The Back to School Buzz!

Dear Palmer River Elementary School Community,

We are absolutely thrilled to welcome everyone back for another exciting, joy-filled year at Palmer River Elementary School! Whether you're returning to PRES or joining us for the first time, we’re so happy to have you as part of our caring and vibrant school community. We hope your summer was full of fun, sunshine, and special moments with family and friends.

We can’t wait to see our students' smiling faces after the Labor Day holiday weekend as we jump into a new school year full of learning, laughter, and growth!

Each week, you’ll receive a special message from the principals called The Weekly Buzz — our go-to newsletter with all the latest updates, important reminders, and fun highlights from around the school. Look for it in your email inbox every Friday afternoon, and also find it on our school website and Facebook page. It’s a great way to stay connected and celebrate the wonderful things happening at PRES each week!

To make the most of your experience here, we invite you to get involved! Our school thrives because of the strong partnerships between staff, families, and volunteers. The PTSA has planned lots of family-friendly events this year that are sure to bring smiles and strengthen our sense of community.

If you’d like to volunteer (and we hope you do!), please complete a CORI form in the front office at least one week before your first event. Also, be sure to fill out the volunteer interest survey found below to let us know how you'd like to help!

We’re so excited for the adventures ahead and feel honored to share in your child’s educational journey. If you ever need anything, please don’t hesitate to reach out by phone or email — we’re here to support you.

Here’s to a fantastic school year at PRES!

Sincerely,

Mrs. Kristine Kefor, Principal & Mrs. Cassey Monte, Assistant Principal

#WeAreDR!

Click below to read a welcome back message from our district's superintendent, Mr. Bill Runey.

We’re here to support you and your child throughout the school year! Below are key members of our Palmer River Elementary School front office team. If you need to contact anyone, you can do so by using the following email format: First initial + last name @drregional.org

(For example: Mrs. Kristine Kefor = kkefor@drregional.org)

👩‍🏫 Principal – Mrs. Kristine Kefor
👩‍🏫 Assistant Principal – Mrs. Cassey Monte
🩺 School Nurse – Mrs. Elizabeth Ferreira
💬 504 Coordinator & School Adjustment Counselor – Ms. Andrea Kramer
🧠 School Psychologist – Ms. Sarah Gates
📋 Administrative Assistants – Ms. Andrea Halajko & Mrs. Linda Saxon
🧩 Special Education Coordinator – Mrs. Teresa Jefferson
🗂️ Special Education Administrative Assistant – Mrs. Linda DeLeo

If you’d prefer to speak with someone directly, feel free to call the school office at (508) 252-5100.

We’re looking forward to a fantastic year together!

We’re excited to share a few internal transitions taking place for the 2025–2026 school year. These changes reflect the continued growth and dedication of our amazing team:

• Georgia Eldridge is moving to Grade 4 and will be in Room 41. Georgia served as our STEAM teacher during the 2024–2025 school year while Emily Sullivan was on a leave of absence. We’re excited to see her bring that same creativity and energy to the fourth-grade classroom!

  
  

• Emily Sullivan will be returning to the STEAM room following her year-long leave of absence. We’re thrilled to welcome her back and can’t wait to see the innovative learning experiences she’ll bring to students once again.

  
  

• Tracie Tavares has transitioned out of her long-time role as a special educator in Grade 3 and is excited to begin a new chapter as a Grade 2 teacher in Room 31.

  
  

• Rayna Bouchard is making the move from PreK to a Kindergarten teaching position and will now be located in Room 54. We know she’ll bring her nurturing and playful approach to her new role with great success.

• Cindy Cabral will be transitioning from the TLC classroom to join our reading specialists in providing targeted interventions for students in need of reading support.
  

We’re thrilled to welcome a group of talented and passionate professionals to our PRES team for the 2025–2026 school year. Each of these individuals brings unique experience, energy, and expertise to our school community, and we’re so excited for you to get to know them!

Shannon Ring – Special Educator (Kindergarten & Grade 4)
Shannon joins us from Berkley Community School and brings with her a strong background in special education. She holds Bachelor's and Master’s degree from Framingham State University and will be supporting students in both kindergarten and Grade 4.

Julia Parrish – Grade 4 Teacher (Room 42)
Coming from J.C. Solmonese School in Norton, Julia brings enthusiasm and a deep commitment to student learning. She holds a Bachelor's degree from Bridgewater State University and is currently pursuing her Master’s degree. We’re excited to have her join our fourth-grade team!

Sarah Wood – PreK Teacher (Room 50)
Sarah holds a degree from Curry College in Child Advocacy and Early Childhood Education. She brings a child-centered approach to learning and is excited to nurture our youngest learners in PreK. We’re so happy to welcome her to Room 50!

Erin Moulison – Special Educator (Grade 3, Room 46)
Erin joins us from Wareham Public Schools and will be working alongside the third grade team to support our third-grade students. Her experience and dedication to inclusive education will be a great asset to our team.

Erika Helmetag – Speech-Language Pathologist (SLP)
Erika is our new SLP with a Master’s degree from the University of Rhode Island and a Bachelor's from the University of Connecticut. She brings both clinical setting and school-based experience in speech and language development and is eager to support communication growth across grade levels.

Heather Boucher – Paraprofessional, TLC II Classroom
Heather is a familiar face to many, having served as a daily substitute last year. We’re excited to welcome her in a permanent role as a paraprofessional in the TLC II classroom. Her commitment to our students has already made a strong impression.

Cassey Monte – Assistant Principal
Cassey joins us from Somerset Middle School with a strong background in both special education and school administration. She brings a student-first mindset and a passion for building a positive school culture, and we’re thrilled to have her leadership on board!

This summer, in addition to the deep cleaning and annual maintenance projects completed by our custodial team, several exciting improvements were made across the building:

Refinished Floors: The gym and cafeteria wood floors were refinished and are absolutely glowing.

Carpet Cleaning: All rugs throughout the building were deep cleaned.

First Grade Wing Bathroom Upgrades: The boys' and girls' bathrooms in the first grade wing received brand-new toilets, urinals, sinks, and fixtures. New partitions and hardware are on the way and will be installed as soon as they arrive.

Well Pump Replacement and Repair: Following a sudden failure in mid-August, the well pumps located at BMS were replaced and repaired to ensure reliable water service.

We are incredibly grateful to our custodial team for their hard work and dedication in completing these projects. Thanks to their efforts, our building is clean, safe, refreshed, and ready to welcome students and staff for the new school year!

As we prepare for a wonderful new school year at Palmer River Elementary School, we know that families have lots of questions—especially when it comes to school routines, meals, and logistics. In the weeks leading up to the first day, we’ll do our best to answer some of the most commonly asked questions and provide helpful reminders to ensure a smooth start for everyone.

Here are a few important updates for our families:

🔹 Bus Routes: These will be posted on our school website on August 26th, as soon as we receive them from Bloom Bus Company. Please stay tuned and check the site for updates!

🔹 Breakfast and Lunch Menus: These will be posted on our website and shared weekly in The Weekly Buzz. September menus can be found linked below.

🔹 Classroom Teacher Assignments: Families will be able to log into the Aspen Portal on August 23, 2025, to view your child’s assigned teacher for the new school year.

🔹 District Calendar: The full school year calendar is included below and will also be sent home in each student’s home-school folder for easy reference.

🔹 Health & Medical Updates: If your child has had a recent physical exam or updated medication orders, please be sure to forward that documentation to the school health office as soon as possible.

🔹 Arrival & Dismissal Procedures: Details—including maps and important dates—can be found below. Please review these carefully to help ensure a smooth and safe start to the school year.

Reminder: All volunteers must have a valid CORI on file with the school district. These background checks are good for three years. If you have questions about this process or would like to verify the status of your CORI, please contact Mrs. Halajko (ahalajko@drregional.org) or Mrs. Saxon (lsaxon@drregional.org).

Our student information system has a section called "Permissions" that needs to be completed by all new families, and reviewed by returning families. Please be sure to log into your Aspen account and select your "Permissions" for each of your children.

One of the required "Permissions" you’ll be asked to sign in Aspen is the Student Handbook. Please take a few moments to review the handbook to ensure you are familiar with both school and district guidelines. Click below to review our student handbook.

If your child needs to take medication during the school day, please help us ensure their safety by following these important steps:

✅ Complete the required medication forms
✅ Provide a doctor's order for any prescribed medication
✅ Send all prescription medications in their original container, clearly labeled with:

• Your child’s name
  
• The name of the medication
  
• The correct dosage
  

🚫 Please do not send medications to school with students.

Parents and guardians should contact the health office to arrange drop-off.

📩 To coordinate medication drop-off or if you have any questions, please reach out directly to our school nurse, Mrs. Elizabeth Ferreira, at eferreira@drregional.org.

Thank you for your help in keeping our students safe and healthy!

• New Student Orientation for Students in Grades 1-4: Wednesday, August 27th at 10am
• Open House and PTSA's Playground Playdate Grades 1-4: Tuesday, September 2nd
• First Day of School for Students in Grades 1-4: Wednesday, September 3rd
• Kindergarten Open House: Wednesday, September 3rd from 10:00-11:30am
• First Day of School for Students in Kindergarten: Thursday, September 4th
• Preschool Open House: Friday, September 5th, AM classes 9:30-10:30, PM classes 11:30-12:30
• First Day of School for Students in Preschool: Monday, September 8th

• PTSA Meeting at PRES: Thursday, September 11th at 6:30pm at BMS
• Early Release/No PM Preschool for Staff Professional Development: Wednesday, October 1st
• Holiday/No School: Monday, October 13th
• Fall School Picture Day: Monday, October 20th
• Professional Learning Day for Staff-No School: Tuesday, November 4th

Please click below to open and download the district calendar of events for the 2025-2026 school year. Each student will also receive a PRES take home folder that has the district calendar included.

Each grade level has created a list of recommended school supplies to help students feel prepared and confident for the year ahead. These supply lists can be found below.

We are fortunate that the Greater Attleboro Council for Children has once again shown their generosity by donating backpacks and school supplies to support our students. These resources help ensure that every student starts the school year feeling prepared and confident. If your student would benefit from receiving a backpack or supplies, please reach out to Mrs. Monte or Mrs. Kefor, who are happy to assist. We will respect your confidentiality through this process.

We’re pleased to share that school breakfast and lunch are provided free of charge to all students each day. This ensures every child has access to nutritious meals to support their learning and growth. On early release days, only breakfast will be served, so students should plan accordingly. To help families stay informed, weekly menus can be found in our family newsletter.

While meals are free, milk and water are available for purchase each day for students who would like an additional drink option with their lunch.

As the year progresses, we’ll be offering snacks for purchase in the cafeteria. These will first become available to students in grades three and four. Then, once our younger students have had time to settle into lunch routines, we’ll begin offering snacks to kindergarten through second grade students later in the fall. To keep things simple, students may purchase one snack per day, and because of food allergies and intolerances, they are not permitted to buy snacks for others.

For snack and drink purchases, families are welcome to send cash or checks. However, we also offer the MySchoolBucks website and app, which many families find convenient. Through MySchoolBucks, you can create an account, reset passwords, check account balances, and deposit funds directly into your child’s meal account.

Even though meals are free, we ask all families to complete the Free & Reduced Lunch Application, as these forms directly impact school funding and grant opportunities. The application is linked below.

We’re so excited to welcome our newest learners to PRES!

📅 Kindergarten starts Thursday, September 4, 2025
🖍️ But first… join us for a Drop-In Open House on
📍 Wednesday, September 3, 2025
🕙 10:00–11:30 AM

Come meet your teacher, explore the classroom, tour a school bus, and get ready for a fantastic first day! Please enter at the Kindergarten entrance, which is located to the right of the building's main entrance.

Palmer River Elementary School's instructional day begins at 9:05 a.m. Students may enter the building starting at 8:55 a.m. The school day ends at 3:20 p.m., and dismissal will proceed according to prearranged locations. Please inform the school office (ahalajko@drregional.org & lsaxon@drregional.org) and your child's classroom teacher of any changes to dismissal plans before 2:45 p.m. each day.

The AM PreK session begins at 8:45am and ends at 11:15am.

The PM PreK session begins at 12:30pm and ends at 3:00pm.

Please inform the school office (ahalajko@drregional.org & lsaxon@drregional.org) and your child's classroom teacher of any changes to dismissal plans before 2:45 p.m. each day.

Please find the bus routes from Bloom Bus Company on the district website. If your child's bus stop is not on the expected route, please email or call the school to let us know so that we can work with Bloom to fix any errors.

Please see below for more information about our morning arrival procedures for students who arrive via car/drop off. Please review the map so you can plan for drop off in the morning.

Please see below for more information about our dismissal procedures for students who leave school via car/pick up. Please bring photo identification whenever you pick your child up at PRES.

We’re so excited to welcome our littlest learners to PRES! PreK students should be dropped off at the front of the school and enter through the Kindergarten entrance, located just to the right of the main entrance. Our friendly PreK staff will be there to greet students and caregivers each day with a warm welcome! At the end of the session, families should also plan to pick up at the same entrance.

If you have any questions or need a little extra guidance, please don’t hesitate to reach out to the main office — we’re happy to help! We can’t wait to see our PreK stars shine!

Proceeds benefit the Beckwith Unified Sports Program and all student athletes at Beckwith Middle School. Race information and registration form are below.

The Dighton-Rehoboth Regional School District

Website: https://pres.drregional.org/

Location: 326 Winthrop Street, Rehoboth, MA 02769

Phone: 508-252-5100/Fax: 508-252-5110

Dighton Rehoboth Regional School District does not discriminate based on race, color, religion, gender, national origin, age, marital status, veteran status, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, or any other legally protected group.