Dear Ellison Parks Families,

Another school year is right around the corner! I hope you have all had a wonderful summer, filled with relaxation and
quality time with friends and family. Here at Ellison Parks, we’ve been getting the building ready to welcome every
single one of our students and their families back into our community—a community where everyone is welcome and a
member of the EP family.

I am excited to be entering my second year as principal and look forward to continuing the work we started last year. It
is my hope and my commitment to serve our youth as a community, to collaboratively do what’s best for EP’s students,
by serving them holistically—physically, academically, and socio-emotionally. I invite you to partner with us in this work.
We need everyone engaged so our youth will thrive!

We are also thrilled to be welcoming several new teachers, staff members, and partners to our team for the upcoming
school year. With some strategic new partnerships and additional resources, we were able to bring in new positions
that will help support and enrich our students’ experiences at school. They each bring a wealth of experience, track
records of success, an unrelenting work ethic, and most of all a passion and love for this work and our students.

Liz Belton Training and Access Project Consultant, Children’s Hospital

Kendra Coan City Connects Coordinator, Boston College
Kerri Ann Connelly Reading Recovery Specialist & Readers’ Theater Teacher
Joshua Duponte Music Teacher
Luna Hwang 3rd Grade Inclusion Teacher
Karla Jenkins Director of Students, Families, & School Partnerships
Andrea Nelson 3rd Grade SEI Inclusion Teacher
Lynni Nordheim Literacy Coach
Jean Manny Pierre Cluster Sub
Catherine Stoddard K2 SEI Inclusion Teacher

It is my honor to welcome you back to a truly special early learning community, one where we celebrate our differences,
support each other, and bring out the best in one another. Many thanks for working with us to push our students as
they SOAR to success.

All the best,

Ben Rockoff
email: brockoff@bostonpublicschools.org
cell number: 857-222-2885
Attached you will find important information and critical paperwork. Please be sure to read through it carefully and fill
out and return all the forms enclosed as soon as possible. This information helps us to keep your children safe and
allows the school to run smoothly.
 Emergency Information Sheet: Please fill out one for each child.
 New this year, the Boston Public Schools is encouraging families to view the annual “Guide to the Boston Public
Schools” and fill out the necessary back-to-school forms by accessing the BPS website at
www.bostonpublicschools.org/familyguide . The Guide is available in English and nine other languages. This
helpful guidebook contains summaries of many of the district’s policies, programs, and services. A separate
booklet contains forms that need to be completed by parents, or students 18 or over. A limited number of the
printed guides, as well as booklets containing the forms, will be available at our school office for the families of
students who are new to the district or do not have access to the Internet. The online form is available at
www.bostonpublicschools.org/contact. We encourage you to go online to complete the form for each of your
children as soon as possible. We thank you for your cooperation. Included in this packet is a ticket with your
child’s student ID #.

Attendance:
Our school day begins at 7:30 a.m. and ends at 4:35 p.m. Academics, enrichments, and electives will be happening
throughout the entire day, so please make sure your child gets to school on time and stays the entire day to fully reap
the benefits of what Ellison Parks has to offer. Chronic absenteeism or tardiness (evidenced by coming in late or getting
picked up early) will not be tolerated. Missing school means missing opportunities to learn, grow, and thrive.
We ask that children only remain home for extreme medical emergencies or if they have a potentially-contagious illness.
We have a tremendous team including a wonderfully passionate nurse who is committed to meeting all student’s
medical needs.
If your child is going to be absent, you must call the school and leave a message for the homeroom teacher in order for
the absence to be excused. However, chronic absenteeism can lead to unexcused absences regardless of phone calls.
Further, the school’s attendance is closely monitored by the school department, which may result in an automated
telephone call when your child is absent.

School Opening:
Thursday, September 6th, the school year begins for Grades 1-3. It is a full day of classes, with breakfast and lunch being
served. Parents of students in Grades 1-3 are encouraged to meet and greet their child’s teacher on the first day of
school on September 6, 2018.
Tuesday, September 11th, the school year begins for grades K0-K2. It is a full day of classes, with breakfast and lunch
being served. All K0, K1, & K2 students and families are welcome to attend and the Meet and Greet for their new
Kindergarten teachers and tour their classroom on Friday, September 8th from 1:00-2:30pm.

Kindergarten (K0, K1, & K2) Meet and Greet with Your Child’s Teacher Event
All K0, K1, & K2 Students and families are welcome to attend and the Meet and Greet for their new Kindergarten
teachers and tour their classroom on Friday, September 8th from 1:00-2:30pm.

Transportation:
Bus assignments are provided centrally and you should be receiving that information separately in the mail.
Family Arrival and Dismissal:
The main entrance to the school is located on 108 Babson Street in Mattapan. To ensure student safety, the door is
locked during school hours. Parents and all other visitors must enter the building via the main entrance only and sign-in.
Please ring the bell and you will be buzzed into the building. Report directly to the main office to sign-in.

Drop Off:
Doors open at 7:15am. Students and families may not enter the building before then. Please park on the opposite side of
Babson Street when dropping off your child. Our bus lane is for buses only. When dropping off your child, parents and
guardians must walk their child into the building and make sure that an adult receives him/her before you leave. This
procedure will help to secure your child’s safety. Please make sure that all private transportation drivers and/or parent
designees are informed of this policy.
 Beginning at 7:15am all Kindergarten students line up in the main foyer and transition to their homerooms with
their educators.
 At 7:15am all 1st-3rd graders report to the cafeteria for breakfast.
 When dropping off your child after 8:15am, please sign your child in and wait for a staff member to walk them
to their classroom. Families are not permitted to walk their children to classrooms after 8:15am, in order to
minimize disruptions to instruction. Teaching and learning time is valuable and we do not want to disrupt
classrooms unnecessarily.

Pick Up:
The school day ends at 4:35pm and includes comprehensive, educationally-enriching experiences throughout the day.
 If for some reason your child needs to be picked up early, families must sign their child out in the main office
upon entering the school and wait while your child is called and bought to the office for dismissal.
 When picking up your child at 4:30pm, families should sign out students in the office before reporting to our
Walker Room (room 101).
 Please park on the opposite side of Babson Street when picking up your child. Our bus lane is for buses only.
Families may not go to classrooms to pick up their children without a staff member in order to ensure the safety of all
students. Thank you for your cooperation in this matter. Please make sure that your child’s emergency form is
completed and on file in the main office. You must list the names of all individuals to whom your child can be released.

Uniform:
Ellison Parks has mandatory uniform policy Monday through Thursday. The uniform for students in Kindergarten is a
school shirt (short- or long-sleeve shirt with the school emblem) with royal blue sweatpants. Sweatpants for our
Kindergarteners help our youngest students with potty training, make floor activities more comfortable, and eliminate
problems caused by difficult buttons and pants closures. In grade 1-3 the policy remains the same except students can
wear dark-colored khaki pants.
On Fridays, students are free to wear whatever they choose; however, the expectation is that clothes are clean, neat, fit,
and are appropriate for an elementary school.

We look forward to seeing smiling faces soon!