Maize South Intermediate School



August 2021
A Welcome Note from Principal LaMunyon
Dear MSIS Maverick Students and Families,

We are ecstatic to open our doors to our inaugural classes of 5th and 6th graders in just a few short weeks! We know students and families are feeling a range of emotions from excitement to anxiousness with this transition. Please know that each and every member of the MSIS staff wants to do all we can to help ease the worry of this transition, and to provide an environment where you and your student feel safe, welcomed, and happy to be part of the greater MSIS family. Teachers and staff have started moving into their classrooms and offices and are preparing a warm and welcoming environment for you to enjoy. We have much to prepare! Orders are still being fulfilled to be ready to start the year, and we anticipate identifying additional needs as the year progresses and we form the identity of Maize South Intermediate School. 

We are happy to welcome you into the building for Back-to-School with the Mavericks on August 12th, 5:00-6:30 and the 13th from 7:30-3:00. You will get to meet your family of teachers, tour the building, and drop off your supplies to your homeroom teacher. On August 9, your homeroom teacher will send you an email with a link to sign up for a slot to come! We can't wait to meet you!

Our PTO will have a fun ‘Welcome to MSIS MAVS’ touring BINGO game for each student as you enter. This will help guide you on your tour throughout the building. Make sure to turn in your game card at the end of your visit for a Maverick prize! 

Prior to Back-to-School with the Mavericks, take a moment and read some helpful FAQs that will tell you a little more about your child’s experience at Maize South Intermediate School. 

We are excited to have our students and families in the building to see our beautiful campus! We hope this will help you and your students begin to feel comfortable in the building and ready for their first day of school! 

Go Mavs!

Karen LaMunyon
Principal, Maize South Intermediate School
Maize South Intermediate School: The Vision
Rendering: Maize South Intermediate School's main entry. The building's design highlights the school's emphasis on collaboration and innovation.
Rendering: Step inside the school's main entry for a stunning view of the STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and math) lab, which will showcase student projects and works-in-progress.
Rendering: The school's cafeteria and media center will feature windows and natural light.
Site Plan: The school will include collaborative learning spaces, outdoor learning space, and outdoor play areas. A parking lot in front of the school and car drop-off lane behind the school will augment traffic patterns and increase safety.
VIDEO
Watch drone footage of bond issue projects, including
Maize South Intermediate School construction.
Thanks to Hutton and SJCF Architecture for the use of these multimedia elements.
About Maize South Intermediate School
Here are a few details about our new school:
  • The students: The school will be home to about 450 fifth- and sixth-grade students who reside in the district's south boundary. (Beginning in 2021-22, the district's elementary school students will house kindergarten to fourth grade.)

  • The teachers: About 30 teachers will work at Maize South Intermediate School and will move from their current posts as fifth- and sixth-grade teachers in Maize USD 266 elementary and middle schools.

  • The Maverick feeder pattern: After intermediate school, students will attend Maize South Middle School for seventh and eighth grade and Maize South High School for ninth through twelfth grade, assuming they continue to maintain residence in the district's south boundary.

  • The bell schedule: Intermediate schools will align with a tier-one schedule, with the school day beginning at 7:25 a.m. and ending at 2:30 p.m. on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays and at 1:55 p.m. on Wednesdays, which will observe early release. At this time, there are not plans for after-school activities.

  • What makes the school unique: The new intermediate schools will have a STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and math) lab, science labs, an art room, collaboration spaces in each hallway, breakout spaces for each hallway and classrooms, outdoor learning areas, two gyms, a stage for performances, specially planned and designed special education rooms, and much more!

  • Transportation: Intermediate school students may share bus routes with their intermediate school peers, as well as middle and high school students.

  • The lunches: Students will have a variety of entree options, including two hot entrees and one cold entree, such as sandwiches, salads, and yogurt parfaits. Students can load up on fruits and vegetables at the choices bar. Milk also is a choice. Intermediate students have the option to purchase a la carte beverages, snack items, and ice cream. All a la carte items meet Smart Snacks guidelines.

  • The address: The school is located at 9701 W. 37th St. N. in Wichita just west of our Maize Early Childhood Center and between Tyler and Maize roads.

  • The construction: The school is being built as part of the $108.2 million 2019 Bond Issue, which voters overwhelming approved. The bond issue addresses growth, safety, and opportunity for all students. Additional projects include Maize Intermediate School at 45th and 119th streets in Maize and the Maize Performing Arts and Aquatics Center (MPAAC) at Academy Avenue and 119th Street in Maize. Learn more and watch additional drone videos of the construction of these projects at www.usd266.com/bond.

  • Recreation: An outdoor area will include a turfed area, basketball goal, hard top, and walking path.

  • Library: The district is ordering new books specifically meant for 5th- and 6th-grade students, and chosen by teachers and our media center specialist for this new space.
A day in the life
  • Families: A group of students will be called families. Fifth-grade students will be in a grade-specific classroom family, and sixth-grade students will be in a different grade-specific classroom family. There will be a family of 5th grade and a family of 6th grade in each hallway. They will rotate through their own classes and may have some cross-grade family team-building activities together.

  • Class rotation: The same group of students in a family will change classrooms for different subjects. This includes fifth-grade students, who will rotate to different core teachers for English language arts, math, social studies, and science. Classes of about 25 students will be split primarily by grade level.

  • Fresh air time: Students will have access to fresh air time around lunch. Though there may not be scheduled recess times, there will be opportunities for movement throughout the day.

  • Student-selected enrichment classes: On Wednesdays, the school we will offer enrichment classes for all students. Students will choose from many choices, including STEM, Math Enrichment, Reading Enrichment, physical activities, broadcasting, drama/theater, music enrichment, technology, student leadership, and more.

  • BOB time: Students will have Band/Orchestra/Books each day. The time also will have mini courses during this time to explore various topics.

  • Student storage: Each classroom will have open-faced lockers for student items and supplies.

  • Band and orchestra: There will be opportunities for fifth- and sixth-grade students.

  • Clubs time: There are plans for opportunities to allow students to explore their interests.
Additional Information


  • How to prepare your child for the first day at a new school: Parents/guardians can be positive and excited about the new learning experience and meeting of new friends.
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Four Foundational Beliefs

Maize South Intermediate School and Maize Intermediate School will jointly work on the following Foundational Beliefs:

  1. Operates as a cohesive community in which 5th and 6th grade have opportunities to share geographic spaces, programming, and scheduling.
  2. Embraces teaming/family to support core content and social-emotional learning of students.
  3. Implements tiered structures to support a variety of student needs.
  4. Functions in a school that will offer opportunities for exploration for students.
Connect with Maize South Intermediate School on Social Media
Official Maize South Intermediate School Twitter account
Official Maize South Intermediate School Instagram account
@Maizesouthintermediate
Maize South Intermediate School PTO

For those interested in joining the Maize South Intermediate School Parent Teacher Organization, please click the link to learn more.
#OneMa1ze