Parents & Families

TCAPS believes education is a partnership between our schools, students and parents. The following resources are intended to assist families in staying connected with our schools and curriculum. If you are unable to find what you are looking for or have a suggestion for improving the website, please contact us at info@tcaps.net.

 

Thank you for considering Traverse City Area Public Schools (TCAPS) for your child’s educational journey. We are delighted to partner with you to help your child and every student reach his or her potential in an engaging, inspiring and challenging environment. Below are a few links to help you get acquainted with  TCAPS. Should you need additional assistance or have any questions, please contact us at info@tcaps.net. 

This area is intended to assist our current TCAPS families in finding the most commonly sought after information. If you are unable to find what you are looking for or have a suggestion for improving the website, please contact us at info@tcaps.net.  

Calendars

Communications

Notifications & Policies

Student Handbooks

All in a School Day

School Meals

Paying Tuition / Fees

Extracurricular/Learning Opportunities

Common Forms

Volunteering

School Closings & Alerts

On the day of a school closing or when an important message needs to be shared, an Alert screen will appear every time the district and/or all school home pages are opened. (This is an embedded feature of the website and is not affected by pop up blockers.) Archived alert messages can be found on this webpage. 

To subscribe to the School Closings & Alerts RSS feed, click on the orange RSS feed icon found at the end of the School Closings & Alerts title below to obtain the url to add to your RSS feed reader.  Note: announcements will only be made when school is closed. There will be no "open" announcements.

TCAPS will also send text alerts to staff and families provided that they have opted in to receive text alerts from the district. This will allow the district and schools to share important and timely information with staff and families via text messaging, including snow day alerts. All text messages will come from the same number (87569). If you do not currently receive text messages, you can always opt in at any time by sending the word YES to 87569 and make sure your phone number is on file with the school. Texting is limited to contact numbers tied to the district’s staff and student databases, therefore is not available to the general public. 

School closing information will continue to be shared via our normal methods: all local media stations, the district Facebook/Twitter feeds, and the bus hotline (231.933.1955). School closings are announced as early in the morning as possible, but can occur as late as 6:00 a.m. 

PDF DocumentView additional snow day FAQs

Sample School Closing Alert

Sample School Closings Pop Up

2023-2024 Orientation, Open House, & Kindergarten Signing Days

Kindergarten Signing Days

TCAPS Kindergartners are invited to attend "Signing Day" (previously Kindergarten Round Up). Students and families are invited to explore their new school, meet teachers, and gather all of the information they’ll need for a successful school year!

Signing Day Dates

  • Blair: August 28th, 9AM-3PM
  • Central Grade: August 28th, 9AM-3PM
  • Cherry Knoll: August 28th, 9AM-3PM
  • Courtade: August 24th, 2PM-6PM
  • Eastern
    • Junior Kindergarten: August 22nd, 9-11:30AM
    • Kindergarten: August 24th, 8:30AM-3PM
  • Long Lake: August 24th, 9AM-3:30PM
  • Silver Lake: August 24th, 9AM-1PM
  • Traverse Heights: August 24th, 9AM-3PM
  • Willow Hill: August 24th, 9AM-3:30PM
  • Westwoods: August 24th, 9AM-12PM

 

Open Houses

TCAPS open houses allow students the opportunity to see their school and classrooms, meet with teachers, ask questions, and pick up school supply lists or any other items needed to start the school year.

Open House Dates

  • Blair: August 31st, 5:30-6:30 PM
  • Central Grade: August 30th, 5-6 PM 
  • Cherry Knoll: August 31st, 5:30-6:30 PM
    • Last names A-L 5:30-6 PM
    • Last names M-Z 6-6:30 PM
  • Courtade: August 30th, 4-6 PM
  • Eastern: August 31st, 4:30-6 PM
  • Long Lake: August 31st, 4-6 PM
  • Silver Lake: August 31st, 5-6 PM
  • TCAPS Montessori: August 31st, 4-5 PM (for TCAPS Montessori students and families ONLY.  Not open to the public.)
  • Traverse Heights: August 31st, 4-6 PM
  • Willow Hill
    • PreK: August 30th, 4:30-5:30 PM
    • JK/K: August 30th, 5:30-6:30 PM
    • 1st-5th Grade: August 31st, 5:30-6:30 PM
  • Westwoods:
    • August 30th, Preschool, Junior Kindergarten & Kindergarten - 5:30 to 6:15 PM
    • August 30th, 1st Grade through 5th Grade - 6:15 to 7:00 PM
  • East Middle School
    • August 30th, 6-7:30PM
  • West Middle School 
    • 6th Grade: August 30th, 6-7 PM
    • 7th Grade: September 13th, 6:30-7:30 PM
    • 8th Grade: September 14th, 6:30-7:30 PM

 

Secondary Orientations

TCAPS middle school and high school orientations allow students to visit their school and classrooms, meet teachers, pick up their supply lists, class schedules, and chromebooks, order yearbooks, and get ready for an exciting year ahead!

Orientation Dates

  • Central High School
    • August 21st
      • 11AM-2PM (new students)
      • 2PM-5PM (all students)
    • August 22nd, 9AM-6PM (all students)
    • August 23rd, 8AM-11AM (all students- NO photos)
  • East Middle School
    • Last names A-L: August 23rd, 10AM-6PM
    • Last names M-Z: August 24th, 10AM-6PM
  • Traverse City High School
    • August 22nd & 23rd, 9AM-3PM
  • West Middle School
    • 8th Grade: August 23rd, 11AM-6PM
    • 7th Grade: August 24th, 11AM-6PM
    • 6th Grade: August 25th, 11AM-6PM
  • West Senior High School
    • Freshman Kick Off: August 21st, 4:30-6PM
    • Freshman Parent Meeting: August 21st, 5:30-6PM
    • All Students: August 22nd & 23rd, 9AM-6PM