Principal's Newsletter

Students were experimenting with facial features on "Mona Lisa day" in the Art Room this week.

Mrs. Giroux and Ms. McKinley work so well together they even dress the same sometimes! Second grade is having double the fun with double the teachers.

Thanks to all who quickly signed their child up for the 4th & 5th grade Science Club starting this Tuesday. It is currently full. Please keep an eye out for a confirmation email to those who were able to secure a spot for their child.

ACSD and Salisbury Community School are committed to ensuring all students succeed in the general education classroom. Academic and behavioral support is provided through the ACSD Multi Stage System of Supports (MSSS) for all students. This system of supports is being rolled out during the 2026-2027 school year and will look different in different schools. After a two year implementation process, we anticipate having an aligned K - 12 system for all students.

🟢 Stage 1 | Universal Core Instruction: High-quality first instruction provided to every student daily in the general classroom. Teachers regularly analyze student work and assessment data to ensure all students have access to a guaranteed and viable curriculum.

🟡 Stage 2 | Collaborative Teacher Support: When students show inadequate learning progress, a Stage 2 Team convenes to ask, "What else might we try?" The goal is to explore alternate instructional approaches that keep students in the classroom with their teacher as much as possible. This can take different forms—for example, an instructional specialist might step in to assist the classroom teacher with a new idea, or another colleague might model a new strategy. The team draws on content-specific expertise, whole-class strategies, and small-group interventions, keeping students learning alongside their peers whenever possible.

🟠 Stage 3 | Targeted Data-Driven Interventions: When universal and Stage 2 supports aren't enough, a specialized team conducts a deep-dive review of student data, prescribes targeted interventions, and tracks effectiveness in structured cycles. Interventions are provided as in-class adjustments or targeted pull-out instruction that necessitate a change to the student’s daily/weekly schedule. Parents/guardians are included in this process and are notified before a change is made to a student’s schedule.

🔴 Stage 4 | Comprehensive Evaluation & Disability Review: Stage 4 begins when documented Stage 3 interventions do not produce sufficient progress. The Stage 3 Team and parents/guardians meet to discuss possible underlying factors—such as an undiagnosed disability—and decide whether to initiate the formal special education evaluation process.

Student Support Teams

The school’s Stage 3 Team, or Student Support Team, meets regularly and consists of the principal, the learning specialist, academic interventionists and school counselor. Teachers who work with the student being discussed also participate. If it is determined a Student Support Plan is necessary, a meeting will be held with the parents and the school team. The plan will include goals for student progress, the frequency and duration of services, and a timeline for review.

This year at SCS, we are replacing the FastBridge screening assessments with Star Assessments in reading and math.

Star Assessments are short tests that give teachers personalized learning data for each student:

• In Kindergarten and 1st grade, the assessment consists of short, 1-minute tasks administered by a teacher.

• In 2nd–5th grades, students take computer-based assessments. Because the test is adaptive, questions automatically adjust in difficulty based on a student's responses. This ensures a personalized experience that isn't too easy or too hard, and takes most students between 20 to 30 minutes to complete.

Why do we use Star Assessments?

• To Guide Daily Instruction: Teachers use the results to tailor classroom activities, small-group learning, and individual support to match your child's exact needs.

• To Track Progress Over Time: By assessing students a few times throughout the year, we can measure steady skill growth rather than relying on a single snapshot.

• To Keep Testing Time Brief: Both the computer-adaptive tests and CBM measures are designed to be fast and low-stress, keeping classroom instruction the main focus.

The best way to prepare for Star Assessments is simply to encourage your child to do their best. Students' results will be sent home later this fall, and families are welcome to connect with teachers to discuss next steps for their child's learning.

For more information, visit the Star Assessments Family Resources page.

Thank you for your flexibility and patience as we work out the bus routes that have been adjusted in some towns due to driver shortages.

As of today, there are no new drivers available to help with busing ACSD students. We will be continuing with the Ripton bus route adjustment that was implemented on 8/31 for the foreseeable future. This means there is one bus for Ripton SCS students, leaving at 3:45. If this presents a hardship for your family and your child needs transportation to Ripton before 3:45, we are looking into setting up a van shuttle. Please complete the Google Form linked below to indicate your needs for 2:45 transportation to Ripton. Again, we apologize for any inconvenience this causes. The district is doing all it can to find solutions.

Science Discovery Club for 4th & 5th Graders, Starts Tuesday 9/15

No School Monday, September 21st --Yom Kippur

Fall Open House, Tuesday September 22nd, 5:00 - 6:00 PM (Note change in time!)

FOSCS is hoping to learn more about what SCS families are looking for in a parent group — what kinds of events you enjoy, ways you might like to pitch in, skills or ideas you'd be willing to share, and what you'd like to see FOSCS support this year.

Please take a few minutes to fill out our FOSCS survey — we'd really love to hear from every family, even if your answer right now is “not sure yet!”

Our first FOSCS meeting of the year is Wed, 9/16 at 6:30 PM, with the option to join in person or by Zoom. Come hear what’s happening, share ideas, or just see what FOSCS is all about.

Please join us on Friday September 18th for a special welcome back event hosted by the Flynn Center and ACSD! This Whimsical interactive back-to-school party will feature PEARL by Plasticiens Volants. FREE and open to everyone in the ACSD Community. 6pm at Middlebury Union Middle School

Across our district, we are facing significant transportation challenges caused by driver shortages on multiple bus routes. You can find revised bus routes here based on Week 1 changes. We hope the changes we made in Week 1 will offer stability moving forward and we will continue to make adjustments as needed and hope to get back to our normal bus routes as quickly as possible. However, we are also working to capture the full impact this challenge has had on our families as we escalate this situation to the the Secretary of Education and BetCha’s parent company, STA. Please use this form to document the impact any bus disruptions had on your family so that we can act on and/or pass along the information as we seek resolution.

The 2026-2027 ACSD Calendar is available and can be found on the website here.