Telra Telegram - August 24, 2025
- Ronak Bhatt
- Aug 24
- 2 min read
The first week of 25-26 is behind us. For our K-8 students, the week was full of tests and learning the routines and patterns of the new school year. Our high school students were busy registering for courses, learning their schedules and classroom locations, and figuring out how they navigate this new, wider world. Our parents learned new bus routes and commute patterns and many said their first Kindergarten goodbyes.
Starting tomorrow, some things will settle down, while other elements of the new year are still in flux. Read on!
New schedules in K-8
This past week, students in K-8 participated in placement testing along with i-Ready diagnostics. Based on the results of testing, many students’ schedules changed. This is true for (a) students who had placement changes and (b) those who did not (some overall schedule shuffling has to happen in order to balance class sizes and ensure that everyone could get to the instructional groups they need).
Please be sure to check Alma for schedule updates. Remember to look at Monday, 8/25 in Alma to see the updated version of your child's schedule.
All students will receive newly-printed copies of their schedule in first block on Monday. We are excited to hit the ground running with content in our K-8 building!
Transportation
Buses
We have gathered 3 days of data and heard plenty of family feedback about bus routes and timing. The transportation team is hard at work designing some route revisions and should be sending some communications in the next few days to both current bus riders and those on the waitlist. That said, this week marks the beginning of CMS's school year, which means traffic patterns could change. If that requires further revisions, it could delay the release of Telra routes 2.0 by a few more days.
Car line
As stated above, school traffic in Union and Mecklenburg Counties will increase greatly tomorrow. Plan ahead, leave early on your morning commute to school, and be patient.
Follow the guidance provided on our Arrival/Departures page. Some reminders:
Arrive for morning car line between 7:40-7:55am for (a) the quickest in-and-out and (b) to ensure your child is on time for class.
Minimize the gap between your car and the one in front (~1 foot), so that we can take more vehicles off McKee Rd and speed up the flow for entering and exiting traffic.
Know the school rules
Learn the approved colors for the dress code and tuck in those shirts!
No smartwatches or phones. (If they must come to school, keep them off and in your backpack at all times.)
Grades 4-8, bring a laptop carrying case. (Tip: Write your name on the case!)
Deadlines
Monday 8/25 is the deadline to order lunch for the week of September 8
Wednesday 9/17 is the deadline to submit required health forms for new students (mostly Kindergarten) and 7th grade.
Potpourri
Have some first-day or first-week photos to share? Please upload them to the Telra archive! After you upload, you'll be prompted to fill out two fields:
Where it prompts "First Name", please describe the event/activity, e.g., "1st day of school"
Where it prompts "Last Name", please list your full name, e.g., "John Doe"
Extracurricular announcements and signups are coming very soon!