AVHS Newsletter

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AVHS, along with other schools in District 196, is using a new online newsletter program called Smore to disseminate information to our families. Each month we will start a newsletter which will be updated throughout the month with current information. We started with our Back-to-School newsletter this August.

At the start of each month, we will send an email message with a link to that month's newsletter. Any time we update the newsletter, a new email message will be sent to families to let you know that there is new information available. Another way to access the newsletter (and view archived newsletters over time) will be via our school website. Located under the FAMILIES area on our website, there is a link to AVHS Newsletters. All newsletters, current and past, will be located there. You may want to bookmark this site for convenient access anytime.

• Materials pickup for grades 10 - 12 and Digital Academy: Tuesday, September 8 and Wednesday, September 9, 9 am - 1pm. (Only for students specifically contacted by a teacher)
• 9th Grade and New Student Cohort A Orientation: Thursday, September 10, 8:00 am - 10:50 am
• 9th Grade and New Student Cohort B Orientation: Friday, September 11, 8:00 am - 10:50 am
• Digital Academy Orientation: September 9 - 11
• 1st Day of School: September 14 (Cohort A in-person; Cohort B and Digital Academy check-in for attendance on Infinite Campus app and check Schoology pages)
• Digital Academy Student Picture Day: Wednesday, September 30, times TBD
• Cohort A Picture Day: Thursday, October 1
• Cohort B Picture Day: Friday, October 2
• Parent/Guardian & Teacher Conferences: Friday, October 9 (Virtual)

Dear Apple Valley Parents and Guardians,

I would like to thank all of our faculty and staff for their efforts to prepare for the school year and for reaching out to make connections with our students and families as we begin building relationships that will be the foundation of our work together this year. We take pride in creating relationships at AVHS and know that young people are more likely to thrive when they experience developmental relationships with adults at home and at school who express care, challenge growth, provide support, share power, and expand possibilities. Therefore, our primary focus will be for staff members to continue to make connections and build relationships rather than diving deeply into academics over the first weeks of school.

I also want to thank you all for your work as learning partners as we begin the first weeks of the 2020-21 school year. We had two incredible days of 9th Grade/New Student Orientation on Thursday and Friday of last week. Students did an amazing job of demonstrating their ability to live up to expectations that will allow us to continue to provide in-person learning experiences at school. Thank you! Now we are ready for our Cohort A and B students in grades 9-12 to return this week while we look forward to meeting/reconnecting with our Digital Academy students as well.

If you have not already done so, please take some time to watch the Welcome to AVHS 2020-21 and AVHS 2020-21 Hybrid Experience videos to orient yourselves to how the school year will work under our District 196 Flexible Learning Plan. As a parent, I understand the tremendous effort families are making in support of our students. I’m thankful for the trust you have placed in us in a learning partnership and know that we can focus on the shared goals of helping others succeed and providing the best experience for each student in the most challenging times. Thank you for your partnership, kindness, and support of Apple Valley High School.

Drew Mons, Principal

*Please remember to follow your schedule that is posted on Infinite Campus!

• Monday, September 14 (Cohort A in-person)

• Cohort B & Digital Academy check-in for attendance on the Infinite Campus app and check Schoology pages

• Digital Academy students attend period one {2-2:30 pm} & period two {2:30-3 pm} classes via Zoom

• Tuesday, September 15 (Cohort B in-person)

• Cohort A & Digital Academy check-in for attendance on the Infinite Campus app and check Schoology pages

• Digital Academy students attend period three {2-2:30 pm} & period four {2:30-3 pm} classes via Zoom

• Wednesday, September 16 (NO IN-PERSON LEARNING)

• Cohort A, Cohort B, & Digital Academy check-in for attendance and check Schoology pages)

• Thursday, September 17 (Cohort A in-person)

• Cohort B & Digital Academy check-in for attendance on the Infinite Campus app and check Schoology pages

• Digital Academy students attend period five {2-2:30 pm} & period six {2:30-3 pm} classes via Zoom

• September 18 (Cohort B in-person)

• Cohort A & Digital Academy check-in for attendance on the Infinite Campus app and check Schoology pages

• Digital Academy students attend period seven {2-2:30 pm} class & optional check-in with Digital Academy teachers {2:30-3 pm} via Zoom

• The first day of school is Monday, September 14th. Students in Cohort B and Digital Academy will need to check in on the Infinite Campus app for attendance.
• Students in Cohort A will have their attendance taken by teachers in-person. Students will need to check-in for attendance every school day that they are not in the building.
• Cohort A students attend in-person (grades 9-12) on Monday, September 14 and Thursday, September 17
• Cohort B students attend in-person (grades 9-12) on Tuesday, September 15 and Friday, September 18

• On days when your student attends class at AVHS, teachers will take their attendance during each period.

• On all other school days students, including Digital Academy students, will check in on their student Campus app to check-in for their attendance for the day. Navigate to Attendance->Check-Ins and then click "Yes, I'm here to check in for the day". Students in Cohorts A and B will use this process on school days when they are not scheduled to be at Apple Valley. Students in Digital Academy will do this every school day.

Order a yearbook during the back to school special for only $75 before 9/25. That’s the lowest price of the year! Yearbooks are ordered directly through Jostens.com. Enter Apple Valley High School, MN as the school info.

The 2020-21 schedules are available for viewing on Campus. For complete information about how to access your schedule and our guidelines for requesting any changes, please follow the link listed below.

Please note – because of the complexities of balancing cohorts to allow for safe distancing in various classrooms, schedule changes will only be made for exceptional situations (those guidelines are in the link).

This trimester, students in all grades (9-12) are allowed to be out of school during a study hall that falls at the beginning or end of the school day (Periods 1 and 4 on Mon/Tue and Periods 5 and 7 on Thur/Fri). We do not make schedule changes to put study halls into specific periods.

After you have viewed your schedule and you would like to be gone during a study hall that falls in Periods 1, 4, 5, or 7, please complete this online permission form, linked below.

We no longer use paper emergency cards for health information. Parents/Guardians are asked to enter health updates and permissions online in the Campus Parent account

Due to continued enrollments throughout late August and early September, some changes to schedules are made prior to the opening of school. Whether distance, hybrid or in-person, students should be sure to “follow” the schedule posted in Campus on September 8th.

For more information about Hybrid and Digital Academy schedules and expectations, please visit the Back to School 2020-21 section of the AVHS website.

• Doors Open: 7:30 a.m.

• Arrival of Buses: 7:35 a.m. (approx.)

• Start of School (1st or 5th hour): 8:00 a.m.

• End of School (4th or 7th hour): 1:40 p.m.

• 196 Digital Academy Synchronous Zoom Sessions: 2:00 – 3:00 p.m.

• Doors Close: 1:50 p.m. (exception allowed for students involved in co-curricular activities)

• The building will be open at 7:30am. The school day ends at 1:40 and students must leave the building at that time (unless they are rostered in a cocurricular activity scheduled for that day). Please plan your transportation to and from Apple Valley to allow for these times.

• When students enter the building they will have two options; either to eat breakfast or go directly to their first classroom scheduled for the day.

• Students participating in cocurricular athletic and other activities and are on the program’s roster, will be allowed to remain in the building on in-person learning days, if needed, between 1:40pm (end of school day) and 3:30pm (start of practice).

• For students in our District 196 Academy or for cohort A or B students at home during their distance learning days, the building will open at 3:00pm to arrive for cocurricular activities.

The safety and health of our students and staff is our number one priority. We will focus on creating a safe environment for all.

Masks

Masks are a requirement for all students and staff inside of AVHS. This is in accordance with both District 196 and Minnesota state policy.

Daily At-Home Self and Symptoms Check for all Students and Staff

Each day staff and parents/guardians should check for symptoms and items before school. COVID-19 symptoms fall into two groups:

More common symptoms are one or more of these:

• Fever of 100.4 F or greater
• New onset and/or worsening cough
• Difficulty breathing
• New loss of taste or smell

Less common symptoms are two or more of the following:

• Sore throat
• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Diarrhea
• Chills
• Muscle pain
• Excessive fatigue
• New onset of severe headache
• New onset of nasal congestion or runny nose

Students or staff should follow the Minnesota Department of Health Decision Tree (link below) to to determine action. They should stay home if they:

• Experience only one symptom from the list of less common symptoms and are not feeling well enough to attend school
• Experience one more common symptom or at least two less common symptoms
• Live with someone who has symptoms of COVID-19
• Have been in close contact (within 6 feet for greater than 15 minutes) with anyone who has been instructed to isolate due to illness or a positive test
• Have been advised by a medical provider that they may have been exposed to COVID-19

Hallways

Guidelines will be set for hallways to reduce congestion and congregation and create efficient routes to and from classes. An industrial safety firm (IEA) has been employed by the district to identify areas for shielding (main office), create signage, standing-space dots, one-way traffic flows, one-way stairwells, etc. to ease student traffic flow and facilitate spacing.

Lockers

Lockers will not be assigned at the start of the year. Students in co-curricular activities will be expected to bring and take home their equipment every day.

Breakfast and Lunch

We will use both our cafeteria and the Commons as seating areas to accommodate appropriate physical distancing. Lunch tables will have indications for where students should sit to accommodate appropriate distancing.

Information for menus, meal and a la carte pricing may be accessed at the link provided below. Your family may qualify for free or reduced price school meals. All students approved will receive school meals at no cost which includes breakfast and lunch. This program also waives cocurricular activity fees for the student. You are encouraged to apply with the link below.

Please note: Families must apply for Free & Reduced Price Lunch qualification every year.

Apple Valley High School issues parking permits for each trimester. The parking fee for 2020-21 is $24. Fall permits are available on MyPaymentsPlus beginning on Monday, August 31. Payment must be submitted along with the online application. All outstanding fees/fines must be paid in full in order to receive a parking permit; fees/fines may be paid online. Fall permits will be distributed in Advisory once the school year begins.

District 196 uses several systems to organize and share information with students and families.

Students and families new to District 196:

• Login Information will be sent via email from Apple Valley High School in mid-August.
• For MyPaymentsPlus and PayPAMS registration, please select "Minnesota" for the state and "Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan-ISD196" for the School District name.

Students and families continuing in District 196:

• Continue using existing login credentials for Campus and Schoology
• Families will need to create new login credentials for MyPaymentsPlus and PayPAMS. Please select "Minnesota" for the state and "Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan-ISD196" for the School District name.

What happens if the iPad issued by the school district gets damaged?

In previous years, the district offered an Optional Protection Plan for $20/device to assist families with accidental damage costs. However, due to the economic effect the pandemic has had on families as well as the conversion this summer from FeePay to MyPaymentsPlus as our online payment system, the decision was made to automatically enroll ALL iPads with this coverage at no cost to families for the 2020-21 school year.

What this means is the first incident (non-intentional damage) on each iPad that results in the district being charged will be covered by the district. Beyond that, the following will apply:

• There is a $40 deductible for the 2nd incident

• If there is a 3rd incident, the school and family will work out a plan that makes sense for each situation

• Intentional damage to an iPad is not covered (including 1st incident)

• Lost iPads are not covered and must be fully replaced by the family (estimated at $344) unless a police report is provided indicating the iPad was stolen in which case, it will be replaced at no cost to the family

• Power cords/bricks are not covered under this plan as any replacements for those will be the responsibility of the family (unless covered under warranty)

As part of the “Restart 2020” plan approved by the School Board for ISD 196, the week of Sept. 8 - 11 is designated as a week for “student orientation and connection.”

Hybrid Student Orientation

AVHS will offer an in-person orientation for all ninth-grade and new-to-AVHS students in Hybrid Learning Cohorts A and B on Thursday, September 10, and Friday, September 11. Due to the pandemic, this orientation is for students only. We are not able to accommodate parents/guardians at this event.

• 9th Grade and New Students Cohort A: Thursday, September 10, 8:00 am - 10:50 am
• 9th Grade and New Students Cohort B: Friday, September 11, 8:00 am - 10:50 am

During this in-person orientation, students will walk through a shortened version of their daily schedules. The relationship between teachers and students is a critical part of the Apple Valley High School experience, and this opportunity for interaction will help form the foundation for that relationship. Students will attend each of their seven classes and advisory so they can meet their teachers and classmates.

• It is recommended but not required that students bring their notebooks, folders, and other school supplies with them to orientation. Students should be prepared to bring materials home from teachers.
• Students should come with a copy of their schedule. Schedules are available through Campus Portal (more information about how to access schedules is further down this newsletter.)
• Students will not be assigned lockers for the start of the school year. Students should only bring to school what they can carry.
• Breakfast will be available for students who wish to purchase it. Students will receive Meal ID cards when they enter the cafeteria. Students who do not purchase breakfast at orientation will receive their Meal ID card next week.
• Buses will run on their normal routes and pickup times for all hybrid students who will normally ride a bus during the school year. Information regarding bus schedules, pick up locations, and timing comes from the District 196 transportation office.
  

Digital Academy - In Person Option

9th grade and new-to-AVHS students in Digital Academy who opted into In Person Orientation via our Google Form (sent out via our Back to School Newsletter) will participate in the same orientation dates and times listed above. Due to limited busing capacity, Digital Academy students wishing to participate in In-Person Orientation will need to provide their own transportation. AVHS will open at 7:30 am. Students need to be picked up by 11:00 am after the orientation session.

Digital Academy and/or Returning Students - At Home Option

We want all students to have access to information about some of the basic daily routines and processes they can follow to experience success during their high school years. This includes orientation in how to access Schoology and Campus, where to go if you have questions, procedures for getting lunch and eating in the cafeteria, and others. This information as well as other details to get oriented to the 2020-21 school year can be found in the videos linked below.

Apple Valley High School uses the e-mail addresses on file through Campus Parent Portal to send e-mail communications and announcements. If needed, you may update your email for your Campus Parent Portal account.

• 9th Grade & New Student Cohort A Orientation: Thursday, September 10, 8:00 am-10:50 am
• 9th Grade & New Student Cohort B Orientation: Friday, September 11, 8:00 am-10:50 am
• Digital Academy Orientation: September 9 - 11
• First Day of School: September 14 (Cohort A in-person; Cohort B & Digital Academy check-in for attendance on Infinite Campus app and check Schoology pages)
• Digital Academy Student Picture Day: Wednesday, September 30, times TBD
• Cohort A Picture Day: Thursday, October 1
• Cohort B Picture Day: Friday, October 2
• Parent/Guardian & Teacher Conferences: Friday, October 9 (Virtual)