Welcome FCS parents/guardians! This is your "go to" page page for easy access of useful information.  The Home and School Association (HSA) is the School's volunteer parent/guardian organization.  The HSA is responsible for maintaining this page.  We hope you will make it a "Favorite" or a "Bookmark."

 Curriculum Night

• Virtual Curriculum Night for Grades 2-5: Thursday, September 23 at 7 pm
  • In-Person Parent/Caregiver Gathering: Thursday, September 30 at 7 pm
• Virtual Curriculum Night for N-1: Thursday, September 30 at 7:00 pm
  • In-person Parent/Caregiver Gathering: Thursday, September 23 at 7 pm

Morning Drop-off Locations and Times
If students arrive between 8-8:15 am, they will be directed to the following locations:

• Nursery and Pre-K students will go right to their classrooms
• Kindergarten-grade 2 will have supervised outdoor play on the Lower Playground or will be in the gym during inclement weather
• Grade 3-5 will have supervised outdoor play on the Upper Playground or will be in the Meeting Room during inclement weather for quiet reading or drawing time

If students arrive between 8:15-8:30 am, students will be directed straight to their classrooms

• Between 8:30-8:45 am, a member of our security team will be on duty to ensure students are supervised at the car loop, but students will be marked late. If students arrive after 8:45 am, they should report to the main office and see Mrs. DeSabato.

Morning Entryways
If students arrive between 8:15-8:30 am, they will be directed to their classrooms through the following entry ways. Adults will be posted along the route for safety and supervision

• Nursery will use their designated door
• Pre-K and K will use the entryway next to the gym
• Grades 1 and 2 will use the gym doors
• Grades 3-5 will use the doors on the Lower Playground
• Grade 4 will use the doors that are located on the footpath of the main entrance and lead to our dining room

A Change to Our Dismissal Plans - Please Read Carefully!

• Bus students will be dismissed at 2:50 pm to the front lobby and escorted by assigned adults on duty to their buses.
• This year, we will ask that Nursery and Pre-K students be picked up from their designated drop-off and dismissal areas, rather than using the car loop. This pick-up can begin as early as 2:40 pm. Both doors will be clearly marked for drop-off and pick-up.
• Grades K-5 will be dismissed at 2:50 pm. PPU (People Pick Up) will reopen for grades K-2. We ask that families with students in Kindergarten through 2nd grade park in the gravel lot and pick up from the gym. K-2nd families will line up at the far right gym door with their car tag to help pickup run efficiently. We will allow 6-7 adults in the gym at a time for pick-up, so please be mindful of weather as the waiting area is outdoors.
• Families with students in grades 3-5 will be asked to exclusively use the car loop. Please have your car tag clearly displayed in your passenger window each day.
• Families with children in grades K-2 AND 3-5 should utilize the car loop. Faculty and staff on car loop duty will return to supporting students with opening and closing car doors.

Virtual Curriculum Nights

• Monday, September 20 - Grade 6
• Tuesday, September 21 - Grade 7 & 8

All Middle School Parent/Guardian Gathering - Saturday, October 2 All-School Parent Teacher Conferences - Friday, November 5

Late Arrivals, Absences or Early Dismissal
If your child will be late, absent, or leaving school earlier than 3 pm, please email or call Marian Petrarca in the Middle School office (mpetrarca@friendscentral.org or 610-645-5063). You are also welcome to copy your child’s homeroom teacher, but Marian is the person who keeps track of student attendance and ensures that students have signed in/out. Thank you!

Dismissal Reminders
School ends at 3 pm. We ask, if at all possible, that those picking up by car arrive after 3:15 pm. This makes the parking lot much less congested and keeps it safer for students. When you arrive, please follow the directions of our colleagues doing bus duty. Cars will be directed to a particular part of the parking lot for pick up of students.

If your child’s transportation plans change during the school day, please call or email Marian Petrarca in the Middle School Office before 2 pm. It is important to contact Marian so she can relay the message to your child. (Classroom teachers cannot always check their email during the day.) Students are not permitted to have their cell phones out or on during the school day, so they will not be able to receive messages about changing to pick up/dismissal plans.
 

Save the Date! New Parent Coffee with US Leadership Team - Tuesday, September 28 7:45am

Message from the Upper School Office
After welcoming students back gradually over the past few weeks, it was overwhelmingly wonderful to have a full house on Thursday. Schools need students before they come to life, and those many Adirondack chairs and picnic tables have been waiting to be used! Despite a rainy start, the day was full of “back-to-school” activities from school pictures to a review of rules and procedures (which students were asked to sign off on), especially important as we create, together, the safest community for us all. We are particularly excited to welcome our international students and others who studied remotely all year to campus, along with many new students.

We want to highlight a few things about next week. We will recognize the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks with a collective period of silence on Monday. 10th graders, peer mentors, and advisors will be at Paradise Farm in Downingtown for a day of community building on Tuesday. Last year was challenging for all students, but it was especially difficult for the Class of 2024, made up of students coming from many different schools, to establish and nurture a strong class identity. Thanks so much to grade dean Jacob Fogel and the team of faculty advisors for this experience. Tuesday is also virtual curriculum night for 9th and 10th grade classes, and the link to presentations made by faculty will be shared with you. We are disappointed not to meet parents and caregivers in person early in the year, but we’re hopeful of meeting you all as the year goes along. Teachers will share contact information in their videos, and as always we encourage you to be in touch with any questions.

Finally, we are thinking of those who celebrate Yom Kippur and wishing you a meaningful holiday. School will be closed on Thursday, and no homework will be assigned for Friday.

Important Information About Dining Services
You should have received an email from SAGE via MyKidsSpending with instructions on adding funds to your child's dining account. This will be a cashless system. Please click here for instructions on setting up your MyKidsSpending account. Once you are in your account you will find ways to add funds either via credit card or bank debit. You will not be able to give a check or cash at the register, or drop it off at the Business Office, to add funds to your account. The only way to add funds is through the MyKidsSpending website or app. Any questions or issues, please contact SAGE Dining at S0276@sagedining.com. Any remaining balance from the 2019-2020 school year will roll over into your new account within the next two weeks. To ensure that your child can continue to enjoy dining services, please make sure there are funds in your MyKidsSpending account. 
 

 

Co-Clerks and Division Co-Chairs

Co-Clerks
Meg Wusinich	mfarbmanwusinich@gmail.com
Osaru Anyumba	osaruanyumba@gmail.com
US Division Co-Chairs
Pam Kim	pamvkim@gmail.com
Sabrina Brooks	sbrooks288@yahoo.com
MS Division Co-Chairs
Catherine Chiang	ej_chiang@hotmail.com
Elisha Snedeker	ehsnedeker@gmail.com
LS Division Co- Chairs
Alison Siskin	asiskin521@gmail.com
Felicia Lin	lin.felicia@gmail.com
Vince Giamartino	vincent.giamartino@gmail.com
Kate Jiggins	kate.jiggins@outlook.com
PSOC-Co-Clerks
Ily Houston	ilyhouston@gmail.com
Simone Knight	sknight19008@yahoo.com
Day Yohannes	tsedayyohannes@gmail.com
Joyce Stovall (Semester 1 only)	joycedstovall71@gmail.com

• JTF - Just the FaCtS (our weekly newsletter)

• PPU - Parent/Guardian Pick-up at the end of the day

• MFW - Meeting for Worship

• HSA - Home & School Association, FCS Parent Group

• PSOC - Parents of Students of Color

• PGEAC - Parents/Guardian Equity Action Committee

• School Mascot - The Phoenix

• School Colors - Blue and Gray

Important COVID-19 Vaccine Update

As we know, the single most important measure each of us can take to protect ourselves, along with those on campus, is to get vaccinated against COVID-19. People who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 are at low risk of symptomatic or severe infection. I am grateful to be able to report that as of this past spring, over 95% of Friends’ Central employees were fully vaccinated, and our vaccine clinics at school attracted a robust number of students. For Students Who Are Eligible for Vaccines: We would like to understand the vaccination rate of our eligible students as we do for our employees, so we ask that families of age 12+ students please complete this form by August 13. Please complete one form for per child. The results will go to the Middle and Upper School nurse, Joshua Van Dyke. In keeping with public health and medical experts, we strongly urge all eligible community members to be vaccinated. However, COVID-19 vaccines are not required for employees or students at this time. We will continue to monitor the situation and reevaluate as needed. We are closely following the news for information about vaccine boosters and the possibility of approval of the vaccine for children younger than 12 years of age. Daily Mitigation Efforts Masks are required indoors in all divisions except when students are eating and drinking. With the exception of eating and athletics, masks will be required outdoors when distance cannot be maintained and when the Real Feel temperature is under 85 degrees. We will continue to have families complete a daily Ruvna health screening for their child(ren), regardless of vaccination status, for the foreseeable future. New families will receive information about Ruvna in a separate communication. Ventilation (open windows and doors, filters, and ionization), sanitizing and distancing, when possible, will be part of our daily practice.

Volunteer Survey 2021-2022

As parents and caregivers of our students you are an integral part of Friends’ Central School! Giving your time and energy strengthens and builds our community. Please complete this survey so we know your areas of interest. If you have any questions, please ask in the question box at the end of the survey.

Thank you,

Meg Wusinich and Osaru Anyumba
Home and School Association Co clerks

Volunteer Survey 2021-2022

For more information on how to get involved, contact Andrea Nuneviller in the Home and School Office at 610.645.5040 or anuneviller@friendscentral.org.

Welcome!

Parents and guardians become a part of the HSA upon enrollment and may serve in a variety of ways; as a Co-Clerk, Division Co-Chair or Parent Representative of the Executive Committee, or as a volunteer for a Service, grade specific or all-school event. There should be an opportunity to fit every schedule!

Events sponsored or supported by the Home & School Association include; Parent Gatherings, the Middle and Upper School Book Fairs, the Lower School Pumpkin Fair, Principal Coffees, Curriculum Nights, MLK Day of Service, Movie Nights, Spirit Night and Faculty Appreciation celebrations...just to name a few.

As Co-clerks of the Home & School Association, we believe that Friends’ Central parents and guardians are essential for the development and success of our students. With the support of family and Friends’ our children and our community are made stronger. We know your time is valuable and we value any time you have to give!

Thank you,

Meg Wuisinch and Osaru Anyumba
Co-Clerks of the Home & School Association

The Parents of Students of Color, more commonly known as P.S.O.C., welcomes you!P.S.O.C. is a group of parents/guardians that work collaboratively with the Home & School Association to support families of color by fostering open communication between parents and the School. Our focus is to ensure that families of color feel empowered and included as equal members of the Friends’ Central community. 

Some of P.S.O.C.’s work entails organizing social events, and helping with workshops particularly those focusing on issues surrounding race, diversity, equity,  and inclusion. Our Co-clerks meet with various FCS community stakeholders regularly in an effort to ensure that the unique needs and voices of families of color are understood and valued. P.S.O.C. also hosts meetings for parents throughout the school year that provide us an opportunity to share our collective experiences as families of color at Friends’ Central School. 

Please be on the lookout for forthcoming invitations to future P.S.O.C. hosted events throughout the year. 

Thank you.

Parents of Students of Color Co-clerks

The Parents of Students of Color (P.S.O.C.) have come together in the School’s belief that “each human life is uniquely valuable and interrelated one with another”.  Our purpose is to foster more open communication within the school community between administration, faculty, staff, parents and children.  We support efforts to develop greater understanding and an awareness of the needs and values of children of color and the empowering of children of color within the Friends Central School community as part of a unified whole.

PSOC Events - Save the Dates

PSOC Cookout	Sunday, September 26, noon-3pm
PSOC Fall Meeting	Monday, October 11, 7-8pm
DEBI/PSOC Fall Workshop	Wednesday, November 17, 7-8pm
PSOC Winter Meeting	Monday, January 10, 7-8pm
DEBI/PSOC Spring Workshop	Tuesday, March 8, 7-8pm
PSOC Spring Meeting	Monday, April 18, 7-8pm

 

SAVE THE DATE!

PSOC Ice Cream Social

Sunday, September 26 at 1pm