Published for the Arts Based School Community
July 23, 2026
First Day of School - Monday, August 10 (Staggered entry for Kindergarten)
As summer winds down, we're excited to welcome everyone back for another wonderful school year at The Arts Based School! This year brings so much to celebrate, including new staff members joining our team and the addition of 5th grade at our South Campus—an exciting milestone in our continued growth.4
In just a few days, our entire staff will come together for teacher workdays. There's something special about reconnecting with colleagues you enjoy and respect, sharing ideas, and preparing for the year ahead. That spirit of collaboration and care is what makes our school such a special place for children to learn, create, and thrive.
We can't wait to welcome our students and families back and look forward to another amazing year filled with learning, creativity, and community!
Staffing Updates
We’re excited to announce several staffing updates. It's an important time of the year as we look for the next great teachers to join the ABS team. We get to meet many wonderful educators during the process who are inspired by the way we teach children. Here's the lineup for 2026-27:
Kindergarten North:
Matthew Greene, Nicole Londoño, Tashina Fielding
Kindergarten South:
Christi Barnes, Kenya Heck
First Grade North:
Heather Cruz, Johnna Warlow, Mary Rogers
First Grade South:
Rachael Clarke, Jaynie Gifford
Second Grade North:
Katie Pipes, Nicole Rebhan, Caroline Soesbee
Second Grade South:
Lauren Munoz, Caitlyn Ward
Third Grade North:
Jenn Abbe, Ashley Brady, Aysia Hargrove
Third Grade South:
Tayah Fray, Nyesha Daniels
Fourth Grade North:
Annie Joyner, Amanda McGarry-Pike, Kelly Robertson
Fourth Grade South:
Jehn Boyd, Anna-Marie Stewart
Fifth Grade North:
Laura Lynne Frazier, Renee Meeks, Adam Tate
Fifth Grade South:
Monique Johnson, Jacquelyn Hayden
Sixth Grade:
Katie Visconti, Alex DeJarnette, Betty Jo Moore
Seventh/Eighth Grades:
Melissa Cleland, LeeAnn Farrell, Anna Hoffman, Lenora McNamara, Thom Woosley
The Arts North:
Maurisha Kish, Trish Goldberg, Rayven Leak, Jordan Brown, Elizabeth Gledhill, Taylor Mason
The Arts South:
Ally Shelton, Aliyah Bohrer, Taylor Payne
PE:
Bri Pierce
Thank You, Parent Volunteers!
We are so grateful to the many parents who came out for our Parent Workday! Your time, energy, and good humor made a huge difference—and proved that many hands really do make light work.
At South Campus, we tackled the enormous task of moving classrooms and the art studio to make room for our exciting expansion: two new fifth-grade classrooms. It was no small feat, but the teamwork and can-do spirit made the day feel like a true celebration of community.
Meanwhile, North Campus volunteers rolled up their sleeves for a series of “honey-do” projects—small jobs with big impact! From touch-ups to tweaks, everything you did helped spruce up our learning spaces for a strong start to the new school year.
Thank you again to everyone who joined us. Your support helps make ABS such a special place to learn and grow.
We still have a few tasks to accomplish and will be having another parent workday before school begins. If you can help on Friday, July 31, 9-12noon please sign up here.
Notes from Parent Council:
Donations Needed for the Welcome Back Breakfast
Thank you to everyone who has donated monitarily or signed up to contribute food! We're half way to our goal. Help us treat our teachers by signing up to bring food or donate funds. This is for staff at both campuses - breakfast is at North campus. Your support means so much! Sign up at https://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090F4FABAF22A4FD0-64759259-2026#/
Volunteering at ABS
The Arts Based School Volunteer Hub offers a variety of ways for parents to support our school community, from classroom assistance to special events and ongoing needs. Current opportunities include serving as Class Reps, volunteering in art classes, helping with lunch distribution on Fridays, maintaining our school gardens, providing staff meeting snacks by grade level, and supporting teacher appreciation efforts by stocking the Teacher's Lounge. All volunteer opportunities are available through SignUpGenius links on the portal, where you can easily sign up for activities that fit your schedule and interests. Additionally, there's an area to log your hours for individual classroom volunteering, with those opportunities organized on a more individual basis by teachers and class reps.
Parents Needed: Sign up to be a Class Representatives!
Each classroom should have a Classroom Representative that will coordinate with their teacher to communicate needs to the classroom. Parent Council will work with you to make sure you have all of the information and support you need. Main responsibilities include:
- Coordinating class-specific volunteer efforts and classroom needs.
- Coordinating parent volunteers for Book Fair, Fall Fest and Field Day.
- Coordinating any hospitality events (Teacher appreciation week, recognizing teacher birthdays, etc.)
- Communicating information from Parent Council.
Please sign up to be a class representative using this Google Sheet: ABS Class Reps 2026-2027
Learn more about what being a class rep involves here: ABS Classroom Representative Information Sheet
Please contact Parent Council Rep Coordinators with any questions.Tabatha Smith, North Campus [email protected], Sara Morales, South Campus [email protected]
Thank you for helping build our school community!
Aftercare Registration 2026-2027
Aftercare Registration is now open for both campuses! We look forward to providing a safe and fun filled environment where we focus our efforts on the social, emotional, and physical development of your child. We'll do this by nurturing strong relationships and offering your children choices that reflect their individual needs, interests and abilities. This year we are hopeful to offer more structured activities that the students and staff will both love! The program runs from 2pm-6pm each day and we offer a 2 days (NEW!), 3 days, and 5 days a week program. You can also register for the drop in service. Check out updated pricing and dates in the Aftercare Parent Handbook. Please email Ashley Tate at [email protected] with any questions.
2026-2027 Aftercare Registration
2026-2027 Aftercare Parent Handbook
ABS Bus Service
For the 2026-27 school year, ABS will offer morning and afternoon bus service with dropoff and pickup locations of: Winston Lake YMCA, Hanes Mall, and Sherwood Plaza. Please review the Bus Guidelines and Information before registering.
Please contact Mr. Cutts at [email protected] with any questions.
2026-2027 ABS Bus Registration
ABS Bus Guidelines and Information
School Calendar and Important Dates
The approved 2026-27 school calendar is available 2026-27 Student Calendar, on our website Calendar
Important dates coming up (details below):
- July 27: New Parent Orientation
- August 10: First Day of School (Staggered Entry dates for Kindergarten)
Kindergarteners Staggered Start
ABS kindergarten students begin the school year with a staggered start. Students in kindergarten will be assigned their first day of school when they receive their class placement. We schedule a third of each class to attend to help students acclimate to their school day and routine. Kindergarteners will only attend one of the first days, either Monday (8/10), Tuesday (8/11), or Wednesday (8/12). Then all kindergarteners will attend together starting Thursday, August 13. The staggered entry schedule does not affect a student’s attendance record.
Kindergarten Required Forms
Parents of kindergarten students are required to provide the school with a copy of the child’s birth certificate, immunization record, and NC Kindergarten Health Assessment form.
New Parent Orientation
Save the Date- Monday, July 27 at 10am for the New K-4 Parent Orientation at ABS. This program is designed specifically for new families in grades K-4th at ABS to support your transition into ABS and to answer your questions. Please attend the session at the campus at which your child is enrolled. Please mark your calendars and join us!
Middle School Orientation
Save the Date-Monday, July 27 at 2pm for Middle School Orientation. For new parents (grade 5-8) and also for parents new to middle school. This program is designed to answer questions about how our middle school program works (grades 5-8) and what to expect. Please attend the session at the campus at which your child is enrolled.
Who’s My Teacher?
Classroom teachers met with their grade-level teams before the end of the school year to thoughtfully create class rosters for next year. They considered each child's academic, social, emotional, and behavioral strengths and needs to determine the classroom that would be the best fit.
Class placement lists will be sent out on Friday, July 24 along with supply lists and also posted on the parent portal. We appreciate your patience.
Special Visits
Educational research shows that the relationship between the student and his or her teacher is one of the most important factors in a student’s academic success. This critical relationship is enhanced by our small class size and our educators’ commitment to children. In support of the teacher/student relationship, our teachers will be offering a Special Visit before school begins. A Special Visit is simply an opportunity for your child to meet his or her teacher in a familiar setting, a chance to learn a bit about the class and what to expect in the coming school year. This year’s scheduled days for Special Visits are August 4 and 5, 2026. Your child’s teacher will be contacting you to schedule a 15-20 minute appointment.
ABS Family Portal Access
Access to our ABS Family Portal will be switching over to new credentials for the 2026-27 school year. Currently enrolled families will receive login information via email Friday. The ABS Family Portal is your source for a great deal of information that is not publicly available on our website, including class lists, a family directory, links to videos of our past productions, and more.
Around town…
Come out to see students in The Little Theatre's production of Once Upon a Mattress: Youth Edition, a Princess and the Pea telling. The show opens on Friday the 24th at 7PM, with a Saturday Matinee at 2PM and an evening performance at 6PM. Final performances on Sunday the 26th at 2PM and 6PM.
Ways to get involved and learn more about ABS:
- ABS Parent Student Handbook
- Follow us on Social Media
- Catch up on Thursday Notes you may have missed
- Explore the ABS website
- Make sure we have best contact information so that you receive all communications