Back-to-School Central (2025-2026)

There is a lot to plan for as school approaches. We hope the following information is helpful as your family gets ready for a successful school year.
The following Information is up-to-date as of August 7, 2025; this page will be continually updated as information becomes available, so check back regularly!

Important Dates By Division

LOWER SCHOOL

Tuesday, Sept. 2: Lower School Open House
9:00 – 10:15 a.m. Students whose last names begin with A through M
10:30 – 11:45 a.m. Students whose last names begin with N through Z
Join us for an optional self-guided tour of the new Lower School, meet your child’s teachers, and visit classrooms and community spaces. We will have refreshments, giveaways and entertainment!

Wednesday, Sept. 3, 8:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m.
Lower School Student Orientation
Your child will have the opportunity to get to know their teachers and classmates, and learn about their schedules and school norms. Please note that bus transportation and lunch will not be available on this day. Parents are asked to pack a lunch, snack and water for their children.

Thursday, Sept. 4
First Full Day of School for all PK-12 students
Details about the first day of school and the student dress code for the grades 1-12 assembly will be forthcoming.

Month of September: Goal-Setting Conferences with Homeroom Teachers
Parents/caregivers will receive an invitation to sign up for optional goal-setting conferences with their child’s homeroom teacher. These 20-minute meetings will take place throughout the month of September. Expect an invitation from your child’s homeroom teacher in August.

MIDDLE SCHOOL

Wednesday, Aug. 27 through Friday, Sept. 5
Get-Acquainted Conferences
Parents/caregivers have the opportunity to meet with their child’s advisor for 25 minutes. In-person and virtual conferences available.

Tuesday, Sept. 2, 9-11 a.m.
Sixth Grade Orientation for all new and returning sixth grade students and their parents/caregivers.

Tuesday, Sept. 2, 1-3 p.m.
New Student Orientation for all new seventh and eighth grade students and their parents/caregivers.

Wednesday, Sept. 3, 8 a.m.-12:30 p.m.
First Day of School for all Middle School Students, including registration, ID pictures, laptop distribution and lunch social. (Please note that buses are not operating on this day.)
9 a.m.: Middle School picture day

Thursday, Sept. 4
First Full Day of School for all PK-12 students, 8 a.m.-2:45 p.m. Buses will be running on this day. This is a special dress day for all students because we have our annual All-School Assembly.

Monday, Sept. 8
Fall sports and sanctuary begin after school.

UPPER SCHOOL

AUGUST:

Monday, August 11: Varsity & JV football preseason begins
Monday, August 18: Fall varsity & JV sports begin
Wednesday, August 20: Senior College Workshop (brown-bag lunch), 12–2 p.m.
Thursday, August 21: Senior College Workshop (brown-bag lunch), 12–2 p.m.
Friday, August 22: College Athletics Recruitment (brown-bag lunch); The Arts + College Process (brown-bag lunch)
Saturday, August 23 – Monday, August 25: Senior Retreat

SEPTEMBER:

Tuesday, September 2: Grade 9 Orientation (9 a.m.–3 p.m.); New Student Orientation (Grades 10-12); Upper School Welcome Event for 9th grade families and new 10th-12th grade families, 6–8 p.m. (Registration and pictures begin at 5:30 p.m.)
Wednesday, September 3: Grade 10-11 meetings and photos
Thursday, September 4: First Full Day of School for all PK-12 Students - Special schedule with All-School Assembly, 8:15 a.m.–2:45 p.m.
Friday, September 5: Senior Breakfast Tailgate

School Forms - Your Go-To Resource: The Hub

We are excited to help you prepare for a successful school year. That starts with parents and caregivers completing various back-to-school forms, including the PC contact information form, health forms and laptop loaner form. All back-to-school resources are in the Resources section of the Hub.

Update Contact Info

Laptop Loaner Form

DUE: Friday, June 13, 2025
WHO: Upper and Middle School Parents and Caregivers
WHERE TO COMPLETE: Google Form

Reminder: All parents of returning Middle and Upper School students are asked to complete the 1:1 laptop program form. Deadline is Friday, June 13. Students may either bring to school a family-owned laptop that meets program requirements or participate in the Penn Charter laptop loan program. If your child does not own a laptop that meets the requirements, and if the cost of the $225 laptop loan, which will be billed in November, is a financial hardship for your family, you may complete a Grace Fund request. Please contact the PC tech department at techsupport@penncharter.com if you have any questions.

Health Portal and Forms

DUE: Thursday, July 31, 2025
WHO: All Parents and Caregivers
WHERE TO COMPLETE: The Hub/Magnus Health App

Every family needs to update their student's Magnus health account every year. See instructions below.

All medical forms (physical exams, trip medication form, etc.) are due July 31 and can be downloaded, printed and uploaded to your Magnus account in the Hub or visit the Health Services webpage.

Log in to the Hub
Click on Health Portal
Your primary care provider will complete the PC physical exam form if your child’s physical was within the last 12 months.
Student athletes WILL NOT be able to participate in pre-season sports if their Magnus accounts are incomplete.
Students WILL NOT be allowed to attend school on the first day of school if their Magnus accounts are incomplete.

Required Forms

Pre-K: physical, immunizations
K: physical, immunizations, dental
Grade 3: dental
Grade 5: trip medication form
Grades 6-12: physical, trip medication form
Grade 7: immunizations (MCV4 #1, Tdap), dental
Grade 12: immunizations (MCV4 #2)

*New families will receive access to Penn Charter’s internal portal, the Hub, in the coming weeks. This access includes the Magnus Health account. Detailed instructions on how to log in and get started will be shared soon.

For assistance with the Health Portal and uploading medical forms, email Healthoffice@penncharter.com.

New to the Hub

Resources, Divisional Information and Calendar

Transportation

Find details on public and private transportation, including the Center City shuttle. Contact Tatiana Koltsova at 215-844-3460 ext. 132 or tkoltsova@penncharter.com with questions.

Transportation options are available to students for the 2025-2026 school year. Families may mix and match some transportation options. The deadline to register for most bus transportation options is Friday, June 20, except for the Wissahickon School District, which ended on May 21. Full details and registration.

Review the various ways to get to and from Penn Charter.

Summer Work

Supply Lists

US & MS Book Ordering

US Daily Schedule

The US daily schedule features an 8-day rotation, with a combination of 50- and 70-minute classes, as well as a designated block each day for community time. This year, community time includes advisory, assemblies, Meeting for Worship and flexible time. Community Time schedules will be shared with the Upper School community in the Week Aheads.

Important elements to note are:

The school day begins at 8:15 a.m. and ends at 2:45 p.m., Monday through Friday.
Lunch each day is 12:25-12:55 for all Upper School students. Many clubs and activities will meet during lunch; more information about the club and activities schedule will come after the beginning of school.

Please note that students will be given their specific schedules on their respective orientation days, and the PC hub will open for them on that day as well.

MS Daily Schedule

The MS daily schedule features an 8-day rotation, with a combination of 40- and 55-minute classes, as well as a designated block each week for advisory, Meeting for Worship, clubs and assemblies.

Important elements to note are:

The school day begins at 8:10 am and ends at 2:45 pm, Monday through Friday.
Middle School Assembly is on Monday, Advisory is on Wednesday, and Meeting for Worship is on Thursday.
Lunch/recess each day is 11:55 am - 12:25 pm for all Middle School students.

Please note that students will be given their schedules on their respective orientation days, and the PC hub will open for them on that day as well.

LS Daily Schedule

Lunch Payment Portal

We are in the process of transitioning from MyPaymentsPlus to MyKidsSpending, the new platform we will be using for students' lunch accounts in grades 2-12 this year. Here is what this means for parents/caregivers as we get closer to the start of the school year:

Students with balances in the MyPaymentsPlus system will automatically be transferred to MyKidsSpending.
Parents/caregivers will have the same login credentials as with the MyPaymentsPlus system. After the initial login, passwords may need to be changed/may need to verify their personal information on the new website.
Parents/caregivers will have access to MyKidsSpending after Monday, August 18.
Please contact Siobhan Scardina if you have any questions regarding MyKidsSpending.
- MyKidsSpending
- 855-302-0070

US Athletics/Activities Requirement

All students in the Upper School (grades 9-12) will be required to participate in two A40 activities.

An A40 activity is defined as an activity based on academics, arts, athletics, or acts of service that includes at least 40 student hours of participation. Of these two A40 activities, it is required that one of these activities include an Athletic or Arts. Students will learn more about fulfilling their A40 during orientation and are encouraged to take advantage of these varied offerings.

LS Auxiliary Programs

Lower School Auxiliary Programs

Our lower school auxiliary programs include our after-school program (ASP), after-school program complement (ASPC) and enrichment offerings.

Please visit our Lower School Auxiliary Programs webpage for detailed information on offerings for grade levels and to register.
For ASPC, registration will open on July 1 and will close as classes are filled.
For regular ASP, registration will open on July 1 and will close on Monday, August 25, 2025.

Enrichment Offerings

Enrichment offerings for grades 3-5 will begin on Tuesday, Sep 16, 2025. On August 1, a link will be sent to families to register. More information to follow.

These are the enrichment session dates for the year:
- Fall (Sept. 16 - Nov. 6)
- Winter (Jan. 13 - March 5)
- Spring (March 31 - May 21)

If you have questions, please afterschool@penncharter.com or our Auxiliary Programs Administrator, Jenny Gómez.

2025-2026 Calendar

The Penn Charter App

Introducing the Penn Charter App

Penn Charter community members interested in easily accessing school information from their mobile devices can now download the official Penn Charter app from Apple's App Store or Google Play.

The app's features include:

Athletics schedules and results that can be filtered by team
All-school calendar
Lunch menu
Parent Post announcements
Recent news posts
Faculty/staff directory
PC Flickr photo albums
+ More!

Users who wish to receive notifications through the app when certain PC email communications, such as the weekly Parent Post, are distributed can also sign up to receive these alerts in the app under the "More" tab.

Watch this video to learn how to navigate the app. All community members can download it from Apple's App Store or Google Play.

Note: The app draws content from penncharter.com, not the Hub, and does not require a password.

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