Dear ATC Students and Families,

Welcome to the 2024-2025 school year! I hope your summer break has been, and continues to be joyful. I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for choosing ATC for your education. We are excited to see all of our students on Friday, August 9th, for the first day of school. See details for the first day of school below. 

Please visit our website, https://www.atcschool.org/o/the-academy/page/bts, for all of your back-to-school information: calendar, school supply lists, and more. Santa Fe Public Schools has not yet released their school bus transportation routes for ATC. We will post those to our website as soon as we receive them so please be on the lookout. 

ATC is pleased to announce that meals will continue to be offered at no cost to all students attending Santa Fe Public Schools per the Healthy Hunger-Free Students Bill of Rights Act. Students attending ATC will still need to complete a meal application. Please complete an application at MySchoolApps beginning July 1, 2024, to determine the meal status of your student(s). It is recommended that applications are completed online for faster processing.

Although we are offering no-cost meals to all students regardless of eligibility, we continue to be responsible for collecting eligibility data. This information determines eligibility for P-EBT, funding for Title I, E-Rate, and other programs that benefit students within the district and ATC. Being determined eligible under these guidelines also provides students with access to fee waivers and scholarship opportunities in the college application process. Even if you are unsure if you qualify, please complete the application form at MySchoolApps and visit our School Lunches page for more information. Please remind your students that ordering food from delivery services such as Doordash, Uber Eats, etc. is not allowed as our front office does not have time to manage these deliveries.

PowerSchool will be live starting August 1st for the 24-25 school year. We know that students are eager to look at their class schedules, but please keep in mind that throughout the summer we continue to adjust schedules, balance class rosters, and enroll students. We kindly ask that you do not contact the school prior to August 9th regarding schedule changes. Our Academic Office will take student schedule change requests during the first ten days of school by grade level. Students will receive information about the time and location for schedule changes. Please also keep in mind that not all schedule change requests are feasible.

ATC will continue to offer a 1:1 24/7 Device Take-Home program. Chromebooks will be issued to all students participating. Students will be responsible for bringing their device to school daily with a full battery charge.  Devices will be distributed the first day of  school through College Crew classes. Please complete the Device Program Acknowledgements form and have your student bring it the first day of school to receive their device. Forms can also be emailed to helpdesk@atcschool.org. 

First Day of School – August 9th 

Get ready to kick off the school year in a fun and exciting way! This year, we're doing things differently with a special focus on community building. On the first day back, we’ll dive into a variety of activities and games designed to help you reconnect with your friends and make new ones!

Here's what you need to know:

• Start in Crew: Begin your day in your College Crew classes. You'll receive your class schedules before you enter school–there will be tables by grade level in front of the school. You will receive your agenda and computer in Crew. 

• Dress for Success: Plan your outfit with movement in mind! We’ll have both indoor and outdoor activities, so be sure to wear something comfortable. Don’t forget your water bottle, shades, and sunscreen to stay hydrated and protected!

• Magazines Needed: We need magazines for one of our activities. Bring at least five magazines to share in your Crew class and earn an hour of community service! Drop them off in your Crew Classroom. 

• Club Fair Fun: Explore all the amazing clubs we offer at our Club Fair during lunch. Tables will be on both floors–outside your club leader’s classroom or office. There will be time before school to bring posters and set up!

• Meals Provided: As this is a normal school day, breakfast and lunch will be provided, so you’ll have plenty of energy for all the activities.

• Dismissal Details: Students will be dismissed at 2:30 PM, and buses will be running at that time to take you home.

We can’t wait to see you and start this incredible year together! Let’s make it a memorable one filled with learning, laughter, and lots of community spirit.

Student Drivers! If you wish to drive to school and park at ATC, you will need to purchase a parking permit and complete a Student Parking Agreement by August 16th. Please bring your completed agreement, proof of registration and insurance, and $25 payment to receive your parking permit and assigned parking spot. Reminder, as noted in the agreement, ATC is a closed campus and visiting your vehicle during school hours is prohibited without prior permission from the front office.

Updated Calendar:  Linked here is a copy of the slightly updated calendar for the upcoming school year.  With changes made possible by recent legal rulings about the state’s calendar requirements, we were able to reinstate our traditional full week of Thanksgiving break.  We do have a few differences between our calendar and Santa Fe Public School’s calendar (Oct. 11, Nov. 5, Apr. 21), but primarily we follow their calendar and always follow SFPS  snow-day decisions. 

The Schedule:  ATC will continue its modified block schedule with longer blocks and flexible learning time, but we have revised the schedule to provide for consistent dismissal times Monday through Thursday at 4:15 and a 3:30 early release on Fridays for faculty professional development (with two exceptions being the first day of school, at 2:30 and the first Friday back to school in January, 4:15). Here are our bell schedules for this year. With block scheduling, a useful home routine parents can help students accomplish is preparing their backpack for each day, switching class materials from 1st-3rd periods to 4th-6th periods on block days. This routine can help with that mysterious abyss that is the bottom of a student’s backpack. We also hope students will have less to carry overall, most days of the week.  Please also support your student in remembering to charge their Chromebook every night so they are ready to engage in school each day. 

Flexible Learning Time (Flex):  ATC’s schedule provides for a “Flex” period at the end of the day, Tuesday through Friday.  This period is part of the school day and is designed, primarily, for students to focus on their academic needs.  We provide study halls, tutoring, and intensives as well as clubs and activities during this time. Analysis of last year’s data clearly shows the academic value of attending Flex Intensives with students attending assigned intensives earning substantially higher GPAs than those who were absent from their assigned Intensives.   Students will work with their College Crew teachers to make sure they are using Flex to their best advantage.  Students will also be receiving a weekly grade in Crew tied to their Flex attendance. We thank parents and guardians for their support in helping our students make good choices in how they use this important block of time. 

Cell Phone Policy and Procedures: This school year, we will be placing renewed emphasis and support on our school’s existing cell phone policy.  As cell phones have become more and more part of students’ social life, we have found that students’ ability to regulate phone use in classrooms has become more of a struggle. ATC’s Cell Phone Policy has long stated that cell phones are not to be used in classrooms without explicit teacher permission.  This year, we will implement additional procedures to support that policy.  In every class, including Crew and Flex, students will be required to place their cell phone in a storage caddy in the classroom so that it will not be available to them during class time without express permission from the teacher.  Students will have access to their phones before and after school, during passing times, and at lunch.  We thank parents and guardians for supporting this procedure by communicating the importance of focus in class to your student and by understanding that they will not have their cell phones to communicate with you other than the times outlined above. Parents with absolute emergency needs to communicate immediately with their student should do so through the Front Office. 

We are pleased to announce that NMPED has published their Vistas report and designated ATC as an Excellence school for SY22-23. To achieve this, ATC ranked in the top 10% of public schools in New Mexico. Our Vistas report for SY23-24 should be released sometime in this fall. ATC was also recognized by Teach+Plus New Mexico and awarded their “Growing Outcomes through Innovation” award for increasing high school graduation rates.

I am also very pleased to announce that ATC has been awarded an Innovation Zone designation from NMPED for the second year. This is a substantial grant award that will enable ATC to significantly increase work-based learning, dual credit, and paid internship opportunities for students. We will also be able to expand our career technical pathways in media arts, computer science, and a new pathway in biomedical sciences and support more independent student research and capstone projects. These experiences will further our mission of preparing all students for college and provide a range of relevant learning opportunities in career fields that greatly enhance their post-secondary pursuits. 

Lastly, we would like to briefly introduce our new faculty and staff, and those who have changed teaching assignments for this coming year. Joining ATC is an incredibly talented and passionate group of educators:

Electives

Pablo Guss, Chess

Joaquin Martinez, Photography

English Language Arts

Hadar Ma’ayan, English 8 and AP English Lit

Kaleigh Dixson, English 9 and English 10

Administration & Support Staff

Vanessa Maryol, Dir. of Student Engagement

Rhonda Gardner, Dir. of Academics & Advising

Lauren Gavin, Dir. of Wellness & Advising

Michael Gurule, Dir. of Operations

Rosa Lopez, part-time Custodian

Science

Beverly Marrs, Chemistry and 8th Grade Science

Social Studies

Pablo Guss, 9th Grade World Geography

We are tremendously excited for the start of the school year and cannot wait to see all our beautiful students back with us in a few weeks. Thank you again for choosing ATC and have a wonderful rest of your Summer Break!

Sincerely,

Jason Morgan

Principal

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