LOUIS ARMSTRONG ELEMENTARY

 July 30, 2012

 Dear Parents,

 The new school year is closely approaching. It is our goal to help you prepare your students for a successful new school year. With this in mind, I would like to inform you that school year 2012-2013 will begin its first Full School Day model. As you have heard through various media outlets, CPS grants the shortest instructional time in the nation to our pupils during the regular school year. We are proud to end this stigma. This new school year will offer 7 hours of structured learning as opposed to 5.45 hours which will enable teachers to maximize time to meet the needs of all learners.

 School will begin on August 13, 2012. Students are expected to arrive in the multipurpose room by 8:15 a.m. in which they will be escorted to class by their homeroom teacher. This is a scheduled full day, in which students will be dismissed promptly at 3:30 p.m. It is critical that you speak to your child about safety routes or arrange to pick your child up to avoid interference with other schools that will be dismissing students at approximately the same time.

 I am elated to share with you that the preliminary ISAT scores have been released. Armstrong School gained remarkable points which show an increase in reading from 53.4% to 61.0%, math  56.9% to 71.0%, and  science 50.0% to 51.5%. This data is a true testimony of teachers, administration, and parental commitment. It is our true belief that communicating high expectations to our students and stakeholders have a positive impact on student achievement. We have created a professional learning community throughout the school, whereby teachers and educational support personnel engaged in trainings, book talks, and data conversations consistently. The implementation of our behavior management program “Foundations” had a great impact to our success school year 2011-2012. While we await the analysis of student behavior data, we are confident that student infractions have plummeted significantly.

 The Local School Council has agreed to the change of school uniform colors this new school year. You should have received an automated message the week of July 9, detailing the change. Our new colors will be burgundy tops and khaki bottoms. Uniforms can be purchased at a variety of retail stores such as JC Penney, Zemsky’s, Kohl’s, and other locations that may be within your neighborhood. Please be aware that students are expected to be in uniforms the first day of school. We will allow grace period up to September 10th for those families that may be experiencing economic hardship. Students without uniforms will be issued a before or after school detention once the grace period is over.

 Included with this letter is the teacher’s recommended school supply list.  I encourage you to have all supplies on the first day of school. Grace period will also be issued up to September 10^th for families experiencing financial challenges. Please know that neglecting to provide school supplies for your child will cause your student to experience difficulties, as it is necessary to be well prepared as learners.

 I am looking forward to meeting each of you on the first day of school and during Open House which will be scheduled in September. I would like to personally thank you for your support and efforts at aiming to make Armstrong Academy a premier school in the Austin Community.

 Sincerely

 Principal Demetrius Bunch

773-534-6365

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.