|
Dear Conant Families and Caregivers,
It has been a great start at the Luther Conant School. It was such a pleasure to welcome our new students and welcome back our returning students on Wednesday. As I told the teachers and staff at the end of the day, our students came in smiling and excited and left with even bigger smiles and looking forward to coming back on Thursday. Thank you for all you did to ensure your children arrived at school excited to see old friends and make new ones. They were prepared, confident and eager. Your efforts gave them a great start to the day and the year.
As Ms. Leahy and I have visited classrooms throughout these last three days, we have been inspired by the joy in every classroom. As teachers begin to build learning communities and establish routines and expectations, students have been sharing ideas, feelings and accomplishments. We are grateful to be able to witness these moments.
For those of you new to our school Community, you might like to know that we start each day with our announcement teams leading the school in the Pledge of Allegiance, a brief guided mindfulness practice and identifying those students for whom it is their birthday. Signaling the start of the school day at 8:55, these three components of the announcements help us focus for the day and celebrate each other. We will continue with this procedure throughout the year, giving as many students as possible an opportunity to lead. For this and many other reasons, it is critical that you make every effort to have your child to school on time. As a parent myself, I know that some days this can be challenging. Thank you in advance for your efforts.
Members of our Announcement Team on the first day of school.
You might also like to know that dismissal in Conant School is quite a complex task. Our four hundred students ride seventeen yellow school buses, travel to attend off site after school programs, attend on site extended day programs, take specialized transportation, and are picked up at dismissal by parents and caregivers from the live pick up line. Our established rules and routines during this busy time of the school day helps keep everyone safe and ensures that every student gets to where they need to be. For these reasons, I would like to thank all families and caregivers who have completed and returned the hard copy Dismissal Form that was sent home on the first day of school. These forms are used everyday and give us immediate information when a student has a question or is confused about their destination. If you have not returned it, please do so as soon as possible, and if you need another copy please contact our school office.
Of course, life often offers us unexpected changes, and dismissal plans are not exempt from those changes. If you need to change your child’s dismissal plans, please complete the Change in Dismissal Form form by 1:00pm (10:30am on Wednesday) on the day of the change. Of course, you can complete this form earlier if you have that information and a handwritten note delivered to the office will also work. Thank you for your partnership.
I encourage you to mark your calendars for the upcoming Open House where you can learn even more about your child’s school experiences. On Wednesday, September 17, 2025 from 6pm-7:30pm, parents, guardians and caregivers are invited to visit their child’s classrooms where teachers will share their philosophies and classroom routines, as well as give you an idea of what the school day is like for your child. It is a great way to connect with your child’s classroom and be able to speak with them about their day.
For your information, Night Open House is an ADULT ONLY event and NOT a night to discuss your child’s specific needs or progress. That will happen during the fall parent-teacher conferences. More details about this event for caregivers, parents and guardians will be forthcoming. We will also have an opportunity for parents and guardians to complete CORI forms during the open house. CORI checks need to be renewed every three years for your information.
Finally, I would like to inform all our families that the District’s Financial Assistance Policy was updated recently. If you have not yet visited the Financial Assistance website, please make sure to take some time to do so. Throughout your child’s ABRSD journey, there might be times when this assistance will make a difference. It is helpful to know it exists. Below is a portion of the communication sent to families in the last few weeks:
Because some school programs and services include fees, financial assistance is available through a confidential application process for families who qualify. This process is now centralized through the District’s Finance Office.
If you have any questions or need help, please contact FinAssistance@abschools.org. We encourage all families who may qualify to apply.
What Does Financial Assistance Cover?
Eligible families may receive help with school-related fees such as:
Athletics Student clubs and activities Field trips High school senior dues Full-day kindergarten tuition PSAT, SAT, AP, and ACT exam fees Summer school (when recommended for academic support) Elementary group music lessons held outside the school day
Financial assistance is based on household income. Depending on income level, families may qualify for:
A full waiver (no cost) A 75% fee reduction A 50% fee reduction
What About Free or Reduced Meals?
If your child qualifies for Free or Reduced Price Meals, your family is automatically eligible for full financial assistance—as long as you also complete the annual application as well as the Information Sharing Agreement. This allows the district to use your meal status to waive eligible school fees. You do not need to complete the full financial assistance application if this agreement is submitted.
Some Fees Are Not Covered
Please note that some activity-related fees are not eligible for financial assistance, including certain travel programs, enrichment activities, and services offered outside the school day. A full list of these exclusions is available on the district’s Financial Assistance page: 👉 https://abschools.org/families/financial_assistance
Thank you for being part of the Acton-Boxborough community. We are committed to making sure every student has full access to our programs and experiences.
My very best wishes for a happy Labor Day Weekend. We look forward to seeing everyone back at Conant on Tuesday, September 2nd.
Sincerely,
Tricia O’Reilly, Ph.D., Principal, Conant School
TOReilly@abschools.org
|
Additional settings for Safari Browser.
