Byam Family Newsletter Happy Summer

Message from Principal and Assistant Principal

Dear Byam Families,

We hope you are enjoying a wonderful summer. We wanted to share some quick information in our first summer update. We will also be sending another update in August as school approaches. If you registered your student over the summer and haven't yet received a teacher assignment, those will be on their way as we have office staff come in and mail out the placement letters out in August.

Best,

Jason Fredette and Betsy Dolan

First Day of School and Calendar

Please find the CPS academic calendar below. The first day of school for grade 1-4 is August 26. Kindergarteners will have an orientation on that day (specific time was in your placement letter) and the first full day of kindergarten is August 27.

School Supplies

Once again, the Chelmsford Public Schools will be purchasing school supplies for students. These supplies include the traditional items families would buy in the past (such as crayons, pencil boxes, glue sticks, binders, etc.). Students will still require a backpack but our hope is that providing these supplies will assist families as we begin the school year.

Food Services Information

Over the past several years, Massachusetts is a state that has permanently made school meals universally free. While we are anticipating school meals to again be free, the state budget has not yet been finalized. We will keep everyone updated when we have news on our school meal program. We do encourage families to fill out the free and reduced lunch form if you have a need. Even if our school meals are free to families, these forms also provide other resources as well. To find out information and fill out a form please use the following link: https://cpsnutrition.com/index.php?sid=1478035692058&page=lunchapps

Kindergarten Play Dates

This month we will be offering kindergarten playdates. These play dates are a casual way for you and your child to meet other students and families from their class on the Byam playground. Please see the scheduled dates and times for each classroom below:

Mrs. Aufiero room 1- August 14 at 10:00 am
Mrs. Carey room 4- August 14 at 11:30 am
Mrs. Sexauer room 5- August 14 at 1:00 pm
Mrs. Hanafin room 8- August 19 at 10:00 am
Mrs. O'Donnell room 8- August 19 at 1:00 pm

Building Tours

We will be offering grade level building tours as we draw closer to the first day of school. These tours are for families new to Byam or any students who'd like to visit the school. If you are unable to make the grade specific date, please feel free to join any of the tours that are more convenient. Below are the dates and times:

Grade 4- August 15 at 10:00 am
Grade 3 August 18 at 1:00 pm
Grade 2- August 20 at 10:00 am
Grade 1- August 15 at 1:00 pm
Kindergarten- August 21 at 1:00 pm

Transportation

School bus registration for the 2025-26 school year is underway!

Routes are now being created with the data we have collected, and our registration numbers are below previous levels. Late registrations can lead to overcrowding and inconsistent arrival times. Students who are not registered for the school bus will not be allowed to ride. Alternate site notification (daycare) must also be completed every year, if you have not emailed the transportation department about any alternate site arrangements you must do this now after registering for the school bus.

Bus registration fees will increase after July 31, 2025. Information pertaining to school bus transportation may be found on the Chelmsford Public Schools website at the following link: https://chelmsfordschools.org/departments/transportation.

Also, please see the attached flyer and registration directions for more details. It is very important that every student is registered to ride the bus regardless of if there is a fee. Registering now allows the transportation department to begin building routes for optimum efficiency, and if you are required to pay a fee it saves you money by registering now.

A few reminders about student transportation:

• ALL STUDENTS who desire to ride the school bus to or from school MUST REGISTER EVERY YEAR, even if they are not required to pay a fee.

• ALL REGISTRATIONS AND PAYMENTS are processed ON-LINE using MySchoolBucks

• When registering, each student must be entered separately in MySchoolBucks. This means for families with more than one child riding the bus, a registration must be completed for each child.

• MySchoolBucks will provide assistance for using their on-line registration system if needed during the registration process. MySchoolBucks may be reached directly at (855) 832-5226.

• Registrations requesting financial assistance must also apply for and be approved for the free and reduced lunch program. Please email your award letter to the transportation department.

REGISTRATION PROCESS

You will need to look up each student in MySchoolBucks and add each student to your account. Looking each student up will require name and LASID or birthdate. Each student must be registered separately. New students to the district please allow 24 hours prior to registering on MySchoolBucks after completing the required school registration process.

Come Join Our Byam Staff Team!

We currently have a recess-lunch aide opening and building based substitute openings. If interested in applying for our part-time Byam recess-lunch aide position, the link is below. If interested in finding out more about being a part-time building based substitute, see link below.