Dear Saratoga Families,
Welcome to the 2021-22 school year! We hope you are having a wonderful summer break. We are excited to get the new year started. Below is our beginning of school important information.
Open House
Thursday, August 12th from 5:00-6:00 p.m.
- Practice arriving at school using the safest route
- Find your classroom
- Meet your new teachers
- Complete any paperwork online if necessary
First Day of School
Monday, August 16th
- Students will enter Saratoga campus at the Southwest playground gate and follow walking path to cafeteria door ( #6)
- 7:45 – 8:00 a.m.- Free breakfast for all students
- 8:00 – 8:15 a.m.- Students not eating breakfast may arrive and move to the gym
- All students will enter the cafeteria door and eat breakfast or move to the gym where they will be greeted by their teachers
- Staff will meet kindergarten and new students outside close to door #6 to help them through breakfast or move them to the gym to join their lines
- 8:15 a.m.- School begins
- 1:33 p.m.- School dismisses early- School dismisses early the first 3 days of school (August 16, 17 & 18)
Regular School Hours
Begin on Thursday, August 19th
- 7:00 – 8:15 a.m.- Students attending CLC program can arrive
- 7:45 – 8:00 a.m.- Students eating breakfast arrive and report to the cafeteria through Door 6
- 8:00 – 8:15 a.m.- Students NOT eating breakfast arrive and report to the gym through Door 6
- 8: 15 a.m.- School begins
Supervision begins at 8:00 a.m. Students should not arrive on Saratoga campus prior to 8:00 a.m. unless eating breakfast.
Dismissal Information
- 2:53 p.m.- School dismisses (Last Tuesday of the month, 1:33 p.m. for Professional Learning Communities)
- Parents are asked to wait outside the Southwest playground gate at dismissal.
- 3rd, 4th & 5th grades will exit through door #4. K, 1st & 2nd will exit through the gate. Kindergarten and first grade classes will move to the West on Saratoga Street towards I J.- Street. All other students will line up with their teacher along the side walk.
- The staff parking lot will be closed for safety.
- If you are heading West, please do not get out of your car. This lane must keep moving.
- Teachers will wait with children outside until 2:58 p.m. Children not picked up by 2:58 p.m. will be escorted to the gym. After 2:58 p.m., parents/guardians must come to the door #1 to pick-up children and to sign them out.
Lunch Schedule
- Kindergarten: 10:50-11:20 a.m.
- First Grade: 11:20-11:50 a.m.
- Second Grade: 11:50 a.m.-12:20 p.m.
- Third Grade: 11:05-11:35 a.m.
- Fourth Grade: 12:15-12:40 p.m.
- Fifth Grade: 11:40 a.m.-12:10 p.m.
Communication: Tuesday Folders
The Saratoga Tuesday Folders will be utilized as one of our communication tools. While daily materials may still be sent home with your student, other pertinent information will be placed in your child’s special Tuesday Folder. Please be sure to empty the folder, go through the contents with your child, and return the folder the following day.
As we look to the year ahead, please know that the staff at Saratoga wants to partner with you to make this a productive and successful year for your children. We are committed to academic excellence and meeting the needs of each student. If you have a concern about your child at any time throughout the year, please contact your child’s teacher, our coordinator, or myself. We look forward to watching our students grow and learn.
Warm regards,
Annette Bushaw, Principal
abushaw@lps.org
Nutrition Services Information
Hiring Food Service Worker Positions
Would you like a job that allows you to work only on the days when your child is in school with great pay and health insurance benefits? We currently have four, five and six hour positions available. Apply on-line @lps.org.
Student Breakfast and Lunch Meals Free for all Students for 2021-22 SY!
Students have the choice of selecting a cold breakfast (ex: cereal and mini breakfast bar) or hot breakfast (ex: breakfast pizza) plus receive 100% fruit juice, low fat milk and optional 1⁄2 c serving of fruit. A school lunch consists of a choice of two or more hot entrees, chef salad or meatless entrée plus a salad, vegetable, fruit and milk. Purchase of carton of cow’s milk is 50 cents.
New Free and Reduced Meal Application is Required Each School Year
Free and reduced applications are not renewable – they do not carry over from year to year.
Families who receive a letter from Lincoln Public Schools Nutrition Services Department stating that their children have been Direct Certified for free or reduced meal benefits do not need to complete an application –please make sure all the school age children in your home are included in this letter. If one or more of your children are not listed – please call the Nutrition Services office at 402-436-1746. Free and Reduced Meal Application will be available on-line at lps.org. The on-line application is fast and secure taking only one to two working days to process. If you apply on-line and have an e-mail address registered with LPS, you will receive an e-mail notification as soon as your application has been processed. Paper applications may take as long as ten (10) working days to process. Nutrition Services is not responsible for lost paper applications. Free and reduced meal benefits may allow a family to receive fee waiver benefits.
Food Allergies Requiring a Special Diet
the “Medical Statement for Students Requiring Special Meals” (available on the Nutrition Services web page) must be completed and signed by a Physician and turned into the school Health Office. After submitting the form, please plan to send a meal with your child for up to three days so that our staff has time to order the foods necessary to accommodate your student’s diet restrictions.
Web Site for Paying for Extra Food Items
Follow the link at lps.org to MySchoolBucks. A transaction fee will be charged. Cash or check payments for extra food may be made at the school.
LPS Meal Viewer Menu App
Search for “Meal Viewer” from your mobile app store. Includes pictures of the food items, nutritional information and special diet information. You can also view our menus on your computer by visiting the LPS homepage and clicking on “Meal Menus”.
Pork Entrees Labeled on Menu
We apologize that past labeling about our cheese products may have caused some confusion. The cheese (American, cheddar and mozzarella) we use may be made with either microbial and/or animal-derived sources, and these are the same enzymes found in standard cheese sold in grocery stores and served in restaurants. Our labeling of the product may have led families to believe this was a different cheese product.
We will continue to label any entrees that contain pork, such as pork sandwiches and sausage links. New this school year, the pepperoni pizza will be made with turkey pepperoni and not contain pork. If a family prefers non-standard cheese, or perhaps vegetarian cheese as a substitute, we recommend the student choose the plant-based entree option.
