CONGRATULATIONS GRACE!

We are pleased to announce that iCademy Global senior, Grace VanZanten, has been awarded the Gold level Graduating Seniors Award by US Figure Skating! Congratulations, Grace! We are so proud of you!

The U.S. Figure Skating Graduating Seniors Award recognizes the hard work of student athletes who have participated in figure skating throughout high school; awards are given at the Platinum, Gold, Silver, and Bronze level based off a skater’s level of competitive achievement in high school. Selection for this award speaks to a skater’s continued commitment to succeeding in their athletic and academic endeavors.

Grace also received a scholarship from Lake Michigan Credit Union through their essay contest “A Day In The Life. Describe one day in your life from the past year.” 1,346 students entered the contest and 20 were chosen as finalists. Congratulations, Grace!

Our K/5 Elementary Friends visited 8th Day Farms in Holland and helped plant 800 cabbage plants this week! Wow!

WELCOME BABY BRIGHTON!

Congratulations to Ms. Kaiti and her husband on the birth of their brand new baby boy, Brighton David Thrasher! Brighton joined our world on Thursday, May 13th weighing 8lbs 5 oz and was 21 inches long. Everyone is doing well!

NEW INFORMATION

JOHN BALL ZOO DAY – ICADEMY K-12TH

Join us on June 10th for some outdoor fun at John Ball Zoo in Grand Rapids. All families of students in grades K – 12th are invited to attend.

Here’s how it works – because of limited space and safety precautions, families need to reserve their family’s tickets and times on the John Ball Zoo website, https://www.jbzoo.org/. Tickets will be sent electronically and you are all set to go. iCademy Staff will be there from 10am-12pm with some student prizes – but more to come on that! If you have a pass or discounts please use them! 

Sign up so we know who to be on the lookout for at the zoo: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0e4eafa629a3f85-zooday

IS IT COVID? IS IT ALLERGIES? THIS MAY HELP…

B-I-N-G-O!

Are you or your family trying to eat healthier? Do you like a good game of BINGO?  Now you can do both at once! Ottawa Food is sponsoring a free, community-wide BINGO game to help people eat healthier and explore our local farmer’s markets. The game, which will take place from May 17 to September 17, includes family-friendly activities as well as the chance to win a farmers market gift certificate! Visit Ottawafood.org/healthyeatingbingo for more details.

Ottawa Food Wants to Hear from You!

Ottawa Food is a collaboration of local agencies and individuals that exists to ensure that all people living in Ottawa County have access to healthy, local, and affordable food choices. We’re conducting a Community Food Survey to gather input on food-related issues in Ottawa County. By completing this survey, you’ll help identify priority areas that Ottawa Food should address over the next 3 years. If you’re 18 or older and live in Ottawa County, please visit http://bit.ly/CommunityFood2021 to participate in the survey by May 31, 2021. Survey participants can enter to win a $50 Meijer Gift Card!

OLD INFORMATION (In Case You Missed It =)

CAREERLINE TECH CENTER SUMMER CAMP OPPORTUNITIES – STUDENTS IN GRADES K-12TH

The Careerline Tech Center Career Summer Camps are open, and there are opportunities for students K-12! Visit: https://webapp.oaisd.org/CareerCampEnrollment/ for more information and see a short description below for open camps. Sign up today!

Open to all current K through 5th students 

IChallengeUjr is a four-day program that gives students the opportunity to work with local community partners to create a solution to a design challenge. At the end of the program, students will present their solution to a panel for feedback.

For girls completing 7th, 8th or 9th grade

Explore the outdoors and connect with other students like you! In this female-led class you’ll kayak, hike, bike, and climb with industry mentors and explore careers in parks and recreation, the bike industry, manufacturing and more. This empowering class will show you how to make a career out of your passion.

Open to all current 6th, 7th, and 8th grade students

Current 6th-8th grade students will partner with a local business and be immersed in the company for 1 week. Teams will work together, using our Design Thinking Process, to solve a real challenge facing their business partner. While doing this, they will get to explore various careers, develop their 21st Century Skills and meet new people. Lunch and snacks are included in the program.

Open to all current 9th to 12th grade students

Current 9th-12th grade students will partner with a local business and be immersed in the company for 2 weeks. Teams will work together, using our Design Thinking Process, to solve a real challenge facing their business partner. While doing this, they will get to explore various careers, develop their 21st Century Skills and compete to win scholarship money. Lunch and snacks are included in the program.

https://webapp.oaisd.org/CareerCampEnrollment/

BREAKFAST/LUNCH SIGN UP/PICK UP – MAY 21st

• THIS SIGN UP is open for next week’s breakfast/lunches
• Sign ups are for any iCademy family
• Deadline for sign-up are TUESDAYS AT NOON. Late responses cannot be accepted.
• Pick up will be at iCademy on FRIDAY AFTERNOONS from 2:00 – 2:15pm
• Please contact Ms. Stacy at hot.lunch@innocademy.com with questions.

DAYCARE STAFF NEEDED AT HOMESTEAD CAMPUS

We are looking for someone to join our Daycare Team.  This position would work 2-3 days per week.  Generally speaking, the staff daycare is open on days school is in session as well as staff Professional Development days.  The Daycare team provides care to our staff’s children.  The kids range from 12 weeks old to 5 years old.  Providing a nurturing environment for these little ones while mom/dad is working is the key to this role.  Responsibilities include caring for kids, feeding them, bringing them outside for playtime, etc.

Please email Sara in Human Resources if you are interested in more information on this position – her email is sara.vereeke@innocademy.com

iCADEMY FAMILY CALENDAR FOR 21-22 SCHOOL YEAR

Please take note of the important dates, below:

May 28th – Last day for Seniors. All semester coursework and requirements must be met for graduation.

June 17th – End of Semester – All coursework due by 11:59pm

June 18th – Device Return Day – Choose to return your device between 11am – 1pm or 5pm – 7pm.

COVID-19 VACCINATION INFORMATION

For those hoping to receive the Covid-19 Vaccination, you may learn more about when you are able to receive the vaccination as well as how to schedule an appointment when the time comes. Please visit THIS LINK .

COVID POSITIVE DIAGNOSIS?

In the event your child receives a positive COVID diagnosis, please make sure to contact us, immediately. We must continue to update the COVID transparency page on our website and be able to work with the health department in their contact tracing efforts.
CAMPUS VISIT BY APPOINTMENT ONLY

If you need to visit campus in order to exchange a device or charging cord, please make an appointment with your mentor as there may not be someone on campus readily available to help you without an appointment.

• IMPORTANT LUNCH INFORMATION: Being a virtual school it seems a silly request, but if you have not yet filled out a free/reduced lunch application at lunchapp.com, please do so prior to Thanksgiving break. You will select HOLLAND CHRISTIAN as the district as they are our food service provider. 
  
  Even if you think you may not qualify, our school receives credit for each form submitted. What is “credit”? Having our families complete these forms allows us to participate in grant opportunities and funding that directly impacts student learning and academic support. Not only that, but should there be another time where schools are not in session, if your family DOES qualify for benefits of any sort, you will be sent an EBT card in the mail to be able to assist with purchasing food for your family. If you end up qualifying and do not wish to take advantage of any benefits associated with the program, you do not have to participate.

Reminders:

• 2-1-1: This service provides access to food, health, mental health, and various other needs. For assistance, call 2-1-1 on your mobile phone or dial 877-211-5253. Texting is available by texting your zip code to 898211. To access online, go to www.call-211.org.
  
• NOT LOCAL? LOOKING FOR FREE MEALS FOR YOUR FAMILY?
  • Contact your local ISD: If you are out of range, but would like to take advantage of the week’s worth of free meals for your children, please connect with your local Intermediate School District for information on receiving free meals. As long as your local ISD has a virtual school program, you can qualify for free meals.
  • Meet UP and Eat UP: This is another incredible program (sponsored by the United Way) providing meals for families throughout Michigan. Please view the interactive map HERE for more information on food distribution near you.  
    
• COVID-19 DASHBOARD FOR iCADEMY: iCademy Global will share updated COVID-19 data each Monday afternoon.  Due to HIPPA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) and FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act) laws, no personal information will be shared. When iCademy receives communication of a positive case, we will notify the county health department who traces and directly connects with those in close contact of the positive case.  iCademy will notify the school family of the case and the actions taking place as necessary. https://icademyglobal.org/covid-19-dashboard/
  
• Engagement & Attendance: In a traditional brick and mortar school when students show up for the day or for a class, the teacher takes attendance and that is submitted to the State of Michigan. At a virtual school like iCademy Global, three factors play a role in engagement and attendance.  Two-way communication, participation in Live Lessons/check-in with Mentors and adequate time and progress lets us know that you are engaged in your school work and are counted as being present at iCademy Global.  When a student is not meeting the expectations, they are flagged as being absent.  
  
• Truancy: In order to meet the state expectation of 1098 hours engaged in coursework each year, it is required that iCademy Global students spend an average of 420 minutes per day doing school work – Monday through Friday. In many cases, absences from school are unavoidable due to health problems or other circumstances. However, chronic absenteeism can have a drastic impact on your child’s education. Children chronically absent in kindergarten and first grade are much less likely to learn to read by the end of third grade. By sixth grade, chronic absence is a proven early warning sign of drop-out. By ninth grade, good attendance can predict graduation even better than eighth grade test scores.
  
  When we see that a student is not completing his/her coursework within the coursework and/or participating in required Live Lessons, not attending mentor meetings or lacking in two-way communication, parent/guardian will be contacted via an attendance letter indicating multiple absences and requesting a virtual meeting to create a personalized Learning Plan. Parents are a huge player in the success of the students as well.  Parents will be required to walk alongside the student for accountability purposes to ensure success.  If a student does not adhere to the personalized Learning Plan, the Learning Team will begin the Truancy process which may result as a formal file to Truancy through the Ottawa Area Intermediate School District.  
  
• Got Questions? We’ve got answers! Whenever you have questions, big or small, we are here to answer them! Your first point of contact for all questions is your child’s MENTOR. Can’t remember who that is? When your child is logged-in to their Student Portal (https://portal.icademyglobal.org) with their Microsoft 365 credentials, their Student Dashboard has their mentor’s contact information. The quickest way to reach your child’s mentor is for the student to connect with them in Zoom. From there, they can direct you to the right place if they personally can’t answer your questions.  
  
• Master Staff Contact List: To contact any staff member, please reference this updated master staff contact list. Thank you!  
  
• Email List: Do you have another family member you would like added to our email list for school-wide communication? If so, please contact Ms. Leisa Lobbezoo at leisa.lobbezoo@icademyglobal.org to be added.
  
• Follow Us on Facebook & Instagram! We love to keep you connected to the iCademy community on our Facebook & Instagram pages. If you haven’t already done so, follow us today! @icademyvirtual (FB), @icademyelementary (FB), @icademyvirtual (IG), @icademyelementary (IG). You can even request to join the iCademy Global Parents Facebook page!

Upcoming Events:

• June 7th – High School Graduation

Important iCademy Resources:

• 2020-2021 iCademy Family Calendar
• 2020-2021 K5 Live Lesson Schedule
• 2020-2021 MS Live Lesson Schedule A
• 2020-2021 MS Live Lesson Schedule B
• 2020-2021 HS Live Lesson Schedule
• 2020-2021 iCademy Elementary K5 Synergy Session Calendar
  
• VECTOR TECH SUPPORT: Have a tech issue with your child’s computer? Please contact Vector Tech Support at 1-866-629-8005 or support@vectortechgroup.com.
  
• LINCOLN LEARNING LOG-IN TECH SUPPORT: 1-866-990-6637