Palumbo Updates - Students/Parents

* New/updated info.

Monday, October 13, 2025 - Indigenous People's Day - SCHOOLS CLOSED

Tuesday, October 14, 2025 - Regular Bell Schedule

Wednesday, October 15, 2025 - Special Bell Schedule

• PSAT Day - Grades 9-11
• College Visit Day - Seniors

Thursday, October 16, 2025 - Special Bell Schedule

• HISPANIC HERITAGE MONTH ASSEMBLY
• Girls' Volleyball vs. Central Blackout Game

Friday, October 17, 2025 - 1 Hour Advisory Bell Schedule

• OPEN HOUSE 9am - 2pm

NAMI Philadelphia is excited to announce the return of our Adolescent Support Group, now offered in-person at Ellie Mental Health. Starting Wednesday, October 22, teens ages 13 to 17 are invited to join us every Wednesday from 6–7 PM for a supportive space to connect with peers and talk about mental health.

Ellie Mental Health, 255 S. 17th St, Floor 9, Philadelphia, PA 19103
Register here

Thank you to the Outreach Club for organizing a great Spirit Week, culminating with a fabulous Homecoming Dance on Saturday! Thanks to Mr. Kirby, Mr. Wiessmann, Ms. Rhiannon and Ms. Tory. Special thanks to parent, Ameerah Holland for donating the beautiful photo backdrop that added the perfect finishing touch! A great time was had by all!

• *Project HOME College and Trade Fair: Join Project HOME on Tuesday, 10/14 at the Honickman Learning Center (1936 N Judson St) from 3:00-6:00 to learn more about campus life, trade school opportunities, and ways to expand your future at their college and trade fair. Students can register HERE.

• NACAC National College Fair: Mark your calendars for Saturday, 10/25 to attend the NACAC Fair at the Philadelphia Convention Center! Exhibitor information can be found at this landing page, and students should register HERE.
• FAFSA Training with PCPR: PCPR will be offering two FAFSA Completion info sessions on Thursday, 10/30 at CCP. The morning session will be FAFSA basics, and the afternoon session will dig into more complex FAFSA questions. Please register HERE.
• Cecil B. Moore Scholarship Program, Student/Family Info Sessions: The Cecil B. Moore Scholars Program offers students from North Philadelphia coordinated pre-college preparation, focused campus advising/mentoring, and scholarships that cover base tuition at Temple. Students and families can register for virtual information sessions HERE (various dates available). Please note–students should apply to Temple via Common App and fill out their SAR by November 1st to be considered for this program! Info and flyer are posted in the 2026 Google Classroom.

The Philadelphia School Board is currently seeking two new Student Board Representatives to serve during 2026 (January 1, 2026 – December 31, 2026). Applications are now open and will close on Friday, October 24, 2025, at 5:00 PM. This position was previously held by Palumbo graduate, Doha Gassem, Class of 2025.

Serving as a Student Board Representative is an incredible chance for students to:

• Advise the Board on issues impacting Philadelphia students.

• Serve as leaders for their peers, ensuring the student voice is represented in Board decisions.

• Gain hands-on experience with policy, advocacy, and leadership at the citywide level.

To be eligible, applicants must:

• Be a Philadelphia resident enrolled in a District or Charter high school.

• Hold a minimum 2.5 GPA and be in good standing.

• Be active in their school community and committed to representing their peers.

Applications can be submitted online, and the printable application can be accessed here. For questions, students may contact schoolboard@philasd.org or studentleaders@philasd.org.

Although we appreciate our students' desire for good hygiene, glass bottles, including perfume or cologne bottles are not allowed to enter the building, as they pose a safety risk if they break. Our School Safety Officers will give back any collected perfume or cologne bottles at the end of the day on Monday. After Monday, confiscated bottles will not be returned. The photo represents all of the bottles that were collected on Friday. Moving forward, please consider purchasing body sprays that come in plastic bottles.

We are excited to invite parents and community members to join Palumbo's School Advisory Council (SAC).

A School Advisory Council (SAC) is a collaborative team that works to improve student achievement, effective teaching in the classroom, and parent and
community engagement in the educational process. We meet monthly virtually on Wednesdays at 8:30 AM and participate in conversations by using and addressing school data. We are focused on improving academic achievement, school climate, and family engagement.

Our first meeting will be taking place on Wednesday, October 22, 2025 at 8:30 AM.

If you are interested in participating please complete this Google Form to get more information, the Zoom information and the SAC meeting dates for this year.

If your student is new to Palumbo, and has a 504 Plan please reach out to their counselor to ensure that we have a copy of the plan. This is especially important for students coming from non-school district schools. The 504 plans do not automatically transfer to us from outside of the district.

Counselors:

Last Name A-G - Thomas Shanks - tshanks@philasd.org

Last Name H-P - Chloe Gerbec - cgerbec@philasd.org

Last Name Q-Z - Qiana Pray - qpray@philasd.org

Save the Date–Malcolm Bernard HBCU Fair: The Office of Postsecondary Readiness will be hosting the 27th Annual Malcolm Bernard HBCU Fair on Wednesday, 11/19 from 3:30-7:00 at Martin Luther King High School. Students should bring copies of their transcripts, as some schools may be doing instant decisions. Student registration is REQUIRED at this link.

Welcome back Students, teachers and staff! We hope that everyone had a great summer. Academy at Palumbo Home and School Association in collaboration with Principal Thompson wanted to help ring in the 20th Anniversary with a total remodel of the 1st floor Hallways, main office, bathrooms and Main Entrances. We wanted to show everyone that steps into the Academy at Palumbo building what Griffin Pride is all about!! We want to say Thank you to all the volunteers that helped get everything done before the start of school.

To the families at Palumbo, we will have our 1st Home and School meeting of the year before Back to School night on 09/11/25 @ 5pm. We would like any families interested to attend and learn more about the HSA and how we can work together to make Palumbo a great place for our children. You can join the HSA and attend meetings, volunteer time to help with school or HSA events and you can donate to the Griffin Fund by using the QR Codes below. To learn more please click here.

Starting on the last week of school 2025, The hallways were cleared and a base coat of paint. Over the course of the summer with the collaboration with Principal Thompson, HSA board and volunteers of the Palumbo families got to work and created a total facelift to the 1st floor hallways, bathrooms, main office and main entrances. The 1st floor has a totally NEW look and we are happy to help add to the celebration of Academy at Palumbo's 20th year anniversary!!

FUNDING FOR THE 1st FLOOR REMODEL: Much of the furniture, paint, lights, supplies and other items were purchased upfront so the space would be ready for the start of school. We are still fundraising to cover the cost of those purchases.

Our school has partnered with Financial Scholars to offer personal finance education to our students and families!

Are you looking to take charge of your finances?

Could you benefit from financial education?

Want to learn more about Budgeting, Borrowing / Credit, Insurance, Real Estate & Building Equity, Paying for College, and Investing?*

Join us for a FREE, six-week virtual financial empowerment workshop for school staff, parents, and caregivers!

The virtual workshops will be held on Monday evenings from October 20th – November 24th from 6:30PM – 7:30PM on Zoom.

The first 20 people who register will receive a $250 contribution to their child’s 529 or other qualifying education savings account once they have attended all six sessions! (Only one contribution will be made for each qualifying registrant caregiver/parent)

CLICK HERE TO RSVP TODAY!

You may use this electronic form to submit an excuse for your child's absence from school within three days of the absence. A doctors note must be provided after three consecutive days of absence. After 9 parental excuses, a doctors note will be required. Be sure to complete each section below to ensure the excuse is accepted. Written notes are also accepted in the main office. All request are subject to administrative approval.