Announcements

Hello Abbie Grove Families,

As we get closer to the start of the 24-25 school year stay organized and plan ahead by marking your calendar with
the following important dates .  We will continue to make updates and additions throughout the year.  Be sure to bookmark the District Calendar as
well.

We look forward to seeing you in August!
~Abbie Grove

July 8, 2024

Dear Incoming Kindergarten and Transitional Kindergarten Abbie Grove Parents/Guardians,

Welcome to Abbie Grove and the Ankeny Community School District learning community! In kicking off a great year of learning, we are excited to invite you and your child to attend our upcoming Kindergarten/Transitional Kindergarten (K/TK) Jumpstart. This experience gives your child an opportunity to meet our K/TK teachers, see the classrooms, and get a short sneak peak of kindergarten/transitional kindergarten. It also allows a parent/guardian to see Abbie Grove Elementary and hear important information to start the year. 

Only one parent/guardian is needed to attend and the incoming kindergarten student. Please do not bring any non-incoming Abbie Grove kindergarten students to this event.

This event will be at Abbie Grove Elementary on Thursday, July 25 from 8:15-9:15, 10:15-11:15 or 1:00-2:00. To register, please select the appropriate link (K or TK) to sign up for one of the three times.

Transitional Kindergarten students: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0D4CAFA72DA2FEC34-50169920-abbie 

Kindergarten students:  https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0D4CAFA72DA2FEC34-49530824-abbie  

We kindly ask you to complete this sign-up before July 15.  In completing this form, you can identify your preference of our three available sessions. 

General Schedule for Transitional Kindergarten and Kindergarteners:

• Getting seated
• Setting expectations 
• Introduce morning bins
• Play 
• Read aloud 
• Pick up students

General Schedule for Parents/Guardians:

• Presentation (Information about Kindergarten/Transitional Kindergarten and Abbie Grove)
• Opportunity for Q&A
• Tour of Abbie Grove
• Pick up student(s)

Welcome to our Abbie Grove family community! We are excited to partner with you during your student’s first year in kindergarten!

Thank you,

Sara Clubb-Kindergarten Teacher

Taryn Ayers-Kindergarten Teacher

Allison Koch-Kindergarten Teacher

Hannah Dunn-Transitional Kindergarten Teacher

Ken Vacek-Assistant Principal

Andrew Burg-Principal

July 3, 2024

Dear Abbie Grove Staff, Parents and Friends:

We would like to take this opportunity to welcome you to Ankeny’s newest elementary school and share our excitement about the upcoming 2024-2025 school year! It is a genuine privilege to partner with you to support your student’s curricular and extracurricular growth. As we get closer to the official opening of Abbie Grove we look forward to creating strong partnerships among staff, families, and the community.  We look forward to working alongside you to continue the important work of giving our students an education that develops their academic, social, emotional, physical and artistic strengths.

In terms of programming, Abbie Grove will work collaboratively to create significant and authentic experiences for students. Grounded in our work as a professional learning community, staff will continue to refine practices that individualize instruction for students. We are excited for families to meet and work with our dynamic staff members at Abbie Grove.

We believe that a meaningful and collaborative relationship among staff, students and families is the foundation of a healthy and vibrant school community. Above all, we intend to emphasize the values and positive outcomes of working hard, being kind and showing up. We are very excited to continue in our commitment to the Ankeny Community School District and intend to ensure that our neighborhood school provides a supportive and motivating environment for students and adults. Work that began at the start of the previous school year in terms of hiring and building construction will proceed throughout the next several weeks. Please continue to check the building and district-created communication for updates. We hope everyone is enjoying the summer break and we look forward to establishing more formal connections in the future! 

Respectfully,

Andrew Burg – Abbie Grove Elementary Principal

andrew.burg@ankenyschools.org 

Ken Vacek – Abbie Grove Elementary Assistant Principal

ken.vacek@ankenyschools.org 

Emily Marusiak – Abbie Grove Elementary Secretary

emily.marusiak@ankenyschools.org

Abbie Grove Elementary Core Values

Work hard, Be Kind, Show Up

Important Information

Teacher Assignments:  Families will be notified of their classroom teacher on Tuesday, August 13th at 8AM  through the Infinite Campus parent portal.  Directions for accessing the portal can be found here. 

School Supplies: At the beginning of the school year, students need to bring a set of school supplies for their classwork. If you are unable to purchase these supplies, please see your school counselor. Click HERE to view the District’s School Supply List.  

First Day of School:  Friday, August 23rd is the first day of school.  School hours are 7:55AM – 2:55PM every day! 

The doors open at 7:30AM and students may go to breakfast or the gym. If you are dropping off your child, please do not let them out of the vehicle until 7:30AM when the doors unlock.

2024-2025 Student Handbook & School Calendar:  As you and your family prepare for the upcoming school year please be sure to review the  2024-2025 Student Handbook and the 2024-2025 District Calendar

2024-2025 Student fees:  As of July 8, 2024, Ankeny families may view 2024-25 student fees and use their InTouch account to pay online. InTouch online debit or credit card payments will incur a 3.79% and a .40 cent transaction fee. To avoid transaction charges, arrange in-person payment by calling the District Office at 515-965-9600 or send a check and a completed 2024-25 Fees Payment Form to:

Payable to: Ankeny Community School District
406 SW School St., PO Box 189
Ankeny, IA 50021-0189

Nutrition Services:  Families can find additional information about meal prices and weekly menus by visiting the Nutrition Services website.  

• Free and Reduced Meal Eligibility:  Applications for the 2024-2025 school year will be available in July.  A new free/reduced meal eligibility application must be completed and submitted each year. For questions about the Free and Reduced Meal Program, please email leeanna.vigor@ankenyschools.org.

Bus Information:  The Ankeny Community School District partners with First Student, Inc. to provide transportation for eligible students. If your child is signed up to ride the bus to and/or from school, you can find details about your child’s stop location, pick up, and drop off times through Infinite Campus.  This information will be posted later this summer.  If you have any questions about transportation or to check eligibility, please visit the District’s Transportation page or by calling the First Student Bus Barn at 515-965-9615.  All elementary students riding the bus will have a bus pass which will be distributed within the first week of school. 

Parent Volunteer Information:  If you are interested in volunteering at any Ankeny School, please complete the following 3 steps to be approved.  We would encourage you to complete these steps as soon as possible, so that you are able to volunteer when the opportunities become available.  

• Visit the ACSD Volunteer Portal and complete ALL 3 steps:

1. Background Check:  A background check for volunteering within the Ankeny Community School District is required every 5 years. This document must be completed online. Please allow 2 weeks for processing background checks.)
2. Volunteer Handbook: The Volunteer Handbook must be completed before you plan to volunteer and must be completed each year. The Volunteer Handbook includes: volunteer information, volunteer objectives, certification of compliance, and statement of confidentiality.
3. Application:  Create a Better Impact account and profile.  Upon approval of your application, you will be able to view available volunteer activities under the “Opportunities” tab when logged into your Better Impact account.

 Dates to Remember:

New Teaching Staff to Abbie Grove

All New! Abbie Grove Staff Directory

First Day of School 

As a district we recognize starting a new school year is an exciting time and parents are eager to capture the first day memories.  We would ask families to attend Meet The Teacher Night on August 20th and utilize this time to visit your child’s classroom, tour the school and take pictures. 

In order to maintain our safety procedures and keep our staff and students safe, parents/visitors will not be allowed inside the school on the first day of school. We ask that your first day of school pictures be taken at home or outside of the building. 

Arrival Procedures

• Students can enter the building no earlier than 7:30AM Monday through Friday.
• Bus riders and day care students will all enter at the doors (N2) on the north side of the building near the roundabout (off of 18th Street).
• Car riders and walkers will enter the main entrance (N1).
• Please do not drop students off prior to 7:30AM because staff are not on contract and cannot supervise students. If you plan to walk your students to the main entrance or if you need to provide support getting your child out of the vehicle please park your car in an identified parking spot (i.e. do not get out of your car in the drop-off lane).

Dismissal Procedures (please note we will continue to monitor procedures and will adjust as needed) 

• Bus riders, day care students and before and after school day care students will be escorted to the appropriate bus by staff members.
• Classroom teachers will escort their car riders and walkers out N1 (main entrance) on the north side of the building by 2:55PM M-F.
• If you are picking your child up by car, please do not park and get out of your car while in the pick-up lane to meet your child.
• Student safety is our priority. Thank you, in advance, for your patience during the first several weeks of school. 
• Should your dismissal plans change, please inform your child’s teacher and the main office prior to 2:00 PM.

* As with any school year, adjustments to plans and procedures within this document will evolve as we monitor activities and structures. Feel free to refer to Abbie Grove’s school website for other helpful information.

Please join us on Thursday, February 8th, at Abbie Grove Elementary located at 5001 NW 18th for our Kindergarten Information Night. This event, running from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m., is designed for families interested in enrolling their child for the 2024-2025 school year. (Note: Student registration opened on Friday, February 2nd, at 8:00 a.m.)

During this session, you’ll gain valuable insights into kindergarten, including information about Kindergarten Jumpstart. Additionally, parents can submit their child’s kindergarten student information form.

To confirm your designated school, please use the  address look-up tool and ensure you’re referring to information for the 2024-2025 school year.

Abbie Grove Slideshow

Ankeny Schools is excited to announce the opening of a transitional kindergarten (TK) program for the 2024-2025 school year. This new level is designed to provide students with the time needed to develop essential social and academic skills, acting as a bridge between preschool and kindergarten.

Registration for Transitional Kindergarten will be integrated into the general registration process, commencing on February 2, 2024 at 8:00 a.m. Similar to preschool, available space is limited, and acceptance is determined by the time and date of the submitted complete registration. Class sizes will be capped at 20 students per class, and the total number of classrooms will be finalized by the district later in the spring.

For more information please visit the Transitional Kindergarten website page within the Register section. Applicants can expect to receive an email confirmation of classroom placement or waitlist status by the end of March.