High Plain Elementary Corner
Ms. Leveque's and Mrs. Lyons' Weekly Newsletter
From the Desks of Ms. Leveque and Mrs. Lyons
Welcome Back Families!
-Wednesday, August 27: First day of school, students grades 1-12 (full day)
-Tuesday, September 2: First day of school for Kindergarten and Pre-K students (full day)
If you haven't updated your mandatory back to school forms in Aspen, please pause reading this newsletter and jump onto Aspen. Directions are below. Thank you in advance. To all our families who have completed them, way to go!
August 22, 2025
Dear HPE Families,
We look forward to opening our doors next week and seeing our children back in our classrooms. Summer always seems to pass quickly, and we hope that there were many wonderful moments for our families. Our custodial staff did an outstanding job of working throughout the summer months to help get our school cleaned and ready for the start of the 2025-26 new year. Mrs. Shanahan in our main office has registered upwards of 30 new students and our back-to-school supplies have been distributed throughout our classrooms. We continue to see our High Plain community growing and thriving. Much like our teachers, Mrs. Lyons and Ms. Leveque are feeling the excitement over the start of the year and are looking forward to a fantastic 2025-26!
With every start of the school year, we have some staffing changes to share. We shared some in the July newsletter. Our newest hires include our Juie Popken, occupational therapist, Penny Clower and Emily Garbutt, instructional assistants, and Megan Coffey, building base substitute. We feel excited and fortunate to have great staff to support all our students. We are setup for success!
General News
CLASS PLACEMENT went live in the Aspen Parent Portal on Friday, August 8th. Please login to Aspen to update your child's back to school forms. Directions are stated below in the Family Connection section.
BUS INFORMATION
Bus routes and information should be posted on the Parent Portal by Monday. Please arrive 10 minutes before the bus time noted on the route and allow for an extra 10 minutes after the route time for the first few weeks of school as bus drivers learn the new routes.
BREAKFAST AND LUNCH
Breakfast and lunch are once again free to all students. Breakfast is served from 8:45-8:55 each morning and no advanced ordering is needed. Lunch requires families to order in advance to ensure we have the correct allergy-friendly lunch for all our students. Information about the Andover Public Schools lunch program, as well as menus and instructions for online ordering, may be found on the website here: http://www.andoverschoolnutrition.com/
LABELING
Please remember that all belongings, including outer clothing and water bottles, should be labeled with your child’s name.
SCHOOL HOURS
Our regular school day is 9:00 AM to 3:30 PM. Students can begin arriving at 8:45 AM. Early Release days will have a dismissal time of 12:15 PM.
ABSENCES, TARDIES, AND CHANGES IN DISMISSAL
The preferred method of reporting a student absence is to enter it into the PickUp Patrol app. Until PickUp Patrol becomes active for the school year, please call in all absences to 978-247-8601 (Attendance Line) before 8:45 A.M. and leave a message. We will let you know when it is active.
Pick Up Patrol: We use a system called PickUp Patrol to help us track absences, late arrivals (tardies), and changes in dismissal. New families will receive a registration email before the start of the school year.
How It Works:
Your child’s regular dismissal plan from Aspen has been entered into the system. This is called their Default Plan.
Whenever your child is following a plan other than their Default Plan you’ll submit the change using the PickUp Patrol app.
When the change is submitted, the school will be notified. Before the end of the school day, the teachers are notified and we’ll relay the change to your child.
Changes to the dismissal plans are accepted until 2:30pm.
OPEN HOUSE
The Open House/Curriculum Night for High Plain Elementary will be held on Wednesday, September 10th for all grades. This is an evening for parents to visit the school, meet the classroom and specialist teachers, and learn more about what to expect during the coming year. We will run two sessions, allowing you to attend at your convenience and see multiple grades if you have more than one child.
Session 1: 5:30-6:00pm
Transition Break: 6:00-6:15pm
Session 2: 6:15-6:45pm
SCHOOL SAFETY
Our campus is a locked campus during school hours. All visitors will need to ring the front door bell and be checked in by the main office before entering the building. Visitors must bring their state issued ID with them to enter the school. In addition, in partnership with the Andover Fire and Police Departments, we will hold fire drills and ALICE safety drills throughout the school year. We anticipate a fire drill within the first few days of school. Our teachers will work with our students to preview these events in student friendly terms. We will also share information out to the community at the conclusion of the first drills.
We are excited to see everyone back at school! Thank you for being an essential part of our High Plain Hawk family. We look forward to a fantastic year filled with growth, connection, and shared success.
Enjoy summer,
Ms. Leveque and Mrs. Lyons
The Andover Public Schools is requiring that all families verify/update certain pieces of information via a secure online portal called Family Connection. Please complete and submit the forms before August 28th.
This information includes emergency contacts, medical information, daily dismissal plans, demographics, technology usage agreement, as well as acknowledging other district policies.
It is important that this is completed before the first day of school, so we have the latest information for your student in case of emergency, as well as the dismissal plan for your child.
Aspen Family Portal
Please log into the Aspen Family Portal. https://ma-andover.myfollett.com.
New families to APS should have received an email with the subject "Welcome to the Andover Public Schools Family Portal". This email will contain your username and directions on how to log in for the first time.
If you need help, please refer to the – Aspen Family/Student Portal page on the APS website
If you need any other technical assistance with your account, please contact infosys@andoverma.us
Once you have logged into Aspen, click on the link under the Announcements on the Home page that reads ‘Family Connection –Back to School Forms’. You will be redirected to the Family Connection "Verification Form" page which contains directions on how to complete and submit the forms.
Things you should know:
You will need to be logged into the Aspen Family Portal account with your Family account (fam*****). It will not be available using a student account.
The forms must be completed by a parent or guardian.
If you have more than one student in Andover Public Schools, you must complete the process for each of your students.
Make sure the information you submit is accurate.
A change in residency or a change in child custody will require you to provide documentation to the school. Links to residency requirements are found on the APS website (Proof of Residency). Bring the documentation to your child’s school during normal school hours.
Please complete and submit the forms before August 28th.
SCHOOL BUS
Bus transportation to and from school is provided free of charge to elementary students. Kindergarten students must be met by a known adult at the bus stop. Bus routes will be listed in the Aspen portal.
NAME/BUS TAGS (For Kindergarten and Grade 1 Students)
Your child’s teacher will give you a name tag necklace on the first day. Please have your kindergartner or first grader wear the nametag until further notice. The information on the tag is based on what families have entered on the back to school forms.
CAR PICKUP/DROPOFF
Please note that there are differences in morning arrival and afternoon car pick up. In the morning, you may arrive between 8:45-9:00 by using the High Plain Rd. entrance or the Cross St. entrance. In the afternoon, you can only arrive through the Cross St. entrance. The High Plain Rd. entrance is closed to allow buses. In the afternoon, dismissal begins at 3:30. Both morning and afternoon arrival, all vehicles must turn right when leaving the drop off/pick up line.
WALKERS & BIKE RIDERS:
· For morning arrival, a school crossing guard will be at the Cross Street/Brady Loop entrance.
· All AM walkers and bike riders should use the Cross St. entrance and the sidewalks that follow the front side of the school.
· Bike Riders: Only students in grades 3, 4, and 5 may ride a bike to and from school. A permission form must be completed with the main office.
Bus routes will be emailed a few days before school starts. Please arrive 10 minutes before the bus time noted on the route and allow for an extra 10 minutes after the route time for the first few weeks of school as bus drivers learn the new routes.
To learn more about the bus information, please visit the APS transportation page.
Please join us in welcoming and thanking our 2024-25 PTO Executive Board members.
President: Natasha Groden
Vice President: Jessica Janeczak
Treasurer: Chelsey Bennett
Co-Secretaries: Kim Adams and Kim Trull
Our PTO is an integral part of the fabric of our school community. We are thankful for all that they do to enrich the experience for our families!
Wondering what your child will need for school this year? You can access the HPE school supply lists here.
We are pleased to announce the following general education teacher assignments for the upcoming school year.
Kindergarten: Mrs. Robin Dubois, Mrs. Kerri Gazda, and Mrs. Mandy Grzywacz
First Grade: Mrs. Karen Curran, Mrs. Heather Hart, Mrs. Helen Waller, and Ms. Abby Bachur
Second Grade: Mrs. Shanna Beal, Mrs. Meri Grimard, Mrs. Randi Little, and Mrs. Jill McCarthy
Third Grade: Mrs. Janet Bowen, Mrs. Maura Bresnahan, Mrs. Deidre Carty Forss, and Mrs. Ciara O'Keefe
Fourth Grade: Ms. Amy Bride, Mrs. Gina Chaves, Mrs. Shannon Siviski, and Mrs. Tara Stuart
Fifth Grade: Mrs. Emily Allen, Mrs. Nicole Brezinski, Mrs. Laura Roussel, Mrs. Marianna Wells, and Mrs. Lydia Wise
Communication with our families is essential to the success and wellness of our students. To assist our families and help them connect with the appropriate staff who is best suited to answer questions, we have updated our “Who We Are” page on our website. The information will guide families to resources on how to reach staff with concerns and how to stay connected to news and events across the district.
We know that there are times when families have a need to make a change to their child’s usual routine. PickUp Patrol is an app-based system where users can quickly alert the school of a change in routine for that day. Absences and late arrivals should be entered. For all dismissal updates, changes will be allowed until 2:30 PM each day, at which point no dismissal changes will be accepted. You need to call the school and reach the attendance line for early dismissal.
How It Works:
- Your child’s regular dismissal plan from Aspen has been entered into the system. This is called their Default Plan.
- Whenever your child is following a plan other than their Default Plan you’ll submit the change using the PickUp Patrol app.
Examples of a plan change:
· Your child has a doctor's appointment and will be leaving early.
· Your child normally rides the bus but is getting picked up today.
· Your child normally goes to an afterschool program but will be taking the bus today.
- 3. When the change is submitted, the school will be notified. Before the end of the school day, the teachers are notified and we’ll relay the change to your child.
If you have any questions, please first check the PUP Parent Guide, then contact us in the main office. Please remember that PickUp Patrol changes only reflect that single day, not the on-going default plans. If you need to make a change to a default plan, please do so in the Aspen portal, or feel free to email me (mara.shanahan@andoverma.us), and I will make sure that default plan is reflected in PickUp Patrol.
This is a reminder that the High Plain Road entrance is closed to cars at dismissal. It is the access entrance for buses only. The Cross Street entrance is how cars enter for car pickup. This is a safety concern. We have seen cars try to sneak in daily and it's simply not fair to those who are following the dismissal procedures. We ask you to be respectful of your fellow HPE community members and abide by this rule.
Breakfast and lunch are once again free to all students. Breakfast is served from 8:45-8:55 each morning and no advanced ordering is needed.
Lunches will need be preordered. Lunch requires families to order in advance to ensure we have the correct allergy-friendly lunch for all our students. It is very important that our cafeteria has an accurate lunch count each day. Please review with your children each morning what you have ordered for them.
Information about the Andover Public Schools lunch program, as well as menus and instructions for online ordering, may be found on the website here: http://www.andoverschoolnutrition.com/
We are all working to manage the age of technology and are looking for support between school and home. Many children have new smart devices and the elementary schools have some guidance.
A kind reminder to our families that cell phones must be turned off and in students’ backpacks at the start of the school day. Smartwatches may be worn as regular watches, however, students are not allowed to text, communicate with others, use applications, take pictures or videos, or access social media services and websites.
Should parents/guardians urgently need to reach their child during the school day, we ask that you call the main office. Students are also allowed to come to the main office if they need to contact someone at home. If a cell phone or watch becomes a significant distraction, school administrators will reach out to parents/guardians. The Andover Public Schools is not responsible for lost, stolen, damaged, or broken devices.
To promote healthy digital habits during the school day, the resources below may be helpful to use. We appreciate your partnership as we work to keep interruptions to the school day at a minimum.
Resource for Apple Watches:
How to set a School Time schedule
Open the Watch app on your iPhone. Tap All Watches, then tap your child's watch.
Tap Done, then tap Schooltime.
Turn on Schooltime, then tap Edit Schedule.
Choose the days and times when you want Schooltime to be active.
Tap Add Time if you want to set up more than one schedule in a day.
Resource for Gizmo Watches:
How to set up School mode
Open the. Gizmo Hub app.
Tap the. School mode switch. turn on or off. If necessary, set up a School Mode schedule.
In School Devices
K-3 Devices will stay in school.
4-5 Devices can be brought home if directed by the classroom teacher to complete an assignment. Otherwise, they will remain in school.
Please make sure that you arrive with your license. We cannot check you in and let you enter without your license or state issued ID. You also need to have a valid CORI form on file. Please help us with these required safety steps.
Massachusetts Partnerships for Youth (MPY) is pleased to announce its new MPY Parenting Solutions Library, available in English and Spanish. The MPY Parenting Solutions Library is offered at no charge, in partnership with Peace At Home Parenting Solutions, a non- profit. Peace At Home Parenting Solutions is a dynamic hub of trusted knowledge and compassionate support that inspires parents to create positive change for their children, their families and themselves. Through this new partnership, MPY is pleased to offer proven resources to help students’ families thrive. The video trainings are presented by experts with advanced degrees and present easy-to-use strategies for long-lasting change.
School Hours of Operation
8:30 am: School office opens
8:45 am: School drop off
9:00 am: School day begins
After 9:00 am: Children are tardy and must be accompanied by a parent into the office
After 2:00 pm: Unless it's an emergency, no dismissal changes
Students must be dismissed before 3:00
3:30 pm: School ends
Ms. Sarah Leveque, Principal
Email: sarah.leveque@andoverma.us
Website: https://aps1.net/212/High-Plain-Elementary-School
Location: 333 High Plain Road, Andover, MA, USA
Phone: 978-247-8600