Let’s Get Started

Mark Your Calendars

Preseason for Upper School teams:

Please refer to the Blue Devils Athletics tile in mySCH for details, including coach information, practice locations, and schedule.

Football August 14

All other teams .August 21

Back-to-School Nights

Lower School September 14

Middle School ................................... September 21

Upper School ................................... September 28

New Student Orientations

Middle School

New Families (Virtual) August 16, Noon

New Students August 30, 8:30 AM

Upper School

Fast Start ....................................................... August 25

9th Grade Orientation ......................... August 25

Upcoming Events

Parent Welcome Reception……September 7

Convocation Ceremony September 22

Homecoming Weekend……September 22 & 23

Mobile App

All families and students are encouraged to add the SCH app to their mobile devices. It is available in the Apple or Google Play stores; search for “Springside Chestnut Hill Academy” and download it today! The app provides two calendars (one for athletics and another for school events—both have filters to customize what displays); parent, employee, and student directories; and a whole lot more!

mySCH

When you applied to SCH, you were given a username and asked to create a password for our private, secure parent portal. This portal is now your primary go-to source to find information. All content is organized by topic—health services, athletics, after care, campus map, and more! mySCH also includes a customizable school calendar, access to student schedules and grades (where relevant), and directories. We encourage families to review all mySCH tiles to become familiar with where to find information.

*Please double-check your division tile or the online SCH calendar closer to the event dates.

Family Information

Please take a moment to review all information in your profile in mySCH. Go to the navy blue header and click on “Profile,” located under your name in the upper right corner. Please email data@sch.org with any necessary updates at any time throughout the year. (Many fields in the profile record cannot be edited by users as the information needs to be populated in a number of systems at SCH.)

myStudent Health Services

Parents are required to complete a Vital Health Record (VHR) for each student at SCH before the start of school/preseason. This record includes a number of checklists. Please refer to the myStudent Health Services tile in mySCH.

Physical forms submitted must be dated within 12 months of July 31, 2023. (It is not necessary to schedule a physical before starting SCH.) In addition, required items on the checklist will need to be completed for each student at SCH:

• Over-The-Counter Medication

• Medical Emergency Consent and First Aid Permission Forms

• Parent/Student-Athlete Concussion Form

• Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis

Emergency Care Plan

School Medical Team

There are two Health Offices staffed by registered nurses on campus.

Lower & Middle School

The Health Office is located just inside the main entrance of the McCausland Lower School.

Nurses: Anne Stout, BSN, RN

Melissa Halligan, RN

Phone: 215-247-7247

ECC & Upper School

The Health Office is located in the Inn, on the second floor.

Nurse: Kimberly Elgart, RN

Phone: 215-754-1621

Medications Policy

When prescription or non-prescription medication brought from home is to be administered to a student during the school day, a parent or guardian must print and complete the Medication Permission Form, including a doctor signature. This form can be found on the myStudent Health Services tile and uploaded or given directly to the nurses.

Dining Services & MyPaymentsPlus

SCH Academy uses MyPaymentsPlus, an online service that offers you the convenience and information you need to manage your child’s meal account. This system allows you to prepay into your child’s meal account, eliminating the need to send checks to school or worry about lost or forgotten lunch money.

More information regarding dining services will be provided later this summer. The What’s for lunch? tile in mySCH includes details for families using the SCH meal plans.

Lower School

All Lower School students should bring in their own healthy, nutritious morning snacks from home. Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten students bring their lunch. In Grades 1–4, students have the option to bring lunch from home or purchase it from our dining service provider.

Middle & Upper School

Middle and Upper School students may bring their lunch or buy food ahead of time through the school’s meal plan from our dining service provider.

Transportation

Annually, many parents take advantage of the free bus service offered under Pennsylvania Act 372 (Non-Public School

Busing by Public School Districts Within a 10-mile radius). The school also offers a SCHuttle from Center City. To learn more about busing or the SCHuttle, please refer to the transportation section in the Key Parent Resources tile in mySCH. The Public School District Bus Transportation Request form is required to be eligible for busing.

Contact: Carol Allison | callison@sch.org

School Day, Arrival, & Dismissal Lower School

The arrival window for all Lower School students is from 7:50–8:10 AM, Monday through Friday. Lower School students, other than those arriving by bus, should not be dropped off before 7:50 AM. The dismissal window for grades Pre-K—4 is from 3:10-3:30 PM.

Middle School

The school day begins at 8:00 AM and ends at 2:50 PM, Monday through Friday. Middle School sports practices are 3:00–4:15 PM, Monday through Thursday, in addition to home and away games during each season. See the SCH Blue Devil Athletics tile in mySCH for each team’s schedule.

Upper School

The school day begins at 8:15 AM, Monday through Friday, and ends at 3:30 PM Students participating in a team sport will practice after school at various times. (See SCH Blue Devil Athletics tile in mySCH for details.)

School Supplies Lower School

You will receive an email from your child’s homeroom teacher on August 25 with specific details about what to bring on the first day of school. In general, it includes a pair of rain boots, a water bottle, headphones, a full change of clothes, and

sneakers for PE if your student wears other shoes to school.

Middle School

Please refer to the supply list on the Middle School tile in mySCH.

Upper School

There are no standard supplies required for Upper School students.

Summer Assignments

Students in all divisions should refer to the Summer Assignments tile in mySCH with this name to determine summer expectations and assignments.

Summerside Camps at SCH

Summerside Camps provides innovative, creative, and fun camp programming for children in grades Pre-K–9 throughout the summer months. From coding to outdoor adventures to sports skills, there are a variety of options for every camper’s passion as well as our day camp, featuring weekly themes and exciting special events. <<www.sch.org/summersidecamps>>

After Care & Enrichment (ACE)

After Care: ACE provides a safe and engaging environment for students in grades Pre-K—5 afterschool, from 3:00 PM-6:00 PM. At ACE, students will have opportunities to build friendships while exploring their interests and hobbies. Families receive annual After Care enrollment information and a registration link in mid-August. Registrations after the start of the school year are welcomed if space remains. More After Care information may be found on the ACE tile

Enrichment: ACE offers a wide range of fun and educational enrichment offerings for Lower School and Middle School students (grades Pre-K—8). Families receive Enrichment details and a registration link with new class offerings each season (fall/winter/spring). Enrichment dates and details may also be found on the ACE tile.

Contact: ACE@sch.org | 215-247-7272

Dress Code

Lower School Girls

Collared polo shirt (navy, light blue, yellow, or white)

Second Layer: SCH cardigan, SCH fleece, SCH crewneck sweatshirt (navy or gray)

Bottoms: navy or khaki pants, cords, or shorts, black or navy leggings; plaid or navy

SCH skort

Footwear: closed-toe shoes

Lower School Boys

Collared polo shirt (navy, light blue, yellow, or white)

Second Layer: SCH sweatshirt for Pre-K

Grades K-4 require SCH’s 5-stripe jersey

Bottoms: navy or khaki pants or shorts

Footwear: closed-toe shoes

Middle School

Required: collared polo shirt (navy, light blue, yellow, or white) with or without

SCH logo

Optional: choice of approved SCH longsleeved tops with SCH logo (no hooded tops)

Bottoms: navy or khaki dress pants or shorts (may not be cargo shorts/pants and must be pants in winter) or plaid/navy SCH skort (must be paired with navy/black leggings or tights in winter)

Closed-toe and closed-back shoes (slippers, slides; crocs are not permitted for safety reasons)

Upper School

Students are asked to think of school as their workplace. Professional dress is expected. Collared Shirt (short or long sleeve), a buttondown shirt, or a turtleneck

Second layer: sweater, blazer, or official SCH apparel; only SCH sweatshirts are permitted on campus

Bottoms: dress pants (any khakis, non-blue denim pants and must be free of large rips/ tears), skirt, or skort. Non-athletic shorts are permitted in September & May

Note: Any hats/hoods should be removed inside of academic buildings.

Spirit Friday Dress

All students may wear any SCH top, including game jerseys and Players shirts, paired with dress code bottoms on Fridays to celebrate school spirit.

The SCHool Store

Located just inside the Middle School entrance, the SCHool Store is stocked with items both practical and fun, including dress code items, spirit wear, school accessories, and a complete line of gift ideas. We also offer most of the items on the SCHool Store website:

<< shop.sch.org >>

During the school year, students are able to make purchases at the SCHool Store if their parents/guardians have completed our form: Permission to Charge to Student Account found on the SCHool Store tile in mySCH.

The Clothes Closet

The Clothes Closet is a full-service resale shop—run by the school and volunteers–and a great resource for gently used dress code items. The store will re-open on August 23. The Clothes Closet is located at the Wissahickon Inn, just below the porch on Willow Grove Avenue.