Dear New Families, 

Welcome and thank you for choosing GEMS American Academy!

At GAA our principles of teaching and learning emphasize a personalized learning environment, giving students more choice in their learning and making learning more purposeful. Each year we are seeing more student projects that address real world problems and scenarios, and create tangible useful products that are shared with their communities.

From these student successes and the success and quality of our academic programs we are strengthening the connection with our students, parents, and the community. We are sending a message that says, “GAA is a school of opportunity.”

In the business world, companies that succeed are ones that stay true to their core values over the years, and create a culture that employees and customers are proud to associate with. For GAA to continue to thrive and impact our world, as stated in our mission, we must all incorporate, uphold, defend, and live out a shared set of beliefs about what it means to be a member of GAA. A set of GAA beliefs that center on the importance of positive relationships, where Human Interaction is the most important role, characterized by trust and support. As a faculty and staff, we must model our expectations and demonstrate in everything we do, a strong conviction in the potential of young people. 

I ask that every member of  GAA to become active participants in our community - students, teachers, administration, and parents by living out these beliefs, and helping us define what it means to be student centered in instruction and in relationships.

As an educational leader my purpose is very clear: To help each student find their self-confidence and pathway. I look forward to meeting each of you in the year ahead.

Warm Regards,

Robert Rinaldo

Head of School 

Admin Offices Timings:

Monday - Thursday: 07:30AM - 04:30PM

Fridays: 07:00AM - 01:00PM

Offices will remain open during Summer, Winter and Spring Breaks (except on public holidays) from Monday to Thursday between 08:00-14:00 and Fridays 08:00-13:00. 

Please refer to Procedures & Policies Section for more information if you wish to visit Admin Offices during school hours.

Please take time to familiarize yourselves with important procedures, set in place to ensure our students' safety and wellbeing:

• Traffic Regulation

• Drop-off and Pick-up Procedure

• Late Arrival and Early Pick-up Procedure

• Campus Security Procedure

• Bus Rider Student Pick-up and Drop-off Guidelines

Our wonderful parent ambassadors have set up WhatsApp groups by division to help connect our NEW families.  Please join using below links:

New KG Family WhatsApp Group  

New Elementary Family WhatsApp Group 

New Secondary Family WhatsApp Group

Grade level WhatsApp groups will be created at the start of the school year and shared with new and returning families.

IMPORTANT!

Please take a moment to familiarize yourselves with group rules.

To know more about GAA Parent Associations, please make sure to check out GAA Parent Associations page of this Welcome Pack.

This is a friendly reminder that all families, especially our new families, need to return the following forms to our Clinic:

Should you have any questions, please contact our Nurses at nurse_gaa@gemsedu.com. 

All students from PreK to Grade 12 are issued a Student ID, which can also be used as a cafeteria card for grades 6-12. Please make sure to submit your child's most recent photo in jpeg format to Admissions team.  See Admissions Team contacts HERE or at the bottom of this page.

The IDs will be delivered in the classrooms.

Please complete THIS GOOGLE FORM by providing both parents' LOCAL contact information and an alternative contact. Contact information (email and mobile number) is required in order to ensure that our communication reaches you. 

While on campus parents and guardians MUST wear the GAA yellow lanyard. If lanyard is not worn, we kindly request you to register as a guest before entering the campus. This is to ensure that every adult in school is identified clearly for the safety and security of everyone on campus. 

At GEMS American Academy, we issue parent ID cards to our parents only. No ID Cards are issued for guardians, domestic helpers, drivers or relatives. 

The Parent ID includes photos of the parent. The Parent ID does not expire and is valid as long as the child attends GAA. You will be asked to return Parent IDs, should you withdraw from GAA.  

New Parents, you may obtain your Parent photo identity card by emailing a photo (jpeg format) along with the parent’s first and last name to pre_gaa@gemsedu.com. Please also include your child/children’s full name and grade in the email as well. You will be notified when your ID cards are ready.

• If you have ordered new IDs and received confirmation that they are ready, please remember to collect from Main Reception.

• If you have not received your Parent ID yet, please email your photo to pre_gaa@gemsedu.com as soon as possible.

Occasionally, we take photographs and videos of the students at school. We use these images as part of our school displays, school website, social media, yearbook.

• In Social Media or Website, if we use photographs of individual students, we will not use the name of that child in the accompanying text or caption.

• In Social Media or Website, If we name a student in the text, we will not use a photograph of that child to accompany the article.

• In Social Media or Website, If a student has won an award or achieved an accomplishment and parent would like the name of their child to accompany the picture, we will obtain permission from the parent before using the image.

• From time to time, our school may be visited by the media who will take photographs or film footage of a school event. Students may appear in these images, which will sometimes be published in local or national newspapers (digital or paper). 

To comply with the Data Protection Policy and Federal Law No. 5 of 2012 on Combatting Cybercrimes and its amendment by the Federal Law No. 12 of 2016 of UAE, we need your permissions before we can photograph or make any recording of your child.

To complete the consent form, please access your parent Portal, and check the relevant boxes:

• If using GEMS Connect app: please go to Student Info, scroll right to General Consent and tick relevant boxes. 

• If using website version on http://connect.gemseducation.com, please go to Requests, scroll down to Update Student Details, scroll right to General Consent and tick the relevant boxes.

• If you do not have your login credentials, please contact pre_gaa@gemsedu.com. 

IMPORTANT NOTE: Official school photoshoot by our approved school photography studio "Stu Williamson" is mandatory and to be used in school records for identification purposes. Parents can choose to purchase the printed or digital photograph from the photoshoot. Stu Williamson photos are used for school yearbook.