Grandparents Day
Students with the last name beginning with A-L
➡︎Thursday September 7 ~ 7:45am
Students with the last name beginning with M-Z
➡︎Friday September 8 ~ 7:45am
RSVP information coming soon
Important Dates
| Aug 10 | 1st Day for Students |
| Aug 10-15 | Kindergarten Screening/Stagger Week |
| Aug 17 | First Day for Kindergarten |
| Aug 24 | Back to School Night |
| Aug 24 & 25 | Fall Pictures |
| Aug 28 – Sept 1 | House Hype Week |
| Sept 4 | Labor Day – NO SCHOOL |
| Sept 7 & 8 | Grandparents Day |
| Sept 21 | Parent Conferences |
| Sept 28 | PTA General Membership Meeting |
| Oct 2 – 6 | House Helper Week |
| Oct 4 | Walk to School Day |
| Oct 6 | Dragon Dash Pep Rally |
| Oct 9 -13 | Fall Break |
📨 A Note from Mr. Ruiz
Dear CES families,
Welcome back to Collierville Elementary School! As the proud Principal, I am thrilled to extend my warmest greetings as we gear up for another fantastic academic year. Our Little Dragons’ return brings an excitement that fills our hallways and classrooms with joy, anticipation, and endless possibilities.
At Collierville Elementary School, we are dedicated to our mission of surrounding our Little Dragons with love, holding them to high expectations, and engaging them in rigorous instruction. Our commitment to excellence is unwavering, and we strive to provide a nurturing and challenging environment where every child can reach their full potential.
Our vision at Collierville Elementary School is to forge Little Dragons who demonstrate strong character, a love for learning, and service as future leaders. We believe in nurturing not only their academic growth but also fostering their personal development, building the foundation for lifelong success.
To kickstart the new academic year on the right note, we invite all parents and guardians to attend our Back to School Night on August 24 at 5:30 PM. This event is an excellent opportunity for you to meet your child’s teachers, learn about the curriculum, and gain valuable insights into the academic year ahead. It also gives us a chance to work together as a cohesive team in supporting our Little Dragons’ educational journey.
Furthermore, we are excited to continue the traditions of our House System. The House System provides a sense of belonging and camaraderie among our students. This system fosters healthy competition, teamwork, and a positive school spirit, creating a nurturing environment where students feel encouraged to shine and grow.
We, at Collierville Elementary School, are committed to maintaining our reputation as one of the best schools in the state of Tennessee. None of this would be possible without the unwavering support of our amazing parents, dedicated faculty, and motivated students.
As we embark on this new academic journey together, I urge you to stay involved in your child’s education. Your partnership and involvement play a crucial role in their success. Let us work hand in hand to provide a safe, enriching, and inspiring environment where our Little Dragons can flourish.
Thank you for entrusting us with your child’s education. We are eager to witness their growth and accomplishments in the upcoming year. Together, we will continue to uphold the standards of excellence that define Collierville Elementary School.
Go Dragons!
✉️ Message from PTA President
Welcome back Little Dragon families! We hope everyone had a wonderful summer. For all our new families, we want to extend a warm welcome to Collierville Elementary School — we are so glad you’re here! This is the first of four editions of the PTA’s Dragon Flyer newsletter. We include all important upcoming dates and events to mark on your calendars, as well as showcasing all the fun things the PTA is doing.
The two big PTA dates for this school year are Dragon Dash on October 27th and Fair in the Lair on April 20th. These are our two fundraisers for the year, and they fund our budget as well as teacher impact grants.
Dragon Dash….dust off your tennis shoes parents, we invite you to join the Little Dragons as they run 4 laps around the track for our fall fundraiser on October 27th. This fundraiser funds our budget and provides wish list items – what’s that, you are wondering? Our budget allows the PTA to have events for the students such as Grandparent’s Day, Donuts with Dragons, Memphis in May day, Walk to school day and many other fun and educational events. Wishlist items are items requested by the school and our principal. A few examples of things we have been able to provide in the past are collaborative learning tables, Promethean Boards, restocked grade level recess supplies, and educational learning seminars and conferences for our teachers and staff.
Now that August is here it’s time to renew your PTA memberships. Our goal each year is to have 100% memberships – that means a membership for each student, staff, and faculty member at CES. If you have more than one student at CES please consider purchasing enough memberships to represent each student. Anyone can be a PTA member; parents, students, grandparents, aunts/uncles, and even neighbors. Your membership ensures you will stay connected to the PTA throughout the school year, but I promise we will not hound you for money or volunteering time. The membership roster is how we build our email data base each year. Emily Promisel is our membership chair; drop her an email if you have any questions: membership@mycespta.org.
Speaking of volunteering, we have multiple areas at CES that rely on our loyal and loving volunteers. We need volunteers in the cafeteria and the copy room. If you have a few extra hours here or there, please contact Tenoria West at volunteercoordinator@mycespta.org.
If you have any questions about any aspect of PTA we are all just a click away via our CES PTA emails (see the list of officers later in this edition for specific email). Don’t hesitate to drop us an email with a question or concern.
Maroon and White,
Amber Bach
president@mycespta.org
📜 Mission, Vision, & Beliefs
Mission
- Collierville Elementary School equips Little Dragons with the skills necessary to be successful in learning, leadership, and life.
Vision
- Collierville Elementary School will inspire every Little Dragon to be thriving and confident students who become lifelong learners and contributing citizens in their community.
Beliefs
- Collierville Elementary School understands the importance of the development of the whole child.
- Educators reflect upon teaching practices for the purpose of professional growth and the continued enhancement of quality instruction as well as engage in on-going professional development and work collaboratively to share the knowledge we acquire.
- All relationships matter and are essential to learning.
- Every learner is different. As educators we meet each child where they are and allow them to be active participants in their learning.
- Each of us must do our part to create a safe, respectful and positive environment that encourages learning and risk-taking.
- A commitment to student success is a shared responsibility among students, parents, educators, staff, and the community.
- Every child deserves to have someone that loves them.
- When you set high expectations, all will rise to the challenge by working hard, taking risks, and persevering.
🎯 PTA Objectives
1. To promote the welfare of children and youth in the home, school, community, and place of worship.
2. To raise the standard of home life.
3. To secure adequate laws for the care and protection of children and youth.
4. To bring into closer relation the home and school, that parents and teachers may cooperate intelligently in the education of children and youth.
5. To develop between educators and the general public such united efforts as will secure for all children and youth the highest advantages in physical, mental, social and spiritual education.
💰 Impact Grants
In 2011, the CES-PTA began the IMPACT Grant Program. IMPACT Grants are awarded to CES faculty every year to provide additional support to CES students. Each year the CES-PTA hosts the annual Fair in the Lair/Book-fair along with all Dragonwear sales to provide funding for the IMPACT program.
Great news! We will be awarding IMPACT Grants to CES faculty totaling $19,425.00. 🎉 These grants will have a profound impact on your students. Thank you for supporting these events and this important initiative at CES.
CES faculty can pick up a reimbursement sheet in the lounge and turn them in to the Treasurer’s PTA box. Please reach out to Heather Summers for more details or any questions. Treasurer@mycespta.org.
Giving Back Through Kroger 🛒
Follow these simple steps to register your Kroger Plus Card to give back to CES PTA.
1. Go to Kroger.com
2. Create an account or Sign-in.
3. Register your Kroger Plus Card with your account.
4. Click on “My account.”
5. Under “Account Settings” select “Community rewards.”
6. Under “Find your organization” search for Collierville Elementary 1 PTA.
After that you are ready! Now when you swipe your card you are automatically giving back to Collierville Elementary School.
👩🏫 Welcome New Little Dragon Faculty and Staff 👨🏫
- Daniel Ford – Assistant Principal
- Scottie Garner – Financial Secretary
- Kelsey Johnson – Kindergarten
- Melanie Sipes – Kindergarten
- Melissa Jones – 3rd Grade
- Rebecca Camarata – 5th Grade
- La’Sandria Ward – Art
- Melissa Lane – Resource S
- Heather Grinnell – Paraprofessional
- Rusty David – School Technology Support
- Keri Taylor – Occupational Therapist
Transportation Information
Students are allowed on campus beginning at 8:40 a.m. All external doors are locked promptly at 9:00 a.m. After 8:59 a.m. you cannot drop your child off on campus – you must escort your child to the office for check-in. Dismissal will begin promptly at 4:00 p.m. each day.
Car Riders
Car riders enter and exit in the rear parking lot. Returning families, please continue to use your car rider numbers from last year. New families will were assigned car rider numbers on Orientation Day. The car rider line begins on White Road, turns onto Carruthers, and then turns left on Burrows. You will enter the parking lot from there. There is NO LEFT TURN from White Road or Burrows to Burrows during car rider line. Parents, please DO NOT turn left into the line in the mornings or afternoons. Please proceed down White Road and, if necessary, down Hermitage Trail until you reach the end of the line. Interrupting the line will cause a slow down in the process. During pick-up we are required to place your child in the back seat.
Bus Riders
Bus riders enter an exit at the North side of the building (K-1 Hall).
Walkers / Bike Riders
Walkers/bike riders enter and exit at the end of the building closest to their home, North (K-1 Hall) or South (2-3 Hall). No students should be walking in front of the building on Peterson Lake Road.
PTA Board 2023-2024
If you have any questions about any aspect of PTA we are all are just a click away via our CES PTA emails.
| President | Amber Bach | president@mycespta.org |
| Past President | Amanda Cantrell | pastpresident@mycespta.org |
| Vice President | Jala Walker | vicepresident@mycespta.org |
| Secretary | Katie Cockrell | secretary@mycespta.org |
| Treasurer | Heather Summers | treasurer@mycespta.org |
| Parliamentarian | Sara Elrod | parliamentarian@mycespta.org |
| Communications | Emily Pinner | communications@mycespta.org |
| Community Affairs/Events | Andrea McGhee | communityaffairs@mycespta.org |
| Cultural Arts | Cristina Smith | culturalarts@mycespta.org |
| Dragon Wear | Brittany Streger | dragonwear@mycespta.org |
| Family Events | Elaine Huntington | familyevents@mycespta.org |
| Fundraising Events | Jaime Halupnik | fundraisingevents@mycespta.org |
| Fundraising Sponsor | Amy Goo | fundraisingsponsor@mycespta.org |
| Health & Safety | Sarah Hight | healthandsafety@mycespta.org |
| Historian | Sarah Munday | historian@mycespta.org |
| Hospitality | Julie Cropp | hospitality@mycespta.org |
| Legislative | Gina Johnson | legislative@mycespta.org |
| Membership | Emily Promisel | membership@mycespta.org |
| Parent Involvement | Lydia Farmer | parentinvolvement@mycespta.org |
| Special Events | Mary Kate Jenkins | specialevents@mycespta.org |
| Volunteer Coordinator | Tenoria West | volunteercoordinator@mycespta.org |
✏️ Box Tops for Education
Participating in the Collierville Elementary Box Tops program is one of the easiest ways to support CES. All money earned from the Box Tops program goes directly to the school. Small amounts can really add up!
No more clipping! No more sending Box Tops to school. All you need is your phone. Download the new Box Tops app, shop as you normally would, then simply scan your store receipts to find participating products. The app will automatically credit our school’s Box Tops earnings online.
CES-PTA Volunteer Opportunity
We are so excited to be back with our Little Dragons! We may be in need of volunteers this school year pending school safety measures and health precautions. Should the opportunity arise, please consider sharing some time with us.
If you or someone you know would like to help out, please click the button below to fill out the online form.
Thanks so much!
👨👩👧👧 CES PTA Membership Form
We need your help. A strong PTA represents involved parents and families who care about their school and their community. Join the PTA today. The cost is $10.00 per membership.
Our goal is 100% membership in PTA, including parents, teachers and any adult who wants CES to be a strong, positive educational experience. The PTA provides many resources that enhance the quality of our students’ education.
You can support CES by buying one or more PTA memberships for each child you have enrolled at CES.
Click the button below to join the PTA today!
⭐️ CES PTA Sponsorship Form ⭐️
The Collierville Elementary School PTA works to assist our school in providing our children with quality educational opportunities. For this to be accomplished, the financial assistance of community members is essential to reach our goals. In order to achieve our fundraising goal, we need your help. Contributions from the Collierville business community have been a tremendous value to CES. We kindly ask for your assistance this year to help us meet the educational needs of our children. Any amount you are able to donate is very much appreciated. Help our school! Help your business!
There are four levels of sponsorship available. Click below for more information about how to support CES with your sponsorship today!
mycespta.org 