A MESSAGE FROM PRINCIPAL LYMAN

Welcome Back!

Dear Families of Incoming 7th and Returning 8th Grade Students,

I hope this message finds you well-rested and recharged after an awesome summer break. As we prepare for another exciting school year, I would like to extend a warm welcome to each of you. For our 7th-grade families, welcome to our school community! We are thrilled to have you join us and look forward to supporting your children as they transition into our building. To our returning 8th-grade families, welcome back! Your dedication and enthusiasm make our school a special place for our students, and I can't wait to see the incredible things we'll achieve together this year.

By now, you should have received a welcome back letter packet of information. The packet includes a letter from me, information and a supply list from your child's team teachers, a health information form, and a medical clearance form for athletics. If you did not receive this packet of information, contact us at 802-451-3500.

7th graders return on Wednesday, August 27, and 8th graders do not return until Thursday, August 28. The school day begins at 8:40 am and is dismissed at 3:30 pm.

There is a welcome back night for incoming 7th-grade families on Monday evening, August 25th, from 5:00-6:00 PM at BAMS. We are looking forward to meeting you and your child for an evening of introductions and helpful information as you embark on this journey at BAMS.

I am looking forward to a productive and successful school year. Please reach out to my office team at any time with questions or assistance. It is our pleasure and honor to lead BAMS; we are here to serve you at 802-451-3500.

With Regards,

Keith Lyman, Principal

BAMS Athletics

BAMS Athletics will have in-school sign-ups for all fall sports teams. The sign-ups will be during lunch periods on Friday, August 29th.

Practices will begin on Wednesday, September 3rd from 3:30-5:15 pm at various campus locations.

All BAMS students are eligible for sports. If your student wants to try something for the first time, great; if they are a seasoned veteran at a sport, great. EVERY kiddo will get the opportunity to participate at some level in the sport of their choice. Please check the BAMS Daily Announcements, linked here. Athletic information is posted on the BAMS Daily Announcements and is accessible through the BAMS Webpage by clicking on the “Athletics” header on the BAMS webpage

School Bus Information

If your student will ride the bus at any point during the school year, they must be registered using the transportation survey linked below. This helps us ensure all students have access to a safe and reliable ride to and from school.

Please complete the registration as soon as possible using the link provided in this message.

Thank you for your attention and support!

General Bus Information

To ride any bus, at any time, students must be registered with the bus company.

BUS PASSES: Any student who wants to ride a DIFFERENT bus home MUST have a BLUE BUS pass from the office. All requests for bus passes must be made before 3:00 pm.

We need to hear from a parent if a student wants to ride a different bus.

Welcome Aboard- New Faces at BAMS

Please welcome several new faces at BAMS. Team Draco will welcome two new core teachers: DJ Golden-Coup will teach social studies, and Madeleine Michaud will teach ELA.

On Team Taurus, Becca Polk will teach social studies. Ms. Polk is covering a one-year leave of absence for Anne Koplinka-Loehr. Ms. Koplinka-Loehr was selected to perform fellowship work through the Rowland Foundation. The Rowland Foundation’s mission is to invest in Vermont teachers to positively change the culture and climate of schools. Congratulations, Ms. Koplinka-Loehr, and welcome aboard, Ms. Polk.

Our Exploratory Team will have the addition of three new teachers. Kevin Sonntag, Instrumental Music, Jim Strong, Technology and Design, and Marcelle Murdock, World Language. Welcome!

The Special Education Department will welcome two new teachers, Kellie Crowder and Jennifer Gates. Kaelyn Frakes will join the department as a special education paraprofessional.

Rounding out our group of new team members is Chris Arnini, Technology Support, and Mary Penniker, Grades 7-12 Instructional Coach.

Health Information- Incoming 7th Grade Students

The Health Office would like to remind caregivers that all 7th-grade students require a Tdap vaccine. Please reach out to the health office if you need support with this at 802-451-3522. Please review this document for additional information regarding Vaccines for Your Preteen.

Important Reminders:

If your child will be taking medication at school, the parent or guardian must bring the medication into the school. Students are not allowed to carry ANY medications on their person other than emergency medications.
If your child has asthma, allergies, or a seizure disorder, please provide an annual action plan from your provider. Our fax number is 802-254-3322.
Your child will need to be cleared to play sports by their physician. Please bring in a sports clearance form when your child is seen by their pediatrician.

Our health office is always happy to assist with any of your students' medical needs. If there is anything we can do to help, or if you have any questions, please call 802-451-3522.

Publishing Student Information

Recognizing student achievements is an integral part of our community here at BAMS. Students' names, photographs, writing, and artwork may be published on our website, newsletters, and in our BAMS Yearbook. In addition, the Honor Roll lists are submitted to the local newspapers. At any time, parents may elect NOT to authorize BAMS to publish your student's name, photograph, writing, or artwork. If you would NOT like your student's information published, please e-mail Karen Damian, Registrar at kdamian@wsesdvt.org.

Parent Portal Information & Instructions

As a school community, we understand the importance of regular communication. One effective tool we use at BAMS is our online Parent Portal through our PowerSchool platform. This feature will let you and your student get real-time attendance information, schedules, and access to your child’s grades in each of their classes.

Last week, letters were mailed to parents/caregivers with instructions on how to set up a Parent Portal account in PowerSchool. If you did not receive a letter, please email Karen Damian, Registrar, at kdamian@wsesdvt.org.

Please note that information is not updated in PowerSchool instantly, specifically, daily attendance in the morning. Daily attendance is not accurate until after 9:30 am. Attendance notifications received through your Parent Portal account before 9:30 am may not be correct.

School Attendance

Attendance matters and impacts your child's education. When a child is absent, they miss out on learning and developing social skills. Attendance matters every day.

The school must be aware when your child will be absent. Student safety is our number one priority. To that end, we ask for your partnership in communicating when your child will be absent. Please contact Karen Damian, Registrar at (802) 451-3533 or kdamian@wsesdvt.org. We appreciate your cooperation with this.

In cases where there has been no communication regarding an absence, the school will contact the parent/caregiver to confirm that your child is safe and accounted for. Attempts will be made to reach the two primary parents/caregivers first; if contact is unsuccessful, attempts to reach emergency contacts listed in the student's file will be made.

Chronic Absenteeism

Five years after the start of the pandemic, one of the most surprising ways that school has profoundly, and perhaps permanently, changed is that students aren’t showing up. Here are some insights from a May symposium at the American Enterprise Institute where scholars shared research on the problem of widespread absenteeism. Chronic absenteeism has come down a lot from its peak in 2021-22, but it’s still 50 percent higher than it was before the pandemic. Roughly speaking, the chronic absenteeism rate nearly doubled after the pandemic, from 15 percent of students in 2018-19 to a peak of almost 29 percent of students in 2021-22. This is the share of students who are missing at least 10 percent, or 18 or more days, of school a year.

Chronic absenteeism has dropped by about 2 to 3 percentage points a year since then, but was still at 23.5 percent in 2023-24, according to the most recent AEI data. Chronic absenteeism is more than 50 percent higher than it used to be. There are about 48 million public school students, from kindergarten through 12th grade. Almost 1 in 4 of them, or 11 million students, are missing a lot of school. Read the story

The BAMS Garden

BAMS has an amazing garden in the front of the school! Click here to learn more: https://sites.google.com/wsesdvt.org/wsesuschoolgardens/bams-gardens

BAMS Newsletter

Safety, Community, Learning

Welcome Back! · 25 Aug 2025

In this issue