The Bulldog's Bark

Dear Bulldog Families,

October is here, and our students and staff are settling into the routines of the school year. I have enjoyed visiting classrooms and seeing students ask questions, work together, and take pride in what they are learning.

This month, we are continuing to focus on strong instruction, positive behavior, and regular attendance. Being at school each day gives students the time and support they need to build skills and keep moving forward. Please help your child arrive on time and ready to learn.

Thank you for the encouragement you give your children and for your partnership with our school. When families and staff communicate and work together, we can help every student succeed. I look forward to all we will accomplish this October.

It's a great year to be a Bulldog!

Please DO NOT use ClassDojo to communicate important messages, including transportation changes, reporting absences, or requesting meetings. These messages must be communicated directly to the school office.

Call the school at 440.242.2023. If no one answers, please leave a voicemail with your name, your child’s name, the reason for your call, and a callback number. Voicemail is checked throughout the school day.

Calling the office helps ensure your message is received and addressed promptly. Thank you for your cooperation.

Doors open- 7:40 for breakfast. Breakfast is served until 8:00.

School starts at 8:00am and dismissal begins at 3:15pm

• Early Release- To ensure a safe and orderly dismissal for all students, the school cannot honor early pick-up requests after 2:45 PM unless they have been prearranged. Please do not call the school or arrive after 2:45 PM to request that your child be released early. This guideline helps us maintain student safety and prevents confusion during our end-of-day dismissal procedures. We appreciate your cooperation and understanding.

Creating a PowerSchool Parent Portal account and completing all required FinalForms is a requirement of Constellation/ACCEL Schools.

The PowerSchool Parent Portal allows families to stay informed about their child’s education. Through the portal, parents and guardians can review grades, assignments, attendance, schedules, teacher comments, and other important school information.

FinalForms are also located within the Parent Portal. These required online forms include:

• Emergency contact information
• Student medical and health information
• Parent permissions
• School policies and acknowledgments
• Required electronic signatures

It is extremely important that all information is accurate and current so the school can support your child’s safety and educational needs. Every parent or guardian must create a PowerSchool Parent Portal account and complete all required FinalForms as soon as possible.

If you need assistance creating your account, accessing the portal, or completing FinalForms, please contact the school office at 440-242-2023.

Thank you for completing this important requirement and helping us maintain accurate information for every student.

Effective September 30, 2025, Ohio’s attendance law focuses more strongly on chronic absenteeism. The law did not eliminate excused absences. However, when determining chronic absenteeism, all missed instructional time counts—whether the absence is excused, medically excused, or unexcused.

Attendance is calculated by the amount of instructional time missed, not simply by counting full days. This means minutes missed because of tardiness, early dismissal, appointments, or partial-day absences are added together.

For example:

• Arriving 30 minutes late = 30 minutes absent.

• Leaving 60 minutes early = 60 minutes absent.

• Doing both = 90 minutes of missed instructional time.

• These minutes accumulate throughout the school year.

A student is considered chronically absent after missing at least 10% of the state-required instructional hours:

Schools must notify families no later than when a student reaches the 5% threshold and provide increasingly intensive support as absences accumulate.

It is important to distinguish chronic absenteeism from habitual truancy:

• Chronic absenteeism: Includes excused, medically excused, and unexcused time.

• Habitual truancy: Includes only time missed without a legitimate excuse. The thresholds remain 30 consecutive hours, 42 hours in one school month, or 72 hours during a school year.

Therefore, a doctor’s note may excuse an absence and prevent it from counting toward truancy, but the missed instructional minutes still count toward chronic absenteeism. Ohio also requires schools to maintain attendance policies that emphasize prevention, family communication, tiered interventions, and addressing the causes of student absences. Ohio Department of Education and Workforce Attendance FAQs and Ohio Revised Code 3321.191.

Looking for a pre-school for your little one or in need of childcare before or after school for your child in grades k-8, check out the Horizon Center located right here in our building at Lorain Community School.

Center Director- Nisheyka Colon 440.420.2914.

This is an open invitation to join me any Friday morning at 8:00 to enjoy a cup of coffee and some conversation. No appointment necessary. I welcome all parents/guardians to spend a little bit of time getting to know each other and discussing anything on your mind. I'll supply the coffee too! See you soon.

A Student of the Month at Lorain Community School consistently shows growth and makes a positive contribution to the school community.

Kindergarten- D'Angelo Torres

1st - Premier Johnson

2nd - Ava Velez

3rd - Dorian Cruz

4th- Josue Santiago-Torres

5th- Liannelis Rolon

6th- Aiden Taylor

7th- Aleigha Glass

8th- Everly Gore

This year, we’ll be fundraising to help pay for student reward field trips. Our Chestnut Hill Candle fundraiser was such a success that we’re bringing it back! Watch for order forms coming home on Monday, October 19. Thank you for supporting our students!

9- No School -Teacher Professional Development Day

12- No School-MLK Day

15- Picture Re-Takes

19- Candle Fundraiser Begins

20- 1st Grading Period Ends

22- Boo Bash Dance

23- No School- Teacher Workday

27- Outback Ray Animal Assembly

26-30 Fall Spirit Week