New Family Guide

We begin the year with early dismissal for our youngest students because it helps them transition smoothly into a full day of school. Getting up early for school is often a challenge for young students and their families, and we have found that this brief period of shorter school days helps to ease the schedule change for everyone. In the past, parents have commented how helpful this has been for them.

Aftercare is offered to students in K4–6th grade every day school is in session until 5:30 pm, except on early dismissal days. This includes the days at the beginning of the year when K4 and kindergarten finish school early.

More detailed information about aftercare can be found HERE.

We do not offer early care for our students.

Students should be dropped off at the following times:

• K4–6th Grade: Please drop off between 7:45 and 8:15 am
• 7th–12th Grade: Please drop off/arrive between 7:30 and 7:45 am

At the end of each school year, teacher teams design class lists for the following year. This prayerful and intentional process takes into account teacher styles, student learning needs, friendships, and many more factors. This process has proven tremendously successful over the years and we do not officially accept requests for teachers. However, any requests submitted are forwarded to the director of early childhood (K4–2nd grade), director of the grammar school (3rd–6th grade), or director of the upper school who, late in the summer, considers any possible adjustments to class lists.

The Geneva athletic department does not generally organize transportation to practices or games. Parents work together to coordinate and share the carpooling. On occasions when coaches coordinate transportation, the school requires that drivers have an up-to-date background check and driver check on file.

The athletic department will keep parents and students appraised of all relevant information including dates throughout the year. This begins during the summer prior to the fall season. Be sure to check your email inbox for communication from the school. We encourage you to check out the ATHLETICS pages for further information.

Please bear in mind that students in grades 6–12 must have up-to-date FHSAA forms on file in the athletic office prior to any participation, including try-outs and practices. All the forms can be found on the ATHLETIC FORMS page.

We do not. However, please contact Sarah Cloke if you need suggestions of families you may be able to approach regarding carpooling.

Grammar school students are not permitted to bring cell phones to school. Dialectic and rhetoric students who bring cell phones to school are not permitted to use them during regular school hours (including lunch time) and phones must be turned off and stowed in the student’s locker or backpack.

Students are not permitted to take electronic devices (other than cameras) on field trips and cell phones are only permitted in cases deemed necessary by the director of early childhood (K4–2nd grade), director of the grammar school (3rd–6th grade), or director of the upper school.

As a general rule, all text books are provided by the school. A few exceptions are AP study books, an English dictionary, foreign language dictionaries, a study Bible, and books required for summer reading. Books parents are required to purchase for the school year are noted on the student supply lists.

• School supplies necessary for students in K4–6th grade are purchased and placed in classrooms ready for the first day of school. The cost of supplies is added to an activity fee divided between two payments billed to accounts in September and January. At each grade level, there are a few items that are not included in the activity fee billing.
• Students in 7th & 8th grade purchase most of the own supplies. A few are purchased by the school and the cost added to an activity fee divided between two payments billed to accounts in September and January. 
• Students in 9th–12th grade purchase their own supplies.

Further information can be found on the STUDENT SUPPLIES page.

The CALENDAR page has all TGS events. You will also links on this page to the yearly academic calendar and three different google calendars:

• Regular TGS events
• JV and varsity athletic games/meets/matches
• D/R daily schedule

If you want to add any or all of these google calendars to your google account, with the google calendar open in a browser, simply scroll down to the bottom of the page and click the +google calendar icon and follow the prompts.

Please contact Lou Jones one of our school nurses regarding any special medical concerns your may have over the summer. Please also read the HEALTH & WELLNESS pages.

Please contact Candy Houk in the admission department for help in this area. She will be able to assist you in finding someone to prepare your child for TGS.

Geneva has many opportunities outside the classroom.

For all things athletic, please contact the athletic department: Hollie Benjumea for K4–6th grade students and Dan Harger for 7th–12th grade students.

Information about other clubs and organizations can be found on the CLUBS AND ORGANIZATIONS page.

Parental involvement in the life of the school has always been a vibrant element in the Geneva community experience. Whether you coach a grammar school basketball team, help out with our student serveathon fundraiser, chaperone students on a field trip, or stuff invitations into envelopes as one of our office angels—we want you to be involved.

Volunteering at Geneva is a great way to partner with the school. Visit the PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT page and submit the simple form to let us know your interests and availability.

At the lower school campus (K4–6th grade), student and/or teacher issues are dealt with by Director of Early Childhood Heidi Heinsch and Director of the Grammar School Keira Raesly.

At the upper school campus (7th–12th grade), student and/or teacher issues are dealt with by Director of the Upper School Peter Vande Brake and the student services department overseen by Chaplain Mike Beates.

All financial issues are handled by the accounting department. Please contact Elizabeth Yawn for questions in this area.

There are many opportunities to meet and get to know the other families in your child’s class. One such event is the Parent Knight Out grade event in the fall. Every grade has a social gathering in a home, just for parents, and just for fun. There is no agenda other than allowing parents to get to know one another better. Watch for an invitation in the late summer/fall.

In addition, there are many opportunities to volunteer in the classroom, on field trips, and with your child’s co-curricular activities. These times naturally lend themselves to building relationships with the other families at the school.

The school’s administration team members welcome the opportunities for personal meetings (scheduled according to calendar availability) but are also available for casual conversation at student co-curricular events, parent events, and other school activities. You will find the more you are around the school, the more you will naturally build relationships with both the faculty and the staff.