Dear Tubman Families, 

Thank you to everyone who joined us for our Fun Run on Friday! Our students had a fantastic time, and thanks to your generosity, Friends of Tubman surpassed their fundraising goal for the event. We are so grateful for our amazing school community!

Here are a few important updates and reminders for the week ahead:

• Mandatory Lockdown Drill: Our safety drill takes place tomorrow, Tuesday, October 6th. Please check your inbox for an email sent last week by Assistant Principal Plunkett for details on what to expect.

• 8th Grade High School Admission Test: This Wednesday, October 7th, our 8th graders will take their admissions test right here at Tubman. Please ensure students arrive on time so they can settle in comfortably. We know they will do great, and we wish them the absolute best!

• First Responder List: To ensure you always know who to reach out to with questions, please refer to the First Responder list at the bottom of each Bulldog Blast. It highlights staff leads for various school needs.

• Attendance Spotlight: Our Year-to-Date attendance is currently at 94.28%—up from 91.22% at this time last year! Way to show up and shine, Bulldogs! Thank you to our students, families, and staff for prioritizing daily attendance.

Starting Everyday Strong: Morning Routines & Attendance Policy

Instruction begins promptly at 7:45 a.m. each morning. The first few minutes of the school day are crucial as our classrooms gather for Social-Emotional Learning, helping students connect with peers and set a positive tone for learning. Arriving on time ensures every child feels prepared and included.

To help keep our school day running smoothly, please keep the following policy reminders in mind:

• Tardies: Students arriving after 7:52 a.m. must be signed in at the Tardy Log with security.

• 300-Minute Rule (Full vs. Half Day): CPS guidelines require students to complete at least 300 instructional minutes (excluding lunch and recess) to receive full-day attendance credit. Any total under 299 minutes counts as a half day. Please keep this rule in mind when scheduling doctor or dental appointments!

• Early Dismissal: If you need to pick your child up early, please stop by the Main Office upon arrival to sign them out.

Thank you for your partnership in making every instructional minute count!

Warmly,

Principal Hammaker

Network 4 High School Fair will be on October 20th from 4pm-6pm at Lakeview High school. Current 7th and 8th grade students are encouraged to attend. 

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.

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 Padlet. The HS Research Virtual Bulletin Board contains open house flyers, brochures, and videos.

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

Boys 5th/6th Grade Soccer

Practices: Mondays & Wednesdays from 3pm to 4pm

First Game: Saturday, October 10th at RIIS Park. (Players arrive at 8:45am with cleats, shin guards and a water bottle.)

Please reach out to Coach Grant with any questions or concerns at ogrant2@cps.edu

Girls 5th/6th Grade Volleyball - Congratulations on your win last Saturday!

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

Girls 7th/8th Grade Volleyball - Congratulations on your win last Saturday!

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

(8th graders are allowed to skip Tuesday due to the Pre-ACT this week…just let coach know)

Next Match: Saturday, October 10th at Kelvyn Park HS (players arrive at 9:15am as the match starts 30 minutes later at 9:45am)

NOTE: JV has their first match right after the Varsity match so stay to cheer them on!

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.

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