On Tuesday, January 17th, 2017, WCA started a new tradition, our first ever State of the School Address. This important event was and will be a key communication opportunity for our Board, Head of School, and Head of Administration to outline the year and our accomplishments thus far in the school year, pass essential policies changes continuing forward, outline fundraising needs, and most importantly, mark the kickoff to the re-enrollment period. In addition to this primary information, this year we took the opportunity in the State of the School address to outline several new and exciting changes at the school in the 2017-2018 school year, announced the establishment of our  summer program, Camp Eagle, introduced our new International Program and released our 2017-2018 school year calendar.

For those that were not able to attend, here are the highlights from the evening:

• Re-enrollment for 2017-2018 is now open! Tuition and Fee Schedule and Policies were handed out with some exciting re-enrollment news and incentives for referring new families. Please find the documents attached to this letter and they can also be found on the Parent Portal.  There are two very exciting discount opportunities that are being offered this year.  Re-enroll prior to March 1 and avoid all 2017/18 tuition increases.  A new referral program is in place to receive a $500 credit for each new family that names you as the person that invited them to enroll their student(s).  Please read the details in the discounts section of the “Tuition/Fee Schedule and Policy” document attached.

•  A school-wide Open House is set for Friday, January 27^th from 9:00-11:00AM.  This will be a terrific opportunity for perspective families to hear about the mission, vision, and direction the school is heading.  In addition, Perspective students will have the chance to shadow for the day.  All we ask is that the perspective parents register with the admissions office in order for us to be prepared to serve the perspective student well for that shadow day.

• Our new website was launched!  We are very thankful to Jeff Sullivan and the development team for creating a site that is truly outstanding.

• The academic schedule for 2017-2018 was distributed (see link below)

• We are very excited to announce a change that we believe will have a positive impact on our entire community.  Starting in August, school will start at 9:00 each Wednesday.  This “Late Start Wednesday” will allow faculty and staff to participate in quality, job-embedded professional development each Wednesday morning before students arrive.  Veteran teachers will have time to mentor younger professionals, faculty meetings will be held, new teachers will take part in a formal Mentoring and Induction Program, and teachers will have the chance to choose from a variety of on-site mini-courses, designed to support them in their professional growth.  In addition, families will have the opportunity to spend extra time together each Wednesday morning, and it also gives our kids the chance to get some much needed extra sleep if necessary!  Dismissal time will still be at 3:00, and childcare and activities will be available free of charge for those that need to be dropped off at school before the regular start time of 8:05.

• Our new international program is ready to take off, and we will be welcoming a total of 8-12 International students from around the world next August.  On the 17th, we hosted 40 high school students from Shanghai, China, who are interested in attending WCA next fall.  Students toured the campus and learned about the school from administrators.  In addition, they were able to visit four classes to get a taste of what an American classroom is like.  They ended the day by hearing from three current international students about their experiences at WCA while enjoying an authentic Chinese lunch.  In March, Dr. Breslin will travel to China to meet with families and interview students interested in attending WCA next fall.  Check out the International page on our new website to learn more about this great program.

• We introduced “Camp Eagle”, our new on-site summer camp program! Between 15-20 camp offerings will be available to kids of all ages between June 26^th and August 4^th.  Half day and full day options will be available, and offerings will include sports camps, art camps, science/STEM camps, language camps, music and instrument camps, writing/college essay camps, and academic camps.  In addition, we will offer a “general” camp experience for those that want a little of everything, and a pre-school camp will also be available.  Camp registration begins on February 15^th, so please look for an official camp brochure with information and a full explanation of each offering in the next few weeks.  There is a special tab on our new website dedicated to Camp Eagle, and we will let the community know when that is fully up and running.  Camps will be open to all WCA students and to kids not associated with the school as well.

• Other initiatives we will be working on this spring for the 2017-2018 school year include an expanded service, missions and retreat program, expanded clubs and extracurricular offerings for the lower school, a continuation of the curriculum engineering process for all grades and subjects, continued refinement and growth of the middle school, fine arts and athletic programs, planning for the 2017-2018 editions of the PTL and Eagle Booster Club, and an initiative to bolster our writing program from K3 through grade 12.

This is an incredibly exciting time of introspection and growth in the history of our school, and we are so thankful to God and the entire WCA community for a terrific fall and start to the spring semester.  We are also so thankful for what God has in store for WCA in the years to come.

2017-18 Tuition Policy
2017-18 Tuition Fee
2017-18 WCA Calendar