CAIHS Monday Morning Message
April 29, 2024
Math and Science PSSA's and 3 Weeks until the Keystones Exams
CAIHS Families,
8th Grade PSSA's Math and Science continue on Tuesday and Wednesday. Students will take the Math on Tuesday and Science on Wednesday and Tuesday. We will be testing two sections a day, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. It is extremely important that they are present and doing their best on these exams. Please make sure that they are on school on time and ready to show what they know.
The PSSA's provide us with an understanding of student and school performance related to the attainment of proficiency for the 8th Grade on level academic standards. Last year as a school we scored 30% Proficient/Advanced in ELA, 10% Proficient/Advanced in Math and, 32% Proficient/Advanced in Science. As you can see we have a lot of room for growth. We have been working hard in all areas to address our areas of need and to improve our scores as well as overall growth from year to year progress. Because of our scores we are on an Improvement Plan for the PA Department of Education to improve scores and attendance. It is extremely important for our students to try their best when taking the exams to show their true knowledge and because we can also track and teach to their areas of need. We will continue to send out information on the PSSA's and Keystone Exams.
Staff Member of the Month
Our winner this month is a new edition at our school. She brings a sense of positivity, creativity, and leadership to our school. For instance, when you walk past her room, her students are engaged and having fun. You can see evidence of this on her walls or just simply ask one of her students. In reference to creativity and leadership, she took over the Drama Club and has led, organized, and supervised all of the Drama programs this year. Her plays were such a delight, and the students were simply amazing. This would have a great challenge for any teacher, especially for a teacher new to our building. She took on this roll and excelled. In addition to the Drama Club, she has also a vocal advocate for our student with special needs. Her IEPs and meeting are excellently done! Our school is lucky to have her.
Our Staff Member of the Month goes to Ms. Gushanas. As always, please congratulate her with an email, a high five, or simply an emoji to this status. Thank you Ms. Gushanas for the work you do for our students and school. Your work and effort do not go unnoticed!
Student of the Month Cassidy Miraglia
Our student of the month received an immense amount of support from faculty. She truly epitomized the essence of a great student and a role model here at the Intermediate HS. Down below is what our staff had to say about her:
Mr. Carson:
I would like to nominate Cassidy Miraglia as Student of the Month. Cassidy is an extremely hard worker and strives to be the best that she can be. She gives 100% effort on all assignments and brings a positive attitude to school every single day. Cassidy is also involved in extracurricular activities. Cassidy treats all of her classmates with respect and is kind to everybody. I feel that Cassidy would be very deserving of this award.
Mrs. Barnes:
I agree with Mr. Carson. I have Cassidy for both Health Education and Yoga/Dance/Aerobics and she is a hard worker, treats her peers with the utmost respect and is always asking questions to ensure she completes her assignments to the best of her ability. Her peers always give her a hard time when she asks questions, but she continues to do what is best for her and asks anyway. She is a 2 sport High School athlete and plays on a club lacrosse team which practices year-round. She Kudos to Cassidy!
Mrs. Finnerty:
I agree! I nominate Cassidy, too. She goes above and beyond to do well in class. She puts a lot of work into her education! She is very kind to everyone and shows so much respect towards others.
Mrs. Day:
I recommend Cassidy as well. Although I don’t have her as a student, she often visits my classroom and always has a positive attitude and a fun energy.
School District School Spirit Night
Please join us on Sunday May 5th for a School District School Spirit Day. The stadium will open at 2:00 p.m. Please see the Flyer for additional details.
Teacher Appreciation Week!
Hello parents/guardians, it is Teacher Appreciation Week next month from May 6th to 10th. In order to plan for the week, Spotlight has created a sign-up genius link to help with the week's celebrations. On behalf of our teachers and staff, thank you in advance for your help and generosity.
Link for the sign-up genius: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F094FACAB2AA7FD0-49152374-caihs
CAIHS Teacher Appreciation 2024 Teacher Appreciation Week is May 6th - 10th this year. Please help us celebrate and appreciate our AMAZING faculty. Please drop off all donations by Friday, May 3rd. Thank you for your support!
Keystone Exams
Keystone Information from Dr. Rybarczyk
Dear Parents/Guardians,
The Keystone exams were created to replace the Grade 11 PSSA and serve as one component of Pennsylvania's statewide high school graduation requirement. Keystone Exams will help school districts guide students toward meeting state standards. The exams are end-of-course assessments designed to assess proficiency in the subject areas of Algebra I, Literature, and Biology.
If you choose to opt your child out from the assessments due to religious reasons, please follow this process:
Excusal from the Keystones
Chapter 4 of Title 22 of the Pa. Code (22 Pa. code 4.4) provides for the right of any parent/guardian to excuse his/her child from the state assessment if, upon inspection of the testing materials, he/she finds the assessment to be in conflict with his/her religious beliefs. This is the only basis for a parent/guardian to excuse his or her child from the statewide assessments.
Procedure for parent/guardian to request that student be excused from the PSSA/Keystone Exam(s):
1. The parent/guardian needs to initiate contact with Dr. Anthony Rybarczyk, Assistant Superintendent with a request for his/her student to be excused from the assessment(s).
2. Two weeks prior to the assessment(s), the Assistant Superintendent will schedule an appointment for the parent/guardian to come in and view the exam(s). The parent/guardian must sign the Parent Confidentiality Agreement provided by the Pennsylvania Department of Education prior to viewing the exam. No written notes, video, or pictures can be taken of the material. The objection process is not complete until the parents/guardians view the exam(s) in the school. If the parent/guardian wants the student to be excused from several exams (i.e. ELA and Math), then the parent/guardian will need to view all exams.
3. The parent/guardian submits a written request to the Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Cathrine Van Vooren, with a copy to the building principal, stating a request to have his/her child opt out of the assessment due to a religious objection. The letter must list the specific name(s) of each assessment about which there is an objection.
4. A parent/guardian will need to make this request each year he/she wishes the student to be excused and he/she will need to view the exam(s) each year as well.
5. The Assistant Superintendent will confirm with the parent/guardian that the child will be excused.
The assessment scores represent a snapshot in time of student performance and should not be considered the sole indicator of student achievement. Standardized assessments, like the PSSA and Keystone exams, help Pennsylvania meet federal and state requirements, as well as provide educators, stakeholders, and policymakers with important information about the commonwealth’s students and schools. Individual student scores, provided only to their respective schools, can be used to assist teachers in identifying students who may need additional educational opportunities, and school scores provide information to schools and districts for curriculum and instruction improvement discussions and planning.
For more information on Pennsylvania System of Assessment and the frequently asked questions, please follow the link provided below: Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA).
Please be mindful that vacation requests will not be honored during testing days. Thank you for your kind attention to this matter.
Please be aware that students attending cyber programs will be administered the assessment at their home schools. Transportation to and from school on the scheduled days needs to be provided by parents/guardians.
We are grateful for all you do to support the educational experiences for your children and value your contribution to the success of every student in the Coatesville Area School District!
Sincerely,
Anthony P. Rybarczyk, Ed. D. Assistant Superintendent
Final Exam Schedule for 9th Grade Students
Believe it or not Finals are quickly approaching for our 9th Grade Students. As a reminder 8th Grade students do not take Final Exams. Below is the schedule for students.
Underclassman
Friday May 31st for Period 1 Classes
Monday June 3rd for Period 2 and Period 6 Classes
Tuesday June 4th for Period 3 and Period 7 Classes
Wednesday June 5th for Period 5 and Period 8 Classes
Thursday June 7th is for Makeups
PBIS Success and ROCK Winners
Last week our staff handed out over 200 Rocks and the following students were selected for prizes.
Skye McCoon
Ethan Kryworuka
Presley Mayan
Breninn Mayo
Maurice Tiggett
Riley Jones
After School Tutoring
After School Tutoring has begun. Please see the schedule below for drop in sessions to help with your grades, PSSA's and Keystone preparation. All tutoring sessions will run to 3:15 p.m. unless the teachers specifies that the session will run later. Below is the schedule for the students to drop in and receive the tutoring and they can work on improving the grades or PSSA or Keystone Prep.
ELA: Tuesdays, Wednesday, and Thursdays with Ms. Town in Room 208
ELA: Monday and Tuesday with Mrs. Finnerty in Room 112 and for make-up work in all classes
Math: Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday with Mr. Kefover in Room 304 and Dr. Dantzler in Room 306
Math: Monday and Wednesday with Mrs. Wagner in Room 305
Math: Monday and Thursday with Ms. Homer in Room 303
- Biology Teachers have started after school tutoring for the upcoming Keystones Exams on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Please see Mrs. Renshaw and Mrs. Clouser.
Pathways to Graduation Information
Please see the Powerpoint for the Pathways to Graduation. In order to graduate with a diploma in Pennsylvania students have to complete one of these pathways. The first way is to pass the three Keystone exams for Algebra, Biology and Literature. Please take time to review this with you student as we will also review it with them in school.
Coatesville Community Health and Wellness Fair
Please Support the Coatesville Music Program and Fundraiser
School Store
Below is a link to order Coatesville Merchandise for you and your family. We have a variety of clothing options from sweatshirts, 3/4 quarter zips, T-Shirts, Sweatpants, polos, and lots of other options in many colors and styles. Below is the link to order. https://caihsstaffstore.itemorder.com/shop/home/
ATTENDANCE
If a student misses 18 days of school and/or 9 days in a semester, and/or misses the same class 18 times, and/or is habitually late to school, he/she will be required to have a School Attendance Improvement Plan (SAIP) meeting. From the meeting, the team will discuss the student’s attendance and make a potential recommendation for retention or being held back.
In order to receive credit, a student must attend 90% of his/her class days.
If a student misses more than 10 lawful or unlawful absences, requires an excuse from a licensed practitioner of the healing arts or medical doctor.
A student can be retained for failing to show academic achievement for promotion.
Retention or being held back shall only be considered for the worst-case scenarios and parents/guardians will be notified and a part of the process.
CAIHS families, should you have any questions, please reach out to CAIHS's administration.
Year Book Early Sales Event
The 2023-2024 Coatesville Area Intermediate High School Yearbook is currently on sale for $40. Make sure you order early to get the sale price and current promotions. If you have any questions, please reach out to the yearbook advisor Ms. Perri at PerriA@casdschools.org
HOME ACCESS CENTER & STUDENT SCHEDULES
Students and Parents,
Parents, the Home Access Center is open for you to view your student’s schedule and grades. The Home Access Center can be reached at the following link:
http://homeaccess.casdschools.org/HomeAccess/Account/LogOn?ReturnUrl=%2fhomeaccess
As students enter the site:
Username: firstname.lastname (no spaces)
Password: student ID
Counselors contact information (Grades 8-9) for schedule issues is:
Last Names: A-L Mrs. Rodgers at rodgerst@casdschools.org
Last Names: M-Z Mr. Shirk at shirks@casdschools.org
CHROMEBOOKS/TECHNOLOGY
Please remember to charge your Chromebook and be sure to bring your school issued Chromebook and Charger the first day of school. If your child doesn’t have a Chromebook, they will be issued one during the first few weeks of school.
- For new students- chromebooks are being formatted and will be handed out to those students in the 1st and 2nd weeks of school.
- For students who have broken or lost chromebooks we will lend you a chromebook until yours can be replaced.
- 9th grade students- will continue to use your current chromebook and when the new chromebooks come in you will turn in your old chromebook and receive a new one.
The annual technology insurance fees for the 2023-24 school year were posted to Rev Track. As always, the technology insurance fee for students receiving compass benefits is waived.
Also, there is an annual cap of $100 per family to support families with multiple children. Please remit the posted technology insurance fees before the start of the school year - The discount is applied at checkout.
- Grades K-12: $40 per student
- The annual technology insurance fee includes one device repair per school year at no cost – The most common repair is replacing a screen at a cost of $450 for devices.
- Subsequent repairs beyond the first repair per school year incur a progressive repair deductible, depending on the device type.