Oriole Blast

The Avon Marching Black & Gold have begun their adventure, having arrived last night in New York City to perform in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Be sure to visit Parade HQ for parade broadcast info, daily updates from the Band, and much more. While you're there, check out the first Parade Post for a fun glimpse of the hours leading up to the Band's way-too-early Monday morning departure.

The Avon Marching Black & Gold are, once again, Indiana State Champions. Since 2001, Avon has ammassed 17 marching band state championships. They have four 2nd-place finishes and one 3rd-place finish. Avon has now won at least one state or national title every school year since the 1995-1996 school year. The Avon Marching Black & Gold now has 62 total state championships across all disciplines and 20 more National or World Championships.

Avon Academy is in its second school year. In that short time, Coordinator Kellie Rodkey has distinguished herself as one of the most effective, impactful administrators in the national network of academies backed by the Simon Youth Foundation. This month, Rodkey learned that she is the 2024 Simon Youth Foundation Administrator of the Year.

Nearly 100 redistricting committee members — parents/caregivers, employees, and school administrators — have thorougly reviewed several school boundary and start/end times options. Last night, they conducted their sixth and final meeting. They've done a tremendous job. There's another important step as we seek additional feedback and input prior to a decision being made.

More than 1.3 million US juniors in about 21,000 high schools entered this year's National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the 2023 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test. Approximately 16,000 students — the highest-scoring entrants in each state — have been chosen as Semifinalists in the annual National Merit Scholarship Program. We're proud to announce that seven Avon High School students earned a spot on the list.

Last September, we took a chance and asked you — Avon parents/caregivers, community members, and employees — to nominate ACSC employees who you thought embodied our district's ALL Belong, Learn, Grow mission. We were amazed by how many of you responded in September and each following month! We want to keep the encouragement and affirmations coming this year, so we've decided to continue taking nominations. 

Avon High School ran up the score last year — the sportsmanship score — and officials at the Indiana High School Athletic Association (IHSAA) have noticed."The IHSAA considers scores ranging from 70-89 to be in the 'Needs Improvement' category. Scores from 90-99 are in the 'Acceptable' range. A score of 100+ is considered 'Excellent'," says Avon Athletic Director Jason Young. "We were able to raise our score from 90 for 2022-23 to 130 for the 2023-24 school year."We are proud of our student-athletes, coaches, fans, and community for modeling good sportsmanship inside and outside the lines and in the stands.

Safety is our first priority in Avon Schools. For the last several years — behind the scenes — one individual has been leading this vital effort. School Safety Specialist Deb Swain-Bayless found out this summer that she had been selected as the 2024 Indiana School Safety Leader of the Year by the Indiana School Resource Officers Association. This award recognizes her invaluable contributions to school safety, not only right her in Avon Schools, but across the Hoosier state.

A lot can happen over the course of a school year, especially in a growing, active, successful school corporation like Avon. We have compiled a list of just a few of the many academic, artistic, athletic, and teacher/leader highlights that have happened since last July, and you can access them all on our website. Prepare to be impressed; our students, educators, administrators, and support staff had an awesome year!