
February 2021 WAVA Wave Newsletter
-WAVA Word of the Month is CONNECTIONS-
Congrats to WAVA Student Peyton and Dad!
Class Pic Day Fun!
Be sure to join a Club at WAVA!
Head of School, Summer Shelton, February Message
WAVA Families this February we continue to encompass Diversity and Inclusion throughout our school. This month is Black History Month and we take time to honor this month with our WAVA Word of the Month Connections. While we focus on Connections and our 7 Mindset emphasis, Passion First, your students will hear ways we incorporate this in and out of the classroom. Please join me as I share a book reading on Nina Simone from "Good Night Stories from Rebel Girls". I hope that you can find this message and reading share inspirational. At WAVA we Believe that All Students Can Succeed!
As we move forward through February you will begin to hear more about Re-Registration for the 2021-2022 year. We hope that you will join us again for your students education journey. Be sure to mark your calendar for March 4th for our WAVA Grab Your Spot Event!
Have a fantastic February and I'll see you in class!
February Video Message from WAVA HOS, Summer Shelton
-Summer Shelton, WAVA Head of Schools
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WashingtonVirtualAcademies
WAVA Director of Academics, Susan Boyer
-Welcome to February WAVA Families-
Check out the WAVA School Pride Padlet
WAVA Community Engagement News and CES Video
February Connections SEL, Kids at Hope Message
Dear WAVA Families and Students
Happy February and 2nd Semester! We have so many exciting things happening right now. If you are a new student who just joined us at semester, WELCOME! We are so excited that you have chosen to come to WAVA. If you were with us during last semester, we are so glad you are still here. We believe that all students are capable of success, NO EXCEPTIONS! This means supporting you no matter what is going on. We know that you can have a great 2nd semester. Please reach out to your teacher or building principal if you have encountered barriers and are needing support.
As our 1st Semester finished out soon you will receive your report card. Teachers have been working on your report card over the last few weeks and will be sending them out soon via email. Take this time to reflect on the areas that you did well. Celebrate those areas. If you have struggled or have grades that are not as celebratory, that is okay too. Please take some time to reflect on what is going well for you and what things you need to improve on. I encourage you to take a few minutes and set some academic and personal goals for the second half of the school year with your student. I always love to set a goal and challenge myself to accomplish it! One of my personal goals is to get outside for 30 minutes every day to enjoy the beautiful world we live in. I hope you all set a fun academic and personal goal!
Looking ahead teachers will soon be asking students to join them for our midyear MAP testing sessions. High School started these sessions last week. Middle and Elementary Students will soon begin their ELA and math tests. These midyear assessments will help teachers get a fresh look at what every student strengths and needs are. They will use this information to help in planning their lessons and forming student classes and groups for the next semester.
-Director of Academics, Susan Boyer
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Staff Spotlight:
For the month of February we would like to highlight with you some of our thanks to staff! Thank you to all of our WAVA Teachers! We do have a few shout outs that have been sent in to thank some teachers that have made an impact this month in their students learning!
Big Orca Pat on the Back to:
*Erin Rush *Renata Hankins *Crystal Daniels *Kayla Stokes *Leah Androy *Jennifer Wilson *Cinda Norton *Rebecca Mintz *Jon Corcoran *Jeanie Hellwich *Airam Batdorf *Peter Larson *Bethany Porter *Courtney Vela *Lindsey Hatch *Tanya Myers *Jennifer Tubbs
Please let us know if you would like to give a special shoutout to your teacher and how let us know something special that is happening for your student! We would love to highlight your news here in our Staff Spotlight each month!
WAVA Wavemakers:
Thank you to our wonderful Learning Coach teams and families! We are thankful for you and your support as we partner in your student(s) education journey. Each month we will give a special shoutout to some of our LC Wavemakers that are positive, encouraging, informative and supportive! The list is long and plentiful! Thank you:
*Kimberly Stoaks *Roannie Tuason-Gonzalez *Karen Green *Jolene Cruz *Dan Robbin *Thomas Snead *Breana Prater *Megan Stoaks *Misty Christy *Virginia Rosenthal *Crystal Freeman *Anna Erickson
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Assessment, Operations and Enrollments Updates:
State Testing Update: Each spring, all public schools are required to administer Smarter Balanced ELA and Math testing for students in grades 3-8, and 10, plus WCAS Science testing for students in grades 5, 8, and 11. This year, due to COVID-19, Washington has applied for a waiver of some school requirements, including the annual state testing event. Right now, WAVA is waiting, along with the rest of the state, to find out if we can be excused from state testing this year. A federal decision is expected to be made within the next few weeks. If the waiver is approved, WAVA will cancel all spring Smarter Balanced and WCAS testing. If it is not approved and we are required to test our students, WAVA is prepared to follow local health and safety guidelines at all our testing locations to minimize the risk of exposure to COVID-19 for our students and staff. We want to reassure everyone that we take our student’s wellbeing seriously! More information will be provided to families as soon as information becomes available.
Thank you for your support as we rolled out a new online learning system platform, Newrow! Thank you for your continued patience with our teachers as they navigate this new system along side you. We encourage families to check out the Newrow Guide for Students and visit our Newrow resources on the WAVA Bulletin. Please do not hesitate to reach out to your homeroom teacher, or student support advisor should you have additional questions.
Be sure to complete the Student and Learning Coach Accreditation Surveys that have been sent out. This helps WAVA in our Accreditation process and we value your feedback.
Please help us in our accreditation survey process by completing the below surveys if you have not already. Thank you for your time.
A critical portion of our accreditation involves receiving high quality feedback regarding your experiences with WAVA. We hope you will consider participating in our school’s accreditation process through completing several brief surveys related to culture & climate, community engagement, and family engagement.
Climate and Culture: Parent Survey – https://forms.gle/ZMsTkwafBEqHVF8M9
Community Engagement Survey – https://forms.gle/FTFb7SDHyZ4dtTMQA
Family Engagement Survey - https://forms.gle/6jZYAWAsX6k1PUud9
Re-Registration
Re-Registration is coming up for WAVA, mark your calendar for March 4th! Be ready to Grab Your Spot and stay tuned for more details on how to secure your spot for next year and what we have to look forward to for the 2021-2022 school year. On March 4th you will have the opportunity to secure your spot and Post a Pic of you and/or your student "Grabbing Your Spot" on our School Padlet!
***Our WAVA Tacoma Office is closed through February 9th due to a recent COVID Incidence, our team is still working from home to serve your needs but will not be able to access the office through this date. Thank you, please email info@wava.org with questions.
-Thank you, Team WAVA
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Elementary School Corner:
Video Message from ES Principal Miller
Our leadership team at WAVA ES is excited for the month of February! We look forward to this month as we honor Black History Month and look forward to school wide activities we have coming up. I have been in the classrooms and enjoy seeing each of you. Keep up the great work! The week of February 16-26th is our MOY, Middle of the Year and MAPS testing! The key thing is to remember that you just need to do the best that you can. Learning Coaches we appreciate your support though this time. We are half-way through the year and looking forward to our 2nd Semester and focusing on Connections. We will have learning opportunities in and out of the classroom to build connections. Thank you and as always reach out to your teachers, your Student Support Advisors and our team at WAVA. Let's have a great February!
Chris Miller—WAVA ES Principal
Jodi Schilling—WAVA ES Assistant Principal
Taylor Kreilmann--WAVA ES Assistant Principal
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Middle School Corner:
February Video Message from Principal Heistand
I had a great time on Spirit Day with all of you representing my favorite team or club! Welcome to Semester 2, I have some goals I would like to share with you for a successful experience. First goal, be active! Login every day and be prepared and ready to share with others. There is always a lot to learn in class and students learn from students. Be active and participate in class. I challenge you to raise your hand, offer ideas and get involved. Be sure to complete your assignments on time and keep up. You can do it. Secondly, have a positive attitude. Support others in your classes and community and be positive. Believe in yourself and that you can do it. A positive attitude will lead to that. Have dreams that are big and work hard to achieve them. We are all here to support you. I am looking forward to memories this month with each of you! Let's rock!
-Sincerely
Principal Del Heistand
Assistant Principal Russell Kovalenko
Assistant Principal Jennifer Dempewolf
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High School Corner:
Video Message with Assistant Principal Ackerman
Dear WAVA Families,
Welcome to February. This month we are thankful for your support in January as we switched over to Newrow as our online learning system. We changed to this new platform and we know that your students will enjoy this new learning system. High School students had MAP testing in January and way to go all students and staff and Learning Coaches. You were prepared and ready for testing. We saw some highlighted work with math and geometry from students hard at work on special projects and saw students connecting in ASB and activities. Our goal is to see all of our students in class and have 100% attendance. Semester 2 is here and we are ready for the next half of our year. We know that you will do well. Our goal is that we all succeed and are completing all that is necessary for graduating and passing your classes. If you need support in any way, always reach out to your teacher your advisor, your HS team and we are all here to help. Our priority is you and your students success and we are all here to help. Be sure to stay connected in HS. We have our ASB that meets weekly with the Chill N Chats on Mondays and we also have our club offerings for grades K-12 with WAVA Clubs. Stay connected and meeting friends in and outside of the classroom at WAVA. Our team is working on plans for the 2021 Graduation and looking forward to ways to honor our Seniors and celebrate graduation together! Stay tuned for details!
-Thank you
Joanne Warren--WAVA HS Principal
Terry Ackerman--WAVA HS Assistant Principal
Amalia Walle--WAVA HS Assistant Principal
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Video Greeting from CES Hailey Chamberlain
Post Your WAVA Pics to our Padlet
Check out this Baking Club Overview
February Social Blurb:
- Check out the February Social Spot! Take a look and mark your calendar for our Spirit Day, Virtual Experiences, Events and Activities! Let's stay connected together!
- This month we are focusing as a WAVA community on the WAVA Word, CONNECTIONS. We are going to focus on ways in and out of the classroom to connect and reach our goals!
- Our SEL team and Kids of Hope Committee are planning suggested activities for our school around the word Sharing, along with suggested book reads for our ES grades. Check out this WAVA Team Message on Connections!
- This month we have our first WAVA Spelling Bee on February 5th! Good luck and thank you to all of our participating students and volunteers. The winner from the ES, MS, and HS level will have a chance to compete in the Regional Spelling Bee and then in Washington D.C. for our K12/Stride National Spelling Bee. Stay tuned as we announce the participants and winners! Check the Padlet for all School Spirit events and Activities!
- Join us as we connect this month through virtual suggested activities, clubs, lunch chat meetups and spirit events on the Social Spot Page!
- Clubs are in action and packed with fun! If you are still looking to participate please be sure to check out our Clubs Webpage. If you will find all the info, meeting links and details online to jump in and "club" each week with us. Sign up today and start connecting with Clubs!
- We celebrate clubs each month! This month our featured Club is Writing Club with Ms. Butler! This group of talented 6th-8th grade students meet weekly to discuss/share/compose writing pieces. During February they will work on writing to honor Black History Month.
- Lunch Chat anyone? Students can enjoy a 1x a week Lunch Chat! Thank you as we work to make these specific to your students age and grade as well as the best methods and games/activities for during our chats. These are in the Class Connect as a Optional Class. We meet with themes like scavenger hunts, kahoots, trivia, animal parties, show n share, open chat and more! Thank you to our wonderful team of Student Support Advisors for keeping connected with all WAVA students. We'll see you at Lunch!
- Grab your snack for Learning Coach Snack Chat!! Mark your calendar for February 23rd, let's snack and share together!
- "Grab Your Spot" Week of February 14-18th info week! Re-Registration is coming soon and opens on March 4th. Be sure to look for ways to Grab Your Spot and "spot" our special guest Sudsley and share on our School Padlet throughout March!
- February 26th is our School Spirit Day- wear SPOTS as we celebrate the upcoming Re-Registration Day and Grabbing Your Spot! Polka-dots, circles, spots, wear them all!
- E-sports Shoutout!! Way to go WAVA E-sports! Congratulations to 8th Grader Josiah Lyons for placing 1st in the final game of our January Tournament. Thank you Coach Fogle and Coach Hankins, WAVA Team E-sports is doing awesome!
- Be sure to follow us on FB, Instagram, our Learning Coach Community on K12 App and check out WAVA Bulletin to stay updated!
- If you have not already, join the WAVA LC Community on the K12 App!! We all are one and we are a community together! You can connect by grade and plan ways to interact with other WAVA families and students! We'll see you in the Community!
- What is school without one another? We are here for you and look forward to ways to connect! If you have suggestions or feedback reach out to hchamberlain@wava.org
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HS ASB Corner:
Did you know that our High School has an amazing group of Student Leaders along with Advisor Mr. Humphreys that help run our ASB! This group of leaders and students collaborate to help create and run student lead ideas and activities throughout the year! They have a wide list of HS Clubs you can participate in during their weekly Chill N Chat sessions as well as event they support throughout the year! If you are in HS and want to become involved, check it out!
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Special Programs Support
Get to know Special Programs Assistant Principal Jennifer Tubbs:
Special Programs Team:
Special Programs Principal, Dolly Fernandes, and Special Programs Assistant Principal, Jennifer Tubbs, are excited to announce that WAVA HS Co-Teachers will be collaborating with author and co-teaching expert Susan Fitzell. This opportunity was made possible by the AESD Inclusionary Practices Grant.
If you have questions or concerns about the diverse needs of your learner, please contact -
- Dolly Fernandes, dofernandes@k12.com – Special Education Principal
- Jennifer Tubbs, jtubbs@wava.org -- Special Education Assistant Principal
- Scott VanGerpen, svangerpen@wava.org – 504
- Stephanie Haegele, shaegele@wava.org – Highly Capable Program
- Star Downey, sdowney@wava.org - Highly Capable Program
- Karen O'Leary, koleary@wava.org – English Learner Program
- Lauren Garcia, lgarcia@wava.org, English Learner Program
Social Spot February
7 Mindsets
Student Lunch Chats!
Success Stories
Follow us on Pinterest!
LC Community App
Follow us on Twitter!
Follow us on Instagram!
Follow us on YouTube!
Follow us on our main WAVA facebook page!
Washington Virtual Academies
Email: info@wava.org
Website: www,wavabulletinboard.com
Location: 2601 S 35th St Suite 100 Tacoma, WA 98409
Phone: (253) 591-6888
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/WAVAESLC/
Twitter: @K12_WAVA
Omak Statement of Non-discrimination
Omak School District does not discriminate in any programs or activities on the basis of sex, race, creed, religion, color, national origin, age, veteran or military status, sexual orientation, gender expression or identity, disability, or the use of a trained dog guide or service animal and provides equal access to the Boy Scouts and other designated youth groups. The following employees have been designated to handle questions and complaints of alleged discrimination: Civil Rights Coordinator and Title IX Coordinator: LeAnne Olson, (509) 826-7687, lolson@omaksd.org or WAVA Family Resource Coordinator: Kathy Swartz, (253) 682-7906, kaswartz@k12.com; and Section 504 Coordinator: John Holcomb, (509) 826-8342, johnholcomb@omaksd.org , P.O. Box 833, Omak, WA 98841 or WAVA 504 Coordinator, Scott VanGerpen, (253) 591-6888 svangerpen@wava.org
El Distrito Escolar de Omak no discrimina en ningún programa o actividad por motivos de sexo, raza, credo, religión, color, nacionalidad, edad, estado militar o veterano, orientación sexual, expresión de género o identidad, incapacidad o el uso de un perro entrenado o un animal guía o de servicio, y proporciona el mismo acceso a los Boy Scouts y otros grupos de jóvenes que sean designados. Los siguientes empleados han sido designados para estar a cargo de preguntas y quejas de presunta discriminación: Coordinadora de Derechos Civiles y Coordinador del Título IX: LeAnne Olson, (509) 826-7687, lolson@omaksd.org; Coordinador de recursos familiares, Kathy Swartz, (253) 682-7906, kaswartz@k12.com; y el Coordinador de la sección 504: John Holcomb, (509) 826-8342, johnholcomb@omaksd.org, P.O. Box 833, Omak, WA 98841 or WAVA Coordinador de la sección 504, Scott VanGerpen, (253) 591-6888 svangerpen@wava.org.