We are ALL WDMCS
Sept. 15, 2023
Non-Prescription Medication Changes
For the 2023-24 school year, the following changes regarding stock non-prescription medications will impact all WDMCS buildings, based on new guidelines from the Iowa Department of Education. The WDMCS health offices stock non-prescription medications including Tylenol, ibuprofen, and Tums.
All elementary school students (grades PK-6) will be provided a maximum of four doses of stock non-prescription medications during the school year.
All junior high and high school students (grades 7-12) will be provided a maximum of eight doses of stock non-prescription medications.
Cough drops may be supplied by the parent/guardian but will not be provided as a stock medication.
If further doses are necessary after the maximum number has been reached, the parent/guardian will be responsible for providing the medication to the health office.
If you have further questions, please reach out to your school nurse and/or our nursing supervisor, Laura Mears, at mearsl@wdmcs.org.
Recommended Fall Vaccines
As the cold and flu season approaches, now is the time to consider getting your family flu vaccines.
In addition, you may wish to also receive an updated COVID-19 vaccine with the rise of cases across the country. Updated CDC recommendations can be found online.
While the COVID-19 vaccine will not always prevent individuals from getting the virus, it can help decrease the symptoms, length, and severity of the illness.
Flu and COVID-19 vaccines, along with COVID-19 at-home test kits, are available at many local pharmacies, including locations at Target, Hy-Vee, Walgreens, and Walmart.
Check Out Fun, Fall Community Education Classes
Community Education's Adventures program has engaging classes, fun teachers, and enriching experiences for K-8 students after school, in the evenings, and on the weekends.
Adventures provides a way for students to expand their knowledge or skills in an area of interest and try something beyond the classes they have during the school day.
Powderpuff Football
MONDAY, SEPT. 18
Powderpuff football games start at 7 p.m. and will be played at Tiger Field. Free admission.
Parade and Carnival
THURSDAY, SEPT. 21
The Homecoming parade starts at 5:45 p.m. and will begin at Valley Southwoods and end outside Valley Stadium (rain location: Southwoods gym).
The Homecoming carnival follows the parade from 6:15-8:30 p.m. and will be held outside Valley Stadium.
Football Game
FRIDAY, SEPT. 22
Valley's Homecoming football game starts at 7 p.m. and will be played at Valley Stadium. The Tigers will face the Ames Little Cyclones. Please visit https://valleytigersathletics.com/ for more information about the game.
Purchase digital tickets online starting Sept. 20.
Valley’s Ayanari Morales-Rodriguez Earns DEI Excellence Award
Valley High School junior Ayanari Morales-Rodriguez was named the Student Leader of the Year at the West Des Moines Chamber of Commerce’s third annual Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Workplace Excellence Awards on Sept. 7, 2023. She was recognized for her involvement with the Refugee and Immigrant Student Embassy (RISE) group at Valley, including playing a key role in the group's food drive last year. She was also honored for serving as a junior counselor for the WDMCS Summer Scholars program, which serves newcomer students in grades K-8.
Join Valley Kicker’s Fundraiser for Stillbirth Prevention Program
Valley High School senior and Tigers football kicker Rico Alvarenga-Servellon is turning kicks into something more this season. As part of the Every Kick Counts campaign, Alvarenga-Servellon is raising money for Count the Kicks, an evidence-based stillbirth prevention campaign from Iowa nonprofit organization Healthy Birth Day, Inc.
WATCH: Welcoming Week Keynote Speech, "What We Can Learn from Kids About Race and Inclusion"
Author, speaker, coach, and West Des Moines Community Schools parent Erlin Kakkanad shared her inspiring speech, "What We Can Learn from Kids About Race and Inclusion: Nurturing Cultural Empathy and Emotional Intelligence: Unleashing Children's Creative Genius" with the district for Welcoming Week on Tuesday, Sept. 12. The talk explored actionable steps to enhance representation, exposure, and cultural understanding among children, while empowering them to embrace diversity and develop social-emotional intelligence. It also drew on Kakkanad’s own experiences as a woman of color and a parent of two sons, some of which also inspired her children’s books “Happy in Your Skin: Is Rafa Different?” and “I Love Curry and I’m Not Sorry.”
