Back to school forum, Aug. 9
Save your pop bottle caps
We are collecting plastic bottle caps to use for a STEM activity at our booth during the Iowa State Fair. The caps will be used to build a catapult for mini pom poms. Please save your pop or water bottle caps and bring them to the District Office now through Friday, August 20th. Thank you!
School Supply Giveaway Aug. 7 & 8
Project Fresh Start and Ankeny Community Engagement are once again providing school supplies for students in need. Students enrolled in Ankeny Community Schools or Ankeny Christian Academy are eligible to receive new backpacks and school supplies at no cost.
The giveaway will take place on Saturday, August 7 from 10:00am-12:00pm and Sunday, August 8 from 1:00pm-3:00pm at Prairie Ridge Middle School, located at 1010 NW Prairie Ridge Drive. Attendees should enter through the East entrance: door E16.
The school supply giveaway is a collaboration between the Ankeny Community School District, Ankeny Service Center, Wal-Mart, area churches, local businesses, and generous individual/group donations.
For more information, contact the Ankeny Community Engagement office at (515) 289-3960 or email project coordinator Dave Kissinger.
2021-2022 Fees Are Now Online
The Ankeny Community School District (ACSD) is committed to keeping our students, staff, and community safe while we continue to respond to the Covid-19 pandemic. In order to respect current social distancing requirements and to protect the health and safety of our staff and community, the procedures communicated below may be different compared to past practices.
Ankeny Community Schools is accepting the annual textbook rental fees, purchases of CIML (Central Iowa Metro League) student activity tickets, K-8 activity passes, eight-punch pass activity tickets, parking passes, and meal account deposits for the 2021-2022 school year. Fees are accepted by:
- Credit/debit card online at TouchBase. This is the preferred method of payment.
- NEW/CHANGE – PLEASE READ CAREFULLY – Credit/debit card at a building.
- School building: An appointment must be made by calling that building’s main office. Please know that office hours may be limited.
- District Office building: An appointment must be made by calling 515-965-9600. Please know that office hours may be limited. Checking the website would be beneficial.
- Credit/debit card numbers CANNOT be taken over the phone.
- Mail check to 306 SW School Street, PO box 189, Ankeny 50021-0189 using this payment form.
For information on making online payments, please refer to the online fees and meal payments. You may view an instructional video on using TouchBase.
You can learn more about how to use TouchBase by reading this new user guide.
Important points regarding online payments:
- Meal account deposits may be made throughout the school year. Try the recurring purchases feature on TouchBase!
- NEW/CHANGE to staying online all school year: League student activity tickets (9-12 only) and the K-8 grade activity tickets may be purchased online all school year.
- Eight-punch activity tickets can be purchased online until Sunday, August 8. Beginning August 9, payments for the eight-punch activity tickets/passes may be purchased from your feeder system’s high school Activity Office or at a home event.
- TouchBase can be found under Online Payments, which is located in the Quick Links at the top right and bottom of the page. Please note, when accessing TouchBase, you will be leaving the Ankeny Schools website and entering a secured environment hosted by InTouch Receipting.
What is the annual Textbook Rental?
The Textbook Rental is an Iowa Department of Education state-wide term used that covers not only textbooks, but electronic textbooks and any supplementary instructional materials used that conveys information to the student or otherwise contributes to the learning process. This is referenced and authorized in Iowa Code 301.1.
If you have already paid the textbook rental fee for this year, you do not need to do so again.
Free/Reduced Priced Meals and Other Fees
To be eligible for free/reduced price meals and textbook rental fees, you must submit an application and the fee waiver form EACH SCHOOL YEAR. This can be done online late July on the nutrition services free and reduced meals webpage.
Please contact LeeAnna Vigor before completing an application, if:
- You are enrolling a kindergarten student and another student in your household was eligible for free or reduced meals the previous school year.
- You have a student who is transferring from another school in Iowa and was eligible for free or reduced meals at that school. Eligibility does NOT automatically transfer – you need to notify LeeAnna Vigor.
- The state has placed a foster student in your care.
To be eligible for Free/Reduced Text book Rental, a free/reduced priced meal application and the fee waiver form must be completed and approved on October 4, 2021 or before. If not, unless a student is a new enrollee, full priced Textbook Rental Fees will be applicable for students in your household. PLEASE NOTE: if a fee waiver is applicable, it is only valid if completed and submitted within that eligible school year.
Contact Information:
- For questions about fee and/or fine balances, fee and/or fine payments, please email studentfees@ankenyschools.org
- For questions about meal balances and/or meal payments or School Cafe, please email leeanna.vigor@ankenyschools.org or scott.litchfield@ankenyschools.org.
- For questions about the Free and Reduced Meal Program, please email leeanna.vigor@ankenyschools.org.
- For questions about the Before and After School Program and/or about the payment structure, please email nikki.logsdon@ankenyschools.org.
Return to Learn: Safe Return to In-Person Instruction and Continuity of Services Plan
On April 21, 2021, the U.S. Department of Education (USED) released its American Rescue Plan Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund (ARP ESSER or ESSER III) interim final requirements related to district ESSER III plans and district plans for a safe return to in-person instruction and continuity of services. (ESSER III State and Local Plan Requirements)
As part of this plan, each district must assure that it will:
- Review its Return to Learn plan at least every six months until September 30, 2023, including seeking and considering public input regarding whether to revise its plan, and
- Revise its Return to Learn plan (when necessary) at least every six months to ensure it remains relevant and meets statutory and regulatory requirements, including seeking public input on any revisions to its plan
Ankeny’s existing state-approved Return to Learn plan can be viewed here.
Iowa Law currently requires schools to provide fully in-person learning and make mask wearing optional. The other components of the district’s Return to Learn plan will only be used as directed by State of Iowa and/or Iowa Department of Education
Therefore, the district is proposing the following ACSD Return to Learn Addendum as an update to the existing plan.
The public is invited to provide feedback on the addendum utilizing the form below through July 2, 2021, which was also reviewed at the June 2021 School Improvement Advisory Council (SIAC) meeting.
American Rescue Plan: District ESSER III Plan
On April 21, 2021, the U.S. Department of Education (USED) released its American Rescue Plan Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund (ARP ESSER or ESSER III) interim final requirements related to district ESSER III plans and district plans for a safe return to in-person instruction and continuity of services. (ESSER III State and Local Plan Requirements)
Each district receiving ESSER III funds must:
- Develop a plan regarding its proposed uses of ESSER III funds, including engaging in meaningful consultation with all required stakeholders and providing the public opportunity to provide comments during plan development.
- Submit an ESSER III plan to the Department through the Consolidated Accountability and Support Application (CASA).
- Make the plan publicly available on its website in an understandable and accessible format.
This plan is due in full by August 23, 2021.
The distributions of these funds are based on the Title I funding formula, which are the funds providing financial assistance to local educational agencies for children from low-income families. Due to Title I allotments, Ankeny Schools will receive the lowest amount per pupil in the state of Iowa through the ESSER III funds.
For reference, Ankeny has and will receive the following from ESSER funds:
| ESSER I | $219,062 |
| ESSER II | $830,338 |
| ESSER III | $1,864,820 |
Of the $1,864,820 Ankeny will receive in ESSER III 20%, or $372,964, is required to be spent on what is deemed required continuous learning. The remaining $1,491,856 is to be used toward COVID-related expenditures.
The Proposed Ankeny ESSER III Plan is below:
Summer Term (20% required continuous learning)Summer Term: The 2021 Ankeny Summer term serves three main groups.
|
$372,964 |
FY21 Estimated COVID-related Salary and BenefitsThis line item will go toward supporting the following positions for the previous fiscal year: human resources compliance specialist, a district nurse, building-specific teacher and nurse substitutes. |
$784,500 |
FY21 Mitigation SuppliesThis line item will include the purchases of PPE, cleaning supplies, printing of instructional materials, filters for HVAC, etc. for the previous fiscal year. |
$344,376 |
FY21 Summer Academy ExpensesThe Ankeny Summer Academy is a three-day professional development conference for Ankeny teachers from national and local experts, including multiple sessions taught by Ankeny staff. It provides an opportunity for licensure credits and continuing education. This year’s summer academy featured keynote speakers on behavior strategies, engaging students in thinking, and grading. In addition, teachers had access to courses specific to their content area, social-emotional-behavioral health training, Canvas training, mental health for staff training, equity training, and more. This line item includes the facility rental, presenter fees, and attendee stipends for sessions related to COVID. |
$243,700 |
FY22 Canvas LicensesCanvas is a web-based learning management system purchased to support the online integration of learning. The Canvas learning management system allows Ankeny Community Schools to provide a consistent platform for staff, students, and families and allows for equitable access to their learning, regardless of our district’s delivery model. |
$93,400 |
FY21 Chromebook Carts for PreK-Grade 3This line item allowed the district to bring PreK-Grade 3 to a 1:1 device ratio to provide access to technology for those students during the period of time the district was in a hybrid and/or remote learning model. With school being offered fully in-person, those devices now stay at the school building and are utilized throughout the school day to support learning. |
$25,880 | Total | $1,864,820 |
The public is invited to provide feedback on the proposed plan through July 2, 2021, which was also reviewed at the June 2021 School Improvement Advisory Council (SIAC) meeting. You may provide your feedback via the below form. Thank you.
Centennial doubles Tennis team wins state championship
Will Blevins and Claudia Guan take the State Tennis Championship title on Tuesday, June 8.
The Ankeny Centennial co-ed doubles tennis team of Will Blevins and Claudia Guan defeated Dowling 6-3, 6-3 in the State Tennis Championship Tuesday, June 8.
Centennial coach Tami Lewton said we were super excited for this pair up. Blevins had placed second in State singles and Guan had placed 6th in doubles. “We had no idea how they would play together on the court and they competed with such unity, dedication, and teamwork they were unstoppable!”
The Dowling team that they beat had placed first in State singles. Blevins had an individual goal of placing first in the beginning of the season but instead ended up with a championship title along with partner Claudia. Coach Lewton said, “This pairing showed these two were able to triumph over by working together and proves if you are a great team player, amazing things happen.”
Virtual Class: History of anti-Black racism in Iowa
Starting Monday, June 7 and running through Friday, July 9, Dr. Katy Swalwell is teaching a class about the history of anti-Black racism in Iowa. This self-paced, asynchronous virtual class is FREE to anyone interested.
There is $85/credit for 1-3 Licensure Renewal credits for teachers
