ASOP Newsletter - November 2023

Cognia Recognizes ASOP's 25 Years of Service!

Congratulations to Accelerated Schools of Overland Park, which was recognized by Cognia for "25 Years of Excellence, 1998-2023"!

Director Jane and Middle School Coordinator/alum Sarah accepted the award on behalf of the school.

ASOP is accredited by both Cognia and the State of Kansas.

Mark Your Calendars

1:00pm Early Dismissal: November 16

No School — Thanksgiving Break: November 20-24

1:00pm Early Dismissal | End of 1st Semester: December 20

No School — Winter Break: December 21-January 3

See the Calendar below for more information and other calendar dates.

Yes to Pink, No to Bullying

October was National Bullying Prevention Month, and the State of Kansas challenged its constituents to stand up to bullying by wearing pink during its Anti-Bullying Awareness Week.

ASOP students had opportunities throughout that week to participate in anti-bullying activities organized by School Counselor Hollyn, who brought pink candy and pink lemonade to reward their involvement. There was a sea of pink on Wear Pink Challenge Day, Laura's students made pink bead bracelets to hand out, and Tony helped his students engrave anti-bullying slogans on wood blocks.

Hollyn randomly drew the winning anti-bullying slogan for the school year, which was submitted by student Tro: "Reject Bullying! Embrace Kindness."

Student Council Formed

Congratulations to the students who were selected to be on the Student Council first semester! ASOP teacher Travis is serving as advisor again this year.

Pictured clockwise from top left:

Travis, Deren, Grace, Ellie,

Elise, Rori, Hailey and Ali

Teacher Attends Riparian Restoration Workshop

Liz, a science teacher at ASOP, attended a Riparian Restoration workshop for K-12 educators hosted by Emporia State University and the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks.

Riparian zones are the banks of rivers and streams. Preserving and restoring vegetation in these zones provides many important benefits, including natural flood control and water quality protection. The workshop's purpose was to teach others how to identify and remove invasive plant species and identify and nurture native plants.

Workshop attendees received a classroom set of plant presses. Liz and her students will be using them to catalog the plants on school grounds, especially around the nearby field and stream.

JCCC Field Trip

ASOP's College & Career Coordinator Mindy organized a tour of Johnson County Community College (JCCC) last month for 13 juniors and seniors.

The students learned about the admission and financial aid process, the different activities offered at JCCC, and even ran into a few ASOP alumni. Their favorite tour stops were the cooking and automotive classes.

The JCCC campus tour was a great experience for ASOP's juniors and seniors as they start to think about life after high school.

ASOP Students Tour New KC Aquarium and Explore Zoo

High school and middle school students took separate field trips to the Kansas City Zoo & Aquarium last month on beautiful fall days. After touring the new Sobela Ocean Aquarium (sea otters, sea turtles and seahorses!), groups of students decided what exhibits they wanted to visit. Australia, Lorikeet Encounters, Billy Goat Gruff Yard and Penguin Plaza were some of the favorites. There were tired feet at the end of the day, but happy students!

Endowment Fund

Your gift to the Jane Curran Endowment Fund will help secure the financial stability of Accelerated Schools as educational costs and student needs continue to rise. More details are here.

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