OnTOP Alternative Program

Dear Families,

It is time for you to complete the online Annual Student Information Update (now listed as Ecollect Forms in Powerschool) for your student. The form asks you to update critical information, such as emergency contact information, medical information, etc.

Please follow this link to PowerSchool to update their information (see step by step directions below). If you do not already have an account in Powerschool (most of you do), then please refer to the directions below in order to create the account.

NOTE: Please complete this Annual Student Update by Thursday, September 26th at the latest. If student information is not updated by Thursday, September 26, that student may not be allowed to return to school until their update is complete. If a student without updated information comes to school after September 26, they may be sent home. 

If you have questions or need assistance, please contact your child’s school.

Thank You,

The BSD Team

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If you already have an account in PowerSchool, sign in to your PowerSchool account. After you have signed in:

1. Look for your student’s name as shown on the bar in the upper left corner;
   1. Click on the student’s name.
   2. Then click the Ecollect Student Update Form and then start with the form called “A. Introduction” and complete the information.
   3. It will take you through each form.
   4. Once you finish with this student, move on to the next student by clicking on their name on the bar in the upper left corner. All students must be updated one at a time.
   5. Done

If you already have an account in PowerSchool but the names of other children name do not appear, you must next call your child’s school and ask for their “Access ID and Access Password”.  Then again, in PowerSchool, go to:

1. “Account Preferences” on the menu on the left side,
2. Then click on “Students”
3. Then “Add Student”
4. Enter your student’s name, their Access ID and Access Password.
5. Then select your relationship to your student through the Relationship dropdown.

If you are not certain if you have a PowerSchool account, follow these steps:

1. Go to bsdvt.org or to your school’s home page.
2. Click on this image in the upper right-hand corner of the webpage:
3. Enter your username and password.
4. Follow the steps for “Forgot Username or Password?” if needed.

If you have never created a PowerSchool account, instead call your school and ask for an access ID and Access Password; when given these, click on create account, and enter the ID and Password as directed.

Dear Parents, Staff, and Community,

There is an error in the printed version of BSD’s 2019-2020 Calendar & Handbook (pictured to the right).

Our designers accidentally listed April 17th as part of Spring Break and a day off. Please note that April 17th is a full day of school for students and teachers; it is not part of Spring Break. Actual Spring Break dates are Monday, April 20th to Friday, April 24. We apologize that our team missed this in our proofreading. 

All digital versions of the calendars have been corrected and we are asking that you please mark your calendar appropriately. We are working with our multilingual liaisons to translate a district robocall in the next week. In the meantime, please help spread the word any way you can.  

Again, all students and staff are expected to be in school on Friday, April 17th.

Thank you, 

The BSD Team

Register today to join us on September 13th!

The Burlington Students Foundation, in collaboration with Burlington School District, invites you for a day of golf with friends, family, coworkers and community members at Rocky Ridge!

$140 Per Person (or $500 per team of four) Includes:

• 18-Hole Scramble
• On-course competitions featuring prizes from Hotel Vermont and Kevin Smith Sports
• Post-outing social with food and drinks

9 AM sharp start time, with mulligans for sale at check-in (2 for $10).

Don’t have 4 players? Feel free to register as a single, double or triple and we’ll make sure you have a full team.

Click Here to Register Today!

Thank You to Our Sponsors

AIG Retirement Services

Questions? Interested in sponsoring or donating to this event? Send us an email today.

Proceeds support Burlington students’ out of school-time activities. Thank you Burlington Students Foundation!

No fees, no registration! All are welcome… just show up and join us! 

The Burlington School Food Project (BSFP) is pleased to once again be participating in the USDA’s Summer Food Service Program. Meals will be provided to all children age 18 and under without charge and are the same for all children regardless of race, color, national origin, sex, age, or disability, and there will be no discrimination in the course of the meal service. Meals will be provided on a first come, first served basis at the sites and times listed below!

It’s here! Thank you, Burlington, for your patience in releasing next year’s calendar. After robust discussion, the 2019-2020 calendar was approved on Tuesday night. The Superintendent would like to thank the board of school commissioners for thinking critically about our community’s needs and expectations regarding Religious Holy Days. In addition, we are grateful the board supports our plan to honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. by once again attempting to hold a half day of classes on MLK Day (this year plans for this day were “snowed out” in the District). We hope teachers will use this instruction time to explore Dr. King’s life and legacy before encouraging our students to leave our schools and serve in the afternoon.

Please note, in addition to this calendar, we are working on an updated list of Excused Absences for Religious Holy Days for the 2019-2020 school year. The DEALT team is currently updating next year’s list of days, and we will continue the practice of encouraging teachers to take steps, like those laid out in last year’s administrative memo, which are designed to help students navigate missing school to engage in faith practices.

It looks like Spring has finally sprung. At this point, we think winter is over and will assume no more snow days. Please share the following “End of the Year Dates” anyone who may be interested.

This year, we had three snow days. This means students need to make up one day at this time and teachers need to make up two.

Calendar Updates:

• June 13 Last day for students (half-day for all schools except BHS and PreK. BHS seniors in session for rehearsal and Senior Bash. No PreK.)

• June 14 Building-based (BHS Graduation)

• June 17 District day in-service

• June 18 Building-based

• June 20 End of the year meeting: System Leaders Meeting

On March 5th, Burlington residents once again voted to support students and schools. The Burlington School District’s proposed 2019-2020 budget request passed with nearly 70% of the vote on Town Meeting Day.

“Thank you, Burlington, for continually supporting the needs of students and staff in Burlington School District,” said Superintendent Yaw Obeng. “I am pleased that our efforts of prudent financial management over the past four years have led us to a place where our District is fiscally stable enough to allow us to add back programming and staff in a strategic and data-driven approach. The additions and reductions proposed in this year’s budget are another step in the right direction towards reducing disparities in our system, closing the very real achievement gap, and raising the bar for all of our students.”

This is the 5th straight year that voters have approved the District’s proposed budget on Town Meeting Day. In addition to providing budget support, the Burlington community has also recently voted in favor of a 10-year capital plan bond as well as a new high school re-envisioning bond during that time frame.

Greetings BSD Community,

“Each year, on the third Monday in January, the MLK Day of Service is observed as a ‘day on, not a day off.’ MLK Day of Service is intended to empower individuals, strengthen communities, bridge barriers, create solutions to social problems, and move us closer to Dr. King’s vision of a ‘Beloved Community.’ ” -The Corporation for National and Community Service

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was a profound figure in American and world history; BSD believes this day should be reflected as so.

In my time here schools have been closed on Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Initially, I was pleased that this day was recognized in BSD and in the community. However, over the past three years, I have made a conscious effort to ask students how they recognized the day. While some of our students engage in celebrations or service in the community, my experience has been one in which I have mostly been met with answers like: “I stayed home and played video games.” or “Why did we have the day off?”.

Last year when developing the new school calendars, the senior leadership team and I had many conversations about the impact, from an educational standpoint, of MLK Day. I expressed to our team that I feel we are not doing enough in BSD to recognize this day, the individual, or the meaning of service as expressed by Dr. King, and was met with great support.

Together, we decided that for the first time in many years we will have a half-day of school on MLK Day to ensure every student is exposed to content relating to the significance of the person and the day.

Our vision for this day is that students are first brought together to intentionally focus on the importance of Dr. King, racial equality, service, and love; and ideally, students are leading some of these conversations and driving the curriculum where appropriate. (Talk to your local school administrator to learn more.)

After spending this time together, we want to encourage our students and staff to go into the community and implement the day’s teachings. We hope our community will consider serving, learning more, or celebrating with others throughout the community at events like the CEDO-led Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day Celebration at ECHO (featuring BSD students again this year).

In addition to this celebration at ECHO, there are numerous volunteer efforts in our community, including those listed in the resources below. I encourage our teachers and staff to share these resources (and any others you know of) with students, friends, and neighbors. And for those who are able to do so, I hope these resources or this conversation allows you to find a way to plug in.

Recognizing the day in this fashion reflects the BSD Vision: “Cultivating caring, creative and courageous people. Join the journey!”

Thank you for listening and for being engaged.

– Superintendent Obeng

“The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. Intelligence plus character – that is the goal of true education.” – Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Additional Resources:
United Way (Volunteer opportunities)

Corporation for National and Community Service (Volunteer opportunities)

GBMRC 2019 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Remembrance (Community event)