Welcome Note

August 18, 2025

Dear Students and Parents/Guardians:

Welcome to a brand-new school year at Benjamin D. Foulois Creative and Performing Arts Academy! We are so excited to welcome our students and families back for a year filled with learning, creativity, and excellence.

Our theme for this year is:
Conquering the Pressure of Perfection: Continuing to Move in Our Greatness! We will operate in a spirit of transparency, love, high expectations, accountability, and flexibility—because we know the best learning happens when there is trust, care, and consistent partnership between home and school.

Our mantra says it all:
Perfection is not the goal… action through purpose, progress, & patience is! We’re ready to work side-by-side with you to help our students grow, thrive, and shine.

School & Office Hours

• School Hours: 9:30 a.m. – 4:10 p.m.  Students may not enter the building before 9:00 a.m. unless enrolled in the AlphaBest before/after care program. Dismissal begins at 4:00 p.m.
• Office Hours: 8:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Arrival & Dismissal

We will not be using PickUp Patrol this year. While we understand emergencies may happen, they should not be daily occurrences.

• If there is a consistent change to your child’s dismissal plan, please contact Ms. Holmes for a new plan and return it to the main office.
• If you have a one-time or emergency change, please let your child know before leaving home whenever possible.
• Please do not call your child directly on their cell phone during the day—this violates the PGCPS/BDF Cell Phone Policy.
• If an emergency occurs after your child has left home or if your child is in grades K–5, please email their teacher(s), Ms. Halsey, and Ms. Holmes…all email addresses can be found on the BDF website.
• Any dismissal changes made after 2:00 p.m. should also be sent to the grade level administrator.
• Early dismissal ends at 3:30 p.m…NO EXCEPTIONS.
• Students arriving after 9:25 a.m. are considered “tardy”. Late bus arrivals will receive a late bus tardy slip, while students being dropped off late by a parent or van service must be signed in by a parent/guardian at the main office.

Dismissal Plan & Flash Pass

Please complete the enclosed Dismissal Plan for each student and return it on August 26th.

• Kindergarten parents may return the plan at Kindergarten Orientation on August 25th.
• Each family will receive a Dismissal Flash Pass to help speed up dismissal. Please do not make copies or share it. Parents without a pass must follow the standard ID check/sign-out procedure.

Transportation

Due to the ongoing bus driver shortage, some delays are possible.

• Transportation will be provided for students fully registered by August 15th.
• Bus assignments will be posted in ParentVUE beginning August 18th and mailed that week.
• Download the StopFinder app for real-time updates: StopFinder Info.
• Questions or concerns: Transportation Resolution System or call 301-952-6570.

AlphaBest Before & After Care

AlphaBest provides K–8 before/after care. The program may be at capacity, but you can contact them directly at www.alphabest.org for information.

Publicity Release

The enclosed Publicity Release Form must be completed and returned by August 26th to allow your child to:

• Appear in the yearbook.
• Be featured in school announcements.
• Be shown in performance flyers or videos.
• Appear in any media coverage (including first day of school).

School Meals

Breakfast and lunch are available to all students.

• Families are encouraged to apply for free/reduced-price meals at MySchoolApps.com.
• No outside food deliveries (UberEats, GrubHub, etc.) are allowed…no exceptions.

Health Requirements

• Medication must be renewed yearly with the correct physician-signed forms. Parents must deliver medication directly to the school nurse.
• Immunizations must be current by September 15th or your child will be excluded from school.

Visitors

• All visitors are required to show legal identification and state your purpose for the visit before gaining entrance to the building.
• For classroom visits, you must make an appointment before coming to the building.
• Visitors may only enter the main office unless approved for a classroom visit (max. 1 hour unless shadowing is required).
• Parent conferences may be in-person or virtual.

Communication

We will keep you updated through:

• Weekly parent newsletters
• Class Dojo
• ParentVUE
• School Website

Please ensure your contact (email) information is current. All school correspondence will be electronic. All parents are required to have a Parent VUE account…this is a 25-26 SY PGCPS requirement.

Important Dates

• Aug. 25: New Student Orientation
  • Grades K–5: 9–11 a.m. (K–2 parents may accompany students; no bus service for K–5)
  • Grades 6–8: 9 a.m.–12:45 p.m. (Bus service provided; parents may not enter classrooms)
• Aug. 26: First Day of School for All Students
  • Parents may drop off supplies between 9–9:15 a.m. only. After 9:15 a.m. supplies can be dropped off in the main office and a staff member will deliver the supplies to the designated classroom. Please make sure your child’s and homeroom teachers’ names are on all supplies.
• Aug. 28: Administrator-Only Parent Night, 6–7:30 p.m.
  • Target Audience: Parent/Guardian of BDF Students. Classroom teachers will not be in attendance and classroom visits will not be allowed. Parents/Guardians will have an opportunity to meet the BDF Administrators, receive information about the school, daily routines, expectations, BDF culture and to learn about and join the BDF PTO. This will be the BDF PTO first general body meeting of the school year.
• Sept. 4: Schools & Offices Closed
• Sept. 5: Books on The Ground, BDF Family Night
• Sept. 24: K–5 Back-to-School Night, 6–8 p.m.
• Sept. 25: 6–8 Back-to-School Night, 6–8 p.m.

Message from the BDF PTO

Get ready, everyone! The PTO can hardly contain its excitement for the amazing school year that's just around the corner! Mark your calendars for August 28th…that’s when our very first general body meeting takes place.

We want YOU to be part of the action this year! Join the PTO and help us make incredible memories together. This year our focus is engagement…getting more families involved in the life of our school.

It’s easy to sign up:

• Visit the BDF Website → Parents Tab → PTO
• Join our GroupMe for quick updates: Join GroupMe
• Email us at fouloispto@yahoo.com with any questions

Don’t miss out…this year is going to be off-the-charts awesome!

Again, welcome to a new year, where we are Conquering the Pressure of Perfection: Continuing to Move in Our Greatness. Remember, perfection is not the goal… action through purpose, progress, & patience is! If you have questions, concerns, or need assistance, please email me at keshia.hogue@pgcps.org, or an Assistant Principals, Ms. Hawkins (K–5) at tamara.hawkins@pgcps.org, or Mr. Sherman Hunter (6–8) at sherman.hunter@pgcps.org.

We can’t wait to see you soon!

With Falcon Pride,
Keshia Hogue
Principal