William Gay
Weekly Update
Upcoming Dates
February 1st- Chocolate fundraiser ends
February 2nd- District Wide Distance Learning Day
February 2nd- Parent Teacher Conference 3:30-9:30
February 3rd- No School
February 7th - Spring Pictures
February 10th - Valentine's Day Party
February 20th- No School
March 13-17 Spring Break
A message from Mrs. Lester...
Chocolate Fundraiser
All chocolate money is due February 1st.
Distance Learning Day & Parent Teacher Conference
February 2nd will be both our distance learning day and parent teacher conference night. We will be sending home a packet next week for them to do. Please have your child complete the work and send a picture of it to your teacher's Remind or email. This can be completed at any time during the day. This day counts as a day of school. Your child will be marked as absent if the work is not completed. Please contact the school on that day if you have any questions. Staff will be available to answers questions.
Valentine's Day Party
February 10th- Be watching for more information from your child's teacher.
Remind
The district will be changing to a district wide Remind system. Please make sure that all of your contact information is correct in PowerSchool. If you are unsure how to update PowerSchool then you may contact the school for assistance. We will be sending eNotes as well as Remind messages for the next couple of weeks to ensure that everyone receive messages. If you find that you are not receiving the Remind message please contact the school.
Spring Pictures
Spring pictures will be February 7th. Every child will be photographed. Students will bring home a proof 7-10 working days later so that you can choose to order pictures. Please avoid having your child wear green clothes.
Emergency Distance Learning
The teachers sent home emergency distance learning packets the week before Christmas break. This is in case we have a closure (i.e. covid, snow/ice, water loss, etc...) resulting in distance learning instead of in person learning. Please put these in a safe place IN CASE we need to use them. Please notify the school if you no longer have yours.
Coats
We are starting to get a collection of coats in our lost and found. If your child has lost his/her coat or jacket please come check out our lost and found. Also, please put your child's name in the coat. This helps to prevent jackets from getting "lost".
Parent Support/Volunteer Group
If you would still like to help volunteer in some capacity please email me at klester@mcalester.k12.ok.us
Contacting the School
It is the goal of William Gay ECC that every student be successful and that every student and their family have an enjoyable experience while being a part of our school. We strive to have an open door policy of communication. Therefore, please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any concerns or questions. Things can generally be resolved at the teacher or principal level to everyone’s satisfaction. We look forward to a great year as we get to know the students and families better. You can call the school at 918-423-6229 or email Mrs. Lester directly at klester@mcalester.k12.ok.us
Reminders for Start of Day
We all run late sometimes! But, please remember if you arrive at school after the car lines that we need you to walk your child all the way to the front door and make sure he/she gets inside the building. Our second set of doors is always locked, so your child is locked out of the building until a staff member is available to open the front door.
Click below to view drop-off and pick-up procedures.
Car Line Instructions
Please follow the pick-up procedures at the end of the day and pick up your child through the car line. The front is reserved for bus students and day care bus pick-ups (Madison is also a no parking street).This creates a safety issue as parking in the front blocks the bus lane. THE FRONT DOOR WILL BE LOCKED AT 2:45 because the school is busy during that time coordinating bus riders, dividing students between car kids and beyond the bell kids, answering phone calls, and finishing up the end of day activities. If you need to check your child out early then it will need to be before 2:45. You will need your ID, and your child will be counted tardy.
Early Drop-Off/Drop-Off/Pick-up
E Street- Mitchell, Reed, Dickerson, Taylor
F Street- Hampton, Nelson, Leibfried, Collier, Monroe, Sterling
7:00-7:15 F street side door- parents walk students to side door
7:15-7:30 F street side door- early car line
7:30-7:45 E and F street car lines
7:45 SCHOOL BEGINS- Please walk students to the front door. The second set of doors are always locked so allowing them to walk inside the building by themselves creates a safety hazard.
8:00 TARDY- You will need to sign your child in on the kiosk.
3:05 Pick-up car line begins
Car Line Safety
Please remember safety!! Remember to follow the procedures for the car line routes. It is not safe (plus it makes for other unhappy parents) to attempt to cut into the lines or go around parked cars to exit the line. Stay off of cell phones! Make sure younger siblings are buckled into appropriate car seats. Make sure your kindergartener buckles up after getting into the car. Please pull forward to do this. Don't block driveways. Please be courteous to other drivers. We are all in this together to get the kiddos to and from school safely!
Attendance & Illness
While we strive for high attendance rates, we also value the health of our students and staff. If your child has a fever or other symptoms of concern please call the school and let us know you will be keeping your child home. Please remember that students cannot return to school the day following a fever. They must be 24 hours fever free without fever reducing medication before returning to school. The same goes for vomiting and diarrhea.
We are going to do our best to attend to not only your children's academic needs but also to their social and emotional needs. If your child is struggling with something please don't hesitate to reach out to your teacher or principal to make them aware of any special needs we can help them with.
William Gay
Email: klester@mcalester.k12.ok.us
Website: mcalester.k12.ok.us
Location: 600 West Madison Avenue, McAlester, OK, USA
Phone: 918-423-6229