Greetings Parents, Guardians, Caregivers, and Students:
We hope your summer has been restful and wonderful! We have been preparing over the summer and are excited for the first day of school, which is just two weeks away. Our team is ready to welcome our new and returning students back to our classrooms for a productive and fun year of learning. There is a lot of important work to be done together, and we can’t wait to get started!
- For Grades 1-12: Tuesday, September 5
- For Junior Kindergarten and Kindergarten: Thursday, September 7
We are delighted to be sharing our new district motto with you next week. Keep an eye on our website, social media, and ParentSquare for the big reveal, in which you will feel the energy and excitement from our students!
Important steps and reminders to get your child ready for school:
1. Complete the Annual Back-to-School Forms by the First Day of School
Log-in to the CPS Family Portal, where you can find important information, complete forms, and take other important actions. These forms must be completed by the first day of school.
Do you need help completing your forms?
- Contact your school.
- Attend our Back-to-School Forms Help event tomorrow, Wednesday, August 23, at the Cambridge Rindge and Latin School (459 Broadway Court) from 5-7PM
2. Schools Meals are Permanently Free for All Students
Governor Healey has made Universal Free School Meals permanent for all K-12 public school students in Massachusetts. This means that beginning this school year, school breakfast and lunch will be offered at no cost to all students who select a complete meal.
Some families are still encouraged to submit a Free and Reduced Price Meals Application to establish eligibility for benefits and discounts to other Cambridge programs. Those families will receive the application in the mail. It is also available on the Food and Nutrition Services webpage and in the CPS Family Portal. Please note that every student who selects a complete meal will receive the meal at no cost, regardless of eligibility status.
3. Register for ParentSquare
Since we launched and implemented ParentSquare as our main communications tool last August, the platform has elevated our commitment to accessible, accurate, and timely communication with our school community. While there have been challenges, which we will continue to work through, we are proud that 86% of our students have at least one primary contact registered, which means they are actively using ParentSquare to stay connected and informed!
4. Register for the New Health Portal
Our School Health Department invites all families to join our new electronic medical record system known as the
SNAP Health Portal. This web-based system provides an easy, secure, and green way to update and review your child’s health and wellness information and medical documents throughout the year.
Next week, families will receive an email with an invitation to register.
Please note that students who are new to CPS this school year will not be able to sign up for the portal until after the first day of school. You may contact Mackenzie at
[email protected] with any questions.
5. Find Your Bus Information
Within a week, you will receive notification through ParentSquare about
your child’s eligibility for a school bus, where your child’s bus stop is located, and the route.
- You can also use the CPS Bus Finder to find your student’s stop. Please note that some routes are still in the process of being finalized. We encourage you to check again next week to confirm.
- Download the CPS Bus Tracker app for up-to-date information and bus notifications.
- Arrive at your bus stop 10 minutes early.
Information for Families in the Event of a School Emergency
We strive to provide a safe and nurturing environment to support learning. The quick reference guide below provides important instructions if there is an emergency at your child’s school. We encourage you to keep this information quickly accessible.
Important Resources
Thank you for your continued support. We look forward to seeing you very soon!
Sincerely,
The CPS Team