September 17th, 2025

What is APEX?

It is a character building program that helps provide students with the necessary tools they need to grow and learn.

If you are thinking about joining CUB Scouts, please see the information below.

Religious Expression Days

As a reminder, parents should be aware that Ohio Law and Board Policy 5200-Atttendance allows students to miss up to 3 days each year for the purpose of religious observance or expression.

Parents must notify their students school about the specific dates their child(ren) will be absent for religious leave. Notification must be submitted at least one day prior to the absence.

For additional information about Religious Expression Days, please visit the district website and view information in the Student Handbooks.

The Pickerington Police Officer on duty has observed multiple traffic violations during drop-off and pick-up times. For everyone’s safety, please follow these rules:

• No U-turns in the middle of Sycamore Creek Street

• Follow the posted speed limit in the school zone

• Right turn only when exiting the parking lot onto Sycamore Creek Street

• Do not unload students in the middle of Sycamore Creek Street

• You may park by the pool or pull over to the sidewalk to safely drop off your child

Important: If these violations continue, the officer will begin issuing citations. Thank you for helping keep our students safe!

Our protocol for student IDs and various age groups being accompanied by adults remains in place for this school year (2025-2025) .

• 7th through 12th-grade students who would like to attend a Pickerington Local School District sporting event will now be required to present a valid school ID and their admission ticket. This ensures that only current students attend and helps us manage safety inside the stadium.

• A parent or guardian must accompany K-8 students to and during the event. Unaccompanied K-8 students will not be permitted inside the stadium. This policy is in place to ensure the safety of our younger students, who need supervision in such large and public settings. Once inside, students must stay with their supervising adult, responsible for their safety and behavior.

PLSD is excited to host the annual Block Party on September 27, from 11:00 am - 2:00 p.m., at the Pickerington High School Central, 300 Opportunity Way. This event is a FREE community block party packed with music, games, food, and fun. Food trucks and vendors on-site for purchase.

Stay in the Game Attendance Challenges!

This week for our "Stay in the Game" attendance initiative with the Columbus Crew, students were encouraged to mark their favorite sport on our Stay in the Game posters on the walls in each pod. This is how they will show that it is important for them to "Stay in the Game" by showing up to school every day.

Start with Hello Week is a Sandy Hook's Promise to build a strong and resilient school community. Start with Hello Week empower students to embrace empathy and reject bullying and social isolation.

Don't forget our special Spirit Week Days for "Hello Week" on Thursday, September 18th and Friday, September 19th.

Starting 9/29, we will be having our therapy dogs return! We will be having Leo and Bingo joining us this school year! Teachers will have an opportunity to sign up for a 20 minute time slot for any student who would like to visit with the therapy dogs right outside of the classroom!

October 27th-November 7th, all classrooms will be receiving a 1 hour lesson on developmentally appropriate child sexual abuse lesson. This is required content through Erin's Law. The instruction will be presented by trained prevention facilitators and/or licensed social workers, not by district staff. If you would like to opt your child out of this lesson, you must complete the opt out form and return to school before Monday October 6th, 2025. If you have any questions please reach out to your child's School Counselor, Courtney Rizek (courtney_rizek@plsd.us)

Get your SMILE ready for September 24th.

Dear PLSD Families,

We're excited to announce that the Infinite Campus payment system is now live, powered by Stripe-n a new, secure, and family-friendly platform for paying student fees.

What's New:

• Re-enter saved payment methods (Stripe does not transfer this data from the old system)

• New service fees:

  • Credit/Debit Cards: 3.5%

  • ACH/E-Checks: $0.35

Frequently Asked Questions

Why did the payment portal change? Infinite Campus is switching to Stripe as the new provider to improve security and efficiency.

What do I need to know?

• Re-enter payment info in the Infinite Campus portal.

• Service fees now apply to online payments.

• Returned payments may incur additional charges.

Upcoming Fees to Expect

• August 1: Technology Protection Plan fees (optional, due September 30, 2025)

• After Sept. 8: Academic fees will post following the add/drop period (notifications sent via Infinite Campus)

Need Financial Support? Apply through the Household Income Survey in the NEW Meal Magic Family Portal. Be sure to check the information-sharing box-n this allows the Treasurer's Office to process fee waivers. If left unchecked, waivers can't be applied.

Have questions? Visit the News section on www.plsd.us or contact the Treasurer's Office.

Thank you for working with us as we continue to streamline services for PLSD families!

BECOME a PoPPs!

Parents on Positivity Patrol (PoPP) is a volunteer program that brings more caring adults into our schools to support students and staff. Parent volunteers play a vital role in education—not only as valuable resources for teachers but also as role models who show students that school is important and worth their time and effort.

Through PoPP, parents have the opportunity to actively engage in the schools their children attend, fostering a strong sense of community. By spreading encouragement and building positive relationships, PoPP volunteers help create a welcoming and supportive environment for all.

Join PoPP today and be a catalyst for change. Together, we’ll shape a brighter future—one uplifting interaction at a time.

Ready to make a difference? Sign up today by following the link or scanning the QR code!

Application link .

Panorama Survey will be given to K-12 students September 22- October 3rd. If you would like your child to opt out, please sign the opt out form and return to your student's School Counselor.

We are focusing on Respect for the month of September.

Book Recommentations for our Character Strong focus on Respect

Hello Families,

Our Acadience and i-Ready testing has wrapped up. Teachers and students are busy learning new skills in their reading lessons. Below is a short summary of what each grade level is learning about and what the focus is for writing.

Kindergarten - The Five Senses - How do our senses help us learn?

(Informative Writing)

1st - A World of Books - How do books change lives around the world?

(Narrative Writing)

2nd - A Season of Change - How does change impact people and nature?

Informative Writing

3rd - The Sea - Why do people explore the sea?

( Informative Writing)

4th - A Great Heart - What does it mean to have a great heart, literally and figuratively? (Informative Writing)

Vision and hearing screenings will begin in the upcoming months for all kindergarten, 1st grade, 3rd grade, and new students. These screenings help us identify any concerns early so that your child can get the support they need for learning. If you have any questions or would like to opt your child out of the screenings, please contact the school nurse’s office.

It is important to keep your student home from school if they have an elevated temperature above 100.0 or a contagious disease like chickenpox, flu, vomiting, diarrhea, cold and strep throat.

Students who are present at school with signs or symptoms of illness may be sent home and must remain fever-free for 24 hours without the aid of medication and be free of vomiting or diarrhea symptoms for 24 hours before returning to school.

All children with suspicious rashes may be excluded from school until the rash has been determined non-contagious by a healthcare professional.

• PLSD 2025-2026 District Calendar - click here

• Districtwide Activities Calendar

  Upcoming events and important dates are listed in the Districtwide Google Events Calendar, which is synced with individual building, program and athletic team calendars. Once inside the district wide calendar, to display the events of a particular building, team, program or activity, you will need to check the specific corresponding color-coded box(es) from the list on the left-hand side.

  Pickerington Schools partners with the City of Pickerington and Yodel to bring you the Pickerington Community Calendar!
  

  Visit this link to view all Pickerington Schools activities included on the calendar and don’t forget to “favorite” our Pickerington Schools schedule! Once favorited, Pickerington Schools' events will be front and center on your calendar, enabling you to see what’s coming up.

The Month of September is Attendance Awareness Month! Let's work together on being at school and striving to do our best while we are here. Let's work hard to "Stay in the Game"

Please call the Sycamore Creek Elementary Attendance line at 614-834-6201 to leave a voice-mail message to report an absence for your child. Our secretaries check messages throughout the day.

If you have a doctor's note that you need to share with the school to document an absence, please email it to:

sceattendance@plsd.us

September 24th

*Picture Day

September 27th

*PLSD Block Party

September 30th

*Evening Parent-Teacher Conferences (K-12)