Welcome to all our new students and families who have chosen A2 Virtual+ as part of their learning journey! We’re also thrilled to have our returning students from the first semester continuing with us and look forward to continuing to support our trimester 2 students.

We are proud to serve 1,300 students in grades 5-12, enrolled in 1,600 classes. None of this would be possible without the dedication and hard work of our incredible team, whose efforts are guided by our mission:

The mission of Ann Arbor Virtual+ Academy is to provide students access to online and extended learning options that help them develop a personalized learning path

Important Updates: Attendance & Count Day

For the second semester, we are making immediate updates to how attendance is recorded in PowerSchool and what students need to complete on Count Day – February 12th. These updates will not change student expectations but will impact how attendance is documented.

• Weekly Attendance: Students must still complete their Weekly Wednesday Attendance Activity and continue working on their online courses daily.

• Count Day Assignment: On February 12th, students will be required to complete a Count Day Assignment in Schoology in addition to the regular attendance activity. This assignment will be graded and specific to each class.

More details are provided below—thank you in advance for supporting students in meeting this important Count Day requirement!

As always, we appreciate your partnership in making A2 Virtual+ a great learning experience for all students!

Principal Lauer

(This newsletter has been supported with the use of chatgpt.com)

To ensure all students are counted for state funding, we are requiring each student to complete a Count Day Assignment in every class on Wednesday, February 12th. This process aligns more closely with how attendance is recorded for in-person students.

Each Count Day Assignment will be clearly labeled in Schoology and will count toward the student’s grade. For students enrolled in courses with content outside of Schoology, they may need to complete an assignment within their class and then log their activity in Schoology.

Students will have from 12:01 AM to 11:59 PM on February 12th to complete their assignments.

On Thursday morning, February 13th, teachers will mark attendance in PowerSchool using the LA (Lesson Assignment) code for students who completed their Count Day Assignment on time. If a student is unable to complete the assignment on February 12th, they will have 10 additional days to submit it.

Our team will begin reaching out on Thursday, February 13th, to follow up with any students who have not completed their Count Day Assignment.

Thank you for your support in ensuring every student is counted, which helps secure the necessary resources to continue offering this online learning option!

Attendance in online classes is recorded differently than in traditional, in-person settings. In our program, attendance is defined by a two-way interaction between the student and their teacher, which must take place once per week. This interaction is completed through a designated attendance activity in Schoology for each class.

The state defines a week for online attendance as Wednesday through Tuesday. To ensure consistency, we require students to complete the attendance activity in Schoology on Wednesdays. If a student does not complete this activity on Wednesday, teachers will mark them as UNV (Unverified Absence) in PowerSchool for that day.

Students may still complete the attendance activity between Wednesday and the following Tuesday; however, late submissions may result in a grade penalty. Once a student completes the attendance activity, the teacher will update their attendance in PowerSchool with a CA (Completed Attendance) code on the day the interaction occurs. This code confirms that the student has met the attendance requirement for that week.

Attendance will be recorded every week throughout the term.

We hope everyone is looking forward to some well-deserved time off! Our team will also be taking a break to rest, recharge, and rejuvenate. While students will still have access to their courses in Schoology, teacher support will not be available during Mid-Winter Break.

• Tuesday, February 4th 4pm - 7pm
• Tuesday, February 11th 4pm - 7pm
• Tuesday, February 25th 4pm - 7pm

• Thursday, March 6th 4pm - 7pm - Last Day before the End of Trimester 2
• Tuesday, March 11th 4pm - 7pm
• Tuesday, March 18th 4pm - 7pm

The Ann Arbor Public Schools has partnered with Varsity Tutors for Schools! All AAPS students now have access to the Varsity Tutors learning resources around the clock and on demand such as live classes, chat tutoring, fun enrichment classes, and more.

Everything your student needs to get started can be found HERE.

• Academic Support - Personalized Learning Courses & Homework Help

• College Preparation - Essay writing, SAT prep and practice

• Interest-based classes - Chess, Coding, Drawing, Online Content Creation

Check out the Varsity Tutor link in Clever!

When your family and child needs help, it's hard to know where to turn. In an effort to ease the burden of finding mental health and substance use services you need, AAPS has partnered with Care Solace, your central hub of care.