The road through life begins here.
ZIONSVILLE COMMUNITY SCHOOLS
ZIONS VILLE COMMUNITY SCHOOLS
What does it mean to be Strong in Every Way?
No one is strong in every single way, but when a ZCS parent used this phrase back in 2016 to express her aspirations for raising a strong, resilient, healthy and self-aware young adult, it stuck. Strong in Every Way (SIEW) became the ZCS framework for assisting youth and families in moving toward the ideal that it identifies—being as strong as possible in every way possible. We strive to ensure that ZCS youth are as fully prepared as possible for productive lives. SIEW encompasses three key areas.
CONNECTIONS
We know that connected young people have multiple supports in their lives. Five or more truly meaningful and sustaining adult connections are desired for each ZCS student, though just one adult can have an incredibly positive impact on a young person during formative years. We teach about and encourage these connections so that our students benefit from the known advantages of multiple adult allies.
ASSETS AND RESOURCES
ZCS Superintendent Scott Robison Retiring February 2023
The SIEW five traits of success that guide the academic and well-being growth of our students are: compassion, confidence, determination, ethics and wellness. We facilitate all manner of resources for stakeholders working together to help grow our youth. From annual “Do Days” service projects to “Growing up in the Digital Age” presentations for families about social media, we constantly strive to enhance this repository of resource.
CULTURAL UNDERSTANDINGS
Young people must learn to understand themselves and get along with others as preparation for a successful life. Author Robert Fulghum wrote to huge acclaim about kindergarten learnings that are good for all of life. This area begins in much the same way with being kind to others—the Golden Rule—and leading to learnings about thriving in a place where everyone belongs. Students helped our SIEW team develop the Everyone Belongs Here statement to address ostracizing behaviors and to be clear about expectations for how all people should be cared for and treated well here.
As we head into the 2022-2023 school year, my hope is that all of our students, staff and community members, eagerly embrace the ideals surrounding SIEW as we journey toward our core mission of student growth in the Zionsville Community Schools.
School begins August 4, 2022
Scan code for all you need to know for starting school for the 2022-2023 school year.
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LAST YEAR
Eleven (11) ZCS robotics teams across the district qualified to compete in world competition.
Four (4) high school seniors completed first STAR Bank internship.
2022 STRATEGIC DOING
Associate Superintendent Rebecca Coffman (Recently named successor superintendent to follow Dr. Robison in February 2023)
New Trailside Elementary School families got acquainted in preparation for the opening of the school this year.
Performing groups from across ZCS wowed audiences and won competitions across the state and region.
ACADEMICS/WELLBEING: Focusing on the ZCS core mission of student growth.
CALENDAR: New school calendars set for 2023-2024 and 2024-2025 with input from nearly 6,000 parent, student, and staff responses. Calendars are on district website.
REDISTRICTING: Opening Trailside Elementary School required that we begin 2022 by redrawing school district attendance areas to increase lifespan of all facilities.
EXTENDED LEARNING: Amplifying classroom learning through out-of-school experiences is a key ZCS aim. Field trips, internships, in and out-of-state competitions in music, robotics, business/entrepreneurship, Model UN, and service learning to name a few.
SAFETY: There is no finish line in our efforts to keep ZCS schools safe. As a result of our commitment to staff and student safety, ZCS has more than 20 times the required school safety specialists across ZCS campuses.
IMPROVEMENT: Teacher, coach, principal, and district leader links with students and families enhanced by focus groups, surveys, coffee talks, and robust feedback from an engaged community.
CONSTRUCTION: Completion of the new Trailside Elementary and ongoing major addition/renovations of ZCHS are but two of many projects ongoing as we care for the community’s ZCS facility investments while accommodating hundreds of new students each fall.
FINANCIAL STEWARSHIP: Boasting the highest credit rating of any Indiana school entity, and having recently hosted independent auditors on behalf of the Indiana State Board of Accounts for a routine two-year look-back, ZCS leaders are serious stewards of taxpayer resources that fund our student growth enterprise.
TELLING STUDENT STORIES: The faces, voices, and activities of ZCS students, families, and those from ZCS who serve them are essential in knowing about our strategic doing as the community’s outstanding public school district. Check out some of our past storytelling in the communications section of the ZCS website.
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from start
And the years in between
From start to finish, all the years in between kindergarten and senior year, we walk alongside parents to guide ZCS students on a learning journey with opportunities at every grade level that support academic, personal and relational growth. We strive to provide a personalized learning plan that helps each student as they strive to not only meet, but exceed, their individual goals. All in a safe learning environment.
The safety of our students, staff, and guests on nine school campuses for nearly 8,000 students is top priority. We are confident that our training, planning, and drill practice, in collaboration with our outstanding local law enforcement officials, make ZCS significantly more prepared than ever before.
Our youngest learners come curious and eager to learn with unmatched enthusiasm. While their learning is driven by the Indiana Academic Standards, their overall education is much more robust. Students learn to play together, work together, and support one another. They participate in music, arts and robotics, to name a few. PreK-4th grade students look forward to the annual Jog-A-Thon, the district-wide elementary school PTO-organized fundraiser to support each school as a way of enhancing learning opportunities.
Middle school students live in that space between being a child and a young adult. As such, our middle school programming is designed to engage students in ways allowing them to grow while exploring many interests.
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Their growing responsibility for academic progress and key areas of interest set the course. This is also the time students begin participating in band and orchestra, PLTW, performance and visual arts, extra-cur ricular activities and organized sports teams.
ZCHS students come with strong middle school foundations on which to continue the K-12 journey. Engaged ZCS students are well-prepared. This year’s seniors are the annual exemplars for what ZCS students can achieve during their four years. Class of 2022 highlights include:
Graduates = 556
Core 40 w/ Academic Honors = 321
Core 40 w/ Technical Honors = 4
Core 40 w/ Academic and Technical Honors = 4
Core 40 = 208
General Diploma = 11
Certificate of Completion = 8
Foreign Exchange Students = 7
ZCHS students passed 1,081 Advanced Placement Exams and 294 dual credit course valued at $1,273,250 in college tuition.*
ZCHS students completed 38,021 Hours of Service totaling $75,967 for charities. ZCHS students particpated in nearly 80 Clubs and Activities.
*Calculationbasedonthenationalaverageforpublicpostsecondary institutionof$926percourse.APcumulativeresultsarereleased eachJuly.Thecreditcoursecalculationreflectsourmostupto-datedata.
THE ROADTHROUGH LIFE BEGINS
HERE.
to finish
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Do Days
strong in every way
ZCS students, staff and families give back to the community in the district’s fourth annual Strong in Every Way Do Days
Service outside of self and affiliation with others are learning experience hallmarks of the Strong in Every Way “DO DAYS” activities fostered by ZCS early each spring. Thousands of ZCS youth participated in school-based and community-based activities of service and generosity.
Much like the power of “being there” learning experiences found through internships and field trips, ZCS DO DAYS introduce and/or reinforce the learnings associated with being resourceful, solving problems, contributing, and engaging in team efforts within a community.
Unlike various fundraisers and supports by various ZCS-affiliated groups to worthy causes like hospitals and other charities, DO DAYS drive home the points that contributing is not always about money and teaming to help community is the very essence of thriving places to live and grow.
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About 2021-2022 in ZCHS Performing Arts
Four-time Grand Champion show choirs: two Royalaires and two Choralaires
Indiana State School Music Association Gold
Rated Bands and Orchestra – ISSMA All Music Award
Semi-State Qualified Marching Band
Winter Guard 9th at the State Finals
Indoor Percussion 3rd at the State Finals and 6th at WGI World Championships
About 2021-2022 in ZCHS Athletics
Twelve Sectional Championships
Six Regional Championships
Three Semi-State Championships
Three Team State Runners-Up
Five Individual State Champions
Two HCC Championships
HCC Sportsmanship Award Winner
IHSAA Sportsmanship Award Recipient
More than 60 Collegiate Athletic Commitments
Elementary School PTO Groups with help from parent voluntneers, staff, students, families, and community members work together to raise thousands of dollars for ementary schools across the district.
Zionsville Education Foundation (ZEF) supports ongoing learning initiatives that benefit all ZCS students.
Since its founding in 1995, ZEF has brought to life more than 1,100 creative and innovative projects across Zionsville Community Schools with a total of $1.7 million in grant funding. This year alone we have already awarded $117,000 to our schools – with more to come! However, it’s hard to understand true educational impact through numbers. Behind every dollar amount and every project funded by ZEF you will find a story of the educators and the students that received opportunity. Learn more at www.ZionsvilleEducationFoundation.org and join us by making a gift to the ZEF Fund today!
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EVERYONE BELONGS HERE. This publication is paid for by donations.
900 Mulberry Street Zionsville,
46163
Zionsville Community Schools
IN