Friday, January 27, 2023

From Exec Dir of Online Education, Tom Smith

Hello CEC Families,

I hope this message finds you happy and healthy. I am elated to share with the group that the students and staff and voted on The Owl as our official mascot! Students are currently participating in a design contest, which will culminate in the creation of our school logo. A Parliament of Owls represents our school community well and this week in our School Accountability Committee, we began to discuss how we can rally around our mascot to help further develop our community and culture. The team and I have been meeting with students, creating Teams’ subchannels for student interests, and hosting two activities each week. If your student is looking for something fun and engaging, please encourage them to attend one of the activities or participate in Basecamp. These are great ways to meet other students and school staff. If you would like to engage with other CEC families outside of school, please remember that you can opt in to share your information with the community group here.

You can join myself and other Colorado online education families on February, 9th  for the Colorado Coalition of Cyberschool Families’ 20th Annual Day at The Capitol. Please find a link to RSVP and a description of the event below.  

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/cccfs-20th-annual-day-at-the-capitol-tickets-505642950677 

"Join us for our 20th Annual Day at the Capitol! We are so excited to be back in person this year and bring together cyberschool advocates from across the state. We will begin at the History Colorado Center, with a morning of informative and interactive panels and presentations. Then, we’ll head over to the Capitol for a rally to hear from parents, students, educators, and legislators, spreading the word about the importance of school choice and online learning. We can't wait to see all our Colorado cyberschools there "

Mr. Smith

In this week's newsletter:

Head of School Message
Staff Spotlights
Director of Admissions Message
Advising Team Message
Health and Wellness
February Student Activities
Spring Testing Update
CEC Alumni Association
Virtual Science Fair
Social Media Link
Refer-A-Friend

Important Dates

Jan-Apr Testing days - see Update below

Feb 9 Day at the Capitol

Feb 20-21 No school Presidents Day/Teacher Prof Dev

Mar 13-17 No school - Spring Break

Mar 31 No school - Teacher Prof Dev

Mar-Apr Virtual Science Fair

Staff Spotlight!

We would like to spotlight Mr Tom Smith who is the Head of School for CEC's Online Campus. He is here to help support the staff and students with growth opportunities so that they can meet goals together.

He has an impressive and surprising education background:

Masters Degree in Organizational Development and Change

Bachelors Degree in History

Certified Nutrition Coach

Mr Smith shares this with us: "I am really proud to see so many students thriving in this environment! Many students and families are feeling at home, for the first time, in our school, which is a huge testimony to the hard work of all of the teachers and staff on the team, all of whom have returned for another year of learning.

So many of us require a more agile and dynamic service model than what has traditionally been offered to students in our state. Our ability to meet unique needs with unique solutions is unrivaled."

Mr and Mrs Smith are seen here with their unenthused dog, Norman.

Thank you for leading us at CEC Online school for another year, Mr Smith!

Staff Spotlight!

CECOLC would like to spotlight Ms Leigh Edgerle who teaches all of the high school sciences as well as some of the middle school and high school elective courses.

Her education profile:

Bachelors of Biology - Biomedical Sciences, UCCS in 2021

EMT 2020

Ms Edgerle shares: "I am most proud of sharing my love of science to my students, and hopefully fostering that same love and passion into them.

CEC's online campus not only teaches the core curriculum, but there is so much freedom to explore deeper into topics you are interested in while building a strong technological background that will support you throughout your future career."

Picture Caption: Ms Edgerle with Remy

We are fortunate to have Ms Edgerle as part of our family here at CEC since 2021.

From the Director of Admissions

Transcripts for high school students (grades 9-12) are now available. You can find a link and directions to order a CEC Online Campus transcript from Parchment on the CEC website under Families & Students > Student Center > Transcripts & Records: Families & Students - Colorado Early Colleges

Fall 2022 report cards for all students are available in Infinite Campus under "Documents."

From the Advising Team

Hello Students and Families

Hope your semester is getting off to a fantastic start and you all are finding your groove. Life is about starting new things, finding a routine, and trying to do our best. Oh, if it was only that easy. As we close out the first month of class, the Advising Team wanted to bring your attention to a few items.

All college classes should have started by now and the dates to add a class has passed. The ability to drop a course (without having to pay for class) is approaching, and the deadline depends on the college. Today, January 27th is the last day for Snow College, February 1^st for FRCC, and February 7^th for CCCC Online through MCC. Please notify your advisor about any courses that you are considering dropping.

Students in college classes have now been added to college specific channels in their Base Camp Teams. This is a space to connect with other students taking college classes at the same partner school, and also for advising and staff to post important updates. Make sure to keep up to date on any new posts made.

Exciting news! “Girls who code”, which is a nonprofit organization that aims to increase the number of women in the computer science field, is offering two FREE programs in Summer 2023: the virtual Summer Immersion Program and the Self-Paced Program. Applicants can apply for BOTH programs, if eligible. However, students can only participate in one summer program. Click Here to find out more information and to register.

As we’re wrapping up week 3 of the semester, we want to remind students about keeping up with their daily work for CECOLC. Our staff is hard at work, checking students daily engagement, and will start sending out letters next week to students and their guardians who are not keeping on pace with course work. It’s a slippery slope once the habit forms to not complete daily work, and we want to make sure our students are as successful as possible.

Mr Dukes and Ms Martinez

The Advising Team

Spring Testing Update

SAT registration is open! Attn: 11th Grade Students! The state of Colorado offers free SAT testing for all 11th grade students. CEC Online has two options to take the SAT this Spring. The first is to use a voucher code to register to take the SAT on Saturday March 11th at a SAT testing center near you. The second is to come to CEC Fort Collins, Inverness or Colorado Springs on April 25th to take the SAT. Registration closes on Feb.10th so please reach out to laura.huber@coloradoearlycolleges.org ASAP to begin the process.

ATTENTION DECEMBER GRADUATES! ATTENTION FAMILY MEMBERS OF CEC ALUMNI!

CEC is excited to launch our official Alumni Association! Check out our CEC Alumni Association page on LinkedIn and Instagram (@cec_alumni) where graduates can connect, network, and engage. We are actively seeking Class Ambassadors from all graduating classes who would like to be involved in building the CEC Alumni Association and connecting with classmates. For more information, please contact Jennifer Malenky, Director of Philanthropy and Strategic Partnerships, jennifer.malenky@coloradoearlycolleges.org .

Announcing the first CEC Online Campus Science Fair!

Students are invited to join in the first CEC Online Campus science fair.

If you have any questions about the science fair, please reach out to Mr. Dieffenthaller at Johnpaul.dieffenthaller@coloradoearlycolleges.org. The fair itself will take place in March or April with a date TBD.

The Science fair will:

· Have prizes for 1st, 2nd and 3rd

· Middle School and High School Divisions

· Not be required for class

· Be completely virtual so no in person commitments

Please have your student click here to fill out the interest form if they have not done so already so I know who would like to participate in the science fair this year. Thank you!

Stay Connected With Us!

You can stay up to date with things going on at CEC by following us on Facebook.

You tell a friend about Colorado Early Colleges and that friend completes the CEC enrollment process to one of our schools or programs.

You fill out our Refer-A-Friend form and submit it by October 1, 2023.

If your friend stays enrolled through October 31st of their first semester, you will receive a $100 Gift award for a Full-Time student or a $50 Gift award for a Part-Time student!

Please submit a separate form for each student. Only one student will be processed for each form submitted.

Click here to submit a form

CECOLC Website

From Exec Dir of Online Education, Tom Smith

Staff Spotlight!

From the Director of Admissions

From the Advising Team

Spring Testing Update

Announcing the first CEC Online Campus Science Fair!﻿

Stay Connected With Us!

Announcing the first CEC Online Campus Science Fair!