Vail’s newest construction project, Saguaro Creek K-8 School, located in the new Rocking K community on Old Spanish Trail, is scheduled to open in July 2025. 

Construction has begun and is moving along smoothly! Check out the progress in the images below! If you have any questions about the new school, please feel free to contact us at newvailk8@vailschooldistrict.org. Or, learn more about Saguaro Creek K-8 HERE. 

Vail has another Top 10 Teacher! Mrs. Noel Craver, amazing 5th grade teacher at Cottonwood Elementary, has earned a spot as a Top 10 Arizona Teacher of the Year by Arizona Educational Foundation (AEF). It is a tremendously well deserved recognition of the work that Mrs. Craver does every day in her classroom. As one parent noted, “Noel is an incredible educator who genuinely cares about each of her students. We are so grateful to experience her in our lives!” This year, 625 teachers across Arizona were nominated. Mrs. Craver will now go on to compete for a Top 5 spot and Arizona Teacher of the Year. Considered the “Oscar Awards” for teachers, the teacher who is selected as the Arizona Teacher of the Year will represent Arizona in the National Teacher of the Year competition and spend a year as the voice of education across the state. Learn more about AEF’s Teacher of the Year and what comes next HERE. We wish Mrs. Craver the best of luck as she moves forward!

You may have recently heard news nationally around the issue of chronic absenteeism in schools. 

Chronic absenteeism is when students miss 10% or more school days including excused, unexcused, and discipline related absences. That is just two days a month or nine each semester. Nationwide chronic absenteeism doubled from 15% in 2018-2019 to 30% in 2021-2022. 

We are seeing that trend play out in Vail, too. While not as high as the national average, the percentage of students who were chronically absent in 2018-2019 was 9%. Last school year, that rose to 21%. 

Attendance has a huge impact on student learning outcomes. Did you know that:

• Missing 10 days of class in middle and high school reduces grades in English/Language Arts and math by over a full letter grade. 

• Students in K-3 who attend school daily are more likely to read on grade level.

• 9th grade attendance is a better predictor of graduation rates than 8th grade test scores.

We know that learning is a social endeavor. It is the main reason that chronic absences have an outsized impact on learning. 

In Vail, we have long placed an importance on our connections and learning. In fact, one of VUSD’s guiding principles states, “Our schools are communities of learners. A community is a place where each individual is important and has something valuable to contribute. Learning is a lifelong activity. We are all learners. We expect staff, volunteers, and parents to model this belief for students.” 

We value our partnerships with parents and the community. Together we can start moving the needle in a positive attendance trend. We are asking for your help in ensuring the best educational outcomes for our students (your children) by simply making sure they come to school and avoiding pulling them out when possible. 

We also understand that life happens. If your family is in need of additional support, please reach out to your child’s counselor or principal. As VUSD parents, you also have access to Care Solace, an organization that provides care coordinators who quickly do the research on insurance, give lists of available providers, and even help schedule appointments if needed. Care Solace’s services are available at no cost to you because of their partnership with VUSD. If you’d like to get connected to Care Solace or learn more, visit HERE for more details.

In my last email to you, I informed you about an exciting event coming soon. I’d like to remind you to register for Vail Family Connections Day if you have not yet done so.

The purpose of Vail Family Connections day is to simply unite around our common interests in building strong and healthy families who in turn help build a strong and healthy community. It’s a day where families can come together to have fun, learn, connect, grow, and thrive. The day is filled with breakout sessions for all ages! And, the entire day is completely FREE! 

The event begins with a free grab-and-go breakfast and a quick introduction. Then families can choose two 45-minute breakout sessions with topics and activities for the whole family. Parents can drop their children off for free childcare and participate in sessions like parenting, mental health, and more. Or, families can enjoy sessions together with activities like painting, line dancing, gardening, and more. Free childcare is available for 18 months to 12 years. The event will end with a Fun Fest and picnic lunch with free food, ice cream, cotton candy, snow cones, face painting, family photos, and so much more.