Principal's Message

Dear Vecindad MELA,

Welcome to the start of the 2025-2026 school year at Monroe Elementary Language Academy!  To all our new families, welcome to our Vecindad.  To all our returning families, we are so happy to have you back.  We are ecstatic and working diligently to ensure a smooth start to the new academic year on Monday, August 11, 2025.  To help start our year together, please read the information below to ensure you are up to date on important information.

First Day of School

The first day of school is Monday, August 11th. The school day is from 8:30 am to 2:50pm on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. Every Wednesday school dismissal is at 2:00pm.  For the safety of all our scholars, only TK, kindergarten and first grade parents will be allowed on campus with their child the morning of the first day of school.  Once the 8:30 bell rings, parents will need to exit the campus.  We appreciate all of your cooperation in this matter.  Thank you!

Kinder/TK Meet and Greet

Our Meet and Greet will be on Friday, August 8, 2025, from 9:00-10:00 AM.  It is a great opportunity for you to meet your child’s teacher, find out where the classroom is located, and get familiar with the campus.  Please keep in mind that our teachers will not be able to talk to you in English at this time since there will be children present and it is extremely important to maintain a separation of the language within the Dual Language Immersion model.  Each teacher will be providing further details about the program and curriculum during our Back To School Night, which is scheduled for Wednesday, August 13, 2024 at 5:00 PM (Spanish) or 5:30 p.m. (English).

Parent Portal

Parents of returning students will need to update their Parent Portal account by visiting: https://mykids.ggusd.us and completing the data confirmation page.   If you complete your Parent Portal, you will be able to view your child’s teacher assignment as early as August 7^th.

New Transitional Kinder and Kinder families……. You will need the following information in order to set up your parent portal: 

Parent Square 

ParentSquare is an easy-to-use communication tool that combines multiple communication streams into one easy-to-use interface for families and staff. The link below has information in English, Spanish and Vietnamese to help you confirm your contact information, and or register for an account. https://www.ggusd.us/parentsquare

Back To School Night

This evening event is for parents/guardians only.  We will be having TWO dates for our Back To School Night:

• Wednesday, August 13, 2025
  • TK & Kinder:
    • Spanish – 5:00-5:30
    • English – 5:30-6:00
  • Tuesday, August 19, 2025
    • Spanish – 5:00-5:30
    • English – 5:30-6:00

All parents and guardians are invited to meet the teacher, learn about key grade level standards and skills, and get a glimpse of your child's daily activities at school.  

Arrival

Students are allowed on campus no earlier than 8:15 am. Only students who will be eating school provided breakfast can be on campus beginning at 7:45 am.  At 8:28 am the warning bell serves as a reminder to students that they need to walk to their assigned line on the blacktop to meet their teacher. The instructional day begins promptly at 8:30 am. Any student arriving after 8:30 am is considered tardy and checks in at the front office for a late pass.

Dismissal

We have multiple ingress/egress gates across the campus.  Below is the gates students are assigned to for ingress/egress (unless being dropped off/picked up in the “drop off/pick” up zone):

• TK/K: We have multiple dismissal points for TK/K.  We will discuss at Meet and Greet.
• 1^st/2^nd: Gate at the end of the drop off/pick up zone (by parking lot)
• 3^rd / 4^th:  Gate immediately outside the office
• 5^th/6^th: Gate leading into the 5^th/6^th grade classrooms and portables, closest to Monroe Park

Parking and Traffic

Although we have an expanded parking lot, it is still limited during drop off / dismissal times.  Parents are encouraged to use the drop-off zone in the parking lot as much as possible.  Please follow the flow of traffic in our  parking lot.  You may also park alongside the street.  However, keep in mind that there is street sweeping every second and fourth Wednesday of every month and cars parked on the street between the hours of 10:30AM-2:30PM will be ticketed.

Breakfast

Breakfast is served from 7:45 am – 8:15 am. All students are eligible to receive a free school breakfast.  Please see the attached breakfast/lunch menu.  Weather permitting, students will be eating under the outdoor shade structure.

Lunch Schedule

All students are eligible to receive a free school lunch. Students can also bring a lunch from home as an option. If you would like to drop off lunch, please make sure that the lunch bag clearly states (1) student first name, (2) last name, and (3) room number. The dropped off lunches must arrive by 11 am. Due to staggered lunches and safety protocols, we do not have additional staff to continually find students out on the playground to deliver lunches. We thank you for your efforts in planning ahead.

Class Assignments 

You can view your child’s class assignment beginning on August 7^th on Parent Portal. However, you must first complete the Data Confirmation page before you can access your child’s teacher assignment.  Use the link below to access your Parent Portal.

https://mykids.ggusd.us/LoginParent.aspx?page=Default.aspx

Communication

If you email or message your child’s teacher, please give them 24-48 hours to respond.  During the school day, teachers are engaged in teaching their students and may not get to their emails/messages until after school. 

Dress Code

Garden Grove Unified School District prohibits articles of clothing that are hazardous to the wearer or other students, are disruptive to an orderly environment, or interfere with the school’s instructional program.  Students need proper shoes (no sandals, crocs, open-toed shoes, or high heels) in order to safely participate in physical education and recess.  Students should not wear dangling earrings or jewelry, since this can be dangerous when playing.  Please do not allow your students to wear shirts or other articles of clothing advertising tobacco, drugs, alcohol, or gang paraphernalia.  Thank you for your support with this!

Monroe PTA

Discover the rewards of being involved in your child’s school, education, and the education of everyone within our community.  Our PTA program works to strengthen the family – school partnership by advocating on behalf of children and educators.  We are encouraging all families and staff to join our MELA PTA in creating the Vecindad that helps raise our kids and strengthens our community.  To be part of this amazing team, please communicate with our PTA president  and/or parent volunteer coordinator (maptapres@gmail.com or maptavolunteers@gmail.com). 

Important Dates

July 28 – Office Opens

August 8 – TK/K Meet and Greet

August 11 – First Day of School

August 13 – TK/K Back To School Night

August 13 – 1^st-6^th  Back To School Night

September 1 – Labor Day – No School

Again, August 11^th is our first day of school!  We look forward to having our young scholars back in the classroom – ready to learn and eager to reconnect with their friends and teachers.  Wishing everybody an amazing school year!

Sincerely,

César Loya

Principal

Our School

Welcome Monroe scholars and families!

This year, our 560 enrolled scholars will continue to academically succeed thanks to the implementation of our Spanish Dual Language Immersion Program. Our program's high-quality staff of certified and trained educators strives to provide a nurturing class climate. We are excited to expand the program to an additional 75 students expected to enroll next year.

Monroe's PTA program collaborates with the school-site council and ELAC. What makes Monroe unique is that we offer parent educational opportunities such as family literacy, health and nutrition, 10 educational commandments and PESA (Parent Empowerment to Support Achievement) classes. These classes focus on educating parents about life matters, teaching them a plethora of useful skills. Our campus prioritizes educating not just our enrolled students, but families as well.

Our productive and robust after school programs provide unique learning opportunities! Here are the programs:

• The before and after school Boys & Girls Club program is up and running throughout the day, enhancing social and athletic skills for enrolled students. Club members are encouraged to communicate as they indulge in group work activities, while having tons of fun!
• Academic Support provides review and extra help for scholars who need it in certain subjects. Educators sit with students and engage in a productive tutoring session. The program boosts student performance for standardized exams as well as overall classroom learning.
• Our Coding and Robotics programs embrace the 21st century skill of digital literacy as scholars work with hands-on robot models. Students learn the basics and mechanics when it comes to working with certain technology, preparing them for a successful career in the sciences.

This past November, a team of Monroe staff traveled to San Francisco to accept the prestigious Golden Bell Award at the California School Boards Association (CSBA) Conference.  This award was presented to Monroe for the successful implementation of our Spanish Immersion program.  This Golden Bell is proudly displayed in our front office!  Last year, Monroe was recognized by the Orange County Department of Education for its excellence as a high achieving community. In fact, our 1st grade teacher Rene Cantoran was awarded the 2018 Advocacy Leadership Award by the Orange County Department of Education for supporting language learners. Our students and staff are proud to represent a campus embracing the adept development of language! When it comes to awarding our students, they can earn monthly scholar awards for academic achievement and character traits. Monroe's students constantly exert a plethora of character and respect for one another, highlighting the importance of awards assemblies.

In other news, the Pathway to Biliteracy Award will be handed out to students in kindergarten, 3rd grade, and 6th grade for meeting specific criteria towards bilingualism. Here at Monroe, we value all cultures and encourage students to speak in their native tongues. The award will give these students recognition for all their efforts in bilingual education.

We look forward to a school year of fun, safety, and achievement. Please visit us at our office for questions and comments!