Westlake Weekly Podcast: CLICK HERE for this week’s Westlake Weekly Podcast.

Health and safety: Please see our Health and Safety Guidebook and our COVID Dashboard on the Return to Schools website.  

COVID-19 Updates: Thank you Explorer Families for your partnership in helping to keep our community safe. We have several updates below in response to the recent surge in COVID cases within our community as well as several updates from Sacramento County Public Health (SCPH).

While we do not yet have confirmation that the virus is spreading on campus, the massive surge in the community has made the virus far more present at school. Each of the processes and procedures outlined below are being implemented based on guidance from SCPH and are intended to mitigate the spread of COVID 19, ensure that families are informed about the health and safety of our students, as well as maximize efficiencies in communicating with all stakeholders during this surge.

• • CLICK HERE for the January 13th SCPH Decision Forest for K-12 Schools. This updated version of decision trees was released by SCPH this week to help schools determine next steps when a community member is exposed to, or tests positive for, COVID. If you are notified that your child has been exposed or has tested positive please consult these decision trees to determine next steps for returning to school. 
  • Group Exposure Notification: SCPH has recommended that schools use a Group Exposure Notification process for on campus exposures instead of notifying individual close contacts (those within 6 feet for 15 minutes.) Starting next week, our contact tracing team will be using this process to notify classrooms if a positive case has been identified in their class. The new group notification process will include all students within a classroom, regardless of vaccination status. Included in the notification will be simple directions for both vaccinated and unvaccinated students regarding testing requirements to remain in school on a modified quarantine. As always, students who are showing symptoms should remain at home. 
  • Outbreak Tracking: SCPH has asked that schools report when a school or classroom has reached 20% of its students have tested positive within a given time period. Based on this information, SCPH will recommend to schools follow up protocols such as increased testing to determine the potential outbreak status of a classroom, grade level, or school. 
  • Cafeteria Update: SCPH recommends increasing outdoor air flow in dining areas. Each of our campuses is lucky to have larger roll-up doors that we will be  opening during lunch periods. The HVAC will be filtering air as well, but students may consider wearing their jackets to lunch on cold days.
  • N95 Masks: SCPH will be provided with a supply of N95 masks to distribute to staff and students. We will notify you how to receive yours once they have been delivered. 

Virtual Coffee Talk: Join us for our K-12 Virtual Coffee Talk on Tuesday, January 18th @ 6pm. This is a great opportunity to hear from our admin team and WAVE parent leaders, as well as ask questions and give feedback. CLICK HERE to join the Virtual Coffee Talk. CLICK HERE to submit celebrations, questions and comment.

GATE Testing:  The goal of the Westlake Charter School’s GATE (Gifted and Talented Education) Program is to provide differentiated learning opportunities during the regular school day for our students.  All current 2nd graders and referred 3rd-9th graders will be given the opportunity to take the GATE qualification test.  Referral forms for students currently enrolled in grades 3rd-9th will be accepted from January 3, 2022 – January 28th, 2022. CLICK HERE for the parent referral form.  CLICK HERE for more information about the GATE program at WCS.

Walking School Bus-Help Needed: We desperately need adult volunteers to join our daily Walking School Bus. Can you walk to school with your student and other Explorers 1-5 mornings a week? The walk begins at Burberry Park at 8am and adults arrive back to the park by 8:30am. It is a fantastic way to start the day and volunteer with students. Please email [email protected] to get started. 

Spirit Day – Rainbow Day: Friday, January, 28th is rainbow day students and staff can wear their most colorful outfits and show off all the colors of the rainbow!

High School Winter Dance:  Our High School Winter Wonderland Dance has been rescheduled to ensure the health and safety of everyone in attendance.  The dance will now be held on Saturday, February 12, 2022 from 6:30-9:00 PM at the Natomas Park Clubhouse.  Stay tuned for more details.

High School Boys Volleyball Family Information Session:  Coach Folden is gearing up to start our Boys Volleyball season for this spring.  She will be hosting a virtual family information session on January 19th at 6:00 PM.  Please email Coach Folden to receive an invitation to the Family Information Night.  [email protected]

2022-23 Lottery Applications due by January 31st: Our 2022-23 lottery application closes on January 31st at 4:00 PM. Current students do not need to fill out an application to continue their enrollment at WCS; however, siblings do need to fill out lottery applications to attend. Spread the word and encourage friends and family to visit JoinWestlake.com to apply today.

High School Counselor’s Corner:  CLICK HERE to read the most recent newsletter from our high school counselor, Parwana Duad. 

In case you missed it…

Weekly Surveillance Testing  After School: It’s not too late to participate in the weekly surveillance testing for students. CLICK HERE to pre-register your student. Testing takes place on Wednesdays – at the high school from 1:00-1:30PM and at the K-8 from 1:30-2:00 PM. Email [email protected] with any questions. 

Substitute Teaching Positions – Update: If you’ve taken college-level coursework in Reading, Writing and Mathematics – even if you have yet to earn a degree – you might be eligible to substitute teach.  CLICK HERE if  you are willing to get paid as a Substitute Teacher for a day or even part of a day.  Let us know you are interested and we will work with you through the process.

COVID Symptoms: If your student has any COVID-19 symptoms, please keep them home until they are symptom free for 24 hours. Symptoms include: Fever over 100.4, sore throat, runny nose, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, headache, muscle/body aches, cough, difficulty breathing, loss of taste or smell. If your student has any of those symptoms, please keep them home until they are symptom-free for 24 hours and email [email protected] to report their absence. 

Family Great Kindness Challenge: As the annual Great Kindness Challenge approaches, we are challenging all families to get involved from home. Families can start by emailing a teacher or staff member to share appreciation, donating items to a local charity, leaving a note or treat on a neighbor’s doorstep, donating a book to a little free library or creating your own kind act. CLICK HERE for a list of ways to create a kinder world! Please share your family’s acts of kindness on our WAVE Facebook page to bring joy and inspiration to others. We will enter all participants into a raffle for some awesome WCS prizes!

Kudos: Thank you to our absolutely amazing Westlake Charter School staff for going above and beyond over the past two weeks. Every single staff member stepped up to make sure our students were safe, supported, welcomed and comfortable. We appreciate each and every one of you!