What we in the office call the "Summer Mailing" is finished and has been emailed to all of our families.  If you did not receive an email with 3 attachments to download, read, and in some cases print and return to school, please call the office to make sure we have your correct email address, and make arrangements to either come by for a paper copy or request it be emailed to you.  It is chock full of information that will help you and your child get the most of out Renaissance.

The PTA also sent out their Welcome Packet in an email, so check to make sure you have those documents as well.   In all, you should have received emails with the following attachments:

• TRCS.2012 Summer Mailing (the narrative)
• TRCS.2012 Forms (forms to print, fill-out and return with your child on Monday, September 10)
• 2012 Afterschool Apps (applications for both the K-4 After-school Program, and the 5th-10th grade program run by 82nd Street Academics)
• PTA Forms (Membership forms, fliers and announcements from your PTA Executive Board.)  

Believe me, everything you will want to know about your child's Renaissance experience is in the mailing, so get it, read it and return it! 

What's On Your Mind?

 New Schedule for 7th-10th Graders

If you have opened your Summer Mailing, the Welcome Back packet emailed to parents this past week, you may be wondering why your 7th-10th grader starts class 10 minutes earlier than the rest of the school? 

Renaissance takes its mission, of helping to mold humanistic, global citizens and creative leaders, very seriously.  As such, we are constantly looking for ways to building time in the day to reinforce that message and help each individual student reach their full potential.

In an effort to ensure that every student has at least one adult in the building that supports their overall growth, 7th-10th grades will begin the day with a for-credit homeroom and advisory period from 8:00 AM to 8:20 AM.  We are using the acclaimed Developmental Designs advisory curriculum that helps students navigate the school successfully and supports college and life readiness.  The groups are small: each advisory has about 13 students and one advisor who has been trained in the Developmental Designs method and curriculum. The curriculum will include activities that promote community and social-emotional skill-building, and advisors will be able to advise students individually and as a group, through academic and life challenges.  

Remember, this is a for-credit mini-class.  Please help your student be on time every day!  

Advisories start in the 6th grade, and for 6th, 11th and 12th, we have made time in the school day for these important group meetings. 

 Global citizen and Renaissance grad Keith Byam, class of 2011 and a sophomore at St. John's University, traveled to Botswana this past July on a service mission with a group called the Leadership Exchange, to benefit their partner organization Bana Ba Letsatsi.  BBL runs a center that supports over 250 vulnerable, at-risk and orphaned children and youths.  Some of their children have never been to school or dropped out early; others suffer physical and sexual abuse, abuse drugs and alcohol, work underage, beg and/or lack parental care. BBL offers a place of safety for education and counseling, providing food, medical attention, clothes, showers, training, haircuts and meeting any other needs encountered by the children.   

I interviewed Keith over email a few weeks ago to find out about his experiences.   I asked him about how he and the team prepared for their service, and what they did when they got there.  "Before we went to Botswana the entire group had a 4-day orientation at Williams College in Williams, Massachusetts.  The group was comprised of high school students from Riverdale Country School and college students.  We took part in team building exercises and learned about Botswana's history.

  While we were in Botswana we were involved in various community service jobs.  Our main focus was on Bana Ba Letsatsi.  As a group we did beautification jobs within BBL and the community, such as installing chicken-wire to prevent animals from getting into the garden, built a laundry room, fixed the dining area, made cement steps to walk to the outdoor sheds, painted a mural and fixed a see-saw.  Within the community we planted trees, worked at a day-care center, and tutored at a school that helps drop-outs get back to school. On weekends we got to go on safaris, looking at animals in their natural habitat."   When I asked Keith whether the reality of the trip matched his expectations he said, "When I first received the invitation I was beyond excited.  I have always enjoyed giving back to communities and traveling (like the NOLA trip when I was at Renaissance), so to bring the best of both worlds together was great.  I knew that I would see living conditions that I would not believe without seeing and a lot of animals.  I was shocked at how friendly the people in Botswana were.  To be with them, you would almost believe they have no worries because they are always so happy.  We would see kids who don't know when they are going to get a meal or where they will sleep, who would have the biggest smiles on their faces.  It made me really think about my own worries and complaints.  What do I worry about? Not having enough money for the latest sneaker.  These kids don't know if they are going to eat again after lunch at BBL."

As you know, Renaissance is always striving to offer our students the most that we can. We feel fortunate to have been able to develop many unique programs at our school, ones which we feel confident cannot be found at other NYC public schools. Many of these programs are made possible because of the support of you, our families. Funds raised by the PTA help to bring extra enrichment programs to the school, as well as the purchase of much needed equipment. We have also been fortunate to have received support from some great foundations and corporations. The Patrina Foundation is supporting Renaissance for the next four years to expand the Sadie Nash Young Women's Leadership Program at Renaissance for our high school girls. Consolidated Edison has given us much funding for the expansion of our rooftop garden and a grant from Grow NYC allowed us to expand our greenhouse, giving our agriculture students much more room to experiment with growing new crops.

Realizing how quickly technology changes, and how important it will be for our students to have a strong understanding of the use of technology hardware and software, we would like to plan a complete overhaul of our computers and computer related equipment in order to outfit our student media centers with the most up-to-date equipment. This will become exceedingly more important as we try to move our students towards a more paperless platform, such as ePortfolios which will enable them to save important school work from year to year. Many of our classrooms also need new computers and more whiteboards for the teachers.

In order to take on this project, Renaissance will be kicking off its' first ever "Capital Campaign". Capital Campaigns differ from many of the fund-raisers we have done in the past, which are usually one time events such as the Scholastic Book Fair or Mardi Gras Carnival. These campaigns often run for three years or more to support big-ticket items such as costly equipment, and will consist of many different types of fund-raising including direct appeals (mailings), special events, grants and more.

So over the next couple of years you will probably hear and see many reminders about this project, including the  

 "Thermometer" showing how close we are getting to our goal. A major kickoff to the project will be our 20^th Anniversary celebration, taking place in March, so keep on the lookout for more information on that. In the meantime, if you would like to show your support for Renaissance, consider becoming a "Friend of Renaissance". By making a donation at a certain level, you will receive Renaissance merchandise and admission to some of our fun events during the upcoming year. Visit http://www.renaissancecharter.org/support/opportunities to make your donation and place your order!

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