Head of School Updates

Next week, we are excited to welcome our families back to campus for our Back-to-School Nights from 5:30–7:30 PM! Tuesday, September 15 will be for our secondary families, and Thursday, September 17 will be for our elementary families.

Our Open House and Community Kick-Off events provided opportunities to meet teachers, visit classrooms, and make connections. The goal was to build community and momentum for the first days of school. Now that the school year is underway, our Back-to-School Nights will shift toward academics and focus on our curriculum and student learning.

Families will begin the evening with a brief school wide presentation highlighting our mission, vision, values, and academic performance. Secondary Campus presentations will take place at 5:30 and 6:30 PM, while the Elementary Campus presentation will take place at 5:30 PM. Following the school wide presentation, families will have the opportunity to connect with teachers and learn more about the curriculum their children will experience this year. Teachers will share important information about their courses and grade levels, including what students will learn, expectations for the year, and ways families can support learning at home.

We look forward to seeing you next week!

Congratulations to senior Jack Thomas for being named a semifinalist in the prestigious 72nd annual National Merit Scholarship Program!

An athlete and academic leader at Sussex Academy, Jack is now one of 16,000 semifinalists chosen from 1.2 million students who entered the 2027 National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the 2025 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test as juniors.

The nationwide pool of semifinalists represents less than 1% of U.S. high school seniors and includes the highest-scoring entrants in each state!

Finalists will be announced this spring – good luck, Jack!

Keep up to date with school and student happenings by following us on Facebook and Instagram, and continue to check our website for our most recent news releases.

Share the news about your child’s accomplishments by contacting Ellen Driscoll at ellen.driscoll@saas.k12.de.us.

Here’s a recent headline: Sussex Academy seniors take leadership roles in school theater program

Enjoy a meal at Lefty's on Monday, Sept. 21 and support our boys basketball team! Present the flyer to your server to participate.

Here are a couple Senior Service Projects you can support!

Finna Graves is collecting gently used clothing from Sept. 8-18 to benefit Gateway Clothing Collection in Bridgeville and also now, based on strong donor participation, at the Shepherd’s Office Ministries in Georgetown.

Grayce Glover is holding a toiletries and necessities drive from Sept. 11-25 to support the Beebe Mobile Health Clinic, which works to reach underserved populations, conduct free screenings, share information and connect patients to resources.

The September Board of Directors meeting will take place on Wednesday, September 16 at 4:00 PM in the Board Room of the Secondary Campus. Please see the attached agenda for additional information.

💙💜 A Great Start to the School Year!

Our first week of school is off to a wonderful start at Sussex Academy Elementary! It has been exciting to see our students settling into routines, building relationships, and filling our classrooms with enthusiasm for learning. We are grateful to our families and staff for such a positive start and look forward to a great year ahead!

During our first week together, students also learned about what it means to be a Seahawk and the Seahawk traits that will help guide our school community throughout the year. These traits provide a shared language for the positive behaviors, choices, and habits we want our students to demonstrate in their classrooms and throughout our school. We will continue to teach, recognize, and celebrate these traits all year long as we help our students grow not only as learners, but also as responsible and caring members of our Seahawk community.

We also look forward to welcoming our elementary families to Back to School Night on September 17 from 5:30–7:30 p.m. Families should begin the evening in the gymnasium for a brief presentation. Following the presentation, parents and guardians are welcome to head to their child’s classroom, where teachers will share more details about classroom routines, expectations, curriculum, and what families can look forward to during the upcoming school year. We hope to see you there!

One of our favorite Friday traditions is returning! Beginning this Friday, students will have the opportunity to purchase ice cream for $1.00. Ice cream will be available each Friday throughout the school year.

“Welcome back to another great school year at Sussex Academy Elementary💜! We have a few exciting ways you can get involved and support our amazing teachers and staff this September. Check out the details below:

How You Can Help!?

Keep our teachers energized all month long by dropping off non-perishable snacks and drinks!

What We Need: Individual chip bags, popcorn, granola/protein bars, cookies, sparkling water multipacks, K-cups, herbal teas, and single-serve drinks.

Where to Drop Off: Bring items straight to the Front Desk.

All donations directly fund these delicious, nutritious meals for our staff.

Venmo: [Rebecca-Timmons-20] (Note: Fuel Our Teachers)

Quick Parent Volunteer Zoom Meeting

Have great ideas or want to learn more about upcoming initiatives? Join our quick virtual meeting!

When: Thursday, September 24th @ 7:00 PM

Access: The Zoom link will be sent out in the weekly Head of School Update on Wednesday.

Thank you for your generosity and time—together WE build a stronger school community! 🌟”

Yearbooks are now on sale for $33.00 when ordered by October 9, 2026. Don’t miss out on the memories—order yours early!

Just a reminder that all 5th grade students will receive a yearbook at no cost to families. During this transition year, the cost of a yearbook for every 5th grade student is being covered through school activity fees.

We had a great first week back with our Middle School Seahawks! Students spent time learning routines and expectations, building connections with their teachers and classmates, and setting the foundation for a successful year.

Leader in Me is already coming to life throughout our Middle School! Students have been creating classroom non-negotiables and learning how the 7 Habits can help them take ownership of their choices, learning, and relationships.

As we move into our first full weeks of learning, our focus remains on high expectations, strong relationships, and creating opportunities for every student to grow as a learner and leader. We are excited to see our students continue to Explore. Experience. Excel.

Calling all middle school students who are interested in Odyssey of the Mind ...

If you like creative problem solving and team work, have a special talent or love to think outside the box then you may just fall in love with Odyssey of the Mind!

All students interested in participating on an OM team for SAAS are required to attend this meeting, set for Tuesday, Sept. 22 in the secondary library from 3:15–4:15 p.m.

Learn more at deootm.org

Parents at all grade levels are encouraged to attend. OM is an amazing program that enriches students beyond the classroom but it requires each team to have an adult volunteer coach and judge, so parent involvement is essential to a successful program.

If you have any questions, contact Nicole Bowman nicolejeanbowman@gmail.com 917-771-4821.

Capture all the memories from this school year with a Sussex Academy Middle School Yearbook! 💜

Yearbooks are currently $37.00 when ordered by October 2, 2026.

Families can order through Jostens using the information on the flyer or this link (Click Here). Students and families can also share photos from throughout the year for possible inclusion in the yearbook. Don’t miss out on the memories — order yours early!

Just a reminder that all 8th grade students receive a yearbook at no cost to families. During this transition year, all students receive a yearbook from school activity fees.

Mr. Decker would like to hear from any Middle School students interested in getting involved in Band, Theater, or Choir! Whether you already have experience or are interested in trying something new, we would love to know who wants to participate.

If you or your child is interested in learning more, please reach out to Mr. Decker!

Student schedules are now available in Infinite Campus for all Middle School students. Please review your student’s schedule and reach out to their teachers with any questions.

Please note that Exploratory classes will only appear in Infinite Campus for the current cycle and will update as students move through their exploratory rotations.

Calling all high school students who are interested in Odyssey of the Mind ...

If you like creative problem solving and team work, have a special talent or love to think outside the box then you may just fall in love with Odyssey of the Mind!

All students interested in participating on an OM team for SAAS are required to attend this meeting, set for Tuesday, Sept. 22 in the secondary library from 3:15–4:15 p.m.

Learn more at deootm.org

Parents at all grade levels are encouraged to attend. OM is an amazing program that enriches students beyond the classroom but it requires each team to have an adult volunteer coach and judge, so parent involvement is essential to a successful program.

If you have any questions, contact Nicole Bowman nicolejeanbowman@gmail.com 917-771-4821.

Don't forget to sign up for High School Band and Choir! Use the links below for more information and to register. Any and all levels are encouraged and welcome to join!

HIGH SCHOOL CHOIR

HIGH SCHOOL BAND

HIGH SCHOOL JAZZ BAND.

FALL COLLEGE & CAREER MEETINGS

Today, our college/career advisor Mrs. Erin Bobby finished meeting with all seniors in groups. Absent students will have one more opportunity to attend this group meeting during period 4 on Friday, 9/11. The slides from the group meeting can be found here.

ONE-ON-ONE Meetings

Starting Monday 9/14, each senior will have a one-on-one meeting with Mrs. Bobby to discuss their personal goals and next steps. Students can find their 15-minute individual meeting time and location on the second tab of this schedule. Students should check in with their classroom teacher for attendance before reporting to the meeting and contact me promptly if they have a scheduling conflict.

COLLEGE APPLICATION REMINDERS

Please encourage your student to complete the following tasks as soon as possible:

• College Letter of Recommendation Form: Students should have completed the College Letter of Recommendation Form and shared it with their two teacher recommenders and erin.bobby@sussexacademy.org

• Common App and Naviance: Students applying to college should create or begin working on their Common App account and connect it to Naviance. They should also request teacher recommendations through Naviance and complete the FERPA waiver. This step-by-step guide explains the process. Students who cannot access Naviance should email me.

COLLEGE VISITS AT SUSSEX ACADEMY

Throughout the fall, representatives from colleges and universities will host 30-minute information sessions at Sussex Academy. Seniors may miss class to attend these sessions.

Next week, we will host representatives from Hamilton College (NY) on 9/15 and Bard College (NY) on 9/17.

To view upcoming visits and register, students should:

1. Log in to Naviance.

2. Select Colleges.

3. Under Research Colleges, select College Visits.

4. Click Register Now beside any school they are interested in learning about.

5. Record the visit’s date and time in their planner.

6. Notify their teacher at least one day in advance.

7. Check in with their teacher on the day of the visit for attendance and information about missed instruction or assignments.

New visits are added throughout the fall, so students should check Naviance regularly.

STAND BY ME FINANCIAL AID INFORMATION SESSION: PAYING FOR COLLEGE

On Monday, October 5th at 7pm (in Room 102), the Stand By Me Organization will host a Paying for College Workshop geared toward Parents/Guardians and their senior students. This presentation provides an overview of the many options available to families to pay for college. The goal is to inform students and parents about government grants, scholarships, loans, FAFSA application procedures, and additional services and programs provided by Stand by Me. A registration link will be provided when it is made available.

SCHOLARSHIPS

Some localized scholarship opportunities have been sent our way! See our Scholarship Spreadsheet to stay up to date on all scholarship opportunities in our area.

LAUNCH INTO YOUR FUTURE WEEK: OCTOBER 26–30

Launch Into Your Future Week will take place October 26–30 in the library. During the week, students will have opportunities to sign out of class to work on college and career-related tasks and attend special information sessions. Additional details and sign-out instructions will be shared in October.

COMMUNICATION

For individual questions or concerns, I ask that students communicate with me by email rather than through Schoology Messenger. I can be reached at erin.bobby@sussexacademy.org.

Thank you for helping your senior remain attentive to deadlines and take full advantage of the support and opportunities available this fall!