Welcome

Dear Calverton Families,

It is with great anticipation and excitement that we welcome the Calverton  ES community to the 2023-2024 school year!  I want to thank you all for the warm welcome  to the community as a new principal last year.  It was a wonderful year of growth  for me as I was able to learn more about our community, parents and most of all…your children (our students)!  With the effects of the pandemic becoming less of a factor, we were able to re-establish in-person activities such as, Coffee with the Principal, Community Pride Day, International Night, STREAM Night, Calverton Day and many other opportunities!  This year, we are excited to continue to open the doors of Calverton to increase parent and community engagement.

Calverton is ecstatic to welcome our  new Assistant Principal, Mr. Riffe (rhymes with knife)!  Mr. Riffe comes to Calverton with a wealth of knowledge and experience as an Assistant Principal and we are excited to welcome him to the family!  Mr. Riffe joins us as Ms. Abdullah settles into her new acting principal position at another PGCPS school!  We are grateful  for what  Ms. Abdullah brought to the Calverton community and wish her the best of luck as we welcome  Mr. Riffe and look forward to another fantastic school year!

We also welcome  Superintendent House, III as he steps in to  lead the county this year and will continue to follow the county’s Strategic Plan.  We will continue to build on our success last year while bringing increased focus to our Math instruction, our Students with Disabilities and our Multi-Language Learners.  We will also continue to build a positive culture at Calverton through equity and inclusion.

Our goal is to continue bring a sense of normalcy to our students and families, and also commit to acting and adjusting as we adapt to changes that may come our way. The Calverton ES staff is ready and prepared for this challenge. Last year, we learned that transparency, accountability and open communication provide the foundation for great work. We will continue with this mindset this school year. Our theme this school year is Finding New Ways to Fly! Keeping this in mind, we are excited to introduce Calverton Elementary’s new mascot!

After the community vote, the winner was the design  submitted by Ms. Bernabe, a former teacher at Calverton.  The winner was submitted to the PGCPS Communications where our own Graphic Designer made tweaks that would allow our mascot to be more  easily branded.  Both  mascot designs are  below. We love that this mascot symbolizes the essence of who we are; a community of care.  Please feel free to use the new mascots in your signature lines, school communications, promotional items, etc.

On Friday, August 25, 2023, we will have Orientation Day where students and parents will have the opportunity  to meet their new teachers and be ready to start school on Monday, August 28, 2023. 

Other important things to note for this school year:

• School Hours:  7:30am - 1:55pm
• Uniforms are required. 
• Tops - Gold, Royal Blue or White Polo 
• Bottoms - Khaki pants, shorts, dress or skirts (all shorts, dresses and skirts must be fingertip length)
• Shoes - Athletic shoes are preferred.  Fully closed shoes are required for student safety. (please no Crocs!)
• Sweaters/Jackets - Must be gold or royal blue without a hood
• Technology will continue to be a part of daily instruction. All registered students should have a county-issued device. Students should be prepared to safely transport their device to and from school daily.

• For safety reasons, parents and visitors will only be permitted in the building by appointment only.
• Families with students who will be riding the bus this fall can download the new

StopFinder mobile app for info on bus locations and schedules..

With our systemic focus on Change, Innovation, and Transformation, I stand by our vision and mission of our school that Calverton is a place providing a nurturing learning community of academic excellence for all young scholars and the promoting of a college and career readiness culture at the foundational level. We are going to emphasize where our scholars are, not what they missed, and continue to push for academic excellence for our students as we continue to Find New Ways to Fly!

Thank you in advance for being our partner in education. Together, we will be the change agents our young scholars need to have a successful school year.

Educationally yours,

Principal Smith