BFA web banner
Ben Franklin Academy NewsletterVol. 4, Iss. 8
February 2014
In This Issue
:: Upcoming Nominations | Spirit Day | BFF Social | BFA Service Day
:: Mother/Son Event | Additional Formal Uniform Day in March | Thank You, Volunteers! | BENefit Bash Updates
:: MCO Knows | PTO Gives Back | Street Smarts at SouthGlenn | Colorado Mammoth Night | Calendar
Colorado League of Charter Schools
Dear Parents,

I am often asked by parents, "How can I help Ben Franklin Academy?" There are many ways that parents help the school every day - ranging from financial donations to donations of your time and energy. Now, I am asking for your support in a different way - your voice. Your voice in advocating for your child's education and for the school cannot be underestimated. Living in a democratic society allows you to have your voice heard by the legislators who make our laws. Now is the time to act; now is the time to reach out to your representative and let him/her know that charter schools need their support. The enclosed article demonstrates the importance of the Student Support Act for charter schools. As a whole, charter schools would benefit greatly from the passage of this Act. Capital construction for charters would increase from $7 million per year to $25 million per year. (These figures are allocated among all charter schools in the state.)

To read the Student Success Act article, click here.
To read the proposed legislation, click here.
To send a pre-formatted message to your legislator, click here.
Upcoming Nominations  Vote Button
 

Board of Directors  

Are you, or someone you know, interested in getting more involved in BFA? BFA is seeking leaders, who are passionate and committed to our school, to become involved in school governance. For more information about the upcoming Board of Directors Election/Appointment, including the nomination and voting processes and qualifications, please click here. You also may contact Staci Ferguson, Board Secretary, via email. Nominations must be submitted online by midnight, tomorrow, Friday, Feb. 28.   


MCO Nominations
 

If you, or someone you know, is interested in becoming Chair of BFA's MCO Committee, please click here for more information or to fill out the nomination form. Feel free to nominate yourself or someone else. For more information, click here to view the MCO Chair job description. The nomination window closes at midnight, Saturday, March 1.  

To learn more about what the MCO does, click here.

   

PTO Nominations

Are you or someone you know interested in holding a position with the BFA Parent Teacher Organization (PTO)? Information about the BFA PTO nomination/ election process and job descriptions can be found by clicking here. To nominate yourself or someone you know for a PTO position for the 2014-15 school year, please click here.

 

Nominations must be submitted by Monday, March 24. After the nomination process, elections will be completed online from Monday, April 14, to Friday, May 2, for all open officer and committee chair positions. The offices of vice president, secretary and social coordinator are up for vote by the school community. Each of the preceding positions are two-year terms and run from 2014-16 (school years). All committee chair positions are up for election, and all coordinator positions are up for appointment.  

Mother/Son Event
 
BFA's annual Mother/Son Event is coming up soon. This year will be a fun hoedown with lasso lessons, line dancing and a mechanical bull! So, put on your cowboy gear and mosey on down to BFA's gym from 5:30-9:30 p.m., Saturday, March 8.

Tickets must be purchased in advance through the BFA Store (sales end Monday, March 3). Cost is $20 per "couple" and $8 for each additional son. Price include
s all events, a BBQ dinner and a trip to the photo booth. 
Thank You, Thank You, Volunteers! 
thankyou_paper_hdr.jpg Parent volunteers: It is that time of year again! The Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) has started handing out thank you gifts for hours completed. Over the next three to four weeks, your child will bring home a gift for hours completed through Feb. 10. We will do this a few more times throughout the remainder of the year.   
  • 15 hours: BFA reusable bag
  • 30 hours: BFA car magnet

  • 50 hours: BFA bucks that can be redeemed for spirit wear at a PTO table 

  • 100 hours: BFA tumbler 

MCO Knows Question mark
  

Q: If my child is absent, how long does my child have to make up their homework and classwork?


A: Students are expected to make up any classwork and homework missed during absences.

 

Students will be given two (2) days for each day absence to complete and turn in missing assignments. The two (2) days begin the day the student returns to school. A homework

plan may be developed by the teacher for any absence of five (5) or more consecutive

days.

 

If you would like to read more on this subject, click on the following links to BFA's Homework Policy and Student Attendance Policy:

Each week, the Marketing and Community Outreach (MCO) Committee will have a Q&A in this newsletter regarding policies or procedures at BFA. If you have questions you need answered related to BFA policies or procedures, please email the MCO. Your question will be answered via email and possibly used in a future Q&A.  
Street Smarts at SouthGlenn Street Smarts at SouthGlenn
  
When you sign up for the Street Smarts email, BFA receives 1,000 points!
 
Visit shoppingpartnership.com/southglenn, click on Shopping Centers and select The Streets at SouthGlenn. It will ask for your email address and name. After you submit your information, you will be sent an email. Please open and click on the link to confirm; once you do so, BFA gets 1,000 points!    
 

BFA is one of 20 schools in the metro area that gets to participate in the Street Smarts for Southglenn program. If BFA ends up being the school with the most points, we can earn $2,500 for the school.

  

Earn Double Points

BFA can earn double points from the following Streets at SouthGlenn stores by logging your receipts by Friday, Feb. 28: Andrew's Jewelers, Apricot Lane, Bellezza Boutique, Chico's, Edible Arrangements, Elements Therapeutic Massage, Grapes Wine Market & Spirits, Trice Jewelers, Tropical Smoothie and White House | Black Market 

 

Don't have time to turn in your receipts from shopping or dining? If you don't need the receipts returned, you can turn them into a box in the front office (near the name badges/window). Copies of receipts are not accepted by the program.
Spirit Day     Megaphone

 

Spirit Day is tomorrow, Friday, Feb. 28. Students are allowed to wear a spirit wear T-shirt (includes former Field Day T-shirts) along with their uniform bottoms of choice. If your child chooses not to wear a spirit wear T-shirt, s/he must be in full uniform.  
BFF Social     croissant2.jpg
For Third Through Fifth Grades

 

Parents of third through fifth graders, this Ben Franklin Friends (BFF) Social is especially for you! Do you want to get to know other BFA families with kids in these grades? Come to the BFF Social after drop off until 10 a.m., tomorrow, Friday, Feb. 28, at the Lucent Super Target Caf� Starbucks.

 

The BFF Social is intended for parents to meet one another, ask policy questions and voice feedback about their experiences at BFA. Kids who are home with you are welcome.  

 

While the MCO is focusing on families with kids in third through fifth grades this month, BFF socials are always open to all BFA families. Hope you can join us! For any questions, please email the MCO.

BFA Service Day serviceday  
  
BFA Community Service Day is from 9-11 a.m., THIS Saturday, March 1. Please sign up today so we can guarantee enough supplies for all families who would like to participate!
  • To sign up as a family, click here.
  • To sign up to help with school TLC projects, click here.
Attention: All BFA Families
Please wear old clothes that you don't mind getting dirty. The Earth Day grocery bag station will have fabric paint, fabric markers and non-washable markers that can stain and damage clothing.

Attention: All Dads
We need one dad with a pickup truck to meet Joe at 8 a.m., Saturday, March 1, at the contractor pickup at The Home Depot in the Highlands Ranch Town Center. Email the MCO by tomorrow, Friday, Feb. 28, if you are available to help. 

Any dads planning on helping in the storeroom behind the lunchroom will need to wear long-sleeved shirts, as they will be working with insulation.

Additional Formal Uniform Day in March

Class picture day (usually scheduled on a formal uniform day) had to be rescheduled this year, so there will be an additional formal uniform day in March to accommodate the new class picture date.

The formal uniform dates in March are as follows:
  • Wednesday, March 5 (formal uniform day on the first Wednesday of the month)
  • Tuesday, March 18 (rescheduled class picture day)
BENefit Bash Updates    
BENefit Bash 2014    
Tickets Now On Sale  
The BENefit Bash (BFA's premier fundraising and social event) is at 5:30 p.m., Saturday, April 26, at the Inverness Hotel and Conference Center (200 Inverness Drive, Engelewood).

Tickets to the BENefit Bash silent auction are $45 each and currently on sale! The first 25 individuals or couples who purchase tickets (non staff, as they get free tickets) will be entered in a drawing for a prize. If a teacher purchases a ticket for his/her spouse/guest, s/he will be entered in the drawing. To purchase tickets, click here.

Wine Wall
Donations (valued $10 or more) need to be brought to the front office and labeled for the auction with donor name and value.
 
Art Contest
A big thank you for for all of the art submissions for the BENefit Bash catalog. They are currently being voted on, and the cover page winner will be announced shortly. ALL art submitted for the contest will be printed in the catalog. 
PTO Gives Back PTO Logo
 
One of the goals of BFA's Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) is to direct resources toward goals of our students, staff and parents. We have had several parents look to their companies' matching programs to provide funds that go back to BFA. These parents have been able to earmark funds to go toward projects they support, such as BFA's science program, physical education, teacher resources and books for the library. The PTO is able to work with the requests and purchase the items for the school.

Check with your employer to determine if your company provides matching funds or grants either through volunteer hours or donations.  Click here to view more information about employer grants and matching gifts programs.
DCSD Colorado Mammoth Night MammothLacrosse
 
Come see the Colorado Mammoth take on the Calgary Roughnecks at 7 p.m., Saturday, March 8, at the Pepsi Center. Tickets are $13. As a special incentive, the Mammoth and Douglas County Educational Foundation (DCEF) will donate $3 of each ticket purchased directly to the school of your choice.  
 

The three top selling schools will get to host a Mammoth player at a school event, and the top school will receive a special fan experience at the game! The schools with the highest attendance (by Saturday, March 1) will receive the best seat locations, starting in the lower bowl of the Pepsi Center valued up to $38 each!

 

Click here to order tickets and then select your school to proceed. 
Important Dates / Calendar of EventsCalendar Clip Art
  • Spirit Wear Day: Friday, Feb. 28
  • BFF Social (Third through Fifth Grades): After drop-off through 10 a.m., Friday, Feb. 28, Lucent Super Target Starbucks  
  • BFA Board of Directors Nominations Deadline: Midnight, Friday, Feb. 28 
  • BFA Service Day: 9-11 a.m., Saturday, March 1, BFA 
  • MCO Committee Chair Nominations Deadline: Midnight, Saturday, March 1 
  • Mother/Son Event Ticket Sales Deadline: Monday, March 3
  • TCAP Writing and Math (Third Grade): Tuesday, March 4, through Friday, March 14   
  • TCAP Reading, Writing and Math (Fourth through Eighth Grades): Tuesday, March 4, through Friday, March 14  
  • Formal Uniform Day: Wednesday, March 5  
  • Mother/Son Event: 5:30-9:30 p.m., Saturday, March 8, Gym      
  • PTO Nominations Due: Monday, March 14
  • Formal Uniform Day/Class Picture Day: Tuesday, March 18  
  • Yearbook Sales Deadline: Tuesday, April 1
  • PTO Elections: Monday, April 14, to Friday, May 2  
  • BENefit Bash Silent Auction: 5:30 p.m., Saturday, April 26, Inverness Hotel and Conference Center (200 Inverness Drive, Englewood) 
Upcoming Meetings        
  • Grant Committee: 9 p.m., Monday, March 3, Teleconference
  • Marketing and Community Outreach (MCO) Committee: 6:30 p.m., Tuesday, March 4, Library
  • Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) Committee: Wednesday, March 5, Sanders Science Lab (room 145)
  • School Accountability Committee (SAC): 4 p.m., Thursday, March 6, Conference Room
  • Finance Committee: 5 p.m., Monday, March 10, Library
  • Board of Directors: 5:30 p.m., Tuesday, March 11, Library
    • Find the latest BFA Board of Directors minutes by clicking here.  
  • Green Team Committee: 4:15 p.m., Wednesday, March 12  
  • Parent Teacher Organization (PTO): 6:30 p.m., Thursday, March 13, Library  
Ben Franklin Academy Calendars
Sincerely,
 
Bob Barber
Principal
Ben Franklin Academy
Contact Us!
Ben Franklin Academy

2270 Plaza Drive, Highlands Ranch, CO 80129

Main Office: (720) 383-4519 or [email protected]

Attendance: (720) 432-9239 or [email protected]

Web: http://www.bfacademy.org/

Fax:  (303) 974-1738  

Mission: Our mission is to develop young adults with character like America's founding Renaissance man, Benjamin Franklin: well-read, scientifically curious, and civically engaged. 


Vision: Our students will excel academically through a challenging, sequenced curriculum that emphasizes math, science, and literacy. We will be a data driven institution, focusing on individual students. Our students, teachers, parents, staff, and leaders will be held accountable for the success of our school. Finally, we recognize that an education is incomplete without fostering the arts, sports, nature, and character.


13 Virtues:
Temperance, Silence, Order, Resolution, Frugality, Industry, Sincerity, Justice, Moderation, Cleanliness, Tranquility, Purity and Humility.