Gogebic County students return to school Tuesday

Labor Day weekend means the imminent arrival of another school year for Gogebic County students.

The first day of school for students in the Ironwood, Bessemer, Wakefield-Marenisco and Watersmeet districts is Tuesday.

For students in the Ironwood Area Schools, classes begin at 8 a.m. with dismissal times of 3:05, 3:10 and 3:15 p.m. for grades K-2, 3-6 and 7-12 respectively.

It will also mark the first year the district will have a K-12 principal, rather than both a K-6 and 7-12 principal. Denise Woodward previously taught drama and choir classes for the district.

In Bessemer, classes begin at 7:55 a.m. for grades 7-12 and 8 a.m. for elementary students. Grades K-3 will be dismissed at 3 p.m., grades four through sixth will be let out at 2:55 p.m. and middle and high school students will be released at 3:13 p.m.

The later dismissal time for middle and high school students is a change this year, according to A.D. Johnston Principal Dan VanderVelden, because of the decision to extend the school day by eight minutes.

In Wakefield-Marenisco, school begins Tuesday at 10 a.m. for K-12 students, with dismissal at 3:13 p.m.

When parents arrive to drop off and pick up their children at the school in Wakefield, they will find a different flow to traffic patterns in the parking lot, superintendent Catherine Shamion said, with the lot's former entrance/exit now being changed to entrance only. The lot has a newly constructed exit area, and now only allows one-way traffic.

Watersmeet students will participate in a community-wide picnic Tuesday at the pavilion beginning at noon. Regular classes start Wednesday at 8:10 a.m., with the last class ending at 3:05 p.m. for all grades. District officials said students don't need to bring their supplies Tuesday and will be able to bring them Wednesday for regular classes.