LINK to letter from Principal Robert Schawo
March 31st, 2023
Dear Families of Maple Hill & Alma Elementary Schools,
As most of you know, Maple Hill Elementary will be closing at the end of the year. This building opened its doors to students as a K-8 grade school in the 1952-53 school year and has continuously nurtured minds for 70 years. We will be bringing all elementary students to the Alma Elementary campus, which has also been developing our children into amazing adults since 1956. But in a sense, Alma Elementary is ending too. Replacing it is Wabaunsee Elementary School, or WES. A name that symbolizes the promise our future holds. Bringing together our amazing teachers, support staff, and students will only enhance the already great things going on in our district. There is sadness right now but also great excitement.
Adapting space and physically bringing the entire staff from one school into an existing school will be a big challenge. We are up for the job and looking at how we can make this work as smoothly and efficiently as possible. To accomplish this, the 2022-2023 ending date for elementary students is changing. The last day for students at Alma Elementary and Maple Hill Elementary will be Monday, May 15th at 3:40
PM. Wabaunsee Junior High and High School will still end on Wednesday, May 17th at 1:00 PM. This will allow our teachers to prepare properly for the big move and help ensure the 2023-2024 school year begins smoothly.
To celebrate our schools and students, several things are being planned. More information will be
released about these events as we finalize our ideas.
Below are some expected events:
April 13th, at 6 pm Maple Hill parent informational meeting on Thursday, in the MHES gym.
April 19th, Wabaunsee Elementary meet and greet from 6-7 PM. - This will be an informal chance for Maple Hill families to come see the future Wabaunsee Elementary School and to meet some of the teachers from both AES and MHES. There will not be any formal presentations or programs. Stop by anytime between 6-7 and take a look around.
May 7th Maple Hill Elementary Community Open House from 3-5 PM – This will be an opportunity for our community to come and look around the school and celebrate it. We hope anyone who has ever attended Maple Hill will get a chance to visit before we close the doors in May.
May 12 Field day – We are bringing together the future students of Wabaunsee Elementary to get to know each other better for our end of year field day. Grades K-2 will attend during the morning, all grades will have lunch together, and grades 3-5 will participate in the afternoon. There will be sports, games, physical activities and a big picnic lunch outside. Be on the lookout for messages from Coach Lowery. She may be needing
volunteers to help out with this big event.
Very truly yours,
Robert Schawo
Elementary Principal
rschawo@usd329.com