2025-2026 QUICK VIEW SCHOOL YEAR CALENDAR

September 1 - No School | Labor Day - we hope you enjoy your weekend!  See you Tuesday.  

EARLY RELEASE AND NO SCHOOL  September 24 Early Release is at 11:00AM so that our staff can attend the Florida/Georgia Lutheran Educators Conference.  We will not have aftercare that day.  All students need to be picked up at 11:00 on 9/24 only.  School is also closed on September 25 and 26.  All other early release days for the school year are at 12:55 on Upper and 1:00 on Lower.

JESSICA BINKLEY, LOWER SCHOOL PRINCIPAL | AUGUST UPDATE

Lower Campus is off to a great start! Our students have really settled into routines easily. We have some new and exciting news as our amazing robotics teachers Mrs. Dupuis and Ms. Hartley have started our very first competitive robotics team: Metal Crusaders. They will be expected to build a robot and compete in several competitions this fall.

We are kicking off clubs this next week with a Bible Club for VPK -1st grade, Makers Club & Robotics Club for 2nd – 5th grade, and Math Masters for 3rd – 5th grade. There are still a few spaces available. Sign up at: https://hclaclubhub.org/

We also have some exciting opportunities for parents. Our first PALS meeting will be Thursday, Sept. 11th at 8:30am. We have two Back to School Nights: Sept. 11th for VPK – 2nd and Sept. 18th for 3rd – 5th from 6:00pm – 7:00pm. In addition, we are offering Principal Coffee Chats. This is a chance to get to know other parents and chat with the principal. These are happening on Sept. 16th for VPK & K parents, Sept. 23rd for 1st & 2nd, Sept. 30th for 3rd – 5th, all meeting at 8:30am.

There are lots of ways to hear what’s going on and to get involved. We are excited for this new school year and what God is doing at HCLA.

In His Service,

Jessica Binkley

DR. LUNARDI, UPPER SCHOOL PRINCIPAL | AUGUST UPDATE

It’s been an exciting whirlwind of a first 3 weeks here at Upper Campus, and I’m so proud of our students and families for settling into routines so quickly. Please be sure to read the whole Newsletter, but here are a couple of things I encourage you to please pay particular attention to:

• Registration for 3 upcoming, optional college/career planning events is due Friday, 9/5. Click HERE for all of our college/career planning info, including the registration links.

• MAP testing for 6th-10th graders started yesterday and will continue next week on September 2nd and September 4th. Please encourage your students to get plenty of rest and eat a good breakfast, as these tests are very important for us as we work to customize instruction to the individual needs of our students. 11th and 12th graders will have grade-level activities during those time slots, including two different sessions geared towards helping our students plan for life after HCLA (“College 101” and College Essay Writing).

• Please remember to send your student to school with lunch. Vendor deliveries such as Uber Eats are not permitted.

Partnering with Parents - Workshops

• Please mark your calendars for the Social Media parent session on Tuesday, 9/16 (see flyer below). 

• Our first parent workshop on helping students understand their identity in Christ, using the book Grounded In Grace, will be at 3:30pm on Tuesday, September 30th. HERE is a link to the book on Amazon. We will start with the first 3 chapters.

Thanks for helping to make our first 3 weeks of morning and afternoon carline run smoothly - we appreciate it!

Have a great weekend and see you all soon!

Chris Lunardi

LOWER SCHOOL CARLINE - once carline begins parents are expected to join the carline for pick up unless they walk their children home.  Please do not walk up to pick up your child.  Thank you.

THANK YOU PALS!

Thank you to our Lower School PALS for planning a fun get together last week.  Making family connections is so important to building our school community!  We appreciate PALS for making these events happen!

STUDENT SAFETY - FINGER PRINTS FOR VOLUNTEERS   Please read the introduction letter and the instructions for starting the process.  Parents wanting to chaperone are now required to have finger prints on file.

Some of you have asked if we can use finger prints through your employer.  In order for us to see if we may be able to retrieve your already submitted finger prints, please fill out the forms in the instructions.  If we can connect to them we will let you know.  We must have them tied to our system so that we would receive alerts should someone's status change.  Otherwise in order to chaperone or volunteer you will need to complete our process.  Parents would only need to do this every 5 years.  

The following seven Florida state agencies use the same Clearinghouse.  

• Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA)

• Agency for Persons with Disabilities (APD): 

• Department of Children and Families (DCF): 

• Department of Elder Affairs (DOEA): 

• Department of Health (DOH): 

• Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ): 

• Department of Education (Vocational Rehabilitation)

PARENT PRESENTATION - HELP YOUR STUDENT PREVENT ONLINE MISTAKES

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 16 1:30-2:30 in Upper Campus Gym

We are pleased to announce that we have invited Lori Smith, private education lawyer, to provide valuable information to guide you with helping your student avoid the dangers and mistakes of an online presence and how to keep your student's privacy protected.  We encourage that at least one parent from each family (4th - 12th grade) attend this valuable session.  We will also have sessions for our middle and high school students earlier in the day.  In addition to these sessions we have already shared information/lessons through Common Sense Media with Upper School students about protecting their passwords, validating social media/online information (ps.....it's not all true!), how to recognize cyberbullying and to protect their online reputation.  We value the partnership between home and school as we all share the same concern for your child's physical and spiritual wellbeing.

MARINE LAB TRIP FOR 8TH AND 9TH GRADE STUDENTS

8th and 9th grade parents - don't miss next week's deadline (Friday, 9/5) to sign up for this immersive educational trip.  Every other year we offer this wonderful trip for 8th and 9th grade students.   The opposite year is Washington, DC to provide rich educational trips with memories to last a life time!  Emails have been sent with more detailed information.  If you have questions, please contact Mrs. Kim Cox at kcox@thehcla.org. 

✅DINNER IS PLANNED - SEPTEMBER 10TH - YOU'RE WELCOME!

ENJOY SOME PICTURES OF ACTIVITIES AROUND CAMPUS

🏀⚽ WINTER SPORTS SIGN UPS 🏀⚽

It's hard to believe we are talking about Winter Sports already - we will be offering boys and girls basketball and varsity soccer.  Practices for those sports will begin in October so it is important to start planning ahead.  If your student is playing a Fall sport they must remain with that sport until the season ends. Coaches will work together so your student can manage the transition.  Please use this link to express your student's interest.  Athletic Fees: First sport $225.00, Second sport $200.00 and Third sport $175.00.  Accounts will not be charged  the final rosters are made. If you have questions, please email Mrs. Kelly, Athletic Director at bkelly@thehcla.org.

PALS sponsored, N.U.T.S. Days (No Uniform To School).  Students are welcome to come to school out of uniform on the following days.  Students must pay $3 per month.  You can pay it all at once or on a monthly basis.  Please keep dress code in mind regarding modesty, graphics, shoes, etc.

Did you turn in your envelope or order online by midnight on Saturday?  If so, your picture order will be sent to the school in 3 - 4 weeks.  When you receive your pictures, you will have the opportunity to determine if youf child needs to have their picture retaken on October 28th.  Families can still order now, but there will be an additional cost to have pictures shipped directly to your home.  Since we do not share personal information/emails with Leonards Photography on behalf of parents, you are not able to log in to preview pictures as there is no way to keep those pictures secure. 

CLASS OF 2025 SENIOR PICTURES - This year we have partnered with Leonards for Senior Pictures.  You will schedule your visit offsite.  Create your account here using the access code sent to you from Mrs. Evrley.  This is the picture that will be placed in the yearbook so please don't miss out on this opportunity.  You can also schedule other senior photo sessions with them for an additional charge if you are interested.  Seniors received a photo code via email from Mrs. Evrley over the summer, should you need that again, please reach out to Mrs. Evrley.  Seniors will not be participating in the in-school photo day.

FACTS LOGIN - We've had a few families who have had difficulty viewing student information in Facts.  Facts recommends you update your browsers, clear your cache and also update your Facts Family App if you are using the app through Apple Store or Google Apps.  As a reminder, the app doesn't always show everything that you see in the web-based portal.  After you've cleared your browse history and cookies, log out and log back to see if your issue is resolved.

PARENT SIGNATURE REQUIRED - HANDBOOKS

 Please read the handbook (click on signature button below) pertaining to your child's grade level.  If you have a student at both campuses, your review and signature acknowledging you've read both handbooks is required.  All families must have at least one parent acknowledgement signature.

DON'T MISS OUT ON PRACTICE OR PLAYING IN YOUR FIRST GAME!!  All athletic paperwork/clearances will be handled through FHSAA Home Campus.  Please note we are unable to accept hard copy documents in our school office.  Instead they will be uploaded to this online portal.  Please contact Mrs. Bonnie Kelly if you have any athletic questions, bkelly@thehcla.org.  If you have recently enrolled and would like to talk FALL sports, reach out to Mrs. Kelly.

BEFORE CARE AND AFTER CARE FORM - If you have not yet signed up for before or aftercare, please do so as soon as possible by using this online form.  Child Care Change Form If anything changes during the school year (adding or withdrawing),  you must use this form.  Changes must be made using the form no later than fifteen days before the first of the month in order to take effect.

FACTS HAS INCREASED the fee for credit card transactions to 3.05% effective September. This slight change reflects the rising costs imposed by credit card companies and ensures we can continue to offer convenient payment options while maintaining the quality of our their services. ACH drafts are available at no additional cost if you would prefer to set up your payment method.  

Our team is back together again!!  Different because of Christ!

⚠️ USE CAUTION ARRIVING ON UPPER CAMPUS! ⚠️  SAFETY AND SECURITY - We are thrilled to announce that our Upper School is now a fully secured/fenced campus!  Phase II (installation of security gate and electronic slide gate was completed this summer!) The security gate will restrict access to the entrance of the campus to vehicular traffic and pedestrian access through the use of our new access control gate.  Staff will utilize their access control credentials and visitors who arrive (outside of arrival and dismissal times) would be identified over a video doorbell with the ability to remotely open the gate, if approved. 

What's next?  The gate will remain open for arrival and dismissal times.  Traffic flow will be monitored the first week of school and times and instructions for entry will be posted at that point. 

SAFETY AND SECURITY FEES 

All K - 12th families will be billed August 1 for the $100 safety and security fee (per student).  The due date/draft date is August 15th. 

STEP UP FOR STUDENTS INVOICE a note from finance: Families utilizing Step Up For Students will notice an invoice for the Step Up for Students Amount on their FACTS incidental account.  The amount on this invoice indicates the SCHOLARSHIP AWARD we are expected to receive on behalf of your student. The remaining tuition balance will be billed separately according to your tuition plan. Scholarship payments are received quarterly from Step Up and applied to this invoice. You will begin to see this invoice amount go down as we receive the quarterly payments.  NOTE: The payment method listed is only charged in the event all scholarship funds are not received by the last regular payment day of the school year in May. 

UPPER SCHOOL ORIENTATIONS AND COMPUTER PICK UP

Upper School Students will receive their computers at these orientations as well.  These orientations are required for all students and have a specific start time.  They are not an open house style format.  All meetings start in the gym.  If students have their locker items, they may spend some time after the meeting setting up their lockers .  We ask that students only come at their scheduled time as office staff and teachers have scheduled meetings in preparation for school to start.

RETURNING STUDENTS - 7TH - 12TH GRADERS ORIENTATION AND COMPUTER PICK UP

UNIFORM INFORMATION

Upper School Dress Code/Uniform Policy - note change:  only Holy Cross hoodies allowed in school. 

Lower School Dress Code / Uniform Policy - note change:  only branded SkoolStyle bottoms

Lower School families, thank you for your feedback regarding our change in our uniform policy. We are so excited about our new uniform options for this next school year!  We appreciate your partnership in making this transition to include Skool Style uniform bottoms.  We have listened to your input and with the help of our vendor Skool Style we have a few updates.

1.      Skool Style has reduced the pricing for our new uniform bottoms by 10%. This will remain in effect until Spring Break 2026.

2.      Florida’s tax free days are July 29 – August 11. Take advantage of these additional savings of 7% that can be combined with the already advertised reduced price of the uniform bottoms.

3.      The plaid skort for 4th & 5th grade girls has been changed to a full skirt style and will be the same style as the khaki performance skort with the side zipper but in the plaid material.

Thank you again for partnering with us. I have attached the Dress Code Information again to this email for your convenience. Following the dress code is mandatory. 

BACK TO SCHOOL UNIFORM SALES:  

AUGUST 1 & 2, 7 & 8 | 8:00 - 5:00PM UPPER CAMPUS

PLEASE SEE THE ALTERNATING CAMPUS SCHEDULE FOR SCHOOL UNIFORM SALES THROUGHOUT THE SCHOOL YEAR.  

💻LOOKING FOR A PARTICULAR TOPIC IN THE NEWSLETTER? 💻

Are you searching for something you previously read.   Did you know that you can hit CNTRL F (PC) OR CMND F (MAC) on any website and a box will pop up.  You can type in what you are searching for and you will be directed to that information.

2025-2026 TUITION PAYMENTS BEGAN IN JUNE - AFTERCARE FEES BEGIN IN AUGUST

If you are requiring before care, after care, lunch bunch or lunch bunch extended please be sure to utilize 2025-2026 Childcare Registration Form.  This form is also used should you have any changes throughout the school year.  While tuition starts in June, aftercare payments will not begin until August. All child care changes will take affect on the 1st or 15th of the month and require a 15-day notice (using the same link) to be changed. 

FACTS assesses a per family fee of $25 for families that set up a pay-in-full draft or $55 for families that set up a monthly payment plan.  You will see that fee assessed through your FACTS account when your plan is set up.  You will receive an email notification when this occurs.

As a reminder, families are responsible for checking that their tuition amount is accurate and assume responsibility for the full amount owed.  If you have any questions or see any discrepancies, please notify finance immediately at finance@thehcla.org. 

UPPER SCHOOL TECHNOLOGY FEE

1:1 Technology Fees Due May 30th.  All parents with 2025-2026 enrolled 6th - 12th graders should see an invoice on their FACTS account for the $400 technology/computer fee and $100 insurance fee (if you opted in for the insurance).  If you have questions regarding payments, please contact Finance at finance@thehcla.org.  If you did not already opt in for the insurance, you can do so here.

Looking for a Church Home?   We have two local churches in our network ready to welcome you.   Resurrection Church gathers at our Upper Campus Gym on Sundays and our founding church Holy Cross Lake Mary is located off of Lake Mary Blvd.