Gateway College Prep Newsletter

Gator Community,

We are excited about all of the incredible things happening on our campus, as we are amazed that October is almost here! While it's been a fast, furious, and crazy start to this school year, your partnership through it all has been instrumental in helping our students, staff, and campus. Thank you again for all of the flexibility and grace extended with the ongoing construction; I think it's safe to say that we are all looking forward to the completion of this "construction season"!

With all of the hustle and bustle to the start of this school year, I wanted to apologize for not officially announcing the newest addition to our Admin team, Mr. Nolberto Reyna. We are thrilled to have him serve our campus as Dean of Admissions and College Readiness, as he brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to our team! We were also blessed last April when Mrs. Millie Blackwell joined our Admin team as Dean of Special Programs, as she too, brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to our campus! Please see their official announcement attached to learn more about these incredible leaders.

This newsletter is packed with lots of important information about our campus and events taking place. If you have any questions about anything presented, please feel free to reach out, so we can address your needs.

We hope you and your family enjoy the upcoming "Pink Out" week!

Respectfully,

Donna Weirich

As you are aware, Westinghouse will be closed for 2 days for the city's road construction. We are told this will take place on October 7th & 8th. From what we understand at the moment, we will all have one entry point to campus (the Gateway entrance) and one exit point (current exit by K8 loop). As soon as we have more detailed information, we will share that with all of you. Thank you in advance for your patience with this process, as it will not be pleasant for anyone, but we are all in it together!

Also, as a reminder, the new K8 parking lot is requiring more time, extending past its original 9/30/24 completion date. We will know more as the week progresses regarding the new estimated date of completion.

Campus Volunteers: We love our campus volunteers!! If you plan to volunteer on campus in any capacity (ex. Gator store, classroom help, copy help or as a chaperone for field trips etc.) you must fill out a background check online. They can be found on the school website under the parents tab.

Lunch: We do not allow food deliveries for students from a third party. Any food delivered for students must be delivered by a parent or a listed contact. Lunches need to be delivered ahead of your students lunch time as we do not pull students from class to eat lunch. If you plan to eat lunch with your student please dress weather appropriate as you must sit on the back porch.

Attendance: Students receive 3 parent notes per semester. They do not carry over at semester end. Absence submissions must be made within 5 days of the absence and include appropriate documentation in order to be changed or the absence will remain unexcused. You may submit the absence on the school website, school app, email to attendance@orendaeducation.org or send a note to the front office. Elementary students may not be signed out after 2:45pm. Secondary students may not be signed out after 3:30pm.

Please be aware that, starting this school year, we are required to have an order signed by a doctor and a parent/guardian for all over the counter medications as well as prescriptions. This new form and all other health forms can be found here.

When your student is feeling unwell during the school day, please encourage them to come to the clinic for evaluation. When students meet the criteria to be sent home by a nurse, that absence is excused, but absences are not excused when students reach out directly to parents, asking to be picked up.

When your child is ill, please report the absence through the parent page of the school website, or via the Gateway app. Students must be fever-free without the use of fever-reducing medication, and must be free of vomiting/diarrhea without the use of medications for at least 24 hours before returning to school. This is now the COVID policy as well.

Please see the attachment as it contains important information for our awareness.

Dear Gator Family,

Thank you for an awesome start to the school year! At GCPS, we love working with families to encourage our students to grow as citizens, scholars, and athletes. One way we work to achieve this at the elementary level is by recognizing students who exhibit the qualities of Generosity, Independence, Belonging, and Mastery.

Twice per month, each teacher identifies a student in their homeroom who stands out in one or more of these areas, and on Friday morning, we visit each classroom to identify and celebrate these “Gators of the Week.” Each Gator of the Week receives a certificate and a treat from our awesome GCPS cheerleaders. We take a group photo and post it on the wall to celebrate these students. It is always so touching to see students recognized for their good character, effort, and achievements. They are so proud to be named Gator of the Week!

If your child has been named Gator of the Week, feel free to celebrate them, because they have demonstrated what it means to be a Gator. If your child hasn’t had the honor yet, please remind them that we honor students every few weeks, and they have chances every day to demonstrate Generosity, Independence, Belonging, and Mastery as they work hard, help others, act as good citizens, and achieve academically.

If you have any questions about Gator of the Week or anything else, please feel free to reach out at beth.henrichs@orendaeducation.org. I look forward to working with you for the success of our Gators!

Sincerely,

Beth Henrichs

Gator Families,

It's hard to believe that we are already in our 8th week of school, and the nine-week grading period is just around the corner. I encourage you to check Canvas with your students to ensure all assignments and activities are completed. If your child needs additional support, please consider having them sign up for tutorials.

Last week, we proudly launched our Student of the Week celebrations, highlighting students who embody the characteristics of our Circle of Courage model. It’s wonderful to see our community recognizing such positive traits!

We’re also thrilled to announce that this week marks our first pep rally of the 2024-2025 school year! We will be celebrating Pink Out Awareness all week with dress-up days for grades K-12.

I want to extend a heartfelt thank you to all parents for your cooperation during drop-off and pick-up.

Respectfully,

Kawana McCloud

kawana.mccloud@orendaeducation.org

HS Gator Families,

Thank you for a great start of the year! Students are actively engaged in lessons and it is great to see everyone back, settled into a routine.

We are halfway through the first nine-weeks. If your child is currently making a 75 or below, you should have received a notification from the teacher. Please make contact with your child’s teacher and monitor their progress on Canvas to ensure grades are met. There are still three weeks left in the first nine-weeks to bring any failing grades to passing.

All student drivers need a parking pass to park in student parking. In order to avoid citations and the loss or privilege to park on campus, please make sure all student drivers acquire their parking pass as soon as possible.

We will continue to work hard and strive towards student success. Thank you for supporting your Gator!

Colby Blackwell

colby.blackwell@orendaeducation.org

It is great to start another school year! As the Dean of Special Programs, I assist with 504, Special Education and Emergent Bilingual Students. If you need any assistance with any special programs for your child, please do not hesitate to reach out.

Go Gators!

Millie Blackwell

millie.blackwell@orendaeducation.org

All of our athletes are off to a successful start to the school year. The cross country and volleyball teams have had great seasons so far, and we look forward to what's to come for both of these programs. I will also begin my weekly sports updates soon, so please be on the lookout for these, as we have some amazing athletes and coaches representing GCPS and our Gator family! We are very proud of our accomplishments.

In September, the elementary students are focusing on the AVID strategies surrounding ORGANIZATION. What does organization mean? Organization is not just a once in a while skill. It needs to be a consistent skill that is used in each class. Students have time each week that is set aside so that they look through their backpacks and desks to make sure that all of their papers are in the correct folders. Their backpacks and desks should also be neat and organized with all of their resources within reach. Organization also includes the student planners and planning their week which also ties into time management. Organizational skills help students to feel in control of their time and resources and help to set them up for success.