Today, April 2, we celebrate Paraprofessional Day. Please take a moment to thank our incredible paraprofessionals, they are vital to the success of our buildings, our staff, and most importantly, our students. We appreciate them more than words can say!

• TOMORROW April 3: WBSD Transition Center Ribbon Cutting (WBHS south-east corner of building), 5:30 p.m.
• April 7: Board Study Session
• April 18: No School
• April 21: Board Meeting
• Full Calendar Here

Dear Families of the West Bloomfield School District,

Helping students do their best in school requires a team effort. Parents, students and school staff all play important roles in this process. To help all of us learn how to make your child's schooling experience as positive and beneficial as possible, please give us your honest, thoughtful responses to the questions below.

The survey will be open from April 7-11. Click here for the parent/guardian survey within that timeframe. If you have multiple children please complete one survey per child.

Scott Long

Assistant Superintendent for Learning Services

What are SUN Bucks? SUN Bucks is the new name for Summer EBT. Eligible families of school-age children will receive $120 per child for qualifying groceries.

Who Should Apply? Families that are not automatically enrolled should apply for SUN Bucks directly.

Note: Families will be automatically enrolled in SUN Bucks if they are already enrolled in SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program), TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families), or FDPIR (Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations) benefits or meet the requirements for free or reduced-price school meals. In other words, keep an eye out for $120 per child at the beginning of summer!

Where to Find the Application - This application is available online!

Deadlines: Apply by April 15, 2025, to be eligible for the first issuance of benefits in May. Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis until August 31, 2025.

National Teacher Appreciation Week is May 5-9, 2025. The Michigan Department of Education’s (MDE) Office of Educator Excellence wishes to celebrate teachers across Michigan for the entire month of May.

MDE invites parents to submit 15-30 second videos of their students recognizing and thanking a specific teacher for their impact. Cell phones easily capture the videos. Please follow the directions on the flyer. Videos and parental consent must be submitted via the Teacher Appreciation Video Project Google Form. Videos are currently being accepted until Friday, April 16, 2025.

Submitted videos may be posted on the Teacher Appreciation Month webpage and MDE’s YouTube channel. The Office of Educator Excellence’s Facebook (@MIeducator) and X (formerly Twitter) social media pages will be promoting the videos throughout the month of May.

If your child has great things to say about a teacher, use the instructions found on MDE’s website to submit a video today!

Michigan’s Top 10 Strategic Education Plan provides focused direction to drive educational achievement in support of all learners.

• 4 year-old preschool (with full and half day options) is free for ALL interested families (all families qualify regardless of income). To register and enroll, please visit here and follow the steps.

• If you have questions about the registration and enrollment process, please contact: Collette Goestenkors (collette.goestenkors@wbsd.org)

• 3 year-old preschool is tuition-based, and we offer full and half-day options. To register and enroll, please visit here and follow the steps.
  
  

If you have a preschool student and have any questions or would like to discuss a personalized transition plan for your child, please do not hesitate to contact us. If you don’t have a preschool student in your family, we appreciate you sharing this information with a friend. As always, thank you for partnering with us to ensure your child’s success!

WBSD is happy to share that Representative Noah Arbit is hosting an upcoming Town Hall on Hate Crimes and Extremism Wednesday, May 7th at 7:00 p.m. This informative, timely event will feature a panel conversation with Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel and world-renowned scholar Dr. Cynthia Miller Idriss, Founding Director of the Polarization, Extremism, Research and Innovation Lab at American University and bestselling author of Hate in the Homeland.

What is the aim of the event?

The event will focus on educating attendees on how to identify and report hate crimes, how Michigan is working to tackle hate crimes and extremism, including the recent passage of my Michigan Hate Crime Act, other legislation in the works, from a law enforcement perspective through Attorney General Nessel’s Hate Crimes and Domestic Terrorism Unit, at universities, as well as strategies and tools to combat hate, extremism, radicalization that we can implement locally in our community.

The West Bloomfield High School Theatre department proudly presents the family-friendly fantasy Matilda, the Musical on May 1, 2, and 3rd at 7 p.m. at West Bloomfield High School (4925 Orchard Lake Road, West Bloomfield). American Sign Language (ASL) interpreters will be present on May 3rd at the 1 p.m. matinee. Tickets are $20 ($5 for any WBSD student) and are on sale starting April 10th at https://wbhstheatrearts.ludus.com. Tickets will also be on sale at the school’s box office prior to each performance.

An exciting opportunity for Girl Scouts! Tickets need to be reserved by April 9th (before tickets go on sale to the general public on April 10th) to receive a special gift. Email wbhstheatreprograms@gmail.com to reserve your tickets!

• Congrats! WBHS figure Skating won 3rd in state finals in Midland!
• Shop Laker spirit gear here.

• All Teams Schedule
  
  

The Atomigators Team 4737 competed at the First Robotics Competition at Livonia Churchill! A huge shoutout to Buddy and the team.

Bus Tracker has been deactivated, so please join the 1,372 families already enjoying the advanced features of BusZone. More families have downloaded the app but not finished the set up process so they are not getting notifications.

To sign up you'll need to:

• download the app
• use our district code 4079WBSD
• know your student ID number from PowerSchool
• for elementary routes you need to know the route number and school name
• be sure to set up both AM and PM routes
• take advantage of the push notification feature.

Need help? Contact: Tanja Thomas, General Manager, Phone: (248) 865-3682 or email tathomas@durhamschoolservices.com. We use your feedback to improve the sign up materials and services available. For example, based on feedback we are excited to announce we will be adding information on the midday routes after spring break!

All Lunch Menus are located on the Nutrition Services page, use this link.

• GWB Historical Society Events
• Greater West Bloomfield Community Coalition
• Oakland County Parks
• West Bloomfield Parks and Recreation
• West Bloomfield Township Public Library
• West Bloomfield Youth Assistance

Book Lists

· National Poetry Month (Youth)

· Pine Tree (Youth)

· Arab American Heritage Month (Teen)

Free To Be Uniquely Me – Poetry Workshop

Saturday, April 5 from 2-3 p.m.

Main Library – Youth Activity Center
April is National Poetry Month. In this poetry program, children will have the opportunity to tap into their creative side by constructing empowering poetry while exploring unique poetry styles.

For Grades K-3. Registration Required

Click here to register: https://westbloomfield.librarycalendar.com/event/world-art-poetry-workshop-9712

Paying For College

Wednesday, April 16 from 6-7 p.m.

Main Library – Meeting Room
Join Carrie A. Gilchrist, Senior Financial Aid Outreach Adviser at Oakland University for a presentation on the financial aid process. Topics covered will include the elements of financial aid, the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), private resources available, and more! Please use the link below to register. Note: If a minimum number of registrants is not reached, this presentation will move from in person to virtual. Log-in information will be sent if the program moves to virtual.

For Grades 6-12. Registration Required

Click here to register: https://apply.oakland.edu/register/?id=9af13382-2797-407b-9f8c-ea10efcd94bf

Inside West Bloomfield Today is The Laker. And at the heart of this edition of The Laker is a tear-out brochure you can use to share key facts about the West Bloomfield School District with someone who might not currently have a student in school. Check it out! If you live in West Bloomfield, you should have received your copy of the magazine. Copies are also available at the administration building.

We want to extend our heartfelt thanks to everyone who participated in our Enter to Win fundraiser for two tickets to Opening Day at Comerica Park! Your enthusiasm and generosity helped us raise nearly $700, directly benefiting the students and teachers of WBSD.

Your support truly makes a difference! Because of you, we can continue to provide valuable resources and opportunities for our teachers and students.

Congratulations to our lucky winner and WBSD parent Angelique Bills — we hope you have an amazing time cheering on the Detroit Tigers! A special thank you to WBSD Special Services Department for donating the two tickets! Go Team WB!

Last week, Sonja James took a group of students on a college tour to explore options for their future. They averaged 2 colleges a day and learned about admissions while connecting with other students from across metro Detroit!

Follow WBHS College & Career Center on Instagram