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AA Music Groups in the Community

A heartfelt thank you to Mr. Daniel Cerna, Dr. Elsy Gallardo-Díaz, and all our talented musicians for sharing the love of Jesus through the gift of music! On November 15, 2025, the chorale and Silhouettes filled Pioneer Memorial Church with inspiring melodies that touched many hearts. The beauty and power of the music left a lasting impression—several attendees shared how deeply moved they were by the performance.

SA Friendsgiving Assembly

This Friday, November 21
 

Please bring in food donations for the SA Christmas Food Drive! We are collecting through Monday, December 8, so stop by the store, and bring in what you can! We want to give as much as possible. Thank you!

Each class should place their food donations in their class’s designated bin. The class who brings the most items will receive Red Coach donuts, and they will get a dress down day (no uniform, but within dress code policy - NO: hoods, sweats, shorts, skirts/dresses shorter than knee length when standing/sitting, etc.).

Requested items:

• Freshmen: instant mashed potatoes

• Sophomores: stuffing

• Juniors: mac & cheese

• Seniors: brownie mix

- Student Association 

AA will be closed Tuesday afternoon, November 25, 

through Friday, November 28.

Please Note: School dismisses at 12:00 PM next Tuesday, November 25, for Faculty Professional Development in the afternoon. AA will be closed that afternoon.

There will be E-Learning on Tuesday afternoon (PM classes), November 25, and Wednesday, November 26, (AM classes only on Wednesday).

Students should check Google Classroom or their email for any assignments from their teachers for those two days.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

Andrews Academy Apparel to Support Worthy Students

We are excited for Andrews Academy students to show their school spirit while supporting a great cause. On Fridays through Christmas break, students will be allowed to wear new school apparel that is being ordered to benefit the Worthy Student Fund at Andrews Academy.

While participation is not required, students who wish to wear non-uniform shirts on Fridays must wear one of the approved shirts available for purchase. The last day to place orders this semester is this Thursday, November 20. If you are interested in purchasing shirts/sweatshirts, please use this link or scan/click on the QR code below to access the order form.

Payment is expected before delivery of the shirts/sweatshirts, and the only method of payment accepted is cash or check made payable to Andrews Academy. We appreciate your support of this endeavor to build school spirit and advance the mission of Andrews Academy. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Mrs. Mills at samantham@andrews.edu.

Thank you for your continued support.

Mrs. Samantha Mills

Proofs and picture packets ordered from Picture Retake Day have arrived.

As a token of appreciation, Lifetouch is offering discounts on school photography!

• 50% off a purchase of $50+ with code 50THANKS
• 40% off a purchase of $40+ with code 40THANKS
• 30% off a purchase of $30+ with code 30THANKS

Valid through 12/01/25.

To order, log in to your account on mylifetouch.com or create an account, find your student and order using your student's FACTS ID number (contact ginam@andrews.edu for the number if needed). Don’t forget to order your FREE Digital SmileSafe card!

More about the Smilesafe program here.

Please make sure that we have the phone number that you would like to have contacted. For school closings due to weather, we also send an email, put the announcement on our Facebook and Instagram pages, and alert local TV stations (WSBT, WNDU, ABC57).

To receive a text notification instead of a call (text works best), please text “ALERT” to 22300. Please make sure that you have given us the number that you would like to be texted on as well. Email ginam@andrews.edu with any changes. Thank you!

Junior Class Fundraiser

Please support the junior class fundraiser this fall. Who can resist yummy fresh baked cookies as the fall and winter months approach? Please see a junior to place an order by this Sunday, November 23. These frozen cookie dough tubs/boxes make great gifts. They can be frozen for over a year and still taste great. Orders will arrive before Christmas. Each tub or precut box makes approximately 36 cookies.

Chapel Recap: Ecclesiastes and Song of Solomon

On Monday, Heidi Agy—mother of Easton and Lily—spoke in chapel on Ecclesiastes and Song of Solomon as we continue our Old Testament journey. From Ecclesiastes, she emphasized its lament and despair, pointing to Jesus as the one who carries us through difficult times. From Song of Solomon, she highlighted the beauty of marital love as God designed it, noting that sharing such intimacy before marriage will lead to hurt when relationships end. (November 17, 2025)

After today's (Tuesday) chapel song service, Pastor Gabriel Johnson continued our Ecclesiastes study. Reading chapter 3, he reminded us that everything has its appointed time and that time governs all of us. Though the Greeks imagined timeless gods, Scripture shows God entering time—Christ was born at the moment God ordained. We also recalled Jesus telling Mary at the wedding, “It is not my time,” highlighting time’s role in God’s work. Pastor Johnson urged us to pray that God would take our hearts, lives, and time and fill them with His presence. (November 18, 2025)

Attention Students: If you would like Friday's boxed lunch, those who are signed up for the lunch program must order it each week by Wednesday at 2:00 PM. The sign-up sheet will be at lunch or in the main office.

Parents: To sign your student up for the lunch program or add funds to your student's account, you may use this link to pay online (you will need your child's AU ID number), or you may pay with cash or check at the Academy main office. The minimum payment for 20 lunches is $141.20, unless your student has been approved for reduced lunch.

Pizza & Parables

• Every Wednesday 6:30 - 7:30 PM 

• Pioneer Memorial Church Youth Chapel

• Sponsored by PMC

School Communications

The E-Sanjo and other communications from the school, including classroom teacher communications, use the email address(es) that you (and your parents) have recorded in FACTS when you registered for Andrews Academy. We will also use students' AU email address. Some have been wondering why they are not receiving their school communications to a certain email. If you wish to have communications sent to a specific email address, please send the change to ginam@andrews.edu. Thank you!

Important Attendance Policy Updates

ATTENDANCE EVALUATION

Each student begins each semester with an attendance record of zero points. All absences and tardies are assigned a weight of 1 point. The FACTS system includes separate attendance codes, allowing for clear categorization and reporting:

• A (Absence) 

• AE (Excused Absence)

• T (Tardy)

• TE (Excused Tardy)

The AS attendance code is assigned a weight of 0 and is used to mark school-related absences (e.g., for approved school trips or activities). These absences do not count against the student’s attendance record.

Students are allowed one long tour per semester.

PROCEDURES

Each school day, the student who was absent or tardy without excuse is notified of the record in FACTS, the student information system. Parents and students both receive email notifications. If the student believes the record to be incorrect, or has any question about the record, it is that student’s responsibility to contact the school office or attendance officer or submit to the school office a written excuse from a parent/guardian within 3 school days to remove those points.

Correction received after five days generally will not be accepted. In instances where a student is absent for several consecutive days, such as for an extended illness, two school days are allotted following the last absence to submit an excuse.

A student is responsible for all course work missed while absent with or without excuse.

Absence Policy
• After 5 unexcused absences per class: Student receives a warning email.
• After 8 unexcused absences per class: Student receives a demerit.
• After 10 unexcused absences per class: A meeting is scheduled with the student, parents, and attendance officer or another administrator.
• After 10 combined excused and unexcused absences per class: Student receives a warning email noting the risk of withdrawal from the class.
• After 15 combined excused and unexcused absences per class: A meeting with the registrar is required, and the student may be withdrawn from the class and lose all credit subject to that class, pending a review by the Student Affairs Committee.

Tardy Policy
• After 5 unexcused tardies per class: Student receives a warning email.
• After 10 unexcused tardies per class: Student receives a demerit.
• After 10 total excused and unexcused tardies per class: Student meets with the attendance officer or administrator.

Demerit Review Policy
Demerits related to attendance may be re-evaluated at the end of the semester if the student maintains no unexcused absences or tardies from the date the demerit was issued onward.

A student is eligible to hold an organizational office or leadership position as long as they maintain an attendance score below 7 unexcused absences. A student is also eligible to participate in co-curricular, overnight trips and tours if the attendance score is below 7 unexcused absences. A student is placed on citizenship probation when the attendance score reaches 7 unexcused absences. 

Major off-campus school activities include, but are not limited to, overnight trips and tours (see section on Student Citizenship-Citizenship Probation). When a student’s attendance score reaches 7 unexcused absences, the student is placed on citizenship probation. Further unexcused absences could lead to future in-school suspensions. Repeated attendance issues will be referred to the Student Affairs Committee to determine if the student should continue in the Academy and, if so, under what conditions. If these conditions are not successfully adhered to, the student’s enrollment may be discontinued at the time of infractions, at the end of a given semester, or at the end of the school year.

Students who miss five (5) consecutive school days due to illness must provide written documentation from a certified medical professional corroborating the necessity of that absence.

- From the Sourcebook (pg. 67-68)

For any attendance questions that you would like to ask by email, please direct them to AAattendance@andrews.edu.
 

Thank you!

Mrs. Dionne Robinson
Guidance Counselor/Attendance Officer
Andrews Academy
269-471-3453

More Attendance Information

• Pre-arranged Absences: Please be sure to fill out a pre-arranged absence card if you know in advance that you will be missing school due to a doctor/dentist/orthodontist appointment, trip, basketball tournament, driver's test, etc. These cards can be found in the main office or online. A parent's signature is required, then the office, and teacher(s) of the class(es) that you will miss.

• Class Schedule Adjustment (CSA) Requests: A CSA is available for students who have a study hall at the beginning or ending of the school day or will be working during a study hall during the school day. A CSA is required for students who leave the Academy to attend classes at Andrews University, who are going to work off campus, or who wish to begin the school day later or leave earlier on a regular basis. The CSA request form must be filled out and signed by everyone indicated on the form before the student stops attending their study hall. Students must adhere to CSA guidelines that are printed on the CSA application. Any violation may cause the CSA to be revoked. We will email students and parents when a CSA is approved.

• Other Absences: Parents, please call the main office (269-471-3138) or email AAattendance@andrews.edu if your student is going to be absent or tardy. These are the preferable methods. 

Please provide the reason why your child will not be attending school and how long you think they will be out.

Parents/Guardians are the only authorized individuals who can excuse a student's attendance. When emailing, parents must send correspondence from their email account to maintain the validity of the request. Please include the name of the student.

From the Sourcebook (pg. 68):

Students who miss five (5) consecutive school days due to illness or injury must provide written documentation from a certified medical professional corroborating the necessity of that absence.

For any attendance questions that you would like to ask by email, please direct these questions to AAattendance@andrews.edu.

Mrs. Dionne Robinson

Guidance Counselor

dionner@andrews.edu

269-471-3453

If you have not done so already, please purchase the Multi-Factor Authentication Security Key for all AA students right away. This key is essential for your child to access all Google platforms (AU email, Google Classroom, etc.), as well as secure documents from Andrews University and Andrews Academy. Each student needs their own security key, which cannot be used by anyone else.

Security Key Link

AA Uniforms Available from Lands' End

Please review the Sourcebook (pgs 65-66) for more information regarding uniforms. 

• Only approved logoed uniform wear is allowed.

• A solid-color, long sleeved undershirt may be worn under the AA short-sleeved polo (no writing should be visible on the undershirt).

• Only AA logoed jackets are allowed to be worn in the building.

• The PE uniform (t-shirt or sweatshirt, shorts or sweats) can only be worn during PE class.

• If a student is wearing an AA logoed jacket, they should also have an AA logoed shirt underneath.