Monday Message/El mensaje del lunes

Dear La Escuela Fratney Families,

Welcome to March! We are looking forward to a wonderful week of learning and celebration with our students.

Early Dismissal – Wednesday
This Wednesday, students will be dismissed at 2:15 PM. Please plan to pick up your child promptly at 2:15 PM or ensure they ride the bus home at the earlier dismissal time.
Please note: There will be no AM or PM CLC on Wednesday.

Read Across America Week
We are excited to celebrate Read Across America Week with fun dress-up days to promote a love of reading! Students and staff are invited to participate:

• Tuesday: Superhero Day

• Wednesday: Dress like your favorite book character

• Thursday: “Read to Succeed” – Dress like what you want to be when you grow up

• Friday: Pajama Day

Special Event – Friday Literacy Night
On Friday evening, we will host a special Literacy Night. We are honored to welcome a special guest from our district, Dra. Gabi, who will join us for this celebration of reading and learning. We hope your family can attend! Thank you for your continued partnership and support. We are grateful to work together to support our students each day.

Estimadas familias de La Escuela Fratney:

¡Bienvenido marzo! Estamos muy emocionados por una maravillosa semana de aprendizaje y celebración con nuestros estudiantes.

Salida temprana – miércoles
Este miércoles los estudiantes saldrán a las 2:15 p.m. Por favor, haga planes para recoger a su hijo/a puntualmente a las 2:15 p.m. o asegúrese de que tome el autobús a casa a esa hora más temprana.
Tenga en cuenta: No habrá CLC por la mañana ni por la tarde el miércoles.

Semana de Read Across America
Estamos emocionados de celebrar la Semana de Read Across America con divertidos días temáticos para promover el amor por la lectura. Invitamos a estudiantes y personal a participar:

• Martes: Día de Superhéroes

• Miércoles: Vístete como tu personaje favorito de un libro

• Jueves: “Lee para Triunfar” – Vístete como lo que quieres ser cuando seas grande

• Viernes: Día de Pijama

Evento especial – Noche de Lectura el viernes
El viernes por la noche tendremos una Noche de Lectura muy especial. Nos honra contar con una invitada especial de nuestro distrito, Dra. Gabi, quien nos acompañará para celebrar la lectura y el aprendizaje. ¡Esperamos que su familia pueda acompañarnos!

Gracias por su continuo apoyo y colaboración. Estamos agradecidos de trabajar juntos para apoyar a nuestros estudiantes cada día.

SOC Staffing Overview

Good Morning Mrs. Cruz,

Below is a forward‑looking summary of Fratney School’s enrollment outlook and how it aligns with the FY27 Standard of Care (SOC) staffing model. This overview highlights strengths, opportunities, and key SOC implications for the upcoming school year.

1. Big Picture: Enrollment Expected to Increase Significantly

• Current Enrollment: 525 students
• Projected SY26–27 Enrollment: 581 students
• Net Change: +56 students

Fratney is projected to experience substantial growth, reflecting strong community demand, rising retention, and increasing interest in the school’s programming. Under the SOC model—driven entirely by student‑to‑teacher ratios—this growth supports enhanced staffing allocations and a strongly resourced instructional environment.

Overall, Fratney is one of the highest‑growth projections among schools this cycle.

2. Grade‑Level Changes (Growth Across Nearly Every Band)

Grades Projected to Increase

1st

4th

5th

6th

These increases demonstrate robust demand and growing cohort strength across elementary and early secondary levels.

Stable Grades (Strong Foundations)

• K3 = 46
• K4 = 56

• K5 = 76

  All remain unchanged, indicating a very strong early‑learning pipeline into the school.

Small Decreases (Opportunities for More Personalized Instruction)

2nd

3rd

These reductions create opportunities to provide more individualized learning experiences.

3. Cohort Patterns (What the Trends Show)

Fratney’s historical enrollment:

This consistent upward trend demonstrates:

• Multi‑year growth
• Strong K4/K5 retention into upper grades
• Steady demand for programming
• A school that continues to expand its student population

Fratney’s enrollment trend is one of the strongest among K–8 schools in the district.

4. Why Enrollment Projections Shift

According to the projection methodology:

• Growth in Grades 1, 4, 5, and 6 reflects higher return rates and new enrollments.
• Early‑childhood stability (K3–K5) signals strong community trust in the school.
• Small declines in Grades 2 and 3 occur naturally with student mobility and variation.

Overall, Fratney shows all the indicators of a healthy, thriving K‑8 school.

5. SOC Model Implications for Budget Planning

FY27 SOC staffing ratios:

• K4 = 20:1 + para
• K5 = 22:1 + para
• Grades 1–2 = 26:1
• Grades 3–5 = 28:1
• Grades 6–8 = 32:1

Staffing Implications (Very Positive Outlook)

• Significant growth (particularly +56 students) may strengthen general‑education staffing allocations under SOC.
• Stable early‑grade enrollment reinforces consistent para + teacher assignments in K4 and K5.
• Moderate decreases in Grades 2 and 3 allow:
• Smaller class sizes
• Increased teacher‑student interaction
• Flexible grouping options

Fratney’s SOC outlook is strong due to its overall enrollment growth.

Strategic Opportunities

• Build on strong growth in Grades 1, 4, and 5 by continuing cohort supports.
• Leverage high K3–K5 retention to strengthen early literacy and numeracy programming.
• Use slight decreases in Grades 2–3 to implement targeted academic supports.
• Reinforce middle‑school readiness with growing 6th‑grade numbers.

Building Utilization

With 581 projected students, Fratney will operate with a strong, balanced enrollment across grade levels.

Budget Impact

Higher enrollment supports:

• Additional SOC‑allocated staffing
• Improved stability in class size thresholds
• Strong justification for resource requests

Support‑service staffing remains aligned to SOC thresholds:

• Social Worker: 1 per 250 students
• Psychologist: 1 per 500
• Counselor: 1 per 250

6. SOC‑Aligned Talking Points

• “Fratney is projected to grow significantly from 525 to 581 students, one of the strongest increases in the district.”
• “K3, K4, and K5 remain stable at high levels, supporting a strong early‑childhood pipeline.”
• “Growth in Grades 1, 4, 5, and 6 reinforces strong retention and rising enrollment.”
• “Slight decreases in Grades 2–3 create opportunities for smaller, more personalized class environments.”
• “SOC ensures Fratney receives equitable, ratio‑aligned staffing that reflects its rising enrollment.”

Family Leadership Organization (FLO): Participating in the Family Leadership Organization (FLO) at La Escuela Fratney is an easy and effective way to positively impact our school’s culture and climate.

• Family involvement is a proud tradition at Fratney, and our parents and guardians are valuable members of our community—we want your input! By attending meetings of our FLO, you will not only develop meaningful connections with other families, staff, and leadership, but also make a difference in your child’s education.

• At FLO meetings, you’ll help plan student and family events that boost school pride and strengthen our school culture. Events include family movie nights, school events, our end-of-year school picnic, our summer carnival, and more. You will also get the opportunity to help with fundraising, volunteering, and increasing family engagement.

• As the loved one of a Fratney student, you are automatically a member of our FLO with no need to sign up or pay any dues. Meetings are open to all parents and guardians, and you can attend any FLO meeting at any time.

Meeting Schedule and Specifics

FLO meetings are led by our parent coordinator, Grace Rivera Cruz. Meetings take place once a month, usually on Wednesdays. All meetings are held at 5 p.m. at Fratney. See our calendar for an up-to-date list of upcoming meetings.

More Information If you have a topic suggestion for a FLO meeting or have any questions at all, please contact Grace Rivera Cruz, parent coordinator, at riveg3@milwaukee.k12.wi.us or (414) 267-1139.

Family Leadership Organization (FLO) at La Escuela Fratney

What: family engagement

Who: any and all families are welcome and involved

When: monthly meetings, monthly family nights or events

Why: to share ideas, plan events, participate in family events

Month

September

October

November

December

January

February

March

April

May

June

Yearbooks can be ordered online here:

https://orders.schoolandsportpics.com/ordering/with?key=37YX4KC2

The yearbook sale will run until April 1st.

La Escuela Fratney Friends & Families; be sure to follow us on Instagram for more updates and reminders! We will be posting classroom photos and updates in addition to our Facebook page!

Familias & Amigos de La Escuela Fratney; asegúrese de seguirnos en Instagram para obtener más información y recordatorios!

@laescuelafratney

Remember that our La Escuela Fratney website is your go to for all information related to La Escuela Fratney or MPS. You can find:

• the lunch menus on the new MPS website
• the previous Monday Messages for the school year
• the yearly calendar with all field trips and special events
• the holiday policy created by La Escuela Fratney staff
• the SEC meetings and members
• staff information
• enrollment information

And much, much more! Check it out and bookmark it today!

Are you interested in volunteering at La Escuela Fratney? We welcome volunteers to support with arrival, lunch, and recess times. Per our school policy, families are not able to volunteer in their own child's classroom on an ongoing basis. If you are interested in volunteering in classrooms, it must be a different classroom and be organized and approved through the parent coordinator Ms. Grace.

Here is the paragraph from the MPS Family manual that describes the volunteer process:

Family Volunteers

Persons interested in volunteering are encouraged to follow the appropriate volunteer application process defined by the district. MPS defines a volunteer as a person who provides services on an ongoing or one-time basis. Persons looking to serve on an ongoing basis or for more than five hours a week or for an overnight field trip must complete an online volunteer application, pass a criminal background check (for those 18 years of age or older), and receive a volunteer assignment by the school administrator or parent coordinator. Persons looking to participate in a daytime field trip or other one-time activity must complete a volunteer waiver form. The online volunteer application and the volunteer waiver form are available on the MPS website under the Families tab > Volunteer.

Here is the link for MPS volunteers

https://mps.milwaukee.k12.wi.us/en/Community/Get-Involved/Volunteer.htm

English Bullying Report Form

Spanish Bullying Report Form

There will be one calendar for the whole district again this year. Please review this calendar before making plans for trips or vacations. Students must be in school 95% of the time or more which means they can only miss 1 day a month the whole school year. Students who miss more than 10 days of school a year fall behind academically and socially. Make a plan now to be in school every day on time.

Email: 182@milwaukee.k12.wi.us
Website: https://mps.school/fratney/
Location: 3255 North Fratney Street, Milwaukee, WI, USA
Phone: (414) 267-1100