Monthly Archives: May 2021

Mask Policy Reminder

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Dear Colleagues,

As you may have heard, earlier this month, Governor Ralph Northam lifted Virginia’s indoor mask mandate to align with new guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This updated guidance, detailed in Executive Order Seventy-Two (effective May 14) and Executive Order Seventy-Nine (effective May 28), continues to require masks to be worn in K-12 public schools by all students, teachers, staff and visitors, regardless of vaccination status. 

In partnership with our local health department and area physicians, Albemarle County Public Schools will continue to enforce our Policy on Masks and Acceptable Face Coverings through at least the end of the 2020-21 school year. Continue reading →

Teacher Summer Reading Project 2021

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Teachers: We invite you to participate in the Teacher Summer Reading Project! Our mission is to seek diverse books for the ACPS Approved Book List, so that current students see themselves reflected in the literature that we read and so that students continue to be exposed to multiple perspectives. This is in alignment with the ACPS Anti-Racism policy and the division’s focus on Culturally Responsive Teaching. This summer, the project will focus on titles at the middle school level and high school 10th and 12th grades. Continue reading →

Strategic Plan Survey: Please Participate by May 31

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We Want Your Feedback

Strategic Plan Survey | Please participate by Monday, May 31.

Every five to seven years, ACPS takes an opportunity to work with its students, employees, families and community to create a new strategic plan. The plan acts as a guide to how we define the direction that our school division will take over the next several years. It includes our vision and mission for the school division, as well as our hopes for all of our students and how we will allocate resources to make those a reality. Continue reading →

Reminder: Strategic Planning Focus Group Sessions for Staff & Students – Today & Thursday

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Tuesday, May 18, 2021 | 4:30 p.m. | Zoom
Thursday, May 20, 2021 | 6 p.m. | Zoom

Attention All ACPS Employees: As a reminder, ACPS will host Strategic Planning Focus Group sessions for staff and students this afternoon at 4:30 and this Thursday, May 20, at 6 p.m. These sessions offer the opportunity for staff and students to view a draft of the division’s new strategic plan, including the ACPS mission, goals and objectives, and offer feedback. Continue reading →

First Community Read Aloud Event – May 24 (Featuring “Fry Bread”)

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Fry Bread Read Together Event

Monday, May 24, 2021 | 4:45 to 5:45 p.m. | Zoom

Dear Colleagues,

We’d like to invite you to join our first Community Read Aloud at 4:45 p.m. on May 24, featuring the children’s book Fry Bread, by Kevin Noble Maillard. During this time together, we will read and participate in an interactive discussion of themes from the book, which center around Native American diversity, equity, inclusion and history. We’ll also make our own personal, cultural connections to this wonderful text. Continue reading →

School Board Adopts More Robust Budget for the New School Year

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Budget 2021-2022

At its May 13 meeting, the Albemarle County School Board adopted an operating budget for the 2021-22 school year of $211.2 million, an increase of 9% over the current year. The new fiscal year begins on July 1. The adopted budget represents an increase from the School Board’s Funding Request of $209.9 million presented in March. The changes are summarized in two presentations: Budget Updates (April 22, 2021) and Budget Adoption (May 13, 2021). Continue reading →

AVID Strategies: Summer Professional Learning Opportunity for Teachers, Grades 6-12

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Secondary Teachers: We are excited to offer AVID strategies for your 6-12 classroom this summer! AVID Professional Learning is designed to prepare teachers with the knowledge and skills to implement and execute effective AVID instructional strategies.

Summer 2021 will provide two opportunities for teachers to participate:

  • Monday-Tuesday, June 28-29: Two full days from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.; OR
  • Monday-Thursday, July 12-15: Four half-days from 9 a.m. – 12 p.m. Continue reading →

Schoology: End-of-Year Info

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Secondary Teachers: As we approach the end of the school year, here are a few things to know about your Schoology courses moving forward:

  • All courses will be archived automatically. 
  • We encourage all teachers to review all of their created course content and create a reusable course copy of all content prior to June 30, 2021. We have created this End of Year Best Practices resource to support this process. Continue reading →

Support Our Fundraiser This Week, May 10-14: Wear Jeans & Donate $1

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Attention All ACPS Employees: Are you ready to do something fun to raise funds for a worthy cause? This year, ACPS employees have chosen to support Kindness Cafe + Play, a local non-profit coffee shop that employs adults with cognitive disabilities and seeks to remind our community of the value of kindness.

Any day this week, May 10-14, you are invited to participate in our fundraising efforts. Here’s how you can get involved: Continue reading →