Week of October 5, 2026
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Principal's Message from Dr. Edwards
Whether it feels like time has flown by, crawled along, or somewhere in between, we are just 1 week away from the end of the first quarter and Fall Break. I believe it has been an excellent start to our school year, and we are already seeing lots of growth in our students. I am so appreciative of all the hard work that our staff and our parents have contributed to that end. Keep up the strong home routines. And if those routines aren't where you would want them at this point, there is no time like the present to do something different. We talked about "redos" with our students this week in our Nurture Groups, and we all need those at times as we all make mistakes, and everyone deserves a chance to try again. At home, give kids opportunities to reset and redo what went wrong by practicing better choices.
We all ROW together when we respect the crew, own the quest, and do our best. Among the many things to celebrate so far in the year, I want to highlight the efforts around getting kids to school each day through the month of September as we continue to have a 97% attendance rate overall. Let's ROW!
And finally, FES is excited to be hosting the Spelling Bee again this year. If your child (in grades 2-4) is interested in participating, please fill out this FORM. We're looking forward to a great competition!
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School Attendance Rates
“Much of life is in learning to always remain part of the solution rather than allowing ourselves to become part of the problem." -- Jim Rohn |
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Reporting Absences
Please assist us by being sure to call our office at 317-485-3180 or email elizabeth.thomas@mvcsc.k12.in.us if your student is going to be absent. With state reporting, we have to assign specific codes for every absence, and it saves our office staff a lot of time each day if we don’t have to call to follow-up on students that are marked absent by their teachers. And please be sure to provide the documentation required for qualifying absences to be marked as excused in a timely manner. We are working together to meet the state accountability expectation and school goal of at least 95% attendance rate for every student.
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Important Dates
End of Quarter 1
Friday, October 9
Fall Break (No School)
October 12-16
Q1 Report Cards Available in Skyward
Thursday, October 22
Related Arts Rotation Days
Happy Friday!
This week, I continued our bullying prevention classroom lessons by going into 3 of 6 1st-grade classrooms and 2 of 7 kindergarten classrooms for their lessons. For the 1st-grade lessons, we read a book called "Diamond Rattle Loves to Tattle" by Ashley Bartley. Then we had a discussion about different kinds of conflicts and ended the lesson by doing an activity where they had to decide which type of conflict a scenario was. For the kindergarten lessons, we read a book called "A Bad Case of Tattle Tongue" by Julia Cook. Then we had a discussion about different kinds of conflicts and ended the lesson by doing an activity where they had to decide which type of conflict a scenario was. Next week I will go into the rest of the 1st-grade and kindergarten classrooms for their bullying prevention lesson.
Yesterday, a ParentSquare message went out explaining MVCSC's Thanksgiving Assistance program. Please read the blurb below if you are in need of this assistance.
Outlook Christian Church is partnering with MVCSC again this year to provide Thanksgiving meal assistance to families in need. They can provide 25 'bags' per school in the district. If your immediate family needs help with providing a Thanksgiving meal this year, please submit the form attached to this post. ONLY families needing assistance need to fill out the form, and families with multiple children in MV schools should apply only at the school their youngest child attends. All requests must be submitted by the end of the school day on Wednesday, October 21st (1:20pm). Thanksgiving meals MUST be picked up at Fortville Elementary (FES) on Monday, November 23.
Thanksgiving Assistance Form
**The sign-up is first-come, first-served due to limited resources.
Reminders:
- Any student has the ability to request to come talk/meet with me. Students ask their teachers to fill out a Let's Talk slip and bring it down to my office. If I am not currently available, students put the slip into my mailbox.
Upcoming events:
- 1st Quarter Classroom Lesson for all grades: Bullying Prevention
- 2nd Quarter Classroom Lesson for all grades: Sense of Belonging
- 10/21: Thanksgiving Assistance Form Due
House Points Update
These students were called to the Success Slide on Friday to be recognized for something from the week (being a great helper, working hard, demonstrating growth in a skill, etc.) Thanks for being valuable contributors to our Viking community!
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MV Reads: News from the Library
Mrs. Jennifer Leavell, FES Teacher Librarian
It’s been a great first quarter in the library! Students have checked out over 6,200 books so far this school year! Keep encouraging a love of reading at home!
As we approach fall break, overdue and fine notices will go home with students next week. I appreciate your help in getting overdue books and fines taken care of as soon as possible! Parents can pay for lost library books via MVCSC’s eFunds link. Click on PAY for Optional Fees, then choose Lost/Damaged Library Books.
"Be a Substitute Teacher" and MV Employment
Fortville Elementary is a great place to work, and we would love to have you join our team. You can apply on the MV Employment website. We are currently looking for an Instructional Aide and a leave teacher in 4th grade.
And we always need substitute teachers! Subs apply through Kelly Education Services (information below).
- To learn more or apply for substitute teacher positions at Mt. Vernon, please contact Kelly Education by completing this Inquiry Form and a recruiter will follow up with you. For questions, please call 800-991-5157, option 2.
- Kelly Services will guide the applicant how to obtain a substitute permit issued by the Indiana Department of Education (~$17) and a background check (~$28).
- Kelly Services will then share a short orientation video that will show you how to choose the jobs of your choice at Mt. Vernon and how to see the incentive offers.
Help Support FES Year-round
Help our school get a share of the money that many of America’s best companies are giving to K-12 education. SchoolStore.com is an online shopping mall where over 400 merchants have agreed to give a percentage of every sale to schools. This includes companies like Walmart, Best Buy, Old Navy, Kohl’s, etc. Just go to the website and then to the merchant websites you normally order from and help us earn rewards. The SchoolStore fundraiser is 100% online so there is NO face-to-face selling, handling money, or delivering products.
Go to https://www.schoolstore.net/sid.t?0000177219 to sign up. If you have questions about how to participate, reach out to our office. Once you are registered, invite family, friends and co-workers to support your child and our school.
Parent Resources
To be a chaperone on a field trip or to volunteer in the classroom regularly, you must have a clear background check from the current school year on file with our building (this is separate from any other MV buildings). FES Volunteer Background Check Form
At MV, we have all of our instructional staff trained on TBRI, and we now have a Parent Resource Hub available to our families to access at any time.
Webinars on support and advocacy for parents of High ability students. https://nagc.org/page/webinars
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Great Job with Walk-a-thon, FES!
(Over $31,000 raised!!!)
We have already ordered 2 large picnic tables with umbrellas for the playground to be delivered later this fall, and we look forward to funding many teacher mini-grants throughout the year and supporting all the other fun and celebrations with our FES students and staff.
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