Ryan's Weekly Family Update

Dear Ryan Elementary Community,

Thank You for a Spectacular Rhino Stampede!
A huge thank you to our students, staff, parents, guardians, families, and our incredible PTA for making the Rhino Stampede an overwhelming success! We exceeded all expectations, and it wouldn’t have been possible without your support. This year our goals were crushed! It was the largest amount ever raised and the highest participation ever! Great Job, Rhinos!

TOTAL RAISED: A record-breaking $49,261.60!!!

REGISTRATION RATE: 79.4% of our students registered, the highest ever!!

October Highlights at Ryan Elementary

We have an exciting month ahead with several important events and initiatives:

📅 Walk and Roll to School Day – Join us this Wednesday as we promote healthy, eco-friendly ways to get to school. If you’re accompanying your child, feel free to grab a cup of coffee at drop-off.

🗓️ Parent-Teacher Conferences – Happening this week and next. We look forward to connecting with families to discuss student progress and goals.

🏫 No Place for Hate – Year Two

We are proud to continue our work as a No Place for Hate designated school, a program developed by the Anti-Defamation League to combat bullying, discrimination, and hate.

Last month during STEAM Buddies, students read and signed the NPFH pledge. This week, you'll notice purple flags outside our school, representing students and staff who chose to sign the NPFH-pledge-FINAL.pdf. Our 4th and 5th grade Student Coalition, led by Ms. Short and Ms. Trippe, will be planning the rest of our No Place for Hate activities for the school year.

🎉 We also received our official No Place for Hate banner for Year One—congratulations to our community for this important recognition!

Safety First: Upcoming Drills & Expectations
This Friday, we will conduct our final round of safety drills for the semester, which include:

• Hold

• Shelter

• Secure

• Evacuation (must practice every month)
  
  

Every classroom displays the Standard Response Protocol poster, which you can review here: Standard Response Protocol Poster with BVSD logos (English & Spanish)

In addition to monthly safety drills, we regularly talk with students about safe play and appropriate communication at school.

Please note:

🚫 Ryan Elementary does not allow any games involving pretend violence, fighting, shooting, or the use of imaginary weapons (including guns and knives).

If such games or threats are reported, they will be thoroughly investigated and may involve a threat screener and our School Safety Advocate.

🟪 As part of our proactive efforts, we encourage students to use "Rock, Paper, Scissors, Show" rather than the traditional version that includes the word "shoot."

If you have concerns or questions about any games or behaviors at school, please reach out to our Dean of Students, Steven Sanchez, at steven.sanchez@bvsd.org.

Thank you for being part of our vibrant and caring community and for all the ways you support our school, students and staff.

It’s Always a Great Day to Be a Rhino!

Go Rhinos!

Sincerely,

Stephanie Jackman

Principal

In this newsletter you will find details on the following:

• Letter from Principal Jackman
• Important Dates and Events
• Fall Noetic Learning Math Contest Information
• Parent/Teacher Conference Sign Up Information
• Walk, Bike and Roll to School Details
• No Parking Notice
• Bully Prevention Program Letter
• Pumpkin Decorating Contest Details
• Parent Support Now Offered
• Dental Screenings at Ryan Details
• PTA Updates & Store
• BVSD Emergency Alert Test on October 15th
• BVSD Showcase Invitation
• BVSD Weather Delay/Closure System
• Attendance Policy Information
• Volunteer Instructions
• BVSD Messenger Notifications
• Calendar Links

If you have an immediate need, please call the main office at 720.561.7000

October 8th Bike, Walk or Roll to School Day

Fall Parent Teacher Conferences

Tuesday, October 7th

Thursday, October 9th

Wednesday, October 15th

October 13th & 14th Fall Break, No School

October 22nd BVSD is the Place to Be Showcase

October 23rd Individual Picture Retakes

Novemeber 10 District Professional Development Day - No School

November 11 Veteran's Day - No School

November 20 PTA STEAM Night 5-7pm

November 24th & 25th Fall Conference Exchange Dates - No School

November 26th-28th Thanksgiving Break - No School

Give your child the chance to shine with the Noetic Learning Math Contest, a nationally recognized competition for grades 2–8. Held twice a year, NLMC helps students

• build problem-solving confidence
• discover the joy of mathematics
• prepare for future success in STEM

REGISTRATION OPENS TODAY AT 1PM (The first thirty students in each grade level to submit the permission form will be accepted.)

REGISTRATION DEADLINE October 24 | 1pm (or when limit is reached)

REGISTER ONLINE

Find out more about Noetic Learning

Conference dates are October 7th, 9th and 15th

The sign up window is now closed, if you need assistance please reach out to your child's teacher or email/call Jamie.hanes@bvsd.org.

For parent/teacher conferences, the Ryan PTA is catering meals for the staff. We would like to have desserts as well though, so if you're able to bring goodies to share with the staff, please sign up here! If you could mark any dishes that are gluten free or nut free, it's helpful for those with allergies! Thanks so much!

https://bvsd.helpatschools.com/schools/16/events/16482

Be sure to be ON TIME for your conference in order to get your full conference time.

Walk, Bike and Roll to School is happening on Wednesday, October 8th this year!

We're so excited to see our Rhinos arrive at school on foot, bike, scooter, etc.

Snacks will be provided along with lots of Rhino high fives and some extra fun!

Parents, we will have coffee for those of you who will be walking/riding with your students.

In conjunction with this event, BVSD is partnering with EcoCycle to collect shoes of all kinds, that are in good condition, to be re-worn both locally and around the world. Look for a collection box in our school vestibule.

The bus lane is reserved for buses only at all times!

Our school is a busy place! We have buses coming and going throughout the entire school day with Preschool pick ups and drop offs, field trips and early arrivals.

We also have the bus lane available to Emergency Vehicles, when needed.

Please use the Northeast parking lot or park in the neighborhood.

Also, do not park in the South parking lot, which is a staff parking lot, or in the Handicap parking spaces unless you have a sticker displayed in your vehicle.

Thank you for your cooperation!

As part of Boulder Valley School District’s (BVSD) commitment to providing our students with a safe and caring environment in which to learn, we are implementing a district and school-wide bully prevention program using the Second Step curriculum beginning in October. This program is most effective when parents, guardians and families, BVSD staff, and students all share the belief that kindness and respect contribute to a positive environment, which results in better academic success. Please see the attached newsletter for more information.

The 5th Annual Book Character Pumpkin Contest is back!

Students may decorate a fake pumpkin as any book character. Drop it off in the library during the month of October. Names of participants will be entered into a drawing for a FREE book at the Fall Book Fair ($20 value or less). One winner will be drawn from each grade level: Pre-K, Kinder, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th. Winners will be announced on Friday, October 31, 2025. Questions? Contact allison.trippe@bvsd.org

This school year BVSD is partnering with Clinica Family Health to provide preventative dental services at our school. Dental services may include screenings, fluoride applications, sealants, and referrals for additional care not available at schools.

All students are eligible to participate and there is no cost to families. To receive these services for your child, please fill out the attached consent form. No action is needed if you do not want to participate. If a paper consent form is completed, please return it to the school office. For questions regarding this school-based dental program, please contact:

Clinica Family Health - School Based Oral Health Team: sboht@clinica.org

Or Joanna Harrison, BVSD Medicaid Resource Nurse: joanna.harrison@bvsd.org, 720.561.8545

Link to Electronic Consent Form (English)

Link to Consent Form (pdf version English)

Thank you to all who came out and supported the Rhino Stampede! We could not have raised as much as we did without the help of every single family: Thank you!

For parent/teacher conferences, the Ryan PTA is catering meals for the staff. We would like to have desserts as well though, so if you're able to bring goodies to share with the staff, please sign up here! If you could mark any dishes that are gluten free or nut free, it's helpful for those with allergies! Thanks so much!

https://bvsd.helpatschools.com/schools/16/events/16482

Our next event will be our Annual STEAM Night, November 20th!

STEAM Flyer

Please follow the link below to register

Registration Link for STEAM Night

PTA Website

PTA Facebook

Ryan Parents Facebook

Ryan Spiritwear Store

Are you looking for some Ryan Rhino gear? Please click on the link below for tshirts, sweatshirts, mugs, etc! These items would make great gifts for your favorite Rhino.

PTA Family Store

Wednesday, October 15, 8:00 a.m.

During the late start period on the Wednesday following fall break (8:00 a.m. Mountain Daylight Time) BVSD will operate a test of its emergency alert system. All BVSD parents, staff and high school students will receive a test alert via SchoolMessenger that will include a phone call, text message, and email. The message will only be a test, no response is required. Users can then adjust their communication preferences as desired via these instructions.

Parents, students and staff should ensure they are opted in to receive text messages from the district and schools through SchoolMessenger. Opting-in is a two-step process:

• The person's cell phone number must be in a cell phone field in Infinite Campus or Infor/Lawson.
• They then send a text message from their cell phone to “67587” with the word “yes” in the message.
• They may opt-out at any time by texting “STOP” to 67587.

This Fall, BVSD will once again offer a one-stop shop for students and families to learn more about everything its schools and district have to offer. Whether new to the area or just curious about BVSD, all are invited to the CU Events Center on Wednesday, October 22 from 5-8 p.m. during the BVSD is the Place to Be Showcase.

Representatives from all 56 schools will be in attendance, as well as Enrollment, Transportation, Sustainability, Community Schools, Gifted and Talented and Special Education departments to share about their services and answer questions. Along with free, delicious food from BVSD's School Food Project! Learn more on the BVSD Showcase webpage.

There will be free parking available near the Event Center and free shuttle service from locations around the district: north and east Boulder, Lafayette/Louisville, and Broomfield.

Flyer in English & Spanish

BVSD weather delay and closure procedures

Under all but the most extreme conditions, school officials have a responsibility to keep school in session. During Colorado winters, snow and ice may result in a delay or closure if necessary. No notices means no closures or significant delays have been reported.

As always, BVSD respects a parent's decision to keep students home from school or delay their arrival due to weather conditions. Contact the school's attendance office and the absence will be excused.

Daily Attendance

Please help your child develop good attendance habits. Research shows that missing just two days per month severely impacts reading and math growth. To make expected academic and social emotional gains, students should be at school at a rate of 95% or more. Habits developed in elementary school often carry over into middle school and high school.

​

If your child will be absent:

• Please let us know online via Infinite Campus OR call Ryan’s attendance line at 720-561-7002 by 8:05 a.m. If your student is arriving late, please note that in the comments section online. Always notify the office of an absence or late arrival, not just the classroom teacher.

• Attendance - Ryan Elementary School. Please include the following information in your voice message: your name, student’s name, grade & teacher, and the reason for the absence.

• As a safety precaution, all primary contacts of students marked as unaccounted absences will receive notification by BVSD’s automated attendance system to verify a child’s absence. Promptly calling in absences and tardies will prevent your home or workplace from being disturbed.

• If at all possible, make every attempt to schedule doctor and dentist appointments before or after the school day, as this tends to take away from a student’s learning time. If your child does have a medical appointment, providing us with documentation helps us code these absences properly.

• Automated calls are made by 9:00 a.m. for students who are marked as “unexcused absence”.

• Procedures and information about student absences are explain in the March 2024 Revised Board Policy, JH and Attendance & Engagement - Boulder Valley School District

We understand sometimes our students need to be out for an extended period of time. We ask, if you know your child will be out for more than 3 days, to please fill out this form in addition to reporting the absence through the portal or attendance line.

Attendance Letter Communication Details

When students in BVSD reach a certain number of absences (you can find the breakdown below), you will receive an AUTOMATED attendance letter. All absences excused or unexcused will receive these communications when the number of absences reach the particular threshold. Also please note, three (3) unexcused partial absences or five (5) unexcused tardies will equal one unexcused absence.

Letter Criteria:

• Friendly Letter after 5 days missed

• Letter A after 10 days missed

• Letter B after 15 days missed

Volunteering is a fun, simple way to get involved within the Ryan community. We have all sorts of opportunities to get involved. Whether you volunteer regularly in your teacher’s classroom, bring breakfast and coffee to teachers for late start or volunteer for the book fair, the impact can be huge. Not only does it benefit the school but it benefits your kids and families in our community as well!

bvsd.org/volunteer

Volunteers and field trip chaperones that volunteer once and are under line-of-sight supervision by BVSD staff at all times only need to go through the front office Raptor check-in process.

Individuals interested in volunteering and interacting with students on an ongoing basis under line of sight supervision of BVSD staff, complete the appropriate yearly application; ENGLISH or SPANISH. Please note, there is a $32.00 background fee due at the time of submission.

For volunteers, partners, or field trip chaperones who will not be under line-of-sight supervision of BVSD staff at all times – CBI fingerprint check is required through a third party vendor (these background checks are now valid for 5 years), paid by the volunteer or partner AND volunteer must sign a BVSD volunteer agreement (Spanish) each year.

Please see the Volunteers/Visitors Flowchart and the Volunteer/Visitor FAQ for additional details.

BVSD uses School Messenger to communicate with families as needed via email, phone call and text message to those opted in to receive BVSD Communications.

Users can adjust their communication preferences and opt-in to text messages as desired via instructions found on the BVSD School Messenger Support webpage.

BVSD Calendar Link

• 2025-26 Parent -Teacher Printable (English)
• 2025-26 Parent-Teacher Printable Calendar (Spanish)

• 2025-26 Academic Calendar Printable (English)

• 2025-26 Academic Calendar Printable (Spanish)

• 2025-26 Preschool Calendar Printable (English)

• 2025-26 Preschool Calendar Printable(Spanish)

• Elementary ABC Specials Weekly Rotation Calendar (English)

• Ryan's Specials Schedule Color Rotation

• Calendario de clases especiales ABC (Español)

Website: https://rye.bvsd.org/
Location: 1405 Centaur Village Drive, Lafayette, CO, USA
Phone: 720-561-7000
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RyanElemSTEAM