Dear Tubman Families, 

It was wonderful seeing so many of you at Curriculum Night last week! We hope you enjoyed connecting with our staff and getting a glimpse into the learning ahead.

Last week also marked the start of National Hispanic Heritage Month. As a school community, we look forward to recognizing and honoring the rich histories, cultures, and contributions of Hispanic and Latino Americans throughout the weeks ahead in our classrooms and school community.

Friends of Tubman Playground Feedback

We want your feedback on the design of our future Tubman Playground!

CLICK HERE to review two playground renderings and site plans. Take note of the layouts, equipment, features, etc. on both options. CLICK HERE and let us know what you think (and ask your student too!).

Friends of Tubman Fun Run

We are thrilled to kick off the 20th Annual Tubman Fun Run fundraiser this Wednesday! This is an amazing opportunity to support our school and help us raise much-needed funds for curriculum, staffing and technology. Our goal this year is to raise $60,000 and to have 75% of our students register for the program and I know that we can do it.  Please visit tubmanfunrun.com to register your student and be a part of the excitement as we count down to our Fun Run event on Friday, October 2. 

After-School & Extracurricular Options

We are thrilled to offer a wide variety of after-school opportunities for our Tubman students, including extracurricular sports, arts enrichment, and academic clubs!

• Out of School Time (OST) Programs (Free): To register your child for an OST club, please reach out directly to the teacher listed on the program flyer.
• Community Partner Programs: We are partnering with the YMCA and Music House to provide additional high-quality care and music instruction on-site. (Note: Partner programs and select general clubs have an associated fee).

Please review the attached flyers below for complete schedules, pricing details, and registration links.

Empowering Student Growth Through SEL 

This year, our school will administer one or more surveys to measure students' social and emotional competencies. We will use this data to strategically prioritize opportunities and strategies that support students in developing key Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) skills.

More detailed information regarding these surveys was recently sent directly to your email. Please check your inbox to review the full details, and feel free to reach out to our administration team if you have any questions!

Dismissal & Pick-Up Reminder

A quick reminder for all families: school dismissal and pick-up time is 2:45 PM.

Students in grades K–5 must be picked up directly from their teachers at 2:45 PM. While we understand that unexpected delays happen on occasion and a family may run a few minutes behind, all students are expected to be picked up promptly at dismissal time unless they are enrolled in aftercare, sports, or one of our Out-of-School Time (OST) programs. Thank you for your cooperation in keeping our dismissal process safe, smooth, and timely for everyone!

As we honor the diverse traditions that enrich our Harriet Tubman community, we send our warmest thoughts to our Jewish families observing Yom Kippur. G’mar Chatima Tova—may you all be sealed for a good, healthy, and meaningful year ahead!

Warmly,

Principal Hammaker

The GoCPS High School application is open from Wednesday, September 9, 2026, at 10:00 AM to Friday, November 13, 2026, at 5:00 PM. All families are encouraged to log into the GoCPS Portal to complete and submit a High School Application.

The current HSAT test will be replaced by the PreACT 9 Secure. As in previous years, this test will be offered to all 8th-grade students. Click here to learn more about the HSAT.

Starting in late September and early October, the CPS Office of Access and Enrollment is hosting a series of informative sessions to guide families step-by-step through the GoCPS application process for the 2027–28 school year (Click here to register).

Please make sure your student's address is correct in ASPEN, as accurate address data is required to calculate Tier status and to populate Neighborhood/Guaranteed Offer programs for students. 

I am here to help! If you have questions or need assistance, please feel free to contact me. Click here to sign up for my office hours. You can also call me directly at 773-534-5590.

Please take a moment to become familiar with the HS Research Virtual Bulletin Board. The HS Research Virtual Bulletin Board contains open house flyers, brochures, and videos.

Mark your calendar, the network 4 high school fair will be on 10/20/2026. More information to come.

GoCPS Parent Resources

GoCPS Applications Process Overview Family Facing Deck 

GoCPS High School Resource Video

High School Eligibility and Selection Criteria

HS Research Bulletin Board Padlet

Public View Open Houses 2026-2027

Sign up for Go CPS Mailing List

PreACT Secure 9 Practice Test

Best Regards,

Heather Beeker

Pronouns: She/her/hers (More information on pronouns here)

Professional School Counselor 

SPORTS

Cross Country (Grades 5–8)

Practices: Mondays & Wednesdays from 3pm to 4pm

Practice Location: Jonquil Park

First Meet: Tuesday, September 22nd at Montrose Beach

Boys 5th/6th Grade Soccer

Practices: Mondays & Wednesdays from 3pm to 4pm

If you have any questions, please email Ms. Grant at ogrant2@cps.edu

Girls 5th/6th Grade Volleyball

Practice: Mondays & Wednesdays from 3:15pm tp 5pm

First Meet: Saturday, October 3rd at 4:30pm vs McAuliffe at Kelvyn Park High School (4343 W. Wrightwood Ave.)

Please see Welcome email from Coach Lynn & Andrew for full practice information and reminders.

Girls 7th/8th Grade Volleyball

Practices: Tuesday and Thursday from 3:15pm to 5pm

First CPS Match: Tubman 7/8 Volleyball beat Funston 2-0 on Saturday!

Next Match: Saturday, September 26th at Kelvyn Park HS (players arrive at 11:30am as the match starts 30 minutes later)

Reminder: If your child will be missing any match or practice, please let Coach Maggio know BEFORE so we can plan accordingly.

OST

Friends of Tubman is an all-volunteer group of parents and caregivers dedicated to making Tubman a great school for all students through fundraising and community events. Please click here Subscribe to Friends of Tubman to subscribe to FOT emails to receive information on upcoming fundraisers, community events, and learn how to get involved.

There are many ways, large and small, to get involved and volunteer with Tubman. All volunteers must complete the CPS Volunteer Application each school year. There are two levels of volunteers.

Level 1 Examples: Coaches, tutors, non-supervised day field trip chaperone, overnight field trip chaperone

Level 2 Examples: Halloween classroom celebration guest, reading a book to a class, supervised day field trip chaperone

Click here to complete your application. Upon completion of the online application, all volunteers must bring their ID to Ms. Martinez at the main office to have their application approved for processing.

Interested in becoming a Level 1 volunteer? Thanks to FOT, you can now save time by completing your FREE fingerprinting by Accurate Biometrics (the contracted vendor for Chicago Public Schools for State and FBI Fingerprint-based background checks) at Tubman on Tuesday, September 22nd. Click here to sign up now. Note that your application MUST be completed prior to your Accurate Biometrics appointment.

Parent Portal Login

Parent Portal Navigation Guide

Parent Portal Setup Process Video

Parent Portal FAQs

Online Payment via Parent Portal Guide

Online Payment via Parent Portal Video

Online Payment via ePay Login

Online Payment via ePay Guide

E-Absence FAQs

E-Absence Guide Video

E-Absence from Mobile Device Instructions

For additional assistance with Parent Portal or ePay, email the School Clerk, Ms. Martinez, at Rmartinez170@cps.edu

Harriet Tubman Elementary School

2851 N Seminary Ave, Chicago, IL 60657

Phone: (773) 534 - 5784 | Fax: (773) 534 - 5784

tubmanelementarycps.org