Sabal Palm Family Newsletter!

Flamingo Families,

Welcome back! I am so excited to open the doors to another school year at Sabal Palm Elementary and to welcome our students and families back to campus. There is something special about the beginning of a new year—the fresh starts, new friendships, new goals, and all of the possibilities ahead.

As we begin August, my greatest priority is making sure every child feels safe, loved, known, and excited to come to school each day. Our teachers and staff have worked incredibly hard to prepare for our students, and I am grateful for the energy, care, and commitment they bring to our Flamingo family.

Throughout the year, I hope you will use this newsletter as a way to stay connected to everything happening at Sabal Palm—from important dates and reminders to celebrations of the amazing things our students and staff are accomplishing.

Thank you for trusting us with your children and for being such an important part of our school community. I am looking forward to an incredible year of Heart + Hustle: Building Relationships. Pursuing Excellence.

Please take some time to review this month's Parent Newsletter. There is a lot of helpful information here to ensure we start the year off without a hitch!

With Flamingo Pride,
Dr. Felts
Principal, Sabal Palm Elementary 🦩

Please click the link below to view the supply lists for all classrooms, including PreK-PI and grades K–5. Individual teachers may also share additional “wish list” items with families during orientation.

You may also choose to purchase your school supplies through Impacks and have them delivered directly to our school. If you order by July 15th, your child's supplies will arrive in time for Orientation! Click on the flyer or scan the QR code to get started.

• 8/10 - FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL
• 8/12 - SAC Meeting at 5:30PM; PTA Meeting at 6:00PM
• 8/31 - Scouts Classroom Visits
• 9/1 - Scout Signup Night at 6PM
• 9/3 - Open House for KG, CSS/PI, 2nd, and 4th Grades at 5PM
• 9/7 - LABOR DAY - SCHOOL CLOSED
• 9/9 - SAC Meeting at 5:30PM; PTA Meeting at 6:00PM
• 9/10 - Open House for 1st, 3rd, and 5th Grades at 5PM
• 9/14 - PTA Presents: Grandparents' Night at 5-7PM
• 9/17 - PTA Presents: KG-2nd Grade Dance at 3-5PM
• 9/21 - Hearing Screenings
• 9/22 - Fall Festival Volunteer Meeting at 3:15PM
• 9/24 - PTA Presents: 3rd-5th Grade Dance at 3-5PM

The first day of school for students is Monday, August 10th. Students may begin arriving on campus at 8:00 AM, and instruction will start promptly at 8:30 AM.

On the first two days, parents are welcome to walk their child to class. Starting Wednesday, however, we kindly ask that students walk to their classrooms independently. Staff members and patrols will be stationed throughout the building and at arrival/dismissal points to guide and support students as needed.

All students who will be riding the bus to and/or from school this year must be registered for bus transportation. You can complete this process through your parent FOCUS account by following the steps at the link below.

Bus routes are planned based on the addresses of registered riders, so please register as early as possible and ensure your address is up to date in FOCUS. Once routes are finalized, you will be able to view your child’s bus stop information in your parent FOCUS account.

Please remember to register each child who will be riding the bus.

Kindergarten students must have a bus form completed prior to riding the bus. You can download the form by clicking one of the links below. The links contain both English and Spanish forms.

Arrival will begin at 8:00am daily; the car loop gate will close promptly at 8:25am and all remaining students will need to be dropped off at the Main Office. Tardies will be issued beginning at 8:30am.

Dismissal begins at 2:50pm daily; the car loop gate will open at 2:30pm and close promptly at 3:10pm and all remaining students will need to be picked up at the Main Office. Please make sure you are in line before 3:10pm this to help us get all students dismissed on time.

Please view the map below to help navigate pick-up and drop-off locations.

Car Riders: All K-5 students will use the main car loop (Car Loop 1) on Ashley Melisse Blvd.

CSS/PI and Siblings Car Riders: Students will use the car loop (Car Loop 2) located on Kernan in front of the ESE wing.

Walkers: Please do not drop children off in the parking lot or park and walk them up to the building. Students who are walkers should cross with the crossing guard in front of the school. Walkers will be dismissed at 3:00 daily. Parents who are meeting their children should wait for them at panic gate in front of the school or the gate off of Ashley Melisse Blvd. A staff member will walk students out.

Bus Riders: Please make sure your child knows their bus number AND bus stop location. We recommend writing this down and putting in their bookbag in addition to communicating this information to their teacher. All kindergarten bus riders MUST have a KG Bus Form filled out and on file in the office. KG students will not be allowed to ride the bus without this completed form.

Beginning in August, all students will have an I.D. card with a lanyard for safety, lunch, and bus accountability. I.D. cards must be returned to students each day. Students will only receive one I.D. card. If a student loses/damages an I.D. card, the replacement cost is $10.00.

To maintain the longevity of I.D. cards, please discuss with your student the purpose of these cards and the importance of taking care of their I.D. card.

Breakfast is served at NO CHARGE for students in all Duval County Public Schools!!

Lunch: All students enrolled in Duval County Public Schools are assigned a meal account through the Food and Nutrition Services Department. Lunch for the 26-27 School year is $4.10. Students access their account by using either their student ID card or student ID number when purchasing meals in the cafeteria. To ensure account security, students should memorize their ID number or keep their ID card in a safe place and should never share this information with other students.

Families are encouraged to take advantage of convenient meal prepayment options. Funds may be added to a student's account through the MySchoolBucks website or mobile app, or by sending cash or a check to school for deposit into the student's account. Parents and guardians who use MySchoolBucks can monitor account balances and view transaction history at any time.

Any remaining balance from the previous school year, whether positive or negative, will automatically carry over into the new school year unless a refund has been requested.

To ensure that students are safe and in accordance with DCPS health services policies, any foods that are brought to school for birthdays, class events or other applicable occasions must be store-bought with a nutritional label. Call the front office with any questions at (904)221-7169.

Use the link below to learn more about Extended Day and to register your child for the SPE Extended Day program. PLEASE NOTE: Submitting an application does not guarantee placement in the program.

The Student Code of Conduct is linked here for your reference. Contact SPE administration with any questions. Thank you for your support with this policy.

SPE Flamingos will participate in fire drills, active assailant drills, and weather drills. We want to assure you the trainings have been developed in coordination with law enforcement and district teams. The trainings and drills are age appropriate and will be conducted under the guidance of your child's teacher and other caring staff members. You can learn more by visiting: Safety And Security | Duval County Public Schools

Our PTA is ready to support our Flamingo Families! Please join us for our first PTA meeting on Wednesday, August 12th at 6:00PM in the Multipurpose Room to hear all about the amazing things we have planned and to get involved!

Keeping our students safe is always a top priority and goes hand in hand with providing a high-quality education. To strengthen our commitment to safety and comply with state law, the School Board approved updates to Board Policy 9.63 on March 4, which outlines the background screening process for volunteers.

These updates, which will take effect this school year, will require more rigorous background checks for volunteers who work directly with groups of students and may be out of the direct sight of district staff.

Volunteers who may have unsupervised contact with students will now need to complete a background check that includes fingerprinting, the same level of screening required for employees.

This requirement will apply to all current and future volunteers.

Volunteers will be categorized into two levels:

Level I Volunteers:
These volunteers are always within the direct line of sight of district employees and are never alone with students. Level I volunteers will continue to follow the standard screening process, which includes a check against the Dru Sjodin National Sexual Offender Public Website.

Level II Volunteers:
This group generally includes chaperones for field trips or other activities where they may be responsible for a group of students without direct supervision. Level II volunteers will now be required to complete a fingerprint background check, which screens for felonies and other criminal violations in addition to the sexual offender registry.

All screenings will be managed through our Background Screening Office in Human Resources. Details about implementation and any associated costs are still being finalized. As with current policy, principals will have the final authority to approve volunteers for their schools once background screening is complete.

Please note: These new requirements do not apply to visitors such as guest speakers for events like career days or guest readers. Student volunteers who are minors are also exempt, as they are always under staff supervision.

These changes ensure that our chaperones and other Level II volunteers meet the same safety standards as employees and, as always, volunteers should never be alone with a student except in rare and unavoidable situations.

In addition, all volunteers must schedule in advance with the teacher. Volunteers will be able to assist for up to an hour per day in the classroom as needed. Volunteers cannot bring younger siblings.

Classroom volunteers may return to our classrooms on an as needed basis. If the teacher needs a volunteer, he/she will reach out to families. If you would like to be a volunteer in our school when needed, please make sure you have filled out the volunteer information at Volunteer | Duval County Public Schools or click the icon below.

As a reminder, students will not be released after 2:15 PM in accordance with DCPS policy. Please limit early checkouts to times when it is absolutely necessary. We understand that appointments and emergencies may arise, but whenever possible, ensure your child remains at school for the full day to support their learning and instructional time.

Duval County Public Schools will continue to use ROOMS as the primary communication platform this school year. Your child's teacher will send more information on how to join their class at the beginning of the school year.

This year, we will continue to use PikMyKid to manage student dismissal. All families are encouraged to download the app. PikMyKid allows you to make changes to your child’s dismissal plan and designate authorized individuals for pickup.

Please note that all dismissal changes must be made in the app by 2:00 PM each day. For safety reasons, we are unable to accept dismissal changes by phone.

We also encourage families of bus riders and walkers to download the app. This will allow you to receive real-time updates if your child’s release is delayed and to adjust dismissal plans when needed.

Thank you for your support in helping us ensure a safe and efficient dismissal process for all students.

We need you! Interested in being a business partner here at SPE? Our business partners are invaluable here at SPE. If you own or manage a business and would like to learn more about the perks of being a SPE business partner, please reach out to Principal Felts at (904) 221-7169 or feltsa@duvalschools.org.

Please support those who support SPE. Click on the business logos below to support these local businesses. If your business is interested in becoming a SPE sponsor, email Principal Felts at feltsa@duvalschools.org for more information.