Anderson School District 3

Today Superintendent Hipp attended United Way of Anderson's drive-in campaign kick-off! Thank you, United Way, for supporting the Anderson County communities for 75 years! 👍

This week's #A3AllStar is a special retirement spotlight! 🌟 Meet, Mary Lewis! Ms. Lewis is retiring after 12 years as a School Mental Health Counselor for Anderson 3 and the Anderson County Board of Education. Mary began her career as a Program Coordinator of a Children's Day Treatment Program for S.C. Department of Mental Health. She later worked in Anderson 5 as the Program Director/Lead Clinical Counselor of their Children's Day Treatment Program before joining our team. Q: "What do you value most about your position?" A: "The opportunity to work with children of all ages, the chance to collaborate with so many incredible teachers, counselors, and support staff, and the lasting friendships that developed." Q: "If you could sum up working in education in a few sentences, what would you say?" A: "Working in education can be the most rewarding and humbling experience of a lifetime. Regardless of how much we think we know, there is always more to be learned and discovered. Often, it's children that teach us that very lesson." Here are Five Facts about Ms. Lewis: 1. The outdoors is my happy place! ☀️ 2. I love hiking, kayaking, and golfing. 🥾🚣🏌️‍♀️ 3. I'm right-handed but eat with my left hand. 🥄 4. I have two schnauzers: Lexi (4) and Riley (1), who are in charge of the house. 🐕 5. My retirement bucket list includes traveling to see all of the U.S. National Parks. 🏞️ Thank you, Ms. Lewis, for your service to the students of Anderson School District Three. We will miss you, but we wish you the best in your retirement! Keep Calm; your summer is extra long! 😎

Welcome, Tonya Frare! Mrs. Frare will be joining the A3 teaching team as an 8th-grade math teacher at Starr-Iva Middle School! Mrs. Frare is a graduate of Clemson University and has a degree in Elementary Education. She began her career as an elementary teacher but later switched to middle school math. Before this year, she taught 7th-grade Math at Robert Anderson Middle School. Her favorite activities outside of school are cycling, knitting, and spending time with her family. Mrs. Frare and her husband, Jack, live in Anderson and have five children and nine grandchildren. Please join us in welcoming her to our district!

Iva Elementary is looking for a long-term certified substitute teacher for the 2020-2021 school year! Please contact Daniel Crawford, Principal, for more information.

Starr Elementary is looking for a long-term certified substitute for the 2020-2021 school year! Please contact Melissa Davis, Principal, for more information.

As of July 31, 2020, the South Carolina Department of Education mandated: "Students and staff in South Carolina public schools must wear a face-covering upon entering a school building, moving through hallways, during carpool/bus drop off or pick up, and when social distancing is not possible or optimal. Student face coverings may be removed upon teacher or administrator direction while in the classroom or during special activities outside the classroom." This mandate follows our mask policy stated by Mrs. Hipp in the superintendent update last week. Masks will be provided for students when boarding buses or before entering the school building if they do not have one. If you have questions about the SCDE mandate, view the guidelines here: https://bit.ly/SCDE-Masks

Tax Free Weekend is Almost Here! 📚✏️ Get the details and start planning your Tax Free Weekend by visiting dor.sc.gov/taxfreeweekend for shopping lists and FAQs!

We are looking for an excellent teacher to join our 6th-grade teaching team at Starr-Iva Middle! Apply Now! https://teachatanderson3.com/

Congratulations, Jim Jarrard! Mr. Jarrard has been named the District Office Support Staff Employee of the Year. He will join the school-level support staff nominees running for A3 Support Staff Employee of the year. Jim Jarrard, also known as "Bones," is a 1979 graduate of Crescent High School. He is an active member of the Grove Fire Department and has been a volunteer firefighter for over 40 years! Jarrard loves agriculture and was a member of the FFA in high school. Today he still runs a small beef farm and enjoys welding and fabrication in his free time. Jarrard is a dedicated husband, father, and grandfather. As director of maintenance, "Bones" is tasked with ensuring that A3 students have a safe and well-maintained learning environment. Bones' focus for his job is to make Anderson 3 better for every student and employee. Mr. Jarrard appreciates the nomination but acknowledges that what he does would not be possible without the hard work and determination from A3 Maintenance Engineer, Blake Whitfield. Congratulations, Jim Jarrard! Thank you for your dedication to the students, staff, and community of Anderson School District 3.

Welcome, Mindy Price! Ms. Price will be joining the A3 Family as a Special Education teacher at Crescent High School! Mindy is excited to be coming back to her hometown to teach at Crescent. She is a 1998 graduate of Crescent High and has been in education for over 10 years. Before coming to Crescent, Price was a Special Education teacher in Greenville County. Aside from teaching, she has been a pitching coach for fast-pitch softball for over 20 years. When she is not working, Mindy and her husband love to travel. She also enjoys playing volleyball. Please join us in welcoming her to Anderson 3!

Please keep in mind that every returning student must complete student registration. This year, we are conducting registration via Parent Portal to streamline the process. This is independent of your choice of learning option. Completing online registration via Parent Portal does NOT sign a student up for the ACSD3 Virtual Learning Academy.

Have questions regarding attendance zones? Click here: http://bit.ly/A3AttendanceZones For a list of documents needed to enroll new students click here: https://bit.ly/39I6ihp

Please take a moment to watch our 2020-2021 Back to School Superintendent Message. In this update, Mrs. Hipp and Dr. Nixon provide details on increased safety measures to ensure a safe return to school. Please know that our focus remains on providing an outstanding education for our students in a manner that safeguards our employees, students, and communities to the greatest extent possible. https://youtu.be/EQTxTFL1hRg

Decisions to enroll in A3 Virtual Learning must be made by Friday, July 31. Please understand that Virtual Learning is NOT the same as eLearning. A contract must be signed, and a commitment for the entire first semester must be made to enroll. Please contact your student's school if you have any questions.

Today is the last day to complete our "Parent Declaration of Intent" form so we may have a better understanding of our families' needs. If you have more than one child that attends Anderson 3, please fill out a form for each student. https://forms.gle/1GcVeqdhdQq3V2dEA

To keep you as informed as possible, we would like to update you on our 2020-2021 school year schedule. After recommendations from Gov. McMaster and evaluating our families' and staff's needs, we have modified our operating schedule. Elementary and Middle school students will operate on a traditional 5-day face-to-face schedule that follows model 1 of our reopening plan. We will update you when a plan for high school students is complete. We will still offer a virtual option for the 2020-2021 school year. A commitment for at least the first semester must be made by July 31. Your child's school will inform you of the virtual learning details.

Online Registration is Now Open! To access, log in to your PowerSchool Parent Portal account. https://bit.ly/A3ParentPortal If you have questions regarding registration, please contact your child's school.

Due to Governor McMaster's recommendations, we have adjusted our school calendar to reflect a later start date. Please note that the new start date for Elementary and Middle school students is August 31, 2020. High school students will begin on September 8, 2020. Further information regarding school operations will be forthcoming in a separate announcement. To download/print our calendar, click here: https://bit.ly/A32020-21

Need Help? The United Way has put together a list of local resources to help you

A3 Families: Your input is needed. Please take a moment to complete our "Parent Declaration of Intent" form so we may have a better understanding of our families' needs. If you have more than one child that attends Anderson 3, please fill out a form for each student. Please respond by July 27. https://forms.gle/1GcVeqdhdQq3V2dEA