School districts across the country continue to face a critical shortage of transportation staff and the same is true in WLCSD. After weeks of diligently reorganizing routes and redeploying staff, our partners at Dean Transportation informed us of the unfortunate reality that we would need to cancel several bus routes this week, November 8-12. While we deeply regret the imposition this creates for our families, we acknowledge these cancellations were necessary to safely provide transportation services to as many of our WLCSD families as possible.

Due to the nationwide shortage of workers, these bus route cancellations will unfortunately be with us for the next few weeks. Out of fairness to the families already impacted by this week’s cancellations, we will be cancelling different routes each week throughout the District to help share the burden this unfortunate situation creates.

Starting next week, November 15-19, the following buses/route will be cancelled at Oakley Park:

• Bus 129 - St. Patrick to Walnut Creek MS Shuttle, Walnut Creek MS, Oakley Park EL

Please note, ALL students who have specialized transportation plans that are contained in an IEP will NOT see a disruption in service.

For those families impacted by these temporary cancellations who need childcare assistance, please contact our fee based Prime Time Care office at 248-956-5110 for more information on availability.

Visit www.wlcsd.org for more information!

Conference Sign Up will open in Family Access at 7:00 am, Wednesday, November 17th.

A strong partnership with parents/guardians and teachers is key to ensuring our children’s success. One important component of that partnership is parent/teacher conferences. This is an opportunity for us to meet, celebrate your child’s progress, and discuss goals for continued growth.

This year, parent/teacher conferences will be held virtually (via Zoom) on Thursday, December 9. On this date, students will be dismissed at 11:25am. After students are dismissed, teachers will be available for virtual conferences throughout the afternoon and evening until 8:00 p.m. Teachers will share a Zoom link with families prior to December 9.

Parents and guardians can sign-up for parent/teacher conferences using Skyward Family Access. Online sign-up for conferences opens on Monday, November 17 at *approximately* 7:00am and closes on December 6.

Below are directions to help you sign-up:

• Elementary – Skyward Family Access Online Conference Sign-Up (PDF)

• Elementary – Conference Sign-Up – Directions for Parents (Video)

• Link to Skyward Family Access

Please Note:

• In addition to your child’s classroom teacher, you may also choose to sign-up for conferences with our FAPES teachers: PE, Music, Art, and Media. These conferences are OPTIONAL but we encourage you to sign-up if you have concerns, would like more information, or want to connect with our wonderful FAPES staff.

• If you need help logging in to Skyward Family Access, please e-mail familyaccess@wlcsd.org for tech support.

Please contact me or your child’s teacher if you have any questions. We look forward to meeting with you at conferences!

On behalf of Mrs. Grinnell, THANK YOU for your participation in the College Football Canned Food Drive. The contribution from Oakley Park will greatly benefit many as we approach the Thanksgiving/Holiday season. We are always proud to support Hospitality House too! To learn more about the Hospital House, please click the link below.

Here are the results:

Michigan State University.......359 pounds,

University of Michigan............405 pounds!!

Total: 764 pounds!!

A special "Thank you" to Mrs. Grinnell for initiating this awesome event!

On Thursday, 10/21, you should have received an email from Directory Spot with a link to the directory.

If you are a member of the PTA and did not receive the email, please check your spam folder.

You can also access the directory by going to https://www.directoryspot.net and click “Login” and then “Reset Password”. Your username is your email address.

If you are not a member of the PTA and would like to be - You can join by clicking the below link.

https://www.oakleyparkpta.com/join-the-pta

Your membership provides funds that support academic activities, school field trips, school supplies and so much more!

You must join the PTA in order to access the school directory.

If a student tests positive for COVID, they will be isolated for a minimum of 10 calendar days based on the recommendations from the OCHD. All families in that classroom will receive a letter regarding the positive case. The letter also reminds recipients to monitor their child's health closely and if he/she begins experiencing any COVID-19 symptoms, stay home, consult your medical provider and get tested for COVID-19.

Due to this OCHD mandate, the following protocols are required:

• Masks are required in all of our schools and facilities.
• Masks are required on our buses.
• Masks are not required outside (ex. recess).
• Masks are not required while eating or drinking.
• Mask Breaks: Please note that teachers will take their classes outside for periodic mask breaks throughout the school day.

Water Bottles: Please remember to send your child to school with a reusable, plastic water bottle. Our drinking fountains are closed. Refilling stations are still open.