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August 26, 2026
Upcoming events
September
8
Tuesday
cold stone teacher scoops night
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4:00 - 7:00 PM
Fan favorite fundraiser night! Some of our fantastic NRE teachers will be scooping ice cream!
September
8
Tuesday
QDoba Spirit Night
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4:00 - 8:00 PM
Paired with Cold Stone event - consider grabbing dinner alongside your sweet treat!
September
16
Wednesday
pto general assembly meeting
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8:45 - 10:15 AM in the Library
All are welcome! Get some great info about what is going on around NRE and some snacks too!
September
18
Friday
Coat and Costume Drive Begins
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Located in the NRE Lobby
Donate or find some great warm weather gear and costumes!
September
18
Friday
Fun Run Prize Day
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Details coming soon
Celebrating our amazing students for all the running and fundraising they did!
September
25
Friday
Multicultural Night
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5:00 - 7:00 PM
A night to celebrate what makes NRE special!
Important Announcements
🏃♂️ Fun Run
Save the date! The Fun Run will be on September 2nd this year! Please plan to support the largest fundraiser of the year. See more information below.
ALL are invited to attend the first PTO meeting of the school year. Come see what PTO is all about! The meeting will take place in the NRE Library on September 16th from 8:45-10:15. Little ones are welcome to tag along and you are free to come and go if you aren’t able to attend the whole meeting. Bring a friend and enjoy free snacks!
🏅 Fun Run Prize Day
We will be celebrating all the wonderful running and fundraising our students did for NRE on September 18th! This day is so much fun for the kids and a great opportunity for volunteers! What could be better than helping our students celebrate their hard work? Sign up to volunteer here!
Bring your unneeded winter gear (jackets, gloves, hats, boots, etc.) to NRE starting Friday, September 18th. We will have bins in the front lobby to drop off things you no longer need. Also, take a look in the bins or on the rack for anything you might need! Consider it a swap - give what you don’t need and take what you do need. You do not have to make a donation to take something you need. We want to make sure all NRE kiddos have warm gear this winter!
The Coat & Costume Swap will end on Friday, October 9th.
One of the most special nights of the year - NRE Multicultural Night - will be on Friday, September 25th from 5:00-7:00pm. NRE families host booths to help us celebrate the diverse cultures represented in our school. Would you like to host a booth and showcase your culture? Reach out to PTOmulticulturalnightNRE@gmail.com to reserve your booth or ask questions!
Booth Ideas:
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Cultural Booths: Traditional clothing, art, or historical artifacts
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Interactive Activities: Host a craft project, game, or storytelling sessions
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Global Cuisine: Small samples of cultural foods - candy, food item or drink
Additionally - the evening will be filled with performances by kids from NRE! If your child would like to share a performance with our community, please email PTOmulticulturalnightNRE@gmail.com for more information.
The PTO now gets free Rockies tickets for select 2026 games—and they’re available to NRE families at no cost! To get a shot at tickets, make sure you're opted in to PTO Text Messages. When tickets are available, you’ll get a text with instructions on how to request tickets. Tickets will be given out on a first come, first served basis. Not signed up yet? It only takes 10 seconds— click here.
Plus, PTO texts keep you in the loop with all the important reminders and updates. Stay connected and don’t miss out!
NRE has a great volunteer site to see all available volunteer opportunities. Everything from events to board positions to committee needs will be listed. Please check it out here!
The Fun Run Countdown Is On!
Wednesday, September 2nd
Fun Run is a day for EVERYONE at Northridge! Our students raise donations and jog laps. Teachers and parents jog with and cheer on students. Specials teachers and staff help support the day in so many ways, and our principal runs laps with every grade! It's an all-school event that is our largest fundraiser of the year!
All students can register for a customizable fundraising webpage that makes sending donation requests and sharing why you love NRE with friends and family easy peasy! On September 2nd students will run laps for 20 minutes on a .1 mile track (on average, kids run 9-10 laps). Students will be awarded an all-school Prize Day on September 18th to celebrate our accomplishments in addition to individual fundraising incentives! All of this information and MORE can be found on the Fun Run website.
Fundraising proceeds will go toward new technology, online learning resources, teacher appreciation, class field trip transportation, classroom books and supplies and much more!
Fundraising will be open until Monday, September 14th.
Register your child by August 28, and they will receive an NRE Water Bottle Sticker!
Please join us for a shift at either the Fun Run or Prize Day event to create an amazing day for our students, teachers, and staff!
Back to School Carnival: What a Night!
What a wonderful way to kick off the school year! Thank you so much to everyone who attended the Carnival last Friday and to all those that gave their time planning, setting up, running, and breaking things down! We would not have been able to host this event without all your help - we appreciate you!
We had so much fun together even when the weather threatened to put a damper on things. Thank you for holding out with us and thankfully Colorado turned things around for us! While we had to fight some wind, it really ended up being the perfect night. The whip cream flip was a blast as usual - thank you to all the teachers and staff who participated, the kids loved it! All the games and activities were amazing, all our sponsors and the vendors on hand were the greatest, and seeing everyone having fun and connecting with each other was the absolute BEST!
A huge thank you to Lauren Wotherspoon for putting together another incredible event!
Of course let’s not forget the raffle! If you bought raffle tickets please check out the numbers below to see if you have a winner! Please email a picture of your winning ticket to PTOVicePresidentNRE@gmail.com to claim your prize!
Winners have until September 24, 2026, to claim and pick up their prize. Any unclaimed prizes after that date will be returned to the PTO prize pool. Please note: The Air Force Football VIP Package has a separate claim deadline of August 27, 2026, at 11:59 PM.
Questions With...
Mrs. Spillan (2nd Grade Teacher)
1. What movie or book did you love most as a kid?
My mom was a teacher, so we read hundreds of books when we were kids. When I was 16, I started to read the first Harry Potter book and I've been hooked ever since. My own daughters are now at the age where they are reading and enjoying it as well.
2. What’s the sweetest thing a student has ever said to you?
I keep a box of student notes and letters from past and current students so I can look back on them from time to time. One of my favorite things is also when I get to see my previous students when they're older and coming back to visit. Senior clap out day is one of my favorites.
3. If someone wanted to surprise you, what would they bring?
My husband might not agree, but I can be bribed with plants, coffee, and a gift card to a bookstore.
4. If you weren’t working in education, what career would you have?
I would still be working in education in some way, but I love learning about new and useful technology. I have worked with Google for Education a bit and it was amazing.
5. If you could instantly teleport anywhere in the world, where would you go?
I love going to places I haven't visited yet. I'd probably go to Antarctica first because I have a life goal of visiting all the continents.
NRE staff members: Please help us keep our PTO Pulse Staff Spotlight going! We’re always looking for staff members to feature, and we’d love to highlight you. Simply click the button above and complete the short form. We’ve included lots of fun questions to choose from, so you can answer the ones that best reflect your personality!
Making a Difference at NRE
Your support makes a difference! We’re looking forward to highlighting some of the ways the NRE PTO gives back to our school, showing how the funds we raise directly support our students, teachers, and staff.
Welcoming Our Teachers & Staff Back
The PTO helped kick off the new school year by doing a little something special for our teachers and staff. Here’s a look at how we put your support to work!
Welcome Back! 💕🍎
There’s no better way to kick off a new school year than by celebrating the wonderful people who help make our school such a special place!
The PTO put together Welcome Back baskets for our office staff, filled with some of their favorite treats, goodies, and a few fun surprises. Each basket was thoughtfully put together to give our staff a little something to enjoy as they start the new school year.
We are so grateful for everything our office staff does each day to support our students, families, teachers, and entire school community. Thank you for all that you do—we’re so happy to have you back!
A Sweet Start to a New School Year! 🧇☕💙
The PTO was so excited to welcome our amazing teachers and staff back to school with a special Welcome Back Breakfast! We wanted to start the year by showing our appreciation for the incredible people who make our school such a wonderful place.
Everyone enjoyed a delicious breakfast featuring a special treat from Tom’s Waffles, along with yogurt, fresh fruit & granola bar. And of course, no back-to-school morning is complete without coffee! ☕ A huge thank you to Black Rock Coffee for generously donating coffee for our teachers and staff.
It was so much fun seeing everyone reconnect, enjoy some breakfast, and kick off the new school year together. We are incredibly grateful for our teachers and staff and all they do for our students each and every day.
A Delicious Meet the Teacher Day! 🥔❤️
Meet the Teacher Day is always a busy and exciting day as our teachers and staff prepare their classrooms and get ready to welcome students back! The PTO wanted to give them a little break and a delicious treat to enjoy along the way.
We treated our amazing teachers and staff to a baked potato bar from Texas Roadhouse, complete with all the toppings to create the perfect loaded potato. 🥔🧀🥓
A big thank you to Texas Roadhouse for helping us make it extra special by offering the PTO a generous discount!
We are so grateful for the time, energy, and heart our teachers and staff put into preparing for a new school year. We hope this little treat helped fuel them as they got ready to welcome our students!
What’s in the Bag? 🍎💙
After two busy weeks of learning, growing, and getting into the swing of a new school year, the PTO wanted to give our amazing NRE teachers and staff a little something to brighten their day!
Here’s What’s in the Bag…
🍎 An Apple — Because we have the best bunch of teachers at NRE!
🧴 Hand Cream — For all the hands-on learning and helping hands they give our students every day!
🍏 Caramel Apple Suckers — Because our NRE staff members are always so sweet!
😴 An Eye Mask — A little reminder to take some time to rest, refresh, and recharge for another day of learning!
We are so lucky to have such an amazing staff who give so much of themselves to our students each day. Thank you for all you do—you’re the sweetest bunch! 💙
Upcoming Spirit Nights
Local restaurants host “spirit nights” where a designated portion of the proceeds from your order will be generously donated back to NRE PTO. All you have to do is mention NRE or show the flyer when ordering. It’s a win-win-win: you get a night off from making dinner (or treats), local restaurants get our business, and PTO receives a donation. Stay tuned for more dates - we are adding more to the calendar all the time!
QR code must be presented to the cashier when ordering.
QDOBA
Tuesday, Sept. 8
4-8 PM
Cold Stone
Teacher Scoops Night
Tuesday, Sept. 8
4-7 PM
Fujiyama
Thursday, Sept. 10
All Day
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nre trivia
Think you know NRE? Put your knowledge to the test with this week’s trivia question! Submit your answer using the button below. Everyone who answers correctly will be entered into a random drawing for a prize.
• The winner will be announced in the next PTO Pulse. • Entries close Saturday at 12:00 PM. • One entry per person, per week. • One winner will be selected at random from all correct entries received by the submission deadline. • To give more people an opportunity to win, previous winners may not be eligible to receive another prize during the same school year. If there are no other eligible winners, the NRE PTO reserves the right to award the prize to a previous winner. • Winners will be notified by email by the PTO Vice President with instructions on how to receive their prize.
True or False?
Northridge Elementary was the first school built in Highlands Ranch.
🎉 Congratulations to Last Week’s Trivia Winner: Lauren Phillips
If you’re our lucky winner, keep an eye on your inbox! The PTO Vice President will email you with all the details to claim your prize.
❓Question: What is our mascot?
✅ Correct Answer: a pronghorn
Ongoing fundraisers
🛒 Earn Money for NRE by Shopping at King Soopers
King Soopers donates back to the community through their Community Rewards Program. There is no cost to families to participate and it takes 1 minute to link your King Soopers account to NRE PTO! We are really hoping to take full advantage of this great community partnership! See the very easy steps in the flier below.
Reserve the Rock to celebrate a special occasion. First, sign up for your date, then make your $20 donation to PTO through MySchoolBucks. Additionally, PTO has volunteers who are willing to paint the rock for you if you’d like! Click the picture above to find out more or to reserve the rock.
📦 Earn Money for NRE with Box Tops!
Did you know you can support Northridge Elementary just by buying the products you already use? Box Tops for Education is an easy way to help raise money for our school—no clipping required! Getting started is simple: Download the Box Tops for Education app. Create a free account. Search for and select Northridge Elementary as your school. Scan your grocery receipt within 14 days of your purchase. The app will automatically find eligible Box Tops products and credit earnings to NRE. Every receipt makes a difference! Those small earnings quickly add up and help fund programs, events, classroom resources, and special opportunities for our students.
Do you have piles of amazing art from your student at home and nowhere to display it!? Would you love to have it all in a beautiful and convenient book to enjoy? Plum Print has given Northridge the opportunity to support our school while we transform our children’s artwork into custom books! Not only will they donate 20% of the sale back to Northridge but they have also provided a $25 off code for us! Please take a look at the flyer below and use the code NORTHRIDGE when you place your order. This will give you $25 off your order and send 20% back to NRE!
👕 Wear Your NRE Pride!
NRE PTO is partnering with a company called “Mostly For Nerds” (MFN) to provide NRE Swag! You can now purchase tshirts, hoodies, hats, etc. MFN is also generously donating $5 per item sold back to NRE PTO. More items will be available in the future, and if you have a request for items that you’d like to see available, please let us know. Check out the online store now!
Meet the pto
The Northridge Elementary PTO is a volunteer-led organization dedicated to bringing students, staff, families, and our community together to make NRE an exceptional place to learn, grow, and connect. Through fundraising, volunteerism, family events, teacher appreciation, and community partnerships, we help create meaningful experiences and provide resources that enrich our entire school community.
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