AZACS March/April 2018 E-Newsletter

Arizona Autism Charter School (AZACS) is the first approved tuiton-free, public charter school in Arizona focused on the educational needs of children with autism.

Find out more at
www.autismcharter.org

MARCH/APRIL 2018 E-NEWSLETTER

Autism Awareness Month

- #AZGivesDay - Charity Workout - Student Store - Staff Spotlights

World Autism Day: April 2

April is Autism Awareness Month and April 2 is World Autism Acceptance Day!

At AZACS, we take this opportunity to celebrate our wonderful students, their families, and the teachers and staff who work with them every day. While our students do have challenges, at AZACS we see them for the amazing and bright people that they are and we will never give up on them!

We ask that you will take a moment on April 2 to bring awareness and talk to someone in your community about the importance of embracing people with autism. Thank you!

AZACS Student Store

We are excited to showcase a new student store on our Upper School Campus! The store is being run by Evan, from the SARRC/First Place Transition Academy! By hiring Evan for this role, we've become employee partners of SARRC, helping young adults with autism enter the workforce. AZACS students will have opportunities to use earned "wolf bucks" as well as real money to purchase items at the store. Evan and his AZACS supervisor, Mariah, will work with AZACS students to learn important life skills through the student store project. We will be reaching out to parents for ideas and support on the AZACS student store!

Arizona Gives Day: April 3

Tuesday, April 3 is Arizona Gives Day (#AZGivesDay)!

It's a day dedicated to statewide giving towards Arizona nonprofits. This is a perfect time to redirect state tax payments to AZACS for a dollar-for-dollar tax credit. You can also get a federal tax deduction for general donations.

The donation button can be found on the homepage of our website. We appreciate in advance your support of Arizona Autism Charter Schools during this statewide day of giving! Please share with anyone who may want to support our school on this special day!

Charity Workout: April 21

JOIN US APRIL 21 FOR A CHARITY WORKOUT EVENT!

On April 21, a fitness facility in Goodyear, Training For Warriors, will be hosting a charity workout event benefiting AZACS! This will be a family friendly "Superhero" themed event, and all AZACS families and staff are invited! Activities will include fun workout opportunities, a DJ and a big party for all levels. A huge thank you to AZACS parents Amber and Ken Snyder for connecting us with this fun fundraising opportunity. Please save the date!

Here are the details:

What: Charity Workout Event Benefitting AZACS!

When: April 21, starting 8:00am

Where: Training for Warriors Fitness: 17650 W. Elliot Rd Unit A-150, Goodyear, Arizona 85338

Who: Bring the whole family and invite friends!

How: Come as your favorite SUPERHERO!

Staff Spotlights

Ms. Goldie (Goldsherdine) Luis - Upper School Campus

Ms.Luis comes to AZACS every morning with a smile on her face! She loves her students and goes above and beyond to connect to each one of them at their level. In her classroom, her activities comes to life. The life of a teacher involves a lot of hard work, but Ms. Luis is always up for the challenge and goes the extra mile to provide enriching learning experiences throughout the entire day!

She has worked in the field of special education for about eight years. She started out working with adults in a community home whom had a wide variety of multiple disabilities, and decided that there are children who can also benefit from the love and passion she has to offer in making a child's dream come through.

Mr. Goldie has a Masters in Education with a concentration in Curriculum and Instruction. She's also pursuing a second Masters in Special Education.

Read more about Ms. Luis on the AZACS staff directory by clicking HERE!

Ms. Lynda Lothe - Elementary School Campus

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We'd like to welcome Ms. Lynda Lothe to the AZACS family! She's joining us in the role of Elementary Campus Registrar. She'll be families' point of contact for any enrollment questions, observation scheduling, updates to medication or personal information, and basic information regarding school policies and procedures.

Lynda has worked in a variety of administrative positions in several Arizona schools districts for the past 13 years. She is passionate about working with teachers, parents and students of all ages. She believes that we are life-long learners and a child's perspective and intuition is a warm delight to treasure. A proud mother of two Air Force Veteran sons and an adorable Patterdale Terrier named Ellie, Lynda is also a trained search and rescue volunteer for Coconino County who enjoys running and hiking. She is thankful for the warm welcome she has received and is looking forward to her experience here at AZACS! Please help us welcome her if you should see her at the front desk!

Ms. Megan Yantes, formally in that role, has gotten engaged and will be moving out of the area. We wish Ms. Megan Yantes well in her next chapter!