Stay In-the-Know: This Week’s Top News You Can’t Miss
- Last chance to order your free school shirt! Deadline is this Friday, link in the PTA section below
- Everyone should have access to Konstella now. If you are having any issues, contact Matt Smith
- Pay your enrichment fee and PTA dues below and make sure to join us on September 12th for our first General PTA Meeting at 9am in the Community Room
- All volunteers need to complete a background check to be able to volunteer this year! Link below
- Welcome new teachers Ms. Maurer and Ms. Harvey!
Cougar PRIDE Families,
It’s going to be another great week at Casis! Here we are in our third week and our school systems are beginning to fall into place. That said, there is still much to learn, as we continue to move into this new school year. It was great to see so many special shirts and apparel on National College Day. And I certainly hope that the three-day weekend provided everyone a little time to slow down before the rest of the school year takes off. This week we will welcome parents back onto the campus for lunch visits. Please review ‘Lunch Visit Reminders’ outlined further in this newsletter. Please see other important information for the week below.
Mr. Tinnon
NEWS FROM THE PRINCIPAL
STAFF NEWS
We’d like to welcome the following new Casis staff members to our Cougar P.R.I.D.E. Family!
- Kierstin Maurer is now a member of our permanent school staff. Ms. Maurer, aka ‘Teacher Jinx” will be a Teacher Assistant in our Special Education program. Teacher Jinx was a long-term substitute with us last year and did an amazing job of working with our students. Staff members, as well as families, loved her and we were so excited to be able to offer Teacher Jinx a permanent position on our team this school year. We’re so fortunate to have found Teacher Jinx and look forward to working with her. Welcome Jinx!
- Dejrianna Harvey is our new Pre-School Teacher in our Cougar Cubs Class. Ms. Harvey has six years of experience in the early childhood, childcare, and pre-school field. The staff of the Casis Child Development Center is so very excited to welcome Ms. Harvey to the team and her classroom. Glad you’re here Ms. Harvey!
We are so happy that they have chosen to join our team and we look forward to working with these individuals.
GIFTED & TALENTED INFORMATION SESSION
Wednesday, September 10 at 8:30am – 9:30am in the Casis Community Room, there will be an Information Session for parents who are interested in learning more about Gifted and Talented (GT) services provided at Casis Elementary, as well as the AISD Nomination/Identification process. All interested parents should plan to attend, as this will be the only scheduled session for this school year. The Gifted & Talented referral window is now open and will remain open until October 17. To learn more about GT services in AISD and to submit a referral, click here for the English link. Additional languages can be found here. Thanks in advance to our campus GT Advocates and presenters, Lauren Vienne (K) and Vickie Price (3rd) for leading this information session.
ANNUAL NOTIFICATION LETTERS
Austin ISD is mandated by the Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act (AHERA) to provide written notification regarding the availability of asbestos management plans for District facilities. Note: This notification is required, even if our facility does not have any asbestos-containing building materials. The Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Department of AISD is also mandated by the Texas Structural Pest Control Act to provide written notification of the types of pesticides used, and their scheduled application, on school grounds. Please see links to both of these notifications here: (1) AHERA Notification Letter and (2) IPM Notification Letter
NEW PERSONAL COMMUNICATION DEVICE POLICY
In accordance with Texas House Bill 1481, all school districts are required to adopt and implement a policy prohibiting the use of personal communication devices by students on school property during the school day (first bell to last bell). Please see the official AISD Personal Communication Device Policy One-Pager. And here’s an Away For The Day Flyer, which summarizes this new policy in a more simple graphic representation. The preference is that no devices are brought to school at all, but if they are, please know that students will not be allowed to wear them during the day and will be asked to either turn the device off or put it on silent, while at school. We appreciate the cooperation and compliance of everyone.
STUDENT HANDBOOK & STUDENT SUCCESS GUIDE
Please see the most updated editions of our campus Student-Parent Handbook and the district Student Success Guide for this school year. In alignment with AISD, both of these documents act as guidelines for our school community practices and policies. Please review and reference them throughout the 25 – 26 school year.
COUGAR P.R.I.D.E. FRIDAYS
Your child(ren) will start coming home with blue half-sheets of paper, titled ‘Casis Cougar P.R.I.D.E.’ This incentive program is connected to our school-wide expectations. Every Friday, classroom teachers will be able to select two students to come to the office and be recognized with a certificate and some goodies. This gives Administration an opportunity to interact with as many of our kiddos as possible in a positive way. When your child(ren) brings their items home, please reinforce how proud they should be of themselves, as well as taking the opportunity to discuss the school-wide expectations of P.R.I.D.E.
LUNCH VISIT REMINDERS
Parents will be able to come and visit their children during lunchtime, beginning Tuesday, September 2. As we welcome parents back onto campus this school year, please be reminded of the following lunchroom visit guidelines:
- Children must remain in the cafeteria with their class during lunch.
- Due to space, bringing younger siblings is discouraged.
- Due to space and large class sizes, be aware that there are a limited amount of seats for adults.
- Parents may bring lunch for their child(ren) only.
- Parents may not just drop off lunches – must be present.
- Parents must check-out in the office immediately after their child’s lunch time.
- Parents may not stay with children during their outside recess time.
CAMPUS ADVISORY COUNCIL (CAC)
The Casis Campus Advisory Council (CAC) meets every 1st Tuesday of each month at 3:30p.m. Our first meeting will be Tuesday, September 2, in the Community Room. This group of staff, parents, and community volunteers assist in making site-based decisions about various school topics. The CAC acts as an advisory to the campus Principal. There is also always an opportunity on the agenda for non-members to have citizen communication. We are thankful for the parents and staff members who participate on this council, as we discuss important matters that concern our learning community and school district.
EMERGENCY DRILLS ON CAMPUS
Student and staff safety are a top priority in the district and at schools. At Casis Elementary, we will have monthly rotating drills that practice safety measures that are taken, in the event of campus emergencies. Here’s a visual poster that is in every classroom, explaining all of the drills that will take place during the school year: Safety Poster. If parents happen to be volunteering or visiting during any of our monthly drill exercises, they will be expected to participate and follow the group that they are closest to at the time. It’s important for students to be aware of our safety measures and to participate in these practice drills. Please know that staff members are expected to speak about the topic of safety, using child-friendly language and terms, so as not to cause undue anxiety or stress around these required drill activities. For more information about safety protocols in AISD, visit: AISD Emergency Management website.
CHARACTER STRONG IMPLEMENTATION & PRACTICES
This year, AISD and Casis Elementary are implementing a new Character Education and Behavioral Support program called Character Strong. This program is meant to provide students with the necessary skills and strategies to be the very best humans that they can be in the world. Students will hear morning messages and receive lessons from their teachers about topics like respect, gratitude, honesty, courage and more. Teachers will be providing weekly lessons and sending home monthly information to families about the different program topics learned each month. The lessons derive from a program called, “Purposefull People”. Here’s a Family Introductory Letter about Purposefull People. Each month we will cover a different Character Strong topic and resources will be shared to help families have meaningful conversations at home about the learned trait. Here’s an Overview of the monthly topics that will be taught. The Character Strong trait for the month of September is Respect. Here’s the Family Connection Newsletter – Respect for this first month’s theme. We are so excited to be ‘Character Strong’ at Casis Elementary!
IMPORTANT DATES
September – National Hispanic American Heritage Month 2025
Tues., Sept. 2 – CAC Meeting at 3:30pm (Community Room)
Wed., Sept. 10 – GT Parent Information Meeting at 8:30am–9:30am (Community Room)
Fri., Sept. 12 – General PTA Meeting at 9:30am (Community Room)
Mon., Sept. 15 – Fri., Sept. 19 – Celebrate Freedom Week (Texas)
Mon., Sept. 22 – Tues., Sept. 23 – AISD Teaching Assistant Appreciation Week
Mon., Sept. 22 – Staff Development Day & Student Holiday
Tues., Sept. 23 – Staff Development Day & Student Holiday (Rosh Hashanah)
Fri., Sept. 26 – Administrators Coffee Chat at 8:00am (Community Room)
TRAFFIC SAFETY PROCEDURES
Please adhere to the guidelines in your particular arrival/dismissal area (Front Circle Drive or North Parking Lot). See Arrival & Dismissal Plan here. We continually ask for your patience and cooperation in exercising safe practices in your area.
Additionally, please see the following reminders/updates:
- Walkers should use crosswalks at all times.
- Bikers should park bikes at bike racks and walk bikes through crosswalks.
- Drivers should ALWAYS be aware of our foot and bike traffic.
- Drivers should consider TURNING OFF ENGINES when not moving forward.
- Avoid Parking in the Casis Village, if conducting school business.
- Front Circle Drive & Hillview are available for parent parking during the day.
- The North Parking Lot is designated for staff parking only.
- Vehicles using the North Parking Lot during arrival and dismissal (3rd – 5th) should be aware of all walkers who are using the parking lot crosswalks.
- Vehicles cued on Northwood for Circle Drive afternoon pick-up should remain in one moving line to avoid double-parking.
Vehicles who need to enter the North Parking Lot for morning/afternoon drop-offs/pick-ups of 3rd – 5th graders may safely by-pass the ‘Circle Drive’ vehicles to enter the parking lot.