Arcadia This Week 9/17/2023
Hello, Arcadia families, students, and friends!
Thank you to all Arcadians for making yesterday a wonderful first day of school! Our mission notes that we “envision a supportive learning community” for all Arcadians, and it definitely felt that way. Thank you for your engagement, your humor, your kindness toward one another, and making this a really lovely place to be.
Today’s newsletter includes:
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Student Social Contract
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Lunch Update
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Upcoming Events
Student Social Contract
This year’s all school social contract was completed through the group facilitation of Arcadia’s seniors, juniors, and a few additional supportive high school Arcadians. All high school and middle school students were involved in the conversations around what should be included–many voices contributed to the final contract. Thank you to everyone who led and participated in this process!! Here are the statements that were ratified by the student body.
As Arcadians, to work productively, live peacefully, and act zestily in a civil, collaborative environment, we will:
Cultivate a productive school environment, using work time responsibly, being present and listening, participating well, keeping our spaces quiet, clean, and supportive–and knowing when to have fun.
Be respectful of the physical environment, using tools appropriately, keeping surfaces and items free from damage and graffiti, being aware of the spaces we are in and others’ needs, including their personal items.
Treat others (including otters) with kindness, respecting their emotional and physical needs and boundaries, and speak up when norms are not followed.
Encourage acceptance by acknowledging our differences while still being inclusive.
Be open to taking responsible risks, striving to expand our limits and get out of our comfort zones, while respecting the comfort zones of others.
Follow Clause 23 of the Magna Carta (1215): No town or person shall be forced to build bridges over rivers except those with an ancient obligation to do so.
(...) :)
A couple of notes…
“Otters” was originally a misspelling of “others,” but when they were going to be removed to spell it correctly, the group felt there was no reason that otters were not also worthy of kindness. So they decided to leave them in.
Clause 23 of Magna Carta has been included in Arcadian social contracts since its introduction in 2021 as part of a discussion that included concepts like the rule of law and citizens’ rights and responsibilities. This clause has also been construed in the Arcadian context as a metaphor for not compelling individuals into social bridge-building.
Lunch Update
At this point, we have a better sense of what we can and cannot do, but now we have to decide which direction to go. Do we put in a commercial refrigerator? A commercial freezer? Will we need a vegetable sink–which is separate from a three compartment dishwashing sink? How we design a “kitchen” space depends entirely on what we intend to do in that space, which means we have to figure out what students need from that space. One of the limitations is that there is not a space for a stove, so any hot food would have to be pre-prepped (like bags of soup) and served in a warmer.
Also, keep in mind that any money we spend comes out of our general fund–the fund that pays for all things that directly benefit students–so we want to use that money wisely, and in ways that are truly beneficial to the student body.
For example, if students aren’t going to eat cold sandwiches, then it wouldn’t make sense to spend $10,000-$15,000 making modifications to the Great Room and getting equipment and training to allow us to serve cold sandwiches.
But if Arcadia students love sandwiches, would like to be able to get them at school instead of having to bring them from home, and would really find value in having access to facilities to support that at school, then we could choose to spend the money to make that happen.
To try to figure this out, we need your input. Please fill out this survey to help us determine what direction to take the lunch program.
In the meantime, please continue to send a lunch with your child!
COVID Reminders
Ugh. COVID. Just a reminder that, if a student tests positive for COVID, the student should stay home for five days after the day they test positive, and wear a mask for an additional five days (until day ten) if they are feeling well enough to return to school after the first five days.
We have plenty of COVID tests and will continue to leave them in the front entryway for students to take, as needed. The original expiration dates have been extended through the end of this year, so you can ignore the expiration date on the box of the test. It’s still good.
If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to our school nurse, Gail Setterstrom, at: gsetterstrom@arcadiacharterschool.org
Upcoming Events
Sept. 19, 6:30-8:30pm: Arcadia School Board Meeting, in person at Arcadia, or view online: https://meet.google.com/hyf-amke-zsx
Sept. 22: Safety Drills (morning)
Oct. 6: Midterm
Oct. 12: All School Field Trips: HS to Northrup Auditorium for Step Afrika, MS to Children’s Theater for the show Cookin’ and the Minneapolis Institute of Art
Oct. 12, 4:00pm-5:00pm: Arcadia Finance Committee Meeting, online only, view online at: https://meet.google.com/vsb-nrqc-zuj
Oct. 17, 6:30-8:30pm: Arcadia School Board Meeting, in person at Arcadia, or view online: https://meet.google.com/hyf-amke-zsx
Oct. 19 and 20: No School–Fall Break
Sincerely,
