WBSD Weekly Update
Friday, July 21
WBSD 2023/2024 School Calendar
We apologize for the delay in releasing the 2023/2024 school calendar. Thank you for your patience! Please find the calendar here: https://www.wbsd.org/calendar.
WBSD Community Education offers Before Care and After Care Kids Klub at all elementary schools. For more information, use this link.
IMPORTANT NEWS
After months of extensive research, data-informed planning, and thorough preparation the West Bloomfield School District Strategic Visioning Committee presented the recommended schools configuration to the Board of Education at the July 17, 2023 Board meeting.
The District has seen a notable decline in enrollment over the past five years, with a decrease of 10.8%. Projections further indicate a decline of 11.5% within the next five years. Therefore, informed decisions pertaining to facilities and programming, taking into account the challenges posed by the declining enrollment trend are necessary.
The committee reviewed and analyzed the following elements during the process: 2012 and 2020 Strategic Visions, long-term sustainability, fiscal responsibility, enrollment data and trends, optimal programming, safety, building utilization, modern learning environment, location, equitable opportunities, student population, good for kids and good for the community, number of transitions, transportation, and the impact of Schools of Choice.
Based on a ten-year strategic vision created by the committee, the following recommendations were presented:
- Configure the District to four K-5 elementary schools: Gretchko Elementary School, Scotch Elementary School, Doherty Elementary School, and Sheiko Elementary School.
- Beginning in either the 2024/2025 or 2025/2026 school year, Roosevelt Elementary School students will blend with Gretchko Elementary School and Scotch Elementary School.
- The Magnet Program will move to Scotch Elementary School.
- The old Roosevelt building will be demolished and converted into multi-use fields.
- Per the 2023 Bond, new elementary school buildings will be constructed at the Doherty and Sheiko sites.
- ACS Preschool and administrative staff will move to Abbott. Although, Preschool will remain at ACS if Abbott is needed for surge space while building Sheiko and/or Doherty.
- The District will maintain the ACS building for storage and flexibility through the 2023 Bond construction.
Strategic Visioning Committee and Board of Education welcome your input on these recommendations and encourage you to attend the stakeholder informational and feedback sessions, where you can learn more about the proposal and share your thoughts:
Thursday, August 3 - 10 a.m.
Tuesday, August 8 - 7 p.m. (Virtual)
Wednesday, August 23 - Noon (Virtual)
Tuesday, September 5 - 7 p.m.
All sessions will be held at the Administrative and Community Services (ACS) Building, located at 5810 Commerce Rd, West Bloomfield.
Important Special Announcements
Powerschool Update for Familes
The West Bloomfield School District has moved to an all online Back to School forms process. Each year, families will be required to log into PowerSchool and complete Back to School forms located under the General Forms tab.
If you have not started updating your Back to School information, please do so prior to the start of the school year. Families will be required to do this for each child enrolled in the District. If you not know your login information for PowerSchool, please contact your school for assistance or visit https://www.wbsd.org/parents/powerschool for more information.
WBSD will offer Drop-In Support Sessions for families that need additional assistance. Drop-In Sessions will take place at WBHS in the iCenter. WBHS is located at 4925 Orchard Lake Rd.
DROP IN SESSIONS
July 25: 9 - 11 a.m.
July 27: 6 - 8 p.m.
August 2: 11 a.m. - 1 p.m.
FOR MORE INFORMATION AND RESOURCES VISIT:
WBSD BACK TO SCHOOL CENTRAL and "HOW TO" VIDEO
WBSD ENROLLMENT
Congratulations, way to represent the WB!
Congratulations WBMS
Our WBMS team learned, laughed, and shared their experience of building a new middle school during a conference at the Orlando World Center in Florida. We are grateful for our designation as a 2023 Model School by the International Center for Leadership in Education.
Dear Laker Nation,
Athletic competitions remain an important part of the educational experience within our schools. As we prepare for the 2023-24 school year, we continue to make improvements and streamline processes for our fans and spectators.
The West Bloomfield School District will be moving to an efficient digital ticketing service, GoFan, for all home games. We strongly encourage fans and spectators to purchase home game tickets in advance to avoid delays at the gate. Tickets will be for sale at the gate through credit card payment however, we do not recommend utilizing this method as it will cause longer lines at the gate.
Cash will NOT be accepted for ticket sales; families can still use cash to purchase concessions.
To purchase tickets online, please use the following link:
WBHS - https://gofan.co/app/school/MI10121
Many of our opponents use GoFan as well. Ticket sales for away games may also be accessible through the link above.
Admission details are as follows:
Children ages 5 and under are free
West Bloomfield residents 65 years and over with a Laker Senior Gold Card, are free. Please show your Gold Card at the gate for entry. Senior Gold cards can be obtained from the WBSD Athletic Office or by calling (248) 865-6742.
Individual tickets are $5.00, plus a $1.00 service fee
Service fees are paid by the ticket purchaser. All sales are final.
Athletic Yearly Event Passes/Family Passes are available for WBSD families. The Family Pass is $100 and admits up to 4 family members into District home athletic events for that school year except for self-funded sports and MHSAA tournaments. The pass can be purchased at Jump Start or in the Athletic Office at West Bloomfield High School.
Thank you for supporting Laker Nation Athletics at West Bloomfield High School. We look forward to joining you as we cheer on our Lakers!
Go Lakers!
Eric Pierce
Athletic Director
PLEASE NOTE THE DATE OF FAMILY FUN NIGHT IS FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 AT WEST BLOOMFIELD HIGH SCHOOL (not September 15). Please mark your calendar and plan to join us!
Summer Learning
Summer is a great time for kids to be kids! It is also a great time to think about how to keep your children engaged and learning over the summer. We have listed a few suggestions below:
Elementary
• IXL Math and IXL Social Studies (grades 3-5)
• The Summer Reading Program at the West Bloomfield Public Library
• Start a journal about things you are doing over the summer
Middle School
• Find interesting articles on Newsela, including Science, Social Studies, Current Events, and so many other topics (see your child’s teacher for more details)
• Increase your vocabulary with “SAT Word of the Day” on vocabulary.com
• Sharpen Math skills with 99math.com or Khan Academy
High School
• Increase your vocabulary with “SAT Word of the Day” on vocabulary.com
• Sharpen Math skills with 99math. com or Khan Academy
• Subscribe to Arizona State University's “Study Hall” page on YouTube. It exists to help students prepare for, apply to, succeed at, and graduate from college
WBMS Student Interviews Assistant Superintendent of School Innovation & Administration
Max Columbus caught up with Mrs. Johanna Mracna this summer. They talked about her favorite, least favorite, easiest, and hardest things about her job. We also heard her favorite people to work with are kids. Click here to watch the interview https://youtu.be/pTvrIuSytJ0
Max Cool Gamer Columbus is a WBMS student and is part of the FIRST Robotics Middle School team. Be sure to check out his YouTube channel. Thank you Max!
WBMS Student Interviews WBSD Roosevelt Teacher
Max carved out time to interview 5th Grade Teacher Mrs. Elise Arnoldi. They talked about her favorite, least favorite, easiest, and hardest things about her job. Click here to watch the interview https://youtu.be/uXPHGSpudCg
Do you have a newsworthy story to share? We want to share your wonderful stories with the rest of the community! Please share with us what is happening with your child(ren) and our staff. We would love to hear about your events and activities including awards, honors, good deeds, and accomplishments. Help us share your success stories in art, music, scholastics, athletics, drama, debate, and more. We look forward to sharing your news! Submit a story here.