VAES Family Update
Happy New Year to all of our amazing families. I hope you enjoyed the holidays and created the best memories possible. Listed below are some important reminders for our families.
A large majority of the staff is working from home through Jan. 14th. If you need assistance from any of the office staff members, please email us and we will assist you in any way possible.
As we prepare for the possible Hybrid Reopening Plan for Voyager Academy, I wanted to take some time to review several important pieces of information.
Parent Survey: Mrs. Schollmeyer has sent out a recent parent survey asking for your thoughts regarding our Jan. 19th re-opening plan. If you are in cohort A or B, please complete this survey by Monday, January 11, 2021.
Parent Survey for Hybrid Instruction
Welcome Mrs. Emily Wilder: Voyager Academy would like to take a moment to thank Mrs. Christin Pearson for her amazing service to our students through teaching Legos to K-3 students. Mrs. Pearson has decided to not return to Voyager after Jan 19th. While we are saddened to see Mrs. Pearson go, we are excited to welcome Mrs. Emily Wilder to the teaching staff. Mrs. Wilder is a certified educator who has worked with students in grades preschool through 4th grade. She holds a masters degree from Campbell University and is thrilled to begin working with our students on January 11, 2021.
Welcome Ms. Nagina Woods: Voyager Academy is excited to welcome Ms. Nagina Woods to the teaching staff of Voyager Academy. Ms. Woods will be teaching 3rd grade at Voyager. She begins with our students on January 11, 2021. Ms. Woods is a graduate of Winston-Salem State University and will be meeting with her parents and students via Zoom on Monday, January 11, 2021 at 6:0 pm.
Welcome Ms. Olivia Vines: Voyager Academy would like to welcome Ms. Olivia Vines to the Kindergarten Teaching Team. Ms. Vines was an intern with Voyager during the fall semester and now has joined our team as a Teacher Assistant. We are thrilled to have Ms. Vines join our team. She is a graduate from UNC-Chapel Hill.
Hybrid Reopening Policies and Procedures: Please, please, please take the time to read the entire Policies and Procedures Manual. This document will answer the majority of your questions as we prepare to return to our campus on January 19. This document is also helpful for our remote learners.
Hybrid Policies and Procedures
Lanyards for Student Masks: We are suggesting that parents strive to purchase a mask lanyard for any student who is planning to return to in-person learning. The lanyard will help your student keep up with their mask when they need to remove it during lunch. A link for a possible lanyard is listed below.
Carline Arrival: Voyager Academy car line will begin promptly at 7:15 am. As we prepare to receive students as safely and as quickly as possible, please help our staff by completing the following:
Make sure the Greenlight App is complete and you are ready to show the PASS to the Voyager staff member. If the App is not ready to be shown, we will need for that car to pull to the side until we can get the student checked in. Directions and a step by step video of how to install Greenlight App is listed here. GreenLight Directions Video Greenlight Directions Video #2
As you are waiting in the carline, please turn down the car heat and make sure your student is not totally bundled up or when we complete the temperature check, it will read HIGH.
Staff members will NOT be able to unbuckle students from their seatbelt. Parents will need to have students ready to exit the car when they pull up to their drop-off zone.
Please make sure every person inside the car is wearing a mask as you complete morning and afternoon carline. This will help keep everyone safe.
Each family has received a CAR LINE NUMBER via email. IF YOU DID NOT RECEIVE AN EMAIL WITH YOUR CAR LINE NUMBER, PLEASE CALL THE ACADEMY OFFICE AND MS. KAREN WILL BE ABLE TO PROVIDE YOU WITH THE CAR LINE NUMBER. Please write this number on a piece of paper (using a black marker). This card must be displayed on the sun visor of your car. This is the only way we have of calling your student down to the carline (each afternoon). The school will provide you with the carline number on a red card during the week of January 19th, but for the first few days, we need each family to create a card to be used in your vehicle.
Homeroom Teacher Changes: If your student was assigned a new homeroom teacher, because of our hybrid plan (this is only true for 1st and 3rd grade) the new teacher assignment does not begin until Jan. 19th.
January Schedule: Let us remind you of the January schedule once more….
Jan. 05-15: We will continue our current remote learning plan (nothing different from what the students were doing before winter break).
Jan. 15: Teacher workday and a remote learning day for students. This is the day that teachers will be making sure everything is ready for our Jan. 19th return.
Jan. 19: Cohort A returns to school. Cohort B begins remote learning and Remote Cohort begins remote learning. Grades 1-3 will begin school at 7:45 and will end school at 2:45. IF YOUR STUDENT HAS BEEN ASSIGNED A NEW HOMEROOM TEACHER, THE NEW TEACHER ASSIGNMENT BEGINS ON JANUARY 19. Kindergarten students will begin school at 8:30 and will conclude school at 12:30.
Jan. 20: All students learn from home. This is our Weekly Wednesday Deep Cleaning Day.
Jan. 21-22: Cohort B returns to school. Cohort A begins remote learning and Remote Cohort continues to learn from home. Kindergarten Cohort B will arrive at 8:30 am and will be picked up at 12:30 pm.
Staggered Start for Kindergarten Families: On January 19th, the kindergarten families will be attending in-person instruction on a staggered schedule. In-person students will be asked to arrive at school by 8:30 am and will be picked up each day at 12:30 (Jan. 19-Jan. 29). This will give each kindergarten cohort 4 days to practice carline and school procedures. This gives our students and families an opportunity to learn carline procedures and learn how school works before joining in with 1-3 grade students. The kindergarten staff will send out detailed communication explaining this process.
Classroom Supply Lists: Each teacher is or has sent families a reminder of the classroom supplies your in-person student will need for the January return. If you have any questions related to school supplies, please contact your child’s teacher.
Lunch Orders: Is your child going to need to purchase lunch while at school? Please make sure you have set up your Charter Pay account. Lunch details will be coming home soon. If you have any questions about lunch or charter pay, please reach out to Mrs. Patrice Johnson at pjohnson@voyageracademy.net.
Greenlight App: It is imperative that all Voyager families set up the Greenlight App. Please set up your Greenlight account today and complete the survey daily for each child even while your children are learning remotely. We will use this data and input to ensure we are ready for reopening safely. The links to set up your account are below.
ACTION NEEDED: Directions and links to set up your Greenlight Account
Setting up your account is simple. Select the link below and enter the email address you use to receive Voyager newsletters. Families with multiple children can select any school their children attend. Once your account is set up you will see all of your children associated with your account and be able to complete the daily health screening for each of them. After you complete your first survey you will see the Greenlight pass cleared indication. We will have students select that option to show the larger pass during car line for screening along with their temperature check. Each student will be able to show their Greenlight pass to ensure they are healthy and can attend school. The app also provides support for families that need access to health care, testing, or additional community resources. Please select the link below to set up your family account now.
Elementary School - activate account here: https://glit.me/go/voyager-elementary
Greenlight Directions Video #2