Walden's Back to School Information

I hope you are enjoying a wonderful summer with your family and friends and finding time to relax and recharge. It's hard to believe that school begins in 3 weeks! At Walden School, we've been busy planning and preparing for a safe and successful year ahead. Below you will find some important updates and information that will help for a smooth start to the year.

On Monday, August 12th, Walden families can expect a more detailed communication about arrival and dismissal procedures, lunch information, bus routes, and a few other back-to-school reminders.

If you have a middle schooler going to Shepard, expect to hear from Principal Wegley on Wednesday! Then on Thursday, look for the DPS 109 Back To School Checklist from our district communications team.

I'm looking forward to seeing our Wildcats soon!

- Stephanie Strenger

Official class placements will be available in Family Access on Monday, August 5, 2024 at 3:30pm. Developing class lists is a complex process. We have put a significant amount of time into creating balanced classes that meet student needs. The teacher listed represents the final class placement for your child. Changes to class placements will not be made. Our teachers are very excited about their new classes and have been working hard to prepare for the new school year.

We are offering something new this year for our Curriculum Night on Thursday, August 22nd. We will host Officer Lauren Maldonado, our D109 school resource officer, who will make an important presentation on student use of technology and internet safety. Officer Maldonado will discuss important issues related to internet safety, responsible online behavior, and the potential risks associated with technology use among children. Her presentation will begin at 5pm followed by our regular classroom presentations.

Kindergarten students are invited to an in-person kindergarten scavenger hunt on Thursday, August 15 from 3:30-4:30pm. You will only need about 20 minutes to meet your teacher, see the classroom and find things on your scavenger hunt list so find a time in that hour window that works for your family. If possible, please do not bring younger siblings. We ask that families enter through Door A (door located at the farthest end of our parking lot near the lot's exit). We look forward to seeing you soon!

• Physical Examination - Due by October 15, 2024.
• Immunizations - Due by October 15, 2024.
• Eye Exam -Due by October 15, 2024.
• Dental Exam -Due by May 15, 2025.

You may submit all forms by visiting our Jotform to securely upload all documents. For your convenience, multiple files can be uploaded in one submission. If. If you have more than one child, a form will need to be uploaded for each individual student. Please remember to upload all pages of the forms to meet the requirements. Click here to find a copy of all health forms.

We will hold our New Student Tour of Walden School on Friday, August 16, at 3:30pm beginning at the main entrance to the school. We will share important information with you about our school as we learn our way around!

Who should attend: All 1st-5th grade students who are new to Walden this school year.

We look forward to meeting our new families in person!

My name is Ann Pasquesi, and I am thrilled to be joining the Walden community! I hold an undergraduate degree from the University of Dayton, a Master’s degree from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, and most recently an endorsement in Educational Leadership. I have been a special education teacher for 18 years. I began my career on the west side of Chicago,

then worked in Wilmette, and have spent the last 9 years in Glencoe. Outside of work, I love to travel (Italy and Jamaica are our favorites), read, and spend time with my family and friends. My husband and I have two sons and a dog. I am so excited to learn and grow in this new role, and look forward to meeting all of you!

Hello! I'm Alli McCrory and I am thrilled to be joining the Walden family this fall as a third-grade teacher!
I recently graduated from Trinity International University in Deerfield with a degree in Elementary Education. Originally from Nebraska, I moved to Illinois after getting married this past May. Outside of school, you'll often find me playing tennis and volleyball, taking walks, enjoying local coffee shops, and spending quality time with friends and family. I am incredibly grateful for the warm welcome into the Walden community and I am looking forward to an amazing year!

Hi Families! I am thrilled to be joining the Walden Kindergarten team! The past 5 years I have been teaching Kindergarten for Chicago Public Schools and loved it. I am currently house hunting in the suburbs with my husband, so I knew this was a good time to also look for a new school community to join. Walden seems like a wonderful place to be, and I can't wait to meet you all in the Fall!

Some fun facts about myself:

I grew up in West Bloomfield, MI

My favorite food is Sushi

This summer I honeymooned in Italy, will celebrate my 30th birthday and my sister's wedding

Growing up I went to a summer camp called Walden!

Hello, I'm Sandi Bass, or "Mrs. B" as my students would call me. Originally from Ohio, but now a true Chicagoan. :-) Before joining Walden, I worked as a teacher assistant in District 106 and am relatively new to education. Wanting to spend more time with my 10-year old daughter,

I decided to make a career change from interior design to education, and haven't looked back. Being with my family is my favorite thing to do. Travelling, reading, learning, health and relaxing anywhere outside are some of my favorite things. I'm looking forward to meeting everyone soon and becoming a Wildcat!

Hello Walden! I’m from Colombia and have 2 children: one boy who is 2 years old and our very special daughter who is autistic and will be a senior this school year at the Deerfield High School. We are so proud of her! I have a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and now I’m ready to pursue a Masters in Education. I have 8 years of experience as a Teacher Assistant helping teachers and students. I enjoy working with children and am so happy to be part of this amazing school district.

My favorite activities during my free time include camping, concerts, getting outdoors and being with my family.

I am so happy to contribute to an inclusive school environment by providing expert educational support.

Sally Yik (Ms. Yik) is our new elementary orchestra teacher. She grew up in Hong Kong and moved to the States at 8 years ago. She started learning the violin at the age of 7 and surprisingly hung on to it until the present! In 2022, she obtained her Masters in Violin Performance and Suzuki Pedagogy from Roosevelt University and was inspired by her studio student to become a school teacher. This year, she graduated with her Masters in Music Education from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She is very grateful to have the opportunity to work in District 109 and looks forward to working with the young musicians, introducing them to the instruments, and witnessing their growth. In her spare time, she loves walking around in the neighborhood with her cats on leashes!

• Ms. Schmidt will be teaching 4th grade this year.
• Ms. Molay will be teaching 3rd grade this year.
• Ms. Bartkowicz will be teaching 2nd grade this year.
• Mr. Heinz will be our new school counselor and Ms. Kordek (our former counselor) will now be working at Wilmot.
• Mrs. McKee will be home for the first few weeks of the school year taking care of her new baby. Our substitute for STEAM will be Mrs. Weinberg.
• Congratulations to our two teachers that got married this summer! We are so happy for Ms. Doherty (now Mrs. Gronewald) and Ms. Caplan (now Mrs. Keeshin)!

Before & After School Club (click for information) registration is already open, and you can find out more information and start the registration process by visiting www.deerfieldparks.org.

Registration opens today for Fall enrichment programs. To see a brochure of programs and get more information, visit the link below.

If you have any questions, please contact the park district directly as they run the programs.

If you purchased school supplies through the PTO at the end of the 2023-24 school year, those supplies will be delivered directly to Walden.

If you did not purchase school supplies through the PTO, click here for access to all required school supplies for grades K-5.

• Mon. August 5 - Teacher Placements Shared

• Thurs. August 15 - Kindergarten Orientation @ 3:30pm - 4:30pm

• Fri. August 16 - New Student Tour @ 3:30

• Mon. August 19 - First ½ Day of School! (11:40 Dismissal)

• Tues. August 20 - First Full Day of School

• Thurs. August 22 - Curriculum Night

• Mon. Sept 2 - No School (Labor Day)

• Wed. Sept 4 - PTO Ice Cream Social

• Thurs. Sept 12 - Picture Day

• Thurs. Oct. 3 - No School (Rosh Hashanah)

• Mon. Oct 14 - No School (Columbus Day)

• Oct 15-17 - Book Fair

• Thurs. Oct 24 - Students in Session ½ Day (PM Conferences)

• Fri. Oct 25 - No School for Students (AM Conferences)

• Thurs. Oct 31 - Halloween

• Tues. Nov. 5 - No School (Election Day)

• Thurs. Nov. 7 - Picture Retakes

• Mon. Nov. 11 - No School (Veterans Day)

• Thurs. Nov. 21 - 3rd Grade Music Show 6pm

• Nov. 27-29 - No School (Thanksgiving Break)

• Thurs. Dec. 19 - Classroom Winter Parties

• Fri. Dec. 20 - No School (Winter Break Begins)

• Mon. Jan 6 - Teacher Institute Day (No School for Students)

• Tues. Jan 7 - Students Return from Winter Break