Uplifting Urbandale
UCSD Newsletter 3.25.22 #upliftingU
Valerius Students "Drop Everything And Read" In Celebration Of Read Across America Week
On March 4, Valerius Elementary students celebrated Read Across America Week, along with their increased reading proficiency data, by having "Drop Everything And Read Time" in their hallways and classrooms. The Valerius PTO provided every student the ability to pick out a new book at the book fair. Students received their new book and then enjoyed 15 minutes to read in their favorite hallway or classroom spot.
As students began flipping through the pages of their new book, they eagerly shared highlights with peers and adults. We enjoyed learning the latest Minecraft, Pokémon, and panda news from Valerius kindergarten through second grade students who celebrated throughout the morning. Students in third through fifth grades enjoyed celebrating in the afternoon. What a fantastic way to support all students and encourage a love of reading. Well-done! We are #proudofU!
Webster 5th Grade Students Place 2nd In Youth Enrichment League Chess Tournament
Webster Elementary fifth grade students competed in the Youth Enrichment League Chess Tournament. These students showcased their knowledge and skills of the game by earning 2nd place. In addition, three of the students took home individual honors. Congratulations on these outstanding achievements! We are #proudofU! Pictured: Brody Grinstead, Adhil Anwin, Carter Johnson, Kaden Perry, and Evan Cheng.
Last Day Of School: 2021-22 School Year
As of today, March 25, UCSD does not have any weather-related ‘make-up’ days.
The last day of school for all students (except Rolling Green) remains Wednesday, June 1, 2022.
The last day of school for Rolling Green remains Friday, June 17, 2022.
Please note: any additional weather-related delays or cancellations would require making up that time which would take place at the end of the school year. Review calendars here.
UHS Academic Decathlon Team Takes 3rd Place At State Competition
The Urbandale High School Academic Decathlon team earned Third Place at the Iowa State Academic Decathlon Competition held March 4–5, where they competed in 10 events related to the theme Water: A Most Essential Resource. The team studied challenging materials to test their academic strength in Art, Music, Literature, Economics, Science, Social Science, Math, Essay, Speech, and Interviews. The state team consisted of Bella Richards (captain), Will Jacobson, Joseph Sibley, Brannen Kent, Natasha Mills, Peggy Barley, Bellah McFarlane, and Aldin Omerovic. Alice Tsao served as the sole alternate on the state team.
Individual Awards:
In the honors division, Joseph Sibley won Gold in Literature and Bronze awards in both Science and Art. Bella Richards won the Gold Essay award.
Natasha Mills won the Bronze award for Essay in the scholastic division.
Peggy Barley built on her previous year’s success by winning Gold for her speech, Silver in Art, Math, and Interview, and Bronze for Music in the varsity division.
Additionally, UHS Principal Tim Carver was honored with a Special Recognition Award to be presented at the March 28 UCSD school board meeting.
Next year’s theme will be “The American Revolution and the New Nation.” If any student would like to participate, please email Mrs. Forristall. Congratulations to the UHS Academic Decathlon team for their third place finish at the state competition! Many thanks to Carrie Baird-Forristall for sharing this exciting update. Well-done! #UHSpride
Register Today For Urbandale Community Education Summer Camp Series
The Urbandale Community Education Summer Camp Series is now open for registration.
Choose one of three convenient ways to register:
Online at UrbandaleCommunityEd.com (click on “Register” located in the top navigation on the UCE website)
In person at Urbandale High School (East entrance near stadium)
Mail to Urbandale Community Ed, 7111 Aurora Ave, Urbandale, IA 50322
Be sure to register in a timely manner as classes do have capacity limits. We’re looking forward to a great summer!
Webster Student Lighthouse Team
Student Registration For The 2022-23 School Year Opens April 1
Families with students in kindergarten through 11th grade currently enrolled in the district will receive an email on April 1, 2022, with instructions for online registration. For families without email, a letter will be mailed to you with instructions for registering your returning student(s).
Student Registration:
Returning Students—if your student(s) is registered in UCSD this school year (2021–2022), click here for specific information about registering your returning student.
Preschool Students—if your child will be 3 years old or 4 years old by September 15, 2022, click here for specific information about registering your preschool student.
Kindergarten Students—if your child will be 5 years old by September 15, 2022, click here for specific information about registering your kindergarten student.
New Students—if your student(s) is new to UCSD, click here for specific information about registering your new student.
We know this is a busy time of year for students and families. Thank you in advance for taking time to register your student(s) for the 2022-23 school year (note: registration opens April 1, 2022).
UHS Senior Named 2022 National Merit Finalist
Of over 1.5 million entrants, Urbandale High School senior Grace Roesler has earned the prestigious honor of being named a 2022 National Merit® Scholarship Program Finalist. In order to become a Finalist, Roesler achieved high scores on the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®) as well as the actual SAT, possessed exemplary academic records, was involved in activities and leadership roles, developed a compelling essay submission, and completed a number of other highly competitive requirements.
As a finalist, Roesler received a Certificate of Merit and will advance in the academic competition in order to be considered for National Merit Scholarships and an opportunity to earn the notable Merit Scholar® title. Urbandale Community School District congratulates Grace Roesler for receiving this outstanding recognition of academic excellence and leadership. We are so very #proudofU! #UHSpride
Urbandale Spring Apparel: Orders Due By March 28
Adventuretime Associate Positions Still Available For This School Year
UHS Students Earn Honorable Mention During National C-SPAN StudentCam Documentary Competition
Congratulations to Urbandale High School students Will Schumacher, Luis Jimenez, and Cody Iwig (pictured below) for having their documentary earn an Honorable Mention in the C-SPAN 2022 StudentCam Documentary Competition. View their documentary entitled, "Agriculture and the Farm Bill." Over 3,000 students from across the country participated in the competition.
The competition, now in its 18th year, invited all middle and high school students to enter by producing a short documentary. C-SPAN, in cooperation with cable television partners, asked students to explore a federal policy or program and address the theme: "How does the federal government impact your life?"
"This year we asked students to reflect on how a federal program or policy is relevant to their lives and communities," said Craig McAndrew, director of C-SPAN Education Relations. "The winners showcased exceptional research and production values as they wove personal stories with historical or contemporary issues. These middle and high school students far exceeded our expectations, and we are elated to share their hard work with the country."
The annual StudentCam competition is sponsored by the C-SPAN Education Foundation. Videos were evaluated by a panel of educators and C-SPAN representatives based on the thoughtful examination of the competition’s theme, quality of expression, inclusion of varying sides of the documentary’s topic and effective incorporation of C-SPAN programming. Each winning video is available to view at www.studentcam.org and may be used in a broadcast with attribution to C-SPAN.
Congratulations to Will, Luis, and Cody for producing an award-winning documentary! We are #proudofU!
Update: Face Masks Optional While Riding On A School Bus/Van
Urbandale Lions, Dollars for Scholars Pancake Breakfast April 9
2022-2023 School Year Calendars & First Day of School Dates
Please make note of the following dates for the 2022-23 school year:
Rolling Green (year-round calendar)
The first day of school for Rolling Green K-5 students is Thursday, July 28, 2022
The first day of school for Rolling Green preschool students is Monday, August 1, 2022
UCSD (except Rolling Green)
The first day of school for UCSD K-12 students (except Rolling Green) is Tuesday, August 23, 2022 (Note: UHS “early out” days will be replaced with a “late start” every Monday beginning in the 2022-23 school year. All UCSD schools, preschool–12th grades, will have a late start every Monday.)
The first day of school for Olmsted and Webster preschool students is Thursday, August 25, 2022
Gift Giving
Reminder: ‘No School’ Dates In April 2022
Please make note of the following dates in April 2022 when school will not be in session:
District-Wide
District-wide In-Service/Professional Development Day: Friday, April 29 (no school and no Adventuretime)
Metro West Academy (only)
Metro West Professional Development: Friday, April 8 (no AM session; PM session will take place as scheduled)
Add UCSD Notification Phone Number To Contacts/Allowed List
Celebrating Women’s History Month: March 2022
Register Today! Adventuretime Summer Program
Learn More About Our Year-Round Elementary School
One of the many things that makes Urbandale unique is the year-round elementary school found right in the heart of the Urbandale Community School District. Rolling Green Elementary is a school of choice which means families choose to attend Rolling Green school no matter where they live in the district. This is in contrast to other schools where students are assigned a school based on the proximity of their home to their neighborhood school.
“Year-round” means that Rolling Green is able to provide even more learning opportunities throughout the year, but it does not mean that students go to school every day of the year. Rolling Green is in session the same number of days as elementary schools on the traditional year calendar. Rolling Green’s summer break is a full six weeks long and the schedule provides more frequent breaks throughout the year which gives everyone the chance to reset and refresh! On most breaks, Rolling Green offers optional, theme-based programming for a small fee. This provides families additional childcare and gives kids fun, hands-on learning experiences that include fantastic field trips.
Rolling Green welcomes families to register for preschool and/or kindergarten for the 2022-23 school year:
Register your kindergarten student for the 2022-23 school year.
Register your preschool student (4-year-old) for the 2022-23 school.
Open Enrollment is available for kindergarten students who live outside the District.
We would love the opportunity to share more about Rolling Green with you and all our school has to offer your child and family. Please reach out to Principal Dania Wilson to learn more. We hope to welcome your family to our preschool and/or kindergarten program this fall!
Preschool Pre-Registration Is Open: Register Today!
Kindergarten Pre-Registration Is Open: Register Today!
Join Our Team! We’re hiring for various positions and we’d like to hear from you!
Are you interested in making a positive difference in the lives of Urbandale students? Do you like building relationships and helping others reach their potential? Would you enjoy hours within a school-day schedule while being a member of IPERS (the state’s largest public retirement system)? If you’ve answered ‘yes’ to any of these questions, we’d like to hear from you! We’re currently seeking team members for a variety of positions which include the following:
Part-Time:
Early Childhood Special Education Associates
Adventuretime Before & After School Childcare Associates
Various High School and Middle School Coaching positions
Nutrition Services
Special Education Associates
Substitute Associates, Substitute Custodians, Substitute Nutrition Services and Substitute Teachers
Full-Time with Benefits:
Various Certified Teacher positions open for the 2022-23 school year
Full-Time Substitute Teachers for the 2021-22 school year
Nutrition Services
Special Education Associates
Custodians
Learn more about available positions. For questions or additional information, please contact UCSD HR Manager Kate Johnson johnsonk@urbandaleschools.com We look forward to hearing from you!
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The Nutrition Services staff at Webster is amazing! Stephanie Allsup is always helpful and accommodating and has helped us reward students showing leadership with "Pizza with the Principal" once each month this year. Vesna Djuric is always there for students with a friendly smile and a helping attitude. Her smile is contagious and she is so good with the students. They all love her and she makes them feel that in return. These ladies are flexible, hardworking, and team oriented. It is a pleasure to work with them. They truly exhibit the J-Hawk Way and make Webster a better place!
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Contact Us
Email: communications@urbandaleschools.com
Website: www.urbandaleschools.com
Location: 11152 Aurora Avenue, Urbandale, IA, USA
Phone: 515-457-5000
Facebook: facebook.com/UrbandaleCSD/
Twitter: @UrbandaleCSD