Welcome Back 2024

Dear Avon Families:

I am so excited for the start of another school year. I am beginning my 22nd year in education, although it seems like yesterday I was getting ready to begin my first year of teaching. I still get the same excited feeling for the start of a school year! I hope everyone has enjoyed their summer with family and friends. I know I enjoyed time with my husband and two children, Riley and Jimmer. Riley will be a sophomore in high school and Jimmer will be a seventh grader.

I look forward to working with your children as well as developing a partnership with all families. My goal is to ensure that all of our students are healthy, happy, and safe in order to create a positive learning experience. I will encourage our students each day and let them know that they are valued and have a special place in our school community.

Our Assistant Principal Team members are: Emily Russ who will be working with families that have a Last Name L-Z. Emily is entering her 13th year working for Avon Local Schools. She taught 8th grade science for 9 years and is entering her fourth year as an assistant principal. When Emily is not here at AMS, she spends her time at home reading, doing house projects with her husband and running her three children, Eloise (4th grade), Adeline (2nd grade), and Theodore (Kindergarten), to their many activities. Mason Acheson will be working with families that have a Last Name A-K. Mason is entering his 7th year in education, and 4th year for Avon Local Schools. He was an intervention specialist for 5 years and entering his second year as an assistant principal. Mason spent 3 years at Avon High School as an intervention specialist. He enjoys spending free time with his family, vacationing, and playing golf. Mason and his wife live in Avon with their one year old (Hudson), and are expecting their second child in December.

Please reach out at any time via email (davissonk@avoneagles.org) or phone (440-934-3800 ext. 5005). I look forward to meeting you all soon on our Open House night on Tuesday, August 20th from 6:00 to 8:00 PM We split the alphabet to help with parking and crowds that evening. We ask that Last Names A-K attend from 6-7:00 PM and Last Names L-Z attend from 7-8:00 PM. If you are not able to attend that night we will have a schedule pick up available on Friday, August 16th from 10:00-11:30 AM. Students can grab their schedules, walk and find their locker and drop off any items at that time in their locker. Please understand that classrooms and teachers will not be available on 8/16 during this time.

Warm Regards,

Kelli Davisson, Mason Acheson, Emily Russ

These clickable links provide information on School Fees, School Supplies, School / District Calendar and Student Handbook for your reference. Also, these documents can be found on the district website at www.avonlocalschools.org under Avon Middle School.

School Fees (Fees will not be assessed to accounts until October 2024.)

School Supplies

School Calendar

Student Handbook

REMINDER: Returning Student Registration information update (sent in a previous email) needs to be completed immediately. This includes emergency contact and other important information needed by the school prior to Thursday, August 22, 2024 . If you have any questions, please call the AMS Main Office at (440) 934-3800.

Monday, August 12: Student schedules will go “live” on PowerSchool beginning at 3:00 PM

Thursday, August 15: New Student Orientation is for incoming 6th graders and new-to-the-district 7th and 8th graders. We recommend arriving about 15 minutes before your session to receive your student schedule. Principals and School Counselors will review goals, expectations, procedures, schedules, etc. Our 8th grade volleyball team will be in uniform and available to assist new students with navigating the building and opening lockers. This event is for students only, please.

• 6th Graders and new 7th/8th Graders (last name A-K): 8:30 - 9:30 AM

• 6th Graders and new 7th/8th Graders (last name L-Z): 10:30 - 11:30 AM

Friday, August 16th: Open Campus Day for Parents and Students: 10:00 - 11:30 AM. Schedules will be available for pick up and you can walk around with your child to follow their schedule, find their locker, and explore the school. Teachers and classrooms will not be available during these times.

Tuesday, August 20: The AMS Open House is from 6:00 to 8:00 PM 6:00-7:00 PM (Last names A-K) and 7:00-8:00 PM (Last names L-Z). Our 8th grade volleyball team will be in uniform and available to assist students.

Last Names A-K 6:00-7:00 PM

Last Names L-Z 7:00-8:00 PM

Thursday, August 22: First Day of School (The school day is 8:00 AM to 3:00 PM)

Thursday, September 26: School Picture Day by Ripcho Studio (packet will be sent home).

Mid-October: School fees can be paid online through your PaySchools Central account.

NOTE: For other dates/times of school activities, please visit the Avon Middle School website under Announcements and Calendar using this LINK.

Schedules: Student schedules with assigned lockers and locker combinations can be viewed on August 12 after 3:00 PM by logging into PowerSchool, but must be done on a computer (not a mobile device). Also, students can pick up schedules at Open House on Tuesday, August 20 or can pick up schedules on the First Day in first period classes. In case students forget their schedules, student names will be alphabetically posted in the AMS Commons area with their first period class next to their respective names (Thursday, August 22).

Lockers: Students are required to use only their assigned hallway locker. Details on gymnasium locker room lockers and combination locks will be explained by the physical education teachers. More information about locker usage and care is provided in the Student Handbook. Students will be required to use their locker. Bookbags/backpacks will be stored in lockers and are not permitted to be carried around the building during the school day.

Carefully review Bus Routes and Safety Rules prior to the start of the school year.

Bus Routes for the 2024-25 school year will be posted on the school website .

If you have moved, please note that all address changes must go through the building the student is attending. Transportation will not change an address or re-route a student from a parent phone call/email. Both the proof of residency affidavit, linked here, and the change of address form, linked here need to be submitted with two items of documentation from the list provided on the form.

Click here for vehicle morning drop-off and afternoon pick-up procedures.

Bus Safety Rules

To be dismissed early, students need to present a written request to the AMS Main Office upon arrival; they will receive an Early Dismissal Slip. All written requests for early dismissal must be signed by the parent / guardian, including a reason and a telephone number to verify the appointment. The voicemail number for absences is not to request an early dismissal. Telephone call requests to dismiss students early are discouraged.

Should a call become necessary for an emergency or last minute appointment, photo IDs will need to be presented by the parent / guardian at the time of student pick up.

The attendance line, 440-934-3838, is accessible 24 hours a day.

Everyday at Avon Middle School our students have the opportunity to use our food service program for both breakfast and lunch. Please see the information provided from our food service department below for your reference.

Depositing Lunch Money & Applying for Free & Reduced Lunch:

New Users: follow this link to PaySchools Central and click on “register” on the log-in page. Follow the prompts to create an account and add student(s) to your account. Follow this link to view the Parent User Guide. **NOTE: If wanting to fill out a free/reduced application, after creating your account, you MUST log out and log back in to access this feature**

Current PaySchools Central Users: follow this link to PaySchools Central. Use your current log-in credentials for PaySchools to log-in to PaySchools Central. Auto-replenishments will need to be RESET for the school year. Any settings you had last school year will not carry over to this school year.

***PaySchools Central now allows you to see more at once! You can load lunch money, manage lunch auto-replenishment, pay school fees, make before and after school care payments, set up notifications and access the free and reduced meal application. You can also see more than one child’s account at a time!

Important: You must apply for free/reduced waivers each year; they do not carry over year to year. All meal status from the 2023-2024 school year will expire on September 30, 2024. If an application is not completed by this date, your meal status will change to “FULL PAY.”

Free & Reduced Income Qualification Information:

Click here for the 2024 Federal Poverty Guidelines

Cashless Policy:

Money will not be accepted at the registers during breakfast or lunch service. If a family does not wish to use online deposits into food accounts, a student must submit a cash or check deposit into the deposit boxes located in the cafeteria before school starts. Funds will be credited to the student's account and available to purchase off of the same day. If you deposit money in Payschools Central, it must be in BEFORE school starts to use it the same day.

If cash is brought to the register during service or if money is deposited in PaySchools Central after school starts, the funds will not be available until the next day. Every student will receive one complete meal, but a la cart items will be excluded from sales as funds have not been loaded into accounts.

To view lunch balances please use your PaySchools Central log-in. Powerschool does not always update in real time.

New Keypads:

In order to get students through the food service more efficiently and accurately we have moved from the biometric fingerprint to a keypad system. Each student will be required to know their 6 digit Student ID. This ID is on their PowerSchool profile. If students forget their ID we will ask for their last name and encourage them to remember their Student ID.

Menus - View Lunch Menus (available after Aug 14th)

Breakfast $1.50, Lunch $3.25, Extra Milk $0.50

Reduced meals are no charge as part of the biennial state budget for school year 2024-2025

If you have any questions please reach out to Nancy Mazzeo at mazzeon@avoneagles.org or 440-937-3049.

Twitter: To receive news updates on what’s happening at AMS, follow Avon Middle School on Twitter @AMSEagle.

Website: www.avoneagles.org

Monthly Parent Newsletters: Sent each month via email.

At AMS we will be utilizing the PBIS Rewards App to reward positive behaviors that students exhibit throughout the year. We will discuss expectations with our students that follow the S.O.A.R. attributes: SAY IT, OWN IT, ACT IT, RESPECT IT. Students earn different point amounts for displaying different positive behaviors. Students can then redeem their points through our online store. Our students access this store though their Clever app on the their computer. At the end of each quarter we will have SOAR events! Please check out our monthly newsletters for more information regarding PBIS! We look forward to an awesome school year!

AMS Booster information regarding days/times will be sent out via the monthly parent newsletters. Parent newsletters are sent out at the beginning of each month through School Messenger.

Please be sure you can access PowerSchool so that you can monitor your child's assignments and grades throughout the school year.

Report Cards will be available online at the end of each quarter. Please note these various dates that are on the school’s website calendar.

Click here for important information regarding drug testing, vaccinations and the “Teen Home Alone Program.”

Pursuant of the Avon Board of Education policy, no student will be permitted to possess prescription medication on school grounds. The AMS Main Office will be responsible for the dispensing of prescribed medication. Below is a link for administering medication at school that must be completed and returned with the prescription in the original container. Details on these policies can be found in the Student Handbook.

Medication Authorization Form

School resumes on Thursday, August 22, 2024. Students that are car riders can arrive at school between 7:25 AM and 7:45 AM and will report to the Commons and sit around the tables to wait for the opening bell.

Building Hours: 7:40 AM - 3:10 PM

Early Bird Classes: Arrive no earlier than 6:45 AM for Early Bird-Spanish, and French (7:05 - 7:55 AM)

Regular School Day: 8:00 AM - 3:00 PM

The District Strategic Plan Audit Meeting will be held on August 7th at 3:00 p.m. in the Avon Middle School Media Center. This Meeting is open to the public and we encourage anyone to attend who is interested in moving Avon Local Schools forward. Our meeting will consist of reviewing our current strategic plan and breaking out into smaller focused groups when needed. Should you plan on attending the meeting, please contact Deb Suhay at the Board of Education Office. suhayd@avoneagles.org Phone: (440-937-4680) If you have any additional questions regarding the strategic planning process, please reach out to the Superintendent’s office.

Please note the following items that highlight, encourage, and promote strengthening Avon Schools, families and our great community.

Click here for general information for students involving Student Activities & Events.

Click here for important information regarding Student Services.

For any new students in grades 6-12 and/or any current students needing a school device, please pick up a school Chromebook and charger at the time and location listed below (regardless of the school your child will attend this fall):

Avon East Elementary

3100 Nagel Road, Avon, Ohio

Monday, August 12 @ 8am - 6pm

For any student in need who cannot pick up on this day, a school Chromebook and charger will be issued directly to your child as quickly as possible after school begins.

If you have any questions, please email the technology department at techhelpdesk@avoneagles.org anytime and we will be happy to get back to you as soon as possible. Thank you!

The entire Avon Middle School professional and support staff extend to you and your family a cordial, enthusiastic welcome! With the home, community, and school working together, we can have a significant and lasting impact on our youth. If you have any questions, please call the AMS Main Office at (440) 934-3800.

Kelli Davisson, M.Ed., Principal (ext. 5005)

Mason Acheson, M.Ed., Assistant Principal (A-K) (ext. 5006)

Emily Russ, M.Ed., Assistant Principal (L-Z) (ext. 5007)