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A fully-staffed cafeteria and food service is available for use by students and staff through a contract with Aramark Food and Nutrition Services. Aramark provides debit lunch accounts with an individual PIN number for each student (to make online payments, check food purchases or activate low balance reminders, click here). Information on account payment processes are sent home at the onset of each school year. Hot lunches are served every day and beverages, snacks, salads and fruit may be purchased a la carte. An emphasis is placed on good nutrition and helping children make healthy eating choices. All students have the option of bringing their lunch from home or purchasing it at school. Lunch periods as well as recess periods are supervised by faculty and parent volunteers.

The practice of students borrowing money to purchase lunch or snacks is strongly discouraged. If a student forgets to bring lunch or lunch money, the child will be permitted to have a meal, which should be paid for on the following day.

Monthly are available online listing the daily selections and prices. Children who bring lunch from home are expected to use reusable containers, cloth napkins and lunch boxes. Lunch periods as well as recess periods are supervised by faculty.

Mid-morning snacks can be purchased from Aramark on a cash only basis. Questions regarding the lunch service in the GMA cafeteria may be addressed to Frank Zdrojewski at Zdrojewski-Frank@aramark.com.

Click here to learn about setting up your child's prepayment account.

Gwynedd-Mercy faculty and aides provide a CARES (Children are Receiving Extended Services) program for students in Pre-K(4) to grade 8 from 7:00-8:00 AM and from 3:15-6:00 PM. Morning and afternoon CARES begins on September 9, the first day of school. CARES ends the last full day of school at the end of the year. The program includes outside play, snack, homework time, arts and crafts and other activities that keep the children active and safe until their parents arrive. Fees are in addition to tuition.

All rules and policies of the school, outlined in the GMA Student-Parent Handbook, apply to CARES.

Morning CARES Program is available on every school day in session at hours specified on fee schedule. Morning CARES takes place in the Cafeteria. Parents should use the cafeteria door at the bottom of the steps for drop off, instead of the "B" door used previously in the morning.  Afternoon CARES is available on every full day that school is in session. Afternoon CARES is held in the cafeteria and the adjacent CARES Room. Students are provided a snack at the beginning of our program. They may then begin homework and/or play a game. Outdoor play time is also provided as weather permits. If the gym is not in use, students are taken there for play time in inclement weather.

Parents should pick up children at the cafeteria doors (through walkway and stairs between Gallery and Primary wing). If we are on the playground, parents may pick up there.

Please feel free to contact us with any questions that you may have regarding our program as we are here to keep your child happy and safe until you return. The direct telephone line to the CARES room after school only is 215-461-1024.

Mrs. Eileen Gray - egray@gmaelem.org

Ms. Nikki Hobbs - nhobbs@gmaelem.org

Weather-related 2-hour delays: Our CARES staff will be available in the Cafeteria beginning at 9:00 AM for REGISTERED STUDENTS ONLY. Parents should use the cafeteria door at the bottom of the steps for early entry.

Print out the following documents to enroll in CARES (accompanied by the $25.00 per child/$65.00 for 3 or more registration fee:

• CARES Fee Schedule and Registration information
• Registration Form and Emergency Information

 

Remedial reading, math, and speech therapy are services provided for students through the Montgomery County Intermediate Unit. Children are evaluated to determine need. Parental permission is required. In addition to the services provided by the Montgomery County Intermediate Unit, Gwynedd-Mercy Academy supports all learners in the classroom according to the student’s need. Our staff includes a full-time School Counselor who nurtures study skills, organizational strategies, and provides guidance to individuals, small groups, and to whole-class environments.

Mrs. Molly Conaway - Reading and Math Specialist

Ms. Kelly Kurnz - Speech Therapist

The counseling office at Gwynedd-Mercy Academy provides services to the entire student body. The School Counselor, Mrs. Susan Srogota, provides support through individual counseling, classroom lessons, small groups, and parent consultation. She is available to assist students with a wide range of concerns. Some topics the counselor addresses frequently include developing friendships, organizational and study skills, stress and anxiety management, conflict resolution, and family concerns. Mrs. Srogota may also observe students in the classroom to provide input to parents and teachers on behavioral strategies.

The GMA school nurse may be reached via email at nurse@gmaelem.org or by phone at 215-461-1025. To fax a form to the school nurse, please send to 215-646-7250.

In order to promote an optimal level of wellness, a nurse is on staff at all times during the school day. The nursing staff is able to dispense required medications, perform first aid and deal with student illness. The nursing staff at GMA works with the Wissahickon School District Certified School Nurse to ensure that all guidelines regarding youth health issues are implemented. The Wissahickon nurse maintains school health records and performs weight, height, vision and hearing screenings.

Students who have a temperature of 100.4° or greater should remain at home.

The nurse will contact the parents/guardians of any student who arrives at school ill.

For more complete information, please visit the Health Services page.

It is essential that each child knows before coming to school how he/she will go home. For the safety of your child, phone calls, e-mails or faxes making changes during the day cannot be accepted, except in case of an emergency.

Bus Transportation - is provided for each student by the public school district in which the student resides. Names of students are sent to the districts each summer so that routes can be established. Bus routes are printed in local newspapers at the end of August. Students are expected to follow bus safety rules at all times. Safety rules are handed out to each student on Book Day. In cases of frequent misbehavior, students may be denied bus privileges. Students may ride only the bus of the school district in which they reside. It is the policy of each school district to not transport students who live outside of that school district. If a student wishes to visit a student from another district, transportation must be provided by the parents.

Each school district honors private school transportation requests for early dismissals equal to the same number provided to the public schools in that district. Some districts do not have as many scheduled early dismissals as GMA. Several school districts may not provide transportation on all noon dismissal dates, These dates will be available at the beginning of the school year once we are informed by school district transportation offices. Parents will need to provide alternate transportation for their children on these days:

Car Line - Parents driving children to and from school are asked to drop off and pick up their children at the sidewalk area beside the circular driveway behind the school. Please pull up to the curb so the children can stay on the sidewalk when they go to and from the building. We ask that you use the entire sidewalk by driving all the way around to the end of the circle. Parents are asked to use the family name signs provided on Book Day for the afternoon car line. If parents are visiting the school first thing in the morning or during dismissal, we ask that children be dropped off and picked up in car line. For the safety of the students, please do not walk your children to or from the school building in the midst of the bus and car traffic.

Drop Off: Parents who drive their children to school are asked to drop the children off between 7:45 and 8:05 AM. Students are expected to be in their classrooms by 8:05 am.

Dismissal: Our dismissal begins at 3:10 pm.

Links to Local School Districts for Bus Transportation are below:

SCHOOL DISTRICT NUMBERS (Click on to link to website)

• ABINGTON
• CENTENNIAL
• CENTRAL BUCKS
• CHELTENHAM
• COLONIAL
• HATBORO-HORSHAM
• METHACTON
• NORRISTOWN
• NORTH PENN - This district no longer publishes transportation schedules online. Their office number is 215-853-1139
• PENNRIDGE
• PERKIOMEN VALLEY
• PHILADELPHIA
• SOUDERTON
• SPRINGFIELD
• UPPER DUBLIN
• WISSAHICKON