Join Your School for Parent/Teacher Conferences

Parent/Teacher Conferences will happen later this month. It’s important that all parents and guardians attend these meetings to work together with school staff on addressing the needs of your children. Please be sure to schedule a time to meet with your child’s teacher to review their academic progress in the first quarter. As a reminder, during Parent/Teacher Conferences, all WESD schools will release early beginning Tuesday, October 22nd through Friday, October 25th. Please contact your child’s school for the specific early release schedule. We appreciate your participation and commitment to being involved in the education of your children.

WESD Teachers Surprised with APS Supply My Class Awards

Over the past month, 19 teachers from across the district were surprised with Arizona Public Service (APS) Supply My Class awards for the 2024-2025 school year. As part of the program, APS awards 500 randomly-selected Title I K-12 teachers within its service territory with a $500 gift card to help ensure they have the resources they need to support their students’ success. Our recent winners were surprised with their gift cards in their classrooms in front of their students.

Congratulations to:

• Lateefah Harris and Jordan Reed at Acacia Elementary School;
• Amber Roberts at Alta Vista Elementary School;
• Emmylou Jacalan at Arroyo School;
• Karen Moreno and Nathan Wade at Desert View Elementary School;
• Joy Clark and Athena Gibson at Ironwood Elementary School;
• Irene Blanchard and Alyssa Duncan at John Jacobs Elementary School;
• Jennifer Vertefeuille at Maryland School;
• Marci Barlow at Moon Mountain Elementary School;
• Penny Connor-Gallagher at Mountain View School;
• Esmeralda Desiderio at Sahuaro Elementary School;
• Brittney Alexander and Kelley Seale at Sunburst Elementary School;
• Leigh Saiz and Alisa Schilling at Tumbleweed Elementary School; and
• Marieluise Taylor at Washington Elementary School.

A special thank you to APS for supporting our teachers within the WESD Family. To view more photos of our APS Supply My Class winners, please visit the WESD Facebook page.

Congratulations to the WESD Volleyball Champions

The 2024-2025 district volleyball champions were determined yesterday. Our students played hard and displayed incredible skill and sportsmanship.

Congratulations to the following programs:

• Girls Volleyball K-8 Champions: Sunnyslope School (Congrats on an undefeated season!)
• Girls Volleyball Eighth Grade Champions: Desert Foothills Junior High School
• Boys Volleyball 7-8 Champions: Desert Foothills Junior High School
• Girls Volleyball Seventh Grade Champions: Mountain Sky Junior High School

A special thank you to all of the coaches and families for their guidance and support throughout the season.

WESD Provides Update on Science Curriculum and Assessment Data

The WESD Curriculum and Instruction Department is proud to share two updates regarding the new science curriculum and beginning-of-the-year academic data. First, WESD fifth through eighth grade science teachers will begin using our newly-adopted science curriculum, McGraw Hill’s Inspire Science, when we return from fall break. We are excited to provide our students and teachers with many opportunities to engage in science content that these new resources offer, like the hands-on materials in the pictures below. The teachers have been attending workshops to prepare for the last two months. In January, our third and fourth grade teachers will begin attending workshops in order to begin implementing Inspire Science after spring break. During quarter four, our kindergarten through second grade teachers will begin receiving training in order to implement the curriculum in the 2025-2026 school year.

Additionally, as each school year begins, all WESD students participate in several assessments that provide our teachers with valuable information to assist them in supporting the learning needs of each student. The assessments measure each student’s strengths and needs in English Language Arts and mathematics. Throughout the year, students will take assessments to measure their progress and provide teachers with new information to support them.

If you have any questions regarding the new science curriculum or assessment data, please contact Paula McWhirter, director of Curriculum and Instruction, at Paula.Mcwhirter@wesdschools.org.