Official Online Apparel Store
We are excited to announce the launch of the official Ames Community School District online apparel store. Starting today, you can order Little Cyclone apparel representing every school building across the District. The store has a wide variety of options to choose from with the convenience of ordering online and having the items delivered directly to your door. Many of the items on the store have the ability to customize the logo you prefer.
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School Resource Officers
Thanks to our fantastic partnership with the Ames Police Department, we are excited to announce the addition of Officer Don Johnsen as a second school resource officer (SRO) within the District. Officer Johnsen will join Officer Nick Schieffer who has served as the only SRO for the past 5 years. Both officers will collaborate with District and building administrators throughout the year with the primary goal of school safety.
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Ames High Construction Update and Safety (August 2019)
Construction Safety As the school year rapidly approaches, we want to remind everyone that we are entering this school year with different conditions than in past years with an active construction site on school grounds and in close proximity to the current high school. Ames High is always active with students, parents, and the community attending numerous events throughout the week. Safety is a primary focus of ours and we want to remind everyone to be cautious around the adjacent construction site. Here are a few key reminders: Be aware of increased traffic along Ridgewood Avenue associated with construction activities including cross traffic at the two construction entrances. Obey all construction warning signs, including pedestrian, bicycle, and vehicle. There will be time periods where detours will be necessary to perform the required work. Respect the limits of construction – no students, faculty, athletes, parents, and visitors should enter the construction site without authorization from Story Construction and the Ames Community School District. Anyone authorized to be in the construction site will be escorted by Story Construction. We will continue to work to minimize any disruption to school activities and to communicate any known issues ahead of time to keep the parents and the community informed.
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New Director of Equity and Director of Technology
The Ames Community School District is excited to announce Dr. Anthony Jones as the new Director of Equity, a position new to the District, and Patrick Donovan as Director of Technology. Both are new to their respected positions but have had successful careers within the Ames District.
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New Logo and Brand Standards
In April 2018, the Ames community overwhelming approved a bond referendum for a new high school. With the design of the new Ames High School underway, now was a prime opportunity to assess the “Ames High” brand. Through our evaluation of the brand, we quickly realized that Ames High brand had no brand standards or proper file formats associated with it. Brand standards are a set of guidelines for the colors, graphic elements, logo specifications, and fonts that comprise a brand. In essence, they are the glue that holds a brand together. Without those, it is difficult to regulate how our brand is used and we often see the inconsistent application and an overall diminished brand. For example, a walk-through of Ames High showed three different secondary mascot logos being used in a variety of ways. Through our evaluation, we also quickly realized that our elementary schools, as well as Ames Middle School, would benefit from a solid identity.
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Phases of Construction
On June 3, members of the school board and district administrative staff took a moment to celebrate years of design at the official “groundbreaking ceremony” for the next Ames High School. Just over a year since the Ames community approved a bond referendum for the building, the moment marked the end of design and the beginning of what will be a 3-year construction project to build the next Ames High School.
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Multicultural Books
This year, Heartland Area Education Agency (AEA) offered three separate Title III mini-grants and the Ames Community School District is proud to have received all three of them. Totaling $15,000, these grants have allowed the District to purchase books in a variety of languages to help support students who are English Language Learners. One of the mini-grants from Heartland is specific to family and community engagement and aligns with one of our main goals this year that came out of conversations with staff and families who participated in our Lau Plan review last September. The group identified making the school environment more welcoming for students and their families as an area of need. One of the specific aspects of the goal was to have more diverse books in the native languages of English Learners in schools and classroom libraries.
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Building Placement for 2019-2020 School Year
As we prepare for the 2019-2020 school year, we want to outline the building placement process for our new students. The District Office determines building placements for each of our five excellent elementary schools with the goal of respecting the boundaries of each building. Due to growing enrollment and building capacity, some of our elementary schools are becoming full. This is particularly the case for two of our elementary schools (Fellows and Meeker), as well as some grades at the other elementary schools. If a grade is full, your student will attend Sawyer Elementary and transportation will be provided for in-district students.
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ISPRA Communication Awards 2019
The Iowa School Public Relations Association (ISPRA) held their annual communication awards the evening of Thursday, April 25. The Ames Community School District submitted materials in 8 of the 22 competition categories that included Bond Campaign, Excellence in Writing, Infographic, Magazine, Social Media, and three Video categories. As a local chapter of the National School Public Relations Association (NSPRA), it is a policy that another state score the submissions based on rubrics, and this year the Arizona chapter judged the Iowa submissions.
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CFO Chris Stensland Presented with Professional Leadership Award by Iowa Association of School Business Professionals
Ames Community School District Chief Financial Officer Chris Stensland was presented with the Professional Leadership Award by the Iowa Association of School Business Professionals (IASBO) at their annual conference on March 27, 2019. The award is one of the highest honors that IASBO bestows upon its members as recipients are nominated by their peers. The award is not just a measure of extraordinary deeds or a lengthy career, it is a recognition of school business officials who throughout their career and lifetime have demonstrated excellence in service to their school district, community, and profession. As an award recipient, Stensland receives a scholarship that she will present to a graduating high school senior from Ames, and an invitation to the next Iowa ASBO Leadership Conference.
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