Alexandria Community Schools

724-4496 Alice Mehaffey, superintendent of Alexandria-Monroe Community Schools.

First day: Friday, Aug. 21

Initial enrollment: Anticipated 1,540, roughly same as last year.

Key dates: No school on Labor Day, Sept. 7; fall break, Oct. 22-23; Thanksgiving break, Nov. 25-27; winter break, Dec. 21-Jan. 3; Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Jan. 18; Presidents Day, Feb. 15; spring break, March 29-April 4; Memorial Day, May 31; Last full day of school is June 2.

What you need to know: Superintendent Alice Mehaffey said Alexandria schools are stressing some basics this year. “We are simply placing a deliberate focus on what some would call ‘good old-fashioned manners’. Since public education is functionally a group learning endeavor, we will place emphasis on those everyday attitudes, manners and behaviors that are conducive to intellectual (academic) and social development.”

What’s new this year: Schools have been reconfigured to combine students in more developmentally appropriate age groups. The elementary school will house grades K-2, grades 3-6 will be at the intermediate school, grades 7-8 will be located in a wing at the high school, separate from those in grades 8-12. Rooms have been renovated to allow for the shift. ... Pickup and drop-off patterns have changed. Cars will enter the school complex from 11th Street. Buses will use the east entrance, closest to the school.

Who’s in charge: Superintendent Alice Mehaffey, 724-4496. E-mail amehaffey@alex.k12.in.us.

Where you can get school information: www.alex.k12.in.us.