McClure Newsletter

We are so excited to be welcoming staff and students back soon! This newsletter has a lot of information, as we prepare for the beginning of the school year. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to reach out to Dr. Artzer or Mrs. DesJardins.

Class lists will be posted on Synergy and on the school front doors at 4pm, on Friday, August 8th. We are looking forward to meeting all of our students and families at Meet-the-Teacher night on August 11th from 4:30-5:30 pm.

Enjoy the rest of your summer!

• July 1: ASQ Opens for incoming kindergarten students
• Aug. 11: Meet the Teacher Night, 4:30-5:30pm
  
• Kona Ice will be at this event from 4-6pm
• Aug. 8: Class lists will be posted on the front doors and on Synergy 4:00 PM
• Aug. 12: First Day of School for Kindergarteners
• Aug. 12: Pastries with Parents- 8:45-9:30
• Meet and Greet for kindergarten parents with admin, staff, and PTO
• Aug. 13: First Day of School for Grades 1-5
• Sept. 1: No School, Labor Day
• Sept. 4: Donut w/ Grandparents or any adult-All Grades 8am-8:40am
• Sept. 11: Kinder Kollege 5:30-6:30pm
• Sept. 24: Family Fun Fitness Night @ Hummer
• Sept. 29: No School
• Oct. 1: Fall picture day
• Oct. 13: No School, Teacher Planning & Prep Day
• Oct. 14: No School, Staff PD Day
• Oct. 16: Family Engagement Reading Night, 6pm-7pm
• Oct. 22: Parent Teacher Conferences, 4-8pm
• Oct. 23: No School, Parent Teacher Conferences, 8am-8pm
• Traveling Tom's Coffee Truck from 8:00-10:00 AM
• Oct. 24: No School
• Nov. 11: Veteran's Day Assembly

We are excited to announce that Mrs. Erin Newman will be our PTO President for the 25-26 school year. Please read her PTO welcome letter, attached below!

Our goal this year is to get more families involved with our PTO, whether that be attending meetings, helping volunteer, etc. Please be on the lookout for more information this fall.

Here are the tentative upcoming dates for PTO meetings. These will begin at 5:30 PM in the library.

8/26/25, 9/30/25, 10/28/25, 12/16/25, 1/27/26, 3/31/26, 4/28/26, 5/12/26

Meet the Teacher Night is Monday, August 11th from 4:30-5:30pm. Stop in during this hour, to meet your child's teacher, drop off school supplies, and take a tour of the building. We look forward to seeing you soon!

Kona Ice will be parked on the playground, and is available to purchase from 4:00PM- 6:00PM. Please eat the Kona Ice out on the playground and do not bring them into the school.

We are excited to see all of our returning and new students!

Kindergarten students begin on Tuesday, August 12th. All remaining students begin on Wednesday, August 13th. On the first day of school, families are allowed to walk their students into the building and to their classrooms. We are kindly asking that all families exit the building by 9AM so that teachers can begin with their fun activities and day!

The first day of school for KINDERGARTEN students only is Tuesday, August 12th. We are excited to meet our newest Eagles!

We recognize that starting kindergarten is a major milestone, and often brings jitters and excitement. After dropping your students off, please join us in the library for pastries. During this time, we will have a short meeting introducing our Admin team, discussing PTO, and dismissal information. We hope that you can join us and meet other families, as you join our McClure community!

If you have not filled out the Google Form, please do so! This form helps us determine how your student will be getting home the first day of school, first week of school, and how they will get home regularly.

School Hours

Mon.-Thurs.

8:20am doors open

8:30am students enter classrooms

8:40 direct instruction begins/tardy bell

Friday (every Friday except Aug. 15th)

9:10am doors open

9:20am students enter classrooms

9:40 direct instruction begins/tardy bell

Arrival Procedures:

Students may be dropped off after 8:20 am Monday-Thursday and after 9:10am on late start Fridays. There is no one on duty to supervise students before 8:20am M-Th/9:10am on Friday. Children are not allowed to be unsupervised on the front lawn or sidewalk for their own safety. If you need before school care, please contact the office and inquire about the childcare program at McClure.

All students will enter the south gym foyer doors anytime after 8:20am and walk to the cafeteria to eat breakfast. If students are not eating breakfast, they will walk directly to the library (K) or to the hallway next to their classroom (1st-5th) to sit and wait until the start of the school day at 8:30am/9:20am Fri. If your student is not eating breakfast, we recommend they are dropped off as close to 8:30am as possible.

As we begin a new school year, it is important that we establish a smooth and safe flow of traffic in the morning. Please read the following information in order to accomplish this goal and ensure the safety of all.

• In the mornings, for parents wishing to drop their child and go you will enter on SW 25th Ter. and drive south along the driveway, stop at the end of the drive to allow your child to get out of the car and onto the sidewalk. All students are to enter the building through the south gym foyer doors.

• This line of traffic must keep flowing. If you need more time to say goodbye to your child please read further.

• DO NOT pass on the left side of cars that are stopped at the curb in front of school.

• Cars must turn right at the school driveway stop sign.

• Designated parking areas: The main McClure parking lot has several parking spots for visitors.

• Please follow the city signage posted and be certain that you are in a designated parking area before you leave your vehicle

Dismissal Procedures

Please be certain that you communicate how you would like your child to get home by calling the main office at 785.438.4340 prior to 3pm. This gives the office time to notify your student’s teacher in a timely manner and eliminate confusion. See Parent Handbook for procedures for early dismissal for appointments.

If someone other than the parent/guardian will be picking up the child, the parent must call the main office and provide the name and relationship of this person. This individual must be prepared to show the car tag, a photo of the car tag, or proper identification to staff.

When the 3:40pm bell rings, students walk home (with parent permission), ride a bus, attend after school programs, or get picked up by parents/guardians. We request that parents who come to pick up their child join our car pick up line. It helps the flow of traffic and ends up getting everyone dismissed in a quick and safe manner.

All families will receive a car tag at the beginning of the school year which contains an assigned number for each family. If you do not have the car tag present during pick up or do not know your assigned car tag number, you will need to park and show your license for verification purposes. If more than one person from your family will be picking up your child, you may take a photo of the car tag to show to the staff member who is entering family numbers. If you lose your dismissal tag, please contact the office to receive a new tag and number.

Car Dismissal Process:

• Students will not be released prior to 3:40pm

• Display the car tag on the dashboard of your car

• A staff member will enter your family ID # as you enter the driveway to signal to your child’s

teacher that you have arrived.

• Proceed through the driveway until you arrive at one of five marked loading zones.

• Your child will walk out the gym exterior doors directly to your car.

• Five students will be dismissed at a time to their cars. Once all five cars are properly loaded with students (student is seated with seat belt on), a staff member will release the five cars to exit the driveway and turn right onto Chelsea Dr.

• If your child is not ready to be dismissed from the building, you will be directed to park in a nearby waiting parking space. When your child is ready to exit the building, they will be escorted directly to you in your parked car.

• DO NOT pass on the left side of cars at any point of the dismissal process.

If you walk to school to pick up your child, please go to the designated walker pick-up zone which is located on the lawn directly north of the gym foyer doors. You will need to show your car tag and/or photo of the car tag in order for your child to be dismissed from the building. Students will not be released to parents who are not in the designated walker pick-up zone.

For no reason, will a child be allowed to cross the school drive or road to meet a parent/adult for pick up.

If you need to enter the building for any reason, you must enter through the main doors and check-in with the office staff at the main entrance window. Parents/Guardians are not to enter the building through any other entrance besides the front main entrance.

For the safety of your student(s) and for efficiency of picking them up at dismissal time, we ask that you follow our procedures. If a staff member reminds you of our procedures, please keep in mind they are only trying to ensure the safety of all children and make sure that the routine runs as smoothly as possible.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR HELP IN KEEPING OUR STUDENTS SAFE!!!

Topeka Public Schools and McClure are excited to invite parents to join the District Citizens Advisory Council (DCAC)!

This advisory group is made up of parents, teachers, administrators, and community members, and plays a key role in supporting the district by learning about the latest happenings and participating in discussions that help inform decision-making processes for the district. Learn more in this flyer or by visiting the DCAC page on our website.

Upcoming DCAC meetings include:

• Tuesday, September 2 at Bishop Professional Development Center
• Tuesday, October 7 at TCALC (this will also serve as a Board of Education Forum)
• Tuesday, November 11 at Chase Middle School

If you are interested in serving on the DCAC, please contact your school’s PTO or Principal! We look forward to seeing new faces and hearing fresh ideas as we continue to strengthen our community's involvement in education!

Please view the attached link, to review the USD 501 cell phone policy.

Important to note:

Elementary Students, Pre-K – 5th Grades

Personal technology devices (cell phones, smart watches, earbuds, etc.) must be kept in backpacks or classroom storage areas. Cell phone use or personal electronic devices are not allowed during the scheduled school day from the beginning start time to the end of school, for early childhood through fifth-grade students.

At McClure, attendance is a top priority. If students are not in school, they are missing both social and academic opportunities. We believe that consistent, in-person attendance, provides the best learning opportunities for our students. Being present and engaged in the classroom empowers students to take ownership of their educational outcomes. We understand that some absences are unavoidable due to health or family matters, but recognize that when students miss too many days, they can fall behind.

It is important that your child attend school each day to have a consistent educational program. Of course, illness or other family emergencies can cause absences. If your child will be absent please let us know by contacting the office at 785-438-4340.

The Topeka Public School Procedures are as follows:

1. Absences are excused for student illness or family emergencies. If your child is going to be absent, you should call the office before 9:30 a.m. It is each parent’s responsibility to be sure the office has been notified of the reason for absence. Advanced notice is appreciated.

2. A phone call attempt will be made on every child that does not arrive at school by 9:30am.

3. After 2 days of unexcused absences, staff will conduct a home visit or make other direct contact with child’s family, determine what assistance is needed to remedy the problem.

4. Unexcused absences can result in a truancy report being filed.

5. Excessive absences, whether excused or unexcused, can cause academic problems for a student. More than 10 absences will be considered “excessive” absences. When a student obtains more than 10 excused absences, a doctor’s note will be required to excuse any additional absences.
6. Although Kansas law does not require students to be in school prior to the age of 7, ANY child enrolled in public school does fall into the state truancy policies. Truancy reports will be made to the district truancy officer for any student with excessive absences and/or tardies.

Looking for a fun way to connect and build our McClure community? Join us for High 5 Fridays on late-start Fridays! Please contact Ms. Hight if you are interested in joining us for the fun, and welcoming students on late-start Fridays!

The 25-26 Eagle' Nest Childcare Registration is now available. This year, we will be utilizing

My School Bucks to register and to submit online payment. To access this, please login to your ParentVue on Synergy, from here you will scroll and select MSB Activities- Care. (See the attached photo). This will direct you to another site within MSB to register for childcare.

Incoming kindergarten students may have difficulty registering through MSB. Please email Dr. Artzer, and Ms. Franklin to add incoming kindergarten student's to the list. cartzer@tps501.org and kfranklin@tps501.org

We are excited to offer a new opportunity of having lunchroom volunteers next year. This is a great way to build connections, eat with students, mentor students, be visible in the school, and support McClure. If you are interested in joining an email list to potentially be a volunteer, please fill out this Google Form. We would love to have you involved in this setting!

To everyone that helped support our Eagle Store by volunteering and donating, we cannot thank you enough! The Eagle Store is a school-wide store that students visit every other week. Students are able to purchase experiences and/or tangible items. Throughout the day, students earn tickets for demonstrating positive behavior and following expectations, which they can save up and visit the store. We are continuing the store next year, and are in need in donations to help supply the store for the upcoming school year. Please check out the link below!

Thank you in advance for your support of our students!

If you have a student that will start kindergarten this year, please read the information below. Mrs. DesJardins will be emailing families as their kindergarten enrollment is confirmed, to complete these surreys.

Beginning July 1st, the Kansas State Board of Education requires parents of incoming kindergarten students to complete two questionnaires: ASQ-3 and ASQ: SE-2.

At McClure, our goal is to have 100% completion. You may complete the questionnaires at home by clicking on the links below.

Online link to ASQ-3:

ASQ-3 English https://www.asqonline.com/family/8a86b7

ASQ-3 Spanish https://www.asqonline.com/family/cd805e

Online link to ASQ: SE-2:

ASQ: SE-2 English https://www.asqonline.com/family/5a81da

ASQ: SE-2 Spanish https://www.asqonline.com/family/0fec69

Questions? Email the ASQ coordinator, Mrs. DesJardins at kdesjardins@tps501.org

Please join us in welcoming all of our staff members that are new to McClure. Look out in next month's newsletter for more information about each new team member.

• Sara Corwin- 3rd Grade Teacher
• Cari Andrews- 5th Grade Teacher
• Aurora Curts- Special Education Teacher
• Betsy Anderson- Library Media Specialist
• Aiden Sothers- Paraprofessional
• Paisley Hill- Long Term Substitute

As we begin the new school year, I want to share our Staff Shout-Out form. This is a great way to celebrate our staff, and have our community involved with recognizing our staff!

The District's Academic Calendar provides a quick-glance overview of important dates for parents to be aware of. This calendar includes days school is not in session, parent-teacher conferences, and start and end dates for the 2025-2026 school year.

The McClure school calendar is posted on our school website. Click here to view.

The Campus Care Clinic located at Topeka High School and is open to all USD 501 staff, students, and their household family members. Below is a video created by the THS Broadcasting Department. Click here for the Clinic Flyer with additional information.

Location:

Topeka High School 800 SW 10th St., Room 101 Topeka, KS 66612

Contact Us:

THSCampusCare@KUMC.edu 785-295-3256

Link to clinic video: Campus Care Clinic (updated)

Do you have a Dillon's Shopper Card? Help our school as you shop for groceries. When using your Dillons card, designate McClure Elementary as your community rewards benefactor and your donations will go to directly support our school. Sign in to your Dillon’s account or create an account to enroll. Once signed in, you can enroll or update your Community Rewards under your account settings.

Email: cartzer@tps501.org
Website: https://mcclure.topekapublicschools.net/
Location: 2529 Southwest Chelsea Drive, Topeka, KS, USA
Phone: 785.438.4340
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TPS501McClure