Published for the Arts Based School Community
June 5, 2025
Looking Back to Move Forward: Reflections from This Week’s Administrator Retreat
As we close out another meaningful school year, our administrative team will be gathering this Thursday and Friday for our annual end-of-year retreat—a dedicated time to reflect, refocus, and plan for the future. The goal of this retreat is to take a thoughtful and honest look at the year behind us: celebrating what went well, identifying areas for growth, and using feedback and data to guide our next steps.
Throughout the year, we’ve collected input from students, teachers, and families through surveys, informal conversations, and daily interactions. Alongside that feedback, we’ll be reviewing student performance data, teacher evaluations, and other measures of effectiveness to get a full picture of what’s working—and what’s not working as well as we’d like.
Some of the big-picture questions we’ll be asking include:
- How can we better support both academic and social-emotional growth?
- Where have we seen the most success this year—and why?
- What feedback from our community should shape how we plan for next year?
In addition to reflecting on what we’ve learned, we’ll be exploring potential improvements to programming, support roles, schedules, and resource use. Our goal is to ensure that students and staff are set up for success, and that we’re using our time, space, and funding in ways that align with our core values and highest priorities.
This kind of dedicated time for reflection and strategic planning is essential to building a school community that is responsive, inclusive, and continually improving. We appreciate all the feedback shared with us throughout the year—it’s helping us build a better path forward.
We look forward to sharing more as plans for the 2025–26 school year begin to take shape!
EC Parent Survey
The NC Department of Public Instruction, Office of Exceptional Children, is asking for your input through the 2024-25 Indicator 8 Parent Survey. You may access the survey using the link or QR Code below. To better serve families, the short, two-minute survey allows the respondent to select from multiple languages in which to complete the survey.
Field Day Fun – Thank You!
Field Day was a huge success, and we couldn’t have done it without the incredible support of our parents and volunteers! Thank you for helping bring the fun to life—we’re so grateful for your time, energy, and enthusiasm.
Although it was cloudy, it didn’t dampen our spirits. Students had a blast rotating through exciting activities like the water balloon toss, sponge relay, jump the river, photo booth, obstacle course, freeze dance, and even face painting! From laughter at musical chairs to teamwork in the 3-legged race, it was a joyful day full of movement, fun, and school spirit.
Thank you again to everyone who helped make it a memorable celebration to end the year!
ABS Regular Board Meeting
The ABS Board of Directors Board will meet on Tuesday, June 10 at 5:45pm at the middle school building. Board meetings are open to the public.