September 11, 2026

Building Better Bobcats Takes Center Stage

This week, students in grades 1-5 participated in grade-level Town Halls with Dr. Southmayd as we launched our Building Better Bobcats work and introduced our Fern Hill Portrait of a Graduate, or as the kids call it, our "Portrait of a Bobcat." During these gatherings, learners explored the five competencies we will intentionally develop throughout their years at Fern Hill and as they move through our secondary schools: Responsibility, Empathy, Communication, Adaptability, and Problem-Solving.

Together, these traits spell RECAP, a memorable way for our students to remember the skills that will help them thrive both in school and beyond. Students engaged in conversations about what these competencies look and sound like in classrooms, on the playground, and throughout our school community as we continue building a shared language for learning and growth.

There's much more in store for students and families as we focus on Building Better Bobcats and strengthen our family engagement this year. See below for an invite you don't want to miss!

Honoring Patriot Day

On Friday, our school community came together to recognize Patriot Day and the 25th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks. Students and staff paused for a moment of silence to honor the lives lost, remember the courage and sacrifice of first responders, and reflect on the resilience and unity demonstrated by our nation in the years since.

Next Week: First Full Week!

We look forward to testing our stamina after a few four-day weeks as we embrace our first five-day week of the 2026-2027 school year. We're looking forward to locking into learning in week 3!

• September 7 - No School; Labor Day
• September 21 - No School; Yom Kippur
• September 23 - Picture Day
• September 24 - General PTO Meeting and Homeroom Parent Meeting at 6:00pm in Library
• September 24 - Building Better Bobcats Caregiver Event at 6:30pm in Library
• October 2 - Band Night at Fugett Middle School
• October 12 - No School; Teacher In-Service

Once you enter a request, Mrs. Spiegel will send the car tag home with your child.

• School start time: 9:10am (drop off between 8:30- 9:05)
• School End Time: 3:40pm
• Half Day Dismissal: 12:10pm

Absences (2 ways to notify the school):

• Report an absence by emailing: FHEattendance@wcasd.net
• Report an absence by updating Attendance Monitor in Parent Portal (directions are on our website)

Excused Absences:

• Students are allotted to 15 parent notes a year.
• After the 15 parent notes are utilized, every absence after that will require a doctor’s note, or the absence will remain unlawful.
• Doctor’s notes never count against your 15 parent notes and need to be turned in within 3 days of an absence.
• When you plan a vacation, please fill out the request form (Vacation Request Form__)

Late Arrival, Early Dismissal, and Dismissal Changes:

• If your student needs to leave early, please email their teacher and FHEattendance@wcasd.net to let us know the time they will be picked up.
• If your student is late, please send an email or sign them in if they do not have a doctor’s note.

At the beginning of the school year, we ask that you let the teacher know if your student will ride the bus, be a parent pick-up, or stay for after care. Please notify both the teacher and FHEattendance@wcasd.net when there is a dismissal change as early as possible.

This year, Fern Hill's Title I program has shifted from serving a specific group of eligible students to becoming a schoolwide Title I program. This is exciting news for our school community because it gives us greater flexibility to proactively support all learners and better meet student needs through our reading and math intervention services.

As a schoolwide Title I school, every family plays an important role in shaping our work. We want your input on our programs, school initiatives, family engagement efforts, and continuous improvement goals. Your feedback helps us strengthen the supports and opportunities we provide for our students.

We look forward to partnering with you throughout the year and invite you to share your ideas, perspectives, and questions as we work together to help every Bobcat thrive!

At Fern Hill Elementary, we believe strong partnerships between home and school help our students thrive. As part of our participation in the federal Title I program, we are required to share the attached Title I Right to Know Letter with all families.

This letter outlines your right to request information about the professional qualifications of your child's classroom teachers and instructional staff. We are proud of the dedicated educators who serve our Bobcats each day and remain committed to providing every student with high-quality instruction and support.

Please take a few minutes to review the attached letter. If you have any questions or would like additional information, please do not hesitate to contact our office.

PA State school health mandated immunization, physical and dental requirements for 26-27 school year:

1. All students are required to be up to date with PA state mandated immunizations within the first 5 days of school in order to avoid being excluded from school.
2. All kindergarten students and any student registering for the first time to FHE must submit updated physical and dental examination report to the school nurse within the first 60 days of school in order to avoid being excluded from school. Reports can be dated on/after September 2025.
3. Rising 3rd Graders- Your child is required to have a dental exam in his/her 3rd grade school year (2026-2027). This is not a new requirement, but WCASD now has a provisional period of 60 days from the start of school. This means your child’s dental exam report is due on or before November 1, 2026. This deadline feels a long time off, but the nurse can accept upcoming or recent dental reports any time and update your child’s health record now. Exams must have been after 8/30/2025.
   

If you have questions about these requirements, please contact our school nurse, Mrs. Brittany Garraty (bgarraty@wcasd.net).

If you registered your child(ren) through WCASD portal and did not upload all or part of the above PA state school health mandates, please send the information to Mrs. Garraty at the above email address as soon as possible.

Thank you for partnering with us to ensure we have your child's most up-to-date medical records on file.

We are excited to introduce the launch of the LinkIt! portal. Through this online portal, you will be able to view both current and historical assessment data linked to your student’s profile. Information housed in this portal includes state assessments (PSSA and Keystone Exams), with district assessments to be added over time.

To access your student’s profile, please follow the steps below and use your unique registration code to activate your account. Once in the system, you will be prompted to set up a username and password for future access.

STEP 1: ACCESS THE LINKIT! portal

Go to https://wcasd.linkit.com/parent in any web browser (computer, tablet, or phone).

STEP 2: CLICK ON “HAVE A REGISTRATION CODE?”

On the portal login page, click the “Have a Registration Code?” tab.

STEP 3: ENTER YOUR UNIQUE REGISTRATION CODE

Enter the registration code provided from LinkIt! sent to your address on file with the district.

STEP 4: SET UP YOUR INDIVIDUAL ACCOUNT

Follow the onscreen prompts to create your password. Your username will default to the email address the district has on file. If you have multiple children enrolled in WCASD, all of their data will be accessible under one account.

STEP 5: VIEW YOUR CHILD’S ASSESSMENT DATA

Once logged in, click the Reports icon to view assessment results. Click on a test category (such as PSSA or Keystone) to expand and view your child’s scores.

To assist you in understanding your child’s assessment data, we have created resources for your access on the WCASD Assessment Page.

We are confident that providing access to your child’s information on an ongoing basis will support even stronger home-school communication.

If you are having difficulty accessing your LinkIt! portal account, please contact Jim Ronayne at assessment@wcasd.net

Is your child asking for a phone? Social media? Does he say he’s the only one that doesn’t have it yet? If these are topics in your house or topics you anticipate, sign up for Fern Hill’s Unplugged chapter! We are a group of parents concerned about raising our kids safely in a digital age. Join us Sept 22nd at the West Goshen Township Building from 7:30-8pm for an in person kick-off meeting for West Chester Unplugged. Contact Ali Haas, 410-610-2073 for more information.

RSVP Here if you can make it.

• Fri. 9/18: Honeygrow (11am - 8pm)

• Thurs. 10/15: SNAP Custom Pizza (4-8pm)

• Tues. 11/3: Chick-Fil-A West Chester (4-7pm)

• Tues. 12/8: Panera Bread - West Chester (4-8pm)

Earning money for our school has never been easier! All you need to do is download the Box Tops app, create an account, and scan your grocery receipt. Easy and quick! Last year we earned $500 from Box Tops for Fern Hill!

We love having our families volunteer throughout the building. In order to volunteer, adults are required to have their clearances on file with us. Clearances can take 4-6 weeks to acquire, so please be sure to get the process started if you're looking to volunteer this Fall.

• Fern Hill Website
• PTO Website
• Vacation Approval Request Form

• FHE: Kindergarten Lunch Duty
• FHE: 1st Grade Lunch Duty
• Replacement Car Tag Request Form

Principal

Email: jsouthmayd@wcasd.net
Website: https://www.wcasd.net/fhe
Location: 915 Lincoln Avenue, West Chester, PA, USA
Phone: 484 266 1600
Twitter: @FernHillES