12 May 2022
Coming Up
View the 2021-22 Year-at-a-Glance Calendar here.
View our Parent Google Calendar here.
Family Corner
Welcome to our new principal, Ms. Kim Strandemo
Please welcome Ms. Kim Strandemo, our new principal. Ms. Kim begins next Monday, May 16th. She will be greeting our students, parents and guardians in the carpool lines each morning. An introduction letter for Ms. Kim was sent to all AOWL community members on Monday, May 9th and can be found at this link. She looks forward to meeting as many families in-person as she can at the Ceremony of COmpletion on Thursday, June 2nd and the Annual All-School Picnic on Friday, June 3rd, and, of course, in the carpool line!
2022 Virtual Minds of All Kinds Fundraiser Update
Thank you to all who were a part of Virtual Minds of All Kinds 2022! We raised a total of $125,000 toward our goal of $175,000! We are filled with so much gratitude for your incredible support and the outpouring of generosity. Your donations are allowing us to continue providing transformative services to each one of our students, clients, and young adults. All donations over our goal will go toward scholarships!

If you missed the event, you can watch the entire program by clicking here or on the video below!
Track and Field Days
Next Thursday, May 19th, 2022, MIDDLE SCHOOL and HIGH SCHOOL will have their annual Field Day event from 1:00 to 2:45 PM. On Friday, May 20th, 2022, LOWER SCHOOL will have their Field Day event from 1:00 to 2:45 PM.

BOTH field days will have the following in common:
  • Students should wear shorts, t-shirts, or pants they are comfortable wearing while exercising.
  • The plan is to have all events in the back field of AOWL. If there is inclement weather, the backup plan is to hold the event in the gym
  • We would LOVE to have families come to the event. We would also love to have volunteers. Volunteers to run the event should arrive at 12:30 PM. Anyone watching or coming to see their student can arrive at12:50 PM.
  • Starting at 1:00 PM, students will be in groups and spend 10 minutes at each station (total of 8 stations) with 2 minutes of transition and extra explanation time between rotations. Students will get a 5 minute break before participating in a Group Event at approximately 2:25 PM.

Each day will have different themes. Middle and High School will have events with a Video Game theme. Examples of stations will include Link's Slingshot, Captain Falcon's Shot Put and Punt, Sonic Races, Gotta Catch 'Em All/Pokemon Hunt, and Mario Hurdles. Lower school will have an Outer Space theme. Examples of stations include Rings Of Saturn Hula-Hoops, Race Around The Sun, Javelin Launch, Moon Feed Grogu, and Flying Saucer Throws.'
Last Day of School Activities
Come meet Ms. Kim Strandemo, our new school principal, as we celebrate the last day of school. Beginning at 11:00 AM, we will have our annual All-School Picnic. All families are invited to join us outside for the picnic! Please pack a lunch for your student and bring a blanket and/or lawn chairs.

Beginning at 11:30am, students can be dismissed. If you are attending the picnic, please feel free to stay until noon.

Please Note: All students must be picked up by 12pm noon. Owls' Nest will not be provided after school this day.
Class of 2022 Ceremony of Completion
The Ceremony of Completion is our graduation ceremony, where Academy of Whole Learning graduates share the highlights of their school experience with the people who have helped them along the way, what they're looking forward to most, and advice they have for younger students. Also at the event, we will hear remarks from staff including Executive Director Dr. Wyayn Rasmussen, Board Chair John Higgins, and even our new Principle Kim Strandemo.

After the ceremony, we are hosting a reception where you can socialize, take pictures, enjoy food, and more, complete with live piano music by an AOWL alumni. There will be two options for ceremony attendance; virtual or in-person. RSVP for the event at: www.aowl.org/cc for both in person and virtual attendees or click the button below. All in person attendees are requested to RSVP.

The Ceremony of Completion is on Thursday, June 2nd, 2022. Doors open at 6:00pm and the ceremony starts at 6:30 pm. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to the Ceremony of Completion Committee at ceremonyofcompletion@aowl.org.
Annual Parent Survey
Early next week, we will be sending a survey to each AOWL parent requesting feedback regarding your satisfaction this year. This anonymous survey will be sent from Survey Monkey and should take no more than 6-7 minutes to complete. Your feedback is important to us in our quest to continually improve our school and offerings. Thanks in advance for your participation!
Teacher and Staff Appreciation
Please watch your email for opportunities to show your appreciation for all of the faculty and staff the week of May 16th
PTO
PTO Events and Meetings have concluded for the year. Please stay tuned over the summer for news regarding opportunities to get involved with the PTO next year.
New Building, New Name
Here is a reminder for everyone in our community that we'll be on our new campus next year! Stay tuned to see our new name and brand this June and get ready to be wowed by our new facilities in August.
2022 - 2023 School Year Calendar at a Glance
The 2022-2023 School Year Calendar at a Glance has been posted to the Parents' Page on our Website.
Beyond the Bell
Summer Camp
  • Deadline for camp registration is Friday, May 20, 2022. After this date, registration will be allowed only as space becomes available.
  • If you have any questions, or wish to register after May 20th, please contact Amber Trapp

Owl's Nest Before and After-School Care
  • Owl's Nest will be available both before and after Summer programing.
  • Summer 2022 hours are 8 am- 9 am and 3 pm - 4:30 pm.
  • Please confirm your needs for Owl's Nest by filling out the following Google Form

Activity Days
  • All Activity Days are now complete for this school year.

Wilderness Inquiry
  • Our partners at Wilderness Inquiry will be back on May 16th from 3:30 - 4:30pm for one last push-in day. Students will get a chance to test water quality and macroinvertebrates from a local source. Registration is open on Smart Tuition.
  • Email enrichment-programs@aowl.org or andy.dreher@aowl.org with any questions.

Enrichment Program Questions

For more Enrichment information, see the Beyond the Bell Page 
COVID-19 Update
Thank you for your flexibility and cooperation in returning temporarily to a "masks required" status. Beginning Monday, May 18th, we will return to “masks recommended”.

On February 25th the CDC announced new metrics for determining COVID-19 community levels. Levels can be low, medium, or high and are determined by looking at hospital beds being used, hospital admissions, and the total number of new COVID-19 cases in an area.

Under the new metrics, the community level for Hennepin County is now Low.

You can read more about community levels and COVID prevention steps based on community levels at the CDC website.

Masks are now “strongly recommended” instead of “required” during times when the community level in Hennepin county is Low or Medium. When the community level is High, masks will be required. This applies to all staff, clinic clients, and students in the school and adult education programs regardless of vaccination status.

The sick policy will remain the same. Quarantine and isolation requirements will remain the same.

If you have any questions, please contact Allison Barosko at Allison.Barosko@aowl.org. Thank you!
Enriching Experiences
Slide into Summer While Avoiding the Summer Slide
By Amber Trapp, Enrichment Program Manager

Summer’s right around the corner, and with it, the constant challenge for parents. How do we provide an academic challenge to our kiddos, similar to the school year, and yet find an avenue for them to still be kids and have fun? Most of us are still at work, 12 months a year, but our academic calendar doesn’t match. Plus the fact that three months is a long time to retain information and be ready to build on it when the next grade year starts. 

At AOWL, we don’t view learning as pure academics. Social skills, emotional aptitude, executive functioning — those are just as important as academics. That’s why we created our Bridge the Gap summer camps, to build on those whole-person skills your students work on during the regular school year. 

Practice equals progress. Taking a break for three months would be like taking time off in training to run a marathon — you wouldn’t be able to compete! When students can practice and learn with the help of experienced staff in a safe, welcoming environment, summer can be a time to move ahead. In fact, because of our wonderful Minnesota weather, summer can be a time for new and different learning, like our Active Outdoor camp and our Cooking camp. 

If you haven’t experienced our camps yet, we invite you to take a look. We like to think of camp as fun AND functional, just like our school year. Not to mention this year’s campers will be the first to enjoy our new campus, at least those attending the end of July! For questions or more information, please contact Amber Trapp, Enrichment Program Manager, at amber.trapp@aowl.org. Adventures await!!
View from the Nest
Camp Tanadoona
Contacts
PTO Co-chairs

Executive Director