The following message is from Rachel Stead, principal of Albany International Center and the Dual Language Program.

En español

Welcome to the 2022-23 school year! I hope everyone is enjoying a wonderful summer. Our staff is busy with preparations for our school opening, which is just a little less than a month away. In the meantime, I’d like to share some important information with you about our return to school.

School Opening

As in the past few years, the first days of school will be orientation days. Students will attend a full-day orientation on the day assigned to their grade:

Thursday, September 1

• Pre-K Orientation (Banda-Wemple)
• Grades 3-5 Orientation
• Grades 6-8 Orientation

Friday, September 2

• Pre-K Orientation (Gomez)
• Grades K-2 Orientation
• Grades 9-12 Orientation

School Day/Arrival/Dismissal

Our school day for students in grades 6-12 is 8:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. Secondary students enter the school from the doors on the 3rd Street side of the building. Doors will open for students at 8:15.

The elementary school day is from 9 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. Students in grades K-5 enter the school through the front doors. Doors will open to students at 8:35 a.m. and breakfast will be from 8:35 a.m. – 8:55 a.m. Dismissal will be at 3:30 p.m. Families may pick up students on the driveway directly behind the school beginning at 3:30 p.m. We ask that families use the parking lot on 2nd Street (across the street from the school, next to the church) to park so that we do not create congestion on the streets around the school. It is a short walk from the lot to the back of the school.

PreK arrival and dismissal occurs at the doors on the 2nd Street side of the building. PreK arrival is 9 a.m. and dismissal is 3:15 p.m. PreK students are not eligible for yellow bus transportation.

Transportation

Students who live 1.5 miles or more from our school are eligible for yellow bus transportation (Grades K-5) and CDTA bus passes (Grades 6-12). If your child will be receiving transportation for the first time this school year, you will need to fill out a transportation application. For more information, please visit https://www.albanyschools.org/transportation.

Before and After Care

We are pleased to partner with the Capital District YMCA to be able to offer fee-based before and after care for our students. Before Care will be available to students in grades K-5, and After Care available to students in PreK-5. Applications are available in English and in Spanish. Please call the Main Office for an application. Completed applications should be returned to the Main Office and we will forward them to the YMCA.

Please note that the YMCA needs a total of 15 students to run this programming, and this includes a total of 15 PreK/K students to run the program for those grade levels. If you are interested in this service, please return your application as soon as possible.

Teacher Assignments

You will receive notification of your child’s teacher during the week of August 8. Per district policy, we do not accept requests for specific teachers. Class lists are carefully created by teachers, student support staff and administration. If you have any questions about this, please reach out to Assistant Principal Tasha Anderson or me.

Playground Update

I am pleased to report that in mid-August we expect the sale to be finalized on the Lark Street properties where our new playground will be located. We plan to celebrate this milestone with a groundbreaking ceremony soon after. We do not have specific dates yet, but I will keep you and our Playground Committee informed when we know more.

We all are eager to see the new playground in place. I urge you to be patient as we follow the many laws and regulations involving playground construction. We will need to hire architects and surveyors, come up with a final design and purchase playground equipment, among other things. These steps require many levels of approval and will take time, but our beautiful playground will be worth it! I will keep you up to date on the project as it moves forward.

Library Update

As you know, we sealed off our library last spring after mold was discovered on one of the walls. This summer, environmental experts are working to remove the mold and the areas where it was discovered. We anticipate that the library will be open for the start of school in September.

The health and safety of our students, faculty and staff is of the highest priority at our school and throughout our school district. Please be assured that we are following all state and federal safety requirements throughout the mold removal process.

Aside from being mold-free, the improved library space will have new carpeting, elementary student seating, ceiling tiles and more. Also, I am happy to report that we have purchased $90,000 in new library books that reflect our students and our school community. We are so excited to reopen this space to all of our students this fall!

As the first day approaches, please do not hesitate to reach out with any questions. You can contact us by calling the Main Office at 518-475-6600 or emailing me at rstead@albany.k12.ny.us. Enjoy the rest of summer!