Good afternoon! We hope you've had a great week and we wish you a great three-day weekend!

As a reminder, there is no school for students or staff on Monday in observance of Labor Day.  We will see you Tuesday!

Here's this week's edition of The Friday Five 🖐️

Dear CCS Families,

As we head into a three-day weekend, I hope our students, staff and families have an opportunity to slow down, spend time together and enjoy a well-earned break.

It also feels like a good moment to reflect on what has been an extraordinary start to the school year for Cabarrus County Schools.

By now, many of you have seen the academic results from the 2025-26 school year. They tell a remarkable story about our students and schools. Student proficiency and graduation rate reached the highest level in district history, more schools earned A and B performance grades than ever before, and 80 percent of our schools improved their School Performance Grade.

Those numbers are worth celebrating, but what they represent matters even more. They represent students who worked hard, teachers who refused to give up on them, staff members who supported them, and families who made education a priority. They represent thousands of small moments in classrooms across Cabarrus County that, taken together, produced something truly special.

I am incredibly proud of our students, and I am grateful for the educators and staff who serve them every day. I am equally grateful to you, our families, for the trust you place in us and for the role you play as partners in your child’s education.

We have plenty of work ahead of us this year. We will keep challenging ourselves to improve, because every student deserves our very best. But there are also times when it is important to recognize progress and simply say, “Well done.”

This is one of those times.

I hope you enjoy the long weekend with your family. When we return on Tuesday, we will get back to the work of building on this success and creating even more opportunities for every student.

Thank you for being a part of Cabarrus County Schools.

Stay well,

John Kopicki

Superintendent

Cabarrus County Schools

Cabarrus County Schools will host three community forums this fall to provide information and answer questions about the 2026 school bond referendum.

All forums will be held from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m.

Community members are invited to attend any of the three forums to learn more about the proposed school bond, the projects included, and the bond process.

We hope you’ll join us and learn more before Election Day on Nov. 3.

As social media continues to play a significant role in the lives of our students, we encourage parents and guardians to regularly talk with their children about responsible and safe online behavior.

Please take time to monitor your child’s social media activity and discuss the importance of thinking carefully before posting, sharing, or forwarding content. Online trends can spread quickly, and something intended as a joke can create fear, cause disruption, or have serious consequences.

We especially ask families to remind students not to participate in, repost or share harmful, threatening or inappropriate viral trends. Sharing this type of content can amplify it and make it difficult for others to determine whether a threat or concerning message is legitimate.

Please encourage your child to:

Keeping our schools and students safe is a shared responsibility. Thank you for partnering with us and for continuing these important conversations at home.

✅WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A CAPPED AND AN UNCAPPED WORKDAY?: If you've noticed on the academic calendar for this year, there's a capped workday coming up on Friday, Sept. 25th for traditional school students.  Capped and uncapped are both terms designated for staff use only.  Students are out of school on both capped and uncapped workdays.

✅PSAT REGISTRATION FOR 10th and 11th GRADE PARENTS: In case you missed it, a ParentSquare form was sent to parents of all 10th and 11th grade parents earlier this week to register for the PSAT.  This form post is ONLY accessible by parents of 10th and 11th grade students.  If you haven't completed the registration yet, and your child is in 10th or 11th grade, you may access the form here: https://www.parentsquare.com/feeds/86236741

✅2026-27 CCS TUTORING LIST: The 2026-27 CCS Tutor List is now available for families looking for additional academic support.

You can find the list four easy ways:

The tutor list includes CCS educators who have chosen to make their tutoring services available outside of the regular school day.

✅ATTENTION SENIORS: In mid-September, seniors who are eligible to graduate this school year will receive a personalized NC College Connect letter showing colleges where they may qualify for direct admission — without completing a traditional application first!

Create or make sure you can access your CFNC account. You will need it to view your NC College Connect opportunities and “claim your spot” with colleges that appear for you. Watch for your personalized letter in mid-September!

✅TECHNOLOGY REMINDERS: Technology fees for the 2026-27 school year may be payed through the K-12 Payment Center or by cash or check delivered to school. Please complete school-issued technology Acceptable Use Policy agreements that were delivered either through ParentSquare or Google Forms (varies by school.) 

✅K-12 VOLUNTARY STUDENT ACCIDENT INSURANCE: Are you worried about paying for your child's medical care if an accident requiring medical care happens? K&K's student accident insurance can help. K-12 Accident Plans available through your school include:

For more information and to enroll online, please visit the CCS Voluntary Student Accident Insurance webpage. 

Cabarrus County Schools will be co-hosting a free workshop with The College Funding Coach® on September 17th at 6:00pm at West Cabarrus High School.

This event is for any family wanting to learn how to pay for college (Preschool - High School).

The College Funding Coach® was founded in 2002 to help families better understand the complexities of paying for college and how to make higher education more affordable. Since that time, The College Funding Coach® team has been on a mission to help families save on the high cost of higher education. They have established an approach that helps parents understand the college funding process, reduce their out-of-pocket expenses, and balance the challenge of saving for college and retirement simultaneously.

This is a free educational event. Please register by clicking HERE.

Join us for the 2026 CCS Futures Fair on Tuesday, October 13, at the Cabarrus Arena & Events Center!

🎓 Program Choice Fair: 5–7 p.m.

🏫 College, Career & Military Fair: 6–8 p.m.

Families can explore CCS Program Choice opportunities and connect with colleges, universities, career representatives and military recruiters, all in one evening.

Program Choice applications for the 2027-28 school year open October 1 and close November 30, 2026. For more information, email programchoice@cabarrus.k12.nc.us.

More details are coming soon. For now, save the date and start exploring what’s next!

Even though we're only three days into the start of school, many of you have already been impacted by our amazing teachers. Please visit our link and nominate a Teacher of the Month for September. Our first winner will be recognized at the Board of Education's Sept. 14th meeting.

Last year's winners: