Dear Trailside Families,
Thank you to all of the Trailside staff, volunteers and families that joined us at our New Family Welcome event this week. It was wonderful to meet the newest members of our school community!
Speaking of new community members, we are excited to share with you the Team Trailside Staff members for the upcoming school year. Please be sure to check out the link to learn more about our new teachers and staff. This year, we have the addition of a four-legged staff member! Ranger Sigmund is an ICAN trained facility dog who will be joining us at Trailside daily. He will be such an amazing support for our students and staff! Please see the blurb below for more information.
Continuing on the theme of "new," we have had several campus updates over the summer. Our school garden which was installed this spring has continued to grow! A big thank you to the many families who devoted time over the summer to tend to the plants. Additionally, we are finally able to fully embrace the trail for which we are named with the extension that connects our campus to the Rail Trail. We are grateful for the partnership with the Town of Zionsville to make this a reality. For those considering walking or biking via the trail as a mode of transportation to/from school, we ask that you read carefully the procedures we have in place, as student safety continues to be our utmost priority.
Summer days are fleeting, so we hope that you enjoy these remaining days. We look forward to seeing you soon!
Best,
Mrs. Jen Raycroft and Ms. Deb Pickett
Ranger is a 28-month-old yellow labrador retriever. He has been in the ICAN training program most of his life spending the last year in the Indiana Women's Prison being trained by inmate handlers to learn the special skills that will allow him to support our students and staff as a facility dog.
Mrs. Sigmund, Dr. Sigmund (school PT), Principal Raycroft, Mrs. Burton (school counselor), and Mrs. Sadlier (media center specialist) spent multiple full days of training with the handlers, the ICAN staff, and Ranger to learn all the wonderful things that make Ranger such a special part of our team. We are so excited to share him with all of you. Below is some information we thought might be helpful as we integrate Ranger into our environment.
What is a facility dog?
Facility dogs work with professionals who incorporate the dog into the care of their clients, patients or students, and are most frequently placed in hospitals or schools.
How was Ranger trained?
Ranger graduated from the two-year ICAN training program on July 31st as a facility dog. He was placed with the Sigmund family upon graduation with Emily as his primary handler. Ranger has learned over 30 cues to help support our staff and students through positive reinforcement and emotional support.
What is ICAN?
ICAN trains and places assistance dogs with individuals with disabilities and provides foundational life skills to inmates through their experience as trainers. ICAN is meeting two important needs in our communities: (a) providing children and adults living with a disability greater independence and an opportunity for a more enriched life by partnering them with a service dog and (b) preparing offenders to return to our communities better equipped to successfully reintegrate with their families and obtain a job. ICAN is the only service dog organization in Indiana that is accredited by Assistance Dogs International (ADI). ICAN is all about unleashing abilities and changing lives on both ends of the leash and is a 501(c)3 non-profit.
To learn more about ICAN, and for the information source please go to: www.icandog.org
What will Ranger do at Trailside?
Ranger will have various jobs here at school. Initially, he will work as a student support dog through social and emotional lessons with his handlers (Team Ranger). This may include one on one or small group sessions, reading sessions, helping with classroom lessons or large group instruction, or working in various therapy sessions with our therapists. There are so many possibilities for Ranger in our building! We will learn with him as he learns his role within the Trailside team and discover all of those possibilities together.
What’s the plan for students with allergies?
We will be contacting all students’ families regarding documented pet/dog allergies. If your child has health needs related to pet/dog allergies that have not been previously communicated with the school, please let us know. Together, we will make a plan for interactions with Ranger.
What are the expectations with Ranger and students/staff?
Please know that bringing Ranger into our school is a process. Our students and staff will not be perfect; neither will Ranger. We heard the saying “Slow is Fast!” at our training, and we truly believe that! With time, we are confident that he will become a valued member of our already wonderful school community. Team Ranger is sincerely grateful for your cooperation and support as we learn how to be a successful environment to help Ranger grow and succeed with our students. We are so excited to share him with all of you and the students!
Be on the lookout for a Trailside Ranger Facebook page for all things Ranger and updates on his role within the building. If you have any concerns and/or questions, please do not hesitate to contact any of the members of Team Ranger by email. We would love to hear your feedback and talk through any concerns you might have.
ZCS 2024-2025 Back-To-School Days and Open Houses
Friday, August 2
Finalized class placement information communicated to families via email
Wednesday, August 7
Meet the Teacher Night for Preschool and Kindergarten Only, 5:00 – 7:00
Thursday August 8
Meet the Teacher Night for all 1st-4th grade families, 5:00 – 7:00
Tuesday, August 13
FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL (full day)
Thursday, August 29
Curriculum Night (this is an adult event for parents/guardians)
5:30-6:00 Kindergarten
6:00-6:30 1st Grade
6:30-7:00 2nd Grade
7:00-7:30 3rd Grade
7:30-8:00 4th Grade
Monday, September 2
Labor Day- NO SCHOOL
Thursday and Friday, September 5 and 6
Fourth grade at Camp Tecumseh
Friday, September 27
Jog-A-Thon
Bridge and Early Start Spanish are optional, fee based programs that “bridge” the time between the 7:50-8:00 arrival time for 1st-4th grade students, and the start of the instructional day for Kindergarten students, which is 8:50-9:00.
Before and After-School Care (BAC) is available for all Trailside students. Before school care begins at 6:45am and After school extends childcare from 2:30 to 6:00pm.
Eagle Rec offers fee based programs in a variety of interest areas, which typically start after school has already begun.
School transportation is available for the 2024-25 school year and bus stop information will be sent to families in the coming days.
ZCS continues to experience high student enrollment growth, and is currently seeking interested candidates to serve our community as a professional driver for ZCS. Paid training and excellent benefits are available. Please click here to learn more about becoming a bus driver, or contact Amy Eaton, Transportation Manager at 317-873-1237.
As you plan for the year, please review the link below regarding transportation (bus, car, and new for this year- walkers and bikers!). All of our transportation procedures are in place to protect the safety of all those on our campus. Thank you for making safe transport to and from Trailside a priority!
The ZCS Food Service Website is home to lots of important information, including monthly menus, price lists, nutritional and allergen information. You can also learn more regarding meal assistance using the website or clicking here. For more information or assistance, you can contact the Food Service Department directly at 317-873-1232.
Trailside will welcome lunch guests for students beginning in mid-September. Look for more information, including the reservation link, in an upcoming newsletter.
During the school day, all volunteers come to the front office to check in. Before the volunteer opportunity, all volunteers must sign a Non-disclosure Acknowledgement Form and have successfully completed a Full Criminal History Background Check.. Necessary background check paperwork is available on the ZCS website at the Volunteers/BRAVO link and should be submitted at least 10 days before the intended volunteer date. Volunteers must also view the state-mandated confidentiality/bullying video, provided on the Volunteer/BRAVO website. The volunteer will pay the fee for the full background check which will expire after 5 years.
During the school day, all visitors must enter via the front door and sign in at the front office. Visitors need to be prepared to present a government-issued photo ID which will be scanned against the National Sex Offender Registry. All visitors will be issued a visitor badge/tag to be worn inside the building at all times. Visitors other than parents/guardians must be prearranged and organized through the main office.
ZCS is now hiring Instructional Assistants at multiple locations. Join the ZCS team and make an impact on the lives of our students. IAs work in the classroom with individual and small groups of students. Please apply online at https://www.applitrack.com/centralindiana/onlineapp/jobpostings/view.asp?choosedistrict=true&district=1452 or contact Robyn Nelson at rnelson@zcs.k12.in.us with any questions.
Please click the link below for information about many community activities going on in our area.
Trailside Elementary School
Email: jraycroft@zcs.k12.in.us
Website: http://tse.zcs.k12.in.us/
Location: 4200 South 875 East, Zionsville, IN, USA
Phone: 317-873-8057