POWES Family Press

Good Evening Powhatan Elementary Families,

We've had a GREAT four weeks of school! As we head into week 5 we will have our 1st Spirit Week of the year as we celebrate Homecoming Week with PHS! On Thursday, Sept. 24th we will WELCOME families in the building to eat lunch with their kiddo(s).

This week also marks the 1/2 way point of the 1st Quarter so make sure you are monitoring your child's progress either in PowerSchool for grades 1st-5th or by reaching out to your child's teacher. If your child has a "D" or "F" average in a class then your child's teacher will be reaching out to you.

We can't wait to watch your kiddo(s) 📈LEVEL UP🥇this year with academics and overall performance in school!

Below is what you will find in this Sunday's message regarding the 26-27 school year. Enjoy the rest of your Sunday!

1. POWES Updates
2. Watch D.O.G.S.
3. Run Club at POWES
4. Lunch/Snack Buddies Program!
5. Attendance...We Need YOUR Student Here EVERYDAY!
6. Important Dates and Resources
7. PTO Info
8. Dr. Gill's Message
9. We have Powhatan PRIDE!
10. Helpful Links ALL year long for Parents
11. Previous POWES Family Press Newsletters
12. PCPS Calendar! Check it out...ALL of the date your kiddo is OUT of school! THIS IS THE TIME TO PLAN appointments & trips!

• Interim updates this week...YES...you read this correctly. We have reached the 1/2 way point of the 1st Quarter already. Please check PowerSchool for 1st-5th grades to see how your student is doing. Your child's teacher(s) will personally reach out if your child currently has a "D" or "F" average in any subject.

• We will kick off our 1st Spirit Week this week (9/21-9/25) as we celebrate Homecoming Week with PHS. Keep scrolling for the flyer or view the POWES Spirit Week Flyer.

• We will WELCOME families starting on THURSDAY, Sept. 24th to start eating lunch with their kiddo(s). Please remember to bring your ID when you sign in the front office. ***You can ONLY pull YOUR child over to the parent tables.***

• If you have not done so already...PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE join our POWES PTO! Without your support our school would not have all of the amazing events we have each year!

• Calling ALL dads and father figures...Watch D.O.G.S. information is HERE! Keep scrolling to learn more.

• If you have any changes in your child's NORMAL mode of transportation throughout the school year please email powespickup@powhatan.k12.va.us and your child’s teacher. Please be patient as arrival and dismissal will take a little longer the first few days.

📜 Your child has learned and reviewed what it means to..."Have Powhatan PRIDE"! They have also learned and reviewed our school's expectations of: Being Respectful, Being Responsible, Being Safe, and Being Kind. Please use these same guidelines at home to bridge the gap between home and school. They will recite our school pledge each morning..."I am Respectful, Responsible, Safe, & Kind...I have Powhatan PRIDE"! 🧡

It's HERE! The time so many of our dads/father figures have been asking about...Watch D.O.G.S.! If you attended our Back to School Night this past Thursday you got to hear from Miss Maddison Pfautz, school counselor, as she shared with everyone what the program does for our school and how to sign up. DO NOT worry...if you were unable to attend we have the information here for you. We can't wait to see you in the building supporting our staff and students as ...WATCH D.O.G.S.!

View the WATCH D.O.G.S. Application

View the WATCH D.O.G.S. Presentation

View the WATCH D.O.G.S. Brochure

You must fill out and return the application to our school counselors, Ms. Peggy Jenkins & Miss Maddison Pfautz, in order to be considered for participation in the program. If you have any questions please reach out to them either by email or giving them a call. They are both happy to support you.

Do your kiddos enjoying running? If so, then joining the POWES Run Club is FOR THEM! We'd love to have you and your kiddo come out and support our Run Club. Our PE teacher, Mrs. Meaghan Alexander, is leading this wonderful opportunity for our students to get some exercise before school. Please check out the application with important information for you. Your child will get a "hard copy" on Monday, but we wanted you to have a "sneak peek" this weekend!

We'd LOVE to have your kiddo(s) participate! If you have any questions please reach out to Mrs. Meaghan Alexander either by email meaghan.alexander@powhatan.k12.va.us or call her at school.

The Lunch/Snack Buddy program has been in our schools for over 10 years. The Lunch/Snack Buddies program is one that promotes building relationships with a student who is exhibiting a need for a positive adult role model. We provide this program in the 3 elementary schools as well as at PMS. The program begins the beginning of October and will last until end of April.

A YES commitment would look like:

• A lunch buddy would mentor an elementary student during their lunch time once a week
• A snack buddy would mentor a middle school student during ACCT time once a week.
• A brief overview training about what to expect, confidentiality protocols as well as answering your questions prior to you being partnered with a student
• You will be asked your preference of school and age of child. We will do the best to match you with a perfect student in need. If you want to mentor more than one student, we can make that happen as well.
• A background check and fingerprinting session with HR would be necessary

The activities between the student and mentor will be monitored by the school counselors but it can be anything from academic support to conversation, playing games, making crafts, and things of that nature during the set weekly lunch/snack time.

If you are interested in participating as a mentor for the Lunch/Snack Buddies Program, we would be happy to have you! Send an email to lunchbuddies@powhatan.k12.va.us Please respond soon to let me know and I will be in touch about the next steps. The program starts the first week of October!

We need your kiddo at school every day so they can learn with us. Research shows that if your child misses 2 days a month then he or she is trending to be Chronically Absent (missing 10% or more time from school) as they move through their school career. To put this into perspective at this point of the year...if your child has missed TWO or MORE days already from school this year then your child is Chronically Absent. Now, as we continue to be in school longer and your child doesn't miss any more days then the percentage will drop drastically.

Here are our PERFECT Attendance by Grade percentages so far (% of the grade that has NOT missed a day) :

PK: 61.1%

K: 77.4%

1st: 59.6%

2nd: 74.3%

3rd: 68.1%

4th: 77.03%

5th: 67%

WAY to GO kindergarten! But watch out...4th is closing in FAST! Who will have the BEST attendance at the end of September? We celebrate "Attendance Matters" each month with some sort of celebration (popsicle, popcorn, etc). Who will WIN our 1st month of school? GAME ON...Let's 📈LEVEL UP🥇 OUR LEARNING by being at school EVERY DAY!!

PCPS Community Info

1. Understanding the symptoms and daily care needs of Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes helps keep our school community safe and supported. Please review this Diabetes Information Guide to learn about key warning signs, care management, and resources for coordinating support with our school nurses.
2. Is your high schooler interested in joining "a team based natural resource competition? If so view the Envirothon 2027 Competition flyer.

• Interims: Week of Sept. 21-25

• September 21-25: Spirit Week as we celebrate Homecoming Week with PHS!
  View Spirit Week (9/21-9/25) Flyer

• 🎉 September 24th 🥪 : 1st day to have lunch with your kiddo (please remember to bring to your ID with you when you sign in & ONLY pull your child over to the family lunch table)

• September 29th: Grandparents Breakfast for Last Names (A-L) from 7:10 am to 8:10 am @ Pocahontas Landmark Center (PLC)

• September 30th: Grandparents Breakfast for Last Names (M-Z) from 7:10 am to 8:10 am @ Pocahontas Landmark Center (PLC)

• October 22nd: End of 1st Quarter

• October 30th: Report Cards Sent Home

• Interims: Week of Nov. 16-20

• December 18th: End of 2nd Quarter (1st Semester Ends)

• January 8th: Report Cards Sent Home

• Interims: Week of Feb. 1-5

• March 11th: End of 3rd Quarter

• March 19th: Report Cards Sent Home

• Interims: Week of April 19-23

• June 4th: Report Cards Sent Home w/Elementary students

Additional Information

• ⏰ REMINDER: Elementary start time: Drop off begins at 8:25 am in the front loop of the school.

***If a need arises for some reason and you need to pick your child up early from school you will NEED to bring your photo ID inside the building in order to do so...EVEN if we know you!

• If you do not currently receive text messages from the school messenger program and you would like to OPT IN to receive TEXT messages. Text the words OPT IN to 67587.

• Are you or someone you know interested in becoming a substitute teacher for PCPS? Apply here if you are interested! Please spread the word so we can increase our substitute pool.

A big thank you to Rodeo's for supporting our POWES staff on Back to School Night. They provided dinner for the staff prior to the event!

• Grandparents BREAKFAST is on 9/29 & 9/30...please scroll down to read more about this WONDERFUL event!

• CLASS SHIRTS

Still need a class shirt? We have lots of shirts available in our donation bin! Reach out to us with your child’s name, grade/teacher, and desired size, and we’ll be happy to see what we have available.

• WE NEED OUR POWES VOLUNTEERS!
Looking ahead, we have several exciting events on the calendar, including Grandparents Breakfast on September 29 & 30, Book Fair October 19–22, Fall Festival on October 22, and Holiday Store December 7–11. These events simply cannot happen without our school community behind them. Whether you can give an hour, help behind the scenes, or lend a hand at an event, we want you on our team! Keep an eye out for upcoming volunteer opportunities and sign up when you can.

DON’T FORGET!! Every class that reaches 100% PTO membership will earn a popcorn party throughout the school year. We can’t wait to make this a great year for POWES!

Want to be part of the PTO community? Here are a few quick links:

Join the PTO → Click here to complete the form & pay for your membership

Volunteer with us → Click here to complete the volunteer interest form

Grab your Grandparents Breakfast tickets → Click here to register, purchase tickets, and/or sign up to volunteer!

Have questions, comments, or concerns? We are always available via email. Please don’t hesitate to reach out!

powhatanespto@gmail.com

You all are the 🖤 heartbeat 🧡 of this school & we are so grateful for your time!

🖤 🧡 your POWes PTO!🖤🧡

—Kelsi, Nicole & Madison

📢 CALLING ALL POWES FAMILIES...WE WANT & NEED YOU 🫵!

Please join the PTO as we would love to have 100% of our staff and families join us as we plan and organize TONS of events for our school! We would LOVE to see ALL of you at our monthly meetings, which take place the 1st Thursday of each month at 6:30pm.

Keep scrolling to see our two order forms and see "What's Happening this Month" and a our "Year at a Glance":

1. Grandparents Breakfast on 9/29 & 9/30 (based on student's last name)
2. POWES Spirit Wear
3. POWES Class Shirt
4. Our YEAR at a Glance
5. What's Happening in September?

Dear POWES Families,

🎉 A few items to highlight around our school:

1. I'm hoping ALL of you are having a WONDERFUL weekend! Hopefully you had the opportunity to get outside to enjoy the wonderful weather we've had this weekend. Can you believe it...THIS week is the LAST full week of September! 🍂 October 🎃 is RIGHT AROUND the corner

2. Thank you to those families who attended Back to School Night on 9/17. If you were unable to make it please check in with your child's teacher to see what you missed.

3. Please talk with your kiddo(s) about keeping his/her hands to themselves. We know children get upset, but we have to work together to ensure that "hitting, slapping, pushing, kicking, running around the building, etc" is NOT the first "go to" in a situation. Behaviors like this will NOT be tolerated and will lead to Out of School Suspensions if they continue.

4. As always...if you ever have any questions or concerns please do not hesitate to reach out to myself or Mrs. Gobble, assistant principal.

5. Please make sure your student is getting the proper amount of rest as we will be CHALLENGING ALL of our students in order to 📈LEVEL UP🥇this year!

6. Please keep scrolling down to see a section that contains the previous POWES Family Press newsletters. Here's to starting Week 4 @ POWES!

We are JUMPING FOR JOY for all of what the 26-27 school year has in store for you and your kiddo(s)! Mrs. Gobble, assistant principal, and myself are so glad that each of you will be partnering with us as we 📈LEVEL UP🥇 this school year. Again, I am HONORED to be your principal and I cannot wait to see all of you VERY soon!

See you soon,

Dr. Jason Gill

Your PROUD Principal

Mrs. KP Gobble
Your AMAZING Assistant Principal

View Parent Guide with ALL Things POWES!

View Breakfast & Lunch Menus

View MySchoolBucks for lunch accounts

View the PCPS Transportation webpage for more tips and additional bus information

View SchoolCashOnline for field trip and other payment

View the 2026 - 2027 division calendar

View the PCPS website

View the PCPS Instructional website

Attendance Information

View PCPS Attendance Information

View Parent Attendance Guide

📝School Supply Lists:

View Supply Lists for PK (3’s & 4’s)
View Supply Lists for Kindergarten, 1st, & 2nd

View Supply Lists for 3rd, 4th, & 5th