The Canyon Valley Connect

Hello Canyon Valley Families and Students,

I hope everyone had a fun, and safe, Halloween weekend!

As we enter the 4th week of the quarter (semester), now is the time to check in on your student's grades and attendance. It's important that you work with, and encourage your student, to get caught up on any missing work and to seek additional help from teachers if they are struggling in a class.

The absolute most important thing that your student can do to help them be successful is to show up and engage every single day. I cannot stress this enough. The kids that are showing up and engaging in school every day are passing their classes. The kids that are frequently absent and not engaging are not passing their classes. Showing up and engaging is the simplest, and most effective, thing your student can do to be successful in school.

November kicks off a very busy month at Canyon Valley. There is a lot of information in this week's newsletter about lots of things happening this month.

Thank you for your continued support of our students here at Canyon Valley.

Adam Strock

Principal

Canyon Valley School

Tuesday, November 4th- Canyon Valley's Site Council Meeting 4:30-5:30
November 3rd-7th - STUCO/Matthew's Crossing Food Bank Food Drive
Tuesday, November 11th Veteran's Day- No School
November 19th - Canyon Valley Career Fair during 4th hour and lunch
November 22nd - Gilbert Days Parade
November 24th - Canyon Valley Thanksgiving - Staff w/ students
Wednesday, Nov 26th-Friday, Nov 28 - Thanksgiving Break - NO SCHOOL
If you have not already done so, please complete your Annual Update.
Sign up for district bus transportation with this link.
Free & Reduced Lunches application and adding money to a lunch account
Gilbert Public Schools- district Health Dashboard
To stay up to date, please be sure to read District emails (link to all district emails here)
Calendar for the 25-26 school year and 26-27 school year

This week, our Canyon Valley Student Council (STUCO) will be hosting a food drive to benefit Matthew's Crossing Food Bank. If you are in a position where you can help, please consider donating. The items that Matthew's Crossing says they need most are:

Noodles
Pasta Sauce
Tuna & Chicken (Cans or Pouches)
Rice
BEANS
Mac & Cheese
Cereal
Peanut Butter
Canned and/or Dry Soup

Donation items can be dropped off in your student's 3rd period class or in the front office.

Thank you for considering helping!

On Wednesday, November 19th, Canyon Valley will host a career fair for our students. We are excited to welcome a variety of trades schools, community colleges, industry partners, and military recruiters to campus to meet with our students as they explore opportunities available to them post-graduation.

This event will happen during the school day and is open to Canyon Valley students only.

We are looking forward to a fantastic event and hope our students will take full advantage of the opportunity to explore your future options, ask questions, and make meaningful connections.

On Tuesday, November 24th, we will celebrate our 14th annual Canyon Valley Thanksgiving! This is a wonderful tradition for our students and are excited to continue this annual tradition where our school staff and district office celebrate Thanksgiving with your students.

Thurs 11/13 5-7pm at Desert Ridge High School

This workshop is for teens (13+) and their parents/guardians to attend together. Presented by Child Crisis Arizona and social workers and mental health counselors from Gilbert Public Schools.

Parents/Guardians will learn:
How to influence your teen toward healthy relationships.
How to recognize signs of dating violence & what to do.
How to start meaningful conversations about respect and safety.

Teens will learn:
What healthy and unhealthy relationships look like.
How to respond to unsafe or uncomfortable situations.
How to help a friend who may be in an unhealthy relationship.

Registration required.

Link to register: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSf40HtotEy5JQ60ZkGX2kpNAtM2KVsTvsK8YUg-MeOrPwLX2g/viewform?usp=header

This foundation awards equipment or scholarship funding to high school and college-aged student photographers who demonstrate interest, talent, and financial need. Awards are for the following:

Sophomores - Seniors - Five (5) Digital SLR Cameras will be awarded to five (5) high school students. (High school applicants should only submit still photographs. The video awards are for college and graduate students only.)

The James Alan Cox Foundation for Student Photojournalists

In addition to the James Alan Cox Foundation, students can visit the GPS THRIVE Scholarship Database to explore this scholarship and other funding opportunities.

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Students are expected to wear their student ID badges at all times. New students will be provided with a badge and lanyard to wear it.

Please work with your students to ensure they bring their ID badge with them to school every day.
Bus riders will use the barcode on their ID badge to get on and off the bus once they have received their ID badge from the school. Students will not be allowed to ride the bus without their ID badge.
Students use the barcode on their ID badges to access sign-in into class for attendance and to purchase lunch in the cafeteria.
Junior High and High School teachers will be using ID badges to take attendance each period. Students are required to wear their ID badge in a visible location that can easily be scanned on their way into each classroom.
Replacement badges are $5 for a permanent copy. Lanyards and badge holders are $1 each.

Per Gilbert Public School (GPS) Policy JHCA, all GPS schools are closed campuses. Students are to remain on campus during the school day, including lunch, unless they are signed out by a parent/guardian in person or have approved release time. Students found to have been off campus (including being in the parking lot) during school hours may be subject to a search by school personnel and face disciplinary consequences including suspension.

Canyon Valley does not accept food deliveries from delivery services such as DoorDash, Uber Eats, or from restaurants. Students may purchase lunch from the school cafeteria or bring their own lunch from home. See the link below for information about cafeteria services.

NUTRITION SERVICES

Visit gilbertschools.net/meals for lunch account information and free/reduced meal applications.

Gilbert Public Schools Governing Board approved policies regarding student use of cell phones during the school day to promote student learning and well-being by reducing distractions and improving focus during the school day. All elementary schools and some of our junior highs have already been operating ‘Away for the Day,’ and our high schools have been operating ‘No Cell Bell to Bell’ during the 2024/25 school year. The policy will simply formalize these approaches.

Away for the Day Grades K-8: Once the school day begins, cell phones and wireless communication devices must be turned off or set to silent and stored out of sight (for example, in a backpack) for the entire school day, unless instructed otherwise by a staff member for educational purposes. This restriction includes earbuds and headphones as well.

No Cell Bell to Bell Grades 9-12: During instructional time, cell phones must be turned off or set to silent and stored out of sight (for example, in a backpack), unless instructed otherwise by a staff member for educational purposes. This restriction includes earbuds and headphones as well.

Please visit gilbertschools.net/families for more details.

Save the Date! In-Person Summer School 2026

Junior High and High School In-Person Summer School for 2026 will be held in two sessions.

Session 1: June 1-12, 2026
Session 2: June 15-25, 2026

This is a great opportunity for students to catch up or get ahead! More information regarding registration and courses will be shared soon!

Know Your Ride

The Gilbert Police Department is introducing a new public education initiative: Know Your Ride, a campaign designed to help residents understand the important differences between electric bicycles and electric motorcycles and the laws that apply to each.

As electric two-wheelers become more popular, so can the confusion about how they’re classified and regulated. While electric bicycles and electric motorcycles may look alike, they are treated very differently under Arizona law.

What Happens on Wednesdays: Professional Learning Communities

While the students head home early on Wednesdays, our dedicated teachers and staff stay on campus for Professional Learning Communities (PLCs). These essential professional development sessions help our educators grow and refine their skills, ensuring they're equipped to positively impact every classroom. | Read More

Infinite Campus Updates Mobile Apps for Parent and Student Portals

Browse assignments by specific class or due date.
Review attendance events in summary and detail form.
Immediate access to grades as they are posted.
Review schedule from anywhere, at any time.
Receive notifications immediately on attendance and updates grades.

Download the mobile app from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store by searching for either Campus Student (for students) or Campus Parent (for parents). Learn more

What is Be SMART?

The Be SMART campaign was launched in 2015 to promote responsible gun ownership in order to reduce child gun deaths. Whether you’re a gun owner, or you know someone who owns a gun, there is a role for everyone in the conversation around secure gun storage. Be SMART is a framework that parents, caretakers, and community leaders can follow to help keep their communities safe. Ultimately, you can help prevent kids from accessing firearms by storing them securely, and encouraging others to do the same.

Learn More about Be SMART Here

Save the Date!

Save the date for Gilbert Days Parade and Festival - November 22nd!

Honor and Celebrate Veterans with these activities on November 11th

Veterans Day Breakfast | 8:30am | Gilbert Senior Center

Open to all ages, this special event features live music, crafts, and a meaningful ceremony dedicated to our Senior Veterans. While attendance is open to the public, registration is required. Registration for this event closes on Friday, November 7th.

Event Schedule:

8:30am: Coffee & Donuts

9am: Pledge & Ceremony honoring Senior Veterans

9:15am: Breakfast & Music

10:45am Bingo

Veteran's Day Ceremony & Classic and Custom Car Show

3:00pm Car Show; 5:00pm Ceremony | Water Tower Park

Classic and Custom Car Show begins at 3pm – 5pm. This FREE observance will include words of tribute by special guest speakers, musical performances by local schools, and military displays suitable for all ages.

Free Admission for Veterans to Freestone Recreation Center - Veterans can visit Freestone Recreation Center for free on Veterans Day.

Please find below campus specific information for our senior students who are planning to participate in senior activities and graduation with their home high school campus.

Campo Verde High School

Desert Ridge High School (see attachment below)

DRHSSeniorPOV110325.pdf

Download

1.8 MB

To enhance safety measures that protect our students, staff, families, and the broader community, we continue to add to our wide range of safety and security tools, processes, and strategies. At the end of last school year, we implemented the use of weapons detectors at all of our high school campuses, and for the new school year, we will also be implementing a clear bag policy for athletic and other large events on our high school campuses.

Additionally, at Canyon Valley we will continue to utilize security cameras in all common areas and classrooms as well as the use of vape sensors in all bathrooms.

If your student is attending a GPS high school for a school event (i.e. sports, carnivals, etc.), please visit gilbertschools.net/safety for more information about expectations and processes.

If you haven’t already, please take a moment to complete the online ‘Annual Update’ for your student(s). In order to ensure we can communicate with you regarding your student, or in case of an emergency, it is important that we have your up-to-date contact details. Even if there are no changes, we ask you to please complete to confirm the information we have is accurate for this school year. Please log in to your Infinite Campus parent portal and complete your student’s Annual Update today.

For more details, visit gilbertschools.net/annualupdate.

As we begin the new school year, please review the updated bell schedule for 2025-2026 below. This bell schedule is significantly different than last year to accommodate state requirements for instructional minutes for each course each quarter.

Canyon Valley is excited to share that, over the summer, we added food services to our facility and will be serving lunch daily on campus. Students will have the choice between a hot lunch or cold lunch with a bi-weekly rotating menu (see below). With the addition of a cafeteria and served lunch this does mean a couple of logistical changes for Canyon Valley students:

1. Food deliveries (i.e. DoorDash, Uber Eats, etc.) will no longer be accepted and will be turned away. Lunch is a busy time for our front office and organizing and delivering student food orders is not something our office staff can manage during that time.

2. All students have a student lunch account. You can apply for free and reduced lunches and or add funds to your student's account by credit card through the LinQ app or by bringing in a check or cash to the front office at the beginning of the school day. Credit cards and Apple pay, etc. are not accepted to purchase lunch. Instructions for adding funds to your student's LinQ meal account can be found below.

3. Canyon Valley will remain a closed-campus. Students are not permitted to leave campus during the instructional day unless they have an early release on their schedule and are finished with their academics for the day. Students who leave campus are subject to disciplinary action including the search of both their personal belongings and their vehicle.

Adding money to your student's lunch account?

Every student has a lunch account, it is up to the parent to add funds to the lunch account or to complete the free and reduced application. If you would like to add money to your child's lunch account you can do so one of two ways: Adding funds via the LinQ Connect App, or by bringing in cash or a check to the office. If you would like to add money via the app you will create an account (you will need your child's student id number). By creating an account you can choose to be notified when your child is low on funds and you have the ability to see which days they purchased a meal.

Apply for free & reduce meals

To check your student's balance go online to www.gilbertschools.net/meals

pdf

insert_drive_file

Meal Account Online Instructions with QR Code.pdf

Meal Account Online Instruction (Spanish) with QR code.pdf

Download

54.0 KB

Sign up for district bus transportation

If your child needs to utilize district transportation please complete this Google Form in order for them to be registered.

Download the Here Comes the Bus App

Does your student ride the bus? if so, be sure to download the "Here Comes the Bus" App. This app will notify you when the bus is arriving, when your child has scanned on the bus and when they scan off the bus. ALL STUDENTS MUST HAVE THEIR STUDENT ID'S TO SCAN TO GET ON THE BUS.