The Gator Gazette

Welcome back AV!

I trust that everyone has had a wonderful summer, but I can’t wait to see you back at school in just over a week. There has been much excitement at Allisonville this summer as we prepped the building to get ready for the 2023-24 school year. We are also excited to welcome many new staff to Allisonville, including Mr. Warren, Assistant Principal, and Mr. Larner, Administrative Assistant. Now more than ever, It’s a Great Day To Be a Gator!

We look forward to welcoming all students back on the first day of school on Thursday, August 3rd. Don’t forget that the district will be moving our start time up by 10 minutes this year. Student drop off for both buses and cars will begin at 7:20 and the tardy bell rings at 7:40. All students should be in their classroom no later than 7:40. To help with the long car rider line, parents are encouraged to send their children on the bus. We are lucky at Allisonville to be staffed with a full fleet of buses. Student dismissal will begin at 2:25. Please remember to send any transportation request in writing to your child’s teacher.

We look forward to seeing everyone for Meet the Teacher Night at our annual Popsicle Pop-in, which will be held around the track outside Allisonville on Monday, July 31st. Due to limited parking, we will have staggered times based on last names. Students with last names beginning with A-L will be from 4:30-5:15pm. Students with last names beginning with M-Z will be from 5:30-6:15pm. Several booths will be set up with informational items for the school year, including PTO information – don’t forget to pick up your popsicle! The Kona Ice Truck will be onsite as well if you would like to purchase a snow cone.

There is more information about coming back to school in this Gator Gazette – thanks for reading! Please call or visit the office between 8:00-4:00 with additional questions. I look forward to seeing students and families very soon. It certainly is going to be a great year at Allisonville!

We Are The Gators! WE ARE AV!

Mrs. Reffett

Principal

Save the Date!

7/29 – Kindergarten Playground Playdate 10:00-11:00

7/31 – Popsicle Pop-In Meet the Teacher night 4:30-6:15

8/3 – First Day of School 7:20-7:40 arrival

8/3 – Dine to Donate at City BBQ

8/24 – Back to School Night

Mr Dylan Warren grew up in Angola, Indiana where he graduated from Angola High School. Dylan completed his undergraduate degree at Indiana University and completed his Master’s through Ball State University in December 2021. During his Master’s program, he completed his elementary internship at Clearwater. Dylan spent the last several years at Northview Middle School where he taught various English classes and most recently served as Northview’s Instructional Coach. Dylan also coached the Northview tennis team, 8th grade boys basketball team, and the baseball team for 6+ years in each sport. Dylan and his wife Jessica live in the Indy area with their two cats, Dwight and Carl. He is thrilled to be a Gator!

Matt Larner graduated from Cathedral High School here in Indianapolis, then received his BA from the University of Dayton and his PhD from the University of Notre Dame. He and his wife are both Indianapolis natives, and they have 3 children (5th grade, 3rd grade, and K) currently attending Allisonville Elementary. Matt worked at AV as an Interventionist last year, and is excited to take on this new role. He is also currently serving as the Dad’s Club Co-Chair.

Messages will be sent to families soon with a sign-up for Meet and Greet your Kindergarten Teacher! Students and families will have the opportunity to meet their teacher and visit the last week of July. Be on the lookout for an email from your student's teacher. Also, you are welcome to join us on Saturday, July 29 for our Kindergarten Playground Playdate.

Daily Schedule

7:40 am – 2:25 pm

If you are dropping your child off in the morning, please be mindful of the usually lengthy morning traffic and drop off lines. Parents, please encourage your students to ride the bus to school.

Parents can begin dropping off students at 7:20 a.m. and only once a staff member is out front to monitor car drop-off.

All students who arrive after 7:40 am, parents must park and escort them into the building to sign them in at the front office.

Absence is defined as a student missing all or any portion of the school day, for any reason. There are three types of absences: Excused, Unexcused, and Prearranged.

Should your student be absent for any reason, please call the attendance line at (317)259-8864 before 9:00 am.

If your student is arriving late or leaving early for an appointment, please request a note from the dentist, doctor, etc. All notes should be given to the front office for recordkeeping. Offices may also fax notes to (317)576-5255.

Excused Absence (including being tardy)

· Death in the immediate family.

· Major religious holiday.

· Medical, dental, court or other required appointment. Must provide a signed statement from doctor, dentist, etc. upon return to school.

· Personal illness/injury. Please call the attendance line 317-259-8864 each day the student is absent. A written medical verification from a physician/clinic must be provided upon the student’s return to school after 5 consecutive days of absence due to illness.

· A written medical verification from a physician/clinic must be provided for each additional absence once 10 days of absence (whether excused or unexcused) have been accumulated.

Unexcused Absence (including being tardy or leaving prior to dismissal)

Absences for any reasons other than those mentioned above and/or not verified as required are considered unexcused. Missing the bus, etc., is unexcused.

Prearranged Absence

A prearranged absence request will not be approved if any one of the following occurs:

· It is the final week of any grading period.

· It is the week preceding or the week following a recess period.

· It is during required testing.

· The student has excessive absences.

· The student’s grade point average is below a 2.0 or C.

Prearranged absence forms are available at the office.

Your bus assignment information will be available on Skyward shortly before school begins. Students enrolling after the start of school can expect to hear directly from transportation within 5 business days.

Transportation

(317)254-5510

All students should board their bus at their assigned stop each day. If you move during the school year, please contact the office to make permanent changes to your transportation.

HERE COMES THE BUS

Download the app on your smart phone to see where your child’s bus is and set up alerts when the bus gets close. Use Code #88550

Limited Choice/Non-Resident students’ transportation is the parent responsibility. Two weeks after school begins, you may contact the school to see if there is a bus stop available near your home. Parents are responsible to transport student’s to/from the nearest bus stop.

Car pick-up students will be stationed at the front of the building. Once the parent/guardian is at the front of the building, AV staff will escort students to each car. Please do not park and come into the building at dismissal.

All students must be picked-up by 2:35 p.m. or arrangements need to be made with AYS.

Bus Drop Off - All kindergarten students must have an approved adult present at the bus stop for their child to be let out.

Riding Assigned Buses - Students will not be permitted to ride a different bus home with a friend or other family members. Students must ride their assigned bus or be a car rider.

Early Pick Up - No students will be allowed to be picked up after 1:30pm due to traffic patterns and our afternoon car line. Anyone picking a student up must show an ID and be listed on the students guardian or emergency contact list.

Dismissal - Dismissal is at 2:25pm. If you are picking up your child, you must get in the car line and pick up at door 1.

AYS Drop Off and Pick Up - AYS is offered at Allisonville for before and after school care. All AYS drop off and pick up will be on the west side of the building at door 6. You can contact AYS directly at 317-283-3817 or at https://www.ayskids.org/

Car rider tags - Every family will be given a car rider tag with a specific number for each family. We ask that it is displayed on their rearview mirror for pick up. If families are carpooling and picking up more than one family, we ask that you have both numbers displayed so we can have students ready.

Tags will be distributed on the first day of school, be sure to check your student's backpack.

After School Care

At Your School Child Services, AYS, provides childcare at Allisonville from 6:30 a.m. – 7:50 a.m. and from 2:35 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. You may register your student at the AYS central office all summer long. They are located at 4755 Kingsway Drive, Suite 300, 46205 or you can phone them at 317-283-3817.

https://www.ayskids.org/after-school-2023/locations/#msd-of-washington-township

The clinic will open July 31st. If your student has a medical condition and you need to meet with Mrs. Reeves, please call the school to make an appointment. All Individual Health Plans will be completed with our nurse during your appointment. Please bring your physician completed asthma, seizure, diabetic, and allergy action plans. Please also bring all medications in original packaging and all physician completed medication forms. The required medication forms are on the Washington Township website. Students MAY NOT transport medication to/from school.

The WT Health Services Team would like to help make it as easy as possible for you and your family to receive immunizations. We are partnering with Marion County Public Health Department (MCPHD), Indiana Department of Health (IDOH), and Indiana Immunization Coalition (IIC) to offer the community both required immunizations for enrollment in Indiana schools and recommended immunizations. For a list, see attached. All three WT middle schools will host an immunization clinic on Tuesday, August 1, 2023, from 3-7 p.m. For more information, see attached flyer. Anyone may attend any of the three clinics. Someone will be available to check for missing immunizations.
Thank you for all you do to help keep our community healthy and create a safer learning environment for our WT families!

WT Health Services Team

All enrolled students are eligible to purchase a healthy breakfast and lunch. Students must take the required components to make a reimbursable meal. Everyone is encouraged to set up an account at MyPaymentsPlus.com

https://www.mypaymentsplus.com/welcome

Federal funding for meals has discontinued and are no longer free of charge. Families will need to complete a free and reduced meal application for assistance and will be notified of approval to receive other benefits such as textbook assistance and P-EBT cards. A new application is required every school year. Online and paper applications will become available on July 20.

https://www.msdwt.k12.in.us/child-nutrition/

We encourage families to celebrate a student's birthday by bringing a favorite book to read aloud to the class. Please talk with your student's teacher about other ways to to celebrate. Only pre-packaged items will be allowed in school due to allergies and dietary restrictions. Things that are not pre-packaged, such as cupcakes or donuts will be sent home.

In an effort to keep our children and our school safe, all classroom and general field trip volunteers are required to complete a Limited Background Check prior to volunteering in the classroom or attending any field trips.

Forms can be requested from your teacher or from the office. You can also access them on our website at:

https://www.msdwt.k12.in.us/volunteer-requirements/

Limited Volunteer Limited Background checks are free of charge to anyone interested in volunteering. Volunteer opportunities vary by teacher.

First time applicants are responsible for the completion of the bullying education and training provided by MSDWT.

Classroom Visitors

Allisonville welcomes parents to visit the classroom. We ask that you please make an appointment with your child’s teacher prior to your visit.

If a parent pops into the classroom in the middle of instruction, it is difficult to get students back on task. I

All classroom visitors must have completed a Limited Background Check.

Skyward Family Access allows you to access student grades, attendance, email teachers and school officials, pay fees and much more. Skyward Family Access will be available from your home, office or anywhere you have access to the internet.

You can access Skyward by visiting our website at:

www.msdwt.k12.in.us.

Click on:

For Families

For Parents

Skyward Family Access

Forgot your Login or Password?

Click the link and follow the prompts.

If you encounter difficulty logging in, please email: skyward@msdwt.k12.in.us

MSD Washington Township uses ParentSquare to streamline all family communications through email, text, and app notifications. ParentSquare automatically generates an account for parents/guardians, which includes their preferred email address and phone number. We encourage accessing their accounts so they can download the mobile app and update their preferences to determine when and how they are notified. Make sure you sign in with the same email listed in Skyward Family Access.

Popsicle Pop In

We are so excited to see everyone at the Allisonville Popsicle Pop In on July 31st. In order to make this event successful, we are in need of a few awesome caregivers or parents to volunteer for the event. If you are interested, please click the link to SIGN UP. Thank you to all of you who help to make this event a great opportunity for our students and families. We couldn't do it without you!

Calendar of Events

Click on this link to view the 2023-2024 Calendar of Events for the school year, which includes all PTO sponsored and school events. Families can access the revised school hours and revised District Calendar in English and Spanish.

PTO Text Alerts

Would you like to be added to our PTO Volunteer Text Alert system? This is a great way to keep updated with PTO volunteer needs and upcoming events. Click the link to SIGN UP and we will be sure to add you to the list!

PTO Volunteers

"It takes a village" to run this wonderful organization called the Allisonville PTO. We would love to have as many caregivers, parents and guardians volunteer for our different needs and events. If you would like to get involved with the PTO, big or small, please click the Allisonville PTO Volunteer Link and we will be sure to be in touch. We are so excited to have you ALL!!

Dine To Donate

Thursday, August 3rd at City BBQ. Use the flyer below to enjoy dinner on the first day of school by supporting our AVPTO!