Dear AAS Families,

We hope this last week of the school year has provided an opportunity for your children to connect with their friends and teachers as we end this school year.
 

🔔  Closing Ceremony

 Friday, June 17, 11:30 MSK 

AAS will have a half day of learning on the last day of school ending in our closing ceremony.

This ceremony will be pre-recorded and streamed live at 11:30 on Friday, June 17.

Join Live Here

• ES Students and staff in Moscow will gather at 11:30 in our Bolshoi theater to watch the pre-recorded closing ceremony together and dismissal will be immediately after this ceremony.
• Parents are invited to be seated in the Bolshoi by 11:25 to watch the pre-recorded ceremony with us. 
• MS and HS students on campus for the viewing of the digital ceremony must be accompanied by their parents in the Bolshoi theater.
   

📦  Lost and Found

We will be donating our unclaimed lost and found items to charity on June 25.

If your child has lost something on campus during the year, please stop by the main security desk this or next week to check our lost and found.
 

🗓  Calendar and Communications

Our new families orientation will take place on campus on the morning of August 13 and our welcome back event for returning families will be on the afternoon of August 13.

Classes will begin on Monday, August 15. This is our last newsletter for the 2021/2022 school year. However, please keep an eye out for emails from the school over the summer with details regarding the start of our 2022-2023 school year. We will be updating the school calendar for next year over the summer.
 

🐧  Stay in Touch - AAS Alumni Community

Whether you are returning to AAS next year, or moving to your next adventure, remember that all students, parents, and staff of AAS are alumni and invited to join the AAS Alumni Portal.

We look forward to keeping in touch with you and encourage you to stay connected with your classmates.  Our alumni network is 960 members strong with 70+ members offering to be mentors to younger alumni.

Join the AAS Moscow Alumni Community
 

🏫  Celebrations of Learning

One way to celebrate Learning@AAS is through our annual yearbook which is available for pick up at any of our campus security posts.

If you are outside of Russia and have no one to deliver the yearbook to you, please enjoy our online yearbook which is accessible with the password “Learning@AAS”.

Also, please connect into our social media (see links below) regularly to see what learning stories and celebrations are being shared for AAS.

AAS Telegram

AAS Facebook

AAS Instagram
 

We look back with much appreciation and gratitude for the partnerships we have within our community that have supported AAS and we look forward with great hope and optimism as we return in August to continue to support AAS in this journey.  For those leaving AAS, know you and your families will be missed and we all wish you each the best in whatever comes next.  For those returning to AAS in August, we look forward to connecting with you in August.

Enjoy the well-deserved summer break!

Warm regards,
Rhonda Norris
Christopher Schuster
 

Dear AAS Families,

We hope your family is well and that your child is looking forward to the summer holidays ahead.
 

🎉  Summer Fair & PTO BBQ

Thank you to the families who joined us on campus last Saturday.

We estimate to have hosted approximately 350 people at this event on June 4. We hope that you and your children enjoyed the games, activities, food, raffle prizes and atmosphere of our Summer Fair & PTO BBQ. Please enjoy the highlights video below.

Watch Highlights Video Here

Thank you to our amazing PTO, our sponsors, and all of the generous volunteers who made this event possible.

We are looking forward to hosting another fun community event after the start of our new school year and hope to see you there.
 

🔔  Closing Ceremony

 June 17 

AAS will have a half day of learning on the last day of school ending the half-day in our closing ceremony. 

This ceremony will be pre-recorded and streamed live at 11:30am on Friday, June 17.

Join Live Here

• Students and staff in Moscow will gather at 11:30am in our Bolshoi theater to watch the pre-recorded closing ceremony together.
• Parents are invited to be seated in the Bolshoi by 11:25am to watch the pre-recorded ceremony with us. 
• Dismissal will take place right after the closing ceremony with families leaving the campus at 12:00pm.
   

☀️  Summer On-Campus Activity

While AAS has a scheduled summer holiday break starting soon which will mean a reduced staff on campus, we are pleased to share that there will be AAS school staff and faculty that will be hosting a Summer Camp on our campus.

Learn More About Summer Camp

In addition, there will be facilities work to maintain and improve our campus, and our teams look forward to onboarding new families and new staff over the summer. We are appreciative of our wonderful staff who continue to be on campus supporting the AAS community over the summer break.
 

💌  Summer Communications

Please keep an eye on your email over the summer.

AAS will be sending informational emails to prepare our community for the start of the new school year in August 2022. These communications will not be weekly but several times over the summer break.
 

🗓  Calendar for 2022–2023

We are finalizing our calendar planning for next year and will be populating the detailed 2022/2023 online school calendar over the course of the next 3 weeks.

You can also find the “at a glance” calendar 2022/2023 online.
 

⭐️  2022–2023 PTO Team Recruitment

The AAS PTO is a critical and essential partner of the school that supports our school community.

The contributions of parent volunteers that make up our PTO significantly enhance the experience of each student at AAS. The events supported by our PTO provide invaluable opportunities for our community to connect, strengthen and support each other and our students.

Similar to our entire learning community, our PTO team has experienced some transition in volunteers this year. There are a number of PTO Executive Committee roles open for next year and we encourage parents from all backgrounds to apply for PTO Executive positions by sending your expression of interest via email to our Community Relations Director, Vitali Verkhovski, at cr@aas.ru. You can learn more about the PTO by clicking the link below.

Learn About PTO
 

Dear AAS Families,

We have 12 school days remaining after today and the learning continues across divisions and grade levels. From forest walks in elementary, to award ceremonies in high school, our penguins are communicating, discovering, tinkering, celebrating and learning something new every day. As we end this school year, we will be sad to say goodbye to students that are moving on from AAS. At the same time, we are excited to meet new students and their families, from different countries and backgrounds, who will be joining AAS in August.

New families will have an opportunity to attend an orientation session on Saturday, August 13, before their children come to campus for the first day of school on Monday, August 15, 2022.  We look forward to reconnecting our returning students and staff with one another and supporting the new connections for new students and families.  Our educators are already planning for next year to continue to provide a rich and quality experience for our students and to offer holistic experiences through extracurricular opportunities.
 

🏫  Leadership for next year

AAS is pleased to share the following leadership team members who will be supporting the AAS learning environment next school year (2022/2023) (in alphabetic order)

Maga Bashirov	Director of Compliance and Interim Director of NKO
Beth Burnett	Director of Student Support Services
Erica Fursova	Director of Human Resources
Tanya Hawkes	Director of Learning
Nicolette Kirk	Director of Admissions
Todd Lawrence	Risk Assessment and Management
Karen List	Director of Finance & Operations
Rhonda Norris	AAS Director and NKO Board Member
Carolina Nunez	PreK - Grade 8 Senior Associate Principal
Elena Plyuta	Director of Penguin Life
Christopher Schuster	Deputy Director
Vitali Verkhovski	Director of Community Relations
Julie Villers	PreK - Grade 8 Principal

 

More details will be shared before the opening of school next year in terms of leadership roles and responsibilities so our community members know who to “go to” for questions and support.  We are looking forward to collaborating with parents next year in the learning of our students and the building of our community.

 

📝  Re-enrollment, Contracts and Invoices

Thank you to those families who have returned their re-enrollment contracts for next year. 

There was a communication sent to families who have not yet returned their contracts.  Our teams have been reaching out to families directly through phone calls and emails to ensure we are aware of your families’ decision on re-enrollment for next year.  These contracts must be returned now so leadership can ensure staffing for enrolled students for next year.  Our teams will finalize staffing next week and begin the placement of re-enrolled and new students.  

 

💼  Board Member Vacant positions

The Anglo-American School of Moscow (AAS) Board is anticipating Board member vacancies for the 2022/2023 school year.

We welcome our community's interest in being a part of this volunteer team that supports the governance of AAS. The Board welcomes your expression of interest for these vacant board positions no later than June 7, 2022.

Board appointment process for new Board members

Digital form for expressing your interest

Learn more about AAS Moscow’ Governing Structure

☀️  AAS Summer Fair and PTO BBQ

 Saturday, June 4 

We are excited to host 100+ AAS families on our campus this Saturday, at 12pm for our Summer Fair!

An immense thank you to our PTO who are sponsoring the food and drinks at this event. Also, a special thank you to our many partners and sponsors who have generously donated raffle prizes and games for children of all ages. Finally, thank you to the AAS staff who have worked hard to organize this event.

Those registered for the event will receive an email with a map and schedule by this Friday.

We look forward to seeing you on campus this Saturday!
 

⭐️  Contribute to the AAS Closing Ceremony

Students, parents, and staff are invited to participate in our closing ceremony by uploading a short video via the form below by June 7.

Upload video here
 

Dear AAS Families,

We cannot believe that there are only three and a half weeks left in this school year. AAS teams, together with the PTO, are working to ensure our community has opportunities to celebrate the learning this year, reconnect with each other, and say goodbye to those who are leaving AAS.
 

🎓  Grade 12 Graduation

This past Sunday, May 22, 2022 was an unforgettable experience for our Senior Class of 2022, their families, and so many of us in the AAS community.

Despite the distance that separates us, the wonders of technology allowed us all to connect our seniors in the Bolshoi theater in Moscow to the theater with the group of Seniors in Zagreb to seniors joining this ceremony from their homes across the world. We are pleased to share a two minute highlights video below.

Watch the Graduation Highlights

For those wanting more, please visit aas.ru/graduation to see the speeches, and the entire event recording.

Congratulations to the Grade 12 Seniors in the Class of 2022!
 

💼  Board Member Vacant positions

The Anglo-American School of Moscow (AAS) Board is anticipating Board member vacancies for the 2022/2023 school year.

We welcome our community's interest in being a part of this volunteer team that supports the governance of AAS. The Board welcomes your expression of interest for these vacant board positions no later than June 7, 2022.

Board appointment process for new Board members

Digital form for expressing your interest

Learn more about AAS Moscow’ Governing Structure
 

🗂  Re-enrollment, Contracts and Invoices

Thank you to those families who have returned their re-enrollment contracts for next year.

There was a communication sent to families yesterday who have not yet returned their contracts. These contracts must be returned now so leadership can ensure staffing for enrolled students for next year.
 

🏫  NEASC Accreditation

Thank you to all in our community who participated in our recent NEASC Accreditation visit that took place virtually from March 14-18.

We are pleased to share that AAS has received the final report from NEASC on the 9th of May 2022 which provides for our continued accreditation through Spring 2026. Please find the NEASC accreditation certificate here.  Next steps are for leadership to identify goals and action steps from this process.
 

🍿  Movie Night

 May 27 

We continue with movie nights on campus.

Students with their parents are invited to join us this Friday for Home Alone at 15:30. Students must attend with their parents. We ask parents to sign up via the link below.

Sign up Here
 

☀️  AAS Summer Fair + PTO BBQ

 June 4 

On June 4, AAS and the PTO are excited to invite students, parents, and staff to join us at our Summer Fair which will include food, prizes, music, and games for all ages.

We already have over 45 families signed-up, as well as many staff, student, and parent volunteers.

Please note event attendance Sign-up is only open until Thursday, June 2.

Sign Up Now
 

⭐️  Closing Ceremony

 June 17, 11:30 MSK 

AAS will have a half day of learning on the last day of school ending the half-day in our closing ceremony. This ceremony will be pre-recorded and streamed live at 11:30 on Friday, June 17.

• Students and staff in Moscow will gather at 11:30 in our Bolshoi theater to watch the pre-recorded closing ceremony together.
• Parents are invited to be seated in the Bolshoi by 11:25 to watch the pre-recorded ceremony together with staff and students. 
• Dismissal will take place right after the closing ceremony with families being able to leave the campus by noon. 

How can you contribute to the Closing Ceremony? Students, parents, and staff are invited to participate in our closing ceremony by uploading a short video via the form below.

Share your video
 

Warm regards,
Rhonda and Chris
 

Dear AAS Families,

We are delighted to hear about the smiles and happy faces of the Gr. 3-5 students who returned on campus this week.
 

💼  Hiring for August 2022

We are pleased to be returning our learning model to full on-campus next school year (2022/2023).

To support this model, we are also pleased to share that AAS is concluding final interviews for our few remaining open positions for the hiring of educators, support staff, and leadership for next year. Our recruitment of new employees continues to be highly competitive with numerous applicants for each position.
 

🏫  Enrollment

We recognize it has been a challenging few months with much uncertainty.

We look forward to on-campus learning next year and remind families who have not yet returned contracts for next year (2022/2023), to please do so as soon as possible. AAS has begun the process for reviewing and accepting new students. With adjustments in enrollment and in staffing, please note the re-enrollment and enrollment process must be carefully coordinated to ensure we have spaces for the students at our school.
 

🔔  Last Day of School

 Friday, June 17 

As recently communicated, the last day of school this school year is Friday, June 17, 2022, with a 12:00 (noon) departure from campus for students.

On this last day, there will be moving up ceremonies as well as a school wide Closing Ceremony (on-campus and digital). Please save the date and we will share more details about this last day soon. We look forward to providing an opportunity for all families to engage in end of year celebrations.
 

⭐️  AAS Summer Fair + PTO BBQ

 June 4 

On June 4, AAS and the PTO are excited to invite our students, parents and staff who are in Moscow to join us on campus for a fun summer celebration.

Our teams are looking forward to sharing delicious food, fun activities for all ages, and prizes with our community. Please sign-up ahead to help us plan staffing, volunteers, and food.

Sign Up Here
 

🍿  Friday Movie Afternoons

 Friday, May 20, 15:30 

We are delighted to see so many ES families take advantage of our Friday movie afternoons.

This week, we will be showing Peter Rabbit, at 15:30, on Friday, May 20. We invite you to join us with your kids on campus.

Popcorn and drinks are provided by the school and the PTO. Please sign up ahead to help us plan for staffing, volunteers, and amount of snacks.

Sign Up Now

Please Note: This movie night is for families, only students with their parents will be allowed to stay for the movie.
 

Dear AAS Families,

We hope that your family had an opportunity to reconnect and rejuvenate during the May break. While this year has been unique once again, I am always amazed at how quickly this time of year goes by. We are looking forward to the final weeks of school which we know will be filled with learning and celebrations with our amazing community.
 

🐧  Grade 3–5 Students in Moscow

 Monday, May 16 

We are thankful for all of the efforts and collaboration which resulted in Grade 3–5 students currently in Moscow being able to return to on-campus learning as of May 16.

Please see information provided by the ES Leadership team on this decision.
 

📝  Re-enrollment and Enrollment

AAS has issued re-enrollment contracts for next year for those students whose families confirmed their contract details.

If your family has not responded to previous requests for your child’s re-enrollment, please note that your child is not re-enrolled for next year and AAS has begun the process for reviewing and accepting new students.  With adjustments in enrollment and in staffing, please note that there are limited spaces for next year in terms of enrollment.  AAS strives to ensure we balance the priority for the re-enrollment of our returning students alongside accepting new students when we can, but your timely response is critical to this process.
 

🍿  Movie Nights Return

 this Friday 

Thank you for voicing your positive feedback and support regarding our recent initiative to host movie nights on Friday for students on campus.

This Friday, we will be showing Paddington 2 at 3:30pm, in the South Cafeteria. Please sign-up here to attend with your child.
 

🗓  Save The Dates

Our teams are working hard to determine if we can host additional school events before the end of the school year.

For now, please save the following dates. We will confirm these events and provide additional details shortly.

•  June 4 
  End of Year BBQ
  on campus only
   
•  June 17 
  Closing Ceremony
  on campus for students who are on-campus each day
  and online access for the community
   

🌳  Summer Camp

We were pleased to receive so much interest in our Summer Camp program scheduled to run June 20 - July 15 in four, one week increments.

Only a few spaces are left, please be sure to express your interest as soon as possible if you think that your child may be spending a part of the summer in Moscow and would like to join us for this experience.

More information can be found here.
 

Dear AAS Families,
 

🏫  May Break

A reminder that the AAS Board approved May 4 – 6 as no school days at our last Board meeting.

This was done to mitigate “DL burnout” that was identified in learners and widely researched during Covid-19. Based on this research and reports from our families, having time away from the “screen” during longer periods of time of distance learning can impact engagement in learning.  In addition, the timing of extending this break is consistent with other organizations our parents are a part of who normally take this full week of break. 

Please note that the next AAS newsletter will be published on Thursday, May 12.
 

📊  MAP Testing

As current parents might remember, AAS has conducted MAP testing for our students in Grades 2 – 10 twice per year.

MAP is an external assessment tool and this testing is designed to be conducted in-person, on-campus in group settings.  Individualized testing has traditionally been conducted in-person, on-campus as a “make-up” only when an individual student misses the on-campus testing opportunity if the school determines this is necessary.

In 2020, AAS was able to conduct more than 600 individual virtual MAP tests for students when they were not on campus; however, this was intended to be a one-time approach to fill this gap related to Covid challenges.  Given that AAS students are in distance learning, AAS will not be conducting MAP testing this Spring.

For previous MAP and IB results, click this link.
 

💻  Webex Version Update

As you are aware, WebEx is our platform for engaging in distance learning.

This is an externally provided tool. Cisco has been planning an update to Webex that we anticipate will be released over the May break. Although we do not have the details yet of what this update will include, our teams are monitoring and managing this update and will be testing the new version of Webex on different devices as soon as the update launches. Although Cisco doesn’t expect any challenges for its users in making these changes, we would rather be prepared and ensure that students and teachers feel comfortable continuing using Webex for learning.

Please be on the lookout for a letter from us focused on how this update may impact the online learning environment and possibly engagement with your child after school resumes on Wednesday, May 11.

If you experience any difficulties with learning technology, please email distance.learning@aas.ru.
 

Community Events
 

🍿  Movie Nights

Our first movie night in two years was a success with 20+ students and their families joining us last Friday.

We will have another movie night this Friday at 15:30 that you can sign-up to attend with your child.

SIGN UP HERE

We will be scheduling more movie nights for ES and MS/HS students after the May holiday.
 

☕️  PTO Coffee Meetings

Yesterday, the PTO hosted a hybrid coffee event with parents and leadership logging in virtually while other parents joined in person from the school’s south cafeteria.

The PTO is looking forward to having more parents join online and in person at the final two PTO coffees of the year, on May 17 and June 14, both at 15:40.

For those joining remotely, the link is https://aas.webex.com/meet/pto.

For those interested coming on campus, we look forward to seeing you on these days.
 

📚  PTO NEW Book Fair

 April 28 – 29 

Our PTO invites families in Moscow to visit our New Book Fair on April 28 and 29 which will take place in the Hall of Flags from 11:00 to 18:00 on both days.

• Grades PreK – 2 will sign up with their class teachers for 11:00 to 14:30 time slots.
   
• Parents with students in Grades 3-5 can come onto campus from 4pm to 6pm with their parents for this event.

*Students and parents can purchase a range of English books with cash only at this event.
 

Dear AAS Families,

We hope that your families were able to disconnect from the day-to-day and spend some quality time together last week.
 

⭐️  Learning at AAS

• AAS plans to open the 2022/2023 school year with all students on campus.
  Our goal is to have 300-350 students next year.
   
• Current learning models are in place through the end of the school year.
  PreK - Grade 2 are hybrid with students in Moscow choosing to come to campus as long as it is possible to do so.
  Grades 3 - 11 are engaged through distance learning.
   
• The HS leadership team is continuing to evaluate how to support our current Grade 11 students going to Grade 12.
  If your child or family needs specific support, please be sure to contact the HS division leadership team.
   
• Please remember the changes in the school calendar for the first week in May.
  May 4–6 are now non-school days and the last day of school is Friday, June 17, 2022.

 

📝  Student Re-Enrollment

Our re-enrollment process is well underway.

Thank you all who have indicated your intentions for next year and verified the information we have on file for you.

Contracts will be emailed to families who have confirmed in the near future.  If you have not yet verified your contract information, please do so as soon as possible. AAS has also begun the enrollment process for new students balancing the priority for the re-enrollment of our returning students alongside accepting new students who would like to join the AAS learning community next school year.

If you have any questions regarding our re-enrollment process, please email admissions@aas.ru.
 

🏫  Open House for Prospective Families

 April 28, 13:30 

With the re-enrollment process well underway, we are now able to provide more information to new families who are interested in joining  AAS Moscow next year.

We will be hosting an Open House for prospective families on April 28, at 13:30. If you know families that will be a good fit for our AAS community, please ask them to sign up to the Open House.

Thank you in advance to our PTO who generously offered to help us host this event.
 

💼  Employment Opportunities at AAS

Leadership continues to work through the staffing needs and staff availability for next school year.

We anticipate gaps in our needs.  If you are aware of qualified teachers, teaching assistants or substitutes who are interested in working at AAS, please direct them to our Careers webpage.
 

📀  AAS Movie Afternoons

 April 22, 15:30 
 April 29, 15:30 

We invite families (parents and students) to join us on campus for a series of movie afternoons.

Please sign-up ahead to help us plan seating and snacks.
Sign up Here

We will serve complimentary popcorn and drinks and look forward to seeing our families and staff on campus!

Upcoming movies:

• Paddington Bear (6+ Rating)
  April 22, 15:30, South Cafeteria
   
• Yes Day (6+ Rating)
  April 29, 15:30, South Cafeteria

More to come - email film suggestions to cr@aas.ru
 

📚  PTO NEW Book Fair

 April 28 – 29 

Our PTO invites families in Moscow to visit our New Book Fair on April 28 and 29 which will take place in the Hall of Flags from 11:00 to 18:00 on both days.

• Grades PreK—2 will sign up with their class teachers for 11:00-2:30 PM time slots. 
• Parents with students in Grades 3-5 can come onto campus from 3-6.

*Students and parents can purchase a range of English books with cash only.

 

📑  NKO Building Licensing

AAS teams have been working hard for the past two years on the NKO transition. 

One of the next significant stages of this process is to begin  the final licensing process of our full facilities.

Thank you to the many staff members, parents, and Board members who have contributed to us reaching this important milestone. We are looking forward to the completion of this stage in the month of July and sharing our progress with the community.
 

😷  Reminder:  Masks Optional on Campus

Due to the improved epidemiological situation in Moscow and in the AAS community, and adequate social distancing currently available on campus, masks became optional on the AAS campus as of this past Monday, April 18, 2022.

Families, students, and staff members who would like to continue to wear masks on campus are encouraged to do so, but masks will not be required.
 

Dear AAS Families,
 

Student Learning

⭐️  Conferences

Thank you to our parents and students for engaging in conferences last Thursday and Friday (ES conferences are only on Friday).

We value your continued partnership with AAS in support of student learning.
 

🏫  PreK - Grade 2 Students On-Campus

As of this past Monday, March 28, 2022, PreK - Grade 2 who are in Moscow returned to on-campus learning.

We are pleased that this opportunity was made possible by the ES educational team and the feedback has been positive from teachers and parents.
 

Re-Enrollment for Next Year

We have only received responses from about 81% of families on their intentions for enrollment next year in Grades PreK-8.

If your child is currently enrolled at AAS and you did not receive this survey, please email admissions@aas.ru as soon as possible.

We recognize it is an uncertain time for families and it is challenging to project for next year. I would like to assure families that AAS will be opening fully on-campus in August for PreK-Grade 8. However, enrollment feedback from all our families is critical to ensure we provide the best staffing and educational programs for your students.

Thank you in advance for your earliest confirmation through this survey.
 

Board Drop-In Follow-Up

Thank you to the parents and staff members that took time to connect with the AAS Board and leadership during Monday’s drop-in session.

We thank you for your engagement and open communication. It is important for the Board and leadership to have opportunities to listen and clarify as needed just as it is important for you to have opportunities to share your thoughts and questions with us.  Many of the questions at the parent session were focused on the Grade 11 students moving to Grade 12 and the concern about AAS not offering Grades 9 - 11 next school year. HS Leadership will be sharing information on what AAS can provide for Grade 11 parents and students, in some cases specific with each family.  In addition, there will be a meeting on Thursday, tomorrow, with Grade 11 parents and students focused specifically on how AAS can support transitioning high school students.
 

Masks Optional on Campus

 Monday, April 18 

Due to the improved epidemiological situation in Moscow and in the AAS community, and adequate social distancing currently available on campus, masks will become optional on the AAS campus as of Monday, April 18, 2022.

Families, students, and staff members who would like to continue to wear masks on campus are encouraged to do so, but masks will not be required.
 

Next Newsletter

 Wednesday, April 20 

If the need arises to communicate with our community during the April break, AAS will ensure we stay connected as needed.

However, at this time, the next planned newsletter will be on Wednesday after the April break.
 

Dear AAS Families,

We continue to follow the news from the Russian-Ukrainian conflict closely including the recent talks about a possible pathway forward. 

Related to this conflict and the impact it is having on the AAS community, the recent communications noting the impact on students in Grades 9-12 for next year weighs heavy on the AAS Board and the leadership team.  We thank our parents for sharing their thoughts and ideas in regards to high school.  At this time, our teams are focused on a possible pathway for Grade 11 for next year, but there is still no viable way forward for these students to share at this time.  We will be communicating with Grade 11 parents to gather further information so that we can fully consider a possibility.

 

📝  Staff Intention Surveys

All AAS staff have received intention surveys to confirm their plans for next year.

Leadership is reviewing these results as they come in and we will be holding several meetings this week to determine what staffing we have available compared to our needs for next year. We will share feedback from these surveys with our community.
 

📝  Student Re-Enrollment Surveys

Because the original re-enrollment surveys were sent before the beginning of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, we paused the re-enrollment process for a few weeks so that families and staff could consider the current situation in relation to their plans for next year.

To re-engage with this process now, we sent all families the re-enrollment survey again yesterday. It is critical that families indicate your preference by the end of this week (the 1st of April) as these responses will inform which staff at AAS will be needed for next year and how many students AAS can support next year. We understand the level of uncertainty some families may experience at this time and ask that you do your best to share your intentions with us this week.
 

⭐️  Director Drop-in Session

 Wednesday, March 30, 18:30 MSK 

This Wednesday, at 18:30 Moscow time, parents are invited to join a virtual connection with our school Director and Deputy Director.

Join Director Session Here

For AAS leadership, this is an opportunity to hear parent thoughts and ideas.
 

🏫  Board Drop-in Session

 Monday, April 4, 17:30 MSK 

Next Monday, April 4, at 17:30, parents are invited to a virtual connection with the AAS Board.

Join Board Session Here

The Board looks forward to connecting with our parent community, listening, and providing clarity and support where needed.

We look forward to hosting our parents in parent-teacher conferences on Thursday and Friday (ES conferences are only on Friday).

Thank you for your continued partnership with AAS in support of student learning.

Warm regards,

Rhonda Norris
Chris Schuster
 

Dear AAS Families,
 

😷  COVID-19 Mitigations Update

Staff, students, and visitors on the AAS campus will no longer require a submission of the daily pass, as well as, temperature checks are no longer required.

This adjustment is based on recent changes to the city of Moscow’s mitigation requirements in combination with the evolving worldwide protocols. As per the ongoing recommendations from the CDC for schools where physical distancing cannot be maintained, we will continue wearing masks on campus and will reassess this mitigation measure after the April break.
 

⭐️  School Schedule Reminder

Friday of this week is our final staff professional development day of the year with no school for students.

Staff professional development days are a part of the annual school calendar approved by the Board. Professional development is an essential part in a high quality educational organization. Particularly during the current period of rapid change and adaptation, these opportunities are critical to ensure we provide the highest quality learning environment and care for our students. Our educators will be committed during this day to gaining additional knowledge and skills to enhance and enrich the learning opportunities for our students in these new and evolving learning environments.
 

🏫  Student Learning on Campus

It is wonderful to see some of our Prek and Kinder students back in the classroom.

ES leadership continues to evaluate and assess the possibility of having other lower elementary students back on campus and have recently held a virtual drop in for parents, as well as, put out an 8 minute video recap through Toddle with details from this drop in.

 

💻  Distance Learning

Being on campus for learning is our preferred choice.

However, under the current circumstances, we have committed to ensuring our students have access to quality learning. We are encouraged by reports that faculty and students are settling into their new routine and are feeling more focused and productive as they continue to engage in distance learning. We also received preliminary feedback from our three visitor accreditation educational team last week who visited our virtual classrooms that they were impressed with the learning that was taking place as well as the significant relationships that teachers have with their students.

Grade 3 students learn possessives

Grade 5 Distance Learning Agreements
 

🐧  Learning Beyond the Classroom

We would like to recognize the efforts of our on-campus staff that contributed to the successful launching of our Penguin Life after-school programs for students across all divisions.

Multiple online and in-person clubs, sports, and activities are taking place daily. Thank you to all of our students, staff, and parents for your engagement and participation. Some activities have space available and continue to welcome new participants. With the level of student interest and engagement staying high we will continue to review the offerings and look into expanding the opportunities for our Penguins to stay active, creative and energized.

 

☕️  Parents on Campus

We are pleased to share that some of our parents are back on campus.

A space in one of our cafeterias and the student lounge has been set-up to support families who are bringing their children for after-school activities.

• AAS is providing complimentary snacks and drinks to adults and children in this waiting area
   
• The AAS cafeteria adjusted their hours of operation to support those wanting to purchase additional meals
   
• The AAS Penguin Store is offering extended hours
   
• The AAS Library is open after school three days a week
  Library open hours:
  • Monday
    15:30 – 16:30
    Wednesday
    15:30 – 17:00
    Thursday
    15:30 – 16:30

 

Dear Parents,

The world, our community, and many of you continue to be faced with unprecedented challenges. We very much appreciate your ongoing collaboration in these challenging times including in supporting your children as they engage through the distance learning model this week.
 

⭐️  New Opportunities

We would like to share some enhancements in opportunities as of Monday, March 21.

To support our youngest learners, we have arranged for PreK and Kinder students, who are still in Moscow, to attend learning on campus. In addition, we have already reintroduced the Learn2Swim program for Elementary School and are reintroducing a range of on campus and virtual after school activities for all divisions starting next Monday.

These opportunities were possible due to staffing and student location at this time. AAS continues to be committed to health and safety as well as quality opportunities for students.
 

🌐  Community Voices

While we know that the situation with the Ukrainian conflict is still very uncertain, leadership and the Board needs to hear from our community in order to be informed for making the best decisions for all of our students.

This Family Feedback Survey will gauge where each of you are at this time and ensure we are informed as we consider next steps and decisions to best meet the needs of students.  We understand that there is uncertainty, however, your timely response will directly benefit the students of AAS Moscow by allowing leadership and the Board to make informed decisions.
 

📝  Family Feedback Survey - Reply This Week

We welcome your immediate feedback this week so that we can analyze and review this information with the Board to inform our decision making on what is possible and best meets the future needs of our students.
 

🏫  March Board Meeting

Leadership and the Board have met and will meet at least one more time at the end of next week specifically on next steps for learning at AAS.

From this next meeting, we anticipate sharing, in the early part of April, a confirmed timeframe in regards to distance learning for this year and the proposed thinking on our plan for opening in August 2022.  After we share this information with our community, we will re-engage with the re-enrollment process for existing families and proceed with considering new students.

Thank you for your understanding and patience given the unusual circumstances of this year.
 

📊  NEASC Accreditation Visit

As was shared last week, AAS is participating this week in our virtual NEASC accreditation visit with our three guest team members.

Leadership had an opening meeting with this team on Monday and, at the end of each day, we meet with the team lead to discuss the feedback from the day. The visit includes classroom observations through WebEx as well as meetings with various groups to follow-up on our self-reflection report. The team feedback has been positive in relation to learning and engagement between teachers and students through the observations so far this week.

We look forward to confirming our ongoing accreditation with NEASC from this visit as well as sharing a summary of the accreditation report.
 

Warm regards,
Rhonda Norris
Chris Schuster
 

Dear AAS Community,

Distance Learning has begun, thank you for supporting your students in this learning model.

Much of our focus has been on launching DL successfully, ensuring students and teachers are supported, engaged, and have continuity in their teaching and learning. In addition, AAS Leadership is exploring avenues to create a sense of connection and stability for our students. This includes a range of plans to see how students remaining in Moscow can access the campus. This also includes virtual activities and connections for those who are engaging in DL from outside of Moscow. We appreciate your patience as we take the time necessary to ensure that any opportunities we create are safe for students and have adequate adult supervision. We thank the many parents who have volunteered to help make these engagements possible, we may be reaching out to some of you soon.

I would like to reiterate that AAS leadership is focused on ensuring that learning continues.

Our current planning is focused on continuing learning this year and next year. Although we are not yet in a position to provide specific details, we are working on all aspects of this goal and will continue to be transparent and communicate as soon as new information is available. We appreciate you allowing us the time needed to find ways that support our community best.

As it pertains to educators who are teaching from outside of Moscow, they made their departure decisions based on the notifications and alerts received from their respective home country governments. Please find the latest information from the U.S. State Department here and be assured that AAS has shared with overseas teachers that the expectation is that teachers are to return to Moscow when the assessment provides for this.
 

⭐️  Resources and Communications

We understand from feedback that some parents are challenged by the amount of new information being sent to you.

To help streamline communications, AAS created a Distance Learning Dashboard as the location for all recent messages, procedures, and information regarding your child’s learning at AAS during this challenging time. This will allow your direct and easy access to this information when you want to read it. We do encourage you to please keep up with the latest information.

Visit the Distance Learning Dashboard

🏫  CEESA Schools Support

We would like to share a follow-up to the Monday letter in relation to other schools in the CEESA region as well as possibly other international schools around the world supporting our students temporarily for on-campus learning for the remainder of this school year.

We are grateful to the openness of CEESA school Directors and Board to offer their support. These offers of support occurred quickly over the past weekend, so there is no established procedure for each school for making or considering this request. We recommend for each family to reach out to the Admissions team at the school that you would like for your children to join and provide this letter from me explaining the situation and requesting assistance. While we are hopeful that the school you contact will be open to considering your child for temporary enrollment, please understand that each school operates independently and AAS has no official connection with any international schools that can provide enrollment guarantees.  AAS is not a position to require another school to accept a student or adjust the costs for enrollment, ultimately this is up to the other school’s Director and Board. In addition, please note that this transfer for AAS students is being viewed as a temporary acceptance for this school year only and does not carry over to next year.

Also, AAS has been made aware that several schools who were on the original list provided by CEESA, such as Bucharest and Istanbul, are not providing a cost free, on campus option for AAS students who wish to transfer temporarily. Therefore, it would be best to reach out to the school directly, provide the letter linked above and request their support.

Lastly, AAS is confident, based on our ongoing experience in DL and on our internal and external assessments over the past two years, that Distance Learning (DL) with our AAS teachers provides quality learning for our students and we continue to welcome your child to engage in DL with our teachers and other students.

Please do not hesitate to reach out to your child’s teacher, division leadership, Chris Schuster, or myself if we can assist your family.

Warm regards,
Rhonda and Chris
 

Dear AAS Community,

As this situation continues to unfold with each family having their own experiences and impacts, we are holding every member of the AAS community in our thoughts. There is counselor support available to our learning community if needed. We are confident that our community will continue to support one another and our students, remain optimistic for a resolution to this conflict, and collaborate on student learning and on the wellbeing of our students. 

We would like to acknowledge the resilience and courage of our students, parents, and staff who are faced once again with a new challenge. 

We are also humbled by our parents, and members of the PTO, who have shown tremendous support and compassion towards all members of our school community.
 

⭐️  Support During Distance Learning 

Today and tomorrow, AAS teachers and leadership are engaging in careful planning to ensure that our synchronous distance learning that starts on March 9 is of high quality and provides students with support and continuity from the on campus learning they have been engaged in as well as incorporates a smooth transition back to on campus learning when we return.

 As we begin a period of distance learning, it is important that we recognize that we have improved our ability to teach and learn in Distance Learning dramatically since the Spring of 2020. We continue to believe that students learn best on campus in a social and collaborative environment. However, we also have two years of unique experience and data in our school and see that students are learning. We recognize that this learning model is more challenging for our younger students as the need for balanced screen time with physical and social activity is essential.
 

🧭  Knowing Our Locations

With our families and faculty being spread across the world while engaging in synchronous distance learning as of March 9, it is critical that we understand your child’s physical location in order to best support them.

Please take one minute to fill out the DL Location Survey:

Fill The Survey Here
 

💌  Who To Contact for Support

As we begin synchronous Distance Learning on March 9, please know that you can contact distance.learning@aas.ru if you have any technical or system questions.

For questions about learning, homework, and day to day attendance, please contact your divisional offices.

es.office@aas.ru | ms.office@aas.ru | hs.office@aas.ru 

If your family needs support, please contact your child’s counselor or principal. Please also use our counselor resources on our wellness resources.
 

🐧  Supporting Students Beyond The Classroom 

Elementary School
Our Elementary Clubs program was ready for launch and we are now evaluating which of these planned activities can be transitioned to a digital format. 

Middle School & High School
Middle and high school leadership, along with Penguin Life will be looking into moderated online and in-person social opportunities for older students where they can connect and socialize in a supervised environment. See the Penguin Life section of the newsletter for more information.
 

❤️  Community Support and Connections

The next two weeks will include a great deal of transition for families, for our teachers, and for our students.

We hope to have DL stabilized by the end of next week.  We will continue to communicate timely updates.

We are also collaborating with the PTO to have two drop-in sessions on Thursday, March 10, at 10am and 7pm Moscow time. This would be an opportunity for the school to share any additional updates and answer questions as well as a time for families to connect and support each other. We will send the invites to these sessions in a separate email.
 

🏫  Plans For Next School Year

Enrollment
Thank you to the 70% of families who have already filled out our re-enrollment survey.

We understand how challenging thinking about the future may be right now. Our re-enrollment results for next year are currently at 60% re-enrolled, 6% undecided, and 5% leaving. We are looking towards the future with hope and courage and hope to see our families and faculty return as soon as possible to continue learning on campus.

Staffing
As mentioned in previous letters, we are at the final stages of hiring overseas faculty for next year.

Despite the current uncertainty, we continue to expect to be fully staffed with teachers for the beginning of next year. 
 

Warm regards,
Rhonda Norris
Chris Schuster
 

Dear AAS Community,

As we approach the upcoming break, we would like to share some important details with you and thank you in advance for your time in reading this message.
 

🏛  AAS Board

The Board continues to support AAS including the school’s transition to the NKO.

This year, the Board made a decision approved by the NKO Founder, to have the Diplomatic AAS Board and the NKO AAS Board mirror one another until the Diplomatic school is fully de-chartered officially.  In addition, the Board and the Policy & Governance Committee continue to work on the modification, revision, and/or implementation of new policies and regulations to align with the NKO requirements.  The composition of the Board membership will also evolve through this transition process.  The current Board membership is shared with our community on the AAS Website.  The most recent update to the Board’s membership is the transition in the Board Chair from David Simons to Jason Sheets as of this past week.  Thank you to Mr. Simons for his leadership and contributions to AAS during his Board tenure.  Welcome to Mr. Sheets as the new AAS Board Chair.
 

 

📝  Educator Recruiting

As previously shared with our community, recruitment in international schools for the upcoming school year begins in the fall semester. Therefore, leadership has been recruiting for 2022/2023 faculty since around November.

While there have been some recent questions from candidates about the stability of the ruble or the safety of living in Moscow, our recruiting teams are pleased to share that the interest in coming to AAS Moscow continues to be high.  Please take a few minutes to view this recruiting video for more information.

 
 

🏫  Re-enrollment for Students 

At this time of year, AAS begins our collaboration with AAS families to identify which of our current students will be re-enrolling for next school year (2022/2023).  

In support of this process, AAS shared this letter from the AAS Board Chair, Jason Sheets, on what our tuition will be for the 2022/2023 school year. To begin this process, your family will receive an email message tomorrow from the noreply@openapply.com email address asking you to complete an initial survey regarding re-enrollment.

After the February break, families that are continuing with AAS next year, and families who have answered the re-enrolment survey as undecided will receive a request to confirm all the information required to issue a new contract for next school year.  Please ensure that you review and reply to these re-enrollment requests immediately upon receipt, so that AAS can balance the priority for the re-enrollment of our returning students alongside accepting new students who would like to join the AAS learning community next school year.

Please reach out to our Admissions Team at admissions@aas.ru if you have any questions.  Thank you for your continued confidence in choosing AAS for your children’s education.
 

😷  Covid Response

AAS has had some community inquiries in regards to discontinuing the use of masks on campus.

AAS continues to have multi-layered Covid-19 protocols in place on campus to attempt to limit the spread of Covid as well as manage the pace of spread on the AAS campus. As you are aware, AAS recently had to transition all students to digital learning because we did not have enough staff to safely have all students on campus due to the number of positive Covid cases for our staff.  Our goal continues to be for students to be on campus when it is safe to do so and we have chosen to continue mitigations that will support this objective.  Please see below for more details on the background and rationale for the AAS decision to continue to require masks to be worn on campus, indoors at this time.

Wearing Masks on AAS Campus

Our Covid Response team continues to meet to determine if our mitigations need to be revised. Based on our meeting this week, we will have changes in our mitigations the week following the break. These changes will be shared by the divisions soon.
 

🌏  Monitoring and Proactive Planning

AAS leadership and the Board continue to monitor the situation between Russia and the Ukraine.

Our leadership team has been meeting since returning from the Winter Break to consider how to manage this evolving situation with very little certainty so that we can be prepared. These meetings include the review of information being shared by the media, by Russia and other countries represented in our student body, by our 30+ Embassies within our community, by international organizations involved in this situation, as well as companies who are in our community.

As with any potential challenge or crisis, our leadership has protocols in place for decision making and action depending upon the assessed threat level.  At this time, AAS continues to assess the situation in relation to safety to students and staff and risk to continuity in learning, considering various scenarios.  Leadership will collaborate with the Board closely to determine criteria that would warrant a response that is different than our current approach to learning, Modified Full On Campus.  We recognize that other employers are doing the same analysis for the sponsored staff in Russia and some employers are already relocating their staff to another country.

A few decisions have been made:

• If an Embassy or a company relocates their staff and dependents outside of Russia as a temporary measure, AAS will provide access to digital two-way learning for all AAS students impacted.  To communicate this decision, the Embassy or company would need to send an official letter to AAS Admissions at admissions@aas.ru to share this decision and identify which AAS students are impacted.

• If it is determined by leadership recommendation and Board approval that AAS needs to transition to Distance Learning (DL) due to the Russia and Ukraine situation after the February break:

  • learning will be synchronous, on Moscow time, for the initial few weeks after the break

  • the learning plans between divisions may not be the same

  • the daily schedule within each division may look different for DL than Full Modified On Campus

• AAS will communicate with families by Saturday morning, February 26, 2022, to confirm the learning model for Monday, February 28, 2022, given the uncertainty in the evolution of the events that are changing daily

• Communication will be through the contact information that we tested this week. Please be sure that you update any inaccurate information in our systems and that you monitor your messages during the break for updates

 

🌏  Student Driven Service Learning Project

AAS high school students have been working with students in other CEESA schools on a joint service learning project to support a village in need.

Students have researched the issue and made videos to share their thoughts and reflections on this challenge. 

We invite you to learn about their work by clicking the button below. 

AAS Community Challenge

 

We wish each of your families an enjoyable and restful February break with your family or friends.

 

Warm regards,

Rhonda Norris
Chris Schuster

Dear AAS Community,

We would like to start by thanking all of you for continued support and partnership.

We have been receiving many letters of support from families and want to acknowledge that these have a tremendous positive impact on the staff and faculty members who receive them. Like all of you, AAS faculty and staff have been challenged for the last two years, relying on their growth mindset, adapting and developing resilience, all while focusing on strengthening relationships in order to remain the best version of themselves for students, colleagues, and close ones. Your positive words of encouragement and support have been key to maintaining this balance, thank you for modeling our school’s values of respect, care, courage, integrity, and curiosity through your interactions with all members of our learning community.
 

⚡️  Recent Covid Changes

If you did not have the chance to review the recent protocol changes to covid positive and close contact cases, please refer to our email from Tuesday, February 8.

If the pandemic has taught us anything, it is that the landscape can change quickly and we must adapt with resilience and a growth mindset. In this case, our new protocols became obsolete within 48 hours of implementing them as the local health and regulatory authorities changed their rules for the second time in a week. In order to ensure stability for our students and our community, these changes will remain in place at least until the end of February break. If you have any specific questions regarding these changes or testing documentation, please do not hesitate to reach out to health.office@aas.ru. 

Please find the updated Response Flowchart on the aas.ru/covid webpage. You should have received an email with your child’s personalized Daily Pass. You can also continue using the non-personalized Daily Pass on our covid information webpage.
 

🙏  Welcome New Families

We have had a number of new families joining us since the winter break.

Welcome to our community!
 

❤️  Appreciation for our PTO

We would like to thank all of the members of our PTO who continue to support learning at AAS through a variety of ways, from giving students Lunar Year bookmarks, to hosting social clubs for AAS families, welcoming new families, and hosting monthly community connections.

We look forward to joining the next PTO Connection at 10:00, on Tuesday, February 15.
 

🏫  Parent Learning Opportunities

In addition to our students and faculty appreciating your engagement with student learning celebrations, AAS Moscow also offers a number of parent learning opportunities.

You can typically find these in our divisional sections of the newsletter as well as on our website calendar. Upcoming and ongoing opportunities include: 

• What do our students need for the future?
  hosted by Elementary School
  10:00, Thursday, February 17

• Parenting out of the pandemic
  hosted by Middle School
  13:30, Tuesday, February 15

• College Counseling Resource Page
  detailed resources from our HS counselors
   

🌐  From our Language Policy Steering Committee

It is an IB requirement for schools to have a regularly reviewed language policy that meets the needs of the whole school community by inclusively taking diverse stakeholder needs into account.

Please take 5 minutes to answer the 6 questions on this Google Form and have your say.

Answer Here
 

Dear AAS Community,

This newsletter is dedicated to sharing clarifications that our community has sought to better understand the recent decision for AAS to transition all students to Distance Learning (DL) for Tuesday-Friday this week.  Thank you for your time in reviewing this rather lengthy message.

As a follow-up to Monday’s message, please see more information and details related to this important decision. Despite having to make this decision quickly, it was the only choice available after 8 more staff positive covid cases were reported over last weekend. These new cases, added to the high number of existing staff and substitute cases already positive for covid, created a situation where we did not have the minimum staffing required to safely operate the campus with students.

Please see below some specific data that was a part of our consideration in making the decision to move to DL:

• AAS predicted that we would have 66 staff out this week based on information available over the weekend
• AAS had 35 staff who are covid positive. 23 of these individuals were teachers. 
• AAS had 14 ES teachers out from a total of 32 due to Covid based on positive cases and close contacts
• Support staff in key departments such as the security team, Human Resources, and IT do not have enough staff to support individuals being on campus this week 
• In recent weeks, AAS has had all four grade levels in the HS on DL, two out of three grade levels in the MS on DL, and up to 12 out of 22 ES classes on DL due to Covid
• During a one week period of January 24-31, AAS had 53 positive cases for students and staff who are regularly on campus. The average number of positive cases (students and staff) being reported to the AAS Health Office daily is 6. See the AAS Covid Cases Tracker for more details

In addition, AAS had an additional 7 staff who tested positive for covid this week between Monday and Wednesday mornings taking our total staff who were positive for covid this week to 42 and our total staff out this week to 73.
 

🏫  Staffing

AAS has struggled to meet staffing needs for several weeks due to covid cases.

Last week presented the most challenges as principals, schoolwide leaders, and other support staff had to lead and/or supervise classes due to the number of educators who were not able to be on campus related to covid.  While at the end of last week, we originally projected that we could cover all staffing needs for this week, 8 more positive staff cases over the weekend created a situation where AAS had to move to DL.  It would have been unsafe to have students on campus this week as we just no longer had the minimum required staff or substitutes to offer learning on campus.

Please see the AAS Covid Cases Tracker detailing the recent positive cases for students and staff who regularly access campus.
 

💻  Learning Models

As previously shared, having students on campus for learning in-person is our priority and our preferred approach to learning.

It is far more challenging for most students and teachers to learn through DL. Recognizing this, our approach this school year has been to maintain the Full Modified On Campus learning model and only move a specific class, grade level, or division to DL based on positive cases and close contacts. Unfortunately, DL was the only pathway forward this week given the lack of staff to be on campus with students.

We recognize that there are a range of views on the effectiveness of Distance Learning (DL) in our community. We acknowledge that DL is not on campus learning; however, while the physical school is closed in DL, learning does not stop, students are still engaged in learning.  DL is a common practice at public schools and other international schools in Moscow and around the world when it is not safe for students or staff to be on campus for learning.  The use of this common learning model by other schools has been shared with AAS leadership by both other schools as well as parents who have children in these schools.

Again, DL is not our preferred learning model but does provide for continuity in learning when being in-person is not an option.

In addition, based on inquiries and feedback from the community, please note the following details for DL at AAS this school year:

• Two days in October mandated by the Russian authorities to close schools (AAS continued in DL for all students)

• Four days in January/February when AAS moved all students to DL due to a lack of staffing to be on campus

• DL by class, grade level or division when positive cases and close contacts are identified based on Russian Authority requirements (depending upon which students test positive and/or are close contacts)

When safe to do so, AAS is committed to and prioritizes Full Modified On-Campus Learning, adjusting to DL for only those students where Russian regulations require no access to campus because of positive cases or close contacts.  Our goal is to return to on-campus learning as soon as possible.  To support his goal, AAS is evaluating how many staff can access campus next Monday to ensure we have enough staff for students to return.  Leadership will share with parents by the end of this week the plan for next week after consulting with the Board.
 

⭐️  Moving Forward

AAS recognizes the ongoing challenges and evolving reality that covid is a part of our daily lives.

We have to continue to mitigate but also need to most effectively manage the balance of health, safety and quality learning in this new reality.  Our Covid Response Team is in the process of re-evaluating all of our mitigations given the recent changes in Russian regulations. Our goal is to ensure consistency as well as continued consideration of the CDC guidelines for schools.  More information will be shared shortly about possible changes from this review and evaluation.
 

❤️  Thank You

AAS is fortunate to have guiding statements in our Mission and Values that provide direction on our priorities during challenging situations.

We recognize that we are stronger as a community when we are helping and supporting each other. We continue to welcome parent feedback and collaborative conversations with the common goal of providing a safe and quality learning environment for our students. Our counselors, school psychologist, and school leadership are always available to speak with those that need help and support.

I am grateful for our community's ongoing collaboration and commitment to our students.

Warm regards,
Rhonda.
 

Dear AAS Community,

Thank you for your ongoing collaboration with AAS as the school experiences the most significant wave of Covid positive and close contact cases since the pandemic arrived in Moscow.
 

🦠  Schoolwide Covid Updates

Please see the letter from AAS on the recent Russian authority change in the self-isolation/quarantine time frame from 14 days to 7 days including the procedure for making adjustments for student(s) who are currently close contacts. Thank you in advance for carefully reviewing this information sent earlier today.

While we are relieved that the change to 7 day self-isolation for close contacts has been implemented, we are also facing Covid-19 numbers in our community that are higher than we have ever seen before. We have numerous students and staff who are ill and new cases are being reported daily. Moscow authorities are predicting that numbers will continue to rise over the next few weeks so please be diligent with safety mitigations in your household. The next three weeks will be a challenge for this city and for our community.
 

🏫  Divisional Covid Updates

Please read the divisional sections of today’s newsletter to know more about the specific situation in each division. 
 

🩺  Medical Checkups for Expats

AAS appreciates the significance of the recent government changes and the challenges they bring for our expat community.

AAS has been actively working with the Moscow business communities and on its own in order to understand the nuances of the new requirements, to ensure the Russian migration authorities and policymakers hear the voice of the school community, and to promote positive changes to these regulations. We are in touch with the newly approved international clinics for medical checkups to confirm the details of the process. In addition, based on our conversations with the migration authorities we are hopeful to see further improvements in compliance requirements in this area in February. We believe that a migration process formality should not become a factor when international families are making their choices, and we will continue our efforts to improve experience throughout this process for our community.
 

🌐  Ukraine and Russian Relations

AAS Leadership and the Board are monitoring news and reports related to this situation.

AAS Leadership is developing contingency scenarios that will be reviewed and discussed with the Board. This planning is necessary to ensure that AAS is prepared and capable of continuing to provide learning in every possible scenario. At this time, all families are encouraged to keep division offices updated on any potential changes in your families plans for enrollment and/or attendance so that AAS is aware and can provide appropriate support for student learning.
 

❤️  Update on Rhonda’s Delayed Return

Rhonda will likely return in early February 2022 based on current medical advice.

Rhonda is engaging via email and WebEx as necessary and when appropriate. We apologize for any inconvenience during Rhonda’s late return or recovery. Please contact our Deputy Director, Chris Schuster at chris.schuster@aas.ru, or our Director of Finance and Operations, Karen List at karen.list@aas.ru as needed.
 

As our community continues to experience challenges, AAS leadership is grateful for the partnership within our community in the interest of students.

Warm regards,
Rhonda Norris
Chris Schuster
 

Dear AAS Community,

I do hope that you and your families are healthy and well given the ever increasing number of new Covid cases in recent weeks around the world. We continue to prioritize the health and safety of our community alongside the quality learning for students.
 

🦠  Covid Updates

Yesterday afternoon, a Russian government official shared intent to adjust the close contact quarantine from 14 to 7 days.

AAS is now awaiting the official decree to be published to enact the changes made by the local government. We will make the change as quickly as possible after the decree is published. 

AAS is pleased to hear about this change as it aligns with current Science as well as what the school had put in place in August 2021 before being directed by the Russian Sanitation Authority that we could not use a shorter self-isolation/quarantine period. AAS has strong layered mitigations on campus and regards this proposed change as an opportunity to have more students on campus safely. Our default is always to have students on campus when it is safe to do so

In addition, if you were not able to attend yesterday’s Virtual Community Connection hosted by our PTO, we invite you to listen to this 9 minute excerpt from the meeting where Deputy Director, Dr. Schuster, provides a detailed update on the Covid-19 situation as of the morning of January 18. You can also watch the recording of the entire PTO meeting below.

Watch Recording Here
 

😷  Student and Staff Covid Cases Tracking

We have renamed the document formerly known as Covid Cases on Campus to AAS Student & Staff Positive Cases.

The document can still be found on our covid information page and contains regularly updated numbers on staff and students that tested positive, regardless of their presence on campus.
 

📝  Learning Ecology

We invite you to watch a short video that explores the third domain of the ACE learning Principles (Learning Ecology) that our teams explored through an internal reflection as part of our upcoming NEASC accreditation.

Learning ecology is focused on the use of Space and Time as well as how connected the School Community is.

 

⭐️  Virtual Celebration of Learning

 Thursday, February 3, 18:00 

We are delighted to report that our teams recently completed an internal reflection focused around 3 Domains that make up a School System.

Our teams gathered evidence for the Ecology of Learning, Culture of Learning and Architecture of Learning.

On February 3, at 18:00, our team, with the help of some students, will host a virtual celebration to share some of the learning evidence collected throughout this internal reflection. You are invited to join this virtual celebration of learning and learn about our next steps! Please mark your calendars and join us at https://aas.webex.com/meet/julie.villers.
 

🏫  Virtual Open House

 February 10 

AAS Moscow is receiving many new student inquiries at this time.

Unfortunately, we are still not able to host in person school tours for prospective families due to the current Covid-19 situation. As an alternative, we are hosting a Virtual Open House on February 10 to help prospective families learn more about our admission guidelines, facilities, programs, and community. If you have international friends that are considering moving to Moscow or are already here and are thinking about international education for their children, please invite them to attend this virtual opportunity by registering via the link below:

Register For Open House Here
 

Dear AAS Families,
We hope this first week back is a good one for your families.  It is always nice to have students back on campus learning.
 

🏫  New AAS Director

 Starting In July 2023 

Thank you again to everyone who participated in the Director Search Committee process.

AAS shared on December 22, 2021, that Michael Murphy will be the next Director at AAS Moscow starting July 2023.
 

😷  Covid-19 Update

The Mayor of Moscow shared yesterday that the city expects an increase in Omicron variant cases in the next 7-10 days.

Here at AAS Moscow, we are confident in our layered mitigations and will make every effort to keep students on campus for as long as it is safe to do so. Our air filtration system, masks, temperature checks, distancing, and daily pass are some of the ways we have successfully kept our students and teachers safe on campus. 
 
We intend to remain in Modified-Full-On-Campus learning for as long as possible. Currently, the Moscow authorities require us to employ a 14-day quarantine for close contacts which has resulted in some students having to stay home and engage in virtual learning throughout the fall semester. 
 
As you may remember, we attempted to shorten the government mandated 14-day quarantine for close contacts in the fall of 2021 and were contacted by the local authorities requiring that we retain this 14-day close contact mitigation. 
 
As a community, we need to prepare for the likely challenges that the Omicron variant may present to us.  Although our intent is to continue with Modified-Full-On-Campus learning, some or all students may need to move to distance learning depending on the rate of infection, government regulations and close contacts.
 

🎙  Reframing Covid-19 Challenges

We have now been living with Covid-19 for two years and have some data points to consider in our joint efforts to support our community through Covid-related challenges.

Our Community Relation Director, Mr. Vitali, recently sat down for a conversation with our school psychologist, Joseph Graybill to discuss the importance of modeling behavior and framing pandemic challenges in order to build self reliance in our children.

 

🎫  Faculty Family Visas

We understand that it continues to be challenging that some faculty members are still not in Moscow due to the renewal of dependent visas.

At this time, most should be returning in the next two weeks, however, a few may be delayed through the end of February. The Division Leadership will inform families with specific updates if your child’s teacher is impacted.  We recognize that this fall has been challenging with the digital approach necessary for some teachers.  If we could have avoided this situation, we would have done so without hesitation, but we have no control or influence over the invitation letter process nor the visa application process.  Thank you for your ongoing support of AAS.
 

🏥  Rhonda’s Delayed Return

Rhonda will be delayed in returning to Moscow due to a medical injury received the day before she was supposed to leave Texas.

This injury required immediate surgery and is expected to be back in Moscow within the next couple of weeks. We apologize for any inconvenience during Rhonda’s late return or recovery. Please contact our Deputy Director, chris.schuster@aas.ru, for any urgent issues.
 

⭐️  REMINDERS  ⭐️

✈️  International Travel Restrictions

If your family is arriving from international travel, please note that there are no changes to the timing protocol for access to campus after international travel.

The current protocol allows for students who travel internationally, regardless of their vaccination status, to be allowed to access campus only after submitting a negative PCR result of a Day 3 PCR (day of arrival is day 1). These results must now be submitted through the PowerSchool portal and the AAS Health Office must clear the student to access campus without further self-isolation.
 

📝  PCR test submission through PowerSchool

To submit PCR test results for your child(ren), please use the PCR Test Result Submission form in PowerSchool.

This can be done on the web at PowerSchool portal or via the PowerSchool mobile app.

Visit PowerSchool Portal

On the web version, you will find Forms about halfway down the left menu. On the mobile app, you will find Forms under the 3-dot “More” menu at the bottom right.

Please follow this guide to complete the form and upload a PDF or an image of the test results to be approved by the AAS Health Office.

 IMPORTANT 
Your submitted PCR test has to show approved before your child can return on campus.
 

Warm regards,
Chris
 

Please find in this newsletter the latest updates to be shared with our community before we break for the holidays.  The length of this message is longer than I would normally like to have for our final message before the holidays.  I appreciate your time in reading through this important information.
 

❤️  Thank You!

As we enter the final school days of 2021, we would like to share our sincere appreciation for the ongoing support and partnership with our families in the learning of our students.

We are grateful to be a part of a community where we work together to benefit AAS students.
 

🖼  Fall Semester in Images

Please take a moment to enjoy the memories from this first semester.

Stay regularly connected with the learning at AAS on our Facebook page.
 

📄  Leadership Hiring Updates

AAS is pleased to share that we have hired the following leadership team members who will join AAS in August 2022.

• Tanya Hawkes as Director of Teaching & Learning (a position that has been vacant for several years) 

• Troy Snyder as Middle School Associate Principal

• Traci Dougherty as High School Associate Principal

The Board will be meeting to make a decision on the appointment of the next Director at the end of this week. Thank you again for your participation in this important process.
 

📝  Faculty Family Visas

AAS still has a number of families who are not in Moscow now due to the renewal of dependent visas.

At this time, we are not certain of the timelines for some of these families to return to Moscow.  Processes are taking longer and with the holidays we don’t know what working hours will be available for finalizing these visas. The Division Leadership will inform families with specific updates if your child’s teacher is impacted.  We recognize that this fall has been challenging with the digital approach necessary for some teachers.

If we could have avoided this situation, we would have done so without hesitation, but we have no control or influence over the invitation letter process nor the visa application process.

Thank you for your ongoing support of AAS.
 

🗓  Calendar Updates 

The Russian government made adjustments to its national holidays calendar.

The Board has finalized the 2021/2022 school calendar to reflect these changes. Please note the approved Board calendars for the current year and the two upcoming school years are linked below and can be found on https://www.aas.ru/calendar. 

• 2021/2022 school year (this year)

• 2022/2023 school year (next year)

• 2023/2024 school year (the following year)

For the 2022/2023 and 2023/2024 school years, the earlier start date in August is required in order to accommodate all of the Russian holidays, to maintain the one-week fall break, the one-week February break, and the one-way spring break, the three weeks at Winter Holidays, and still maintain the average of 180 days over a three school year period.
 

😷  Covid

The AAS Covid Response team met yesterday with the following summarized updates:

• Please ensure that your child(ren) stay at home if they are ill or have flu-like symptoms.  Please connect with the Health Office about next steps.

• Please note recent changes from Russian authorities below:

  • The Russian authorities now require a PCR within 48 hours (used to be 72 hours) before arrival when returning from international travel.

  • The Russian authorities now require a mandatory 14 day quarantine for anyone arriving from countries where Omicron is endemic regardless of vaccination status and covid testing.  So far, this only applies to Hong Kong and countries in Southern Africa.  Please monitor these restrictions in relation to your travel as AAS will be required to restrict access to campus for any students traveling to/from Russian restricted countries.

  • By January 4, 2022, AAS will confirm the learning model for January 10, which is currently planned to be Full Modified on Campus.

• All our mitigations remain in place for now until we see what the health situation is like when we return from the Winter Break.

• Current Covid numbers in Moscow reveal that our local community is still at the dark red level supporting that our mitigations should remain in place..

• Please see the CDC Schools Guidance for Covid which helps guide AAS in our decisions.  We reference this chart as well as take into consideration our layered mitigations on campus.

• Our Covid response team has been discussing parent access to campus with an original plan to provide for access after the November break.  However, with the local government mandatory non-work week in late-October/early November based on the health situation in Moscow, we were not able to proceed.  As noted above, the number of new positive cases are decreasing, so based on our team’s previous proposals, we are considering the following: 

• Limited number in-person visits to the Penguin Store and/or the PTO Exchange by appointment with vaccination proof

• Limited number attendance at events in the gyms with vaccination proof, outside of school hours, and pre-registration required

• Competition with outside schools for sports pending clarification from the health authorities on the current federal and Mayoral decrees that suggest this is prohibited as well as responses from possible competitors that they agree to be tested before accessing the AAS campus

• Attendance for events in the Bolshoi based on a pending clarification from the health authorities on the current maximum capacity limit of 50 currently mandated for school spaces
   

🐧  Greetings to New AAS Families!

We would like to share our warm welcome to the new families who will be joining us in January 2022.

We look forward to having you join our learning community after the break.  For returning families, your resilience and engagement has been unparalleled and we look forward to continuing our partnership in January.  For families who are leaving AAS over the holiday break, we wish your families a smooth transition and a warm welcome wherever you may land.

Thank you for your ongoing engagement and support of the AAS learning community!
 

🎄  Happy Holidays!

We wish for all members of our community to have an opportunity to recharge and refocus so that we can best support learning upon our return, so we apologize for any delay in response over the holidays.

We look forward to reconnecting as a community on the 11th of January 2022.

 

⭐️  AAS Director Finalists

We appreciate those who participated in Mr. Smithies interview with parents held yesterday.

The PTO President has summarized the feedback shared to be sent to the Board Director Search Committee. Mr. Murphy’s interview with parents is scheduled for Monday, the 13th of December, from 10:45am to 11:45am via PTO WebEx.

If you are able to participate in this interview or watch the video of this interview, please share your feedback to the PTO President in the timeline requested after this interview so that it can be included in the feedback sent to the Board Director Search Committee.  We appreciate your engagement in this important process and look forward to sharing the Board’s decision about the next AAS Director soon.
 

🐧  Community Connection

Thank you to parents who were able to attend Monday evening’s Director’s Community Connection.

If you were not able to attend, please see the WebEx video of this event.
 

📝  Faculty Directory

Our technology integrators created a helpful guide to support parents in finding their child’s teacher and teaching assistant photo and contact details in the PowerSchool system.

Our teams are still working on a secure online directory where parents can obtain contact information of other parents. These options are being discussed with PTO. Once a plan is confirmed, we will ask parents to give permission through this system for their information to be accessible to other families.

If you or your child has any challenges with PowerSchool or other learning technology, please do not hesitate to email for support at distance.learning@aas.ru.
 

🧶  PTO Craft Fair Postponed

The PTO Craft Fair has been postponed at this time.

The PTO continues to work consider safe alternatives to the traditional format of the PTO Craft Fair which gathers a large number of staff, students, and parents across divisions on the AAS campus.
 

🎁  Holiday Gifts

It has been a tradition within our school community and with the PTO that gifts are provided on occasion to AAS staff members.

AAS is grateful for the generosity of our families and the PTO. However, after extensive research and guidance from our external consultants, it has been decided that for this year that teachers are not in a position to accept gifts due to the highly regulatory nature of reporting through extensive documentation as well as the taxability of such gifts under our NKO status.

Therefore, AAS respectfully requests that families do not provide teacher gifts this holiday season or throughout the school year. Thank you for respecting this decision.
 

❤️  Covid and Illness

Thank you for your ongoing partnership with the school in providing the safest learning environment for our students and staff.

AAS continues to follow the medical research and science as well as our validated protocols and mitigations.  This approach provides for consistency, a solid foundation, and a rationale for why we are making the decisions we are, keeping us grounded as the pandemic evolves.

We recognize and understand the frustration for all with the ongoing challenges of the pandemic now for almost 22 months and we also welcome a time when we don’t need to have all of our mitigations in place on a day-to-day basis. However, AAS based on science and medicine, does not believe that this time has arrived yet and we feel confident that our mitigations are what allow for all students on campus, which is our priority.

Please see a few updates and reminders below:

• Close Contacts
  If you missed the letter from Monday, please find it here or on our covid information page.

• Digital learning access
  The AAS learning model at this time is modified full on campus with all students on campus. Two-way digital learning access is available to students who have tested positive for covid or who are close contacts because they are not able to be on campus due the health and regulatory requirements. When your child is sick, we want them to rest at home and recover.  We are utilizing our normal absence policy where a student is not able to attend:  rest, recover, check Google Classroom or Toddle, and follow-up with the teacher on learning missed. The two-way digital learning is not intended to replace being on campus nor is it intended to encourage children who are not feeling well to have to engage from home.

• Flu-like Symptoms
  If your child is experiencing flu-like symptoms or fever, please keep your child at home and the connect with the Health Office so that they can assist in next steps.

• International Travel
  Russia has introduced a mandatory 14 day quarantine for anyone arriving into Russia from countries where Omicron is endemic.  So far, this is only for countries in Southern Africa; however, this could change. We note that AAS will be required to follow any Russian authority requirements on quarantine after the Winter Break. Please ensure you stay current on travel restrictions.  At this time, the only changes to the AAS protocols for access to campus after international travel are as noted here.  

• AAS Covid Resource Page
  The latest information related to Covid is on this AAS Covid Webpage, please note that at this time there are no changes  being considered in the AAS mitigations.

 

⭐️  Integrity

Integrity is one of the AAS five Core Values of: Respect, Integrity, Courage, Curiosity, and Care.

AAS Core Values are the fundamental beliefs of the School. These beliefs convey expected behavior for interactions of those within the school community and assist the School in fulfilling its Mission and Vision.
 

🏫  AAS Director Finalists

We are pleased to share the two AAS Director finalists who will be interviewing digitally in December. 

• John Smithies and his spouse, Alison Smithies
  - currently the Deputy Director at the American School of Bombay
  - interviews are being finalized for the 7th - 8th of December 6, 2021

• Michael Murphy and his spouse, Lauren Bowers
  - currently the Director at the American School of Kuwait
  - interviews are being finalized for the 13th and 14th December 12, 2021

The detailed schedules include opportunities for the finalists to meet with all stakeholders, ie..students, staff, leadership, parents, Board members.

There will be a leadership team member who will reach out to each of these various interview groups soon to gather interest in participation and proposed questions for these interviews.  We will be in touch shortly so that we can be prepared for these visits.  Thank you for being AAS community partners in this important process!
 

🪆  Virtual Artisan Fair

We are grateful to our PTO for sponsoring another Virtual Artisan Fair that connects our international community with local artisans and craftswomen.

Be sure to check out the catalogue if you are considering holiday gifts from our host country. A special thank you to Lera for choosing the best local products and artisans.
 

🐧  Community Connections

Director and Deputy Director Small Group Session

Thank you to those parents who attended the small group sessions over the past few months and shared their perspectives over their long tenures at AAS.  We will have our next Small Group Session in January after we return from the Winter Break.

We had planned to have another small group session in December; however, with the Director finalist visiting, we will now have this session in January.  Please watch the newsletter in the coming weeks for more information.
 

💻  Director Community Connection

 Monday, December 6, 18:30 

The Director and Deputy Director will host a digital Community Connection on Monday, December 6, 2021, at 18:30 via the Director’s WebEx.

Join via WebEx Here

The format will be open conversation, without pre-submitted questions. We encourage you to join us.
 

😊  Campus Tours for New Parents

 December 4 
 December 11 

As shared in the recent newsletters, AAS will be hosting on campus tours for our new families from 2020/2021 and 2021/2022 on Saturday, December 4, and Saturday, December 11.

Sign-ups for this opportunity closed on November 26. AAS Leadership is managing this experience and have communicated directly to confirm participation.
 

🕯  Passing of Security Team Member

With great sadness we share the passing of one of our staff members, Sergey Sonin.

Sergey was a part of our security team for 15 years. Sergey has siblings and an adult son amongst his immediate relatives. AAS has been in communication with Sergey’s family and AAS will provide financial support as per our employee benefits package.

If you would like to donate and/or support Sergey’s family, our cashier is accepting cash donations, you can send a sealed cash envelope to school with your child, addressed to the AAS Cashier, for Sergey Sonin’s family.
 

 

❤️  Thank you to all in our school community who collaborate for the benefit of our students.

 

⭐️  Student Learning

AAS continues to be proud of our students and the learning they engage in daily.

We encourage all community members to review and engage via your preferred medium with the celebrations of learning taking place every week.

Website | Facebook | Instagram
 

🐧  Community Connections

Director and Deputy Director Small Group Session

Thank you to those parents who attended the small group session this past Monday and shared their perspectives over their long tenures at AAS.  We will have our next Small Group Session in January after we return from the Winter Break.  Please watch the newsletter in the coming weeks for more information.
 

💌  Director Community Connection

 Monday, December 6, 18:30 

The Director and Deputy Director will host a digital Community Connection on Monday, the 6th of December 2021, at 6:30pm on the Director’s WebEx.

The format will be open conversation, without pre-submitted questions. We encourage you to join us.
 

🏫  Campus Tours for New Parents

 Saturday, December 4 
 Saturday, December 11 

As shared in last week’s newsletter, AAS will be hosting on campus tours for our new families from 2020/2021 and 2021/2022 on Saturday, December 4, and Saturday, December 11.

If your new family is interested in signing up for a tour appointment, please complete the survey to express your interest by November 26.

Complete the Survey

After that point we will share the appointment tour schedule with participants.
 

☕️  PTO Community Connection

Thank you to the PTO for another engaging PTO Community Coffee providing opportunities for us all to remain connected.

If you were not able to attend, you can watch the video recording of the meeting.

Watch the Recording

The last PTO Community Coffee of 2021 will be December 14, please join us.
 

😷  Vaccinations and Covid - Close Contacts

The recent decree that was issued on the 11th of November related to a waiver on the close contact requirement of 14 days self-isolation.

This waiver applies to students who meet one of the following criteria:

• had a Sputnik or other Russian approved vaccination within the past six months;
• have tested positive for Covid in the past six months from the date of the close contact.

The vaccination record or the covid test positive result must be provided to the AAS Health Office in order to waive the 14 day close contact requirement.
 

🌍  International Travel

There are no changes to the protocol for access to campus after international travel.

The current protocol requires students who travel internationally, regardless of their vaccination status, will be allowed to access campus only after providing a negative PCR result of a Day 3 PCR (day of arrival is day 1) to health.office@aas.ru and the AAS Health Office clearing the student to access campus without further self-isolation.
 

☝️  AAS Covid Resource Page

The latest information related to Covid is on this AAS Covid Webpage.

Visit AAS Covid Webpage
 

📄  Mitigation Updates

We appreciate the ongoing feedback from parents sharing ideas and suggestions for AAS’ reconsideration of our mitigations particularly in relation to parents accessing campus and for expanded student experiences.

Your feedback is valuable and provides further insights for us to consider as the cases in Moscow continue to decline. Thank you.
 

🎁  Holiday Gifts

It has been a tradition within our school community and with the PTO that gifts are provided on occasion to AAS staff members.

AAS is grateful for the generosity of our families and the PTO. However, after extensive research and guidance from our external consultants, it has been decided that for this year that teachers are not in a position to accept gifts due to the highly regulatory nature of reporting through extensive documentation as well as the taxability of such gifts under our NKO status.

Therefore, AAS respectfully requests that families do not provide teacher gifts this holiday season or throughout the school year.

Thank you for respecting this decision.
 

 

🙏  Thankful

As we approach the American holiday of Thanksgiving, we wanted to express our gratitude to all of the recent support and engagement from members of our community.

There is much to be thankful for, starting with a trend in a lower number of positive Covid cases in Moscow and students continuing to learn on campus.  We also appreciate the engagement of our Board members, staff, and parents in recent virtual conversations. Finally, and most importantly, we are grateful to see our students engaging in meaningful and successful learning experiences supported by the collaboration between teachers and parents.

Please see our Facebook, Instagram, or website for some of our featured student learning in recent weeks.
 

🐧  Penguin Store Opening

The Penguin Store opening announcement was made live during the PTO monthly connect meeting.

If you are looking for uniform items or spirit wear, we invite you to email penguinstore@aas.ru to make purchase and delivery arrangements. More information is available on the Penguin Store webpage.
 

🌟  ES Principal Announcement 

We are pleased to announce the appointment of our new Elementary School Principal, Tom Burton, beginning in the 2022/2023 school year!

• After a rigorous process involving ES students, staff, and parents, Tom has been selected to lead our ES division from a pool of nearly 40 candidates. Tom will be joined by his wife, Carolina, who will be an ES teacher, and their two children, Valentina (Grade 10), and Sarah (Grade 5). Tom is highly qualified and experienced, and he has previously served as an Elementary School Principal for over 10 years in two international schools.  We look forward to having Tom visit campus later this school year as he begins his transition.
   

🏫  Campus Tours for New Parents

We are pleased to share that we will have an opportunity for our new families from 2020/2021 and 2021/2022 to connect with us on our campus.

This opportunity is for parents/guardians to come on campus to tour the classrooms, common areas and learning facilities. Over the last few weeks, we’ve been looking at ways to make this possible, while respecting both our school Covid mitigations, as well as local and regional mandates.  

We will provide these opportunities on Saturday, December 4, and Saturday, December 11. We will be offering 45-minute guided tours to parents/guardians who joined during last school year and this school year and have not yet accessed the campus. Requirements to participate in these tours beyond being a recent new family include:

• A predetermined tour guided by school leadership that will discuss the purpose of facilities and range of ways in which each space is utilized
   
• Maximum 6 parents per leadership tour guide (maximum 18 parents on campus at a time)
   
• Students cannot attend to comply with our Covid mitigations
   
• Proof of vaccination
   
• If the school moves to Distance Learning, we will not be able to continue with this offering
   
• A limited number of positions available for each day, so honoring of first preference might not be possible

If your new family is interested in signing up for a tour appointment, please complete the survey.  Please share your interest by November 26.  After that point we will share the appointment tour schedule with participants.
 

⭐️  Parent-Student-Teacher Conferences

Parent-Student-Teacher Conferences are coming on November 25 and 26.

Please be on the lookout for an email from your child’s division for digital sign-ups.
 

📚  Learning Model

All digital access to learning has ended except for students who are close contacts.

All students should be attending school on campus. Please connect with your child’s division office if you have any questions.
 

📄  Staffing and Recruitment

In international schools, recruitment for the following school year begins in the fall semester.

Leadership has been recruiting for 2022/2023 faculty for several weeks and we are pleased to share that the interest in coming to AAS Moscow is very high. To support recruiting, AAS asks staff who will be returning next year. We have many quality candidates with international teaching experience for each position. We will continue to be highly selective in our recruitment and we look forward to sharing more about those new staff we hire in the Spring.
 

🚨  Drills

AAS Moscow conducts regular practices (called drills) to ensure our students and staff are prepared for the unlikely eventuality of a real emergency.

Tomorrow, November 19, at 9:15, AAS will conduct a lockdown drill (safely stay in place). On November 23, at 13:30, AAS will conduct a fire drill (evacuation). We thank you for your support in conversations with your children about the importance of practicing safety and knowing how to act in an emergency.

 

Welcome back from the Fall break.

I do hope that all of our community members are healthy.
 

🤝  Parent - AAS Board Connection

Thank you to over fifty parents for joining us last night for a connection and Q&A with the AAS Board and Leadership.

It has become clear from that conversation how committed our parent community feels to making AAS Moscow a great place to learn for their children and we appreciate and we appreciate all of your engagement. We would also like to thank our Board who continue to steer the AAS ship through tough sees and into a place of growth.

If you missed this conversation, we encourage you to take a look at the video recording.

Watch the Recording

Feedback can be shared with the Board here:

Share Feedback
 

🏫  Enrollment

At this time of year, some of our families are learning that they will be leaving Moscow during the Winter Break.

Our teams want to best support leaving families and ask that you contact admissions@aas.ru as soon as you know about your departure plans. This will ensure your transition is smooth, your child’s new school receives school records on time and your withdrawal request is processed prior to your departure.
 

🐧  PTO Community Connection & Penguin Store

 Tuesday, November 16, 10:00 

We invite you to virtually join the upcoming PTO Community Connection next Tuesday, at 10 am on Webex at https://aas.webex.com/meet/pto.

The agenda includes student connections and a live stream from the new Penguin Store.

It’s a time to connect with our school and parent community and we hope you will have the opportunity to join us.
 

☝️  Covid Reminders

AAS protocols are based on information shared directly with us from the Sanitation Department and our external consultants who are monitoring all regulations, communications, and orders so that they can advise us accurately on how we should be responding.

Please see our Covid webpage for easy access to this information.
 

💙  Movember

Movember is about changing the face of men’s health, with the month’s purpose being to raise awareness about three of the biggest health risks affecting men: prostate cancer, testicular cancer, and mental health issues.  Encourage the men you know to be aware of these health risks and how to prevent them.

Students and staff can bring awareness to these issues through Movember by wearing blue on Thursdays starting this week.
 

We are hopeful that recent mitigation measures implemented by the city will soon improve Moscow’s epidemiological situation. It is also our sincere wish that all members of the AAS community have a chance to rest and reconnect with their families, friends, and loved ones safely over the Fall break. Our leadership, counselors and school psychologist continue to be available for all members of our community who may need support. Please take time for your personal wellbeing and access the wellness resources available on the AAS website to support you and your family.
 

💻  Distance Learning (DL)

All parents should have received additional information about the distance learning pathway from their children’s divisional offices as we move to DL tomorrow for all students. Parents can also refer to the divisional and schoolwide documentation on our distance learning webpage which includes student, teacher, and parent roles and responsibilities that optimize student learning in this pathway. 

You can also find divisional plans on the distance learning webpage. 

🤝  Community Connections

Board Connection Opportunity

The Board will host a digital Community Connection on November 9, 2021 for the community from 5:30pm to 6:30pm at Board WebEx shortly after the break.  The format will be open conversation, without pre submitted questions.  We encourage you to join us.

Small Group Parent Connection Cancellation

AAS canceled the small group parent community connection this past Monday due to the current health situation in Moscow.  We will reschedule with this group as soon as possible after the break.  Thank you for your patience during this unpredictable time.
 

⭐️  AAS Staff

AAS staff members' families are receiving visas and continue to arrive in Moscow. Those still delayed continue to engage with students remotely while substitutes support in-classroom teaching and learning. 

Those AAS families who have been outside the country to obtain new dependent visas should be returning within the next two to three weeks.  We look forward to having them back hopefully by the week after the November break.  The next group of families whose dependent’s visas are expiring in November will begin to depart Moscow in mid-November and are not expected to return until after the Winter Break.  As a friendly reminder, this trip is required due to the type of visa issued to these dependents.  

We recognize that these adjustments to staffing due to delays and limited visa timeframes are challenging.  We continue to provide support across the school for all students and each other with engagement by teachers and in-class substitutes to ensure disruptions to learning are minimized.  We anticipate that we will have all of these dependent visa issues resolved by the return from Winter Break without the need to engage in these periodic visa trips outside of Russia.
 

✈️  International Travel Reminders 

Students who travel internationally over the Fall break (regardless of their vaccination status) will be allowed on campus only after providing negative PCR results of a Day 3 PCR (day of arrival is day 1) to health.office@aas.ru and the AAS Health Office clearing the student to access campus without further self-isolation.

Lastly, having more individuals in our community vaccinated increases the safety for all in our community.  Therefore, students who are traveling internationally over the November or Winter breaks to be vaccinated will have digital learning access for one week after the break while they complete the PCR and limited self-isolation requirement by AAS.  In addition, students who must leave the country to obtain a new visa at any point during the school year will be allowed digital access to learning during their time outside of Moscow with a copy of their new visa being submitted upon return.  Digital learning will be coordinated and approved with the division leadership based on the specific circumstances of the student.
 

😷  Covid Cases for Students and Staff

We have 7 current positive student cases as well as all of Grade 6 students were moved to Distance Learning as of yesterday, Tuesday, and we have a total of 156 students who are close contacts at this moment in time.  In addition, we have 2 current positive staff cases. The school’s layered mitigations continue to show efficacy at preventing the spread of covid on campus. We know that we are entering a break, so we encourage families to minimize public interactions and engagement between AAS families so that if we are able to be on campus after the break, this possibility is not eliminated due to positive cases and close contacts. If you or your child are not feeling well or suspect to have been in contact with someone who has covid, please test early to ensure you are protecting the health of your family and the health of our school community.

Warm regards,
Rhonda and Chris

⭐️  Celebrations of Learning

Please join us in celebrating all of the wonderful learning that has been taking place in the last week by visiting the student news section of this newsletter, as well as, our school’s Facebook page. 

See Student News   Visit OUR Facebook Page
 

😷  Covid Response Team Update

As shared recently, our Covid Response Team met last Friday to consider many items related to managing Covid within the AAS Community.

Thank you to the parents who provided links to articles to consider as a part of our meeting. The following is a summary of the items considered:

• the current epidemiological situation in Moscow

• the current definitions of close contacts by various authorities

• expanding access and use of facilities beyond students and staff

• expanding student activities on and off campus

• pilot for rapid testing students currently being considered by Moscow

• vaccination requirements by the Russian authorities

• response to positive cases and close contact tracing

The team agreed that the current epidemiological situation in Moscow would have resulted in AAS moving all students to distance learning at this time last year. The current data in Moscow indicates our local community is in the red zone per CDC protocols for schools for both the new positive cases per 100,000 in the last 7 days and the acceleration rate of increase in positive cases in the past 7 days.

However, given our current staff vaccination rates greater than 80%, anticipated higher vaccination rates in our parent community than in the Moscow public, and the success AAS has seen with our layered mitigations, AAS will continue in our Modified Full On-Campus learning approach. However, the current situation requires that AAS continues to keep our mitigations in place, so we will not be expanding access and use of the facilities nor expanding student activities at this time.

We will continue to monitor the local health situation as well as evaluate AAS mitigations in relation to the situation. Also, we will respond to positive cases with close contacts with the least disruption to learning, i.e. distance learning by class, course, or grade level instead of moving a whole division and/or the whole school to distance learning unless the local authorities require otherwise.
 

☝️  Covid Close Contacts Clarification

Using the scientific data currently available and the local close contact regulations, we would like to clarify the close contact information we shared in the communication to families on Friday, October 8, 2021. 

A covid positive case will have close contacts traced from 2 days before the symptoms or the positive test (for asymptomatic) up to the 14th day of self-isolation/quarantine.
 

Thank you for your ongoing support and confidence in AAS for the learning of your children.

Warm regards,
Rhonda and Chris

😷  Covid Cases on Campus

We have had 3 more student cases in high school and one more staff case in the last two days.

The school’s layered mitigations continue to show efficacy at preventing the spread of covid on campus. However, we would like to remind families that based on the current epidemiological situation in Moscow, now may be the time to start considering limiting your families’ and your child’s exposure to others in public spaces and in person events. Please consider socialization in small groups (pods).

If you or your child are not feeling well or suspect to have been in contact with someone who has covid, please test early to ensure you are protecting the health of your family and the health of our school community. 

🔔  October 12 Director Connection with Parents 

Thank you to the families who joined us for a productive conversation last night.

If you missed the live session, please CLICK HERE to watch the recorded session.

The topics we discussed included visas, covid mitigations, and learning for students who are not on campus. We appreciate the questions, conversations and partnerships that push all of us to work together in support of supporting your children’s learning at school and at home. We will continue hosting online and in person Director and Board conversations with parents, please keep an eye on our online calendar for upcoming opportunities.
 

❤️  Thank you, PTO!

Thank you to the parents and staff who are actively supporting upcoming PTO initiatives. PTO events are an important component of life and learning at AAS which helps our community stay connected.

Next Tuesday’s PTO connection at 8:45 AM, will be a “walk & talk” with parents meeting by the front gate of Pokrovsky Hills and walking through the forest.

Also next week, the PTO New Book Fair will allow parents to order English language books from a list of over 1000 titles.

See the PTO news for more upcoming events and details on how to participate or volunteer.

 

🗓  School Schedule Reminder

Thursday (tomorrow) and Friday of this week are staff professional development days with no school for students.

Monday, October 11 is a no-school day. Our school calendar is governed by Board Policy and approved annually by the School Board. You can find annual calendar snapshots for this and next school years here:

Annual Calendar Snapshots

❇️  Communication

As we continue to collaborate and partner with parents in our community, we would like to share the previously adopted School Communications Flowchart to support effective communications within the school community.

See School Communications Flowchart

Thank you to our families for your ongoing partnership in support of our students.

 

☎️ Parent Drop-In Session

The Director and Deputy Director will hold a virtual parent drop-in on Tuesday, October 12, at 18:00.  We invite you to connect with us at https://aas.webex.com/meet/rhonda.norris. 

 

⭐️  School Board

New Board Member appointment

We are extremely grateful to the many parents who have expressed interest in contributing to our school by volunteering as a Community Board Member. Our parent community has an incredible depth of experience and goodwill towards supporting and improving our school community. We thank all of our applicants and are pleased to share that the Board has appointed Ľubica Zimanová to the vacant Community Member position effective immediately.  We would like to welcome Ms. Zimanová to the Board.

The Board is a group of volunteers who serve in this role in support of AAS.  AAS is in the process of transitioning the Board structure as well as the Board policies under the NKO such that the AAS Diplomatic School Board is the AAS NKO School Board and our policies are aligned with the required NKO regulations.  The AAS website for Leadership and Governance page lists each of the currently serving Board members and their brief bios on the far right column.
 

📝  Ongoing Feedback for the Board

A gentle reminder that AAS previously created an ongoing  AAS Board feedback digital tool for our community to use in sharing positive as well as constructive feedback related to strategic policies and decisions that are at the Board level. The AAS Board will review and consider feedback to seek trends as well as to inform conversations and decision making. Our Board members are volunteers and have full-time positions outside of AAS, so individual responses are not planned for each submission. You can find more details such as the Board Policies Manual and Board Briefs on our website. 
 

🏥  Health Office

As we continue to transition to the NKO, it is necessary that AAS evaluates every aspect of our Business and Operations that has evolved over the past 72 years so that we can ensure going forward we are in compliance with the NKO requirements.

As a part of this transition, AAS is reviewing all of the services previously available in the AAS Health Office.  Since the school is an educational organization and not a licensed medical clinic, AAS is unable to continue providing services such as community flu shots in the AAS Health Office.  Additional information will be shared in the community when we have confirmed the full range of services that will be available in the Health Office.
 

😷  Covid-19 Updates

Balancing Our Priorities 

AAS wants to have students on campus as much as possible. Teaching and learning are best when everyone is on campus.  We have had challenges with this priority due to Covid, visas, and updates shared by local Health authorities, CDC, and WHO.   We continue to balance between the health and medical information and our compliance with local expectations without putting the school in jeopardy.  School decisions that are not consistent with local regulations can lead to multiple ramifications including school closure.
 

💻  Digital Learning Access

One-way digital learning will be provided for students who are traveling to be vaccinated, to obtain visas, or unable to access campus for other reasons around the upcoming November and Winter breaks.
 

☑️  Upcoming Message Regarding AAS Covid Protocols

AAS will be providing a message later this week to clarify the current information from the health authorities in relation to international travel and close contacts that AAS will follow after this long weekend.

There are complexities and ongoing developments that we need to carefully consider before we share our most updated protocols.  For example, the Moscow Mayor shared yesterday that students attending schools in Moscow could be tested using the rapid test on a regular basis to help schools remain open.
 

🛡  Multiple Layers of Mitigation

At this time, we do want to re-share the following mitigations that are consistent with the local Russian Health Authority (WHO based) and the CDC approaches.

These mitigations have been in place, are in place now, and will continue to be in place until the Health Authorities advise that they are no longer necessary.  We have seen the strength of these layered mitigations and they give AAS confidence in having all students and staff on campus as our primary learning model.

 

Thank you for your continued confidence in AAS to provide learning for your children as well as your families' ongoing collaboration in this learning process.

Community Connections

Over the past several weeks, the divisions have held parent coffees with parents via WebEx and these will continue throughout the school year. 

In addition to these divisional opportunities to connect, the School Director hosted the first small group community connection this past Monday with 12 new parents that started at AAS in 2020 or 2021. During this connection, we gathered feedback on the admissions and onboarding process and engaged in conversations about the overall student experience.  Thank you to these families for their time and engagement and we look forward to continuing with these connection opportunities with other interested parents.  

AAS will remind parents periodically of the upcoming events, please be on the lookout for these opportunities.
 

Covid-19 Cases

In the past several weeks, AAS MS and HS students tested Covid-19 positive resulting in ~170 close contacts between students.

We have been in contact with those families impacted and were coordinating with them on a possible return date.
 

Close Contacts Process Changes

This morning, AAS was contacted by the Russian Sanitation Authority in regard to a positive Covid-19 test result for one of our students.

This Authority confirmed that all students who are close contacts must self-isolate for 14 days, regardless of their vaccination status. Given this direction from the Russian Sanitation Authority today, AAS must return to our previous protocol that all AAS students who are identified as close contacts must remain off campus for 14 days and submit a PCR before they can return  to campus.

It is important to note that any student who is considered a close contact will be provided two-way digital access to learning.

Updated Covid-19 Response Flowchart
 

Masks

There have been questions from some requests from parents to consider eliminating the masks for students on campus. 

AAS will continue with this mitigation because it allows for all students to be on campus.  In addition, last Friday, September 24, 2021, CDC shared three studies from schools that indicate masks keep the virus from spreading.  The odds of a school associated COVID-19 outbreak in schools with no mask requirement is 3.7 times higher than schools with a mask requirement.

 

International Travel

Having more individuals in our community vaccinated increases the safety for all in our community. 

Therefore, students who are traveling internationally over the November or Winter breaks to be vaccinated will have digital learning access for one week after the break while they complete the PCR and self-isolation requirement by AAS.  In addition, students who must leave the country to obtain a new visa at any point during the school year will be allowed digital access to learning during their time outside of Moscow with a copy of their new visa being submitted upon return.  Digital learning will be coordinated and approved with the division leadership based on the specific circumstances of the student.

🗓  2021-2022 Calendar Update

On September 17, 2021, the Russian government made adjustments to its national holidays calendar.

As a result, AAS have made adjustments to this and next year’s school calendars and these changes have been approved by the AAS Board. These changes were necessary to comply with the revised Russian national holiday schedule. Specifically these changes relate to two holidays that have been moved from January to May 3, and May 10, 2022. These holidays are not optional under our non-commercial organization (NKO) school status. This results in two previous three day weekends becoming four day weekends in May 2022.

 

 

You can see the updates reflected on https://www.aas.ru/calendar as well as on the 2021-2022 Calendar one pager linked below.

See the updated 2021-2022 Calendar

We have also adjusted the 2022-2023 Calendar by adding two additional school days that make up for the added May 2022 holidays. The revised calendar for next year has also been approved by the AAS Board. This is consistent with Board Policy 6.20 which requires that AAS ensure the average number of school days is 180 over a three school year period.
 

💙  In-Person Small Group Conversations

Rhonda and Chris will be launching a new series of parent meetings next week with the first Small Group Conversation of the year.

There will be two formats for meetings this year, the small group and the WebEx drop-in sessions. The Small Group meetings are designed to provide parents an opportunity to meet in person with senior leadership in order to connect or reconnect as well as to have a conversation. We plan to have about 8 of these conversations throughout the school year and each conversation will be focused on different segments of our parent population.

Our first meeting will be next Monday, September 27, and for new families who joined our community in the last two years. Invitations will be sent shortly to parents who have responded with interest.

Please note that all parents who attend must be fully vaccinated.
 

📎  AAS Staff

AAS staff members' families continue to receive visas and arrive in Moscow. These delayed educators continue to engage with students and with an on-campus substitute.  

In addition, some of our AAS families will leave Moscow today or tomorrow to obtain new dependent visas. We did not receive authorization to obtain these visas outside of these individual’s home country, so they will be traveling back to North America. We anticipate multiple weeks of absence for this process. The division leadership will keep our parents updated based on the educators who are out.

We recognize that these adjustments to staffing due to delays and limited visa timeframes are challenging. We are working across the school to support all students and each other to ensure disruptions to learning are minimal.  Our goal is to continue with all students on campus. We are meeting student learning needs through digital teaching as necessary which is preferred over distance learning.
 

🚩  ES Principal Update

We have some great news to report.

Our search for a new ES Principal for the 2022/2023 school year is well underway and our application process will remain open until September 30, 2021.

AAS is fortunate to have a strong pool of applicants for this position already and our hiring committee began reviewing and identifying the top candidates for the first round of interviews. Finalists will be selected in the coming weeks. If you are aware of possible quality candidates from other international schools, please share this link with them.
 

🔎  Director Search Focus Groups

Thank you to those parents in our Community who expressed interest in being a part of a focus group with our external consultant, International Schools Services (ISS).

These meetings are being finalized today. There will be two meetings for parents during the week of October 4-8, one meeting in the morning and one meeting in the late-afternoon/early evening.
 

🌳  Life and Learning at AAS

We look forward to more opportunities with parents on campus as the health situation in Moscow improves.

In the meantime, please continue to follow life and learning at AAS by adding our school media channels to your favorites.  

• 🌇  AAS Instagram

• 🖥  AAS Facebook 

• 🎬  Weekly Student News
   

❤️  Celebrating Learning

Dr. Schuster, AAS Deputy Director, debunks the learning loss narrative in a short article that celebrates AAS student learning achievements by reviewing recent MAP and IBDP results.

Read the Article
 

🔎  Director Search Focus Groups

International School Services (ISS), the appointed international recruitment consultant for the AAS Director's Search, will be hosting focus groups with the AAS community to gather input and feedback from the school's stakeholder groups on what these groups would like to see in the next Director who will be appointed to begin in July 2023.

There will be 10 to 12 total groups with no more than 12 to 15 people in each group so that this process is manageable and meaningful. These virtual sessions will take place no later than the first week of October 2021 and are expected to last about 45 minutes each. 

Please express your interest if you would like to be engaged in this process as an AAS parent no later than Monday, September 20, 2021. We anticipate not being able to accommodate all interested community members but AAS will ensure that there is representation from the various demographics across our school community. If you express interest in participating, we ask for your flexibility in being able to participate in the confirmed meeting times with the consultants when shared. Thank you in advance for considering engagement in this important process for the future leadership of AAS.
 

💉  COVID Procedure Update for Vaccinated Students

• Definition of Fully Vaccinated
  Fully vaccinated is considered to be an individual two weeks after the completion of the required series of a recognized covid vaccination series.

• International Travel

  • Vaccinated  NEW 
    Submit a negative PCR on day 3 (arrival is day 1) along with vaccination record to Health Office. Students can return to campus on day 4 with no further isolation with AAS Health Office’s clearance. 

  • Unvaccinated
    Submit a negative PCR on day 3 (arrival is day 1), self-isolate for 7 days, inclusive of the PCR timing then return to campus on day 8 with AAS Health Office’s clearance.

• Covid Exposure

  • Vaccinated  NEW 
    All vaccinated students are required to get PCR tested between the 3rd-5th day after an identified exposure. Vaccinated students without symptoms and with a negative PCR test can come back to campus with AAS Health Office clearance, unless required by local authorities to self-isolated.

  • Unvaccinated
    All unvaccinated students are required to get a PCR as soon as possible. Students can return to campus 14 days after identified exposure with a negative PCR test and AAS Health Office clearance.   

• PCR Test & Vaccination Submissions
  After travel and/or covid exposure, fully vaccinated students should submit their negative tests and vaccine documentation to the health office. Fully vaccinated students must wait for clearance from the health office before returning to campus.
   

✅  Reminders

A few ongoing reminders:

• Please continue to use the “Daily Pass” (you should have received individualized passes for each student).

• Please remember that your child must arrive on campus wearing his/her mask.

• Please reference the updated COVID Response Flowchart for details for individual students with symptoms or considered close contacts.

• Please reference the updated International Travel Guidelines as it relates to students returning to campus. 

• Please remember that these Mitigations are still in place on campus.

• Please continue to communicate with the AAS Health Office at health.office@aas.ru.
   

📝  Community Survey Results

This Community survey was distributed to all AAS parents with enrolled students on June 17, 2021.

There were 712 total respondents.
The 9-year annual average is 939 Respondents.
Please note that AAS did not conduct the survey in 2020 due to the pandemic.

The overall trend in the data is that positive responses are slightly down (a few percentage points) and negative responses are slightly up.

It is clear from the data that our experience last year through the pandemic has challenged effective communication and community building, and should be a priority for this year. The combination of our learning models limiting students on campus, combined with parents not having access to campus, has caused our sense of community to struggle during the 2020-2021 school year.

In an effort to find new ways to bring our community together, we will be scheduling a number of virtual group drop-in sessions as well as invitations for small group parents sessions on campus to connect with AAS Director, Rhonda Norris, and Deputy Director, Dr. Chris Schuster.

Please keep an eye out for these invitations.
 

💻  Digital Access 

Please reference the Learning Guidelines to be clear about timing for moving from one-way digital learning access to no digital access.

This week is the first week for one-way digital access and this access will be in place through September 17, after which there will be no digital access except through special circumstances related to Covid.

Please ensure your family keeps your child’s divisional office updated.
 

♻️  AAS Environmental Responsibility Update 

In past years, the ECO Green committee has been the leader of eco-friendly information and advocacy at AAS.

Over the last 18 months, AAS has made a commitment to create an Environmental Responsibility Board Policy, adopted in May 2021, which guides AAS in decision-making, action and learning around being environmentally responsible.

Please share some of your celebrations and considerations about AAS’s actions and advocacy related to environmental responsibility.

Share celebrations

Share Considerations

If you are interested in joining the AAS Environmental Responsibility working group, please email us at communications@aas.ru or click the survey buttons above. 

 

🌳  Life and Learning at AAS

We look forward to more opportunities with parents on campus as the health situation in Moscow improves.

In the meantime, please continue to follow life and learning at AAS by adding our school media channels to your favorites.  

• 🌇  AAS Instagram

• 🖥  AAS Facebook 

• 🎬  Weekly Student News
   

Welcome to week three of the 2021/2022 school year.

Although we know that not all families are back in Moscow and not all students are on campus, our teams do hope your families have had a good start to the year.

In reading an article by Lara Kain (Paces Connection Staff) recently, it reinforced for me that as we continue to move towards more normalized experiences, it is still important to remember that we are not there yet in terms of being past the pandemic.  Ms. Kain states that the important thing is to “prioritize the heart and proceed with grace” because we “continue to be in uncharted waters”.  She advises that we go forward with the positive intentions, compassion, and empathy helping us to be “better humans for it in the end”.  

We have come a long way since March 2020 and our community continues to adapt and show resilience with every passing day. Our school values of integrity, courage, care, respect, and curiosity should continue to support and guide us in everyday interactions, challenges, and decisions. We look forward to working together with each of us doing our very best.
 

💻  New Families’ Seminars

This past Monday marked the second weekly seminar for new families with a conversation centered on AAS student support and counselor services.

Please visit our new families’ website to see the recording of this Monday’s meeting. Next week, we will discuss technology and digital learning at AAS as well as our Penguin Life programs in more detail. We encourage you to attend to support your transition to AAS and Moscow.
 

📈  Measures of Academic Progress (MAP testing)

Over the next two weeks, all students in grades 2-10 will participate in Measures of Academic Progress (MAP®) testing.

MAP assessments are used across all three divisions as one of many views into your child's progress within the Learning at AAS program. Please refer to this letter to learn more about MAP.

 

🎪  Postponing the AAS Fun Run & PTO Family BBQ

The AAS Fun Run & PTO Family BBQ is a treasured community tradition at AAS.

With our continued focus on ensuring learning continues safely on campus, we are postponing this annual fall event so we can review the epidemiological situation and safety regulations in the spring of 2022. In the meantime, our teams are working together with the AAS PTO to find safe ways to engage our parent community.

If you have experience or ideas and would like to help us plan virtual community engagement events, please contact communications@aas.ru and pto@aas.ru. 

 

🌐  AAS Staff

AAS staff members' families are receiving visas and continue to arrive in Moscow.

We anticipate that a few of our families will be delayed beyond September due to covid related delays in obtaining the required, authenticated documentation. These delayed educators continue to engage with students and with an on-campus substitute.

In addition, some of our AAS families will have to depart Moscow in a few weeks for about one-week to obtain new dependent visas. We are seeking authorization for a location in the same time zone as Moscow. This trip is required due to the type of visa issued to these dependents. We are working with the Russian Authorities and it seems we have a long-term solution for these dependents now that the September 1st visa changes are available to our staff families.

We recognize that these adjustments to staffing due to delays and limited visa timeframes are challenging. We are working across the school to support all students and each other to ensure disruptions to learning are minimal.  Our goal is to continue with all students on campus meeting these needs through digital teaching as necessary.  AAS leadership is committed to keeping our community updated as we have new information related to teaching staff.
 

🦠  Covid Reminders

Please reference the Learning Guidelines to be clear about timing for moving from one-way digital learning access to no digital access.

This week is the first week for one-way digital access and this access will be in place through September 17, after which there will be no digital access except through special circumstances related to Covid. Please ensure your family keeps your child’s divisional office updated.
 

Have a wonderful week!
Rhonda Norris and Christopher Schuster.

Happy Wednesday!

I hope this newsletter finds your families settling into school routines well.

We are delighted to report that many of our delayed visas were received and educators have been arriving steadily into Moscow. We continue to work with staff who have not yet received their visas and hope to see them in Moscow very soon. Those not yet in Moscow continue to engage with students and on-campus substitutes.  AAS division leadership will update parents when we know more about the arrival dates of remaining educators.

I wanted to highlight a few items.

• Please continue to use the “Daily Pass”
• Please remember that your child must arrive on campus wearing a mask
• Please reference the COVID Response Flowchart for details for individual students with symptoms
• Please remember that these Review Mitigations are still in place on campus
• Please reference the Read Learning Guidelines to be clear about how we will move from two-way digital learning access to one-way to no digital access.
   

🌃  MS & HS Back to School Nights

AAS will be hosting the Middle and High School Back-to-School Nights this week.

We encourage parents to participate in learning more about your child’s day and learning at AAS. Building positive partnerships with parents in support of our students is essential for learning.

Please see the MS and HS division information in this Newsletter to learn more.
 

🐧  Penguin Life

MS and HS students already started their Fall Season activities, athletics, and clubs through Penguin Life.

The ES Penguin Clubs sign-up starts today! Please see the Penguin Life section of this newsletter to learn more.
 

📖  New Families’ Seminars

This Monday marked the start of our weekly seminars for new families with a conversation about the curriculum at AAS.

Please keep an eye on our new families’ website for upcoming topics and seminar times. We encourage you to attend to support your transition to AAS and Moscow.
 

💰  Cashier Services

The school is in the process of installing new payment terminals.

We apologize for the inconvenience as we are not able to accept payments until terminals are installed and we are in compliance with local payment regulations for educational institutions. Students are receiving their requested calculators and musical instrument rentals and will pay for them once the cashier is able to receive payments.
 

🏫  Penguin Shop

The school is getting the Penguin Shop prepared for opening.

As noted above, our new payment terminals are critical for our ability to run the Penguin Shop. We look forward to announcing the Penguin Shop opening in the coming weeks.
 

🚍  Bus Coordinator

Sergey, the TLS bus coordinator, is available to answer questions from parents and students via telephone or WhatsApp at +7 (926) 009-27-47.

He also has a desk located in the front entrance lobby for students to access if needed. Student bus services are arranged directly between TLS and families, and we encourage you to work with Sergey regarding any bus transport related questions.
 

🧁  Cafeteria

D&D Catering provides food services to the school on a contractual basis.

Prepayments for student lunches can be made using a debit or credit card. Cash payments are not accepted in the cafeteria due to sanitation requirements, however, parents may contact D&D catering to schedule time to make a cash payment by emailing cafeteria@aas.ru or calling +7 (903) 708-77-41.
 

Thank you to your families for choosing AAS and engaging in our community.  All the best for another fantastic week!

Warm regards,
Rhonda and Chris.

 

Welcome again to the new school year!

It is my pleasure to welcome each of you to the 2021/2022 school year at AAS Moscow! It was wonderful to meet new families through our New Families’ Orientation day this past Saturday and see all of the student and parent engagement during our Open House this past Monday. Our teams continue to value our parent partnerships and thank you for the ongoing support and confidence in AAS.

I do hope your family had opportunities in recent weeks and months to spend quality time together during what I know has been a time of uncertainty and stress. There are parents and staff in our community who have not yet arrived in Moscow. While this is not ideal, we have implemented a support plan for students in all classrooms.

Student participation and engagement was high on the first day of classes. Thank you for your partnership in supporting your children in their successful start to the new school year. Please enjoy our Opening Ceremony video if you were not able to join the live stream yesterday.

Opening Ceremony Recording
 

💗  Connections between Families

One area that we know is important to everyone is making connections between students and adults.

Our teams are seeking clarification on how to appropriately share private contact information between members of our community without violating local legal expectations for data protection. Fundamentally, it is evident that AAS is required to obtain individual approval with specific language from each family beyond the general approval on the Admissions enrollment documents to share family contact information. Our team is in the process of creating the appropriate authorization language and the digital approval system needed alongside a sustainable digital tool for capturing and managing this data so families can access it securely.  In the meantime, AAS staff members cannot provide this information to parents. We recognize this is a significant tool to support our families in connecting to one another. We will share when this approval and tool are available.

Thank you for your understanding and patience.
 

🙏  AAS Board and PTO

We have two groups of volunteers who dedicate many hours to our school, the AAS Board, and the AAS Parent Teacher Organization (PTO).

We are pleased to introduce the 2021/2022 AAS Board. The AAS website for Leadership and Governance page lists each of the currently serving Board members and their brief bios on the far right column. In addition, there are links on this page to the AAS Board Policy Manual. The structure for AAS and the Board is noted in Policy 1.10 (Charter) and Policy 1.20 (By-laws). AAS wishes to express our gratitude for this group of volunteers in providing support for our school.

For those who expressed interest in the vacant community member position, the applicant information has been shared with the Executive Committee of the Board for review and follow-up.

Also, please meet the PTO Leadership and Committee Chairs as well as learn about the Parent Teacher Organization (PTO). As a parent or teacher, you are automatically a member of the AAS PTO. We encourage you to join the PTO activities and events in support of the student learning and wellbeing at AAS.

Thank you for your engagement, feedback, and collaboration that benefits our students every day. Best wishes for an amazing 2021/2022 school year!

Warm regards,

Rhonda Norris, Director
Christopher Schuster, Deputy Director
Anglo-American School of Moscow Anglo-American School of Moscow

Welcome to the new 2021-2022 school year!

It is our pleasure to welcome each of you to the 2021/2022 school year at the Anglo-American School of Moscow! Our teams welcome your collaboration, and partnership in support of students and their learning. We are very much looking forward to having all students on campus in Full Modified On Campus next week.
 

❇️  New Families Orientation

 August 21 

Our new families have been invited to a welcome event which contains virtual orientations from our divisions and departments.

We have also provided for optional in person connection opportunities on the South Field for families that joined AAS in 2020 and 2021. These small group connections include additional mitigation measures and are by sign-up only. If you are a new AAS family in 2020 or 2021 and have not received this information, please email communications@aas.ru.
 

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💻  Virtual Open House

 August 23 

We invite everyone in our community to join us for our Open House, on Monday, August 23.

An email with a detailed schedule for the Open House will be shared with our community on Saturday, August 21. 

• Parents and students from our elementary school will be invited to meet their teachers virtually throughout the morning and early afternoon. 
• All new MS and HS students as well as all Grade 6 and 9 students will be invited to campus for an orientation in the morning. Families will receive invitations directly from the divisional offices. 
• All parents will be invited to join virtual sessions with our Digital Learning and Technology Team, Bus Services, Library, and Penguin Life later in the afternoon.

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🖼  Want to be Included in our Virtual Opening Ceremony?

Share a picture of yourself holding a poster you made that describes how you feel about your AAS friends, teachers, and other community members.

Share your picture here
Hurry! We are accepting submissions only until this Friday.
 

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🏫  Return to Campus

 August 24 

To support the return of all students to school in-person, on-campus please see the previously shared AAS Learning Guidelines noting our phased approach to learning in support of the return of students to learning and the return of families to Moscow after the summer break.

Read Learning Guidelines

As a friendly reminder, please note the access to campus protocols and the mitigations that will be in place as we begin the school year.

Review Access To Campus Protocols

Review Mitigations

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🖌  Staffing

As we begin the school year, we have some staffing challenges based on delayed visas but our AAS teams and our community have pulled together once to support a plan that will allow AAS to welcome students back on campus as planned.

The AAS Community has continued to show support and resilience in times of adversity and we appreciate this strong partnership and look forward to another great year of outstanding learning at AAS. Thank you again for your ongoing support and continued confidence in our teams for the education and well-being of your child(ren)!
 

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🏫  ES, MS, and HS News

Please see the divisional sections of this newsletter to find welcome letters from divisional principals.

ES News   MS News   HS News

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❤️  Thank you!

Thank you to our community for sharing contacts to assist AAS in our transition in services under the NKO.

AAS was able to identify several visa facilitators who we are collaborating with now related to our remaining visas for staff and dependents. We will be reaching out in the future in other key areas of operations that are changing and I thank you in advance for your continued engagement and feedback.

Also, thank you to the community for the survey feedback that you provided near the end of last school year.  Our next steps include a detailed review of the statistics and the individual comments with the goal of identifying trends to be incorporated into our goals and action steps where possible and appropriate for the 2021/2022 school year and beyond.  A summary report will be shared with the Board as well.
 

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🙏  AAS Board and PTO

We have two main groups of volunteers who dedicate many hours to our school, the AAS Board and the AAS Parent Teacher Organization (PTO).

We are pleased to introduce the current members of the 2021/2022 AAS Board. The AAS website for Leadership and Governance page lists each of the currently serving Board members and their brief bios on the far right column. In addition, there are links on this same website page to the AAS Board Policy Manual. The structure for AAS and the Board is noted in Policy 1.10 (Charter) and Policy 1.20 (By-laws).

AAS wishes to express our gratitude for this group of volunteers in providing support for our school. Thank you to those parents who have expressed interest in the community board member vacant position.  The Board will be following up with these individuals shortly.

Also, please meet the PTO Leadership and Committee Chairs as well as learn about the PTO. As a parent or teacher, you are automatically a member of the AAS PTO. We encourage you to join the PTO activities and events in support of the student learning environment at AAS.

We invite you to join the Virtual PTO Welcome Back Coffee on Tuesday, August 24, at 10am.
 

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🌐  Community Connections

We would like to share that leadership plans to host a number of Community Connections in the first quarter so that we can get to know more about one another and so we can share more about AAS with our parent partners.

Thank you for your engagement, feedback, and collaboration for the benefit of our students. Best wishes for an amazing 2020/2021 school year!

Dear Parents,

The world, our community, and many of you continue to be faced with unprecedented challenges. We very much appreciate your ongoing collaboration in these challenging times including in supporting your children as they engage through the distance learning model this week.
 

⭐️  New Opportunities

We would like to share some enhancements in opportunities as of Monday, March 21.

To support our youngest learners, we have arranged for PreK and Kinder students, who are still in Moscow, to attend learning on campus. In addition, we have already reintroduced the Learn2Swim program for Elementary School and are reintroducing a range of on campus and virtual after school activities for all divisions starting next Monday.

These opportunities were possible due to staffing and student location at this time. AAS continues to be committed to health and safety as well as quality opportunities for students.
 

🌐  Community Voices

While we know that the situation with the Ukrainian conflict is still very uncertain, leadership and the Board needs to hear from our community in order to be informed for making the best decisions for all of our students.

Today, parents and staff will receive surveys to gauge where each of you are at this time and ensure we are informed as we consider next steps and decisions to best meet the needs of students.  We understand that there is uncertainty, however, your timely response will directly benefit the students of AAS Moscow by allowing leadership and the Board to make informed decisions.
 

📝  Surveys - Reply This Week

We welcome your immediate feedback this week so that we can analyze and review this information with the Board to inform our decision making on what is possible and best meets the future needs of our students.
 

🏫  March Board Meeting

Leadership and the Board have met and will meet at least one more time at the end of next week specifically on next steps for learning at AAS.

From this next meeting, we anticipate sharing, in the early part of April, a confirmed timeframe in regards to distance learning for this year and the proposed thinking on our plan for opening in August 2022.  After we share this information with our community, we will re-engage with the re-enrollment process for existing families and proceed with considering new students.

Thank you for your understanding and patience given the unusual circumstances of this year.
 

📊  NEASC Accreditation Visit

As was shared last week, AAS is participating this week in our virtual NEASC accreditation visit with our three guest team members.

Leadership had an opening meeting with this team on Monday and, at the end of each day, we meet with the team lead to discuss the feedback from the day. The visit includes classroom observations through WebEx as well as meetings with various groups to follow-up on our self-reflection report. The team feedback has been positive in relation to learning and engagement between teachers and students through the observations so far this week.

We look forward to confirming our ongoing accreditation with NEASC from this visit as well as sharing a summary of the accreditation report.
 

Warm regards,
Rhonda Norris
Chris Schuster