Starting at 7 a.m. on Wednesday, January 17, DonorsChoose will share a new promo code at checkout that will allow all donations (up to $150 per donor) to double instantly, while funds last. For example, if someone donates $10 to a project, after they apply the promo code, their donation will become a $20 donation, and so on. Continue reading
At the October 26 school board meeting, staff presented several Bellwether project updates, including next steps for our framework for adult learning, the instructional coaching model, quarterly assessments, and short-term approaches for Algebra 1 improvements. You can follow the progress of each project on our new Bellwether Recommendation Status Board (also accessible through our Instructional Practices Audit website). Please contact Jamie Gellner with any questions, comments, or suggestions regarding next steps.
We’re excited to announce that ACPS has formally partnered with DonorsChoose to fully leverage their community of citizen donors and corporate matches to serve our students. ACPS teachers and staff have already raised more than $300,000 in classroom resources through DonorsChoose over the years. While our district is committed to providing you with the materials needed to teach in the classroom or conduct distance learning, posting a project on DonorsChoose is a great way to bring those additional resources you feel are important for your students to make learning even more joyful and engaging. Continue reading
Dear Classroom Teachers,
The mission of Albemarle County Public Schools states:
Working together as a team, we will end the predictive value of race, class, gender, and special capacities for our children’s success through high-quality teaching and learning for all. We seek to build relationships with families and communities to ensure that every student succeeds.
We will know every student.
Among the key metrics we use to gauge our progress toward accomplishing our mission are our school division’s SOL results. As reported in the SOL Data Review we presented to the school board in September, we made progress by improving student achievement in 75% of the categories used to measure our success. Continue reading
One of the recommendations from the Bellwether instructional practices audit involves using a planning tool called a “Theory of Change” to identify strategies, actions and resources that can facilitate change and achieve desired outcomes. This process includes reflecting on the various roles of people in our school division and the influence of those roles on student success. As Albemarle County Public Schools (ACPS) begins this important work, we invite educators, administrators, support staff, students, parents and guardians, and community members to join us.
Are you interested in learning more about this concept? Would you like to help ACPS develop a Theory of Change? If so, please register to attend one of our upcoming work sessions: Continue reading
ACPS has started its annual calendar development process earlier than usual with a plan to approve a two-year calendar for the 2024-25 and 2025-26 school years by this fall.
To help with our planning, the Calendar Committee would like to gather some initial feedback from you on such ideas as an earlier start to the school year, a shorter Winter Break, and an earlier Spring Break. We’re also interested in your thoughts about the timing of teacher workdays and professional learning days and the appropriate number of instructional days for students.
To provide your feedback, please review the two draft calendars below and then take our survey by Friday, June 2: Continue reading
At their meeting on April 27, 2023, the Albemarle County School Board approved revisions to the 2023-24 school year calendar. To accommodate the presidential primary on March 5, 2024, and in an effort to make some additional improvements, the revised calendar includes the following changes: Continue reading
Attention all staff: We are starting our 2024-25 calendar development process! If you are interested in participating on the Calendar Committee, please email Jamie Gellner. We are looking for a diverse group of voices: elementary staff, secondary staff, school administrators, classified staff, students, and families. The first meeting will be Tuesday, April 18, from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. on Zoom.
Update: The 2023-24 School Year Calendar was revised on April 27, 2023. Please visit the Calendars web page for the most current version.
At their meeting on January 26, 2023, the Albemarle County School Board approved the official calendar for the 2023-24 school year. The approved calendar is available to view and print in English and Spanish on our division-level Calendars page. Under this calendar, the 2023-24 school year will open for students on Wednesday, August 23, 2023. For more information about the calendar development process, please visit our 2023-24 Calendar Development web page.
In response to our recent calendar survey, nearly 2,000 employees, students, parents/guardians, and community members provided feedback on two calendar options for next school year. We sincerely appreciate your participation. Based on your input and that of the Superintendent’s Cabinet, the ACPS Calendar Committee has created a third draft of the 2023-24 School Year Calendar to propose to the school board:
Draft 3 of the calendar maintains Wednesday, August 23, 2023, as the first day of school for students, and Friday, June 7, 2024, as the last day of school for students, and includes a traditional three-day Thanksgiving holiday and a full two-week Winter Break. Compared to the previous two drafts, Draft 3 reflects the following changes: Continue reading