Dear Friends,

It’s been a full week at school! We look forward to two more full weeks before we break for the winter holidays, with plenty planned both in and out of our classrooms. Please be sure to check out the calendar for the Winter Arts Festivals below to make sure you don’t miss anything!

Earlier in the week, the AAPA hosted the first in a series of planned parent “potluck” get-togethers at Leonard House. It was terrific hosting AAG senior parents and making up for time lost to COVID over the last few years. Look for similar opportunities for your child’s grades coming soon. Thank you to the AAPA for organizing these events!

Interim Head of Upper School Lauren Catlett presented “The State of the Upper School” at yesterday’s AAPA meeting. She did a masterful job explaining how we create a safe and joyful community coupled with rigorous yet supportive educational and co-curricular programs. She also explained how student success in these programs, guided by our premiere college counseling program, leads to desirable outcomes in college admissions while preparing students to live a life of purpose. If you could not attend the meeting, a video can be found here.

Finally, on Wednesday evening, the Board of Trustees unanimously decided to move forward with the organizing by division concept. After the winter break, we will engage the Academies community in developing detailed facilities and program plans to support this transition. More information about this can be found here.

Best wishes for a great weekend!

Warmly,

Chris Lauricella

Head of School

The Risk of COVID Transmission remains HIGH

The community level of COVID-19 infection in Albany County is High, per CDC standards. The CDC recommends the following precautions during periods of high transmission:

• Wear a mask indoors in public
• Stay up to date with COVID-19 vaccines
• Get tested if you have symptoms
• Additional precautions may be needed for people at high risk for severe illness

A Message from the Health Office

Winter can be a tough time for kids to stay healthy. Learning how to recognize common winter illnesses can make it easier to care for your child when they are sick. Knowing the signs and symptoms to look out for can also help determine whether or not a visit to the pediatrician is needed. Currently, in NYS, there is a steady rise in RSV and Influenza. Below are common illnesses that we tend to see an increase during the winter months.  

Colds

A cold is the most common winter illness that keeps children home from school. 

Symptoms: Stuffy/runny nose, cough, sore throat, sneezing, and mild fever.

RSV (Respiratory Syncytial Virus)

RSV is an infection in the lungs and airways that usually last 1 to 2 weeks. RSV can be serious in infants.

Symptoms: Cold-like symptoms with wheezing/whistle-like breathing that can cause rapid breathing that might require hospitalization.

Influenza (Flu)

A viral infection that lasts from 3 to 7 days. 

Symptoms: Muscle aches, fever, headache, fatigue, dry cough, runny nose, and sore throat.

Croup

Croup is a viral infection that can last for 1 week.

Symptoms: Barking cough and hoarseness with fever and runny nose.

Strep Throat

A contagious bacterial infection that can last for 1 to 2 days. Strep can be treated with antibiotics.

Symptoms: Sore throat, trouble swallowing, fever and stomachache. A cough and runny nose do not accompany strep throat. However, a sandpaper-like rash can develop.

Tips for Reducing Winter Illnesses

Frequent handwashing reduces the risk of common winter illnesses. When you’re on the go, sanitizing gels, tissues and wipes are great to keep handy. Also, teaching children to cough or sneeze in a tissue or the crook of their elbow early on establishes healthy habits.  If your child is sick, keep them home from school until their symptoms have improved. They also need to be without fever, vomiting, or diarrhea for 24 hours without being on medication. Practicing these habits helps to decrease the risk of spreading illness. 

Thank you for helping keep our school healthy!

Grade 8 Student & Parent Meeting

Class of 2027 parents and students are invited to an 8^th Grade Parent Meeting on Wednesday, December 7 at 3:00 p.m. in the Stevens Center. This meeting is scheduled to follow the Middle School winter performances and will include information about the transition into the Upper School program and the 8th Grade Scholarship application process.

Questions can be referred to Shellie Carr in the Office of Admissions at carrs@albanyacademies.org.

From the AAPA

The AAPA Wreath & Poinsettia sale has started! All funds raised will go to support programs for the students and faculty. Flyers were sent home with all students, but you are welcome to buy online with the link or QR code below (which can also be found on the AAPA page of the school’s website). Orders must be placed by December 12. The vouchers - to be redeemed at any Hewitts - will be sent home with the students as orders are received. Any questions please reach out to Cara Milde at carasofia@yahoo.com or CLICK HERE to order online.

Faculty & Staff Appreciation Luncheon - For information and sign-up opportunities for the Faculty & Staff appreciation luncheon on December 14, click here for AA or here for AAG. This is a wonderful tradition at The Albany Academies and a great way to thank our amazing educators & staff. 

All State Orchestra 

On November 18 & 19, Gregory N. '24 on cello, Kevin L. '25 on trombone, and Gordon A. '23 on violin earned the opportunity to perform with the Zone 7 Area All State Orchestra. Area All State ensembles are select groups of the highest caliber student musicians from around the Capital District. They spent Friday afternoon and Saturday morning rehearsing and performed a rigorous program on Saturday afternoon. Congratulations to Greg, Kevin and Gordon for this amazing achievement! 

Congratulations

to Gordon A. '23 for earning a spot in this year's All-State Orchestra which will be performing this weekend in Rochester, NY at the annual NYSSMA conference. Gordon was ranked against the students from all over New York state on his violin solo, with violin being the most competitive instrument to earn a spot in. 

Winter Arts Festivals

Please join us for the following Winter Arts Festivals. Our students have been working hard preparing their performances and creating artwork!

December 7

1:45 p.m. Middle School Music (Caird Chapel)

*Grades 5&6 and 7&8 Bands and Choruses Ensembles

2:30 p.m. Middle School Dance & Theatre (Auditorium)

*Grades 5&6 Dance, 7&8 Dance, and 7&8 Theatre Ensembles

4:30 p.m. Upper School (Auditorium)

*Wind Ensemble, Chamber Singers, Dance, Theatre and Visual Art Gallery

December 9

12:30 p.m. ECA (Auditorium)

*PreSchool, AA PreK, AAG PreK, AA Kindergarten, AAG Kindergarten

1:30 p.m. AAG Lower School (Auditorium)

*Grades 1 - 4

2:30 p.m. AA Lower School (Caird Chapel)

*Grades 1 - 4

A Glimpse Into Our Classrooms

The French Honor Society recently held their annual Chocolate Mousse Contest. Twelve students participated in the competition and ten judges voted for their favorite culinary delights:

1st Place: Sokhna D. '25

2nd Place: Chloe S. '25

3rd Place: Jon S. '26

During a Lower school Chapel presentation, the AA 4^th Graders shared the "ingredients" to Compassion!

 Love, Kindness, Caring, Giving, Sharing, Helping 

Understanding, Sympathy, Empathy.

The AA Kindergarten boys wrote sentences last week after listening to the story Turkey Trouble by Wendi Silvano. They each wrote a sentence about what disguise they thought the turkey should use to escape Thanksgiving and shared them at AA Lower School Chapel on Thursday. They all enjoyed going up on stage and using the microphone for the first time!

The 1st grade boys have been exploring the Solar System! We have learned all about the planets, stars, sun, and the moon. We even created our own constellations.

This week, the Pre-K girls worked on Letter T. They turned Letter T into a turkey and practiced making upper case and lower case Tt's in our Fine Motor Journals!

Preschoolers read the story, The Gingerbread Man this week when they noticed that their classroom Gingerbread Man had gone missing! They made missing posters and followed the clues he left around the school until they finally found him in Mrs. Cooney's 1st grade class!  

AAG Grade 8 students are exploring simple machines in STEM class. On Tuesday, they experimented with fulcrums and worked in teams to keep everything in balance. The winning group had 35 weights balanced on their first class lever.

The sixth grade costume committee completed 50 headpieces for our lower school dancers. The headpieces will be worn at our winter festival. Thank you so much Abby, Harper, Emma, Ayza and Sylvia!

The Pre-K boys had a fun week with our theme of Transportation and the Letter T. One of their favorite activities was a STEM task where the boys worked with dough, popsicle sticks, and paper cups to create roads, tunnels, and bridges for their assorted transportation counters. They worked collaboratively using lots of problem-solving and teamwork!

International Thanksgiving

A special gratitude luncheon for our faculty & staff from our international students and parents was held this week. Vegetable noodles, crispy banana rolls, jasmine green tea, and salad with ginger dressing were just some of the delicious foods served. Thank you to Dr. Jessica Chen P'23, '32, '32 and our parents for hosting such an incredible event!

AAG KEY CLUB NEWS

Ending Hunger Games Update

Thanks to everyone who sent in non-perishable food for the food drive. We collected over 2800 pounds of food for the Regional Food Bank! The AAG Key Club officers are shown in the photo. The following classes were the winners of the dress down day (TBD):

Lower School: Pre-K; First and Third

Middle School: Sixth and Eighth

Upper School: Ninth and Eleventh

The AAG Key Club would like to give a special shout-out to the Cohn-Smith family in first grade who single-handedly donated 429 pounds of food - thank you! 

In addition to the Food Drive, the Key Clubbers have been busy writing cards of Thanksgiving to our friends at the CLC (Community Living Center) Ward of the Stratton VA, refurbishing books for the Red Bookshelf of Albany and making no-sew scarves for the South End Children's Cafe through a partnership with Up-Stitch. 

AA Fall Sports Athletic Awards

Student-Athletes Sign National Letters of Intent

Congratulations to our student-athletes for committing to play at the Division 1 level. The following students participated in a National Letter of Intent signing on November 22, 2022 during a special assembly held in Caird Chapel. Family members joined the student-athletes on stage as they signed their letters and coaches spoke about the impact these athletes have on their teams.

• Mea A., Siena College - Swimming & Diving
• Andrew C., Fairfield University - Swimming & Diving
• Brayden H., University of Wisconsin - Swimming & Diving
• Erin B., Northwestern University - Cross Country
• Isabel C., Lafayette College - Track & Field
• Teige K., James Madison University - Baseball

Giving Tuesday

We are so grateful for our community's support (parents, alumni, alumnae, trustees and past parents) on Giving Tuesday. More than $100,000 in gifts and pledges for The Academies Fund were contributed in the past week. These donations are fuel for every aspect of our program. Thank you to all our generous donors for helping our students thrive!

If you would like to make an end-of-year contribution to The Academies Fund please CLICK HERE to visit our donation website.

December 5, 2022

Day 4

Winter Trimester (MS/US) Begins

Fall Report Cards (MS/US) Posted

8:00 a.m. Upper School Chapel (Caird Chapel)

8:00 a.m. Upper School Morning Meeting (Auditorium)

December 6, 2022

Day 5

8:00 a.m. Upper School Chapel (Caird Chapel)

8:00 a.m. Upper School Morning Meeting (Auditorium)

8:20 a.m. AAG Lower School Assembly (Auditorium)

December 7, 2022

Day 6

8:00 a.m. Upper School Chapel (Caird Chapel)

8:00 a.m. Upper School Morning Meeting (Auditorium)

11:30 a.m. Upper School Advising

12:00 p.m. Admissions Lunch On US Information Session (Trustees Room)

1:45 p.m. Winter Arts Festival - Middle School Music (Caird Chapel)

*Grades 5&6 and 7&8 Bands and Choruses Ensembles

2:30 p.m. Winter Arts Festival - Middle School Dance & Theatre (Auditorium)

*Grades 5&6 Dance, 7&8 Dance, and 7&8 Theatre Ensembles

3:00 p.m. Grade 8 Parent and Student Meeting (AAG Stevens Center)

4:30 p.m. Winter Arts Festival - Upper School (Auditorium)

*Wind Ensemble, Chamber Singers, Dance, Theatre, Filmmaking, and Visual Art Gallery

December 8, 2022

Day 1

8:00 a.m. Upper School Chapel (Caird Chapel)

8:00 a.m. Upper School Morning Meeting (Auditorium)

8:20 a.m. Lower School Chapel (Caird Chapel)

December 9, 2022

Day 2

8:00 a.m. Upper School Chapel (Caird Chapel)

8:00 a.m. Upper School Morning Meeting (Auditorium)

12:30 p.m. Winter Arts Festival - ECA (Auditorium)

*PreSchool, AA PreK, AAG PreK, AA Kindergarten, AAG Kindergarten

1:30 p.m. Winter Arts Festival - AAG Lower School (Auditorium)

*Grades 1 - 4

2:30 p.m. Winter Arts Festival - AA Lower School

*Grades 1 - 4

3:00 p.m. Rider Cup Hockey Tournament - Click Here for the full schedule

December 9 - 11 Rider Cup Hockey Tournament

December 14 - Faculty & Staff Appreciation Luncheon

December 14 - Beverwyck Arts Performance

December 16 - Festive Sweaters Day

December 16 - Senior Breakfast

December 19 - January 2 - Winter Break

December 30 - Frank O'Brien '84 Memorial Alumni Hockey Game

January 3 - Classes resume

January 5 - AAPA Meeting

January 7 - Grade 8 Scholarship Exam

January 12 - College Search Kickoff, Class of '24

January 13 - Snowflake Dance

January 13 - 15 Robotics Tournament

January 16 - Martin Luther King Jr. Day

January 17 - Professional Development Day (No Classes)

January 18 - Admissions Open House

January 24 - Lower School Coffee Break