Dear Families,

I was away this past weekend, and there is nothing like summertime in the Northeast - it feels like summer can stretch on forever! I can't help but notice the sunset creeping on earlier and earlier - a reliable indicator that we are about to begin another school year.

As the first day of school comes closer, I am continually impressed by the dedication of our entire staff. Our custodial crew and secretaries have worked throughout the summer, ensuring our school will be clean and thoroughly organized to welcome back our educators, students, and families. Our teaching staff is getting prepared so that our children are excited and comfortable to start a new year of learning, making friendships, and having fun. I am proud to work alongside such a dedicated group, and feel incredibly confident that all of our students are at the beginning of a successful year of school.

What follows is the first edition of my Summer Street Beat newsletter of the 2026-2027 school year. It contains all of the information you will need to know to begin the year. You can expect to receive this email from me once per month. *At times, the message may be clipped, so please be sure to click at the end if prompted to view more.*

Until we greet you in September, please accept my most sincere wishes that you and your family enjoy every moment left of this summer!

In Partnership,

Karen Cronin

I truly believe we have the best teachers and staff out there! Individually and collectively, they are passionate, dedicated, thoughtful, intelligent, and all-around kind people. Below is an updated list for the coming school year.

Are all of your forms updated in PowerSchool? It is essential that you ensure your information has been updated accordingly, no matter how many years you have had students in our schools.

Please log into the PowerSchool app or https://lynsd.powerschool.com/public/home.html to update the following forms:

Please contact Heather Koleszar koleszarh@lynnfield.k12.ma.us if you need any assistance with your parent/guardian Powerschool login credentials or if you have any issues logging into Powerschool/utilizing the app.

You can click on the button below to set up your PowerSchool Parent account (if you haven't done so already) and see the list of forms that must be completed

Every year, there is movement of classrooms due to different configurations of grade level enrollment. To ensure learning spaces in which grade level classrooms can collaborate with one another as efficiently as possible, we may mix "adjacent" grades in the first, second, and third-grade pods. A building map can be accessed below to help you and your student get a visual of where classrooms are.

Our Preschool and Kindergarten Playground is a special and unique feature of our school. I have always felt fortunate that we have this space, as our youngest learners require a developmentally appropriate area for them to explore their world, make friends, and build physical stamina. The playground that has been in use by our students and the greater Lynnfield community was over 20 years old, and was in need of replacement.

As we know, in a town with many competing capital demands, projects are subject to balanced prioritization across a school district, and the playground project remained on a list of future endeavors. While that is a reasonable big-picture view, many of our families wondered what they might be able to accomplish if the SSS and Lynnfield Preschool community lent a hand. Thanks to the dynamic, visionary, and tireless effort of the SSS PTO Leaders, Sarah Kelley and Jenny Sheehan, a true community-town partnership was born. Through their incredible energy, private donors were able to match funding from the town, and as a result, we are opening a brand new PreK/K Playground this September.

Many voices were heard in the design and development of the space - from teachers to community members to kids - and those thoughts manifested into a play space that is fun, inclusive, and safe. After reviewing several designs from different companies, UltiPlay was chosen as the playground vendor, and JC Fence installed a new fence and gate system. With the leadership of John Scenna and support of Mike Nestor, the Lynnfield DPW coordinated with both companies to ensure the site was properly prepared and safely maintained during the construction period. Signage was provided by FASTSIGNS.

This playground project would not have occurred this summer without the generous support from our donors. With tremendous gratitude, they are listed below in alphabetical order by level:

Stacee Monkiewicz & Family

Townscape Lynnfield

Wallin & King Family McDonald's

The Flaherty Family

The Grieco Family

The Kielt Family

John and Laurie Sheehan

Steve & Jenny Sheehan

The Curtis Family

The Kelley Family

Lynnfield Rotary

The Sarkis Family

A Healthy Lynnfield

Cross Country Mortgage

The Crawford Family

Eastern Bank Foundation

Friends of Lynnfield Recreation

The Gallagher Family

LawnBright

Lynnfield Moms Group

MarketStreet

The Markey Family

The Rotondi Family

The Sartorelli Family

The Savings Bank

Scangas Construction

SSS PTO

Supino Insurance

Each day, we welcome approximately 420 students to our school by bus, bike, car, and feet! In order to keep these times safe and efficient, please follow the following procedures:

This year, our Preschool morning classes arrive before Summer Street School, and this can cause a problem with traffic flow. As you can see on the arrival map, the preschool entrance is part of the route for SSS arrival. I thank you ahead of time for your patience if you are behind a car that is dropping off a preschooler: we all know that our littlest ones can take the most amount of time to get out of their carseats. Please do not drive around a car that is in the process of unloading a student! I understand at times, you may need to arrive a few minutes before then due to personal schedules; you are welcome to park in an open parking spot until all Preschool families have cleared out. Thank you for your cooperation!

If your child is going to be absent from school, please notify the office. This can be done by calling our main office number at 781-334-5830; follow the prompts to reach the absence line. Alternatively, you can send an email addressed to our Principal's Clerk Ms. Saccardo at saccardoj@lynnfield.k12.ma.us and our Secretary Ms. Ballou at balloud@lynnfield.k12.ma.us and your child's teacher. Please include the following information:

If your child is going to be late to school due to an appointment or other circumstance, follow the same procedure for absences. Please state the reason for the tardiness.

If your child is going to be picked up early from school due to an appointment or other circumstance, follow the same procedure for absences. Please state the reason for the dismissal.

If there is a change to your child's typical dismissal routine, please email that information to Ms. Saccardo, Ms. Ballou, and your child's teacher. It is essential for us to know the plan to ensure students get to their destination safely, and we appreciate as much advance notice as you can provide. Should dismissal plans change once your child is at already at school, please call the front office at 781-334-5830 before 1:00 PM. Teachers do not always have time to check their email throughout the day, so we ask that all changes come through the main office via telephone. We will then notify the teacher. We appreciate your strict adherence to this timeline and process.

The Summer Street School Council is a group of caregivers, teachers, and community members who help to shape the vision and work of our school. Last year, we focused on the creation of Together We Belong, an initiative to increase the feeling of belonging in our school.

Each year, we solicit the community to join our team; we meet once per month after school. If you are interested in joining our group (it is a two-year commitment), please email me your letter of intent that includes your rationale for joining to cronink@lynnfield.k12.ma.us

Should we receive more than one total applicant, we will hold an open election during Open House, and your letters will be available for the community to review.

If you would like more information or have any questions, please reach out.

The state of Massachusetts offers universal free breakfast & lunch for public schools. All students are entitled to free meals (including juice or milk) each day. If students would like a snack, water bottle, or second meal/milk/juice, those must be paid for. More information will come from the Food Service Department explaining this process, and how to use the Meal Magic system. Breakfast and lunch menus are posted on the SSS website.

Should you have any questions, or want to discuss allergy information, please reach out to the Food Service Director for LPS, Mr. James McCarthy at (781) 334-7320 or mccarthyjam@lynnfield.k12.ma.us

The LPS Elementary Student Handbook is revised every year. I encourage all families to read through the handbook with their students, which can be found on the SSS webpage. Additionally, there are a few School Committee policies that impact our elementary students. All policies can be accessed via the LPS School Committee webpage. I have copied relevant portions of certain policies below. If you have any questions, please reach out to me directly. I thank you in advance for your cooperation in ensuring your child follows these expectations.

Schools provide any necessary electronic devices needed for school work (such as chromebooks). If a child does bring a cell phone, smart watch or similar electronic device to school it must remain off and in the student's backpack.

Students and parents are responsible for adhering to our guidelines regarding personal technology. If a student does not responsibly follow these guidelines, the device will be held in the school office until a parent/guardian is able to pick it up.

Guidelines:

● Cell phones and smart watches are to be turned off and stored in the student’s

backpack. Watches should not be worn during school hours.

● No photos, videos, or audio recordings of other students are to be taken with personal

devices on school grounds or on the bus.

● All other electronic devices of personal value should be left at home.

● The school assumes no liability for the loss, theft, or damage of any personally owned

electronic device.

Students may access a device as required by their health plan, 504, IEP, or DCAP.

The following examples are not considered appropriate dress and may not be worn:

● Hats and caps (Grades K-12)

● Hoods covering a student’s head (Grades K-12) may not be worn in the classroom

● Sleepwear (Not including Pajama Pants)

● Sunglasses and swimwear

● Clothing that promotes or pictures illegal activity, violent behavior, sexual subjects or innuendos,

obscene language or gang symbols

● Clothing or accessories that display lewd, vulgar or plainly offensive language or symbols, or

promotes the use of alcohol, illegal drugs, or tobacco products

● Clothing that is revealing to the genital area or buttocks

● Undergarments worn as clothing

● Clothing or jewelry that is disparaging to others in the school environment and contains slurs

regarding race, ethnicity, religion, disabilities, gender, or sexual orientation

Exceptions to the above guidelines will be granted for students due to religious or medical reasons.

For students with life threatening allergies a nut-free table will be available at SSS during lunch. Students with Life Threatening Allergies can be offered a seat at an allergy aware or nut free table at the request of a parent/guardian.

At Lynnfield Public Schools, we are committed to ensuring that our classroom resources reflect the diversity of the world around us and support meaningful learning experiences for every student. Guided by our strategic plan, we strive to promote academic excellence for all; create thriving, inclusive, and empowering schools; foster future-ready learning and innovation; and strengthen partnerships with families and the community. These priorities shape our commitment to providing learning experiences that are culturally responsive, age-appropriate, and reflective of a variety of perspectives, helping prepare our students to be lifelong learners and engaged citizens in an increasingly diverse and interconnected world. 

Conversations about family background, culture, identity, and differences often happen naturally in classrooms, and sometimes they’re sparked by the books and materials we use. To support this work, our teachers take part in ongoing professional development so they can select meaningful resources and guide students in thoughtful, sensitive discussions.

At Summer Street School and the Preschool, it’s so important that every child and family feels truly seen and valued. The resources we use allow students to see themselves reflected in their learning while also giving them a window into the diverse world around them. When done well, these experiences act as “sliding doors,” inviting students into new worlds and perspectives where they feel comfortable and welcome—even when those worlds are different from their own.

Consistent with Massachusetts regulations, 603 CMR 26.05(1), the Lynnfield Public Schools, through its curricula and materials, encourages respect for the human and civil rights of all individuals, regardless of race, color, sex, gender identity, religion, national origin or sexual orientation. In accordance with district guidelines and school committee policies, families may request information from the building principal on available accommodations related to curriculum content.

We recognize that families may approach certain topics in different ways, and we respect those differences. If there is a sensitive topic you would like us to be mindful of, please don’t hesitate to reach out. We are here to support all families.

I post once per week about the wonderful happenings at our school! Follow me on Instagram: @principalcronin

Email: cronink@lynnfield.k12.ma.us

Website: https://sss.lynnfield.k12.ma.us/

Location: 262 Summer Street, Lynnfield, MA, 01940

Phone: (781) 334-5830

Instagram: @principalcronin