AE Weekly Newsletter
August 17, 2025
Dear AE Families,
It is my extreme pleasure to be joining you for another school year! I hope you had a wonderful summer where you could relax, enjoy your loved ones, and even engage in some adventures together. I look forward to the opportunity to reconnect with our incredible community of learners, families, and educators in the coming days and weeks.
I firmly believe that what we do to support each child in becoming a successful learner takes a village. Our dedicated teachers and staff are eager to foster a supportive and engaging classroom environment where every child feels valued and empowered to reach their full potential. To do this, we need your active participation and support. Here’s how we can work together to make this year the best one yet:
- Open Communication: We encourage open dialogue between home and school. If you have any concerns, suggestions, or questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to us. Regular communication helps us to understand and address your child’s needs effectively. Please also ensure you receive AE’s weekly newsletters by updating your contact information in PowerSchool. You can also follow us on Twitter/X (@AnnvilleElem). These communications will provide important information, pictures, and updates regarding events in the building.
- Parental Involvement: Your involvement in your child’s education is critical. Whether volunteering in the district, participating in the PTO, attending school events, or simply engaging in your child’s learning at home, your participation and support make a significant difference.
- Supportive Learning Environment: Together, we can create a positive and encouraging environment for our students. Celebrate their successes, support them through challenges, and help foster a love of learning.
- Encouraging Growth: Let’s focus on nurturing not just academic skills, but also social and emotional growth. Encourage your child to set goals, work hard, and develop resilience.
As we start the year, I am excited about the many opportunities and experiences that await our students. Thank you for your ongoing support, collaboration, and commitment to our school community!
Kind regards,
Rebecca Hoover
Annville Elementary Principal
Supervisor of Elementary Education
- 8/19 - Community Kick-Off 6:00-8:00 - Secondary School Parking Lot and Stadium
- 8/27 - AE Back-to-School Night 5:00-7:00
- 9/1 - No School
- 9/2 - First Day for All Students
- 9/19 - Fall Picture Day
- 9/26 - No School for Students
PBIS (Positive Behavior Intervention and Supports) helps create a positive learning environment for all students. It encourages expected behavior by explicitly teaching students about school-wide expectations and recognizing their achievements. The program focuses on preventing unexpected behavior, using consistent rules and routines to reduce behavioral issues. By promoting a culture of respect and responsibility, PBIS supports students and teachers, improving academic performance and social interactions.
During the summer months, our elementary staff, students, and families gave feedback regarding A-C's elementary PBIS program. With the help of an excellent school team, this feedback was used to create a more consistent, streamlined program for all of our kindergarten through sixth-grade students and classrooms! The new program will take time during the first days and weeks of school to explicitly teach students what our school rules (be respectful, responsible, and ready to learn) look like and sound like in each school setting. It will use Dutchmen Champion Tickets, Dutchmen Dollars, A Champion Dutchmen Wall of Fame, and a school store to recognize students making positive choices.
- Dutchmen Champion Tickets - These can be earned by consistently following school expectations, going above and beyond, or going out of your way to follow school rules. Students earning Dutchmen Champion Tickets will be recognized on our announcements, earn five Dutchmen Dollars, and be invited to sign our Dutchmen Champion Wall of Fame.
- Dutchmen Dollars - Students can earn Dutchmen Dollars from any staff member when they are "caught" meeting expectations and following school rules.
- School Store - Students can save their Dutchmen Dollars to use at our school store. The store will be stocked with fun items and experiences with staff members for students to purchase!
Bus information for the 2025-26 school year will be finalized by the end of next week. Information will continue to be updated daily so I encourage you to visit PowerSchool. If you do not see any transportation information by the middle of next week or the transportation information is incorrect, please contact the Transportation Department.
Please login into PowerSchool and on the left-hand side towards the bottom click on bus information.
If changes to this information are necessary, please contact RaeAnn Lessing at 717-867-7652 or by email rlessing@acschools.org.
Please continue to check Power School for updated transportation information. As students enroll and withdraw from the district this could change bus times and bus assignments.
Hello! My name is Ms. Rudershausen, and I’m so excited to be part of our amazing school community. This year, I’m thrilled to step into a new role as Dean of Students, in addition to continuing my work as an educator. I live in Lebanon and bring eight years of teaching experience, having worked with students in grades 1 through 5.
I earned my degrees in Elementary and Special Education from the University of Delaware and hold a Master’s in School Leadership from the University of Wilmington.
Outside of school, I enjoy running, hiking, biking, reading, and traveling. At home, I’m kept busy by my two dogs, Ellie and Cayla, and my two cats, Zerathustra and Jiggles.
A few fun facts about me: I love iced caramel macchiatos, and chocolate is my favorite treat!
I’m looking forward to a fantastic year ahead, supporting our students and helping them grow both academically and personally.
Contact: arudershausen@acschools.org
At Annville Elementary, the Dean of Students helps make sure our school is a safe, respectful, and welcoming place for everyone. I work closely with students, teachers, and families to support positive behavior, encourage kindness, and help solve problems when they come up. Whether it’s helping a student work through a tough day, celebrating good choices, or making sure everyone feels included, my job is to support students so they can do their best—both in the classroom and around the school. I’m here to listen, help, and cheer our students on every step of the way!
These supplies are encouraged in order to make more individualized/personalized choices in their back-to-school materials. The district will supply standard school materials such as pencils, paper, erasers, scissors, tissues, highlighters, glue sticks, crayons, colored pencils, dry-erase markers, etc. You are welcome to also purchase these items for your child if you would like to make them more custom to their likes/needs. This could include decorative pencils, a variety of crayon choices, or a particular brand of tissues.
Third Grade:
- Pencil box or pencil bag
- Earbuds or headphones
- Reusable water bottle
Fourth Grade:
- Earbuds or headphones
- Pencil bag
- Reusable water bottle
Fifth Grade:
- Earbuds or headphones
- Pencil bag
Sixth Grade:
- Earbuds or headphones
- Pencil bag (recommended)
Back to School Night will be held on Wednesday, August 27th between 5:00 and 7:00! This is a drop-in event where students and families can meet our teachers and check out our classrooms. Because there will be many families in attendance this evening, we ask that if you have individual questions and concerns that they be directed to staff at another time through email, phone call or conference. It is our hope to meet and greet as many of our students and their families as possible!
There will also be a number of community resources and organizations available in our cafeteria. These resources and organizations include the A-C Elementary PTO, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, our AE Nurse, and community music stores/programs just to name a few. We hope to see you then!
Back-to-School Forms process will be completely digital. For the best experience, please use a laptop or tablet to complete this process. You must access PowerSchool Parent via a web browser. The School Forms choice will not appear in the PowerSchool Mobile App.
The Back-to-School Forms Portal is open and will end on the first Friday after Labor Day, September 5. We ask that all parents sign into the PowerSchool Parent Portal to complete their Annual Information Update. It is of the utmost importance that we have up-to-date information on file so that we are able to successfully send communications to parents and guardians throughout the year.
We ask that you complete the following tasks to help us ensure we are ready for the school year. If you have more than one child attending the district, you will need to complete each of these tasks for each child. The tasks are outlined for you inside the portal. They include: Verify/Update Parent-Guardian Contact Information, Verify/Update Emergency Contact Information, Verify/Update Student Health Information, and View additional optional information.
To get started please visit https://powerschool.acschools.org and sign in using your existing account.
For a quick overview of the process you can watch our video demonstration by clicking this link.
