School Summer Letter 2009-2010
Concordia Lutheran School
2300 Wilshire Road
Springfield, IL 62703
(217)529-3307
Email: church@concordiaspfld.org

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July 2009

Dear Parents,

We hope that your summer is going well and that you are able to spend some time “re-creating” together as a family. It won’t be long and the busy school time schedules will be upon us. 

We’re really looking forward to this coming school year which promises to be another great one! The teachers have already spent many hours in preparation for the coming year. As we continue preparing for the coming school year, we are busy making improvements wherever we can, keeping in mind that our number one goal and chief emphasis is to teach salvation through faith in Christ.

Our staff for the coming year will be as follows: Amy Morgan will be teaching the 3 & 4 year old pre-K classes in our part day preschool program. We welcome a new person to be the All Day Preschool Director and teacher of the 4 year old class. Amy Reed will be teaching the 3 year old class. Kindergarten will be taught by Nona Stuenkel, first and second grade will be taught by Pam Billotte, grade three and four by Kathy Smith, and grades five and six by Denise Bandelow. Mr. Dan Henschen, Concordia’s principal, will teach seventh and eighth grades. We are in the process of finalizing the individual who will teach four afternoons a week in the 7th & 8th grade classroom to give Mr. Henschen administrative time. Denise Hennig will again serve as our music teacher. Pastor Hennig will teach 8th grade confirmation class, and Pastor Koschmann will teach 7th grade confirmation class.

Part Day old preschool will begin on Tuesday, September 1. Classes for Grades K through grade 8 will begin on Tuesday, August 25. The children should be in their assigned classrooms by 8:30 am on the 25th. School doors will open at 8:15 each day school is in session. You are always invited to attend our chapel services. The first one will be at 9:00 am on August 25th, with subsequent chapels being held at 8:45 am on Wednesdays. Hot lunch will be available beginning Tuesday, August 25th. Lunches and milk may be purchased by putting payment in a lunch envelope and putting it in the black box outside the secretary’s office. Grades K-8 will be dismissed at 1:00 PM the first day, August 25. Beginning Wednesday, August 26, grades K-8 will be dismissed at 3:15. Installation and rededication of our teachers will be on Sunday, August 16th. 

Included in this packet of information you will find an order form for the items we have for sale. Please fill out this order form for any items you may need and return it to the school with payment by August 1. The order form details which items can be grouped for payment and which ones need to be paid separately. Please follow those instructions carefully.
This year we are instituting a new voluntary automatic payment option. If you would like to have an automatic payment for tuition taken from your checking account, please complete and return the enclosed form and a voided copy of a check by August 15.

All students in grades 1-8 will be required to have the New International Version (NIV) translation of the Bible for use in the classroom and chapel services. These will be available free of charge. For those needing a copy, we will issue them to the students on the first day of school. To aid the children in learning God’s Word as well as being prepared for confirmation class, we will continue our memory work program. Luther’s Small Catechism is also available at a cost $11.00 if purchased from the school. The teachers will be using assignment books for grades 5-8. These are available for $3.50 from the school also. The price for hot lunch meals will be $2.50. This includes milk. For those wanting milk without the hot lunch or an extra milk, the cost will be $.30. Extra items on the hot lunch menu will be $.60 for the italicized items and $.30 for those in regular print. Information for K-8 families regarding reduced or free meals will be available in the office for anyone wanting the form. 

We will continue to follow the Board of Christian Day School’s tardy policy. It states that after 3 tardies in one quarter, a child’s guardian will receive a warning notice or phone call. Upon receiving the 4th tardy, the child will stay after school on the next Thursday from 3:30-4:00 doing a grade appropriate writing activity in silence in the classroom assigned for tardy duty. At 4:00 the child will be delivered to extended care where the child may be picked up for the day. Extended care fees will be charged for all children serving the tardy detention. A child will serve a tardy detention for each tardy after the 4th tardy for the balance of the quarter. At the end of each quarter the number of tardies previously accumulated will be erased, and the student will start over.

We are continuing the Extended Care Program again this year. The cost will be $1.80 per/hr. or any portion of an hour greater than half an hour. Any portion less than half an hour will be $1.00. Children arriving at school before 8:15 am and/or remaining at school beyond 3:30 PM should be enrolled in the Extended Care Program. Extended care will be available from 7:00 – 8:15 am and 3:15 – 5:30 PM. This program is available only on days when school is in session. Please remember that pick-up and drop off location is always the parking lot by the gym.

Concordia’s Board of Christian Day School has implemented changes to our dress code. Please read carefully pages 12-14 in the Parent & Student Handbook 2009-2010. Recall the changes made last school year where clarification was made concerning printing and logos. Clothing is to have no lettering or numbers. It should have no logos representing an entity other than Concordia Lutheran School/Church or Lutheran High School. If you have any questions, please contact the school.

The Elders and the Board of Christian Day School directed Pastor Hennig and Mr. Henschen to conduct 4 mandatory sessions for all of our school parents right after school begins. The reason for the sessions is to help the parents understand school policies in the handbook as well as explain what the children’s spiritual experiences will be and the biblical doctrines they will be taught. For Christian education to be as effective as possible for the children, the parents need to know what is being taught and why it is being taught. Mr. Henschen will meet with all the parents for the first session, and Pastor Hennig will meet with all school parents for 3 sessions. There will be one new session each week, running for 4 consecutive weeks. Each session will be offered twice during the week giving the parents a choice of times. All sessions during each week will be the same. 

In cooperation with the Springfield schools, and in keeping with the Illinois State Law, Concordia School requires a physical examination by a qualified doctor from each pupil entering school for the first whether it be in preschool, kindergarten, or in any other grade level (and by school policy, all students participating in a sport). A second health record is to be submitted by each pupil entering grade 6. These forms are included or are available in the church office and may be returned at the time of registration (with a final deadline of October 1, or prior to the first practice in the sports program, whichever comes first). PLEASE NOTE: THIS POLICY WILL BE ENFORCED – PHYSICALS WILL BE REQUIRED BEFORE A STUDENT IS PERMITTED TO PRACTICE.

All students are required to show proof of a second MMR (measles, mumps, and rubella) immunization. Any student who does not have proof of this MMR will not be allowed to attend school until proof can be shown.

All children entering 5th grade are required to have a Hepatitis B shot. This immunization must be given in 3 doses.
All children must be immunized against diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, polio, measles, mumps, rubella, and Hib.
All Illinois children in kindergarten, second, and sixth grades will be required to have an oral health examination. The examination must be performed by a licensed dentist, and he/she shall sign the proof of examination form. Each child shall present proof of examination by a dentist prior to May 15th of the school year. School dental examinations must have been completed within 18 months of each school year. If a child in second or sixth grade fails to present proof by May 15th, the school may hold the child’s report card until the requirements are met.

A new state law requires an eye examination for entrance into kindergarten or any student entering an Illinois school for the first time. The examination may be completed within one year prior to the deadline date of October 15. The required form will be provided by the examining physician.

All students who have been diagnosed with asthma must submit a asthma action plan when they are first diagnosed with asthma and at the beginning of each school year thereafter. Student asthma action plan forms, which can be filled out by the child’s physician, are included with this letter. Additional forms are available in the school office.

The chickenpox (varicella) vaccination is a required immunization. Children entering into any school-operated program for the first time at the kindergarten level and below are required to show proof of having received one dose of chickenpox vaccine on or after their first birthday. A physician can confirm past disease history - in lieu of vaccination - by having examined the infected child, documenting the parent’s description of the child’s history, or reviewing laboratory evidence. As with other required vaccinations, the deadline for providing the school with proof of immunization is October 15.
Please also remember that any student up to six years of age entering our school must provide a statement from a physician or health care provider that the child has been screened for lead poisoning. This statement is to be provided prior to admission and subsequently in conjunction with physical examinations.

Continuing the schedule from last year, we will be in school on Veteran’s Day. In connection with our policy of discouraging vacations on school days, we want to make sure our families are informed. Parents are teaching their children positive attitudes toward school and the importance of school when they limit children's absences to illnesses and emergencies. Knowing we will be in session on Veteran’s Day will help you instill proper attitudes.
Please note that the teachers are available to visit in your home (or here at school if you prefer) before the start of the school year. Your child’s teacher will be calling to set up an appointment to visit with you.

Concordia Lutheran School admits students of any race, color, national origin, to all the rights privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national or ethnic origin in administration of our educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship and loan programs, and athletic and other school-administered programs.

Other topics not discussed in this letter are covered in the Parent & Student Handbook 2009-2010.

In His service,

Daniel Henschen
Principal/Teacher 

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