Appleton Area School District families,

Included in this family message is 

• a reminder about free and reduced meal applications, 
• an invitation to Fall into Wellness,
• an opportunity to provide feedback on materials,
• an overview of how we keep families informed about their students’ attendance, 
• this month’s Community Opportunities for Students.

Important Upcoming Dates

• Wednesday, October 23, 24: Fall into Wellness
• Friday, October 25, 2024: No School (Find our yearly calendar here.)

Charter schools and Appleton Central programs may follow their own calendar, please refer to your school or program calendar.

Reminder: Free & Reduced Meal Applications 

Families who may qualify for Free & Reduced meal benefits, your carryover status from the 23-24 school year expired on October 15, 2024. 

What does this mean? Families must reapply for Free & Reduced to receive meal benefits for this school year. Free & Reduced meal applications need to be filled out each school year. Families may apply or reapply at any time during the school year. For example, children with a parent or guardian who becomes unemployed or experiences financial hardship may become eligible for free and reduced-price meals if the household income drops below the income limit.

How does this affect your family? If you haven’t filled out a Free & Reduced form this school year and you qualify, your family reverted to full pay on October 15, 2023. This may also be impacting other benefits that can come along with a completed Free & Reduced application. These annual forms are necessary for other programs and may be used to determine if your household is eligible for additional benefits.

PLEASE fill out a meal benefit application, even if you aren’t sure you qualify. The application can easily be completed online through the Parent Portal. After logging into the Portal, in the upper left corner select the hamburger icon (three stacked horizontal lines) > More > Meal Benefits. Printable applications are available here. If you have questions, please call (920) 852-5314, we are happy to help!

Join Us at Fall Into Wellness on October 23, 2024

We're excited to announce our upcoming event for AASD parents/guardians, Fall into Wellness, on Wednesday, October 23 from 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. at Einstein Middle School. Our event will feature 2 breakout sessions - Appleton Police Department will present about keeping youth safe online and with social media and Community Action for Healthy Living (CAHL) will be presenting on the risks of youth vaping and tips for families, a panel discussion focusing on mental health, with expert panelists offering valuable insights and tips for supporting your youth and family's well-being. We encourage you to attend these discussions and participate in the Q&A sessions. 

 Additionally, don't miss out on our resource fair, where you can connect with community vendors offering mental health services, AODA information, and other programming available to families within the community. Although the discussions are geared towards grades 3-12, the resource fair will cater to all ages, with a special focus on middle school families. We've planned an engaging lineup of activities and discussions to promote family wellness. Be sure to join us for the chance to win some fantastic door prizes. We're dedicated to promoting family bonding and healthy choices, and we look forward to seeing you at the event!

Feedback Requested on Instructional Materials

The Board of Education, as the governing body of the District, is legally responsible for all educational materials utilized within the instructional program of the AASD. The selection of educational materials is delegated to the professionally trained and certified personnel employed by the school system. The responsibility for coordinating and maintaining qualitative standards in the selection process rests with the Assessment, Curriculum, and Instruction (ACI) department.

We are currently soliciting feedback on the instructional materials for several courses:

• Career and Technical Education

As part of the adoption process, AASD staff members, students, parents, and residents are provided with the opportunity to examine and contribute feedback on the recommended instructional materials. The feedback collected will be considered by the committee to determine the final list of instructional materials recommended to the AASD Board of Education. Learn more about Materials Review in the AASD.

Keeping Up With Student Attendance

We encourage families to use the Infinite Campus Parent Portal to monitor student attendance and report absences. The Portal is accessible through our website, and families can also download the Infinite Campus app for convenience. By enabling push notifications, you'll receive automatic alerts whenever your student is marked absent from a class if they have not been excused. You can also view attendance manually by selecting the "Attendance" tab in the app. For instructions on submitting an Absence Request via the portal, please refer to these instructions.

How We Keep Families Informed

Families will receive scheduled automatic phone calls and emails for unexcused absences. For elementary students, calls and emails will be sent at 9:15 a.m. Middle school families will receive calls and emails at 9:30 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. High school families will be notified at 10:30 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.

When a student has reached 3 unexcused absences OR 7 excused absences, families will automatically receive an electronically generated letter informing them that their student has reached this number. When a student has reached 5 unexcused absences, families may receive a letter as determined by the school site’s attendance team. A student is considered habitually truant if they are absent from school without an excuse for part or all of five or more days on which school is held during a semester. 

When a student has reached 10 excused absences, families may receive a letter as determined by the school site’s attendance team. A student may be excused by a parent/guardian for not more than 10 days in the school year (the 10 days include absences due to intermittent illness).

***Please note - when a medical excuse for illness or appointments is provided, those absences will not count in the 7- and 10-day letters.

Community Opportunities for Students

Each month the AASD shares local, community opportunities for students. These community opportunities for students include upcoming events and activities such as art and music camps, youth athletics, cultural events, enriching programs, and more. We encourage our families to review these opportunities for students of all ages. 

New flyers added in October include:

• High School Scholarships 24-25
• Softball Open House
• Jim Thorpe Night
• Appleton West Drama Club
• APRD Basketball Flyer

Check out this page at any time for a current list of opportunities. 

Miss a Family Communication? Find them all here.