Last Day of School Change | |
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As part of our ongoing school calendar assessment, the last day of school is now changed to June 2nd, 2023, with a normal Friday early dismissal scheduled. This is a change, and we will no longer have students report on Monday, June 5th.
We are required by Iowa law to have 1,080 student contact hours, and we will have met this requirement by June 2nd. Therefore, upon further review of the school calendar, district administration decided to move the last day of school to Friday, June 2nd, 2023, instead of Monday, June 5th, 2023. Click here to see an updated school calendar.
Please plan accordingly and mark your calendars to begin your summer celebrations a little earlier than planned! Thank you for your flexibility and understanding with this change.
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“Be the One” Teacher Recruitment Campaign
The Cedar Rapids Community School District is looking to fill approximately 60 open teaching positions for the 2023-24 school year. Using ESSER funds, the limited-time hiring incentives will help attract much-needed teachers to the CRCSD district.
“Our schools are a big reason Cedar Rapids is a great place to live and work. Whatever CRCSD can do to recruit and retain teachers is a step in the right direction for many families to call Cedar Rapids home." - David Tominsky, CRCSD School Board President.
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2023 Iowa High School Music Theatre Awards
Kennedy High School and Washington High School received the 2023 Iowa High School Musical Theater Awards for their student musical productions during the 2022-23 school year. The Iowa High School Musical Theater Awards celebrates the achievements of students involved in high school musicals from across Iowa. Awards are given for stand-out performances, orchestra, hair and makeup, creativity, and behind-the-scenes work.
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CR Kennedy Awards for their production of Chicago: Teen Edition
- Outstanding Musical Production
- Outstanding Ensemble
- Outstanding Student Orchestra
- Outstanding Performance in a Principal Role: Elizabeth Goff as “Roxie Hart”
- Outstanding Performance in a Principal Role: Raiya Hurt as “Velma Kelly”
- Outstanding Performance in a Principal Role: Sam Larson as “Amos Hart”
- Outstanding Performance in a Principal Role: Luke O’Brien as “Billy Flynn”
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Washington HS Awards for their production of Bat Boy: The Musical
- Distinguished Scene: “Three-Bedroom House”
- Outstanding Performance in a Principal Role: Eloise Prince as “Shelley Parker”
- Special Recognition for Performance in a Principal Role: Olivia Blackhurst as “Meredith Parker”
- Special Recognition for Performance in a Principal Role: Jeffrey Harrington as “Bat Boy”
- Special Recognition for Performance in a Principal Role: Isak West as “Thomas Parker”
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The Awards Showcase will be held at the Des Moines Civic Center on Thursday, June 1st, at 7:00 pm, where some of the award-winning schools will perform. The showcase will be live-streamed at IowaPBS.org, and a highlights special will air on PBS on Friday, July 14th, at 8:30 pm and Sunday, July 16th, at 1:00 pm. | |
Senior Walks Kicked Off Monday
This year’s ‘Senior Walks’ kicked off Monday morning with Kenwood Leadership Academy, Arthur Elementary, Grant Wood Elementary, and Garfield Elementary Schools. This annual tradition allows high school seniors to walk down memory lane before they walk across the stage to receive their diplomas. Senior Walks are scheduled to continue through May 23. To see the full list of dates and times, click here.
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CR Teacher Takes Home Top Honors
The National Association of Geoscience Teachers (NAGT) is pleased to announce that the 2023 Iowa State Outstanding Earth Science Teacher winner is Mallory Wills-Howe, a science teacher at Washington High School. The annual award is given to teachers who make exceptional contributions that help increase the interest in the Earth Sciences. Ms. WIllis-Howe has developed hands-on learning labs to help her students think critically and make connections to real-world scenarios to see how earth science can have an impact on their everyday lives.
Ms. Wills-Howe is clearly passionate for earth science teaching and is dedicated to her students' success. Congratulations, and thanks for making a difference in your students' lives.
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"I enjoy helping kids with the challenges that they are going to face after they leave high school, like green energy and climate change," Mallory Willis-Howe, Washington HS teacher. | |
CRCSD Retiree Luncheon
Last Friday, the Cedar Rapids Community School District hosted a “thank you” luncheon for the district's 2022-2023 staff retirees. Interim Superintendent Grover and school board members thanked the fifty-five retirees for their dedication and years of service to the district. The attendees were also treated to musical performances from the Jefferson High School Meistersingers and Vocal Jazz Club.
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Early Learning Openings
CRCSD is currently offering 4-year-old preschool opportunities through Cedar Rapids Early Learning. This program provides a nurturing environment for young students and helps lay the foundation for school success. There are currently several openings still available for this fall for the following sessions and locations.
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Summer Meal Locations
CRCSD will once again offer students free meals over the summer. These meals help ensure kids can still get the nutritious food they may need even when school is closed. The meals are only available for children 18 years of age and younger and must be consumed on-site. There will be no grab-and-go or adult meal options available this summer due to federal regulation changes. Breakfast will be served from 8:00 am - 9:00 am, and lunch will be served from 11:30 am -12:30 pm. A menu is available on Nutrislice. For more information and to see the schedule of meal sites, click here.
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State Track and Field Qualifiers
The boys’ and girls’ track and field state championships kicked off in Des Moines yesterday. The competitions will continue through Saturday afternoon. Here are the CRCSD athletes who qualified to compete.
Click here to follow the live results for the boys' events, and click here for the results of the girls' events.
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State Tennis Qualifiers
The high school substate tennis finals took place on Wednesday. The boys’ and girls’ tennis teams from Washington both advanced on to the 2023 State Team Tennis Tournament scheduled for May 30 - June 1 at Waukee High School. There are also several singles and doubles players from Washington and Jefferson that will be competing at state. They will begin play on May 26th in Iowa City.
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Community Resource Hub
Did you know that the CRCSD has a team of employees whose main focus is offering services that will help all of our students succeed? They help our students and their families with a wide range of topics, including health services, homelessness, foster care, and emotional and behavioral health. The team would like to share a new community resource hub that is now available for all district families. The website contains a list of community resources in the area that offer help with housing, transportation, food assistance, childcare options, financial assistance, and more.
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Congratulations to Jefferson senior Ben Drzycimski for being named the 2023 Iowa Bandmasters Association Major Landers Scholarship winner! Ben had to complete a music theory test, interview, sight-read music, and perform a solo for the competition. | |
McKinley STEAM Academy Archives students went back in time today with a tour of the historical US Bank building. Highlights included exploring the old vault, the original President's office, and the magnificent lobby. What a great opportunity to appreciate this historical treasure located so close to school. | |
At Cedar River Academy at Taylor Elementary, the 2nd Graders in Miss Matney’s math class have been working on solving real-world addition problems. As part of this lesson, students put together a concept for a new taco truck and presented their ideas to Mayor Tiffany O’Donnell. | |
Mrs. Simonsen’s 3rd graders at Garfield Elementary read the book “Kindness Rocks.” It is a story about a girl who painted rocks with kind words on them and then hid them in the neighborhood for others to find. The 3rd graders painted their own “kindness rocks” and then hid them in the park for people to find. | |
Students at Metro STEAM Academy held a plant sale this past Saturday at NewBo City Market. The students have been busy all quarter planting and potting garden vegetable plants and creating artistic flower pots that were then sold during the sale. | |
The Roosevelt CCBA 6th-8th grade band students showed off their musical skills at their spring concert on Wednesday night. | |
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Non-Discrimination Policy
It is the policy of the Cedar Rapids Community School District not to discriminate in educational programs and/or activities on the basis of race, creed, color, gender, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, gender identity, socioeconomic status, national origin, religion, disability, age (except for permitting/prohibiting students to engage in certain activities) or genetic information and in employment opportunities on the basis of age, race, creed, color, gender, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, religion, disability or genetic information. There is a grievance procedure for processing complaints of discrimination. If you have questions or a grievance related to this policy, please contact Jessica Luna, Diretor Culture/Climate Transformation, Educational Leadership and Support Center, 2500 Edgewood Rd NW, Cedar Rapids, IA, (319) 558-2000.
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