THE CCS NEWSLETTER
September 3, 2026
CCS Community,
We hope you have a wonderful four-day weekend, and we’ll see your students back at CCS on Tuesday, September 8!
One exciting event to put on your radar: beginning the week of September 14, we’ll welcome Troy Wunderle and Big Top Adventures for a full week as our Circus Artist-in-Residence. This builds on the two-day residency we piloted last year with great success.
A big thank you to the CCS PTO for financially sponsoring this amazing opportunity.
During the week, every K–4 student will have four circus classes, and students in grades 5–8 will have at least two. We’ll wrap up the school week with a student assembly and circus performance featuring student volunteers. While we’d love to fit every caregiver, student, and staff member into the Big Gym, we simply don’t have the space—so we’ll livestream the performance for caregivers.
And, because we can't fit everyone into the gym at the same time, we’re partnering with Troy to host a CCS Circus Night, tentatively scheduled for Wednesday, September 16, from 6:00–7:30 PM.
Mark your calendars and come ready to juggle, balance, try something new, and have some fun together! More information is coming soon.
Enjoy the long weekend!
Tim & Lauren
Tim O’Leary, Principal
Lauren Goracy, Assistant Principal & Director of Special Services
How is PickUp Patrol going for your family? If you still have questions, Cindy and Naomi in the CCS Front Office are happy to help.
As we enter the middle school fall sports season, caregivers of fall student-athletes should update their child’s DEFAULT dismissal plan in PickUp Patrol for Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays. Select “Sport Activity” and use the notes to identify the sport and explain what your child should do if a practice or game is canceled. At the end of the season, simply update the default plan again. You can also submit day-of dismissal changes whenever needed.
And remember, PickUp Patrol is for more than dismissal. Please use it for all Plan Changes, including:
Absences
Late arrivals
Early pickups
Day-of dismissal changes
** NOTE - this is NOT for after school late bus reservations. Please use the Late Bus Reservation form that is emailed directly to families. **
When you enter changes directly in PickUp Patrol, the information is immediately available to everyone who needs it, rather than being held in one person’s email inbox or communicated through a phone message. Thank you for making this shift. We deeply appreciate it
We are excited to renew our partnership with Very Merry Theatre to produce two musicals at CCS this year. Very Merry will continue to lead our middle school musical and, for the first time at CCS, will also produce a K–4 musical this fall: The House at Pooh Corner.
Featuring Pooh, Piglet, Eeyore, Owl, Rabbit, Christopher Robin, and other creatures of the Hundred Acre Wood, the show follows these beloved characters through a series of troubles and adventures.
We are still finalizing the details, but rehearsals are expected to begin the week of September 28, coinciding with the first week of our SPARK after-school clubs. Performances are planned for early November. Our preliminary thinking has students in grades 2–4 able to audition for roles, while students in K–1 invited to participate in one or two songs as part of a larger ensemble.
Right now, we are looking for two lead parent volunteers. Don and the Very Merry Theatre team rely on these volunteers to serve as liaisons between the directing team and the larger group of family volunteers. If you are interested in serving as one of the leads—or would like to volunteer as a team—please email Tim O’Leary at toleary@cvsdvt.org.
More information will be coming soon, but we are thrilled to add this new opportunity for our younger students!
If you have not had the time to fill out your child(ren)'s annual forms, they are still open.
Please log into your PowerSchool Parent Portal and click on the “Forms” tab in the left-hand menu.
Review, update, and submit the following required forms if you have not already done so:
Annual Student Contact Update (do NOT mark parent/s as "Emergency Contact")
Annual Student Health Update
Annual Student Permissions Update (Required for your child to attend off-site field trips)
Some directory information will be shared with the PTO on Monday, September 14th, so that they can compile a student/family directory that is disseminated in hard copy annually. If you want any exceptions to the information being published, you must note exceptions or opt out completely on the Annual Permissions Form.
Annual Household Income Form (HIF) from the Vermont Agency of Education
Release of Information for Medicaid School-Based Services
If you need help navigating the portal or completing the forms, click here for detailed instructions.
Need assistance with the PowerSchool portal? Contact Naomi Strada at nstrada@cvsdvt.org
Thanks to the generosity of our wonderful CCS families and community, we now have plenty of sneakers and are all set for the time being! A huge thank-you to everyone who donated or was thinking about donating. We really appreciate your generosity and support!
Matt Kent
K–4 PE & Wellness
My hope is to connect with families each week through the newsletter to provide information and resources to support kids and families. As always, please reach out if you need anything, have questions, or if I can help in any way.
It has been wonderful having kids back in the building this week! For me, getting back to routine is good, but the hustle of the school year can also be an adjustment!
Common Sense Media has some great tools and resources for thinking about navigating tech as we enter a new school year:
Digital Stress Test - is online life stressing your child out?
Family Device Agreements - Elementary School, Middle School, High School
Bus, Bell and Beyond: Back to School with AI and Tech - Join this live webinar on September 15th at 3pm to hear experts break down where phones and AI help, distract, connect or add pressure throughout a typical school day.
Resources, Food for thought (and maybe some conversation starters)
Chittenden County Food Resources - list of free food resources throughout Chittenden county, with information about hours, location, accessibility and eligibility requirements.
Calm and Connected Podcast - This is a great resource on all topics related to children and families. Whatever the age of your child, there are topics to support you - ways for kids and teens to practice coping skills, self regulation and ways to connect, make friends and work on social skills. It will help guide you through all the stages of child development. There are also many resources and tools to dive into as well!
Get in touch with me!
(802)425-6604
The first jazz band rehearsal of the year will take place on Friday 9/11 from 7:30-8:00 in the band room. Participation is open to band members in grades 6-8. Rehearsals will take place on Friday mornings throughout the rest of the school year.
Beltrami Studios is once again out photographer for CCS for Picture Day. Beltrami will be sending ordering information directly to caregivers via email. A limited number of order forms will be available to send home to families. Have your child(ren) stop by the office and pick one up.
Every student will have their picture taken whether a package is ordered or not and every student will receive a free class picture.
Please enroll to receive text messages from the district and/or our school. If you haven't done this yet or if you are new to CVSD, follow the easy steps on this flyer. We don't overuse this method of communication, but it is helpful for reminders and quick announcements. Don't miss out!
Tim O'Leary, Principal
Lauren Goracy, Assistant Principal & Director of Special Services