AIS Friday Flash

Friday, February 11, 2022

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Continuous Reenrollment Contract

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Set It & Forget It!

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2022 - 2023 School Calendar

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"Set It & Forget It" Continuous Re-enrollment

Re-enrollment has begun! Please check your inboxes (sent to 1 "enrollment responsible" parent/guardian) for emailed information, a process flowchart, and Frequently Asked Questions about our new Continuous Enrollment Process. We have also shared the 2022-2023 School Calendar and the 2022-2023 Tuition & Fees Schedule here. Please note the important required steps summarized below for our new streamlined process.

If returning to AIS:

You are automatically pre-enrolled to secure a spot for the 2022-2023 school year and every year after until your child(ren) graduate from AIS.
Your child(ren)'s re-enrollment is finalized when you complete your Continuous Enrollment Contract (CEC) by 2/28/22. (One & Done - This will be the last enrollment you need to complete for AIS unless you choose to opt out in a future year.)

Families should also update important information in the WebForms section of their Family Portal by 3/31/22.
Families should also update FACTS information and select a payment plan by 3/31/22.
Deposits and fees will be auto charged on 5/1/22.

Completing the necessary steps by the end of February allows families to take advantage of early commitment discounted tuition plus a deferred payment plan to begin in August 2022 for the remaining tuition installments as elected.

If CECs are not completed in February, tuition rates increase, deposits and annual fees will be due upon processing, and remaining tuition installments will begin each month thereafter. In addition, due to limited capacity in numerous grades, class spaces may not be guaranteed as enrollment for new students begins March 1st.

If you will NOT be returning to AIS:

You must let AIS know by 2/28/22 via an Opt-Out Form. Otherwise, deposit and fees will be withdrawn in May.

If you have questions:

Please reach out to Mathilde or April with any questions or to set up a time to discuss your considerations further.

If you have a younger new sibling to enroll:

Complete a new student application in RenWeb
You will receive an offer to enroll before March 1st outlining the next steps.

We look forward to serving our AIS families with this more convenient process for years to come.

February Spirit Night thank you

Thank you to all of our families who participated in the February Spirit Night at Modern Market this week. AIS will receive over $224 in proceeds. Merci, gracias, and thank you!

Gala Wine Collection Continues-Mon. 2/14 - Wed. 2/16

We thank all of you who have already donated a bottle of wine for our gala class wine cellars. If you haven't yet had a chance, we are extending our collection at morning drop-off from Monday to Wednesday of next week. So, show us some liquid love and make it a Valentine full of wine. We would love to have a full case in each class. Program details are as follows.

As part of our gala each year, we ask our families who would like to participate to donate 1 bottle of wine for each AIS student to bundle in classroom wine packages. These amazing wine cellars will be auctioned off in our silent auction during our 11th annual event on April 2, 2022. We still need some bottles so will be accepting wine Monday through Wednesday next week.

Pick your favorite bottle of wine or bubbly
Sign the bottle with a sharpie to include your family name, class, and if you would like, a dedication. Ex: "Cheers! From the Johnson Family-4e"
Pass the bottle off at morning drop-off next week
Bid away on remarkable wine cellars during our gala!
Winners will be able to pick up the wine from campus after the event.

Valentine's parties-Mon., 2/14

Valentine's celebrations will take place on Monday, February 14th with students and their classmates. If you have items to drop off, you may pass it to us at morning drop-off and we will take them to the classrooms.

Students may wear Valentine's Day colors (red, white, pink) clothing to school as part of the celebration.

Celebrations will start at 2:50 pm with a regular dismissal at 3:30 pm.

Spring Break Camp Registration begins next week

Be on the lookout next week for Spring Break Camp information. We are excited to offer a Moana-themed Camp the week of March 21 - March 25. We will have one half-day camp for MS/GS students from 9 am to 12 pm and one full-day camp from 9 am - 3 pm for cycle 2 students in CP through CE2. Limited spots will be available so make sure to check your inboxes on Tuesday, February 15th for registration details.

Bourse Deadline Extended - Fri., 2/18

For French families applying for the Bourse scolaire, please be advised that the deadline to submit all material to the school's Admissions Office is now Friday, February 18. Please be sure to submit your complete packet by that date, as the French Consulate General will not accept any applications received after the deadline. If you need any support with the completion of this documentation, please reach out to Jacques.

AIS Spelling Bee Interest

We have begun exploration of participating in an AIS spelling bee. The purpose of a spelling bee is to help students improve their spelling, increase their vocabulary, and learn concepts that will help them throughout their lives. Across the country, millions of students are preparing to compete in spelling bees at the school, local, district, county, regional, and state levels. Some may even advance to the Scripps National Spelling Bee competition in June 2022. While we are not part of the official Scripps competition this year, we are interested in holding a school-wide spelling bee using the Scripps format and word lists. We wish to know if this is something our community would like to see at AIS. Please take a minute to fill out the form. Thank you!

Campus COVID Updates

As we watch the quick decline of COVID-19 cases in the Austin we community, we are very pleased to have ended this week without any cases of COVID reported among our students or staff! A few important reminders:

Testing. Our pooled PCR testing conducted on Monday with 47 participants returned with zero COVID cases. Rapid antigen testing has also helped us keep COVID off campus this week. For more details about signing-up for testing, please review the January 29th eCommuniqué from Jacques or visit the Pooled PCR Testing and/or Rapid Antigen Testing pages of our website.
Contact tracing. Through our dedicated contact tracing processes, we have been able to support families with isolation and quarantine protocols while minimizing disruptions to learning. If you have any questions or concerns about these protocols, please send an email to healthalert@austinis.org.
Vaccination records. If your child has completed the full vaccination series, please send a copy of their vaccination card to records@austinis.org. Individuals who are fully vaccinated may be exempt from certain quarantine requirements should a close contact be established.
Health and safety protocols. We are continuing to monitor the data related to our community and are working closely with public health and medical experts to plan for the de-escalation of our protocols when it is most appropriate to do so. Please be on the lookout for Head of School eCommuniqués and messages in the Friday Flash for more information about updates to our health and safety protocols.

Thank you to all members of our community who continue to support the health and safety of all!

École des Loisirs January and February Books are Here

If you signed up for the École des Loisirs French book subscription, then be sure to check your children’s backpacks today! Due to shipping and logistics delays, January and February books arrived together this month. We were very excited to receive some great new titles from graphic novels to chapter books and more. Thanks to the great number of subscriptions received through the school we were able to add sixteen fantastic new French titles to the AIS library for kids of all different ages this month. Bonne lecture !

We're Celebrating Black History Month at AIS

We are continuing our celebration of Black History Month at AIS through themed lessons, class discussions, and library readings. Our study of and appreciation for Black History Month highlights important principles we uphold at AIS, namely justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion (JEDI). In honor of Black History Month and in support of people—real and fictional—who uphold these principles around the globe, Mr. Jacques has donated the following titles in French to the AIS library:

Freedom ! L’incroyable histoire de l’Underground Railroad
La case de l’oncle Tom
Résistance
Wonder
Gandhi : Non à la violence

To learn more about this year’s French literature donations made in honor of Black History Month, please visit this website. On the same site, you will also find more details about 2021 Black History Month library donations as well as many other JEDI-themed texts available in our school’s library.

CE2, CM1, CM2: Register Now for the DELF A2!

After hiatus of several years we are very excited to bring access to the DELF A2 Diploma back to our school! The DELF (Diplôme d'Études en Langue Française or Diploma of French Languages Studies) is an official qualification awarded by the French Ministry of Education to certify the competency of candidates from outside France in the French language. It is a certificate that is valid for life and is an excellent academic credential for your children to have. This exam will take place at AIS between March 8 and March 10, 2022 (i.e., individual speaking evaluation on March 8-9 and group written evaluation on March 10) for CE2, CM1, and CM2 students. Please take a moment to submit the online DELF registration form today to reserve your child’s spot!

Save the dates

Mark these important upcoming dates on your calendars.