Hound Dog Headlines- Family Edition

Aug. 11th- Sneak-a-Peek, 6:00-7:00 pm

Aug. 13th- First Day of School! (half day- dismissal @ 11:30am)

Aug. 13th-19th- Camp Kindergarten (see information below)

Aug. 14th- Regular School Day Kinder-5th

Aug. 14th- Tears and Cheers (Kindergarten only), 9:00-9:30 am

Aug. 17th- Early Childhood Classes Begin

Aug. 17th- PTO Meeting, 5:30-6:30 pm

Aug. 21st- Melon Mania- PTO Event

Aug. 24th - Building Site Council Meeting

Aug. 26th- Back to School Night for Kindergarten Only 5:30-6:00pm, School-Wide Everyone Bring Your Own Picnic 6:00-7:00pm

Dear Heritage Families,

Welcome to a special edition of our Hound Dog Headlines! With school just around the corner, I wanted to get some additional information out. We are SO excited to see you all soon at both Sneak-a-Peek on Tuesday, August 11 and for our first half day of school on Thursday for our K-5 students. Please note that school dismisses at 11:30am on Thursday. Please also note that Early Childhood's first day of school is Monday, August 17.

I am really excited to get the year going. Please reach out with any questions you have, and be sure to say hello at Sneak-a-Peek. I will be stationed in the front hallway, with some of our support staff, to greet you as you come in and help direct you where to go! 🙂 Can't wait to see you then!

Warmly,

Jess Kilby

Olathe Families,

As you may be aware, during the 2026 Legislative session, the Kansas Legislature passed a new state cell phone law that prohibits the use of cell phones and personal electronic devices during the school day on school premises. Per state law, devices must be turned off and securely stored during the school day.

At the Aug. 6 Board of Education meeting, the Board approved updates to Policy JTC- Personal Electronic Devices, that bring Olathe Public Schools into compliance with the newly passed state law for the 2026-27 school year.

Key highlights from the policy updates include:

• Elementary and PreK: Personal electronic communication devices, if on school premises during the school day, must be stored in the student’s backpack, in a personal storage bag or container, in a school-designated storage solution or other area designated by school administration.
• Middle and High School: Personal electronic communication devices, if on school premises during the school day, must be stored in a student’s locker, in a school-designated storage solution, in the student’s vehicle (high school only) or other area designated by school administration.

Students who bring personal electronic communication devices – including cell phones, smart watches, wireless headphones or earbuds, smart glasses, tablets not issued by the school, and similar devices – must adhere to the policy as outlined above.

District administration have created consistent expectations for those found in violation of the policy.

Attached please find important information regarding the expectations outlined at each level for policy violations.

We know this maybe an adjustment for many students and families. Our approach is rooted in teaching expectations, partnering with families and applying those expectations consistently across all Olathe schools. Before school begins, please discuss with your child the new requirement that all personal devices be turned off and securely stored during the school day. We appreciate your support and partnership in helping students understand this new expectation.

Sincerely,

Olathe Public Schools Administration

Attachments:
Elementary_Personal_Device_Policy_Expectations.pdf (142.7 KB)
Elementary_Personal_Device_Policy_Expectations_SPANISH.pdf (110.4 KB)

We are so excited for another school year, and we are looking forward to welcoming our new Kindergarteners to Heritage. We invite our Kindergarten families (Kindergarten only - 1st-5th will not be having a formal session) to join us for a Back to School Information Night session on Wednesday, August 26th where we can share some important information. This will be from 5:30-6:00pm.

Then, from 6:00-7:00pm, we invite the rest of our school community (all families with students EC-5th Grade) to join us on the playground for a "Bring Your Own Picnic" event. We will have the playground equipment open, Dan the Bubble Man with giant bubbles, and sidewalk chalk. This will be a time where your kids can play together, families can mingle, staff will be around to chat with, and we can just kickoff the 2026-2027 school year together in a simple gathering of our community. Come and go as you please, but please stop by and enjoy the chance to have some fun together!

I know I have recycled information on dismissal down below, but I wanted to point out the biggest change about both arrival and dismissal is the closure of North entrance. With our staffing changes for this year, we had to close it. So for arrival, all students will enter through the front, but it will be nice to enter as a whole school and get to start our day that way - together. For dismissal, see below. The only big change is we won't have North walkers. All walkers will dismiss from the East doors, and K-5 will each have a section or area they will be stationed in.

Hi! My name is Ciara Forcellini, and I’m so excited to be joining Sunnyside Elementary and Heritage Elementary as a speech-language pathologist this year! I earned my bachelor’s degree from Kansas State University (Go Cats!) and my master’s degree from the University of Central Missouri. Outside of work, I enjoy working out, being outdoors, and reading. I can’t wait to meet all of the amazing students and support their communication and learning this school year!

Hi my name is Jami Fenton. I am originally from Ohio and my family has lived in New Mexico (where my oldest was born), Texas (where my other two were born), Minnesota and now Kansas.

I am married to my husband Jeff and have 3 beautiful daughters. My oldest is a senior and KU, my middle is going to be a freshman at K-State and my youngest is a sophomore in High School.

We have a wonderful Alaskan Malamute named Jax.

I am a Zumba instructor and enjoy teaching those classes as well as attending different types of fitness classes. I also enjoy going to concerts and listening to live music

The Heritage School supply list can be found below. This list is different than the lists that are posted at the stores or on the district website, and are more specific to our classroom needs. These lists can be found on our Heritage website under the Enrollment tab.

Please bring your school supplies to Sneak-A-Peek. 🎉

Kindergarten should not bring their supplies until Wednesday, Aug 19th.

8:55-3:55- School day hours

8:35-School doors open (Please note, there will be no supervision, until 8:35. Please do not send students to school before that time for safety and supervision purposes! Thank you for your help with this.)

8:35-8:55- Breakfast is served for students who wish to purchase (or who are receiving free/reduced lunches)

8:55- School day begins (Students are expected to be in their seat ready to learn at this time, not walking in the door. Arrivals after this time will be considered tardy.)

3:55-Students are dismissed

If your student is going to be absent, please contact the office, along with your student's teacher. You can also email the office via our attendance email at htattendance@olatheschools.org.

Please let us know the following information:

• The child's name and the teacher's name
• Date the absence will occur
• Reason for absence
• If your child will be late, do they need a school lunch? Which option?
• Approximately when will your child arrive at school?

Thank you!

Having your student present and on time for learning is a key factor in their success. Please see the updated guidelines for student attendance. There may be additional actions taken depending on the situation.

Tardies

4 tardies in a semester= 1 unexcused absence, parent phone call

7 tardies in a semester= Intervention meeting and plan established with parents and school team

20 tardies in a semester= 5 unexcused absences, truancy authorities notified

Chronic Absenteeism

5 absences in a semester= Intervention meeting and plan established with parents and school team

9 absences in a semester= Second/updated intervention meeting and plan established with parents, school team, and any additional parties.

10 absences in a school year= Truancy authorities notified

Truancy

3 unexcused absences in a row= Intervention meeting and plan established with parents and school team

5 unexcused absences in a semester= Truancy authorities notified

7 unexcused absences in a school year= Updated team intervention meeting

These policies align with BOE Policies JBA, JBAA, JBAD, JBAB, JBC.

If a unique situation exists which may interfere with regular, timely school attendance, the parent should work with the school to develop a plan in advance.

Our official logo this year is a nod to a historical one and features a hound dog in a heart. See below. Please reach out to the office if you need the official jpg or png.

Olathe Public Schools uses SchoolCafé for managing student and staff meal accounts.

Payments made through SchoolCafé require a minimum $20 deposit and are subject to a 4.0% convenience fee. To avoid the convenience fee, payments may also be made by cash or check at the school.

To get started, you’ll need to create a new SchoolCafé account with a username and password. Be sure to have your student(s) ID number on hand.

Meal Prices for 2026-27

• Elementary Breakfast: $1.75
• Elementary Lunch: $3.45
• Extra Milk/Extra Juice: $.65

Parents can pay with cash or check without a fee. At elementary schools, please take the cash or check to the front office

Free and reduced priced lunch and breakfast programs are available for families with low incomes. The identities of students who receive free or reduced price meals are confidential.

Submit your application online at www.schoolcafe.com/olathe or download the SchoolCafe app.

The dates for Camp Kindergarten will be:

August 13- half day

August 14

August 17

August 18

August 19 (Trial Day)

August 20 (Official Day in Home Rooms)

To set students up for the most successful pairings and Kindergarten experience, we will use the first week of school as Camp Kindergarten. In this setting, we will have students work with all kindergarten teachers as well as Specialists such as PE, Music, Art, and Library. This will familiarize students with staff they will be working with throughout the year and give us a few days to meet your students as learners and people! We will be reaching out to Kindergarten families prior to August 13 with which group/classroom your children will start in. You may walk your child back to the rooms on August 13 and 14. We will be starting August 17 with normal arrival. Then on August 20, for our first official day in the students' homerooms, you will be able to walk your child back on that day again.

The evening of Wednesday, August 19 class assignments for Thursday, August 20 can be accessed on ParentVue.

If you need to adjust how your student will be getting home, you will need to call the office by 2:00 that day.

Dismissal numbers...we have printed two clings per child. Please place these on the upper inside of passenger side windshield, BELOW THE TINT, for easy reading.

The dismissal line begins by the football field for Olathe South. All car riders will be dismissed from the front of the school. At this time ONLY car riders will be able to exit the front doors. As we look for traffic patterns to keep everyone safe we will not have anyone using the crosswalk in front of the front doors. As you move through the car loop please continue to pull all the way forward.

There are two exits during dismissal. This is a change from last year - there will not be North walkers due to fewer staff this year for supervision. Walkers will be dismissed from the side doors (the East doors). Car riders will be picked up, in a vehicle only, from the front loop. At this time parents may not walk up to the front of the school or park in the lot and walk a cross. Please do not bring pets with you to arrival or dismissal. We want to ensure everyone is comfortable and safe as they enter and exit our school.

Thank you for your cooperation, understanding, and assistance as we work to keep everyone safe.

This will be the same as last year, please reference the map that further shows the traffic flow pattern you can expect for drop-off/pick-up.

As always, if you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.

IMPORTANT NOTES

• Please do not begin lining up for dismissal until 3:30 pm, we need to be mindful of high school dismissal.
• Cars will start line up by OS football field (look for sign)
• Traffic moves ONE WAY please follow the signs accordingly.