Message from the Superintendent

Dear Parents,

Good afternoon, Vail parents. Welcome to this year’s first edition of the Parent Newsletter. For those of you who are returning for another school year, welcome back. For those of you who are new to Vail, we are excited you are joining us. Welcome aboard!

Teachers and staff have been working hard this summer to prepare for students and families to return to school next week. They are excitedly preparing the last details to create a wonderful, welcoming experience for your children!

To help ensure a great start for everyone, let's get a few things taken care of before those important first days of school. You'll find all the info you need, and a few tasks for you to take care of prior to the big day in the remainder of this newsletter. Some of the information below may be something you have seen or will see in other communications. We just want to make sure everyone has it.

Please be sure to read to the end for important information to ensure a smooth start to the school year, and feel free to let us or your child's school know if you have any questions.

Be on the lookout for the next newsletter coming out in August.

Welcome back! Let's have a wonderful school year!

School Start Dates and Calendars

Elementary and Middle School Start Date - Monday, July 15, 2024
High School and VAHS Start Date - Friday, July 19, 2024

Emergency Communication Testing

In an effort to ensure we can reach you in the event of an emergency at your child’s school, we will be conducting our first test of our systems for this school year on August 1, 2024. If you have your cell phone number and email address in PowerSchool, you should receive BOTH a text and an email of the emergency test of the VUSD Emergency system. If you do not receive a message on August 1st, please contact your child’s school on August 2nd to ensure your information is accurate in PowerSchool.

Further, we are urging all families to complete the returning student registration BEFORE August 1st. New families completed this upon registration with us.

Returning Families - Online Registration

Please complete your child’s Returning Student Online Registration ASAP. Online registration for the upcoming school year is now available! You will use the PowerSchool Parent Portal to access the Returning Student Registration.

How do I get started?

Go to the PowerSchool Parent Portal. Once logged in to the Parent Portal:

Select the student you wish to register along the top tabs. (Please fill out the form for each of your children. PowerSchool will give you the option to copy the information for each of your children once you have filled it out for your first child.)
Select the Returning Annual Registration 24-25 icon on the left side for the current school year.
Agree to the terms and conditions.
Click Begin Forms.
Please carefully ensure all information is accurate.

Also, when you are in the Parent Portal, please click on the SchoolCare icon on the left to update your child's health information.

Just as a reminder, per A.R.S 15-802 parents/guardians are also required to reaffirm AZ residency during the annual student registration. Thank you for carefully completing this important step of returning student registration.

If you have forgotten your PowerSchool login, please contact your child's school for assistance.

Complete Your Child's Health Registration

Find Your Child's Bus Route If Needed

Be sure to check on the bus route for your child and then sign up for SpotMyBus if you have not yet done so.

Meal Pricing and Free/Reduced Lunch Application

For updated information regarding meal pricing and lunch applications please visit the links below.

School Safety Information

Safety remains a top priority of the Vail School District. Statistically, schools remain one of the safest places for young people.

Research indicates that healthy school culture is the greatest deterrent for school violence. We are encouraged by data in our annual survey of students’ attitudes toward school where more than 92% of students feel they have a trusted adult they can turn to for support. It is our intent to keep a laser-like focus on nurturing this and finding additional ways to improve upon it.

The safety of Vail’s children is the responsibility of the entire Vail community. If you see something that seems not quite right, please say something. The Vail School District operates a safe schools hotline for this purpose.

VAIL SAFE SCHOOLS HOTLINE
(520) 879-1111

Thank you for your partnership with us in keeping our kids safe. Thank you for entrusting us with their care. We look forward to continuing to work with you to ensure the safety of all and to provide a great school experience in the upcoming school year.

Important Dates Including Open House and Welcome Back Nights

Thank you for your continued partnership in a district "Where Education Is a Community Effort." We are grateful to live and work in a community where young people are thriving.

Sincerely,

John Carruth
Superintendent
Vail Unified School District