EGMS Weekly Update
January 7
To read this newsletter in another language, please look at the bar to the right that says "translate newsletter" and pick your language.
Para leer este boletín en otro idioma, mire la barra a la derecha que dice "traducir boletín" y elija su idioma.
Upcoming Dates to Remember:
- MLK Day- No School: Jan. 17
- Conferences - Jan. 27 4pm to 7:30pm and Jan. 28 8am to noon
- No School- Jan 28
Letter from the Principal
Principal Thoughts
I hope the Winter break allowed you and your family to spend some quality time together! My wife, son and I were able to travel to Virginia to see my daughter for the first time since July. We were able to spend some quality time with her and her husband during the holiday season.
Our teachers and staff are rested and ready to deliver important concepts to support your child’s academic, behavioral and social growth. This also requires students to come with their best effort each and every day. We know as adults that “learning isn’t a spectator sport!” We must engage, ask questions, try, fail and most importantly, try again. This is an important lesson we must help our children learn and understand as they make their way through school and into adulthood.
Routines remain a critical piece for our student’s success. Returning to consistent routines at home after a long break will help your child transition back into school successfully. Sometimes routines may need to be adjusted based on sports or other after school or evening activities. Please work with your child to develop a routine that works for them and your family or help them get back into their old routine. Especially with older children, we often assume they are old enough to do it on their own. We know this isn’t true as many adults use their phones or calendar reminders to help stay organized.
You will notice a section in our newsletter regarding social media use and helpful resources. Please read through this section and review these resources. We have become aware of 11 Instagram accounts using our EGMS logo without permission! Many of these accounts are spreading rude or hurtful information about our students and/or staff. This isn’t the culture we want at EGMS and would appreciate your help in ending this type of social media use. In addition, we need to be role models as adults. If your child shares something concerning please reach out to us directly to get clarification rather than posting on social media. I know there were occasions when my kids came home from school with partial information that didn’t make sense. This was generally cleared up after I called their school’s main office or checked in with their teacher. We want to build a partnership with all of you and do our best to answer or clarify questions you may have.
Sincerely,
Justin Nicklous
Principal, Elton Gregory MS
Masks
Huskies,
Masks are still required to be worn in all indoor spaces in Oregon. That includes EGMS. With COVID cases rising in our county we need to be diligent about wearing our masks correctly. Please help us in reminding your student of this expectation. We know it's not fun to wear a mask but we want to remain healthy and keep our doors open. Thank you!
Navigating Social Media
Dear Husky Families:
Recently, we’ve had students and families report an uptick in inappropriate, harmful, anonymous, or impersonating social media accounts where student/staff pictures are being taken and posted without consent. Some accounts with cruel and hurtful themes tag students on posts.
We ask that you talk with your student(s) about their presence on social media.This is also an opportunity to engage in conversations around empathy and standing up for others. An easy way to help resolve this problem is for students to stop following these malicious accounts, and also to have students and parents report the accounts to Instagram.
We currently have 11 pages we are aware of that are using our EGMS logo without permission and we are teaming with district officials and law enforcement to get these accounts removed. Our official EGMS Instagram page is @eltongregoryms.
The vast and ever-changing landscape of social media is often accompanied with students having to face peer and societal pressures. Students too easily get wrapped up in the ease of acting from behind a screen, instead of demonstrating compassion and empathy for their peers and others. At EGMS, we strive to ensure a sense of belonging for all students and are committed to having a supportive and safe community within our schools. Managing social media in today’s culture is a challenge and all of us need to support our youth in making responsible choices. We expect students to respect one another and demonstrate good citizenship both at school and within the community. Your assistance with helping to create this environment is greatly appreciated.
If you have any questions, have information to share, or would like to discuss these concerns further, please contact us any time.
Thank you for your partnership!
Here are some helpful links for navigating your student's social media:
Parent Tips, Tricks and Resources
#icanhelp (Parent Guidelines for Social Media and cell phone usage)--PDF
Hello Elton Gregory Families,
My name is Emily and I am the yearbook coordinator for our school this year! This year is already off to a great start. I am reaching out to see if anyone is interested in sending some great photos of their students during Thanksgiving and Christmas vacations this year. Please feel free to send me photos of your students at emily.paiva@redmondschools.org.
TIME TO ORDER YOUR YEARBOOK!
Please Bring Your Water bottles
Please don't text your students at school...
Please don't send your students text messages during the school day. It puts your student in an impossible position- they are not allowed to have phones out, with the exception of lunch, and there are consequences for using a phone during school time.
If you have an urgent message, please call our office at 541-526-6440 and we will get the message right to your student.
Thank you for your help in this one! We appreciate your partnership.
News from Nurse Grubb
RSD Annual Health Screening Days
All students receive dental screening and the possibility of free sealants and/or other dental treatments done at school, courtesy of Advantage Dental! Information on how to qualify for free dental treatments and the option to opt-out, will be sent out separately, closer to the screening dates at the first of the new year.
January 31 - February 3, 2022 - Elton Gregory Middle School
Immunizations
Another round of letters recently went out this week to families with student's missing state required immunizations. Exclusion day is February 16, 2022. Please respond by either providing proof of immunization, or doing the steps for exemption. Feel free to visit Oregon.gov for more information on how to do an exemption https://www.oregon.gov/oha/PH/PreventionWellness/VaccinesImmunization/GettingImmunized/Pages/SchExemption.aspx
Feel free to call the School Nurse directly with any questions.
Sports
Sports Attendance Policy at EGMS
2021-2022 EGMS Bell Schedules
Inclement Weather Information
Community Resources
CENTRAL OREGON COMMUNITY RESOURCES
(updated as often as possible; some resources/numbers may not be current)
Mental Health Resources:
Deschutes County Behavioral Health https://www.deschutes.org/
Information and appointments. 541-322-7500
Deschutes County Crisis Line https://www.deschutes.org/
24 hour crisis support. 541-322-7500 ext. #9 or call 9-1-1
Trevor Project https://www.thetrevorproject.org/
Suicide prevention and crisis intervention for LGBTQ+. 866-488-7386 (24 hr)
Oregon Youth Line https://oregonyouthline.org/
Free, confidential teen-to-teen crisis and help line. 877-968-8491
Text: teen2teen @ 839863
Other Resources:
Central Oregon 2-1-1 www.deschutesunitedway.org
Connections to a wide-range of social services. Dial 2-1-1 or 541-389-6507
Thrive Central Oregon www.thrivecentraloregon.org
Housing, financial insecurity and other resources. 541-728-1022 (Se Habla Español)
Bethlehem Inn (24 hrs) www.bethleheminn.org
Emergency shelter and food for adults and families. 541-322-8768
Family Resource Center of Central Oregon www.frconline.org
Parenting education and support services. 541-389-5468
Latino Community Association (LCA) www.latca.org
Translation and interpretation services, employment services, 541-382-4366 (Se Habla Español)
dental and legal clinics.
NeighborImpact www.neighborimpact.org
Resources for food, energy assistance and shelter. 541-548-2380
Jericho Road https://jerichoroadofredmond.org/
Resources for food, shelter and hope. 541-699-2099
Saving Grace https://www.saving-grace.org/
Comprehensive family / domestic violence and sexual assault 541-382-9227
support services. Hotline available.
WIC (Women, Infants, Children) https://www.deschutes.org/health
Nutrition education, breastfeeding support and education, 541-617-4775
referrals and food vouchers for pregnant and postpartum women.