Ankeny Schools Snapshot
A monthly district newsletter
February 2021
Advancing the Vision
As I reflect on the first semester of this school year, my curiosity as an educator has resulted in me thinking about what we learned as a result of all the issues that confronted the district during that time. The following represent some of those thoughts.
- First, the Ankeny community values education and will pull together to support our students no matter how difficult or controversial the circumstances. There was clearly a myriad of ideas about how “Return to Learn” should have been approached. However, many of those ideas resulted in new or different realizations of just how important school is to our community. In a similar vein, the fact that parents care deeply about the kind of education their children receive was evident and reinforced. That is a strong trait and should be a point of pride for any community.
- Second, we have learned to embrace and enhance technology as an important educational tool. Our students continue to excel in the use of technology, but this year our system learned some new ways of doing things. For example, parent teacher conferences, school board meetings, assemblies, and community forums all became more accessible for some parents through new virtual spaces.
- Third, we clearly learned that “one size does not fit all” when it comes to the way students learn. Some students thrived in the new modalities of hybrid and remote, while at the same time other students struggled with the changes. With that knowledge, the district will continue to seek the best methods to support individual students. We will also continue to seek ways of supporting those students who may need extra help because they find themselves in a learning model which is more of a challenge for them.
- Fourth, the challenges of the first semester confirmed what we already knew: our staff is extremely dedicated and hard working. Even when dealing with frustrations from ever changing circumstances, staff members in all areas demonstrated admirable dedication to students and their learning. That dedication began last summer when a 200+ member team of staff members volunteered their summer hours to prepare for this year, which proved to be a year unlike any other. That dedication continues even after we have returned to on-site attendance. Things are still not back to “normal.” Covid is still a reality and schools are still in the midst of finding the best mitigation practices. Through it all, our staff has continued to seek the best education for all of our students.
As the new semester is underway, our hope is that each day brings us closer to a more normal school year. The vaccine efforts underway offer reason for optimism as we continue to seek a return to a more familiar way of life. Each lesson learned will be a step closer to us being smarter and stronger, as individuals and as a community.
Superintendent Leadership Profile
After receiving input from administrators, community members, faculty, parents, students, and support staff, the Ankeny Community School District Board seeks an experienced leader, who has had experience in a comparable school district that has experienced growth issues, demonstrating a track record of successful relationship building and strategic thinking to be its next superintendent.
The Board seeks someone who is an effective communicator and visionary who listens carefully while systemically developing and implementing with the Board a vision and then articulating and advocating for that vision for the school district, locally, regionally and on a state level. In addition, the selected candidate will be a visible and approachable member of the community and the District, who is present in schools and community, building teams, especially in the development of a team relationship with the Board.
The next superintendent of ACSD will work collaboratively with the staff and community in an innovative spirit that reflects a student focus. The Board of the Ankeny Community School District is looking for a courageous person, who will live and become involved in the community, leading in the area of diversity, equity and inclusion, and committing to stay with the district for a significant tenure.
Further, the Ankeny Community School District seeks a Superintendent who has record of demonstrating the competencies in the above graphic.
Revenue Purpose Statement Election on March 2, 2021
The election for the revenue purpose statement to authorize expenditures from revenue received from the State’s Secure and Advanced Vision for Education Fund (SAVE) is coming up March 2 with absentee ballots needing to be postmarked by the end of this week. The district’s past revenue purpose statement has been in place since 2008.
In 1999, Polk County voters approved a one-cent local option sales tax for school improvements. In April 2008, the Governor signed into law a new statewide version of the one-cent sales tax, called S.A.V.E., repealing the existing local version to “sunset” or end in 2029. In 2019, the Iowa Legislature voted to institute a new “sunset” of January 1, 2051.
Because of this change, school districts must re-state how they intend to use S.A.V.E. funds and the community must vote on that revenue purpose statement in order to borrow against future revenue.
This vote does not determine whether the tax will go into effect. The Governor already signed S.A.V.E. into law. The sales tax will be charged statewide regardless of its use or the outcome of this vote.
The proposed Revenue Purpose Statement states the district may use these funds in the following ways:
- Property tax relief
- Information technology infrastructure, school safety, and security infrastructure
- To purchase land, build, and furnish new school buildings
- To remodel, reconstruct, repair, expand, and improve the school buildings in the district
- Natural disaster relief
- Maintaining public recreation places and playgrounds
Some of the past projects funded or partially funded through the S.A.V.E. fund include:
Land for Prairie Trail Elementary School
East Elementary School Renovations
Land for Ankeny Centennial High School
Northview Middle School Renovations
Prairie Trail Elementary School Addition
Ankeny High School and Ankeny Centennial High School Additions
Northeast Elementary School, Westwood Elementary School, Northwest Elementary School, Southeast Elementary School Additions
Prairie Trail Elementary School
Rock Creek Elementary School Addition
Land for Future Elementary School
Terrace Elementary School Gymnasium and Multi-Purpose Room
Heritage Elementary School (Partial)
Neveln Center/District Office Renovations
Parkview Middle School Renovations
Southview Middle School Phase II Construction
Ankeny Centennial High School Construction
Crocker Elementary School (Partial)
You can find more information and polling locations on our website here.
Iowa Statewide Assessment of Student Progress (ISASP)
In 2019, a new statewide assessment was implemented called the Iowa Statewide Assessment of Student Progress (ISASP) as the accountability test for all Iowa students. The test, developed by Iowa Testing Programs (ITP) at the University of Iowa per the Iowa Legislature, will be administered to students in Ankeny April 5 - 9, with makeups given April 12 - 23. This assessment will be given to all students grades 3-11, including remote learners. Each building will have their own testing schedule and will communicate those details to you. Remote learners will receive a mailed letter with further instructions as well.
The ISASP will be given on computers and will not be timed. You can support your student at home by encouraging them to:
Make sure their Chromebooks are charged each evening before test day
Do their best and think positive
Get plenty of rest before each testing day
Avoid the morning rush
Eat a good nutritious breakfast
Take a deep breath and relax!
Twelve Ankeny Schools Students Named 2021 National Merit® Scholarship Finalists
Ankeny Community Schools is proud to announce that all 12 students that were recognized as Semifinalists in September have now been named as Finalists in the 66th annual National Merit® Scholarship Program. This is a record number of NMSC Finalists for the Ankeny Community School District.
The honored students include Ankeny High School seniors Lucy Brooner, Corinne Bovee, Zane Eason, and Wyatt Eason, and Ankeny Centennial High School seniors Kiran Bhat, Lawrence Deng, Grant Miller, Andrew Stapleton, Allison Su, Jordan Su, Spencer Thiele, and Meghan White.
The academically talented high school seniors who are selected for this honor have an opportunity to compete for about 7,600 National Merit Scholarships worth more than $30 million that will be offered this spring. More than half of the Finalists will win a National Merit Scholarship and earn the Merit Scholar® title.
NMSC, a not-for-profit organization that operates without government assistance, was established in 1955 specifically to conduct the annual National Merit Scholarship Program. The program honors individual students who show exceptional academic ability and potential for success in rigorous college studies.
Steps in the 2021 Competition
Over 1.5 million juniors in about 21,000 high schools entered the 2021 National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the 2019 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®), which served as an initial screen of program entrants. The nationwide pool of Semifinalists, representing less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors, includes the highest-scoring entrants in each state. The number of Semifinalists in a state is proportional to the state’s percentage of the national total of graduating seniors.
To become a Finalist, the Semifinalist and a high school official must submit a detailed scholarship application, in which they provide information about the Semifinalist’s academic record, participation in school and community activities, demonstrated leadership abilities, employment, and honors and awards received. A Semifinalist must have an outstanding academic record throughout high school, be endorsed and recommended by a high school official, and write an essay.
From the approximately 16,000 Semifinalists, about 15,000 advanced to the Finalist level. All National Merit Scholarship winners will be selected from this group of Finalists. Merit Scholar designees are selected on the basis of their skills, accomplishments, and potential for success in rigorous college studies, without regard to gender, race, ethnic origin, or religious preference.
National Merit Scholarships
Three types of National Merit Scholarships will be offered. Every Finalist will compete for one of 2,500 National Merit $2,500 Scholarships that will be awarded on a state representational basis. About 1,000 corporate-sponsored Merit Scholarship awards will be provided by approximately 240 corporations and business organizations for Finalists who meet their specified criteria, such as children of the grantor’s employees or residents of communities where sponsor plants or offices are located. In addition, about 200 colleges and universities are expected to finance some 4,800 college-sponsored Merit Scholarship awards for Finalists who will attend the sponsor institution.
National Merit Scholarship winners of 2021 will be announced in four nationwide news releases beginning in April and concluding in July. These scholarship recipients will join more than 353,000 other distinguished young people who have earned the Merit Scholar title.
February vBackpack
- Community Engagement Courses: Course Catalog
- Educational Opportunities: Lifeguard Certification Courses, 2021 Registration-Iowa Youth Fishing League
- Sports and Activities: 2021 Registration-Iowa Youth Fishing League, Ankeny Little League Baseball 2021 Season, Ankeny Pre-Little League Baseball 2021 Season
- Volunteering, Drives, and Giveaways: Ankeny Area Chamber Scholarship Application for 2021 Seniors
Ankeny Community School District
It is the policy of the Ankeny Community School District not to discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, disability, religion, creed, age (for employment), marital status (for programs), sexual orientation, gender identity and socioeconomic status (for programs) in its educational programs and its employment practices. There is a grievance procedure for processing complaints of discrimination. If you have questions or a grievance related to this policy please contact Ken Morris, Jr., Equity Director at 306 SW School Street, Ankeny, IA 50023, 515/965-9600 or kenneth.morris@ankenyschools.org. The grievance will then be directed to the appropriate administrator charged with managing the program or department specified in the grievance.
Website: www.ankenyschools.org
Location: 306 SW School St, Ankeny, IA, USA
Phone: 515-965-9600
Facebook: Facebook.com/AnkenySchools
Twitter: @AnkenySchools