ACE ACADEMY Seminole Place
January Newsletter
Dear Ace Academy Seminole Place Families,
Happy New Year — and warmest greetings to each of you! I hope your holiday season was restful and joyful. As we begin the second half of this school year, I want to share a few important updates, celebrate recent highlights, and thank you for the continued partnership that helps our students thrive.
Important Announcements
- Welcome to Lena Campbell, our new Office Associate at Ace Academy. Lena brings valuable experience from her time working in ACPS since 2022 and will be supporting families and school operations. Please join us in welcoming her to the Ace community. If you need to contact the front office, please note Lena Campbell is available to assist with questions, attendance, and school business.
- Key date reminder: Monday, January 19 —(school closed). Please mark your calendars.
- Families we ask for your help in reminding your student to not have their cell phone nor headphones/ear buds out during school hours. Students have been doing a great job not having their phones out, but our staff spoke with their classes the past week to remind them of ACPS's Device policy.
Celebrations from January
- The past two weeks featured some truly memorable Physics lessons. Students explored hands-on demonstrations — including a bowling ball activity and a dramatic hoisting demonstration with Mr. Bertram — that sparked curiosity and conversation. Be sure to ask your student about what they observed and learned!
- IT Fundamentals students worked on an awesome and engaging Stop Motion project. It was so fun seeing the student working together and having fun with this class assignment!
- Prior to winter break, Mr. Sill's Cybersecurity hosted Gary Nixon from NGIC as a guest speaker. Mr. Nixon has a Masters Degree in Cybersecurity, is retired from the Navy, and currently works in the field at NGIC.
We are grateful for your ongoing support! If you have questions, or need support, please reach out-we are here for you.
With appreciation,
Jay Thomas, Principal
Heather Corpora, School Counselor
Calendar of Events
ACPS Calendar linked HERE
ACE Academy Events
01/19- No School
03/25-SAT DAY
05/14-Senior Capstone Ceremony
Can you help us?
We are seeking donations of items such as pool tables, air hockey tables, ping-pong tables, or similar equipment for students to use during lunch. If your family has an item you would be willing to donate, we would be more than happy to accept it.
Group: CENTER 1 FAMILIES
Our last recruiting event for the year!
Student Collaboration!
Filming a stop motion project.
Our Featured ACE Students!
📹VIDEO & MEDIA TECHNOLOGY📹
CHERRISH SMITH
What is your name, what is your pathway, and how many years have you been coming to ACE Academy?
“My name is Cherrish Smith, I’m in video and media tech, this is my second year”
Why did you decide to join ACE Academy?
“At first I decided to join because I thought it was right for me. Others had told me that it would be a good opportunity or be fun to step out of my comfort zone, but I hadn't truly seen it until I got here. I have to say they were right! Ace has changed since the first year I was here, but for the better. It has helped me to work hard and understand what makes me happy, whether that is drawing or just making films with my friends”
What are your favorite things about being at the ACE Academy campus versus your base school campus?
“ I love that it's smaller and not so crowded. I struggle with anxiety and have been for years so being here feels like fresh air, I also never had a space where people were like me and enjoyed the same things as, I do. I guess it’s like a home in a way”
What has been your most favorite thing you have created while attending ACE Academy?
“When we did an interview at the MRC of the two leaders there, that was my first real filming and editing at ace and I truly enjoyed it”
What project are you currently working on?
“Making my own commercial for a product i made up”
How does attending ACE Academy help you prepare for the future?
“I think it’s a lot like college would be, and forces you to focus and push yourself to work your hardest ”
What are your favorite things to do in your spare time?
“Drawing, on paper or on the computer i love making art it helps me to relax a lot like music does and it’s a good way to express myself”
💻CYBERSECURITY💻
ISAIAH LANGFORD
What is your name, what is your pathway, and how many years have you been coming to ACE Academy?
“My name is Isaiah Langford, I'm in Cyber Security, and I've been coming to ACE Academy for one year.”
Why did you decide to join ACE Academy?
“I transferred in from Florida, and it's the only Cyber Security program around.”
What are your favorite things about being at the ACE Academy campus versus your base school campus?
“It is a lot quieter, has smaller classes, and is more organized than my base school.”
What has been your most favorite thing you have created while attending ACE Academy?
“I worked on a presentation about routers which was really interesting.”
What project are you currently working on?
“I am currently working on Bandwidth management for networking which is basically configuring a VLAN routing server in a topology.”
How does attending ACE Academy help you prepare for the future?
“The classes are more one-on-one than at my base school and the environment is more comfortable to focus on individual skills.”
What are your favorite things to do in your spare time?
“I like playing video games (marvel rivals, minecraft, roblox, etc.), watching movies and anime, listening to music, and working out.”
Golden Apple Nomination
Beginning today Wednesday, October 29th, the nomination window for the 2025-2026 Golden Apple Awards will be open. Anyone can nominate a teacher for a Golden Apple: students, families, community members, or other educators.
Golden Apple webpage: https://www.k12albemarle.org/our-division/golden-apple-awards
Nominations will close on Monday, January 26, 2026.
Ms. Travis’ English Classes
12th Grade:
Seniors recently completed a unit on Macbeth, engaging in in-class reading, decoding Shakespearean language, and close analysis of literary techniques. It culminated in a research essay comparing the titular character of the play to a historical figure of their choice. Students are now beginning a unit on The Canterbury Tales, where they will explore satire, historical context, and advanced literary analysis while continuing to build critical reading and writing skills.
11th Grade:
Juniors just wrapped up a dynamic unit on Hamilton, focusing on figurative language, symbolism, characterization, and theme, along with a research essay highlighting lesser-known figures from the American Revolution. The class is now starting a unit on The Great Gatsby and the Harlem Renaissance, emphasizing critical analysis, literary techniques, and author’s purpose, with opportunities to compare poetry from the era to Fitzgerald’s novel.
10th Grade:
Sophomores recently finished their study of Hamlet, which focused on decoding complex language, analyzing literary techniques, and considering varied perspectives. The unit culminated in an argumentative essay about the play. They are now beginning a non-fiction unit on The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, which will focus on rhetorical devices and appeals, author’s purpose, and using strong textual evidence to support analysis.
Physics
Throughout the month of January our scholars have been diving into the concepts of work and energy. We have been doing this through the lens of many experiments and hands-on demos, and asking questions such as “why are pulley systems useful?” and “when can a pendulum gain more energy?”. We will be concluding this month with a project analyzing athletes’ motions through the lens of Newton’s Laws, projectile motion, work, and energy.
~Mr. Bertram
World Geography
This past month, Dr. Mound's World Geography students learned about trade, development, and globalization, with a focus on the Americas. This lesson built to the second state-mandated DBQ (Document-Based Question) essay, which asks students to explain how economic development affects standards of living.
U.S. History
This past month, Dr. Mound's U.S. History students continued their thematic, reverse-chronological study of American history by learning about growing activism on the left and the right in the middle of the 20th century, with a focus on the LGBT rights movement and the “Reagan Revolution.”
Government
This past month, Dr. Mound's Government students learned about the Constitution and the legislative branch in lessons taught by co-teacher Mr. Lyon. Students are currently working on the second state-mandated DBQ (Document-Based Question) essay, which looks at mass incarceration.
January Cyber & IT Fundamentals Update
CyberPatriot Update
We are excited to share that one of our Junior class teams has advanced to the Gold Tier and will be competing on January 22nd in the CyberPatriot competition! This is a significant achievement and a testament to their hard work, teamwork, and growing cybersecurity skills.
We are incredibly proud of all of our CyberPatriot teams and how far they progressed this season. A special congratulations goes to our Platinum Tier team, whose performance reflects an exceptional level of dedication and technical ability. Regardless of tier placement, every student gained valuable real-world experience that will carry forward into future competitions and careers.
IT Fundamentals
IT Fundamentals students are wrapping up their stop-motion film projects, the final assignment for the Crafting Compelling Stories unit. In this project, students worked in groups to transform scripts they wrote earlier in the year into fully produced stop-motion films. Like real directors, students were encouraged to revise, add, or remove scenes during production and post-production to best tell their story. Creativity has been on full display, and we’re excited to see the final results!
After completing this project, the class will transition into the Game Design portion of the course.
Cybersecurity I
Cyber 1 students are diving deeper into Cryptography and Linux fundamentals. They recently completed work using the Terminus game, an interactive, text-based adventure that teaches Linux commands through gameplay. By navigating challenges and solving puzzles, students practiced real command-line skills in an engaging, hands-on way.
Cybersecurity II
Cyber 2 students are moving into Network Implementations, continuing their work with Routing Technologies and Bandwidth Management. The current focus is on Quality of Service (QoS)—how networks prioritize traffic to ensure critical applications perform reliably. Students are reviewing technical documentation and demonstrating their understanding through detailed constructed responses aligned to professional rubrics.
Cybersecurity III
Cyber 3 students are pushing forward with the CertMaster Learn and Labs curriculum, currently working through Application Protocol Security Baselines. Topics include secure protocols, TLS, directory services, email security, DNS filtering, and cloud and web application security concepts. Students are also completing hands-on labs that reinforce real-world enterprise security practices and prepare them for industry certification expectations.~ Mr. Sill
Video Media & Technology
January Video & Media Technology Update
IT Fundamentals
IT Fundamentals students are wrapping up their stop-motion film projects, the final assignment for the Crafting Compelling Stories unit. In this project, students worked in groups to transform scripts they wrote earlier in the year into fully produced stop-motion films. Like real directors, students were encouraged to revise, add, or remove scenes during production and post-production to best tell their story. Creativity has been on full display, and we’re excited to see the final results! After completing this project, the class will transition into the Game Design portion of the course.
Video & Media Tech. I
Students in Video and Media Technology I spent the latter part of the year developing their editing skills using Adobe Premiere Pro while also building practical production skills, including an understanding of lighting techniques and proper light operation. Students were introduced to professional DSLR cameras, which they will use this month to complete their Storytelling Through Photography project.
Video & Media Tech. II
Video and Media Technology II students had the opportunity to travel to Lakeside Middle School to participate in a mentoring workshop with seventh-grade students. During this experience, ACE Academy students planned, wrote, filmed, and edited a video centered on the assignment of creating a Holiday How-To video. Below is Abi’s edited version of her team’s project.
Holiday How-To By Abi
Video & Media Tech. III
Congratulations to all Video & Media Technology II students who completed the course with A’s and B’s. These students will begin Video & Media Technology III this month.
Senior Capstone
Seniors completed Phase II of their capstone projects this past month by delivering a presentation that pitched their ideas to a panel of peers and teachers. This experience allowed students to practice articulating their progress, as well as reflecting on the challenges and successes they encountered over the past several months. This month, students will continue refining their capstone ideas, prototypes, and problem-solving strategies in preparation for completing their projects by the end of the quarter.
Game Design 1 students have been learning how to code a simple 2D game from scratch.
Game Design 2 is wrapping up their roll-a-ball- game project from semester 1.
Digital Visualization- The students in Digital Visualization are learning how to
animate a human figure to walk and express emotion.
We are approaching cold and flu season. We need to have a signed copy of the medication release form on file to administer any medication to students. If you would like the option for us to administer medications to your student, we need a signed copy of the medication release form. Please have you student pick up a form from the nurses office or you may print off the attached form. Parents will need to provide medication with students name and DOB on bottle . ~Zina
Dear Families,
I hope this messages finds you well! I wanted to share a few Announcements and Reminders.
- As we start Quarter 3, we encourage families to check grades with their students on Parent Portal or Schoology. Making this a weekly practice, will your student catch something they may have missed early on in the quarter. Please reach out to myself of Lena if you have questions about accessing parent portal.
- Attendance matters: This is particularly important for our high school students, as if they miss too much time they will be required to make up that time in some manner.
We’d like to share a list of local community resources that offer support in a variety of areas, including mental health services, food and housing assistance, and opportunities to give back through donations or volunteering. We know that everyone’s needs—and ways of supporting others—are unique, and we hope these resources are helpful for you or someone you know.
Help Happens Here- Mental health services
Street Sheet Resources for Charlottesville and Albemarle-
Comprehensive list for all kinds of resources