From the Voyager Academy Managing Director, May 7, 2021

Dear Voyager Community,

Thank you to all the families and students that provided food, treats, notes, and gifts to our entire teaching team during Staff Appreciation Week.  We are all very grateful for your support and appreciation. The Voyager community is truly special!

This has been another action packed week of learning for our students.  The elementary students all participated in an innovative educational outdoor walk and learn program around campus.  These activities allowed students to learn Spanish and French, challenge themselves with math riddles, participate in mindfulness, do yoga, take a sensory walk, and create music at the sound garden to name just a few of the interesting stops. We are thankful for the partnership with Ms. Clark Stover’s high school art classes for the design of the sensory walk.  It was truly amazing to see the collaboration between schools and the talent from our high school artists. The fourth and fifth grade middle school students also had two wonderful project celebrations this week.  Our Vikings did a fabulous job demonstrating their knowledge of famous North Carolinians with their North Carolina Sweet Potato project and their understanding of history with their American Revolution project celebration.

As we are approaching the end of the school year please remember that all end of year testing is underway.  Building principals have all shared detailed test calendar information for your review and reference. Our high school students have AP exams, final exams for courses, and state required End of Course testing. Students in grades 3 through 8 will also be participating in all state required end of grade testing.  Please make sure your child is well rested and has a healthy breakfast on test day so they can perform their best.

Please know that we are all here to support your child grow, learn, and find their passion.  Feel free to reach out to your child’s teacher, building administrator, or student support if we can assist your family in any way.  Please review the upcoming dates and information below for additional resources.

I also wanted to wish all of our mothers a Happy Mother’s Day. Have a wonderful weekend with your family!

All the best,

Upcoming Calendar Events:

May 10-26- EOG/EOC/EXT1

May 13 – Chorus and Band Drive-In Concert at Raleigh Road Outdoor Theatre

May 27 – Graduation Orange County Speedway

 

Summer Camp Opportunities

Voyager will be offering multiple opportunities this summer for enrichment, remediation, and camp experiences on campus.  Identified third graders that have not met the Read to Achieve requirements will have the opportunity for Summer Reading Camp to focus on literacy skills. Students in K-8 that are not at grade level in math and literacy will have the opportunity to participate in the Summer Jumpstart program. Additionally, Voyager will be offering a traditional summer camp with exciting programs and enrichment opportunities to keep your children engaged and learning during summer break.  Program details have been shared by the Director of Operations.  The summer camp registration information is listed below

Voyager Summer Camp Registration

1. Register for Voyager’s Summer Day Camp or one of the Specialty Camps of your choice on CharterPay.Org.

2. Go to the Activities section of the Guardian/Staff Portal.

3. Select the Activities/Field Trips tab to view the camp options.

4. Complete the Summer Camp Registration Form for each child. The $30 registration fee will be applied to your account after registration is complete.

5. Select the Camp or weeks of your choices and pay the $97.50 deposit. The deposit is non-refundable. The balance of $97.50 will be due by June 1st for each week of camp selected.

https://www.voyageracademy.net/resources/summer-camps/

 

Voyager HS Music Program Performs at the Drive-In!

What a year it's been!! Join us for a night of performances showcasing our talented HS musicians & all they've accomplished over the last year at the Raleigh Road Drive-In Theater in Henderson, NC. You don't want to miss it!

WHERE: Raleigh Road Outdoor Theater (3336 Raleigh Rd Henderson, NC 27537) http://www.raleighroaddrivein.com/
WHEN: Thursday, May 13th
COST: Admission is FREE!!!
SCHEDULE:
6:00: Gate opens to the public
6:30-8:00: Cabaret performances featuring our HS Chorus & Band students
8:00-Band & Show Choirs perform!
9:30: Hairspray! (stay to watch on the big screen if you can!)

Concessions will be sold for the duration of the event, no outside food allowed.

Questions? Contact Jenny Hobgood jhobgood@voyageracademy.net OR Max Puhala mpuhala@voyageracademy.net

 

News from the Student Services Team

Wear Green Day was an Absolute success!  Thank you Viking community for  raising mental health awareness across our campus.  Click the link (Mental Health Awareness Month) to see student & staff photos, to view our Student Services mental health video, and for events/activities for the remainder of the month.    

Summer Programs

Find engaging summer opportunities for children of all ages and interests to include academic, recreation, art, STEM, and much more.  See the compiled list for all summer opportunities (Summer Programs).

21-22 School Calendar

As we prepare to close out the 2020 – 2021 school year we are already actively planning ahead for the start of the 2021 – 2022 school year.  The calendar committee met to review the previously approved calendar to identify if any changes were recommended.  At this time, we are planning to move forward with our current 2021-2022 calendar which is posted on our website.   We are planning for in person instruction for all students Monday through Friday and are not planning to offer a remote option.  Please remember that the Voyager calendar has a built in early release day on Monday to allow for staff professional development and collaborative team planning in the afternoon.  After school care will be available on the Monday early release days for students that register. Please contact our school registrar, Mary Beth Hawkins if your plans for your child to return to Voyager in August have changed for next year.

Covid Safety Reminders

As you know we have had 3 positive Covid-19 cases on our campus that were community related. To date, we have not had any secondary school infections.  Everyone is doing a great job wearing their mask, washing hands frequently, and maintaining distance when possible. Please remember to keep your child home if they are not feeling well so that we can ensure we do not spread illnesses on campus.  Thank you to all families for completing the Greenlight App accurately and for those families that have signed the consent form for their child to participate in the Covid surveillance testing.  This process has helped many other schools identify asymptomatic Covid cases and control the spread of Covid. Please read additional information below about the surveillance testing process with Duke and consider submitting a consent form for your child to participate in the process to help us keep our entire community healthy.  You also may have seen that the state will be relaxing policies in the future. We are planning to continue to enforce our masking and screening policies so that we can help mitigate virus spread and keep everyone healthy.

Voluntary COVID-19 Surveillance Testing at Voyager

As part of our return to safe in-person instruction at Voyager, we are participating in a COVID-19 surveillance testing program. Surveillance testing will help us identify individuals who have COVID-19 but do not show symptoms.

The primary goal of our surveillance COVID-19 testing is to limit the number of infected individuals at our school. The testing data will help us plan our learning accommodations and safety procedures for the summer and the upcoming school year.

How the testing program will work

Surveillance COVID-19 testing will take place at our school from April 22, 2021 to June 30, 2021.

We have asked a team of Duke doctors to help us administer this program and analyze the testing data from our school. Testing data sent to Duke will be de-identified, meaning that Duke will not be able to know who participated in testing or their individual results.

Here’s what you need to know:

  1. We will send you a consent form to complete on behalf of your child(ren). (Included below, please return in an envelope labeled School Nurse).
  2. If you sign the consent form and agree to participate in the testing program, your child will be assigned a unique identification number. This number will be used in place of your child’s name for all testing-related procedures and data sent to Duke to help protect your child’s identity.
  3. Each week, a set of identification numbers will be randomly selected for testing. You will know ahead of time which week your child will participate in testing.
  4. Students selected for testing for a particular week will receive a nasal swab on the designated day at the school by a Duke clinician.
  5. While the tests we have selected are accurate in most circumstances, it is possible to receive a false positive result. If your child’s test gives a positive read-out, your child will immediately receive a second test to confirm the result.
  6. Our school administrator or nurse will contact you if your child receives a confirmed positive result for COVID-19, and we will provide instructions for picking up the student and how to isolate at home.

About the testing kits

We will start the program by using the Quidel QuickVue test and will switch to the Ellume COVID-19 Home Test in early May. These tests were chosen because they:

  • Use a small swab in the front part of the nose (nares).
  • Provide quick results (10-15 minutes).
  • Have high accuracy.
  • Are suitable and accurate in individuals with and without symptoms.
  • Are approved for use in adults and children.
  • Can be administered in the school.
  • Can securely transmit results to our school or public health department (i.e. it is HIPAA compliant) [Ellume test].

We will send additional information about this program soon. We hope that your participation in this surveillance COVID-19 testing program will help you feel more comfortable about your students being at school.

Thank you for your role in keeping our school community safe and healthy.

CONSENT FORM LINKED HERE - PLEASE PRINT AND RETURN TO FRONT OFFICE ADDRESSED TO THE SCHOOL NURSE

Stay healthy and safe – Practice the 3 W’s

Staying current on all of the health metrics and data is also part of our ongoing process.  As we work together to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, please remind your children about the importance of the 3 W’s (Wear, Wait, & Wash). Wear a mask, practice social distancing by waiting and maintaining a 6-foot space between others, and wash hands frequently to help reduce the spread of COVID-19. Outlined below are some helpful links and resources if you are interested in learning more about the latest data and recommendations.

StrongSchoolsNC Public Health Toolkit (K-12)

StrongSchoolsNC FAQ

NCDHHS COVID Dashboard

Durham Public Health COVID Dashboard