Dear Family and Friends of ACS,

The Center of Environmental Health has issued a consumer alert regarding the findings of small traces of lead in insulated vinyl lunch boxes. Please visit www.cehca.org/lunchboxes.htm to learn more about this study and alternative ways to store food for lunch. Dennis Uniform Mfg. Co. is also extending a refund offer to parents who have purchased lunch boxes from them, even though the lunch boxes they sell were not listed on the above site. If you would like to return your lunch box that you have purchased from Dennis Uniform as a precautionary measure, you may do so at your local branch or sent to the mail order department and they will be happy to provide a full refund.

It is the time of year that I start to create a list of items that our ACS staff will work on for next year. I am very proud of all the improvements our ACS staff has worked hard to implement this year and am looking forward to hearing any feedback you might have for me about this year. Creating and aligning policies and procedures in K-8 (not just K-5 as I was accustomed to) is a huge job and I would like to hear how you are feeling about our school this year and what improvements can be made for next year to continue our mission toward a unified K-8 school. Please email me at nelsonk@academycharter.org if you have any feedback for me. The feedback I have received so far has been very helpful! Thank you.

On Friday, February 17th, our school will be closed for an in-service day. On in-service days, even though our ACS staff is going through different trainings, our office has always been open; however, on this particular day please make note that our entire staff will be in-servicing and even our office will be closed this day. Please do not try to come to the school to retrieve missing student items or to discuss an issue with our office or staff, as we will all be learning about positive and effective communication this day and cannot be interrupted. Thanks for your understanding!

Parent/Teacher Conferences are just around the corner. They are Thursday, March 16, and Friday, March 17. We are in the process of planning for them and you will be receiving more information about these very important days as soon as possible. Elementary Parents, don’t forget that it is during your Parent/Teacher Conference time that you may turn in a written request to your student's teacher, if you would like to request a teacher for your student(s) next year. Our teachers do the best they can to honor requests as they complete the class lists for next year; however, we cannot guarantee that a request will be honored, since it is impossible for us to honor all. Thank you for your support with this school policy.

A Look Ahead:

• Monday, February 13- Third Specials Rotation for Third Quarter
• Monday, February 13- Governing Board Meeting, 6:00
• Tuesday, February 14-
• Wednesday, February 15- Athletic Day (for more information on this day, see Dean Peters blurb below)
• Thursday, February 16- Dress Down Day
• Friday, February 17- In-service Day- No Students (see above for important information about this day)
• Monday, February 20- President’s Day- School Closed!
• Friday, February 24- PTO Breakfast
• Friday, February 24- Elementary Virtue Assembly, 8:50, Cafeteria
• Friday, February 24- MS Virtue Assembly, 2:50, Cafeteria
• Friday, February 24- MS and Specials Newsletter goes home
• Thursday, March 2- End of Third Quarter
• Friday, March 3- Teacher Work Day- No Students

Have a fabulous weekend!

Kindra Whitmyre-Nelson
Dean of Academy Charter School
email: nelsonk@academycharter.org
web: http://www.academycharter.org/deannelson

Dear ACS Families and Friends,

It’s hard to believe we’re half way through 3rd quarter! We have several upcoming events I’d like to mention.

First of all, an informational flyer regarding after school drama club for middle school students will be sent out in this week’s Friday folders. This informational meeting will be held next Thursday, February 16th, at 4:00. The flyer for this activity is also posted later in the newsletter.

The Blanket Drive, sponsored by student council, is now complete and the winners have been determined. The winners of the drive are announced later in the newsletter under the Student Council banner. Thank you to the ACS community for your generous donations of the blankets to the Denver Rescue Mission.

Please remember that Student Council is hosting an all school Athletic Day, on Wednesday, February 15th. ACS students and staff may dress in “athletic wear” that day to honor all of our Middle School students who have participated in sports so far in the school year. We will be having a middle school pep rally to recognize our ACS athletes in the gym that morning. Flyers were sent out in Friday folders last week as well as a link is posted to the newsletter regarding this event.

The Middle School Valentine’s Dance is this Friday, February 10th in the ACS gym from 5:30-9:00pm. This event is open only to ACS middle school students and the cost is $3.00 at the door. Formal attire is requested and refreshments will be available for a minimal cost.

Next week, our Third grade reading CSAP testing will begin on Tuesday, February 14th, and last through Wednesday, February 15th, this year. If you need to schedule any appointments on these days, please do so in the afternoon, as students will be testing in the morning. We are in the process of working on finalizing the rest of the CSAP schedule for the March testing period. I will have specific dates for you by next week.

Thank you as always for your support of Academy Charter School!

Kendra Peters
Assistant Dean of Academy Charter School
email: petersk@academycharter.org

Happy Valentines Day! Please take a piece of chocolate candy from the basket at the front counter—a little something sweet for our wonderful volunteers. I appreciate all you do for our school.

I will be having some projects that could be done at home in the next few months. If you would be interested in doing projects from your home, please let me know. Below are some more opportunities to volunteer here at ACS.

The sand box for the preschool is in need of some more sand. If you can help out with this, please contact Jayne Friesen, the Director, here at the school.

Cindy Hazlehurst will need some help for the Original Artworks fundraiser. She will need someone to help stuff the packets (can be done from your home, needs to be done by the end of this month), help in labeling artwork, hanging artwork and putting artwork into packets (this all needs to be done at school in early March), removing the artwork from the walls on 3/20 and filling the packets for Friday folders. If you can help with the Original Artworks project in any way, please contact Cindy Hazlehurst at 303-688-9134.

I want to apologize for leaving Mr. Tom Whittemore out of the list of basketball coaches—he faithfully worked with Art Landrey and the boys “B” basketball team—thanks again, Tom! I would also like to thank Larry Reynolds for fixing the daycare/preschool fence and gate.

Let’s keep “Making a Difference” at Academy Charter School.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Anne Belfrage
Volunteer Coordinator
belfragea@academycharter.org

Our Lost and Found is brimming over! Please have your student check for any missing items as the collection has really grown since we came back from Winter Break. The ACS Lost and Found is located right inside the school cafeteria to your right.

Blanket Drive Winners:

Elementary - Ms. Mullans and Mrs. Persichina
Middle School - Ms. Been

ACS Middle School’s Valentine’s Dance

Friday, February 10th- 5:30-9:00
Formal Attire Requested

Cost: $3.00 per person at the door
(ACS Middle School Students Only- I.D.’s will be checked)

Athletic Day

Please click here for more information.

Drama Club

Please click here for more information.

Chick-fil-A Monthly Restaurant Days

Mark your calendars for Thursday, February 16 for Resaurant night at Chick-fil-A. You can stop by the Chick-fil-A on Founders Parkway ANY TIME (breakfast, lunch or dinner) and tell them you are with Academy Charter School. Drive-thru is fine too. Best of all, this year they are offering more generous splits above the standard 10% based on the ACS generated sales that day. Please take advantage of this easy fundraiser to help the school, enjoy some good food and friends, and hopefully make your life easier as well. Flyers will be sent out in your students Friday Folder.