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November 24, 2024

A Note from the Director


Dear Families,

This will be a short week, as there is no school for students and staff Wednesday through Friday, November 27-29. November continues with examples of kindness and thankfulness for IvyCares Month. Scroll down to see some of them!


Things to know for after the holiday include the annual bookfair, the PTA online meeting, and planning for a spring St. Patrick's dance. Check it out below.



Finally, we want to ensure that you're receiving information on time from Ivymount. This Constant Contact email platform that we use to send you the IvyNotes newsletter is also the tool through which we send other information, such as policy updates, announcements, PTA event information, etc... We ask that you not Unsubscribe to any individual emails, as that will remove you from ALL emails. Please let your program director know if you're not seeing regular communications.


IvyNotes will return on December 8. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving.


Sincerely,


Susan

News you Need!

Dates to Remember


November 27 - 29

Thanksgiving Holiday

No School for Students


December 23- January 3

Winter Break

No School for Students


January 6

Professional Day

No School for Students


PTA News


December 11

PTA Meeting via Zoom

7 pm


The PTA invites all Ivymount School families to participate in the next PTA meeting, which will be held online in December. Do you have ideas for events or other initiatives that you would like the PTA to look into?

Student Handmade Holiday Cards for Sale

Gator Card Shop is now taking orders for Holiday Cards! Whether you want to send a card to someone or give them a handmade and original gift, we have the cards for you! 


Each card is handmade by our Aspire Applied HS students, comes packaged with an envelope, and is $1.00 per card. Check student backpacks for forms or see below for a link.


Order forms are due by the end of the day Monday, December 2. Cards will be delivered to your classroom/office by the week of December 16.

Holiday Card Order Form

Spirit of IvyCares Month Continues

Across the organization, different departments and programs have been participating in IvyCares this month, taking time for activities that create opportunities for staff and students to show care and kindness for themselves and others and to celebrate differences and strengths.


The Speech Language Therapy department worked with students who filled a bulletin board with messages that they wrote about themselves. Students identified their own strengths and thought about positive adjectives to describe themselves.


During the recent professional day, staff in the Endeavors and Aspire programs completed an exercise in which they were asked for words they would use to describe Ivymount School students. The words were collected and turned into word clouds, with the most-mentioned words appearing larger. As the photos show, staff have so many positive ways to describe students, including: friendly, kind, creative, funny, hardworking, compassionate, intelligent, determined, compassionate, thoughtful and more!

The Feast Before the Feast!

Aspire and Endeavors High school students participated in a “fall feast” on Friday, completing tasks such as cooking, setting up, serving and cleaning up. Homerooms made sides like cranberry sauce, gravy, mashed potatoes, stuffing, corn and green beans to enjoy with chicken and turkey. Friends enjoyed sharing a meal they worked on making together.

LISS Funding Application Deadline- November 30th

The November 30 deadline to apply for the FY 2025-Round 2 Low Intensity Support Services (LISS) Program is quickly approaching! The LISS program is provided through the Developmental Disabilities Administration (DDA) of the Maryland Department of Health. It provides up to $2,000 to assist eligible children and adults with developmental and/or intellectual disabilities with purchasing eligible services and/or items to address their needs. LISS financial assistance is awarded through a random selection process.


Did you know that LISS funding can be applied to many Ivymount Outreach Programs or other eligible services/items?


Click here for more information

PTA NEWS AND UPDATES

Help Plan the Next St. Pat's Dance

PTA St. Patrick's Dance

The St. Patrick's Day School Dance in the spring will be a celebration for all programs and ages across the entire school. We're excited to once again bring together our incredible community for an evening filled with music, laughter, and fantastic vibes.


We need a couple of volunteers now to help the PTA's VP of Events with the early organizing. The plan is ready but needs a few hands to get the arrangements underway. We will ask for night of volunteers later in our planning.


If you enjoyed last year's dance and can help make this a shamrockin' good time, contact Gillian Economou.

Consider Ivymount this Giving Season


Did you know that Ivymount raises at least $1 million dollars annually to cover the gap between state-funded tuition and the actual cost of providing our educational and therapeutic services? Funds raised are invested in staff training, professional development, curricula and other initiatives.


The Ivymount Annual Fund and #GivingTuesday campaigns raise funds so that every student "CAN" achieve their goals. Your tax-deductible donation to Ivymount supports vital programs and services that enhance the strengths of those we serve. And it enables our staff to excel and develop innovative programs and practices that we share with the community.

Support Ivymount
Monthly Giving Benefits

Weekly Food Options

Gator Cafe

Monday - Friday

9:00 AM - 9:30 AM


Gator Lunch Shop

Monday - Friday

12:00 PM - 12:30 PM


Ice Cream Shop

Friday

2:15 PM - 2:45 PM

Weekly Food Options Mens

Snow Cone Shack

Wednesday

11:00 AM - 11:30 AM


Gator Nachos

Thursday

(Lunch Delivery Service Only)


Pizza Business

Friday

Weekly Food Options- Menus

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2024-25 School Calendar
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