Dear GAA Families,

It is a great privilege and honour to welcome you to GEMS American Academy for the 2025-2026 academic year. This pack is designed to provide you with all the information you require to gain a solid understanding of the policies and procedures in the division in which your child is learning. 

The information provided in this Welcome Pack gives you the basis of a successful start at GAA. 

If you have a question that is not covered here, our Parent Relations Executive (PRE), Divisional Secretaries, Reception and the Senior Leadership Team are all great next stops in helping to find answers. 

Biweekly newsletter GAAzette is also a great source of information, but please also connect with us on our Facebook Page and Instagram Page to stay up to date.

Dear GAA Families,

We are thrilled to welcome you to the GEMS American Academy community for the 2025-26 school year! At GAA, our students, faculty, staff, and families come together to form a vibrant, supportive environment where every learner is known, valued, and encouraged to thrive.

When students feel genuinely supported, they gain the confidence to dream big - and at GAA, we make those dreams possible through academic excellence, character development, and a strong sense of belonging.

GAA is proud to be among the top-performing schools in the region and beyond. Our enriched American curriculum, combined with the prestigious International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme, prepares students to meet global standards while cultivating creativity, innovation, and personal growth. Alongside strong academics, we offer dynamic programs in the arts, athletics, and leadership.

But what truly sets us apart is our Culture of Kindness. We believe relationships shape character, and at GAA, students learn to lead with compassion, think critically, and contribute meaningfully to their communities.

From our youngest learners to our graduating seniors, GAA students are nurtured to become curious, resilient, and globally minded individuals - ready to succeed in a rapidly changing world.

We are so glad you have joined us, and we can’t wait to get to know your family. This journey is just beginning, and we are honored to walk it with you.

Warmest regards,

Dr. Ethan Hildreth

Superintendent/CEO

• Read Welcome Pack (check division pages specific for your student: Kindergarten, Elementary, Secondary)

• Read Parent Engagement Policy and Parent Code of Conduct, Complete Acknowledgment Form

• Submit Health Forms Online: LINK HERE

• Submit Emergency Contacts by emailing Admissions team or PRE at pre_gaa@gemsedu.com Please provide both parents/guardians' LOCAL contact information and an alternative contact. Contact information (email and mobile number) is required in order to ensure that our communication reaches you. 

• Submit Transfer Certificate - if moving from overseas or different Emirate). Check Admissions Page for more details

• Register students' and parents' Emirates IDs with Admissions Office

• Submit Parent and Student Photos for Access Cards: by email to Parent Relations Executive at pre_gaa@gemsedu.com 

• Pay Tuition Fees - check Finance and Payments Page for more details

• Buy Uniforms - check Uniform Page for more details

• Top Up student cafeteria account - check Cafeteria Page for more details

• Register for Bus (optional) - check Bus Transportation Page for more details

• Read GAAzette, biweekly newsletter - GAAZETTE

• Follow Us On Social Media - Facebook, Instagram, Youtube

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 08:00-12:00. 

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 Kindergarten 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.

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

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. 

For full school contact list please check out Important Contacts Page. Please note that it is being updated.