The Panther Pulse

Pershing Middle Community Newsletter (Vol. 1, Issue 7)

Principal's Message

Dear Pershing Families,


Thank you to all the families that were able to come to our Back to School Night - it was so wonderful to have families back on campus so you can see the incredible work our teachers and support staff are doing. A copy of the slide deck presentation that was shared at the beginning of BTSN, along with a few pictures of the evening, are posted below for your convenience.


On Saturday, I was able to attend the first basketball games of our Middle School Athletics season. Congrats to our Boy's Team for their 2-0 start versus Marshall and Farb Middle Schools. And congrats to our Girl's team - they fought hard against Challenger Middle School but came up a little bit short. I was not able to make it over to see our track and field teams but I am looking forward to seeing them in action next weekend!


A reminder our first progress reporting period ends on Friday, October 7th - parents will be able to review PR1 grades for their child(ren) in PowerSchool the following week - as the the date gets closer I will include more details. In middle school, it is important to be proactive about grades, once a student falls behind it can be challenging to get back on track. To support students, beginning this week, Ms. Edgington is offering tutoring after school on Tuesdays and Thursdays in Rm. 303.


And finally to our families observing Rosh Hashanah we wish you Shana Tova!

Scholastic Book Fair

Our book fair last week was a huge success! A big thank you to all the parents who volunteered to work at the book fair, the Pershing Parent Foundation for sponsoring this event, and to our librarian, Ms. Jakalah Jones, for all the planning and work she put into this event ensuring things ran smoothly all week!

Important Announcements for the Week of September 26th

SCHOOL SITE COUNCIL (SSC) PARENT REPRESENTATIVES NEEDED

We are in need of 4 additional parents to serve on our SSC. Parent representatives serve for 2 year terms. A School Site Council (SSC) is group of teachers, parents, administrators, and interested community members who work together to develop and monitor Pershing's Single Plan for Student Achievement (SPSA) and play an advisory role in how the site disperses our LCFF dollars. If you are interested in serving on the SSC please CLICK HERE and complete the interest survey before Wednesday, Sept 28th.


REMIND STUDENTS TO BRING FULLY CHARGED CHROMEBOOKS TO SCHOOL

As a 1-to-1 device school is is imperative that students bring their chromebooks with them to school every day fully charged. In the past week we have noticed an increase, particularly among our sixth graders, in the number of students leaving chromebooks at home or not bringing them to school charged. We are asking that you double-check with your child to make sure they are charging their chromebook nightly and ensuring the chromebook is packed with their school supplies in the morning. This is a great opportunity to discuss the Panther PRIDE characteristic of Responsibility with them.


ASB SNACK SHACK OPENS THIS FRIDAY

We are excited to announce that the ASB Snack Shack will be open after school this Friday, Sept. 30th. Students are able to purchase sweet and salty treats as well as drinks at the snack shack. This a great fundraising opportunity for our ASB students. Most items will cost $1 per item.


FOOD DELIVERY AND LUNCH DROP OFF

While we understand from time to time a child may forget their lunch and it is necessary for a parent to drop it off in the office we do want to reiterate that Pershing Middle School is a closed campus. Students and parents are not permitted to order food and have it delivered to the school site through food deliver services like GrubHub and UberEats. Our office is also not able to deliver fast food items that parents drop off for their child(ren) during the school day. Even if a child forgets their lunch, they are able to get a free lunch every day through the cafeteria since all students in California are eligible for universal meals at school.


PARENT PORTAL ON POWERSCHOOL

Parents are you able to access the Parent Portal on PowerSchool? In middle school a great deal of information about your child is accessible through the Parent Portal - our goal is for 100% of parents to have access. If you are not able to access information through Parent Portal please contact our Site Tech, Ms. Stephanie Kamp, at skamp@sandi.net and she will help you obtain access.


PARENT VOLUNTEERS TO SUPPORT THE SCHOOL PLAY

We are excited to report that a parent has graciously volunteered to be a coordinator for our school play. We are still seeking additional parents or community volunteers to help with the school play. If you are interested in supporting our school play, please contact our community assistant, Ms. Johanna Moreno at jmorenoperez@sandi.net


PERSHING WEBSITE: WE ARE ALMOST THERE!

After a great deal of work, the Pershing website's makeover is nearly done. Our goal is for the school website to be your first stop to obtain information about what is happening at the school. To meet that goal we need your input - what additional information would be helpful for families to have access to on the school website. CLICK HERE to complete this website feedback survey.


Also, we are trying to increase our social media footprint and provide multiple ways for families to access information so please follow us on Instagram @pershing_sdusd or follow me on Twitter @melanie_kray for the latest information.


PICKING UP A CHILD EARLY FROM CAMPUS

Although it is always best to try and schedule appointments outside the school day so students are not missing instructional time we know that is not always possible. In the event you need to take your child out of school early, a friendly reminder that the person picking up your child must be on the emergency contacts list in PowerSchool and they must have photo ID verifying their identity. This includes parents as well.


REPORTING AN ABSENCE

Please remember if your child is absent from school to contact the office to clear their attendance. The easiest way to report the absence is to email our School Clerk, Ms. Devin Caputo at dcaputo@sandi.net. You may also leave a voicemail for Ms. Caputo by calling 619-362-3624 and dailing 1, or you may write a note and have your child turn it into the office upon their return.


SHORT-TERM INDEPENDENT STUDY CONTRACTS: if you child is going to miss 5 or more consecutive days of school for a medical procedure, family vacation, sports tournament, etc. please contact Ms. Caputo so we can set up a short-term independent study contract and ensure your child stays on track with assignments. These contracts must be set up BEFORE the absence begins. We are requesting that you call for the independent study contract 5 days before the absence will begin to give us time to notify the teachers, collect work if necessary, etc.

Free Music Classes Through the La Jolla Music Society

I know the location is a bit of a drive but the program is excellent. For more information download the flyer below. To register for the free classes click on the maroon bar above.

Back to School Night

We had a great turn out for BTSN - thank you to all the families who were able to attend! Click on the maroon bar above to access the slide deck and information shared with families at BTSN.

COVID Health and Safety Updates

Pro-Tip: Click on the maroon bar to visit the District's COVID Updates Page

WHAT TO DO IF YOUR CHILD IS EXHIBITING COVID SYMPTOMS

If you child is exhibiting any of the following symptoms: fever, chills, cough, shortness of breath, fatigue, muscle or body aches, headache, loss of taste or smell, sore throat, congestion, runny nose, nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea please keep them home from school unless they have have negative COVID test or until the symptoms have abated. If your child is sent home from school with one of these symptoms they must have a negative test to return the next school day. An at home COVID test would be an acceptable test.

Middle School Athletics

Pro-Tip: Click on the maroon bar to visit the Middle School Athletics link on the Pershing website. Also, check out the pictures below from the first basketball games of the season. Nice work Panthers!

Bell Schedules

Please note for the first two weeks of school everyday is a regular bell schedule. The Wednesday Modified Bell Schedule will begin on September 14th.

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PrimeTime Before & After School Program

Our PrimeTime Before and After School Program is currently full but is still accepting applications. Those completing applications will be put on the waitlist. Click on the maroon bar above to access the PrimeTime website & application.

Review Previous Community Newsletters

Want to review information from a previous community newsletter? No problem, just click on the maroon bar above.

SAVE THE DATES!

Oct 5: CherryDale Fundraiser KickOff Assemblies (Periods 1-3)

Oct 7: PR1 Grading Period Ends

Oct 12: Pink Panther Day for Breast Cancer Awareness

Oct 12: Pershing Parent Foundation Meeting @6:30 PM

Oct 13: SLIM Parent Night @6:00 PM in the Library

Oct 18: Make-Up Picture Day

Oct 18: 6th Grade Camp Fundraising Meeting @6:00 PM in the Auditorium

Oct. 19: Coffee with the Principal @8:30 AM via zoom

Oct 24 & 25: 5th Grade Parent Tours @9-10:30 AM (for families interested in attending Pershing via CHOICE)

Oct 31: Spirit Week

Nov 11: Veteran's Day (NO SCHOOL)

Nov 16: Fall Dance

Nov 18: PR2 Grading Period Ends

March 20-24: 6th Grade Camp