Wayside Waves – 4/26/2020 – Wayside PTA

Posted on April 26, 2020 by admin

1. MCPS Schools Closed Until May 15
2. Calling All New Kindergarten Students!
3. Wayside PTA Board Slate + Election Update
4. We Appreciate Our Staff!

1. MCPS Schools Closed Until May 15

Governor Hogan has extended the closure of Maryland schools through May 15. We highlight some useful sources of information here:

Wayside & MCPS Information:

April 27-May 1 is a B week for specials at Wayside for grades 3-5
MCPS 4/26 message to the MCPS community
Wayside ES Continuity of Learning Schedule
Wayside school closure resources, curated by Mrs. Rhoads, Wayside Media Specialist
Wayside Ebook resources
Mrs. Freundel’s counseling website
Zoom for Students tips and best practices
MCPS closure information, including distribution of Chromebooks and meals
MCPS Continuity of Learning web page with information on the online learning plan

County & State Information:

State of Maryland COVID-19 Response web page
COVID-19 closures and service modifications in Montgomery County
Montgomery Parks’ COVID-19 information
COVID-19 information from the Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services
Montgomery County Volunteer Center information for volunteering in response to COVID-19

CDC Information:

Coronavirus information
Instructions for how to make face coverings

Please continue to visit the MCPS website as updates and answers to frequently asked questions will be posted regularly. Feel free to reach out to the Wayside PTA Board, listed at the bottom of this email, at any time. Until we return to school, stay well, help your neighbors, and take care of yourself and your loved ones.

2. Calling All New Kindergarten Students!

MCPS has launched a new online registration/enrollment process to support families who wish to enroll their children. Families who are enrolling their children for the 2020-2021 school year can complete the process in three ways:

Online, starting with this Registration Survey
Over the phone by calling 240-740-5999
By paper forms. Call 240-740-5999 to request forms be mailed to your home.

Kindergarten registration information can also be found on the Wayside website.

3. Wayside PTA Board Slate + Election Update

The election for the 2020-2021 Wayside PTA Board, originally scheduled for May 6, will be postponed. Currently, PTA bylaws do not allow us to meet and vote electronically. The election will be rescheduled once we return to school. In the meantime, the Nominating Committee has put together the following slate for the 2020-2021 Wayside PTA Board:

President: Jennifer Nordin
Secretary: Stacy Sambur
Treasurer: Deepa Narayanan
VP of Administration: Peijun Li
VP of Ways & Means: OPEN
VP of Programs: Melissa Adler
VP of Community Enrichment: Edith Deng
VP of Volunteers: Kirsten Carr
MCCPTA Delegates (2 positions): Garrick Yau + OPEN

If you are interested in one of the open positions, please contact Nellie Abdallah at nellielaw@yahoo.com. The open positions are:

VP Ways & Means: Oversees all fundraising events for the Wayside PTA (logo wear, Spirit Nights, Amazon Smile, etc.). Works with event chairs to ensure PTA guidelines are followed and to support the success of the event. Attends all executive board meetings and general membership meetings.
MCCPTA Delegate: Delegates are the local PTA’s connection with the Montgomery County Council of PTAs (MCPTA) and, along with the PTA president, hold the county-level votes that belong to the school. Attend one MCCPTA meeting per month. Attend monthly executive board meetings and general membership meetings to share what occurs at the MCCPTA meetings.

4. We Appreciate Our Staff!

The Staff Appreciation Committee is still collecting gift cards for our incredible Wayside teachers who are working so diligently to keep our children learning while the physical school building remains closed. Through a car parade, email, Zoom and even snail mail, our fabulous teachers and staff have committed themselves to ensure that each child continues to feel engaged, loved and safe during these uncertain times. We are humbly asking for $20 gift card donations to give to each one of our fantastic Wayside staff during Staff Appreciation Week, which is around the corner. Sign up here to make a donation. It’s one way of saying THANK YOU for taking wonderful care of our children. Gift card ideas include: Amazon, Target, Starbucks, AMC, Dunkin Donuts, etc. Feel free to email Jackie Stief at jaxk17@gmail.com to drop the gift cards off in her mailbox or on her front porch.