Principal Weekly Update to Families

Brief Message From the Principal

Dear Jayhawk Elementary Families,

I am beyond excited to welcome you all—both new and returning—to what promises to be another fantastic year at Jayhawk Elementary School! As I begin my second year here as principal, I am filled with gratitude for the continued opportunity to work alongside such a supportive community of families, staff, and students. USD 346 truly is a special place to learn and grow!

Our teachers have been hard at work preparing their classrooms and planning engaging lessons to kick off the school year. We’re all looking forward to seeing you at Back to School Conferences on Tuesday, August 12th from 10:00 AM – 6:00 PM. This is a great opportunity to meet teachers, drop off supplies, and get important information for the year ahead.

New This Year – Dismissal Time Adjustment
We do want to share one important change for this year: ALL JES students will now be dismissed at 3:25 PM. In previous years, we began our car line process a little early. However, starting this year, dismissal for bus riders, car riders, and walkers will take place at the 3:25 bell.

If you plan to pick up your child through the car line, please plan accordingly and allow for a few extra minutes during those first couple of weeks. We appreciate your patience as we fine-tune the process and work out any kinks to keep things moving as smoothly and safely as possible.

How Our Car Line Works
For our new families:

Each JES student is assigned a car line number.
That number will be printed on a car line poster for families to display in the front window of your vehicle during dismissal.
You will receive two posters per family at Back to School Conferences next Tuesday.
If you have multiple students at JES, your posters will come from your oldest child’s classroom teacher.

For our returning families:

Your car line numbers will remain the same as last year.
Yes, we’ll be handing out new posters for you next week!

We are ready and energized for another year of learning, growth, and community. Thank you for being an essential part of the Jayhawk Elementary family—we can’t wait to see everyone next Tuesday and officially kick off the 2025–2026 school year!

New Faces at JES
We’re thrilled to welcome several new members to our JES family this year:

New to the District:

Reese Haney – 2nd Grade Classroom Teacher
Madelyn Stoneking – Speech-Language Pathologist (SLP)
Jenna Terry – 6th Grade Classroom Teacher
Carlene Spillman -- Food Service/District Services

New to the JES Building:

Christy Thomas – Music/Technology/Computer Applications Teacher (transitioning from JLHS)
Katie Randall – School Custodian (transitioning from JLHS)
Chelisa Bruner -- Food Service

We are extremely excited to welcome them to our JES Family!

🎉 ON BEHALF OF THE ENTIRE STAFF, WE VALUE YOUR PARTNERSHIP! 🏆

- Mr. Hermreck