Episcopal Insider
Beaches Campus
August 30, 2024
All Campuses
Grandparents’ Day 2025-2026 will be held the first week of November 2025. Specific dates and times will vary by campus. Details will be updated as the school year begins.
Complete updates by September 1 to ensure grandparents receive all communications including the Grandparents’ Day invitation mailing that will provide them with additional details for each campus.
To update grandparent information in My ESJ:
Log in to the My ESJ Parent Portal
Click on “Update My Profile” located under My Tools
Click on “Grandparent Households” to update their information
New This Week
Beaches Campus Parents,
The Beaches Campus Parent Ambassadors warmly invite you to join them for a parent meet up this September. Be sure to check the invite below for your specific date and time—and don’t forget to wear your ESJ nametag!
Greetings Episcopal Parents,
Welcome back to a new and exciting school year at Episcopal! You are invited to join us for a “Coffee and Conversation” with The Reverend Adam Greene. All parents are welcome to meet after Flag on Friday, September 13, from 8:30 a.m. – 9:15 a.m. for coffee and Q&A.
The Reverend Greene will update us on the upcoming school year and we will allow time for a question and answer period. Please feel free to come for as long as time allows. We look forward to seeing you all on Friday, September 13!
Let us know you are coming!
Reminders
2025-2026 Important Calendar Dates
- August 26 – Pre-K/K Chapel (Postponed to September 2)
- August 27 – First – fifth grade Chapel – July/August Birthday Book (New Location: Petway Family Performance Center)
- August 29 – July/August Birthday Free Dress Day/Noon Dismissal/Faculty Professional Development (Afternoon Eagles Available)
- September 1 – Labor Day (No School)
- September 2 – Pre-K/K Chapel – July/August Birthday Book
- September 3 – First – fifth grade Chapel – Eucharist
- September 4 – First Parent Association Meeting via Zoom
- September 5 – August Shoutout Free Dress Day
- September 9 – Pre-K/K Chapel
- September 10 – First – fifth grade Chapel
- September 12 – Spirit Dress Day/Parent Coffee with Dr. Fallucco at 8:30 a.m.
- September 16 – Pre-K/K Chapel
- September 17 – Parent/Teacher Conference Day (No School for Students)
- September 19 – Lower School Family Fun Night on the Munnerlyn Campus
- September 23 – Pre-K/K Chapel – September Birthday Book
- September 24 – First – fifth grade Chapel – September Birthday Book
- September 26 – September Birthday Free Dress/Coffee with Adam Greene at 8:30 a.m.
- September 30 – Pre-K/K Chapel/ Volleyball Clinic (third – fifth grade, 3:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.)
- October 1 – First – fifth grade Chapel
- October 2 – Blessing of the Animals (8:15 a.m. – 8:45 a.m.)
- October 3 – September Shoutout Free Dress Day
- October 7 – Pre-K/K Chapel
- October 8 – First – third grade Chapel/Episcopal Schools Celebration (fourth and fifth grade)
- October 10 – Spirit Dress Day
- October 14 – Pre-K/K Chapel
- October 15 – First – fifth grade Chapel – Eucharist/Noon Dismissal
- October 16 – 20 – Fall Break
- October 21 – Pre-K/K Chapel
- October 22 – First – fifth grade Chapel – October Birthday Book
- October 24 – October Birthday Free Dress Day/Boo Bash (3:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.)
- October 27 – Vision Screening
- October 28 – Pre-K/K Chapel – October Birthday Book
- October 29 – First – fifth grade Chapel – Eucharist
- October 31 – Halloween Parade (8:15 a.m.) and Class Festivities
- November 5 – Grandparents and Special Friends Day
- November 6 – Trimester 1 Ends
- November 7 – October Shoutout Free Dress Day/Noon Dismissal/Faculty Professional Development (Afternoon Eagles Available)
- November 11 – Pre-K/K Chapel – November Birthday Book
- November 12 – Veterans Day Chapel
- November 14 – November Birthday Free Dress Day
- November 18 – Pre-K/K Thanksgiving Chapel
- November 19 – First-fifth grade Thanksgiving Chapel and November Birthday Book
- November 20 – Spirit Dress Day/Fifth Grade Pasta Dinner
- November 21 – Professional Development for Teachers (No School)
- November 24-28 – Thanksgiving Break (No School)
- December 2 – Pre-K/K Chapel
- December 3 – First – fifth grade Chapel
- December 5 – November Shoutout Free Dress Day
- December 9 – Pre-K/K Christmas Chapel
- December 10 – First – fifth grade Chapel – Eucharist
- December 12 – December Birthday Free Dress Day/Lessons & Carols
- December 16 – Pre-K/K Chapel – December Birthday Book
- December 17 – First – Fifth Grade Chapel – December Birthday Book
- December 18 – December Shoutout Free Dress Day
- December 19 – Noon Dismissal/How the Grinch Stole Christmas Performance/Storytime/Caroling
- December 22 – January 5 – Christmas Break (No School)
- January 6 – School Resumes
Faculty will participate in professional development on Friday, August 30. Early Dismissal is at 12:00 p.m.
The Eagle Afternoon Program will be open until 6:00 p.m. for pre-registered students. Please contact Melody Harding at hardingm@testing-phlexon.online for questions regarding the Eagle Afternoon Program.
Let us know that your student is coming by signing them up here.
Students who celebrated birthdays in July or August are welcome to dress down on August 30th for school. Examples of dress down would be play clothes or non uniform clothing.
With chapel coming up next week, please be mindful of St. Paul’s by-the-Sea church members and do not park in the church parking lot on 4th Street on Wednesdays.
We understand parking is tight this year, but we ask your help in being good neighbors! Please do not park in front of Jacksonville Community Pet Clinic, Beaches at 335 11th Avenue N. Pet parents need to have easy access to this facility, especially in times of emergency. Thank you for being considerate!
In observance of Labor Day, the school will be closed on Monday, September 2nd. We look forward to seeing all of our students back on campus on Tuesday, September 3rd.
Dear Beaches Campus Parents,
For the upcoming school year, the PA has organized activities that will enrich our students’ school experience and support our faculty and staff. It is our goal to create school spirit and a joyful sense of community, organize appropriate events, and honor Beaches Campus traditions.
MEETINGS:
The Beaches Campus PA will hold its first meeting of the 2024-2025 school year, via Zoom September 5 at 9:00 a.m.
Upcoming Parent Association Events:
- Boo Bash – Friday, October 25, 2024 | 3:30 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.
- Daughter Dance – Thursday, February 13, 2025 | 6:00 p.m.
- Son Event – Thursday, March 20, 2025 | 6:00 p.m.
Sincerely,
Laura Smith
2024-2025 Beaches Campus PA President
We are pleased to announce our visiting author for the fall semester – Victoria Piontek. On Friday, September 6, Victoria will join fourth and fifth grade students for an interactive presentation of her book, Better With Butter. We are so excited for Victoria to share her book with the Lower School community!
About the Book:
A girl with anxiety disorder finds an unlikely friend—and emotional support animal—in the form of an adorable fainting goat.
Twelve-year-old Marvel is afraid of absolutely everything-amusement park rides, food poisoning, earthquakes, and that big island of plastic floating through the ocean. She also obsesses about smaller worries like making friends, getting called on by the teacher, and walking home alone. Her parents and the school therapist call her worries an anxiety disorder, but Marvel calls them armor. If something can happen, it will. She needs to be prepared.
But when Marvel stumbles on a group of older kids teasing a baby goat that has mysteriously shown up on the soccer field, she momentarily forgets to be afraid and rescues the frightened animal. Only Butter isn’t any old goat. She’s a fainting goat. When Butter feels panic, she freezes up and falls over. Marvel knows exactly how Butter feels and precisely what Butter needs-her.
Soon, Butter and Marvel are going everywhere together, and Butter thrives under Marvel’s support. Butter also helps Marvel. Everything is easier for her with Butter by her side. But just when Marvel starts to imagine a life in which she can manage her anxiety, instead of letting it control her, Butter’s owner shows up to claim her. Will Marvel find a way to keep her friend? Or will she revert back to the anxious, lonely person she used to be?
About the Author:
Victoria Piontek is the author of The Spirit of Cattail County (Scholastic Press, 2018), a ghostly story of magic and friendship set in the Everglades. The Spirit of Cattail County was a Bank Street College Best Book of the Year (2019) and selected for the Sequoyah Children’s Masterlist (2019-2020). She is also a Literary Associate for Executive Agent Laura Rennert at the Andrea Brown Literary Agency. Prior to her current roles, Victoria had a myriad of other jobs, from waitressing to sales, but her favorite occupation was teaching middle school children in New York City as a Teach for America Corps Member. She holds an MFA in Creative Writing for Children and Young Adults from Hollins University, and an MST in Education from Pace University. Her forthcoming novel, Better with Butter, is about a twelve-year-old girl struggling with anxiety and the fainting goat that changes her life. When she’s not writing, you can find her hiking in California, where she lives with her husband, three children, bunny, and fluffy dog.
Students who received a Shout Out at Friday Flag in the month of August are welcome to dress down for school on September 6. If your student received a shout out, you will be contacted by their teacher.
Spirit Day is Friday, April 11, 2025! Don’t forget to wear your ESJ Spirit Shirt with athletic, denim, or uniform bottoms!
Beaches Campus Dads,
You are invited to attend the Beaches Campus Dads’ Club Meet and Greet on Thursday, September 19th at 6:30 p.m. at Southern Swells Brewing Company in Jacksonville Beach, FL.
Don’t miss this opportunity to meet other Beaches Campus dads in an informal and relaxed setting. All dads are welcome and don’t forget your ESJ nametag.
If you plan on attending, please RSVP here!
Sincerely,
Beaches Campus Dads’ Club President
Patrick Aland
School is closed on September 20, 2024 for Parent – Teacher Conference Day. Childcare will be provided during your scheduled conference time.
Please be on the lookout for an email to sign up for Pre-K 3 – fifth grade parent-teacher conferences.