Cottonwood-Oak Creek Schools

📚 Free Resources for Families! 🎒

Looking for support for your student? Be sure to check out LISA — an incredible resource offering essentials and more to families in need.

Visit 👉 AZLISA.ORG to learn more and see how they can help your child start the school year strong! 💪📓✨

#FamilySupport #BackToSchool #AZLISA #CommunityResources

🍫 Happy National Chocolate Day! 🍫

Today, we’re celebrating one of the world’s most beloved treats—chocolate—and learning a little about where it all began!

Did you know chocolate comes from the cacao tree, which grows in tropical regions near the Equator—mostly in countries like Ghana, Ivory Coast, Ecuador, and Indonesia? But the story of chocolate goes back thousands of years to ancient Mesoamerica (modern-day Mexico), where the Olmec, Maya, and Aztec civilizations first cultivated cacao. It was originally enjoyed as a bitter drink used in celebrations—quite different from the sweet treat we know today!

Fast forward to now, and chocolate is enjoyed around the globe—and even makes its way into our classrooms as occasional rewards, science experiments, and cultural studies!

So whether you’re enjoying a bite-sized treat or diving into a history lesson, take a moment today to appreciate the rich history and global journey of chocolate. 🍬🌍📚

Just don’t forget to brush your teeth after enjoying your favorite kind! 😉

#NationalChocolateDay #SweetLearning #COCSDGlobalClassroom

🎆 Happy Fourth of July from Verde Tech High School! 🇺🇸

We’ve just welcomed a new batch of baby guinea fowl to our school’s sustainable agriculture program! 🐣 Students will soon have the opportunity to learn more about sustainable poultry care and habitat management as part of our hands-on curriculum.

From our team at Verde Tech, we wish you a wonderful and safe holiday!

🎆🇺🇸 Happy 4th of July Weekend! 🇺🇸🎆 From all of us at Cottonwood-Oak Creek School District, we wish our families a safe, joyful, and patriotic Independence Day weekend! May your celebrations be filled with laughter, community, and lasting memories. As we honor our nation's freedom, we're grateful to be part of such a strong and supportive community. Stay safe, and we’ll see you soon! 🎇❤️🤍💙 #COCSD #FourthOfJuly #CommunityStrong #IndependenceDay2025

📣 Budget Approved for 2025–2026 School Year 📣

At last night’s meeting, the COCSD Governing Board officially approved the proposed budget for the 2025–26 school year.

💡 Key Budget Highlights:
🔹 Base Level Funding Increase: The base support level per student has increased by 2%, rising from $5,013 to $5,113.
🔹 Enrollment Shift: Our projected Average Daily Membership (ADM) is expected to decrease slightly by 7 students—from 1,651.98 to 1,644.97.
🔹 Maintenance & Operation (M&O) Budget: The FY2026 M&O budget is set at $15.78 million, down $379,474 from last year due to:
• Lower student enrollment
• No Prop 123 funds included this year
• Smaller carryover balance from the previous fiscal year
• A reduced percentage of District Additional Assistance funds allocated to M&O

We remain committed to responsible fiscal management and transparency. As always, we will adjust accordingly once the final state budget is adopted. For more information you can watch the live feed video of the meeting here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eSnYLiI38FU


Thank you to our community for your continued support! 💙

#COCSD #SchoolBudget #CommunitySupport #FiscalResponsibility

🎉 Ribbon Cutting Celebration at Riverfront Park! 🎉

What an exciting day in Cottonwood! The new Riverfront Park playground system is officially open — and it’s already bringing joy to our community's children!

This project was truly a community effort, shaped by the voices and votes of students, families, and staff from Cottonwood-Oak Creek School District. We’re especially grateful to Jak Teel, Parks and Recreation Director, for his outstanding leadership and to the City of Cottonwood for making this dream a reality — creating a beautiful, safe, and fun space for kids to learn, grow, and play. Our students will benefit from this for years to come.

A big shout out to everyone who joined us this morning for the ribbon cutting, including Mayor Ann Show, City Council Members, The Verde Valley Chamber of Commerce, and the many community families who came out in support.

Here’s to more memories, more laughter, and more play at Riverfront Park!

🌳🛝💚 #CommunityStrong #RiverfrontPark #COCSD #CottonwoodAZ #PlaygroundOpening #PartnershipsMatter

📢 COCSD Governing Board Meeting Tonight 📢

The Cottonwood-Oak Creek School District Governing Board will meet this evening at 5:00 PM. One of the items on the agenda is the possible approval of the proposed budget for the upcoming year.

🔗 For the full agenda and to watch the live stream, click here:
https://cocsd.diligent.community/Portal/MeetingInformation.aspx?Org=Cal&Id=918

Your engagement matters—stay informed and involved! 💼📚

📱🎉 Happy National Social Media Day! 🎉📱 Cottonwood-Oak Creek School District is excited to celebrate the power of social media to connect, inspire, and share the incredible things happening in our schools and community! As we recognize the impact social media has on our daily lives, we also want to take this opportunity to encourage families to talk with their children about using these platforms responsibly and safely. 🔐 Tips for Safe & Smart Social Media Use: Think before you post – If you wouldn’t say it face-to-face, don’t share it online. Protect personal information – Avoid sharing your full name, address, school, or phone number. Use strong privacy settings – Keep accounts private and only connect with people you know in real life. Be kind online – Use social media to build others up, not tear them down. Tell a trusted adult – If you see or experience something inappropriate, speak up. Limit screen time – Balance is key! Encourage real-life connections and outdoor time. Let’s work together to help our children build a healthy relationship with technology and use social media as a force for good. #NationalSocialMediaDay #COCSD #DigitalCitizenship #SafeOnline #FamilyFirst

🌊🐢 Big learning from our littlest campers at Camp Innovation! With the help of the ever-creative Mrs. Davis, our tiny explorers crafted sea turtles to learn all about shapes 🟢🔺 and built a sunflower model to discover how plants grow — from roots to petals! 🌻🌱 It’s hands-on fun and learning in full bloom! Thank you Mrs. Davis for all you do!

🎨🦜 Art is taking flight at Camp Innovation! Our creative campers turned recycled materials into colorful parrots in art class — proving that with a little imagination, trash can become treasure! ♻️🌈 Big shoutout to our young artists for making the world a little brighter (and greener) one parrot at a time!

🌿🔬 Field Scientists in Action! 🔬🌿 Our Camp Innovation explorers teamed up with The Science Vortex for a hands-on science adventure at Riverfront Park! 🧪🌊 Armed with curiosity and field journals, our young scientists: 🪲 Identified and classified bugs 📊 Studied populations and density 🧠 Asked great questions and made real-world observations 💧 Investigated macroinvertebrates to test water quality And guess what? According to our data, the Verde River has excellent water quality! ✅💙 This was real science, in the real world — the kind that inspires lifelong learning. Way to go, scientists! 👏🔍

📚☀️ Camp Innovation is proud to partner with the Cottonwood Public Library! ☀️📚 Thanks to the incredible support of Danielle Ave, every one of our campers was issued their very own library card this summer—opening the door to a world of reading and discovery! 💳📖 But Danielle didn’t stop there… 👓 She visited camp to read stories with our kiddos 🎁 Surprised them with sweet goodie bags on our final day 📘 And sent each camper home with a brand-new book to enjoy over the break! Danielle, we appreciate you more than words can say. Thank you for investing in our kids, our camp, and our community. 💙📚

🎉✨ You’re Invited! Verde Tech High School Back to School Open House! ✨🎉 Get ready to kick off an amazing new school year! Join us for our Back to School Open House and celebrate the start of another year of innovation and learning at Verde Tech High School. 📅 Date: Wednesday, July 30, 2025 🕚 Time: 11:00 AM – 1:00 PM 📍 Location: Verde Tech High School Come meet our dedicated teachers and staff, tour classrooms and learn about our exciting programs. This is a great opportunity to: ✅ Meet your teachers and classmates ✅ Pick up class schedules and supply lists ✅ Get your questions answered We can’t wait to welcome you back! Let’s make this school year our best one yet!

🌞 Show Us Your Summer Adventures, COCSD Families! 🌞 What have your students been up to this summer? We want to know! 🎨 Have they picked up a new hobby? 📚 Learned something new? ✈️ Traveled somewhere exciting? 🌵 Or just enjoyed the simple fun of summer in Arizona? 📸 Share your favorite summer photos right here on our Facebook page and include the hashtag for your school — like #DDB, #VTHS, #CCS, #OCS or #MVP — so we can see what students from each campus have been up to! Let’s fill our page with sunshine, smiles, and all the things that make summer break unforgettable. We can't wait to see your photos. #COCSDProud #COCSDSummerFun

📣 Summer Update from Cottonwood-Oak Creek School District ☀️ Our school offices are currently closed for the summer break and will reopen the week of July 14th to assist families with new student enrollment for the upcoming school year. We hope everyone is enjoying a safe and restful summer! 🏖️📚 If you're planning to enroll your child in one of our schools, we look forward to welcoming you starting that week. Stay tuned here for more updates as we get closer to the start of the new school year! 💙🍎 #COCSD #EnrollmentInfo #BackToSchool2025 #CottonwoodAZ

🚀 Tech Time at Camp Innovation! 🧠💡 Our campers had an amazing afternoon with Mrs. Aston, diving into all things STEM! From designing with 3D printers 🖨️ to creating art with 3D pens ✍️, these future engineers brought their ideas to life. They also got to program coding bots and master the coding mouse game 🐭🤖 — problem-solving and creativity were in full force! Thank you, Mrs. Aston, for guiding our innovators through such a fun, hands-on experience! 💥

Our older campers got an unforgettable hands-on experience at The Science Vortex — dissecting real cow eyeballs! 🐄👀 With curiosity and courage, they explored the inner workings of the eye, learning about lenses, retinas, and how vision works. It was an up-close look at biology in action, and they absolutely loved it! Big thanks to the team at Science Vortex for making science so memorable! 🧠🧪

📚🌲 Survival Stories & Tent Time at Camp Innovation! 🏕️🔥 Instead of desks and chairs, our campers cozied up in tents this week as they finished the adventure-packed novel Hatchet by Gary Paulsen! ⛺📖 Reading about wilderness survival just hits different when you're hanging out in your own little campsite — no mosquitoes, but plenty of imagination. 🐾🪵 Big shoutout to Deb Earl for turning the classroom into an immersive reading retreat! 💡❤️

🚍 Now Hiring: Bus Drivers for Cottonwood-Oak Creek School District! 🚍 Join our team and make a difference in the lives of local students! Cottonwood-Oak Creek School District is now hiring school bus drivers – no experience necessary! Training is provided, and we’re offering a sign-on bonus for new drivers. ✔ Competitive pay ✔ Flexible schedules ✔ Rewarding work environment Help us keep our community moving safely! Apply today or share with someone who might be interested. 📞 For more info, call (928) 634-9679. 💻 Apply online at: https://cottonwood.tedk12.com/hire/index.aspx #NowHiring #BusDriversNeeded #CottonwoodOakCreek #JoinOurTeam

🎬✨ Lights, Camera, CAMP INNOVATION! ✨🎬 We’re thrilled to share that Teddy Armstrong has been busy directing our very own Camp Innovation movie — capturing all the magic happening this summer! From hands-on fun in the classroom to splashing at the rec center, adventures at the library, creativity in art, and movement in P.E., every moment has been full of energy and excitement! A huge THANK YOU to Jay Bird Media for coming out to help bring our story to life and showcase just how awesome Camp Innovation has been! 🎥💙 Stay tuned… you won’t want to miss this masterpiece! 🍿👏