VAIS Family Newsletter

3/11/2024 VAIS Governance Council Meeting - VAIS Library 6:30-8:30pm

3/25-3/29/2024 Spring Break, classes will resume Monday, 4/1/2024

Do you like meeting new people? Do you have young student (kindergartener, first grader, or 4K student)? We need your help!!

The Community Outreach Committee needs new co-chairs and committee members for the 2024-25 school year. Main responsibilities include organizing volunteers for recruitment season, helping edit materials to send to 4K families, and organizing agendas for committee meetings. More detailed information can be found in the committee playbook here. If interested contact retiring co-chairs Paige Jany and Kelly Gibson at plwallac@gmail.com and kellyloraine@hotmail.com . Please also mark your calendars for the final Community Outreach meeting of 2023-24 on Tuesday, April 16th at 7:30pm via Zoom.

Unfortunately, enrollment throughout VASD is down for 2024-25 kindergarteners, which includes VAIS’s next kindergarten class. As spots still remain open, if you have any new neighbors move in or hear of anyone still looking for kindergarten spaces for next fall, PLEASE encourage them to contact Sally Parks for any questions.

The VAIS Governance Council makes the high level or “big picture” decisions concerning the day-to-day operations of VAIS. The Governance Council generally meets on the 2nd Monday of the month. The next meeting is Monday, March 11th at 6:30pm in the VAIS Library. The agenda will include the director’s report and committee updates. Coming to a meeting this spring is a great way to see if you want to participate in Governance Council for the 2024-25 school year. For more information, please join us on the 11th or email us at gc@vaisverona.org . Thank you for your time and consideration!

VAIS Parent Social at Draft House: Join us for dinner at Draft House in Verona on Sunday, March 10 at 7pm. We'll have a few tables reserved for our group! This event is for parents only. RSVP on Facebook or email Jennifer.tzeng@live.com

Thank you!

Jenn

Euchre Night is on its way!

Save the date for Friday, April 26th in the evening. More info will come out in the April newsletter on this fundraiser.

Expect the Verona Holiday Inn Express to be packed with fun, friends, food and Euchre. Come to support or come to play, the more the merrier!

Digital Citizen for Grades 2-5 this month of March is around News and Media Literacy. Teachers use lessons from Common Sense Media to teach concepts around plagiarism and media sources. Click on this link to learn more from Common Sense around these topics and how you can reinforce the learning at home. Ms. Roltgen, our amazing librarian, will be a part of teaching these lessons this month. We are grateful for her expertise!

This message is for families of girls in 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade:

The Lottery Registration for Girls on the Run is opening up soon on March 1st - March 6th. On March 8th the lottery will open up again if there is any remaining space on the NCS and VAIS team and that will be a first come, first serve basis until the team is full.

Here is the link to sign up:

https://www.girlsontherunscwi.org/3rd-5th-grade-program-details

More information on who is selected in the lottery, as well as team start date and details, will be out in a few weeks.

Save the date for the morning of June 1 at Verona Area High School to support our running friends (and Miss Amelia, who does the warm up on the scaffolding at the start of the 5k!).

Please spread the word and consider joining us for our annual VAHS Kids Carnival in the high school fieldhouse on Saturday, March 9 at 10am-12:15pm. We have over 20 clubs and teams that are creating activities to engage with kids aged (approximately) 3-10. Based on feedback from previous years, groups won't be handing out candy. Instead, kids will get a sticker at each booth to put on their bingo card. When they fill it, they will exchange it for a bag with small toys when they leave. Please consider helping us spread the word to others in the community as our high school students volunteer their time to give back.

Entrance for kids is $5 cash or card (small fee for card use). Any proceeds are donated, as usual, to one of three non-profits organizations selected by our VAHS Student Council.

From Common Threads Family Resource Center: My name is Rebecca Ryan and I am the School Director here at Common Threads. We are hosting a Neurodiversity Resource Fair here at our center on Saturday April 6th from 9-11am and would love for you to join us!

This resource fair is open to all families, friends and children so please stop by!

Public Health Madison & Dane County is partnering with Madison Metropolitan School District and SSM Health this spring to offer two more school vaccine clinics to get students up to date on their school vaccines ahead of the 2024-25 school year. These clinics will take place on Saturday, February 10th and Saturday, May 11th 2024. Both clinics will be from 10am to 2pm at the Holtzman Learning Center in Madison. It is highly encouraged that appointments are scheduled through the website listed on the flier attached. Vaccine Clinic

Here is the link to a Google Public Calendar with this year’s updated NCS events:

VAIS Public Google Calendar

This calendar will be updated continually throughout the year with school events, such as swim and gym days, library days, Picture Day, Back to School Night, field trips, parent/teacher conferences, days off of school, Governance Council meetings, and so much more! We hope that this will make things easier for you!

Have you joined the VAIS Facebook Groups?

All Current families are welcome to join “VAIS Parents Group” on Facebook. We will be posting events and pop-up playdates in this group. This is also a great resource for new parents/guardians to ask any questions they may have. Please also like and follow our VAIS School Facebook here, or take a look at our website here.

We’re asking for your help to keep all children safe near and on Main Street. Our city is growing, our schools are growing, and Main Street is at times very busy. We have, combined, nearly 1,000 elementary students attending our three schools here on Main Street, including many students who are walking or biking in the area. Our close neighbors on this campus, Core Knowledge Charter School and Badger Ridge Middle School, have an additional 1,200 students. We need your help to keep each and every child safe, and that means:

• Recognize that you are in a school zone, and please follow the posted speed limit.
• Be aware that this area is populated by … children. They are small, not as careful as they should be, and need all of us adults to keep them safe.
• Accept that a school zone will naturally result in times when there is a great deal more traffic.
• Increase your awareness around crosswalks for pedestrians and bikers.
• Be on the lookout for buses. We support our drivers at Sugar Creek, New Century and VAIS! They are trying their best to get their riders to and from school on time and safely.
• Please obey crossing guards. We are so lucky to have the great team we do, including Laurie and Rhonda, pictured above.
• Conditions will generally deteriorate as we move into autumn and then winter, as our world becomes darker, snowier, and colder. It is imperative that drivers give themselves more space and time to stop in the event of an emergency.
• We team with the Verona Police Department. They know our concerns, our suggestions, and our busy times, and they have been good partners.
• Drive like every child you see was your own child.

Thank you for your cooperation.

Our students experience having two different classroom teachers throughout the day. It can be confusing for families to know which teacher to communicate with at times. If you are reaching out to your child’s teacher, please include both teachers on any communication.

The Bridging Brighter Smiles program is a safe, affordable, accessible way to meet a dental hygienist... right here in Verona Area School District!

Learn more at https://bridgingbrightersmiles.org/

If you need assistance with lunch costs please visit our Free and Reduced Lunch application for information on income levels and an application for assistance.

If your student is ill, has an early morning appointment or early pick up, or will be late arriving to school for another reason, in addition to notifying their classroom teachers please make sure that you contact one of the following PRIOR TO THE START OF THE SCHOOL DAY:

1) EMAIL VAIS Attendance: vais-attendance@verona.k12.wi.us or

2) CALL the office at (608) 845-4500 (If you are making a change after 11:00 am the same day, then please call the office).

Please do not email the school secretaries directly if possible.

Thank you, Charter Families, for creating a positive atmosphere for scholars and staff. The acts of kindness and support that you provide us throughout the year brighten our days — from small notes, to snacks, to time spent helping (and everything in between). It truly means a lot!

-New Century & Verona Area International Staff

Interested in getting to know our kiddos and helping to build community within our schools? Do you have a couple of hours to spare occasionally or is your time flexible enough that you can come once a week? We would love to have you assist in our lunchroom.

All volunteers will need to be background checked through the district here. **We are especially in need for help on Tuesdays at this time.**

Please complete this short survey with your availability.

Volunteers keep the library running smoothly and our 9,583 books organized.

They are so appreciated! Please consider signing up for a one-hour shift on our updated Sign Up Genius link.

The Sunshine Committee is made up of many amazing family members of students from our schools whose mission is to spread kindness and support for families and school staff. They do this by providing support in the form of cards, meals, gift cards, and other resources to families and staff in need of a little pick-me-up. They also have provided support to our school through stocking those awesome bathroom supply baskets in our staff bathrooms and by helping organize our winter clothes.

Sign up here to support the snack pile in the teacher workroom, canned drinks and packaged snacks are always welcome.

For more information and to assist in brining sunshine to our community please contact Shannon Ratchman at Shannon.Ratchman@lls.org.