First Day of School is less than a week away; Wednesday, August 12th
Principal's Message
Dear Middle School Families,
The countdown has begun on our exciting return to school!
New Families Welcome Event
Welcome to NEW MIDDLE SCHOOL FAMILIES Tuesday, August 11 from 9:00 - 11:00 am. New families to LJA are encouraged to attend to learn more about the LJA campus and the start of the new year. Faculty, Staff, Admissions Office Personnel, and our PFA committee are ready to greet you.
If attending with more than one child in different divisions here is the schedule: Lower School - 8:00 to 11:00 Returning LJA Families
Returning LJA families who are interested in meeting their child's teachers please fill out this Interest Form.The form will need to be completed by Sunday, August 9. We will be calling parents to schedule short information sessions with teachers for the first week of school.
Student Drop Off And First Day Of School Information
Student Schedules and First Day of School Information
Student schedules will be distributed during orientation on the first day of school. We will be emailing to all parents and students the Advisory classrooms so students know where to report on the first day of school. If you have signed up for distance learning, an administrator will be contacting you next week to set up an appointment to discuss logistics, expectations, and to review your child's schedule.
The LJA Ohana Welcomes New Staff and Faculty Alyssa Kuffel received her BA in Elementary Education from MSU, in Mankato MN. She also has her M.E.D in Administrative Leadership from the UH Manoa. In the past, she has taught Grades K-6 English/ Spanish in Costa Rica, grades 9-12 Science at Lutheran High School of Hawaii, grades 6-8th middle school science at IPA. She has also been a coach for cross country, swimming and track for over 4 years. She will be teaching 6th & 8th Grade Science at LJA. Rachel Domenic is joining us as MYP coordinator and Academic Dean from an international school in Beijing. She has a Master's in Educational Leadership and a Bachelor's in English Education. She also works as a workshop leader, site visit leader and consultant for IB. She has an 8 year old son and 13 year old daughter and everyone is excited for hiking and clean air. Ramsay Barnes will be joining us this year as a member of the Design team teaching in the MYP program. He will also be our new Yearbook Advisor. Prior to his position as Director of Residential Life at Maui Prep he was the Director of Project Based Learning at Trinity Pawling School in NY. There he designed the community's Makerspaces and Innovation labs. Throughout his career he has designed communal spaces, managed shops and trained faculty in all things makerspace and PBL to foster a collaborative mindset of Design Thinking. He and his wife, Momilani are very happy to return to Oahu to be with family again and look forward to getting to know the entire Le Jardin Community. Lynn received her BA in Elementary Education and Spanish from Concordia College in Moorhead, MN. She also received her MA in Education from Alliant International University while teaching English in Mexico City. She lived and taught English immersion there for seven years then moved to her home state of Montana where she taught PYP Spanish immersion at the Missoula International School. Since moving to Hawaii in 2018, she's been an LJA parent but worked in 6th and 7th grade in Kaneohe public schools. She will be teaching 6th-9th grade MYP Spanish at LJA. Lynn is extremely excited to become part of the Bulldog family.
Magnus Health Update ALL FAMILIES: HEALTH FORMS – CRUCIAL FOR ATTENDANCE
Student medical forms should now be submitted to Magnus Health through our Parent Portal (lejardinacademy.myschoolapp.com). If you have not completed these forms please make sure to do so now.
New families should allow 20 to 30 minutes per student to fill out the entire set of forms and upload paper forms as required. Each year, parents will login and confirm or update each child's record. For returning families, most data entered into Magnus previously will only need to be confirmed or updated if changed, including immunizations records.
Follow these directions for accessing Magnus Health. If you need additional help logging into Magnus Health, please contact Melissa Handy at support@lejardinacademy.org.
Health - NEW STUDENTS All new students must submit Student Health Form 14. The Student Health Form 14 record must include a current physical and TB clearance. Hawaii State regulation prohibits attendance without these documents. These forms must be received PRIOR to the first day of school along with evidence of proper immunizations.
Health - ALL 7th & 8th GRADE STUDENTS The state has updated requirements. Before the first day of school, all seventh and 8th grade students must provide documentation of having received a physical examination and the following vaccinations:
For your child's records we use Magnus Health, a web-based system used for managing health records. This system follows internationally recognized security standards and is HIPAA and FERPA compliant. Please feel free to visit the Magnus Health page for Parents: http://magnushealth.com/parents/ and Privacy and Security page at www.magnushealth.com/privacy-and-security/.
SMART TUITION
Please remember to sign into the SMART Tuition paperless billing and payment system. This is located in the Resources tab in the Parent Portal (lejardinacademy.myschoolapp.com). This is the same portal where you signed enrollment contracts. If you have difficulty logging in or need a password reset please email melissa.handy@lejardinacademy.org.
MIddle School Communications
The majority of school information is sent electronically. Please make sure our Middle School Administrative Assistant, Kimberly McDonald, has your most updated email account and address. Kim can be contacted by email at kim.mcdonald@lejardinacademy.org or phone at 261-0707 x1160.
Also make sure to visit our Middle School Parent Portal website here to find useful information and to view the following important documents. Updates occur throughout the year so check in often to find the latest information.
Athletics Update
Aloha LJA Community!
You may have seen on Wednesday, Aug. 5th that the Hawaii High School Athletic Association (HHSAA) made an announcement pushing all fall sports that are considered moderate to high risk until the second semester of the school year. Sports included are: volleyball, football, cheerleading and cross country. The Interscholastic League of Honolulu (ILH) Athletic Directors are working diligently to still be able to provide opportunities for some sort of sport experience within a timeline that can be conducted safely for our student-athletes. More information will be shared as plans become solidified.
Lunch Orders
Lunch orders can now be placed. August and September menus are available. All questions regarding the lunch program should be directed to Kyle Nakayama at kyle.nakayama@lejardinacademy.org
Spirit Store
Required PE shirts/shorts for school and other Spirit items are available to order. Orders placed with the Spirit Store open will have time to arrive before needed in PE. Kyle Nakayama can be contacted for further questions, kyle.nakayama@lejardinacademy.org.
After School Activities
AFTER SCHOOL ACTIVITIES
Besides Extended Day (open until 6:00 pm), we are currently assessing our offering of Afterschool Activities. A separate email regarding these different offerings will be sent later this summer. See more Extended Day information HERE.
EXTENDED DAY
Extended Day (after school care) resumes on August 12th. Click HERE for important details regarding the Extended Day Program. If you need after school care for your child, please contact Extended Day as soon as possible as the staff is based on attendance and some classes have filled in previous years due to late enrollments.
Important Dates
August 11 New Families Welcome Day August 12 First Day of School K-12 September 7 Labor Day, No school for students September 10 MS Picture Day September 25 PDD#1 No School for students September 28 Make up Picture Day for MS October 12 Discovers Day Holiday No School October 13-16 Fall Break
Middle School Contacts Attendance Hotline 261-0707 x7004
Lizbeth Smith MS/HS Registrar 261-0707 x3070 lizbeth.smith@lejardinacademy.org
Kim McDonald MS Admin Assistant 261-0707 x1160 kim.mcdonald@lejardinacademy.org
Juniper Richardson Learning Support Coordinator juniper.richardson@lejardinacademy.org
Jessica Osborne MS/HS Counselor jessica.osborne@lejardinacademy.org
Sean Landau
Rachel Domenic MS Dean of Academics, MYP Coordinator Rachel.Domenic@lejardinacademy.org
Vicki McNeill Dean of Students 6-12 vicki.mcneill@lejardinacademy.org
Julie Do Middle School Principal julie.do@lejardinacademy.org
Middle School Information
Please visit the Middle School Portal frequently to view additional information, important events, changes, and forms at https://www.lejardinacademy.org/parent-portal/middle-school-portal or Click HERE |