Bison Blurb
NBES Weekly Family Newsletter for September 26, 2025
Walk To School Day
Annual PTO Fundraiser
Our Annual Bison Brick-a-Thon Fundraiser is Live!
Register your student today on FundHub and share with family and friends! Every donation helps support technology, enrichment programs, family events, and teacher appreciation at NBES. Your participation makes a lasting difference for our school community.getmovinfundhub.com/login
Count Day
Update from Mrs. Teed
This month’s focus is Respect. One way to think about Respect is “seeing value in all people and things & treating them with care.” Many people feel Respected in different ways. We hope this month inspires discussions with your family about what Respect means to you and how you can practice it together! Respect is 1 of 3 traits we will focus on throughout the year that helps students Be Kind. Across grade levels, students will be developing skills like perspective-taking, conflict resolution, and leadership.
PTO Update
Due to some changes in bylaws, the NBES PTO will be coming back to the group it was originally intended to be. There will be a PTO meeting at New Buffalo Elementary on Thursday, October 2 at 4:00 in the media center. During this meeting we will be nominating new board members and talking about upcoming events. We could love to see you there!
Child Care Offering
Does your Bison Beginner need after school, half-day, or full-day care?
Bison Beginners program will be ready with plenty of play-based learning fun! Whether after school, half day, or full day, your child will enjoy hands-on activities, games, and creative exploration in a safe, engaging environment.
CALLING ALL BIKERS
Friday mornings for as long as it’s light, a group will meet at 7:45 Oselka Park to ride bikes together to school. Police will help with the Whittaker Street crossing. Parents can email awfloraday@gmail.com if you have any questions!
Lory's Place Grief Group
Our school is partnering with Lory’s Place, a Grief Healing and Education Center for Children and Families in St. Joseph, to offer a school-based grief support group for students. The group will meet one class period, one day a month throughout the school year and will be facilitated by trained bereavement staff from Lory’s Place.
This group provides education and peer support for children who are grieving. It does not provide assessments, diagnosis, evaluations, private therapy, or counseling, but instead creates a safe and supportive space where students can share and connect.
If you are interested in having your child participate, please email mteed@nbas.org. Parents will be asked to provide consent before participation.
For questions, you may contact the school counselor, Melissa Teed at mteed@nbas.org or Lory’s Place directly at 269-983-2707.
Positive Behavioral Inteventions and Supports (PBIS)
Our schoolwide expectations for students are:
Be responsible. Be respectful. Be safe.
BASE Updates
1. All BASE students can only be signed out by an adult with a driver's license
- If it is your first time picking up from BASE, please bring your driver's license up to the pickup window and we will help you from there!
2. The next card club is on Thursday, October 2nd.
3. The next Science Olympiad is on Friday, October 17th.
Dog Search Updates
Dear NBES Families,
As part of our ongoing partnership with local law enforcement to maintain a safe, nicotine and drug-free learning environment, New Buffalo Area Schools conducted a planned safety sweep today using trained detection dogs.
We are pleased to report that the sweep was conducted smoothly, with minimal disruption to the school day. We are very pleased to announce that nothing was found in any of the New Buffalo Area Schools.
We will continue to schedule these sweeps throughout the school year to reinforce our commitment to providing a safe and supportive environment for all students.
Thank you for your continued support as we work together to keep our schools safe and focused on learning.
Community Events
New Buffalo Township Library Information Below
Berrien RESA Playgroup Information
Power In Motion
Lost & Found
The lost and found is starting to build a collection of items. Why not support the PTO and get your child's clothing items labeled so we can get them returned to them quickly. Check out the Mabels Labels information below.
Our school is partnering for an on-going fundraiser with Mabel’s Labels, with 20% of your purchase going back to the school. You can pick out whatever labels or product you want, and it will ship for free directly to your house. If you’re not familiar with Mabel’s Labels, they are personalized, durable, waterproof labels, great for everything from shoes, clothing tags, water bottles and backpacks. You can customize them with your name and a design, and they are dishwasher, laundry and microwave safe. Mabel’s Labels also offers clothing stamps, silicone bands for water bottles and medical alert labels. This is a great way to ensure your items don’t end up in the lost & found or mixed up.
To support our fundraiser, visit campaigns.mabelslabels.com and select NEW BUFFALO ELEMENTARY PTO. Thank you for supporting us!
Important Upcoming Dates
October 2- NBES PTO meeting @ 4:00 in media center
October 8 - 3rd Grade Mighty Acorns @ 1:00
October 9- Parent Teacher Conferences, 1/2 Day for Students
October 10- No school for students
October 14- Lower Elementary Bring Your Family To Lunch Day
October 16- Fall Picture retake day
October 16- Upper Elementary Bring Your Family To Lunch Day
October 17- Popcorn Day (Bring your quarter)
October 17- All students go to Pep Assesmbly at HS 2:00-3:00
October 21- Title I & Spanish Night 6:00-7:00
October 24 Berrien RESA Playgroup 10:00 am (Information)
October 30- Red Ribbon Week Trunk or Treat 5:30
October 31- 5th Grade Mighty Acorns 10:10
October 31- Halloween Parties @ 2:30
November 14- Popcorn Day (Bring your quarter)
November 20- 1/2 Day for Students
November 21- 1/2 Day for Students
November 21- Berrien RESA Playgroup 10:00
November 26- November 28- Thanksgiving Break
2025-2026 District Calendar
School Contact Information
Melissa Lijewski, Elementary Principal- mlijewski@nbas.org, (269) 469-6060
Jenna Wendel, Administrative Assistant- jwendel@nbas.org, (269) 469-6060
Renee Bowen, Student Services- rbowen@nbas.org, (269) 469-6069
Madeline Selby, BASE Director- mselby@nbas.org, (269) 469- 6062
Tom Whitsel, Transportation Director- twhitsel@nbas.org, (269) 469- 6009
Jacob Stella, Technology Director- techstaff@nbas.org, (269) 469-6020
Susan Martinic, Food Service Director- smartinic@nbas.org, (269) 469-6048
Mark German, Director of Operations- mgerman@nbas.org, (269) 469- 6018
Important Links
New Buffalo Elementary Website
New Buffalo Elementary Facebook
Child Nutrition and Education Benefits Application
Cafeteria on-line payments
Food Service Menu
Annual Bullying Notice here
Contact information for all departments found here
NBES Mission and Vision Statement
Every student. Every day.