Welcome back, Students!

It’s hard to believe in just a couple weeks, we will be starting another school year. Over the summer, we have been taking on several projects at school. “The Well” is under construction, and should be mostly completed before Open House.  However, our new serving line equipment will not be fully installed as the manufacturer estimates they will be delivered in October.  This means we will start the year with our previous lunch procedures, and transition to the serving lines this fall.  Another new feature will be an outdoor basketball court that will have both basketball and pickleball lines!  We invested in this court as students requested to have more opportunities for physical activity. During the school year, we will start to reimagine a new garden space to be an extension of the Horticulture classroom. We added a wall in the main office to create a separate Health Office. We have also cleaned up some of the trees outside, our picnic tables are freshly stained, and the shed has been refurbished. In addition, we divided the social work office into two spaces as Brie Nelson will be moving from English teacher to a full time counselor position!  We have also been busy hiring and want to give a warm welcome to our newest IAA staff members:

• Jessi Arie: school nurse

• Emma Conrad: Attendance Administrative Assistant

• Emily Hongslo - Chemical Health counselor

• Cassy Ostergard:  English teacher

• Hunter Panning - School Resource Officer

• Linda Rannow - CTE teacher and 17-22 Diploma program

• TBD: para support staff

• TBD: Horticulture/science teacher
   

 

IAA Open House: 

Please mark your calendars for our IAA Open house on Wednesday, August 30th, from 3:00-7:00 pm.  It is highly encouraged for all parents/guardians to attend with their student(s). This will be a time to meet the staff, connect with peers, and sign required paperwork with your advisor. As you recall, we registered last spring and student schedules will be viewable in Infinite Campus on this day. 

Student Devices:

All students will have the option for a school issued computer, and the district encourages families to purchase chromebook insurance. Students are responsible for their chromebook, and should bring your device fully charged to school each day. New students will receive their device on the first day of school. Students can refer to the IAA student landing page for quick links to their digital platforms.

Lunch: 

In March 2023, the Minnesota Free School Meals bill was signed into law. This provides all students in our district one breakfast and one lunch each school day at no charge. A la carte items including snacks, beverages, and second entrees, are available to purchase. Students who wish to purchase a la carte items must have a positive balance in their Nutrition Services account.  Your student may qualify for other educational benefits. Qualifying for educational benefits may grant your student access to reduced or waived school-based fees such as technology insurance, parking and activities. For information regarding putting money in your student’s account, to obtain an application for benefits, and to view our lunch menu, please see our Nutrition Services website. 

First Day:

Tuesday, September 5th, is our first day of school! Please refer to the IAA calendar at the end of this letter or the district’s school calendar website for other important dates. We also will create Facebook events for certain dates.

Picture Day: 

This year our school picture day is Tuesday, September 19th. Parents may order pictures directly online at Lifetouch. It is important for all students to take a picture for our school records and student identification card. We will send out information closer to the date for those who wish to purchase school pictures. 

High School Hours & Daily Schedule: 

Our IAA daily class schedule will remain the same as last year, and is included at the end of this letter. All IAA students are required to enter the building through our designated IAA school door, which is located to the right of the building by our main office. This is the only door students will be admitted through. The upper front of the building is our district’s Welcome Center, and students will be redirected to use our IAA school door. Please drop off all students at the designated area in the rear of the building as indicated by our signage. Students who drive are asked to park in the designated student lot, and are required to register their vehicle and purchase a parking permit for $60 in the main office.

Listed below are our school hours. We ask that students arrive at school no earlier than 7:30 a.m.  

• Student Day:  7:50 am - 2:28 pm

• IAA Office hours:  7:30 am - 3:00 pm

Attendance:  

We cannot stress enough the importance of maintaining good school attendance. We will work together to ensure all students are successful, but it starts with being at school each and every day on time. If a student will be absent from school, parents are asked to report the absence to the office either via a phone call or an email to the absence line. You can also track your student’s attendance using our Parent Portal through Infinite Campus. 

• IAA High School Absence line: (952) 556-6200

• IAA High School Attendance email: iaamainoffice@district112.org

Lastly, to stay updated on what’s happening at IAA, please follow us on our various platforms. You can find us on our school IAA website, or social media at our Facebook and Instagram pages. As always, please feel free to reach out to our office with any questions. Enjoy the rest of your summer, and we will see you in a few weeks.  We are looking forward to another great school year at IAA!  

In partnership,

 

Angela J. Charboneau-Folch

Principal

 

Download the Welcome Back message.