Dear ACA Community,
It’s been a chilly, busy week and I’m sure everyone is ready to savor a long weekend! My compliments to the students who are buckling down and finding success at ACA this year. You’re halfway through the year! The best thing about ACA for me is witnessing daily interactions between students and between adults and students. ‘Good Morning’, ‘Hello’, ‘Thank You’, ‘May I?’ and ‘Do you need help with that?’ are the norm. The citizens of ACA are great, and no, I’m not biased at all!
I’m aware of my ‘Super-Fan’ attitude about ACA whenever we hold an Enrollment Information Meeting for new applicants. Wednesday night we had 80 families register to come and learn about ACA and tour our campus. I am reminded that there really aren’t words to fully describe our school. Nevertheless, families start the evening with skepticism and leave with excitement and hope. OK… I am biased! Thank you to Katie Matthis, Shallon Smith, and Tara McLoughlin for helping out at the meeting! Our next enrollment meeting will be February 18th, so pass the word to families who may benefit from the unique education model offered at ACA.
An example of the community ‘feels’ that we get to enjoy happened yesterday when our PTO and Student Leadership Club came together to put on ‘Family Game Night’. It was so much fun and really well attended! The cafeteria was decked out for Bunco complete with all the fixings for delicious nachos. Room 220 had a variety of board games going on. Leadership students organized fun relays and active games for students in the gym. A happy chatter was heard throughout the building! Much appreciation to PTO and Leadership Club. Your ‘ACA style’ collaboration was awesome and the event was a huge success!
The high school Winter Formal is planned for Friday, February 7, from 6:00-8:30pm. Tickets are available in the office for $5 presale or $10 at the door. This dance is for 9-12 grade students and 8th grade students who are invited. If you have questions, find a member of Student Leadership. They’ll be happy to help!
Our own Colleen Filipello and parent Lisa Boyd have been organizing informal (not ACA sponsored) meetups for our community. Coming up Wednesday, January 22, a group will be touring Guide Dogs for the Blind in Boring. Space is limited so stop in at the office to sign up.
ACA’s Pool Party will happen January 31st 10:00 to 11:00 am at the Oregon City Pool. Admission is $3 per person. Again, space is limited so be sure to sign up in the office. Many thanks to Lisa and Colleen for making these extra events happen! To keep up on these fun events as they are posted, check the bulletin board just past the lockers regularly.
For high school students, Mrs. Filipello has gathered information on some really great events sponsored by the Portland Workforce Alliance. Make sure you check out the bulletin board just past the lockers scan the QR codes on the flyers which include registration links for Construction, Health Care, Mock Trial, and Veterinarian hands-on seminars. Super cool opportunities but you must register early for a chance to participate.
Science Fair is Thursday April 10th! It may feel far away, but some students spend several months on their projects, so it's not too soon at all for them to be getting started. ESes will have entry packets and can help get students registered. Students will need a significant amount of time to do a great job on a project so we'd like to get them started as soon as possible.
I have a very specific volunteer request. Is there anyone who would be willing to troubleshoot our laminator? It hasn’t been functional in a while and before giving up on it, it would be nice to know if it is salvageable. It’s a nice, big one and would be expensive to replace. Let me know if this is something you might be willing to do! Shellysmith@aca.k12.or.us
Gentle rule reminders: We are still hearing complaints from our neighbors regarding blocked mailboxes. Be mindful of where you are parking on the street please. Also, the cafeteria doors are emergency exit only and not for regularly leaving the building.
Please note that Snack Shack will be closed next week so remember to bring food from home! Be sure to scroll all the way down to see the PTO’s attached newsletter and flyers. Thank you, PTO and volunteers, for all you do for us!
Remember to check the calendar on our website often, AllianceCharterAcademy.org and don’t forget to log your Volunteer hours here Volunteer Time Log A lot of volunteering is happening every week and it is soooo appreciated!
Have a wonderful weekend, and thank you for being part of the ACA family!
Go Eagles,
Shelly Smith
24-25 Executive Director
“Our mission is to personalize learning through a collaboration of family, community and school; to nurture the innate curiosity of all our students; to ignite their passion for learning; and to prepare them for lifelong success.”
Volunteer Opportunities:
Fire Drill with Alarm:
Tuesday, January 21, 2024
2:50pm
Staff and Student K-12 Chess Tournament:
Tuesday, January 21, 2024
Room 220
3:45 - 5:00pm
Martin Luther King Jr. Day:
Monday, January 20, 2025
No School
Grading Week:
Tuesday and Wednesday, January 21-22, 2025
No School K-8, High School and Middle/High Mixed Classes will Meet
Thursday and Friday, January 23-24
K-8 No School, 9-12 Applied Learning, No Onsite Classes or ES Meetings
End of Q2/Semester:
January 22, 2025
Guide Dogs for the Blind Tour
Information and Sign-up in the office
January 22, 2025
Governing Board Staff Work Session:
Wednesday, January 29, 2024
In Person at ACA
5:00-7:00pm
ACA Pool Party
Information and Sign-up in the office
January 31, 2025
PTO Meeting:
Tuesday, February 4, 2025
ACA Cafeteria
3:30pm
Winter Formal
ACA Gym
February 7, 2025
6:30-8:00pm
Governing Board Meeting:
Wednesday, February 12, 2024
Virtual
6:00-8:00pm




