Eagle Express
Eagle Express 8/28/26
Calendar Events
Mon. Sept. 7th Labor Day - Schools and Offices Closed Mon. Sept. 9th ESOL Families @ 5:00pm Mon. Sept 9th Back to School Night for MINC, Preschool, Pre-K @5:30 Mon. Sept. 9th Back to School Night Kindergarten & First Grade @ 5:30pm Tues. Sept. 10th Gifted & Talented Presentation @ 5:00pm Tues. Sept. 10th Music Program Presentation @5:00pm Tues. Sept. 10th Back to School Night Grades 3-5 @ 6:00pm Mon. Sept. 21st Yom Kippur - Schools and Offices Closed Wed. Sept. 30th School Close 3 Hours Early/No Half-Day PreK-RECC Dear Veterans Families, What a great first week! Our students have settled into their classrooms and routines so well, and it has been wonderful to see their excitement as they reconnect with friends, teachers, and staff. Thank you to our families for your patience as we worked through transportation and car loop challenges. We’ll continue working closely with HCPSS Transportation to address concerns and make arrival and dismissal as smooth as possible. Please take a few minutes to review the important HCPSS policy updates included in this newsletter. As always, reach out if you have any questions. We’re off to a wonderful start, and we’re looking forward to a great year together! We hope you have a wonderful and restful weekend! Warm regards, Alexcia Redd, Keri Golibart and Jessica Legambi Announcements Student Absences Send absent notes to vesabsence@hcpss.org including the child's full name, teacher name and explaining why your child will or was absent. If your child is ill for 5 days or more, you must provide a doctor’s note. Reminders for P.E. Sneakers for PE! The PE department is asking that families pay super close attention to what shoes you are sending your children into school every day. As part of HCPSS safety policy for Physical Education class, all students must wear sneakers in order to participate in PE. Since students have recess daily, we recommend that they wear sneakers every day in order to play safely on the playground, however it is especially important for PE class. We have had an alarming number of students wearing crocs to PE class, which even in "sport mode", are unsafe for dynamic physical activity. Safe shoes include sneakers, running shoes and tennis shoes. Unsafe shoes include boots, sandals, crocs (or any croc like shoe), flip flops and anything with a heel. If your child wears other shoes on PE days, please make sure to send a pair of sneakers in their backpack for PE class. Please check your child's PE canvas page to find out what days they have PE class. Since HCPSS uses a color calendar for related arts, the days can be a tad confusing. If you need to reference it, the color calendar is linked here If your child does not have fitting sneakers or if you have any questions, please email your child's PE teacher and we can assist in making sure they have access to sneakers for PE. Family to Staff, Feel-good Feathers Have you been impressed with the efforts of a VES Staff member? If so, take a moment to send them a Feel-good Feather to brighten their day! Some Family to Staff shout outs will even be highlighted in each Eagle Express and shared with staff. Thank you for the encouragement! Click here to give a shout- out! Student Meals & Payments HCPSS will continue to use LINQ Connect, 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. Complete information on the HCPSS Food and Nutrition Services program is available online. Free and Reduced Meals Enrollment Changes to federal law may have impacted students’ Free and Reduced Meals Program (FARMs) eligibility for the 2026-2027 school year, and families that previously received direct certification this year may not be automatically enrolled. All eligible families are urged to complete a FARMs application, available online or via paper form. Student Personal Device Use Parents/guardians should remind students that personal technology devices are to be put away and silenced, and not a distraction during the student day. Some exceptions may apply, including for students whose IEP, 504 or health plan allow for device use. Weapons The safety and well-being of our students are our top priorities. Therefore, I want to remind you that weapons of any kind are strictly prohibited on school grounds. Students found in possession of a weapon, or any object used as a weapon, will face serious disciplinary action in accordance with our policies. We are committed to maintaining a safe and secure environment for all students. Any reports of weapons or threats to bring a weapon to school will be thoroughly investigated to ensure the safety of our community. It is essential for our students to feel safe in order to learn and thrive. I encourage you to speak with your children about the importance of fostering a secure school environment. Please review HCPSS Weapons policy here Student Code of Conduct The Student Code of Conduct is updated for the 2026-2027 school year and can be found online. The HCPSS Student Code of Conduct provides a framework to support behavioral goals and disciplinary policies. All students are expected to be aware of and abide by this Student Code of Conduct. They are designed to foster a sense of belonging and affirm positive behaviors. At Veterans, we implement programs such as social-emotional learning, Positive Behaviors Interventions and Supports (PBIS), and restorative conversations to help teach and reinforce school-appropriate behaviors and build community amongst our students and staff. We encourage you to read the Student Code of Conduct carefully and discuss the information with your children.Updates to the Student & Parent Handbook are being made and families will be notified once those are completed. Multi-Tiered System of Supports Implementation The Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) is a proactive, data-informed framework that helps ensure every student receives the academic, behavioral, and social-emotional support they need to succeed. In HCPSS, MTSS is not an add-on. It is how we strengthen learning for every student by providing high-quality instruction for all and timely, targeted support when needed. Veterans Elementary is piloting an MTSS schedule this year! FRIENDLY REMINDERS Family File We have nearly 313 families that have not completed the Family File. You must complete the family file for each of your children. Parents who have forgotten their login credentials for Family File may click the “Forgot Password” link on the sign-in page. If you need additional assistance, please call Veterans Elementary at 410-313-1700. Back To School Nights Our Back to School Nights offer our families the opportunity to hear about all aspects of the new school year from our administrative team, our PTA, and our staff. Please note that our current school families are the intended audience for Back to School Night presentations. 9/9 @ 5:30 PM - ECSE/Pre-K & Kindergarten 9/9 @ 5:30 PM - Grades 1 & 2 9/10 @ 5:30 PM - Grades 3, 4 & 5 ESOL Information 9/9 @ 5:00 PM GT Information 9/10 @ 5:00 PM Music Programs 9/10 @ 5:00 PM If you need interpreter services in your home language for Back to School Night, please contact Mr. Sung Kim at sung_kim@hcpss.org or 410-313-1706 by Friday, August 28. Please include your name, your student's name, the service date, and your preferred language. We will reach out to confirm your arrangements. Volunteer Opportunities We are excited to invite volunteers back into the building! All volunteers must complete a Confidentiality Training Course about protecting the privacy of our students, staff, and schools, and the Child Abuse and Neglect Training about reporting any suspicion of child abuse or neglect to the Howard County Department of Social Services. The two online trainings MUST be completed by anyone who wants to volunteer in the building/classroom and be a chaperone on field trips. The Confidentiality Agreement and the Abuse Training Certificate must be signed and returned to the School Office. News Worth Repeating Arrival and Dismissal Procedures Park & Recreations Before & After Care We have a temporary chiller in place to help keep our building cool. It is located on a portion of the blacktop, so we ask that families using before- or after-care enter through the front doors of the building. Please use the front entrance for before- and after-care drop-off and pick-up through October. Parent Lunch Visits Yesterday HCPSS announced that parent lunch visits are no longer permitted at any HCPSS school. Limiting access during the school day ensures safe and secure school communities by removing unnecessary access to students and school buildings, reducing disruptions, supporting student routines, and minimizing non-essential traffic in student areas. Parents are encouraged to communicate with school staff to stay engaged in their child's learning and seek opportunities to volunteer in an official capacity at the school. You are welcome to volunteer for Kindergarten and First Grade lunch during the first few weeks of school. Sign up HERE!