Monday, September 12, 2016

Monday, September 12

Welcome!  Please join me in welcoming the following new staff members to our Wiley team!
Mrs. Jenny Oliver – Kindergarten                                            
Ms. Abby Wierman – First Grade
Ms. Kelly Womack – Fourth Grade                                          
Mrs. Joanne Vaughan – Fifth Grade
Mr. Mike Roche – English as a Second Language                               
Mrs. Lynn Christiansen – Media Specialist
Mr. Denya Hewitt (Visiting International Fellow from Jamaica) – Second Grade
Mr. Matthew Perlanski (Visiting International Fellow from Canada) – Third Grade

An Exciting Renovation is on the Way!
Wiley is slated for an exciting renovation in the near future!  Current timelines have Wiley set for renovations during the 2018/19 school year (not next school year).  It is currently anticipated that the extent of the renovation will require us to relocate to a ‘swing space’ while construction is underway. As such, the Garner HS ninth grade center is tentatively proposed as our swing location. The renovation process will include a community input session before plans are drafted, and we commit to communicating the details of the project as they are made available. Please feel free to contact Leslie Taylor (ltaylor2) to verify, clarify, or question details that you may hear from others.

WCPSS Budget Shortfall & Wiley Staffing
Thanks in large part to sacrifices of various staff members and tight monitoring/manipulation of staff allotments, we consider ourselves incredibly fortunate to maintain all five of our language teachers on staff in an 80% employment capacity … as some might say, by the skin of our teeth.  Implications of the budget shortfall were felt quite noticeably at the elementary level in terms of staffing and across the board in terms of custodial cutbacks. Huge thanks to the entire Wiley team for rallying around each other to maintain the positive Wiley spirit, despite cutbacks and shortfalls.

Homework
Last school year, our K-2 teachers embraced the ‘no homework’ notion, choosing instead to encourage reading and authentic, meaningful experiences. We’re broadening our reach this year to cover K-5. We greet this decision with excitement and anxious anticipation.  Please continue to take advantage of opportunities to broaden the experiences of our students through play, meaningful conversation, exploration, and hands-on learning. 

Arrival & Dismissal
Thank for your patience as we continue to work hard to get back into the safe routines of arrival and dismissal. Please be mindful of the following:
·         An adult must accompany all students arriving prior to 8:45am. Students are not to be dropped off before the morning arrival window opens at 8:45am. To accommodate families needing morning childcare, we contract with the Alexander YMCA (our before-school-care provider) for convenient on-site morning care.
·         Morning ‘walkers’ have probably noticed that the access points nearest the K/2 playground are no longer accessible in the mornings. Findings from a recent informal safety audit suggested that walkers enter the building from the Calvin Road entrance. Access this entrance using the established crosswalk where our coordinated efforts with Raleigh PD have provided a crossing guard.
·         Each afternoon, within a 15 minute window, we work hard to move almost 500 students during dismissal to one of four “departure points” – carpool, walkers, bus, and YMCA afterschool care.  Safety is our number one priority, and we seek your cooperation in remembering the following:
o   Unless there are extenuating circumstances, we do not release students from carpool to those arriving by foot. If a student is in carpool, we expect that we will be providing curbside service to deliver the student to a car where the adult that has been identified by our regular carpool team. Asking for a student out of our carpool area compromises the attention necessary to keep our carpool moving safely and swiftly.
o   The office is not a ‘departure location’. Please do not phone the main office requesting that a student wait in the office at dismissal; instead, utilize either carpool or walkers.
o   The more consistency you can provide regarding afternoon departure, the better.
o   If transportation changes are necessary, call the main office (919-856-7723) prior to 3:00pm to ensure that we can deliver the message to your student.
o   Families wishing to enjoy the playground area after school must restrict play to the immediate “sight area” of the supervising adult.  

Volunteer Registration
Don’t allow the volunteer registration deadline to squash your lifelong dream of chaperoning a field trip or working with small student groups!  Volunteers wishing to reactivate their volunteer status are encouraged to do so by October 31st at a WCPSS location.  All others may register during school hours using the computer in the media center. Add this to your to-do list!  J

Stay Connected
Be on the look-out for a monthly newsletter that will deliver general Wiley information! The newsletter will be posted on the Wiley World Review blog (http://wileyworldreview.blogspot.com/) which also feeds into the Wiley website (http://wcpss.net/wileyes).  We’re also working hard to provide day-to-day highlights on our Twitter feeds (@wileyelementary and @wileyprincipal).  Further, follow the departure of our buses on Twitter @WileyBuses


Parent Homework … Is your student loving school?  I hope so!  Please take a minute to send a quick hand-written note or email to his/her teacher/s to let him/her know!