Updates for Elementary Families

August 23, 2025 Update for Elementary Families

We’re so excited to see everyone back on campus as we kick off another amazing school year this Monday! Our team has been hard at work preparing classrooms, finalizing plans, and getting everything in place to provide the exceptional experience we strive to offer all students and families.

We also have some exciting campus updates to share—our HVAC replacement was completed right on schedule, giving us a fully updated heating and cooling system. At the same time, the new digital sign at the corner of Wilson and Leonard was installed, and the native landscape project, including new outdoor learning spaces, came together beautifully. It all wrapped up just in time to welcome students back, and we couldn’t be happier with how it turned out.

Here’s to a fantastic year of learning, growth, and partnership with your family!

Click Subscribe below at add our WMAES Family Calendar to any calendar app on the device of your choice. You can also click here to visit the calendar page and view information about subscribing.

Aug 2025 Breakfast.pdf

Aug 2025 Lunch.pdf

Uniform requirements include a WMAES uniform top, solid color pants/shorts or solid jeans/jean shorts, and closed-toe shoes.
Students may arrive beginning at 7:45 AM and enter through the elementary main entrance. Students will go directly to their classrooms upon entering. All students should be in their classrooms by 8:00 AM.
Parents may not enter the building with students at drop-off but may accompany them on the sidewalk as they wait to enter.
If you are accompanying your student on the sidewalk at arrival, you must park your vehicle in a parking space.
As the school year begins, many staff members will be available to walk students to their classrooms as needed.
All elementary classes will be dismissed at 3:05 PM. At dismissal, they will be standing with their teacher on the designated area of the sidewalk for their class.
At dismissal, you must park and walk to your child's teacher to pick up your student. Please be prepared to identify yourself to your child's teacher as necessary.

Parking Lot GUIDELINES

WMAES strives to provide a parking lot environment that is as safe and courteous as possible and ensure an orderly drop-off and pick-up of students. Your adherence to the following guidelines is greatly appreciated and serves as an important example of adult cooperation, patience, and respect for our students.

Guidelines

Enter only through the east drive.
Exit only through the west drive.
Drive slowly! Be alert and watch for children emerging between cars.
If you are planning to leave your vehicle for any reason, park in a designated parking space.
During drop-off, the inside lane (closest to the school) is available for vehicles dropping off students.
Vehicles in this lane must remain occupied by the driver and merge left slowly into the outer lane after dropping off.
Drop off children on the inside lane only as close to the sidewalk as possible.
Make sure children exit the vehicle on the school side (passenger side) of the vehicle.
The outside lane is for continuous traffic flow.
Do not leave your vehicle unless it is in a designated parking space.
Carpool whenever possible to help reduce traffic volume.
BE PATIENT! Our parking lot must accommodate a high volume of vehicles. As is the case in any parking lot, this can create slow moving traffic at times. Patience and cooperation are necessary to make departure go smoothly.

Dismissal Locations

All elementary classes will be dismissed at 3:05 PM. They will be standing with their teacher on the sidewalk in front of the elementary building for dismissal. Signs will designate the specific dismissal location for each class in the grade level dismissal areas shown in the image below. At dismissal, you must park and walk to your child's teacher to pick up your student. Please be prepared to identify yourself to your child's teacher as necessary. Please note that transitional kindergarten students dismiss from the west end of the early childhood center.

Reminder: No School August 29 and SepTEMBER 1

There will be no school on Friday, August 29 and Monday, September 1 in observance of Labor Day.

We hope everyone enjoys the long weekend with family and friends!

Dollar Day Punch Cards Are Here!

No more digging for $1 bills—Dollar Day just got easier! Students can prepay for Dollar Days and you will be able to save a little cash. It's a simple, convenient way to join in the fun!

The Punch Card is not a physical card but a subscription (No worries about misplacing the card)
The cost is $15 (for 25-26 school year) and will include participation in all Dollar Days
A student who purchases one will no longer need to remember cash for each Dollar Day
This process will help make it easier for families and staff
Participating supports our school events/clubs/programs
Subscriptions can be purchased in the Secondary Office. (Cash or Card)

New WMAES Uniform Items Now Available Online – Free Shipping!

We’re pleased to share that our uniform provider now has items featuring the new WMAES logo available for online ordering—with free shipping to your home!

Just click the link below and click “Shop Now”—then navigate to the Uniform category to explore all that’s available. We’re especially excited to let you know that several new, lower-cost uniform t-shirt options have been added for your convenience.

Shop Now: https://wmaesapparel.secure-decoration.com/

As a reminder, here are our uniform policy guidelines:

Uniform requirements include:

A WMAES uniform top
Solid color pants or shorts, or solid jeans or jean shorts
Closed-toe shoes

Please note:

The WMAES top must be the outermost layer
All clothing must be free of writing, adornments, and rips/tears/holes
Uniforms with the old logo will be fully grandfathered in. Students may continue wearing their previous uniform items.

Thank you for partnering with us and for your continued support of our uniform policy!

Stay Connected with WMAES!

Please take a moment to add our school’s phone number to your contact list: 616-791-7454. This helps ensure that you recognize calls coming from West Michigan Academy of Environmental Science.

We also kindly ask that you make sure your phone is set to allow calls from the school. It’s important that we’re able to reach an adult family member during the school day if needed.

To make it even easier, you can use the QR code below to quickly add our contact info to your phone:

Recommended Supply Lists

To assist with your back-to-school preparations, our staff has compiled updated recommended supply lists for each elementary grade. The lists can be found in the folder linked below.

These supply lists have been carefully curated by our dedicated teachers to include items that will support your child's learning and organization throughout the school year. We understand that shopping for school supplies can be overwhelming, so we hope these lists make the process a little smoother and more efficient for your family!

Updated Dismissal Time for Elementary Students

For the 2025-2026 school year, dismissal for elementary students will shift to 3:05 PM. The process and location remain the same as in previous years. An adult family member must park and walk up to pick up their student from the designated location on the sidewalk in front of the elementary and secondary buildings.

We’ll continue to share reminders about daily routines and procedures to support a smooth start to the year as the first day of school approaches.

Join the WMAES Corkboard Facebook Group!

We are excited to invite all WMAES families to join our new Facebook Group - WMAES Corkboard!

What is WMAES Corkboard? Groups are dedicated spaces on Facebook that make it easy to pursue your interests and connect with others. WMAES Corkboard was established by our fantastic Power Parent Team and is designed to be a productive place for WMAES families to share helpful information and updates.

Why Join?

Stay Informed: Get the latest news and updates about school events, activities, and important announcements.
Connect with Other Parents: Engage with fellow WMAES families and build a supportive community.
Share Resources: Exchange resources and information to help each other navigate the school year smoothly.

Click here to join the WMAES Corkboard Facebook Group!

Clicking the link will take you directly to the Facebook Group, where you can request to join. Looking forward to seeing you there and working together to support our amazing school community!

Stay Up to Date with the WMAES Calendar

Important dates for the coming school year have been added to our school calendar on AddEvent—including breaks, early release days, family events, and more! We encourage all families to follow the calendar to stay informed and organized throughout the year.

You can follow the calendar by clicking “Follow Calendar” above this post or by visiting:
https://www.addevent.com/calendar/MF615307

Our calendar is hosted through AddEvent and is fully compatible with:

Apple Calendar (iPhone, iPad, Mac)
Google Calendar (Android devices and Gmail accounts)
Outlook
Office 365
Yahoo Calendar
Any calendar app that supports iCal or .ics feeds

Once added, all events will sync directly to your personal calendar—and any updates we make will automatically be reflected on your end. It’s a simple, reliable way to stay connected and never miss an important date!

A printable version of our calendar is also available below for your convenience.

For Families - WMAES 25/26 Calendar List

Stay Connected with WMAES!

Please take a moment to add our school’s phone number to your contact list: 616-791-7454. This helps ensure that you recognize calls coming from West Michigan Academy of Environmental Science.

We also kindly ask that you make sure your phone is set to allow calls from the school. It’s important that we’re able to reach an adult family member during the school day if needed.

To make it even easier, you can use the QR code below to quickly add our contact info to your phone:

Be a Part of the WMAES Family!

At WMAES, we take pride in our welcoming, supportive school community where students grow, explore, and thrive. From our hands-on environmental learning experiences to the strong connections between staff, students, and families, there’s something truly special about being a part of WMAES!

Enrollment for the 2025-26 school year is now open! If you have a younger sibling ready to start school or know a family looking for an engaging, nature-focused education, now is the time to apply.

Apply today! wma-es.com/enroll

Help us welcome more families into our amazing community—please share with anyone who may be interested!

Assistance Program INFORMATION

We are excited to continue our efforts in supporting our students through our assistance programs. Our resources have expanded this school year, and we want to ensure you are aware of the benefits available to our entire community.

Our new counseling service, the School Assistance Program (SAP), is offered through Pine Rest, a professional mental health service. This program provides five free, confidential counseling sessions per episode of care and is available 24/7 to anyone in the student’s household.

To access this service, simply call 800.442.0809, press 1, and follow the prompts. Be sure to mention, “I have an SAP with West Michigan Academy of Environmental Science.”

To learn more about all the benefits provided by this program, please watch the introduction video. Click the link below or paste the URL into any browser:

SAP Video – Password: SAPOrientation
URL: https://vimeo.com/video/956870695?share=copy

Please note that all services provided through the SAP are 100% confidential. We hope this resource can support you and your family whenever needed.

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out.

WMAES Text Updates Opt-In

Please refer to the information below for everything you need to know to sign up for text updates from WMAES. We look forward to being able to utilize texting as a convenient means of providing links to our newsletters, reminders about upcoming dates, weather-related closing notifications, and more. As shown in the flyer below, simply text Y or Yes to 67587 from a number you have on file with the office to get signed up. Coming soon, we will also be sending a one time opt-in message to all numbers on file who have not opted in to provide the option of doing so at that time.

SMS Text Opt-In Flyer 67587 Eng and Esp.pdf

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