Formal supervision in the Dixon Gym begins at 7:30 a.m. No student should be in the building before that time. All students are expected to arrive by 8:00AM No student should enter through the main door unless they are a walker or are arriving after 8:10 a.m. School officially begins at 8:10 a.m. Attendance will be taken at 8:15 a.m. A child not in his or her classroom at that time will be marked late. ​ BY CAR Parents must drop all students off at the car line doors. Preschool, PreK and Montessori students will enter through the back driveway and be escorted directly to their classrooms. Students in K-8 will enter through the side playground driveway door. Please refrain from using cell phones during arrival on campus, follow the directions of carline staff, and remember to maintain a safe speed of 10 miles per hour. ​ BY BUS Students transported by bus enter the building through the designated door and go directly to the Dixon Gym. ​ WALKERS Students should enter through the front door and proceed to the Dixon Gym. ​ BY VAN Precious Cargo private van service transports from South Philadelphia, Fairmount and Center City. Please contact Amelia and John Fogarino at 215-463-5489 (H) or 215-480-0800 (C) Please call ASAP if interested.

Dismissal begins with prayer at 2:50 p.m. (11:50 a.m. on early dismissal days), followed by instructions for car, walker, Mercy After Care, sport, and bus lines. ​ CAR Parents are not permitted to pick up their children in the Dixon Gym, the Front Lobby, or any other door to the building. Please pull in the front driveway and form two lines. Do not leave your car for any reason. A placard will be given to you at the beginning of the year. Display the placard in the front windshield with the names and grades of all the children you are transporting. Follow the directions of the teachers in the car line. Teachers will escort your children to the car. Children who are not picked up by 3:20 p.m. will go to After Care and be charged accordingly. Please refrain from using cell phones during dismissal on campus, follow the instructions of carline staff, and remember to maintain a safe speed of 10 miles per hour. ​ BUS Students will be dismissed from the Dixon Gym as their buses arrive. A teacher will walk them to the buses. If a bus does not arrive at school by 3:40 p.m., parents will be notified. ​ WALKERS Only children who live within a one‐mile radius of the school will be permitted to walk home. Permission notes must be on file in the Main Office for students to walk home. A staffmember will cross the children at the traffic light at Merion Road andMontgomery Avenue.

Beginning the first week of school, Mercy After Care (MAC) is open from 3:00- 6:00 p.m for all students in Montessori-8th Grade. This program includes recreational activities, enrichment experiences, scheduled homework periods, and snacks. The staff consists of professionals, both teachers and teacher aides, who work together to provide individual attention, security, and consistency of programming in an atmosphere of respect and fun. On certain days such as Faculty Inservice Days, Spring Break and some holidays Mercy After Care closes at 4 p.m. ​ The cost of after care is $10 per hour. The MAC registration form can be found on our website.

Students in our three and four year old programs do not wear uniforms. We recommend comfortable clothing and safe footwear, such as sneakers. Starting in Kindergarten, every child wears a Waldron Mercy uniform. The students have a warm weather uniform, a winter uniform and a gym uniform. Specifics about our uniform can be found on our website. The school uniform is available through Flynn & O’Hara and can be purchased in-store or their website. Gym uniforms (also called Spirit Wear) can be purchased through Lands’ End, Flynn and O’Hara and the WMA Mullen Family School Store, located on our Garden Level or online.

Waldron Mercy Academy Parents Association is an organization made up of parents, teachers and administration. It consists of several committees that help with social, academic, athletic and outreach programs for WMA. All parents are welcome to be part of this association. Meetings are held monthly in the evenings.

WMA families receive our weekly newsletter, the WMA Weekly, via email every Thursday afternoon. It is filled with all of the updated information parents need about upcoming events, lunch menus, athletic events, special speakers, etc. Parents are highly encouraged to read this newsletter each week to keep up‐to‐date on Waldron Mercy Academy news.

Is breakfast available? CulinArt Group is the food service provider for WMA. Breakfast is available each day from 7:30 to 8 a.m. in the Cafeteria. Information about the cost and choices is found on the weekly menu posted on WMA’s website. Is a hot lunch available? A daily hot lunch program is available to students in Preschool-8th Grade. Information about the cost and choices is included in the calendar posted each month online. Parents have the choice of packing their children’s lunch or buying. Beverages and snacks may be purchased at WMA whether you pack or buy lunch. A debit process is used to purchase items and information will be provided on how to set up your account through MyPaymentsPlus. Are there healthy snacks available at lunch? There are healthy snacks sold at break time and lunch time. The prices range between 75¢ and $1.75. Is there a snack break? Beginning in first grade, students can purchase snacks for their morning break time. Soft pretzels can be purchased for 75¢. The school provides snack for Montessori children. Preschool, PreKindergarten and Kindergarten students bring their own snacks from home. Please be conscious that many students have food allergies. We ask that you do not send snacks to school that contain peanuts or tree nuts.

Every Wednesday morning at 8:10 a.m., the faculty, staff and students join in the Dixon Gym for prayers and announcements. We celebrate birthdays, academic and athletic accomplishments, and we pray and sing together. Parents are welcome to attend.

Each September, Waldron Mercy has a time for parents to meet the teachers, hear about the grade expectations and ask questions. “Back to School Night” for our Montessori 3 and 4‐year‐old students, and Preschool, Pre‐K, Kindergarten, and grades 1 -3 will be held Monday, September 9, 2024. Parents of students in grades 4 to 8 will meet on Tuesday September 10. All meetings begin in the Dixon Gym at 6:30 p.m. More information will follow.

The Waldron Mercy academic year is on a trimester system. Report cards are distributed at the end of each trimester. Parent‐ teacher conferences are held in October and February. Grades 5 to 8 can access their grades online. Pre‐k sends formal reports home three times a year. Montessori communicates progress through conferences two times a year. Kindergarten sends four formal reports home a year. Teachers schedule conferences for further communication concerning each child’s progress. All parents are expected to attend the conference at the end of the first trimester. The second trimester conferences are by request only. Teachers and/or parents can request a second trimester conference. ​ Students in kindergarten through grade five attend conferences when appropriate. Students in grades six through eight are required to attend conferences.

Parents are encouraged to communicate with their child’s teacher as needed throughout the school year. Our youngest students (Preschool-3rd grade) come home each day with a school folder that should be checked for announcements and notices. All parents are welcome to e‐mail or speak to the teacher on the telephone. If needed, parents and/or teachers will request additional conferences to discuss their child’s progress.