Dear Wakefield Families, 

On behalf of the entire staff of Wakefield Elementary, I welcome you to the start of this school year. I am thrilled to have our students back in school with us. While we continue to work through the pandemic, I am grateful for your partnership in ensuring that we do everything within our control to keep our students and staff safe. Health and safety are critical for all aspects of our planning. While school will still look and feel different with maintaining social distances, individual work and spaces it is necessary to maintain a high level of safety for all. Please know we are maintaining a watchful eye on any updates and changes from
Governor McGee’s office and RI Department of Education (RIDE) and will continue to share these with you. For those of you I have yet to meet, my name is Coleen Smith and as the principal, I am thrilled to welcome you to Wakefield Elementary School. There is a lot of excitement ahead of us, including meeting new teachers, staff and families, reconnecting and making friends, learning new routines and expanding our learning outdoors...and I look forward to sharing all of these experiences with you. 

As a parent myself, I know how challenging it can be for families to keep pace with the many
interests, activities and demands of work and home. This is amplified in the midst of this global
pandemic.  I encourage you to work closely with us in support of your child’s success by keeping
open communication and sharing your questions, concerns and ideas as they come up so that we can address them in a timely manner.

The district maintains updates on the website www.skschools.net to provide families and
community members with information for the district reentry plan, state updates, resources
and local support. The School Committee meeting on Tuesday, August 24th will provide
the district with details for reopening of schools this year. I encourage you to attend or watch it on zoom. The link to the meeting is available on the left hand side of the district website page.

We are fortunate to have a wonderful and highly dedicated staff here at Wakefield School.
We will be working closely during upcoming professional development sessions and grade
level meetings to plan and design activities together for each class. Our teachers partner
with me in creating balanced classrooms. We are looking forward to working with you to
make this a successful year for you and your child. Knowing our caring educators, support
staff, and therapists, I am confident we will provide your child with a positive and engaging
school experience.  If you have questions or concerns, please feel free to reach out to me by telephone or email. 

Can’t wait to see you on our first day-bright and early at 8:53 on September 9th!

Educationally yours,
Coleen Smith

401-360-1207
csmith@sksd-ri.net

Here is a link to the classroom supply list for our elementary schools. Purchases by parents
and families are voluntary and greatly appreciated.