AUGUST 6, 2009 ISSUE
First Day of School Next Wednesday
Wednesday, August 12, is the first day of school for all Watauga County Schools.
Pre-kindergarten students begin school on a staggered schedule spread over six days, and kindergarten students begin on a staggered schedule spread over four days, except at Hardin Park, where the starting date for kindergarten students will be spread over three days. Check with your child’s school if you have questions about the starting date for a child entering pre-kindergarten or kindergarten.
Incoming high school freshmen received their class schedules at orientation, on Wednesday, August 5, and students entering grades 10 to 12 can pick up their schedules at the high school on Thursday and Friday, August 6 and 7.
All parents are asked to fill out a school bus stop request form so that the new bus routes will be as efficient as possible without compromising student safety.
The longest bus route for the coming year will be 90 minutes or less, according to Transportation Director Toni Weaver Floyd. He said that the goal is to always keep bus rides no longer than 90 minutes.
The stop request form can be submitted online or printed out from the Watauga County Schools website, and it is also available from school offices. Printed copies of the form can be returned to the school office or faxed to the transportation department at 828-266-9694.
Student fees for the new school year remain unchanged, at $5 for preschool pupils, $7 for students in kindergarten through fifth grade and $8 for sixth through eighth grade students. General fees for high school students are $11.50, with additional fees depending on the student’s classes.
Regular breakfast prices will be $1.20 for preschool to eighth grade, $1.50 for ninth to 12th grade and $1.75 for adults.
Regular lunch prices will be $1.95 for preschool through third grade, $2.05 for fourth to eighth grade, $2.20 for ninth to 12th grade and $3.25 for adults. Reduced price breakfasts are 30 cents and reduced price lunches are 40 cents for eligible students in all grades.
Applications for free and reduced price meals are included with the information packets provided to all parents by each school. Applications can also be requested from Child Nutrition at 828-264-7190.
The Watauga County Schools wall calendar that was mailed to families in prior years has been discontinued due to budget cuts. The school calendar for 2009-2010 can be viewed online by clicking to the calendar link at www.watauga.k12.nc.us.
Early Registration Available for After School Program
Early registration for the Watauga County Schools’ after school program for 2009-10 will be offered beginning Monday, August 10, at Mabel, and Tuesday, August 11, for all other sites except Valle Crucis.
The after school program is open to Watauga County Schools students in kindergarten through fifth grade. The program will operate on the first day of school.
Registration will be available at Mabel from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. on Monday, August 10. On Tuesday, August 11, registration is offered from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at Blowing Rock, Cove Creek, Green Valley and Mabel; from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. at Hardin Park; and from 3:00 to 6:30 p.m. at Parkway.
Parents are encouraged to register early to avoid the lines and full parking lots that may develop on the first day of school. Registration will also be available on Wednesday, August 12, from 7:30 to 8:30 a.m. at Blowing Rock and Hardin Park; from 7:30 to 9:00 a.m. at Cove Creek; from 7:00 to 9:00 a.m. at Hardin Park; and from 7:15 to 8:45 a.m. at Parkway.
At Valle Crucis, registration will be available during regular after school hours on Wednesday, August 12, and at the school’s open house on Tuesday, August 18, for kindergarten to second grade students, and on Thursday, August 20, for third to fifth grade students.
The after school program is self-supporting through fees ranging from $17.70 per child for one or two days per week to $36.75 per child for five days per week. There is also a registration fee of $25 per child. For information on the Department of Social Services’ childcare subsidies for eligible families who need help paying fees, call 828-265-8100.
Children must be registered for after school before they can attend. Parents can speed up the registration process by printing out the registration form from the Watauga County Schools website and filling it out before coming to school. However, state licensing standards require that parents meet with after school personnel before the registration is officially complete. Parents need the name and phone numbers for their child’s physician and dentist at after school registration.
Western Youth Network (WYN) offers an after school program for students in grades six to eight. Application materials for the WYN after school program will be available in the schools. For more information, click to www.westernyouthnetwork.org or call Angela Grimes at 828-264-5174.
A separate holiday/snow day program at Hardin Park is available for students from any school in the Watauga County Schools system. This program is open from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on teacher workdays, selected school holidays and days when schools are closed for inclement weather. Students can be registered for this program through the after school program at any school.
Registration forms and the required policy information forms are available online through the parent link on the Watauga County Schools homepage. Parents can speed up the registration process by printing the forms from the website and filling out the registration form before meeting with program staff. The registration deadline for the holiday/snow day program is Wednesday, September 30, and the fee is $16.50 per day per child. There is also a registration fee of $25 per child for the holiday/snow day program.
For more information about any after school program, or for a complete fee schedule, click to www.watauga.k12.nc.us or call the central office at 828-264-7190.
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