Smith's Knightly News
Back-to-School Edition - August 14, 2023
Smith Middle School
Mission: The purpose of Smith Middle School is to ensure learning for all members of our school community.
Vision: Smith will be a safe environment where diversity is embraced, and the needs of the whole child are met through innovation and collaboration. With the resources available, the Smith community will strive to provide an engaging, challenging academic experience, while promoting a balance between emotional, academic, and social needs, contributing to the success of all students.
Email: rbrinks@troy.k12.mi.us
Website: https://smith.troy.k12.mi.us/
Location: 5835 Donaldson Drive, Troy, MI, USA
Phone: (248) 823- 4700
We are looking forward to having your students back to the building on Thursday to pick up their schedules, receive locker assignments, and have their school pictures taken. Many of our clubs, athletics, and student activity groups will also have information available to share for the upcoming school year.
Details on ordering school pictures can be found below.
Schedule for August 17:
- 9:00 - 11:00am - 6th Grade
- 11:00am - 1:00pm - 7th Grade
- 1:00 - 3:00pm - 8th Grade
For students not able to come in on August 17, you can still retrieve your schedule off of PowerSchool beginning on August 21 and our makeup picture day is scheduled for September 11.
Best Regards,
Ryan
Ryan Brinks, Principal
Smith Middle School
SCHOOL PICTURES - AUGUST 17TH
You can prepay by credit card online at: kaiserstudio using this School ID code: 2324SMITH
OR
Bring a check (made payable to Kaiser Studio) or exact change in cash along with a printed order form (link provided below) with you on picture day (August 17th).
6th GRADE WEB DAY!
On Monday, August 28, we will be hosting our WEB / Orientation day for all 6th graders. WEB (Where Everyone Belongs) is a national program Troy Schools has adopted at all 4 middle schools to help our students have a positive and successful transition into 6th grade. Led by a team of teachers and 8th grade WEB mentors, your child will have an opportunity to meet their classmates, get to know the building, and start to build community here at Smith.
When: Monday, August 28
Time: 9:00am - 1:00pm
Location: Smith Middle School
Troy buses will be running and will be able to pick your student up from their assigned bus stop approximately 41 minutes later than what is posted on PowerSchools. When PowerSchools opens to families (August 21) you will be able to see your child’s bus stop and regular pick-up time. Buses will depart from Smith at 1:00pm to return students home. Families are also welcome to drop-off at 9:00am and pick up at 1:00pm.
Our cafeteria will be open for lunch or students are able to bring their own lunch as well. We will share out the WEB Day lunch menu once we have it from Food Services.
Please take a minute to complete the WEB Day Registration Form to let us know your child will be attending: https://forms.office.com/r/zMVYAUUsKR
SCHOOL SUPPLIES
Please see the link below for a list of suggested school supplies for the 2023-2024 school year.
FREE BREAKFAST & LUNCH FOR 2023-2024 SCHOOL YEAR
First and foremost, Governor Gretchen Whitmer has approved the proposal to offer free meals to all students this school year. This includes free breakfast and lunch for all students. Details on breakfast and lunch menus will be coming from Food Services soon.
Additionally, snacks and other items will be for sale in the cafeteria in addition to the free breakfast and lunch. The Troy School District has made the decision to return back to MySchoolBucks as our meal payment portal. We will NOT be using SchoolPay this year for breakfast/ lunches.
Funds already deposited to SchoolPay will automatically be transferred to MySchoolBucks. Parents do not need to do anything to get these balances transferred over; SchoolPay has already taken care of this.
Any parent who has a previous account with MySchoolBucks does not need to set up a new one; they should be able to access their old account. Anyone who does not have a current account with MySchoolBucks will need to create one, if they wish to deposit funds via the website.
Link to TSD Food Services page: https://www.troy.k12.mi.us/departments/food-service/
SMITH PTO NEWS
Hi Smith Parents and Guardians!
The Smith PTO has been hard at work in the month of August, planning exciting events for you and your child this school year! Our goal is to build a strong, united Smith Community while having fun!
Three things!
First, to the parents of sixth graders who are not familiar with the Smith PTO, welcome to Smith Middle School! We are a group of parents and school staff who simply try to raise money to give right back to our students and classrooms to make the school experience for your child better. We support clubs and activities within our school and we provide grants for items that teachers feel would enrich the school experience with the hope that teachers do not have to spend their own money. We welcome you to attend PTO meetings. We will be meeting in the Smith Middle School Media Center at 6pm on the following dates: 9/13, 10/11, 11/8, 12/11, 2/7, 3/11, 4/10, 5/8 and 6/5. Feel free to reach out if you have any questions.
Secondly, we are hoping to continue many of the events that happened at Smith last year as well as create some new events! We are planning school dances, 8th grade promotion, field day, assemblies and much more! To do this, we need your help! There are larger opportunities if you are interested in chairing a committee, and there are smaller opportunities for those who would like to help with one event, but have limited time. If you have any time at all to donate, we could use your help! :) Please complete the attached Google form to indicate your interests!
Finally, in order to sponsor all of these fantastic events, we need your financial support. We are asking each family to donate $25 per child. This tax deductible donation will fund many PTO activities, including teacher grants, 8th grade promotion, assemblies, Troyberry and field day to name a few. You can donate via PaySchools, using Venmo (@SmithKnightsPTO) or by making a check payable to Smith PTO and delivering it to the main office with your child’s name written on an envelope.
The bottom line is we are a better organization with your support! We know everyone is busy, but please think about any way you can help (large or small), sign up and donate to make this the best year ever!
Sincerely,
Julie Gould, President
Annalisa Heston, Vice President
Catherine Rodman, Treasurer
Karen Hotts, Secretary
Jamie Glab, Staff Liaison
Ryan Brinks, Principal
Cassandra Conaton, Assistant Principal
We have a great online spirit wear store with a number of new modern styles and items for purchase. You can either pick them up or utilize the option of having your orders delivered directly to your home for a small fee.
Click on the link below to check out the wide variety of styles and prints.
https://smithknights.itemorder.com/shop/home/
Below is a sample of the logo choices for most items...
8th Grade Washington DC Trip
SMITH'S CALENDAR OF SCHOOL EVENTS 23-24 SCHOOL YEAR
Aug 17: Schedule Pickup / Picture Day
• 9:00 - 11:00am: 6th grade
• 11:00am - 1:00pm: 7th grade
• 1:00pm - 3:00pm: 8th grade
Aug 17-18: WEB Leader Training Days
Aug 28: 6th Grade WEB / Orientation Day
Aug 29: First Day of School (Half Day 8:19 - 11:54am)
Sept 1: No School
Sept 4: Labor Day, No School
Sept 7: 6th Grade Parent Night (7:00 – 8:30pm)
Sept 11: Make-Up Picture Day
Sept 13: PTO Meeting (6:00 7:00pm)
Sept 14: Smith Open House / Curriculum Night (7:00 – 8:30pm)
Link to Troy Schools District-Wide Calendar for 2023-2024:
SMITH ATHLETICS INFORMATION
MS Athletics Info Letter 2023-2024
FinalForms
All 7th and 8th graders participating in interscholastic athletics in 2023-2024 will need to register in FinalForms, where all athletics-related forms will be signed by a parent for the upcoming school year.
- Returning Parents: simply log in to your account and choose to update for 2023-2024.
- Parents new to FinalForms: the Parent Playbook provides information on registering.
Sports Physicals
ALL student-athletes are required to get a sports physical dated April 15, 2023, or later for the 2023-2024 school year. Prior to getting a physical, please update your information in FinalForms, print out the physical form and medical information, and take these documents with you to the doctor. Only the last page, the Preparticipation Physical Evaluation Form, needs to be signed and uploaded to FinalForms.
Athletic Fees
There will be no change in the Pay to Participate fees. The first two sports will cost $75 per sport (must be paid before participating in a scrimmage or game), and the third sport is free. Please do not pay this fee until you have confirmed that your student has made the team. The household max remains at $600. You will be able to make the Pay to Participate payment directly in Final Forms; just follow the prompts.
Students who qualify for free/reduced lunch are eligible for a waiver from the Pay to Participate fee. Parents complete and submit the 2023-24 application for free/reduced lunch as well as the sharing information form. These two forms can be found in your school's main office or online here.
Parents who check off the waiver box in FinalForms can upload a copy of the verification letter from Food Services to receive the free/reduced fee. Verification forms can also be emailed to Camille Marbury in District Athletics at cmarbury@troy.k12.mi.us. A copy of this verification letter must be received in order to grant the waiver.
There is no cost for admission to middle school athletic contests.
FALL ATHLETICS
7th/8th Grade Football
- All 7th and 8th graders are welcome to play, there are no tryouts.
- You must have an athletic physical completed for the 2023/24 school year before you can practice.
- First practice is Wednesday, August 30.
- Practice runs every day after school from 3:20-5:30pm.
- A full schedule with more information will be available beginning August 17.
- Contact Coach Hughes @ bhughes@troy.k12.mi.us if you have additional questions.
7th/8th Grade Girls Basketball
- Tryouts for Girls Basketball will be Sept 6, 7, and 8, beginning immediately after school and running until 5:00pm.
- Additional details and tryout information will be available during the first week of school.
- 8th Grade Coach - Mr. Koneval; 7th Grade Coach - Mr. Morris
6th/7th/8th Grade Sideline Cheer Team
- We welcome all 6th, 7th, and 8th grade girls, no cuts!
- It’s a great place to make and build friendships. You will learn so much about yourself, others, and the sport!
- We practice 2-3 days a week for about 2 hours and have 3 football home games we attend.
- We do fun activities that involve our Troy High Varsity Cheerleaders!!!
- Register with us: https://forms.gle/spaWyRWEKrWMmETT6
Intramural Sports
With the exception of wrestling, intramural sports do not require a physical.
Smith Sports & Activities Brochure
TROY SCHOOLS NEWCOMERS FAIR
Smith Middle School Twitter - @SMITHKNIGHTS
Feel free to follow the great things happening at Smith Middle School on Twitter. We often share pictures from our school day, highlight student work and classroom activities, and celebrations.