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.  

N95 Mask distribution: WCS has received enough N95 masks from the California Department of Public Health for each student to be issued three masks. These high quality masks can be reused over multiple days. In an effort to expedite the distribution of these masks, we will ask our teachers to distribute them to their homeroom/advisory students next week. Masks are individually wrapped and will fit nicely in Friday folders and backpacks. If your family would prefer not to receive these masks, you or your child may communicate this with your teacher and we will re-distribute the masks to those who need them. 

Prioritizing Attendance: Some families have reached out to our administration team asking if their students can stay home from school because they are worried about the number of positive COVID cases in our recent communications. We want our families to understand that school is a safe place for our students. The case rate in the greater community has skyrocketed, making it nearly impossible to confirm if we are experiencing on-campus transmission. However, by closely following the SCPH guidelines to determine if we are experiencing any classroom or grade-level outbreaks, we can confirm that we do not meet the outbreak threshold on either of our campuses.  

Students who do not attend school fall behind academically. Even if students continue to have access to school work, there is no substitute for in-school instruction. If your student has not been officially placed in isolation or quarantine, and is symptom free, please prioritize school attendance to continue your student’s academic and social-emotional growth.

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.

Great Kindness Challenge: The annual Great Kindness Challenge, a week focused on learning about kindness and doing acts of kindness for others, is coming soon! Last year over 33 thousand schools participated and WCS is excited to participate again this year During Kindness Week:  January 24th – 28th!

In case you missed it…

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.

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.

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. 

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!

Panera Restaurant Fundraiser: Our next restaurant fundraiser is coming up on Thursday, January 27th, ALL DAY at Panera (3571 N Freeway Blvd). Your family can participate by dining in, ordering online or picking up take out. CLICK HERE to show the team member a digital flyer prior to paying or CLICK HERE to order online using code PRFUND. We will receive 20% of the total sales. Thank you for the continued support!

Spirit Store: Our Spirit Store is still open! In years past we opened and closed the store 2-3 times per year but this year it is available for purchases at any time. CLICK HERE to choose from over 70 items. WAVE does not have an inventory so please be sure to check sizing information before placing your order. All items are made to order and shipped directly to you. 

Kudos: Thank you to everyone who has shared JoinWestlake.com over the past few weeks. We are so excited to add new families to our Westlake community in a few months.