Principal's Update 8/26/25
Welcome Back!
School starts tomorrow August 27th and we are excited to have students returning once again! Here are a few notes to help you settle in. I also have an LHS Families’ Help Cheat Sheet on the school website here.
School Start and End Time:
School begins at 7:30 and ends at 2:15.
Buses:
School bus routes are posted on the district website at https://www.leominsterps.org/.
Whatever time it says the bus is going to arrive by, I would plan to be out there a few minutes early just in case. Buses may also be a little late as they test out the routes so be patient. You can also track the bus using the FirstView App.
Make sure your student knows their bus number for the end of the day!
Student Pick Up and Drop Off:
Remember that 2100 people are trying to get into the school at 7:30 and there is construction around the city so plan to be a little earlier due to traffic.
If you drive your student you can drop them off and pick them up at the main entrance of the school (not where the buses are). Pull up as far forward as you can.
Student Parking:
Students will not need a pass to park on school for the first few weeks, but they should see Mr. McCaughey when the parking passes come in. They should park in the gravel lot across from the front entrance or along Kingman. We have a whole bunch of new parking spots that will be open sometime later this year, which will help with student parking.
Schedule:
Schedules are available in ASPEN. Your student can log in to ASPEN using their school google account username and password. You can log in at https://ma-leominster.myfollett.com/aspen-login/?deploymentId=ma-leominster
We are going to start in Homeroom this week. Check your student’s homeroom assignment again today, we had to adjust a few on Monday.
Cell Phones:
There is a bill in the Massachusetts legislature that would ban cell phones from school for the entire school day; it passed the state senate so far and is looking likely to pass for the 2026-2027 school year.
At LHS the current policy is that students MUST place their cell phone in a cell phone holder in the classroom for the entirety of the class. Students caught using a phone in class will lose it for the day.
For this year they are allowed to use them in between classes and at lunch, so if you need to get a message to them they will see it at the end of class. If you need to get a time-sensitive message to your student, call the main office and we will get the message to them in class (the way it was done for 100 years before cell phones!)
Should the cell phone ban bill become law LHS will be required to enforce it, which as written in the state senate version of the bill would mean students would not have access to their cell phone for the entire school day.
School Supplies:
We are providing basic school supplies for students (notebooks, binders, pencils, as well as required materials like sketchbooks), BUT if your student has particular things they want (like a New Kids on the Block Trapper Keeper) you would need to pick them up.
Calling in a student absent
If your student is going to be absent call the school at 978-534-7715 as soon as possible. The absence line is option 1.
If you get an auto-call that your student is marked as absent and you think they are at school, don’t panic. Sometimes they accidentally get marked absent (especially with a sub) and sometimes they do cut class. Call the school and we will confirm they are not here.
School Attendance:
It is essential for you to get your student to school as much as possible. I am compelled by law to work to get your student to school as often as possible. Absences are excused by a doctor or dentist’s note, court appearance, college visit, driving license appointment. Vacations are not excused absences.
When a student gets five unexcused absences we will require a meeting with parents to make a plan to get them to school more often. Remember that students will need to make up time from unexcused absences at our Saturday Academy.
Student Dismissals
If you need to dismiss your student you can send them to school with a note to bring to the office when they get to school. Your student will receive a pass to be dismissed and can just check out at the office when it is time for them to go. You won’t need to come into the school and it’s much faster than coming in to dismiss your student.
We cannot do dismissals over the phone or by reading a text you sent to your student’s phone for safety reasons. Someone else could be impersonating you and we would not be able to verify it (this happens more often than you might think).
School Pictures:
School pictures will be done on the first Thursday of school August 28. Make sure everyone looks their best!
Next Week’s Athletic Schedule
https://arbiterlive.com/Teams?entityId=12673
Joshua Romano
Principal
School Instagram at lhsbluedevilnation