New Market Elementary School

Dear Families,

Our NMES School Improvement Plan is currently in the development phase. Our school has a Leadership Team who work together on school improvement. The Leadership Team is comprised of a variety of NMES staff members. Our school improvement plan drives our work and keeps us accountable for accelerating the achievement of every student. Once our school improvement plan is finalized, our Leadership Team will create a Home Connection resource for you, our families. The Home Connection resource will outline ways that you can support our school improvement plan at home with your child(ren). Once developed, we will share the plan. A strong home-school connection is important for the success of all our students. We thank you for your support!

Steve Lockard, Principal

Trina Curtis, Assistant Principal

• Wednesday, September 2: Back to School Night from 6:00 - 7:00 - see section below for detail
• Wednesday, September 2: PTA Meeting from 7:00 - 8:00pm in the cafeteria
• Friday, September 4: PTA Walking School Bus - see section below for detail
• Monday, September 7: Schools closed in observance of Labor Day
• Friday, September 11: Patriot Day - wear red, white and blue
• Friday, September 18: 2 hour early dismissal, Mid-Term
• Monday, September 21: Schools closed in observance of Yom Kippur
• Wednesday, September 23: Grade 2 field trip to the Great Frederick Fair
• Thursday, September 24: PTA BIngo - 6 - 8 p.m. NMES Cafeteria
• Friday, September 25: 3.5 hour early dismissal for students for Fair Day

One stop shopping for frequently used NMES links!

Back to School Night will take place from 6:00 - 7:00pm for Pre-Kindergarten - Grade 5 on Wednesday, September 2nd.

Schedule for Families:

• The front doors will promptly open at 6:00pm and families should report directly to their first session.
• Session 1 will run from 6:05 - 6:30.
• From 6:30 - 6:35, families will transition to Session 2 OR visit the vendors in the main office hallway.
• Session 2 will run from 6:35 - 7:00
• From 7:00 - 7:30, families can visit the vendors in the main office hallway
• The PTA will hold a general meeting in the cafeteria from 7-8 p.m.

For all attendance related emails or transportation changes, please email nmes.attendance@fcps.org and include your child's teacher. Transportation changes must be made prior to 3:00pm.

Consistent attendance is important for your child's academic and social success in school. MSDE sets the attendance goal at 96%.

You can support by sending your healthy child to school each day on time. Instruction promptly begins at 9:00 each morning. You can also support by planning vacations around the FCPS calendar. Thank you!

Coming Soon - Monthly attendance percentage for each grade level.

Please email nmes.attendance@fcps.org, along with your child's teacher, with all attendance related matters and dismissal changes.

Car Riders: Thanks for helping to keep our new dismissal car rider line moving efficiently each morning and afternoon. Car Rider Dismissal Information

A few reminders:

• Please remain in your vehicle and staff will assist. This will help keep everyone safe and out of the roadway. Please help us by having children exit or enter your vehicle on the curb-side closest to the building.
• Please do not park in our staff parking lot during arrival and dismissal. If your child is a car rider then the only option for dropping off and picking up is to join the car rider line.
• Pre-K parents – please stay in the car rider line all the way through to the pre-K pick up area. For the safety of our students, our duty staff, and others, DO NOT go around the car rider line to get to the pick-up point.
• During arrival - if the line is getting long and/or beginning to back up on Main Street, please use both lanes of our front entrance, then take turns forming a single line to proceed along the car rider drop off area.
• Thanks for everyone’s patience and safety!

NMES is currently at a low return rate on Student Information Cards. If you haven’t already done so please complete your child’s Student Information Card. Families received this through email. See below for how the email was addressed to families. It is critical for families to confirm and/or make corrections on their child’s Student Information Card, i.e. phone number, email, address, health information and permissions for photos of your child. Thank you for taking the time to complete the Student Information Card so NMES has the most accurate information for your child.

Please contact Sarah Main at 227-203-5203 or sarah.main@fcps.org if you have any questions.

FROM: noreplyenrollment@powerschool.com
TO: Parent Email

SUBJECT: Frederick County Public Schools Student Information Form for (Student’s Name)

The Maryland State Department of Education requires all schools to conduct practice safety drills. Practicing the drills helps to ensure safety in the event of an emergency. Schools are required to conduct the following drills within the first 45 days of school:

• Fire Drills (8 required)
• Avoid, Deny, Defend and Lockdown drill - Elementary schools only practice the avoid and deny portion of this drill
• Shelter in place drill
• Drop, cover hold and Severe weather drill

We will advertise the dates of our required practice drills in our weekly message to families. The dates for the practice drills that take place outside will be weather pending. It is important for us to share that the language used during these practice drills is developmentally appropriate and all staff work together to make sure our students are comfortable with the procedures of each drill. If you have any questions about the drills, do not hesitate to reach out to your child's teacher or administration. Thank you for your support as we work to ensure the safety of your children, our students and our staff.

National Hispanic Heritage Month is annually celebrated from September 15 to October 15 in the United States for recognizing the contributions and influence of Hispanic Americans to the history, culture, and achievements of the United States. Mrs. Blake, a School Counselor at NMES, created a bookshelf of read alouds in honor of Hispanic Heritage month. Click HERE to view and listen to the wide variety of read alouds. We encourage you to enjoy these read alouds as a family.

Walking and Wheeling Wolves

Welcome back Walking & Wheeling Wolves! We are excited for another year of walking and wheeling to and from school. Make a plan to meet your friends at our neighborhood routes to walk or wheel to school and earn a prize! Parent volunteers are designated route leaders from Brinkley Manor, New Market West park, North Alley (Main Street) and the North end of Royal Oak Drive. All routes will gather at approximately 8:15am for the Walking School Bus. For our Bike to School event the meeting time will be earlier to accommodate our Bike Rodeo before school. Parents/Guardians are responsible for ensuring their student(s) arrive safely to school.

In addition to our Walking School Bus, we will still hold our two special events - Walk to School Day and Bike to School Day that includes a Bike Rodeo! More information about these special events will be sent through upcoming Find Out First emails, the New Market Elementary PTA Facebook page, and in students’ red folders.

We are actively recruiting volunteers to serve as walking route leaders and/or to help with planning of our two special events - Walk to School and Bike to School. To get involved, please reach out to nmesptainfo@gmail.com

Save the Dates:

• Friday, September 4th

• Friday, October 2nd - NMES Walk to School Day

• Friday, November 6th

• Friday, December 4th

• Friday, January 8th

• Friday, February 5th

• Friday, March 5th

• Friday, April 9th

• *Friday, May 7th - NMES Bike to School Day & Bike Rodeo

• Friday, June 4th

For more information about our walking or wheeling to school, the walking school bus, or routes to school please email nmesptainfo@gmail.com

Summer Checkout Returns

If your child borrowed books from the media center for summer reading, they may be returned to the media center by Friday, September 4, 2026. Books can be returned during Open House, Back to School Night, any morning before school or during your child's media class. Feel free to bring them in small amounts or all at once. If you have any questions or need a list of what your child borrowed, please contact Mrs. Siderius at jennifer.siderius@fcps.org.

Care Letter

Stop by the media center during Back to School Night on September 2nd to write a letter to your child! All materials are supplied by the media center. The media center will deliver the letters to students so they can get a surprise encouraging word from their loved ones.

Volunteers

The media center welcomes volunteers throughout the school year! Please visit https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0B4FABAF2AAAF58-65258053-media#/ to learn more or to sign up!

Staff returned from summer break on August 13. Our wonderful NMES PTA provided a delicious breakfast. Staff appreciated this treat very much! Thank you, PTA!

The New Market United Methodist Church provided a wonderful staff breakfast on Monday, August 17. We appreciate the community support!

Click HERE to read information and updates from our school counselors, Mrs. Carl and Mrs. Blake.

Highlights include:

• Important information about free and reduced meals
• Therapy information
• School Counselor support for the 26-27 school year

Welcome to the 2026–2027 school year! We hope everyone is settling into new routines and looking forward to a great year at New Market Elementary. The NMES PTA has a full year of events, programs, fundraisers, and opportunities planned to bring our school community together and support our students and staff. Whether you volunteer at every event, join us for family activities, become a PTA member, or simply stay connected, there is a place for everyone in the NMES PTA!

Thank you to everyone who joined us for our Ketchup with the PTA Cookout, Open House, and Chalk the Walk in August. We loved kicking off the year with our NMES families!

Join Us for Our First PTA Meeting

Our first PTA meeting of the school year will be held Wednesday, September 2 from 7:00–8:00 PM, immediately following Back to School Night.

Stop by after visiting your child’s classroom and hear more about what we have planned for the year!

PTA meetings are open to everyone. You do not need to be a PTA member to attend!

Meet Your NMES PTA

The PTA is here to help build connections between our families, teachers, staff, and school while supporting programs and experiences that make NMES an even better place for our students.

Your 2026–2027 PTA Executive Board is:

President: Brandon Morgan
Vice President: Kim Bicknell
Treasurer: Kayla Murphy
Secretary: Kristen Joyce

Have an idea, question, or want to get involved? We’d love to hear from you at nmesptainfo@gmail.com.

Join the PTA!

Our 2026–2027 Membership Drive is underway!

Joining the PTA is one of the easiest ways to support NMES. Membership does not mean you are committing to volunteer or attend every meeting. Your membership helps strengthen our organization and gives the PTA a larger voice as we work to support our students, families, teachers, and staff.

This year, we’d love to reach 300 PTA members and every membership gets us one step closer!

Membership options are available for individuals, households, and friends of NMES.

Join today:
https://newmarketpta.givebacks.com/shop

There’s a Place for Everyone to Help!

Want to get involved at NMES? We’d love to have you! Whether you can help once, occasionally, from home, or throughout the school year, your time and talents can make a difference.

Complete our Volunteer Interest Form to let us know what types of opportunities work best for you. Filling out the form does not commit you to anything, it allows the PTA to reach out when volunteer opportunities that match your interests become available.

From helping at family events and fundraisers to lending a hand behind the scenes, there are lots of ways to get involved!

Interested in volunteering?
Complete the Volunteer Interest Form: https://tinyurl.com/nmes-volunteer-form

September at NMES

Wednesday, September 2
Mindful Kids Yoga in the Gym | 6:00–8:00 PM
We’re excited to feature Yoga with Coach Kell in the NMES gym during Back-to-School Night and our first PTA meeting!

Kids can join Coach Kell for a fun and mindful yoga session while families attend Back-to-School Night from 6:00–7:00 PM and the PTA meeting from 7:00–8:00 PM.

Cost: $20 for the first child and $10 for each additional child.
Pre-registration is required, and space is limited.

Register here - https://newmarketpta.givebacks.com/shop

Wednesday, September 2
First PTA Meeting | 7:00–8:00 PM
Stick around after Back to School Night and join us for our first PTA meeting of the year.

Wednesday, September 2
Back to School Raffle Begins
Our annual raffle kicks off with some incredibly fun NMES experiences and family prizes up for grabs.

Raffle will open Wednesday, Sept. 2 @ 5pm.
Link - https://app.givebacks.gives/nmes-raffle-fundraiser

Thursday, September 24
Back to School Bingo | 6:00–8:00 PM
Join us for one of our first big family events of the year! Come play Bingo, spend time with other NMES families, and help us celebrate the start of another great school year.

Back to School Raffle winners will also be announced during Bingo!

Help Us Stock the Workroom!

Let’s show our NMES teachers and staff a little extra love as they settle into the new school year!

Throughout September, the PTA will be collecting items to help Stock the Workroom with snacks, drinks, and other goodies our teachers and staff can grab during their busy days.

Every contribution — big or small — helps us keep the workroom stocked and reminds our amazing NMES team how much our families appreciate everything they do.

Look for our Stock the Workroom sign-up and donation details coming soon!

Stay Connected with the NMES PTA

Keep up with upcoming events, volunteer opportunities, fundraisers, school news, and everything happening with the PTA.

Website: https://newmarketpta.givebacks.com/
Facebook: facebook.com/NewMarketElementaryPTA
Email: nmesptainfo@gmail.com

We’re looking forward to a fantastic September and an incredible year together at NMES!

2026-2027 Free and Reduced-price Meal Benefits

Apply Online at LINQConnect.com

• IMPORTANT: Families must be approved each new school year. Even if your student has been approved every previous school year, please contact the FNS office to verify current meal benefit status. Last year’s benefits only carry over for the first 30 school days. Without a 2025-2026 meal benefits approval, your student(s) will have to pay for meals starting Monday, October 6.

• If you received a 2026-2027 NOTICE TO HOUSEHOLDS OF MEAL BENEFIT APPROVAL or NOTICE OF DIRECT CERTIFICATION Email or Letter, do NOT complete an application. IMPORTANT: Contact the FNS Office to verify 2026-2027 Meal Benefits status of any children in your household NOT listed on letter.
  
• If any children in your household receive SNAP or TCA BENEFITS, do NOT complete an application. IMPORTANT: Contact the FNS office by phone or email to verify 2026-2027 meal benefit status.
• Click HERE for additional and helpful information from FCPS regarding school meals.

When school is in session, you can reach the front office from 8:30 - 4:00 at 227-203-1460.