Columbus City Schools is partnering with Nationwide Children’s Hospital and Columbus Public Health to provide free COVID-19 vaccine clinics at every CCS elementary school for our students ages 5-11. We've made it as easy as possible for our younger students to get this life-saving vaccine. Parents must provide consent before the vaccines can be given, so we want to answer any questions you might have. Our Virtual Family Engagement Session features our pediatric health partners and school health teams to talk about the safety of the COVID-19 vaccine for younger students and show you step-by-step how to complete the online consent form.

Learning how to drive is a major milestone in a teenager’s life. But the road can be an unpredictable place for drivers of any experience level, and vehicle crashes continue to rank as one of the leading causes of death for driving-age teens. During our Virtual Family Engagement Session, our partners at Columbus Public Health will share some simple tips and strategies to help parents survive teaching their teens to drive. Beyond parallel parking and safe stopping, parents can impart important driving skills to help teen drivers avoid accidents and save lives.

Is your Parent Portal account activated yet? Do you know all the information you can get from it? We want to help you stay engaged in your child’s education by setting up and signing into the Columbus City Schools Parent Portal. Our special Virtual Family Engagement Session will show step-by-step how to securely access valuable information on your student’s teacher contact, grades and schedules, attendance, and missed assignments.

Your Columbus Library Card opens more than just books. Families can get free online access to movies, music, eBooks, audiobooks, and more from our partners at the Columbus Metropolitan Library. You can even check out free passes to the Columbus Zoo and Columbus Museum of Art. During our Virtual Family Engagement Session, the Columbus Library team will show the free resources available for our students and families, including in-person and online Homework Help.

Did you hear the news about the Columbus Promise? We bet you have questions about the promise of free tuition for CCS seniors to attend Columbus State Community College. You heard right: free college for CCS graduates! Join our Thursday Virtual Family Engagement Session as we get answers to your questions about this historic partnership from our high school counselors and our partners at Columbus State Community College and I Know I Can.

Let’s get cooking with our partners at Ohio State. During our Tuesday Virtual Family Engagement Session, the OSU Extension SNAP-Ed team shared great ideas for the grocery store and the kitchen for families who rely on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). You’ll pick up a recipe or two, as they offer options to eat well, spend less, and still satisfy the ever-changing tastes of children.

Columbus City Schools recently updated its COVID-19 health protocols. To answer some of the questions parents might still have about these new protocols - as well as share information about the upcoming opportunity for younger students to receive the COVID-19 vaccine - our Health Services team and our partners from Nationwide Children’s Hospital joined Superintendent Dr. Talisa Dixon for our Thursday Virtual Family Engagement Super Session. We also talked about the new Wellness Week initiative ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday and shared the additional ways the district is working to keep our classrooms healthy and safe for students and staff.

Are you getting your check for up to $300 per child each month? The American Rescue Plan, signed into law by President Biden, increased the Child Tax Credit to provide up to $300 per month per child under age 6, and up to $250 per month per child ages 6 to 17. You can still claim your Child Tax Credit and missing stimulus payments even if you make little or no money and typically don’t have tax documents. During our Tuesday session, our community partners will take you through the process to receive your payments that put cash in your family’s pocket every month for the things you need.

The Columbus City Schools Facilities Master Plan (FMP) process needs your input now more than ever. During our Tuesday Virtual Family Engagement Session, we will review Phase 5 - the “Consider” phase - of the FMP process, which introduces the various limitations and opportunities we face as we look to provide students, staff, and the community with learning environments and facilities that support 21st-century learning.

For more than a century, Charity Newsies has provided new clothes to Columbus City Schools students. Now is the time for families to register to receive free school clothes for winter. During our Thursday Virtual Family Engagement Session, we’ll hear from our partners at Charity Newsies and about the mission to make sure no child skips school because of a lack of adequate clothing.

Better than Uber. Our partners at COTA are offering a new point-to-point service on the city’s South Side that’s free for Columbus City Schools students. During our Tuesday Virtual Family Engagement Session, we hear more about COTA//Plus. Whether you’re headed to soccer practice or an after school job, this new service offers safe and reliable transportation at no cost for students. COTA will also demonstrate the new app that makes riding the bus even easier.

Let’s hear how the first day of the new school year went for everyone. During our All In First Day Check-In, we will talk with several of our principals, teachers, and staff to discuss the return to the classroom, what we did to keep everyone healthy and safe, and what families can expect in the coming school year.

We will showcase all the technology tools we provide to help students and families… starting with Parent Portal but also Bus Bulletin, Clever, iReady, Paper, etc.

What time does school start? When is the first day of kindergarten? What time will the school bus pick up my child? How will my child be safe eating lunch without a mask? Answers to those questions and more were shared at the first Virtual Family Engagement Super Session of the 2021-2022 school year with Superintendent and CEO Dr. Talisa Dixon.