families and students having so much fun! See below for some pictures from the event.
Click HERE for more photos from the FUN NIGHT!
Community Updates
Red Ribbon Spirit Week (for High School Students only)
Red Ribbon Week Spirit Week will be the last week of October for our High School Students only. More details coming soon!
NC Center for Safer Schools- Unity Day- October 22nd
Unity Day is the signature event of National Bullying Prevention Month. Unity Day encourages individuals and communities to come together to promote kindness and courage. Join us in wearing Orange on the 22nd!
CGS Family Clean Up Day- 11/1/25 from 9 AM to 12 PM
CGS Families,
We need your help! On Saturday, November 1st, we will be hosting a CGS Clean Up Day! This day is designated to beautifying our campuses! We will be pressure washing, cleaning up trash, scrubbing dirt and grime off our cafeteria chairs, getting rid of cobwebs and more! We would greatly appreciate any and all of our CGS Families to participate in this clean up day. It's important to take care of the place that houses our amazing Grizzlies. It's also important to bring your students and have them participate in the clean up as well to help them learn the values of taking care of our school and our property. Thank you for your help! If you're able to help, please scan the QR code in the flyer. #CGSCARES
FCA (Fellowship of Christian Athletes) Worship Night
Come out and support our FCA (Fellowship of Christian Athletes) Club as they get together for worship night on 10/24/25 from 6:30 P.M. until 8:00 P.M. Guest speaker will be CGS Alumni, Mr. Noah Tickle.
Get your GRIZZLY GEAR! 🐻💥
Ready to rock your school pride? Head over to grizzlyden.org NOW and grab the hottest school apparel! Hoodies, tees, crewnecks- you name it in both elementary and MS/HS style! Don't wait, gear up, stand out, and show everyone what it means to be a part of Grizzly Nation!
Support our Teachers- Junior Civitan Donation Collection
Please help our Junior Civitans as they support our K-12 Teacher Closets by donating any extra school supplies you may have. Our Junior Civitan club is collecting donations to supply the teacher closets at both campuses to help provide teachers with "extra supplies" as they may need them throughout the school year. Thank you for your help! Please see a Junior Civitan member or view the flyer below for more details!
K-5 Dance Camp- Sponsored by our CGS Dance Ensemble
Our CGS Dance Ensemble is hosting a dance camp for our elementary school kids!
On November 19th, from 2:45 - 6:30pm the campers will spend time learning technique and choreography.
They will receive a snack and a t- shirt while attending the camp.
On November 21st, all participants are invited to perform with our CGS Dance Ensemble at the varsity girls' halftime to showcase what they've learned!
If registered before October 17th - $40. After October 17th, registration will be $50. Sign-ups close on November 7th!
Interest Form:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1Rvxe1REgYkkyesx9XDffqVLxUitMK_xwAfNWFerbH6I/edit?ts=68a63970
Athletics Updates:
If you and your student did not attend the mandatory athletics meeting in the fall of last week, and your student wants to try out for basketball, there is still time. You can meet with Coach Paschal, Monday 10/20 any time from 8:00-11:30, or 1:00-2:45 at the HS campus. Please just email that you intend to come. Remember it must be parent/guardian and student.
Coach Position Openings
Varsity Softball Head Coach (closing 10/31)
MS Softball Head Coach
MS Girls Soccer Head Coach
If interested, please email Coach Paschal and Coach Somers a resume, coaching/playing experience, and interest statement.
Save the Dates:
Monday, October 20th- Athletic Boosters Meeting
Wednesday, October 29th- 1st Day of HS Basketball Tryouts
Monday, November 3rd- 1st Day of MS Basketball Tryouts
Friday, November 21st- High School HomeComing
Weekly Athletics Schedule:
Monday, October 20th:
4:00 vs Woods Charter (Springwood Park)
7:00 Athletic Boosters Meeting (k8 cafeteria)
Tuesday, October 21st:
6:30 Varsity Volleyball 2nd Round State Playoffs vs Phoenix Academy ($10 cash or GoFan)Wednesday, October 22nd:
4:00 at Central Carolina Academy (Sanford Lions Club Soccer Field)
Thursday, October 23rd:
4:00 at River Mill (Fairchild)
MS Baseball Open Field-
Tuesday and Thursday, 3:15-4:30 at the softball field on the K8 Campus. This is for any 6th-8th grader interested in trying out for baseball in the spring. The player must have a dragonflymax.com account, and has uploaded an up to date physical and it has been approved in order to participate in open field.
Band/Performing Arts Updates
Thank you to everyone who came out to support our Marching Grizzlies on Saturday, 10/18 at Western Alamance High School!! It was a beautiful day and our Marching Grizzlies did amazing!
Click HERE for a clip!
Western Alamance Competition Results:
- 2nd Place Music
- Battle of the Bands Winner
Save the Dates:
- 10/25/25: Northwestern Guilford High School Band Competition
- 11/22/25: Burlington Holiday Parade
- 12/5/25: Mebane Holiday Parade
- 12/6/25: Graham Holiday Parade
Band Rehearsals continue on Monday and Thursday weekly from 3:30 P.M.- 5:30 P.M.
Testing
Please see the testing calendar below.
If you have any questions, please contact our school's district testing coordinator, Ms. Ginter at tonyaginter@cgsnc.org.
Lunch Information
Parents,
Attached please find a copy of this October's menu. Please review it carefully as you place your order at https://clovergarden.familyportal.cloud/. You have until Thursday the week before the serving week to place your order. Please be sure you have enough money on your account to cover lunches for the month, the money doesn't come out of their accounts until they pick up their lunch. Please make sure your account is no more than $25 in the negative. If your student’s account is more than $25 in the negative he/she will not be allowed to purchase a la carte items and charge them to their account.
Also the only confirmation you will receive is a green check mark. This company doesn't send out email confirmations.
Thank you,
Dana Walker
Cafeteria Coordinator
Mental Health Services
Please click on this LINK if you are interested in Mental Health Services for your student(s).
Staffing Updates:
Current Vacancies:
- High School Science Teacher
- MS/HS P.E. Teacher
- MS P.E. Teacher
(Update: We've hired a new 2nd grade teacher who will begin at CGS in November)
Have a GREAT week Grizzlies! 🐻
As always, thanks for all that you do,
Mrs. Vereyken
Executive Director
Clover Garden School
*If you need this weekly newsletter translated into a different language, please let our Title 1 Coordinator, Mrs. Simmons know at brandisimmons@cgsnc.org.
*If you have any thoughts, feedback or suggestions for our Title 1 team on ways to improve our practices, please contact Mrs. Simmons at brandisimmons@cgsnc.org.
Clover Garden School
Email: info@cgsnc.org
Website: cgsnc.org
Locations:
2454 Altamahaw Union Ridge Road, Burlington, NC, USA
5806 Pagetown Road, Burlington, NC 27217
Phone: 3365869440
Facebook: facebook.com/cgsgrizzlies