A John Irwin School of Excellence, and A Gilder Lehrman Affiliate School
CALENDAR
April 5|Kindergarten Concert, 6:30 pm April 5|WatchDOG, Ryan Banning April 7|WatchDOG, Brien O'Malley April 8|Kindergarten Roundup April 8|Liberty Common Gala, 6 pm-11pm, Hilton Fort Collins. April 14|WatchDOG, Azer Yalin April 15-16|5th and 6th Grade Dessert Theatre
Board of Directors
You may contact all members of our Board of Directors at BOD@libertycommon.org or by telephone:
Patrick Albright: 232-8257
Joel Goeltl: 593-8556
Paulette Hansen: 282-8455
Jeff Webb: 545-9636
Denise Benz: 420-4184
John Rohrbaugh: 225-2259
Aislinn Kottwitz: 217-5925
Next Board of Directors Mtg.,
March 24, 2016
Liberty Common Elementary
In an effort to keep students safe during drop-off and pick-up times, please refrain from using cell phones. The front, middle and back drop-off and pick-up areas are designated NO CELL PHONE AREAS.
Attendance Policy
Please call our attendance line by 8:30 am if your child will not be attending school due to illness, appointment or is out of town. The number is 482-9800, option 2.
If you need to take your child to an appointment during school hours, please come to the Front Office, sign them out and we will call them out of class.
All students who arrive after 8:00 a.m. must be signed in at the Front Office. It is important that a reason be included on the sign-in sheet.
Liberty Sports News
This Week In Junior-High Sports: Girls Soccer:
Monday, 4/4, 4pm, Away @ Knowledge Quest Wednesday, 4/6, 4pm, Home vs Resurrection
Last Liberty Lecture
Last week's Liberty Lecture was a wonderful conclusion to this year's schedule of community lectures. This one was led by LCHS English instructor Mrs. Natalie Scarlett and included introductory remarks by Dr. Bob McMahon of Ridgeview Classical Schools. The lecture and discussion covered distinguishing a classical education from other contemporary approaches and rolling back the advances of anti-intellectualism. If you missed it, you missed an enjoyable opportunity involving families, students, and visitors. Make sure to attend them next year.
ALEXA'S HUGS
5-K Coming Soon
Alexa's Hugs 5K & Family Fun Run Join us for our first annual 5K, Family Fun Run/Walk, and Family Safety Expo and support a local nonprofit.
Alexa's Hugs is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization with the mission of providing positive encouragement for seat belt and vehicle safety.
Our Seat Belt Challenge grew from four schools (4,000+ students) to eleven schools (14,000+ students) in the last two years.
Our programs include safety events, "Click It To Win It," "Design Your Own Hug," the Seat Belt Challenge, and seat belt reminders we call "Hugs." Hugs are made for the general public and customized for schools so our message of vehicle safety is shared no matter where you see us!
Our collaboration with Safe Kids Larimer County, Ford Driving Skills for Life, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, local safety agencies, and more, assures that you are supporting an organization that doesn't go it alone. We are willing to work with others to achieve our goals of improving vehicle safety.
We're achieving results that matter. In 2014, we saw an improvement in observed seat belt use of 8.6% in four local high schools. In 2015, that number rose to 10.7% increase in seat belt use at eleven northern Colorado high schools. There is more room for improvement, but we are making great progress in improving the safe driving habits of local teens!
Your support of Alexa's Hugs allows us to continue to offer these valuable programs in northern Colorado. WE THANK YOU!
Board of Directors Highlights - PDS Bond Proposal, Parent Survey, and LCS Election Results
PSD Bond Proposal
The Poudre School District is considering asking voters to approve a $375 million bond this November to fund the following items:
1. A new combination middle/high school in Wellington
2. A new combination middle/high school near Timnath
3. An elementary school in southeast Fort Collins
4. An addition to Zach Elementary
5. Various school-based requests
As the current bond proposal stands, Liberty Common School will receive $150,000, or 0.04% of the total bond money. For reference, Liberty Common School makes up 3.65% of Poudre School District's student population. Liberty Common School's requests to PSD for the bond totaled $1.2 million, and include items such as carpeting, HVAC equipment, roofing for the elementary school, acquisition of land for athletic fields, and a variety of other facilities-related requests.
The total allocated for all four PSD charter schools (Liberty Common School, Ridgeview Classical School, Mountain Sage Community School, and Fort Collins Montessori School) from the proposed bond is $342,000. The current proposal does not allow any of this money to be spent on permanent facilities such as roofing, carpeting, HVAC, etc., and PSD must approve specific expenditures before the money will be released to the schools.
Liberty Common board vice chairman Patrick Albright is communicating with the PSD Board of Education to try and improve the bond conditions and allocations to the four PSD charter schools. The PSD board is scheduled to approve the bond proposal at their meeting on April 26th, though that date is subject to change. Please CLICK HERE TO for a detailed explanation of the PSD bond proposal. Pages 10 and 25 discuss the allocations to the charter schools.
Parent Survey - The Results are In
Many parents completed the annual survey - THANK YOU! We received over 12 total pages of comments and have read every one. We are very impressed by our overall scores. The vast majority of parents are strongly satisfied with Liberty Common Schools. That said, we will continue to look for ways to raise the bar in the education of our students. We found several themes in the survey that we plan to discuss and take action on. The Principals also use the survey results in their strategic plans and for performance improvement. Thank you again for your thoughtful participation in the survey.
Election Results
Mr. Brady Walters withdrew his application citing his support of the other candidates and his interest in being involved in the future while conserving the schools finite resources. During the Board meeting, we held a forum for candidates to give opening statements regarding their passion for supporting and serving Liberty Common Schools. There were a few questions answered, and we concluded with a unanimous vote to support the three candidates. We had planned a community vote if there was a contested race. Please join us in thanking Paulette Hansen, Joel Goeltl and Kelly Notarfrancesco for their service to our school and protection of our charter. They will begin their three year term August 1, 2016.
News From the Health Office
Immunizations. Starting July 1, 2016, please be aware that parents/guardians seeking non-medical (religious or personal belief) immunizations exemptions for schoolchildren through-12th grade must submit non-medical exemption forms annually according to state law. Medical exemptions only need to be submitted once and require the signature of your child's doctor or advanced-practice nurse. To submit a non-medical or medical go to www.colorado.gov/vaccineexemption and follow the instructions. Children with an exemption may be kept out of school during a disease outbreak. If you have any questions regarding this new process, please ask your health tech, or e-mail the school nurse at
Upcoming CPR Class for current 6th Graders. Class takes place Thursday, April 21, 5:30pm - 8:30pm in the choir room at the elementary school. American Heart Association Certification (good for two years). Heart Saver CPR/AED (adult, child, infant, to include measures for choking) $35/student (this exact class runs in the Fort Collins Recreator for $70/person) Register here by Monday, April 18. Questions, contact ndybzinski@libertycommon.org or Dan Knab at dknab@libertycommon.org
Don't miss this year's 5th/6th Grade Musical: THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS!
The chess board is in chaos, being ruled by the malevolent Red Queen, and only the "Other Alice" can set things right! Join Alice on her journey THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS! Order Tickets by CLICKING HERE
Juice Donations Needed for 5th/6th Grade Musical
Musical organizers need juice box donations of any quantity for the 5th/6th grade play, Looking Glass. Please bring donations to the front office. We appreciate your generosity.
Liberty's 4th Graders Art Display at Old Town Library
Come to Old Town Main Library to check out the beautiful self portraits made by Liberty's 4th graders from Mrs. Nichols Art classes. Their Art Work will be featured in an Art display for the whole month of April as part of Old Town Library's celebration of Día de los Niños (Children's Day/Book Day). Some of the pieces are in the Children Section and some are in the Community Room and entrance to the Community Room.
Thank you,
Tracy Nichols
Liberty Common Academic
Summer Camps
Dear Parent/s,
Summer will be here before you know it! Liberty Common Elementary School is offering a SUMMER CAMP for reading and literacy, math, and academic individualized tutoring, for students entering 1st.-6th. grades. Spots are filling up, so register early.
CLICK HERE for information about and to register for Reading and Literacy Camp.
CLICK HERE for information about and to register for Math Camp.
CLICK HERE for information about and to register for Individualized Tutoring.
We are excited to offer our summer camp and hope your child can join us!
Sincerely,
Keith Churchill Principal, Liberty Common School
Attention Parents of Liberty Common Rising 6th Graders
Summer English Program. This summer's four-week English "booster" is the perfect, economical opportunity for students needing a grammar, vocabulary, or writing-skills boost. For more information CLICK HERE. The cost is much less than typical tutoring, the tutor-to-student ratio is small, and the instructor is Mr. Dybzinski, head of Liberty's English department. Regardless of whether your student is ahead or behind, he will set your child up to engage our rich English curriculum at LCHS. Furthermore, he plans to have much fun in the process. CLICK HERE to sign up.
An Opportunity to Make A Lasting Impression
Legacy Bricks. Purchase a Liberty-Legacy brick to show your support for finishing the gymnasium.
Bricks are available in two sizes and can be purchased online as well as at the upcoming spring Gala. 4" x 8" is $250, 8" x 8" is $500, 8" x 8" with Eagle logo is $550.
Bricks will be laid in a garden area outside the new gymnasium at the high school. Design your brick and be part of Liberty Common High School's foundation forever.
In an effort to keep students safe during drop-off and pick-up times, please refrain from using cell phones. The front, middle and back drop-off and pick-up areas are designated NO CELL PHONE AREAS. 
Attendance Policy
Come to Old Town Main Library to check out the beautiful self portraits made by Liberty's 4th graders from Mrs. Nichols Art classes. Their Art Work will be featured in an Art display for the whole month of April as part of Old Town Library's celebration of 
