Jefferson Elementary School
Grades: K-2 | Manistee Area Public Schools
JEFFERSON QUICK LINKS | Handbook : Nutrition Services : Student Resources : Parent Resources : Forms & Docs.
Welcome to Jefferson!
Nurturing young learners with guiding principles, we are dedicated to making the classroom experience fun and rewarding. Our practical tools and techniques help your students begin their learning experience on the right foot. Great beginnings create future leaders.
Chips Lead!
COVID-19 NOTIFICATION
In an effort to keep our MAPS community informed, below we are providing notification regarding any COVID-19 concerns related to our District.

Food Service Program
With support from the United States Department of Agriculture and Michigan Department of Education, Manistee Area Public Schools is grateful to be able to extend free meals for all children 18 and younger in our Manistee community through the end of the 2020-2021 school year in June 2021. Once funding is no longer available, our Food Service Department will return to the National School Lunch Program parameters for public school food service.
Throughout the 2020/21 school year, MAPS will be serving all in-person learners free breakfast and lunch every school day at each building in the district. We will also be offering free Grab & Go meals Mondays and Thursdays at Manistee Middle High School at MMHS at 525 Twelfth Street from 9 am to 10 am. This food service program is available to all MAPS online learners in addition to any Manistee community families with children 18 & younger and students with disabilities up to 26 years of age.
Grab & Go Food Service program details:
- Grab & Go meal service will offer breakfast and lunch meals served Mondays and Thursdays each week.
- Curbside pick-up will be available at the MMHS main entrance drive at the student drop off area.
- Meals provided on Monday will be breakfast & lunch for 3 days.
- Meals provided on Thursday will be breakfast & lunch for 4 days to provide meals through the weekends.
- Families of in-person learners are also able to pick up 2 breakfast and 2 lunch meals for their students on Thursdays to provide food through the weekend, following the same pick up instructions above.
- If a holiday, snow day or school day scheduled to be off occurs on a Monday, the meal pick up will be Tuesday.
- If a holiday or school day scheduled to be off occurs on a Thursday, the meal pick up will be Wednesday. (Example Thanksgiving)
- If a snow day, or other closure, occurs on Thursday meal pick up will be Friday.
We are grateful for the ability to continue providing this important service for the children of our community through the funding support of Federal and State agencies.
Welcome to Jefferson Elementary!
The school year is just beginning and we want to welcome all of our learners. Some of you will be learning with us in the classroom and others will be learning along with us online. We welcome you all for a great year of learning adventure!
Meet your teacher in our welcome videos below.
Meet the Kindergarten Teachers
Meet the First Grade Teachers
Meet the Second Grade Teachers

MAPS 2020 Virtual Forum
A MAPS 2020 Vision virtual public forum was held Thursday, November 19 to update our community regarding the bond effort. Additionally, a meeting was held on November 23 to discuss possible options for the Jefferson Elementary site after the building is removed per the scope of the bond project. You can watch these recorded sessions by clicking on the links below.
The forum focused on the scope of the proposal for MAPS facilities future and and allowed for questions to be submitted and answered by a panel representing the District and project contractors. The answers to these questions are also provided in our FAQs. Please reach out to us with your questions and feedback.
Jefferson Students in the Community & Classroom
Jefferson Announcements
Jefferson Snow Clothes
Hello Jefferson Parents, SNOW has finally arrived! Despite cold weather, we are eager to have children play outdoors each day to be safe while getting fresh air. Please make every effort to pack snow clothes everyday; due to COVID restrictions, we are not able to loan...
January 2021 at Jefferson
Welcome 2021! Here are some upcoming events at Jefferson. FRIDAY, JAN 15th: K-2 NWEA testing for virtual students and K-12 school pictures from 12:30pm-2:30pm. MONDAY, JAN 18th: NO SCHOOL for students (Professional Development Day) Also, individual virtual student...
UPDATE: Remote Learning Mon Nov 23rd- Weds Nov 25th
*UPDATE: Remote Learning Mon Nov 23rd- Weds Nov 25th **(K-8 plan to return to in-person Mon, Nov 30th)* Due to COVID precautions, all K-12 students will be learning from home starting Monday Nov 23, 2020. Madison's GSRP and preschool programs will be open. Each grade...
Your Jefferson Team
Location: 515 Bryant Avenue Manistee, MI 49660 | Map
Telephone: 231-723-9285
Fax: 231-398-2021
School Office Hours: M-Th: 7:30am – 4pm, Friday 7:30am – 3pm
Administrative Team
Principal: Julia Raddatz – raddatzj@manistee.org
Secretary: Connie Miller – camiller@manistee.org
View Jefferson Staff
Administrative Staff
Julia Raddatz, Principal raddatzj@manistee.org
Connie Miller, Administrative Assistant camiller@manistee.org
Instructional Staff
Elizabeth Adams, Kindergarten eadams@manistee.org
Krista Bennett, Math Coach kbennett@manistee.org
McAnn Bradford, Second Grade mbradford@manistee.org
Linda Coyle, Special Education lcoyle@manistee.org
Andrea Dejong, Second Grade adejong@manistee.org
Isabella Doolittle, Long Term Substitute - Second Grade idoolittle@manistee.org
Deb Erdman, First Grade derdman@manistee.org
Amanda Feyen, Music afeyen@manistee.org
Debbie Forward, First Grade dforward@manistee.org
Chasity Gouker, Title I Reading/Literacy Coach cgouker@manistee.org
Staci Johnson, First Grade sjohnson@manistee.org
Monte Klein, Art mklein@manistee.org
Cindy Lundberg, Kindergarten clundberg@manistee.org
Tracy Shimel, SafeNet tshimel@manistee.org
Christine Slawinski, Kindergarten cslawinski@manistee.org
Bryan Tomaszewski, Second Grade btomaszewski@manistee.org
Allison Veine, Kindergarten aveine@manistee.org
Michelle Wilson, First Grade mwilson@manistee.org
Para-Professionals
Mary Chick mchick@manistee.org
Andi Jones ajones@manistee.org
Rachel Lindeman rlindeman@manistee.org
Amy Miller amiller@manistee.org
Randee Oleniczak roleniczak@manistee.org
Connie Rybicki crybicki@manistee.org
Laura Savela lsavela@manistee.org
Kristie Schlafley kschlafley@manistee.org
Sara Schultz sschultz@manistee.org
Clayton Slawinski cbslawinski@manistee.org
Anna Wojcik awojcik@manistee.org
Julie Zajac jzajac@manistee.org
Custodial Staff
Thomas Madsen tmadsen@manistee.org
Robert Jacobs rjacobs@manistee.org
Nutrition Services
Laura Olk lolk@manistee.org
Terri Morski tmorski@manistee.org
Jennifer Rogers jrogers@manistee.org


At Manistee Area Public Schools we want the very best for all of our students. We have developed a continuum of education from Pre-School to 12th Grade that support each student on their Chippewa Journey. Our devoted teachers, administrators and support staff take a very personal approach to educating students at every level. We encourage parents and community members to join us as we guide our students toward their peak potential.
Madison Early Childhood/Elementary: Pre-school (ages 3-5)
Jefferson Elementary: Kindergarten- 2nd grade

Important Information for Parents!
By law students must be (five) 5 years old on or before Sept 1, 2020 to register.
Mandatory Information Needed to Enroll
- Official birth certificate
- Immunization records
- Last 4 digits of the student’s social security number
Other Suggested Documentation if Applicable:
- Proof of current Hearing/Vision Screening (screenings will be offered at no charge during clinic if needed)
- Individualized Education Plan (IEP) - if applicable
- Parental Rights/Custody Documentation - if applicable
If you have any questions please contact Connie at Jefferson Elementary School at 723-9285. We look forward to welcoming you and your child to the MAPS family!
MAPS Elementary ATP

Chocolate Fundraiser Update
Due to the extension of Stay Home ruling, the distribution of the Chocolate has been postponed until May 1st. While we cannot legally distribute the orders at this time, we continue to work behind the scenes with World’s Famous to ensure that all the products are in our hands and ready to deliver to students’ families the very moment the order is lifted. We appreciate your understanding and continued support of MAPS ATP.
If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to email us at mapsatp1@gmail.com.
Action Team for Partnership (ATP)
What is ATP?: ATP is our parent-teacher group for all of the MAPS Elementary buildings – Madison, Jefferson, and Kennedy
Parents who become involved in their child’s education can make a positive difference. Contact Julia Raddatz raddatzj@manistee.org, or Kevin Schmutzler kschmutzler@manistee.org for more information or to join our ATP family.
What are the objectives of the ATP?
The Manistee Area Public Schools parent group Action Team for Partnership (ATP) is a group of dedicated parents that spearhead projects to benefit our students. It is similar to a Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) only a little more prescriptive and based on committees, including:
- Parenting
- Communicating
- Volunteering
- Learning at Home
- Decision Making
- Community Collaboration
What does ATP do?
We fundraise to help support our schools and students. We pay for field trips, school supplies, recess/playground equipment, books, staff appreciation activities, and more! We also organize many family events: Fall Carnival, Daddy-Daughter and Mother-Son nights, Holiday Caroling, Birthday Lunches, Book Fairs, and Santa Shop are some examples.
ATP Fundraiser
2018 Fundraiser - Wesco Popcorn Buckets! - MAPS Elementary ATP is pleased to announce that we are again selling the Wesco Popcorn Buckets this year. We are so excited to partner with our local Wesco Stations to make this possible.
Buckets will sell for $12 each and can be refilled for FREE at all Wesco stations around the state from now until December 31, 2019! This is a great holiday gift idea! See the announcements section on this page for details about our 2018 fundraiser, and check back for future fundraising information.
ATP Points Tracker
Starting January 2019, ATP is starting a point tracker for volunteers!
How do I earn points?
- Every ATP event (popcorn day, slushy day, winter carnival, etc.) every 2 hours you volunteer, you earn 1 point.
- For showing up to our ATP meeting that’s once a month, you earn 1 point.
- For suggesting a friend to volunteer & they show up for at least 2 hours, you earn 1 point.
All the points you earn will be entered for a drawing. At the end of the year, we will choose two winners. We hope to have a ton of volunteers!



Your Chippewa Journey Continues at Jefferson Elementary
We offer the following programs throughout the year:
- Safe & supportive digital learning access
- One-to-one technology – iPads
- Daily art activities
- Community recreation opportunities
- Family night activities
- Peer mentoring
- Grade level focused field trips
- Girl & Boy Scouts
- Flexible before and after school care

As Manistee Chippewas, we are all leaders in our own way. Chips Lead at school, with friends, and in the community by developing healthy relationships, using responsible decision-making and respectful communication.
T | TRUSTWORTHY — Chips always tell the truth
R | RESPECTFUL — Chips listen and are polite
A | ACCEPTING — Chips are friends to all
C | COOPERATIVE — Chips work as a team
K | KIND — Chips are thoughtful and caring
“TRACK” is the Manistee Area Public Schools global, district-wide, leaders platform that all educators, staff and students follow throughout their Chippewa Journey. This initiative is connected to course curriculum, extra curricular programs, disciplinary procedures, and internal culture.

Academic Excellence
- Safe & supportive digital learning access
- One-to-one technology
- Daily art activities
- Peer mentoring
- Grade level focused field trips
Extracurricular Activities
- MRA athletics
- Community recreation opportunities
- Family night activities
- Girl & Boy Scouts
- Flexible before and after school care
Parent Involvement
Action Team for Partnership (ATP)
What is ATP?: ATP is our parent-teacher group for all of the MAPS Elementary buildings – Madison, Jefferson, and Kennedy.
The Manistee Area Public Schools parent group Action Team for Partnership (ATP) is a group of dedicated parents that spearhead projects to benefit our students. It is similar to a Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) only a little more prescriptive and based on committees, including:
- Parenting
- Communicating
- Volunteering
- Learning at Home
- Decision Making
- Community Collaboration
What does the ATP do?: We fundraise to help support our schools and students. We pay for field trips, school supplies, recess/playground equipment, books, staff appreciation activities, and more! We also organize many family events: Fall Carnival, Daddy-Daughter and Mother-Son nights, Holiday Caroling, Birthday Lunches, Book Fairs, and Santa Shop are some examples.
Parents who become involved in their child’s education can make a positive difference. Contact or Kenn Kott kkott@manistee.org, or Kevin Schmutzler kschmutzler@manistee.org for more information or to join our ATP family.