July 26, 2013
Dear Parents,
It is hard to believe that the summer is almost over. It has been an amazing summer. We have had lots of activity going on at West Madison. We have had roofers working on replacing the roof on the gym. We have also changed the entrance to the clinic. It now opens out into the hall beyond our security doors.
Welcome to New Members of our Team
I am also excited to tell you about three new employees added to our school. Our new counselor is Mrs. Stephanie Allen. She has been a licensed counselor for several years. She has worked in the private clinical setting as well as in our Madison City Schools. We would also like to welcome Ms. Catherine Bryan. She is our new special education teacher. She has worked previously in Huntsville City Schools and most recently with Space Camp and Aviation Challenge at the Space and Rocket Center. Our third employee is not new to West Madison. Mrs. Sara Phillips is coming back to us from Mill Creek. She will be teaching second grade.
School Supplies, Open House
I am beginning to feel the excitement that the beginning of school always brings. I look forward to seeing everyone in a few weeks. The school supply list is posted on the website as well as our Open House dates and Curriculum Nights dates and times. We will be posting class lists on the Cafeteria Doors in the back of the school at 1:00 pm on Aug. 15. You may come up and see who your child’s teacher is prior to Open House. At Open House, please make sure you stop by to see our bus drivers in the Media Center. The routes will be very similar to what they have been in the past; however we will have several new subdivisions added. If you would like to view the routes prior to Open House, please go to our website. There is a link on the left side that will take you to the Madison City transportation site. Our website is http://wmes.madisoncity.k12.al.us/ .
Curriculum Nights
I am so excited; we will be conducting curriculum nights again this year. They were such a success last year. I really encourage you to attend these grade level nights. The teachers will be presenting procedures as well as pertinent information about the curriculum for each grade level. This is also a time for you to ask questions. Please make plans to attend these meetings. If you are unable to come, we will video tape each meeting and post on our website. The dates are posted on our website.
Parent Teacher Partnership PTA
I would like to encourage you to join the West Madison PTA. The PTA volunteers will be at Open House, available to answer any questions you may have. You may also purchase West Madison T-shirts at this time.
West Madison typically only has one major fundraiser per year. Please stop by the table in the lunchroom to talk to the fundraiser representative. She will have a display of many of the items that will be for sale.
Community Outreach Event
We will be hosting a Community Outreach Event on August 1 from 4:00-6:00PM. We will have food, music and fun. There will be school supplies available for those who need them. Please come join us for fun.
Communication through Twitter and WMES Principal blog
In order to increase communication to parents, please follow us on Twitter. The link to follow us is below:
https://twitter.com/westmadison7
Please view the West Madison Principal Blog at http://wmesprincipal.blogspot.com/.
West Madison Parent Surveys
I would like to thank you so much for taking the time to complete the West Madison Surveys sent this past spring. It is important to see ourselves through your eyes so that we may address your concerns. We had several areas that were very positive. We care very much about our students and their families. One of the areas in which we need to grow in is providing more innovative ways to challenge our students who excel. We will be partnering with Redstone Arsenal and some of the employees at ANCOM to provide some Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) Activities with our students. If you are interested in helping us address this and other concerns, please email me at .
Ways to Help Our School
If you are looking for a way to help West Madison, the PTA will be doing a fundraiser in August. We also participate in the Amazon.com Associates program. For every dollar amount you spend, West Madison will get 4% and possibly more, depending on how much you spend. You must, however go through the Amazon.com link on our website in order for us to receive the percentage. Last year we made over $200 from this program. We would like to expand it even more. Please help us publicize this site. We would like to thank you so much for all you do to help our school. We are in partnering together.
If you know of anyone who has recently moved into your neighborhood and has school aged children, please encourage them to register as soon as possible at Central Office. The address is 211 Celtic Drive. Here is the link to find out more information:
http://www.madisoncity.k12.al.us/?DivisionID=7859&ToggleSideNav
We are going to have an exciting year. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to call or email me.
Dr. Daphne P. Jah
Principal