Leadership Survey and

Vanderlyn Principal Selection Process

WHAT?

Each parent, guardian, staff and faculty member at Vanderlyn should have received an email on November 29th from DCSD with a link to the "Leadership Attributes Survey".

WHY FILL OUT THE SURVEY?

This Survey is an important part of DCSD's principal selection process. As stakeholders at Vanderlyn, this is our opportunity to let district leaders know what is important to us in a new principal, what is important to us in our school, and what we want to retain from Mrs. Crenshaw's leadership.

WHEN?

The Survey must be completed by Tuesday, December 5th.

IF I DID NOT RECEIVE A SURVEY?

Check your email spam folder. The email was sent from divisionofhumanresources@dekalbschoolsga.org via SurveyMonkey. The survey was sent only to email addresses registered in Infinite Campus.

Vanderlyn Featured in DCSD Video

Vanderlyn was featured in DCSD Superintendent Horton's most recent newsletter, "Hitting the Road with Horton". Click here to watch the video!

Cold Snap Musical

4th Grade, 5th Grade and Vanderlyn Singers (only the students who go to Ms. Ketabi's class for general music) will be presenting Cold Snap Musical on Wednesday, December 13th @ 6:00 PM in the Cafeteria.

Dekalb Superintendent Visits Vanderlyn

Vanderlyn welcomed Superintendent Dr. Devon Horton this week for a quick visit! Dr. Horton plans to visit every school in Dekalb County School District by the end of this school year. These visits are designed as an opportunity for the Superintendent to hear from principals, teachers, students, parents and community members their thoughts on what is happening in the school and community and also suggestions for how we can improve as a district. The Vanderlyn team thoroughly enjoyed Dr. Horton's visit!

2023-2024 Principal Advisory Council Elections

Congratulations to the following members on their election to the 2023-2024 Vanderlyn Principal Advisory Council (PAC):

Demetreia Adderley - Teacher Representative
Bhagyashree Deshmukhe - Parent Representative
Tambryn Freund - Parent Representative
Susan Stebbins - Parent Representative

Elected members of the PAC serve a 2-year term. The following members will complete their second term as members of the PAC for the 2023-2024 school year:

Tasmiea Zaman - Teacher Representative
Jennifer Dees - Parent Representative
Lauren Brown - Parent Representative

Questions about the PAC? Please reach out to: vanderlynes_pacchair@dekalbschoolsga.org

Additional info about the PAC can be found at the following links:

Vanderlyn PAC

Dekalb County School District - PAC Resources

Click HERE for Mrs. Crenshaw's most recent Principal's Post. It includes important information, including:

Principal's Message: Prevent Spread of Flu!
Nov 7: Independent Learning Day
Nov 8: National STEM/STEAM Day
Employee of the Year Celebration
Note from Mr. Nichols: CogAT Testing
Halloween Highlights
Volunteers Needed to help with Carpool
GA Parent Survey: Action Required
Student Code of Conduct
School Safety and Security
Stay Connected
School Messenger
School Meals
Bus Routes
Medication Forms
COVID 19 Quarantine & Isolation Guidance
Who to Contact with Questions
2023-2024 School Calendar

Calling All VanderDash Sponsors!

The 16th Annual VanderDash 5K and Fun Run is right around the corner! This year’s race will be held on March 16, 2024. Vanderlyn Elementary would love for your organization to be a sponsor this year!

With support from Dunwoody businesses, our previous VanderDash races have raised over $20,000 annually! This support means our PTO can fund significant and important school improvements and teacher training.

Sponsorship Levels: Diamond, Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze and Dash Friend. Click HERE for info regarding all levels and benefits!

Benefits: Sponsors at the Silver level and above can place promotional items in our race bags. Other benefits of sponsorship include company name on race shirts, race website, race banner, promotional posters, and in-school communications.

How: Sponsorship commitments can be made by emailing us at Viking.Vanderdash@gmail.com, by clicking HERE, or by scanning the QR code below!

When: Sponsors have until November 17, 2023 to commit and submit payment to ensure that all race materials are printed with correct sponsor information. An invoice will be sent to you following your online commitment for your bookkeeping purposes.

We hope you’ll take a moment to consider how you can support your local community school, Vanderlyn Elementary. Please let us know if you have any questions and we hope to see you at the finish line!

Best,

The VanderDash Committee

Let's Make the 2024 VanderDash the Best One Yet!

Vanderlyn Families,

Please wear your VanderDash shirts as you patron businesses and ask them to sponsor VanderDash 2024. Feel free to grab a business card and send an intro email to the VanderDash Team to follow up on sponsorship interest. You can also have the business reach out to this email address for more sponsorship information: viking.vanderdash@gmail.com

As we are still recruiting volunteers for this committee for support before the event day, during the event and after the event day, please consider volunteering your time! We have plenty of opportunities to volunteer throughout the planning process and even the day of event facilitation.

Here are some examples of the volunteer tasks we will have available:

New sponsor outreach
Preparing marketing materials for social media outreach
Race bag stuffing (1-2hrs)
Directing volunteers (for race bag stuffing, packet pick up, shirt sorting, etc.)
Race packet pick up (1-2 hrs)
T-shirt sorting
Race day water stations
Directing high school volunteers on the course
Vander the Viking mascot during race
Teacher luncheon set up and clean up
Class competition bulletin board and popsicle distribution for top classes
Distribute and collect family sponsor yard signs

...and many more opportunities to get involved! Have a skill that you want to put to use in volunteering? Reach out to the team at viking.vanderdash@gmail.com and we'll find an opportunity for you to use that skill to support the VanderDash event!

Thank you for supporting Vanderlyn's VanderDash 2024!!!

Andrea Jayaraman and the VanderDash Committee

Congratulations, Vanderlyn!

On Friday, September, 15th, State School Superintendent Richard Woods honored schools across the state that demonstrated high achievement in Reading on the Spring 2023 Georgia Milestones Assessment. This award is presented to administrative literacy leaders who have recognized the importance of building a culture of literacy within a school by offering literacy professional development, instructional resource support, and/or developing specific literacy programs to build capacity and increase student literacy achievement.

Vanderlyn was recognized as the top performing school in the DCSD with 96% achievement rate on the 3rd grade Georgia Milestones in Reading! State Superintendent Woods presented Vanderlyn with the prestigious Literacy Leader Award Banner for outstanding achievement in reading. Kudos to our amazing 3rd grade team, Mrs. Hamilton, Ms. Kaye, and Ms. Garcia (Spring 23) who exceeded the bar in literacy instruction!

Our PTO is excited to host the 16th Annual VanderDash 5k and 1 Mile Fun Run on Saturday, March 16, 2024!

Registration

Registration will open January 2024 and the Classroom Challenge will begin! The class in each grade level with the highest % of students registered will win a popsicle party.

$25 per runner for the 1 Mile Fun Run or the chip timed 5k.

Family Sponsorships are available for $150. Sponsorship includes up to 5 race entries (from one household only), a yard sign to proudly show your support, and your family’s name on the official website!

VanderDash funds improvements to our school!

Over the years, VanderDash has funded many improvements to our school:

Playground Updates
Mobile computer carts, laptops, and grade level tablets
The STEM mural
The Courtyard Classroom
Media Center & Staff Lounge Upgrades
Flexible Student Seating

Vanderlyn Elementary PTO is proud to offer some very exciting field trips for our students during the 2023-2024 school year!

We are very pleased to announce that for the fall semester, all grade levels will be traveling to the Sloomoo Institute of Atlanta!

This year we are asking for $35 per child to help cover the cost of admission and transportation for all students and staff members for 2 field trips per grade level. This includes the fall trip to the Sloomoo Institute, as well as an additional spring trip for each grade level. More information about spring field trips is forthcoming.

Here are the step-by-step instructions on how to pay for your child's 2023-24 Field Trips:

1. Click HERE and log-in to your account.

2. Under "New Forms", click on "2023-2024 Field Trip Fees" for EACH child.

3. Pay the fees and get excited about some awesome field trips!

Thanks,

Vanderlyn PTO

Annual Fund Update!

We are up to 84% of our Annual Fund goal for the year! Thank you, Viking families, for your generous donations so far this school year!

If you have not already done so, please consider donating to the 2023-24 Annual Fund by clicking here! Remember, 100% of your donations will be used to enhance the educational experience of EVERY student and faculty member at Vanderlyn Elementary. All donations, large and small, DO make a difference.

Shannon Dixon

Annual Fund

vanderlynannualfund@gmail.com

New to Vanderlyn?

Know a family who's considering our school?

Click HERE to sign up for available dates to tour our school. Tours are led by a parent volunteer. All tours begin at 10:00AM and should last about an hour.

Order Your Yearbook Now!

This year’s book will feature art from our very own Vanderlyn Elementary Students. Please do not forget to order your book, because we do not order extra yearbooks. The yearbook is not included in any classroom dues you may have paid this year. Make sure you save your yearbook receipt, and double check that it has our school and your student’s information correct. Yearbooks will be delivered the last week of school. The yearbook price is $45. Yearbooks must be purchased through Josten's site, jostensyearbooks.com. If you have any questions, please contact Emily Lane or Jennifer Benator at our yearbook email vanderlynvikingyearbook@gmail.com.

Your help is needed! Please consider volunteering your time and joining one of our PTO Committees (click here for descriptions of each!). To learn more about how you can get involved or for information about chairing a committee, please reach out to Whitney Gaines and Marcy Ames at vanderlynelempto@gmail.com.

Parents: Don't Miss Out on Important Info!

Make sure your PTO registration is up-to-date TODAY!

Go to Vanderlyn’s MEMBERSHIP TOOLKIT at www.vanderlynpto.org to:

create or reactivate your online account,
update your directory information, and
subscribe to Viking Views weekly communications.

Click on“My Account” and “My Account and Online Forms” to:

fill out the OPEN FORMS (Annual Fund Donation, Student Fees, and PTO Membership) and
pay for your student’s items with a credit card.

Questions? Contact Whitney Gaines or Marcy Ames at vanderlynelemPTO@gmail.com.

Don't forget to follow us on social media!

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vanderlynelementary
Instagram: @VanderlynPTO

Outdoor Classroom Dedication

On May 16, 2023, the Vanderlyn PTO, on behalf of our families and staff, dedicated the Outdoor Classroom to Mrs. Crenshaw as a special recognition and appreciation for her 15 years of service, dedication and leadership as Vanderlyn’s principal.

Download the App now! Add a grade level when you scan your receipts. The App will show which grade level has earned the most BoxTops for Vanderlyn.

First grade is currently in the LEAD! Will they keep that lead in September?

Mobile App Directory and Calendar

PTO members can access the school directory and calendar from the Membership Toolkit App. This App is currently available for free in the Apple and Google stores.
You can toggle between up to 4 organizations you belong to using Membership Toolkit.
Subscribe to the calendar by clicking on the menu bar (top left) > gear icon (settings) > Manage Subscriptions

Website Directory and Calendar

PTO members can access the school directory HERE. To update your family’s account and publishing preferences for the Directory, click HERE.
Add important school dates to your personal calendar (Google or Mac Calendar). To subscribe to the calendar, click HERE > subscribe to “Vanderlyn Elementary PTO - Dekalb County SD, GA Calendars”.

Weekly Newsletter