Week of August 31, 2026
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Principal's Message from Dr. Edwards
As August comes to a close, I am thankful for the many small, positive moments we have already experienced in this school year. I also know that if we are going to see the kind of growth and academic success that we all want to see and believe our students deserve, we need to continue to increase expectations and support the students to reach them. We are so appreciative of great support at home for behavioral and academic expectations at school. We believe a strong partnership with excellent communication between teachers and parents is crucial. While we do this throughout the year, there is a day coming up next month that our district has set aside to prioritize this very thing. Parent / Teacher Connection Day (Wednesday, September 23) is a non-student day when parents are encouraged to connect with one of our teachers. Appointment sign-ups will go out in ParentSquare at 9a tomorrow, 8/29. Parents can sign up on a first-come basis for times throughout that day. And, as always, please reach out to your child's teacher if you have an issue.
Lockdown Drill Notice
Dear parent/guardian:
The legislature mandates that schools conduct one active shooter drill per semester. We want to inform you in advance that our school will be conducting this practice drill within the next two weeks. Please note that this is only a drill, and there is no emergency situation.
This drill helps Mt. Vernon staff assess and improve our emergency operations plan and response skills.
Due to the confidential nature of our emergency plans, we cannot provide specific details about the date and time of the drill. If you have any concerns, please contact your principal or assistant principal.
“I always just thought if you see somebody without a smile, give'em yours!” ― Dolly Parton |
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Lost and Found: If your student is missing something, please take a look at THIS LINK where we have pictures of individual items and a form you can submit if you see an item that you recognize. Any unclaimed items will be donated at the end of the school year.
Every Viking Matters. Every Day Counts!
Regular school attendance is an important part of student success. When students are at school each day, they have more opportunities to learn, build relationships, participate in classroom activities, and be an important part of our school community.
Beginning this year, we are working together to meet the new state accountability expectation and school goal of at least 95% attendance rate for every student. Reaching this goal takes all of us—students, families, teachers, and staff—working together.
This year, we’re setting sail on our Viking Voyage!
Our school is one crew, and every student has an important place in our boat. When our Vikings are here and ready to learn, we are stronger together. Let’s encourage one another, celebrate good attendance, and keep rowing toward success!
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Reporting Absences
Please assist us by being sure to call our office at 317-485-3180 or email elizabeth.thomas@mvcsc.k12.in.us if your student is going to be absent. With state reporting, we have to assign specific codes for every absence, and it saves our office staff a lot of time each day if we don’t have to call to follow-up on students that are marked absent by their teachers. And please be sure to provide the documentation required for qualifying absences to be marked as excused in a timely manner.
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Important Dates
House Color Spirit Day (wear house color shirts)
Friday, September 4
Labor Day -- No School
Monday, September 7
Immunizations Due to Avoid School Exclusion
Wednesday, September 9
Contact Shanda Jouppi in our office if you have any questions
Parent/Teacher Connection Day (No School for Students)
Wednesday, September 23
Sign-ups sent in ParentSquare on 8/29
Related Arts Rotation Days
Happy Friday!
One month of school down!  While we hope that students and families are getting into the routine of school, know that some students will take longer to transition to 'new normals'. We all adjust at different speeds. This week, a ParentSquare post went out about Coat Assistance. Please see information about this program below.
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We have a local church, Park Chapel, that will be donating new and gently used coats to our school. If your child does NOT have a winter coat and is needing one this season, please fill out the following form by the end of the school day on Friday, September 18th (2:00pm). Please reference the sizing photo prior to putting in what size of coat your student needs, the church will be going off of this chart due to different brands having different sizes. This is ONLY for student(s) attending Fortville Elementary. The goal is for them to be distributed at the end of October.
- All requests must be submitted by the end of the school day on Friday, September 18th (2:00pm).
- Coat Assistance Form
- Multiple ParentSquare messages have been sent out about this school year's Body Safety program/presenation. The presentations will be occurring this coming Monday and Tuesday.
- Any student has the ability to request to come talk/meet with me. Next week I will be going into every classroom to (re)introduce myself and explain the process for asking to meet with me.
Upcoming events:
- 1st Quarter Classroom Lesson for all grades: Bullying Prevention
- August 31st and September 1st: Body Safety Presentations
- September 18th: Coat Assistance Form Due
House Points Update
These students were called to the Success Slide on Friday to be recognized for something from the week (being a great helper, working hard, demonstrating growth in a skill, etc.) Thanks for being valuable contributors to our Viking community!
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MV Reads: News from the Library
Mrs. Jennifer Leavell, FES Teacher Librarian
Setting up daily routines is an important part of the school year, and I encourage you to add reading for pleasure into those routines. Not only does reading 21 minutes outside of school have the benefits listed, perhaps even more importantly, reading outside of school cultivates a love of reading that will last your student(s) far beyond their school years. Squeezing in reading whenever you can (reading for short periods of time throughout the day can add up quickly) will set your student(s) up for success in so many ways. Better yet—read with them!
"Be a Substitute Teacher" and MV Employment
Fortville Elementary is a great place to work, and we would love to have you join our team. You can apply on the MV Employment website. We are not currently looking for a part-time High Intensity IA.
And we always need substitute teachers! Subs apply through Kelly Education Services (information below).
- To learn more or apply for substitute teacher positions at Mt. Vernon, please contact Kelly Education by completing this Inquiry Form and a recruiter will follow up with you. For questions, please call 800-991-5157, option 2.
- Kelly Services will guide the applicant how to obtain a substitute permit issued by the Indiana Department of Education (~$17) and a background check (~$28).
- Kelly Services will then share a short orientation video that will show you how to choose the jobs of your choice at Mt. Vernon and how to see the incentive offers.
Help Support FES Year-round
Help our school get a share of the money that many of America’s best companies are giving to K-12 education. SchoolStore.com is an online shopping mall where over 400 merchants have agreed to give a percentage of every sale to schools. This includes companies like Walmart, Best Buy, Old Navy, Kohl’s, etc. Just go to the website and then to the merchant websites you normally order from and help us earn rewards. The SchoolStore fundraiser is 100% online so there is NO face-to-face selling, handling money, or delivering products.
Go to https://www.schoolstore.net/sid.t?0000177219 to sign up. If you have questions about how to participate, reach out to our office. Once you are registered, invite family, friends and co-workers to support your child and our school.
Parent Resources
To be a chaperone on a field trip or to volunteer in the classroom regularly, you must have a clear background check from the current school year on file with our building (this is separate from any other MV buildings). FES Volunteer Background Check Form
At MV, we have all of our instructional staff trained on TBRI, and we now have a Parent Resource Hub available to our families to access at any time.
Webinars on support and advocacy for parents of High ability students. https://nagc.org/page/webinars
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