Announcements

On Monday, September 12, 2021, the United States District Court for Southern District of Iowa issued a temporary restraining order preventing the State of Iowa and Iowa school districts from enforcing Iowa Code Section 280.31, the law passed last spring prohibiting school districts from requiring masks on district property. 

We are conferring with our legal counsel to understand the implications of this order for the district. 

The Ankeny Community School District Board of Directors will meet in open session for a special meeting on Tuesday, September 14, 2021 at 6 p.m. to review the order, hear from legal counsel, and discuss next steps. The purpose of this meeting is to inform the board, leadership, and community. No action or public comment will take place at this meeting. This meeting will be held at the District Office (306 SW School Street). A livestream of the event will also be available on the district’s YouTube channel.

Thank you for your patience as we continue to work together to ensure that everyone in our school community feels safe, welcomed, and supported.

The Ankeny Community School District and Superintendent Dr. Erick Pruitt invite Parents/Guardians to attend the Parent Advisory Committee (PAC) meeting on Thursday, September 16 from 6:00pm-7:30pm at Northview Middle School Auditorium.

The Parent Advisory Committee gives parents an opportunity to provide input on topics and ideas that are relevant to the district’s goal of preparing every learner for success. The committee will also provide insight into projects and initiatives that can be implemented to help move the district forward. Parents (and guardians) will have the opportunity to collaborate with each other and work together as one entity to ensure success for our students and community.

Innovative ideas, thoughtful questions, and respectful discussion are welcome!

This meeting marks the first of what will be monthly meetings. The PAC will meet the third Thursday of every month during the school year. Committee involvement is open to all parents of students enrolled in the Ankeny Community School District.

Where: Northview Middle School Auditorium

When: 6:00 PM – 7:30 PM (90 Minutes) starting September 16

Please find our updated COVID-19 dashboard and informational data here.

Ankeny Community School District is guided by state laws which prevent schools from mandating face masks and requires school districts in Iowa to provide on-site learning. However, students, staff, and others on district property are permitted to wear masks; disposable masks are available in our buildings for those who wish to wear them.

Per guidance from the Iowa Department of Public Health, Ankeny Community School District will treat COVID-19 similar to influenza and other common child illnesses. Students who believe they have been exposed to COVID-19 in or outside of school are not required to quarantine and should monitor for symptoms.

Due to health department changes in quarantine requirements, Ankeny Community School District will not contact trace to identify individuals as “close contacts” who may have been exposed to COVID-19 in the school setting. As necessary, all Ankeny school buildings are sending notifications to families to indicate potential exposure to positive case(s) of COVID-19.

A dashboard has been created to provide parents with “at-a-glance” positive case information, based on self-reported information. It is updated once a week and date stamped. An asterisk (*) denotes at least one but fewer than four (4) cases within a given reporting category and is provided in lieu of a specific number to protect privacy.

Transmission levels as of Friday, September 3, 2021 in Polk County are High. For more information please visit the CDC website. This website includes an integrated county view by state.

For more information on our health and mitigation practices please review our Return to Learn Addendum here.

Our core purpose within the Ankeny Community School District is to prepare every learner for a lifetime of personal success. In this pursuit, we also have a responsibility to do all we can to keep every learner safe.  In response to the current state of the pandemic, where we are seeing a significant rise in childhood cases of COVID-19 related to the Delta variant, additional measures are likely helpful to do all we can to keep our students safe. 

Additionally, we believe our community is an essential partner in this work to prepare every learner for that lifetime of personal success. As we’ve been engaging with the community over the past several weeks, some themes have arisen regarding additional mitigation measures for our PreK-5 population. 

As a result, we are proposing some changes to the Return to Learn addendum that will be reviewed at the Tuesday, August 17 Ankeny Board of Education meeting. Please view the current proposed addendum here. Proposed changes include: 

• School bus drivers, monitors, and passengers are required to wear masks as defined by an Order issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
• The district will work with the Polk County Health Department and the Iowa Department of Public Health to have take-home testing kits available in nurses’ offices pending availability from state and local health authorities. At this time, these agencies are experiencing a backlog of available tests. These tests are optional and the results will be sent directly to you/your family.
• PreK-5 Specific Information
  • Visitors and volunteers will not be allowed during the academic day in Pre-K through 5th grade buildings if the Level of Community Transmission for Polk County is “Substantial” or “High” according to the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention. 
  • School-wide assemblies will not be held if the Level of Community Transmission for Polk County is “Substantial” or “High”.
  • Polk County community transmission data from the CDC will be posted on the district and school websites each Friday.
  • Students will sit with their class in assigned seats during lunch, physically distanced to the extent possible. Classes will be distanced from one another.

In addition to these proposed edits to the Return to Learn Addendum, the district will also offer the following:

• Remote learning: 
  • K-5: The remote learning option provided through Edgenuity will now be available to all students in grades K-5; not just those with underlying health conditions. The registration link will be re-opened through Wednesday, August 18, 2021. Elementary families received a registration link via email earlier today with these instructions. Please contact your building principal with any questions regarding the remote learning environment.
  • 6-12: As a reminder, if you have concerns about your child’s health and wellbeing in the coming school year and would like to discuss ways we can support your child, please contact your building principal. 
• Vaccinations: While vaccinations are not required, we will continue to work with our partners in the health care community to offer pop-up clinics throughout the year in response to parent interest.  As a reminder, the first of this year’s pop-up clinics (available to eligible staff and students 12-years-of-age or older) will be offered by Hy-Vee and will take place at Northview Middle School on Friday, August 20th from 2:00 – 5:00 p.m.  We encourage all members of our school community to speak with their health care providers to make the choice that is best for themselves and their families.  Additional information about vaccination in Iowa can be found here: https://vaccinate.iowa.gov/. 
• Making the Best Decision for Your Family: Public health officials have made available a number of resources to help you and your family navigate the constantly-changing landscape around COVID-19.  
  • General questions to consider with your healthcare provider
  • Tips to assess your child’s wellness at home to determine if they should go to school
  • Tools to address children’s social and emotional health during the pandemic

We understand this is a lot of information. Our Return to Learn FAQ page has been updated with these proposed changes. Please view current answers and submit any new questions here.

As the first day of school draws near and many families are thinking through their travel plans to and from school, we wanted to provide some clarity on how crossing guards are placed and which entities oversee the program.

Crossing guards are provided for elementary students Grades K-5.

The Ankeny Community School District works with the City of Ankeny to identify locations where crossing guards will be placed. Intersections that receive crossing guard support are selected based on criteria such as:

• Amount of pedestrian traffic
• Proximity to the school
• Presence of a designated cross walk
• Posted speed limit, size, and type of road
• Other factors

We may also place crossing guards to support other buildings when unusual safety concerns are present. An example of this is the W 1^st Street road construction in front of Parkview Middle School.  Crossing Guards are provided by a 3^rd party company who is under contract with the City of Ankeny and the ACSD. Both entities share equally in the cost of the contract.

For the 2021-2022 school year, crossing guards will be located at:

• Ashland Ridge Elementary
  • NW Ash Drive/NW Georgetown Boulevard (2 guards)
  • NW Ash Drive/NW Reinhart Drive
• Crocker Elementary
  • NW 16^th Street/SW Fieldstone Street (fold-down stop sign)
  • NW 16^th Street/SW Meadow Ridge Drive (fold-down stop sign)
  • SW Applewood Street/SW Polk City Drive
• Heritage Elementary
  • SW Oak Street/SW Prairie Trail Parkway
• Northeast Elementary
  • NE 15^th Street/NE Trilein Drive
  • NE 18^th Street/NE Trilein Drive (2 guards)
• Northwest Elementary
  • W 1^st Street/NW State Street (2 guards)
  • 1200 block of W. 1^st Street
• Parkview Middle School
  • W 1^st Street/NW School Street (or W 1^st Street/NW Ash Drive depending on construction)
• Prairie Trail Elementary
  • SW College Avenue/SW Prairie Trail Parkway
• Rock Creek Elementary
  • NW 36^th Street/NW Abilene Road (fold-down stop sign)
  • NW 38^th Street/NW Abilene Road
• Southeast Elementary
  • SE Magazine Road/SE Trilein Drive
• Westwood Elementary
  • NW 5^th Street/NW Irvinedale Drive
  • NW 13^th Street/NW Irvinedale Drive

In the recent survey on remote learning, we learned that hundreds of families were interested in the district partnering with a health care provider to make COVID-19 vaccines available to the school community.  As a result, the district will provide space for Hy-Vee Pharmacy to host a COVID-19 vaccine pop-up clinic with 400 slots for interested staff and students on Friday, August 20, 2021 from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. at Northview Middle School (1302 North Ankeny Blvd).  Participation in this clinic is optional.

STAFF and/or PARENTS SEEKING AN APPOINTMENT FOR THEIR CHILD(REN): Click here to fill out the consent form and schedule a vaccination appointment. This link will be open through Wednesday, August 18, 2021. 

Parents will need to complete a consent form for all minors who wish to receive a COVID-19 vaccine from the clinic. This form can be found at the appointment scheduling link above. Note that there continue to be some restrictions – such as age – on who is eligible for vaccination.  Please carefully review the information from Hy-Vee and speak with your health care provider if you have any questions or concerns about vaccination.

Parent attendance is recommended at the clinic, though not required.

We ask that those getting vaccinated arrive at their appointment no more than five minutes early. Please plan to park in the west lot (by the stadium) and enter door 22W.

As the Centers for Disease Control continue to assert that vaccination is the leading mitigation against the COVID-19 pandemic, we are pleased to provide space for Hy-Vee to offer this service to our students and staff before the beginning of the new school year.

As we approach opening day of the Iowa State Fair 2021 we would like to extend a big congratulations to one of Ankeny’s own. Allison Su received first place for her painting “The Life of Hogs” and is featured in the 2021 Iowa State Fair Fine Art Gallery. Allison graduated from Ankeny Centennial High School May 29, 2021. She was a 2020-21 National Merit Finalist and was in the top of her class. She is attending John Hopkins this fall. Her artwork is featured below. Follow this link to view the youth gallery or visit the Fine Art Gallery located on the third floor of the Cultural Center!

Elementary parents – be sure to check Infinite Campus on Monday, August 9 to find class lists for the 2021-2022 school year!

We are collecting plastic bottle caps to use for a STEM activity at our booth during the Iowa State Fair. The caps will be used to build a catapult for mini pom poms. Please save your pop or water bottle caps and bring them to the District Office now through Friday, August 20th. Thank you!