Welcome to the Spruce Street School, PS 397!
Welcome Back for the  2020-21 School Year​
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Blended Learning Updates
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Students are required to complete a health screening
on in person attendance days. 
Click here
to complete and show at entry
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Set up your child's DOE Email Account
Your child needs this to easily log into
Zoom Meetings 
DOE Zoom Instructions
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Arrival Times: 
8:30-8:45 a.m. - Pre-K/K students
8:45-9:00 a.m. - 1st/2nd Grade students
9:00-9:15 .am. - 3rd/4th/5th Grade students
9:15-9:30 a.m. - 6th/7th/8th Grade  students
Dismissal Times:
2:00 - 2:15 p.m. - Pre-K/K 1st Grade students
2:00-2:15 p.m. - 2nd/3rd/4th/5th Grade Students
2:15-2:30 p.m. - 6th/7th/8th Grade Students
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Blended Learning Schedule Accommodations/Attendance Information
Our school schedule and instructional program is designed to provide the  best instructional experience possible for every child at Spruce Street.  While we wish we could tailor individual programs based on family circumstances, that is not possible at this time.  We understand that families are living in different time zones or may have a pod scheduled during the school day.  Unfortunately, we are unable to modify the schedules to match the needs of individual or small groups of families. We are also unable to consult or collaborate with outside instructors.

According to State and City policy, teachers are required to take attendance daily. We take formal attendance every morning during Morning Meeting. This is the attendance that is recorded in the city system.  Teachers also take informal attendance during each class as we need to monitor student participation in all forms of instruction.  

Our faculty understands the degree to which our families have been impacted by the current situation and we are working hard to ensure that students receive the very best at this time. 

Schedule options are limited to these three scenarios at this time:

  • You can follow your child’s current schedule. 
  • You can switch to fully remote. 
  • ​Or you can pick and choose knowing that your child’s grade may be impacted. If your child doesn’t participate, we can’t give your child a grade. And we are not able to individualize programs. We wish we were able to do so, but we are not.  
 Families in Blended Learning will only be able to participate in Remote-Only instruction during quarantine or family illness.  We hope that your child will participate in every aspect of schooling, yet if this is not possible given your circumstances, that is a decision your family must make.  Please notify us if this is the case to support our record keeping. 
The full DOE attendance policy can be found here.  ​
Reporting a Student's Absence
Please click here to report an absence. Parents should always notify the school in the event of an absence.
Written documentation stating why your child is absent should be submitted electronically
​ to the main office.

Click here to see what documentation is accepted and can be noted as excused on your child’s attendance record. Please also know that an excused absence does not reduce or delete the number of days your child is out of school.

Information

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 MENUS
​Daily Breakfast
Daily Lunch
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​Curious about the different Safety Protocols
that we practice at Spruce?
See them here
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Announcements
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Take Out Meals are available through the DOE
​More info here
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Interested in Spruce Street School for 
Grades K-5  for 2020-21?
 Please contact Kim Mulvey
kmulvey@sprucestreetnyc.org
with questions
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IMPORT​ANT INFORMATION

Get your shopping done AND support school.  Click on the link below, and a percentage of every purchase you make earns the PTA funds!
​We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC,  www.amazon.com Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites

PTA Happenings!

​Thank you  to all PTA members who have participated this year - both in raising funds to enrich the learning of all of our kids, and in continuing to build the supportive and involved community of Spruce Street's families and staff.

And what a year it has been!
  • Our gross profit for the year was the highest in our school's history, and 20% above our original budget. With a predicted large drop in support from corporate sponsors this year, we were projecting a very different end result last Fall...
  • The Direct Appeal, which is the single highest source of PTA income, raised close to $175k; 46% higher than projected. And our push to raise our family contribution rate beyond a previous average of around 30%, resulted in us achieving 48% in the last two weeks. In a maturing school, this is something we are really proud of.
  • With early budget pressures, the chairs of our major events pulled out all stops, reducing expenses and increasing revenue, while still delivering on all the fun expected by our fortunate Spruce St community - Gala made 22% above budget ($130k), Spooktacular was 89% above budget (earning $13k), and Carnival was 46% above budget (at just over $6.5k).
  • As well as improving the efficacy of a range of fundraisers, we added additional ones - with the standout being the Readathon, earning $12.5k.
Congratulations to every involved PTA member - that's all of you! - for such fantastic results.
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We'll continue to seek the help of the whole parent body, whether in contributions of money or of time, to reach these higher goals next year.
The Spruce Street PTA believes passionately in inclusion for all members and for all children in our school. If paying fees for any PTA activity creates financial difficulty please reach out directly to our Parent Coordinator, Kim Mulvey, by emailing her at (kmulvey@sprucestreetnyc.org) or calling - 212-266-4800, ext.0.  All requests are handled with discretion and anonymity.