Dear Friends,

It’s the end of another great (and short) week at The Albany Academies! 

Below you will find some information on our November admissions open house. If you know families who would be great additions to our community, please pass this email along and invite them to attend. (If you can volunteer to post an open house yard sign, that would also be great!). These efforts go a long way in helping us maintain a strong enrollment of diligent students of high character who are curious, critical thinkers.

Next week, parents will receive an email regarding setting up Bright Arrow, our parent notification system. A test communication will also be sent after the introductory email. This software is connected to your Blackbaud account and allows us to rapidly send mass texts, emails, and phone calls. We used it extensively for COVID notifications and are keeping it in place for snow days and as an emergency notification system, should this ever be necessary. If you are new to the school, it may require you to opt into the SMS (text) system. If you are a returning family, you should already be subscribed.

Until then, I wish you a happy weekend!

Chris Lauricella

Head of School

Errata

When producing last week's Head Lines, we inadvertently neglected to publish the link to the AAPA's October 6th meeting featuring the Head of Middle School, Adam Collett. 

That video can be found at this link:

• https://www.albanyacademies.org/about/albany-academies-parents-association

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

Homecoming 2022-2023 a Success!

Thanks to all who came out to celebrate Homecoming! We had a wonderful pep rally on Friday, developed by students, involving students from all divisions. This was followed by the AAG swimming and diving meet and the AAG Flag football games. On Saturday morning, AAG Soccer won their Section II match, and AA Football won the Caird Classic. We wrapped up the weekend with a Homecoming Dance. 

We have a winner!

Congratulations to Jane Lin P’30, ’35! Winner of the Albany Academies Homecoming Chili Cook-Off!! Thank you to everyone who entered a chili in the contest! They were all delicious, and the voters enjoyed tasting them! 

Storybook Pumpkin Patch

Admissions Open House - Save the Date!

The Office of Admissions will be hosting an Open House for prospective families on Saturday, November 19 at 11 a.m. We are gearing up for a fun and informative experience for families researching schools for the 2023-2024 school year. Would you like to volunteer? Click here to sign up!

Academy Pride. Can you display an Open House Lawn Sign?

We have lawn signs ready to help advertise the details of our Open House on Saturday, November 19^th. 

We would be super grateful for any and all community members who can post signs for the Open House! 

Please email Shellie Carr to volunteer for this important community effort.

From the AAPA

The libraries are still looking for parent volunteers to help out occasionally throughout the year. If you are interested in volunteering please reach out to us at albanyacademiesaapa@gmail.com and we will get you in contact with the librarians.

Thank you!

Board of Visitors

The Board of Visitors, a group of past trustees, donors, and special friends of the Academies chaired by Neil Murray ‘62, P’99, ‘05, ‘06, met on Saturday, October 8 in the Schellenberger Alumni/ae Center. Part of the program included an excellent presentation from AA Director of College Counseling Jak Bestle and Associate Director Amy McDonald P’19, ‘20. 

A Glimpse Into Our Classrooms

This week in preschool art we learned about the beautiful and intricate pointillism of Georges Pierre Seurat. We made these beautiful paintings using the pointillist method. 

AAG 4^th graders led LS Assembly this week. They were teaching the younger students about "integrity." Each fourth grader read part of Julia Cook's book The "I" in Integrity and gave ideas on what integrity looks like at school and at home.

This week in Lower School Science students have been learning to formulate testable questions and complete the steps of the scientific method. We focused on Bubble geometry discussing, surface tension, molecules, and how a bubble always forms a sphere? To deeper their understanding they created an experiment, testing two types of dish detergents on bubble size. They choose the materials, a hula hoop, and a baby pool. The winning detergent was used to create a large body bubble.

Life-sized bubbles left a huge impression on our littlest learners!

5^th grade science students participated in the NYS DEC's 19^th annual "A Day in the Life on the Hudson River." They conducted field tests on various elements of the river to gather data for the DEC's larger study on the health of the river. Besides their teachers, these 5^th graders were also assisted by three Upper School student volunteers. It was a wonderful experience for all!

Spirit Store

Looking for new spirit wear? The Sideline Store hosted by BSN Sports is now live. Customize the design on apparel and gear and show your school spirit! Check out the selection of t-shirts, sweatshirts, hats, and more!

Click here to visit our the Sideline Store.

October 17, 2022

Day 2

School Pictures Make-up Day

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

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

8:15 a.m. University of Chicago (College Counseling Office)

9:30 a.m. Muhlenberg College (College Counseling Office)

October 18, 2022

Day 3

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

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

8:30 a.m. Lower School Coffee Break (Zoom)

10:30 a.m. The College of Saint Rose (College Counseling Office)

October 19, 2022

Day 4

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

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

1:30 p.m. Western New England University (College Counseling Office)

October 20, 2022

Day 5

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

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

8:20 a.m. AA Lower School Chapel & AAG Lower School Assembly (Caird Chapel)

9:45 a.m. Dartmouth College (College Counseling Office)

10:30 a.m. Kenyon College (College Counseling Office)

October 21, 2022

Bacon Bat & House Day

8:30 a.m. Carnegie Melon University (College Counseling Office)

October 27 - Grades 7 & 8 Haunted Hayride

October 28 - Grades 5 & 6 Social

October 28 - Fall Community Service Day

October 30 - November 2 - NYSAIS Accreditation Visiting Committee on Campus

October 31 - Track or Treat (AA Track)

November 3 - AAPA Meeting

November 4 - 5 - Upper School Play

November 8 - Parent/Student/Teacher Conferences (No Classes)

November 11 - Veterans Day (School Closed)

November 14 - Professional Development Day (No Classes)

November 19 - Admissions Open House

November 23 - 25 - Thanksgiving Break (School Closed)