Letter from Mr. Sammon
Smallville Community,
This marks the end of our first semester and so many lessons were learned on our journey. Never in the history of education have so many obstacles been placed in front of us ranging from tech issues, COVID safety, staffing, missing lunches, and about a hundred other things. Through it all one thing remained constant and that was finding ways to make it work or at least make it the best it could be. One of the best non academic lessons that we can teach our kids based on this experience is that no matter what you are faced with in life, it is your attitude and effort that will pull you through. We cannot shy away from the challenges ahead of us but rather plan to make things the best they can be by being resourceful and creative. I thanked our staff this morning with an email that focused on being a part of a team. That team has one goal and that is to serve the needs of our students whatever that need may be. We all understand and have accepted the fact that things are hard and it will require an extraordinary effort to keep things moving forward.
We all have many questions left unanswered as we go into our break. What will school look like in the Spring? Will all of our teachers and staff return? When will the vaccine be given to educators and students? We are well aware of these questions and have prepared the best we can with the resources we have to make things work. Thank you all for your continued support of our campus and understanding the challenges that we are facing while we continue working together for our kids. My years of being in athletics have taught me many life lessons and I shared the teamwork lesson with the staff this week. We have a remarkable team here at Small and they are unwavering in their commitment to our students. I have seen so many go above and beyond by taking on multiple roles to make it all work these past few months. I thank them and all of you that have helped us during this time. Our opportunity to get better and be better is ahead of us and as we reflect on this semester I know that better days will come. Our ability to focus on our successes and still learn from our mistakes is what makes us not only human but resilient as educators. I wish all of you and our staff a well deserved break and hope that we can all return with a renewed sense of purpose and focus. Everyone at Small wishes you the best in the new year and we look forward to our continued partnership as we support our students in 2021.
David Sammon
Administrator
Small Middle School
(512) 841-6708
NJHS
PARENTS CAMPAIGN TO RAVE!
Parents, are you looking for a way to give back to teachers and staff at Small Middle School?
We (A handful of Small Parents) have found a free and very effective way to show some love and thought we would share it with you all.
RAVE: Recognizing All Valuable Employees
Let's send some sparkly gratitude to our faculty & staff this holiday season with an AISD RAVE submission!
- Does your student have a favorite teacher?
- Has someone at Small (or any other AISD School) gone above and beyond for you and your family?
- Do you want to support teachers and let everyone (Teacher, Principal, AISD District) know about it?
All of our faculty and staff have gone above and beyond this semester. The best free, easy, sparkly way to show our gratitude is via the RAVE form on the AISD website (link below.) It only takes a couple of minutes to complete!
This form is received by AISD administration. RAVE submissions mean a lot to teachers and staff. It's equivalent to a virtual hug! And, there's never been a better time to remind the Superintendent how indispensable they all are.
Please submit a RAVE for any teacher or staff member (current or from school years past.)
Maybe send one or two a day! You do need the first and last name of the employee you wish to RAVE about. Those can be sourced on Small's Staff Directory :
https://www.austinisd.org/schools/small/directory
Flooding AISD administration with positive feedback will make an important and lasting impact. Let's make this holiday season sparkle a little extra with RAVES!
https://www.austinisd.org/hr/customer-service/rave
Thank you,
Small Parents
Small PTA Info
PTA Hassle-Free November Fundraiser
This has been a crazy year for all of us, and Small’s PTA is no exception. Our Spring Carnival, which provides over half our annual budget didn’t take place, and it’s unlikely to happen in 2021. Our school store, the Cougar Cage, is closed indefinitely. We need your help more than ever!
The PTA budget will be used to fund unique supply needs of pandemic-era classrooms like chargers, extension cords, and headphones. We’ll provide guest speakers for parents - coming November 18th, Dr. Mike Brooks on screen time - and we’re working on creative community-building events that can be done virtually.
We hope to raise $30 per child. We know it's a hard time for many families in our community, and we appreciate any donation you can make. And don’t forget corporate matching if your employer participates. Thank you for your ongoing support!
Questions about the PTA? Contact SmallPTA2020@gmail.com
Clubs at Small
There are a lot of Clubs To choose from. Click Here to see a list and how to join.
Remember that these clubs are an extra service the teachers are offering you and that all school rules apply. Please come and take advantage of the extra social time with other students who are interested in the same thing as you are!
If you have questions, please email the club sponsor.
Yearbook Pictures
This is the announcement requesting pictures from Small families:
Please send pictures of your students or share them to Google Drive:
- camp outs
- trips
- backyard gardens
- next to Austin landmarks and murals
- with pets
- baby pics with name of student
- anything celebrating student success and creativity:
- costumes
- customs
- sports
- art
- playing an instrument
- holding up a favorite book
Our yearbook will be a colorful keepsake of the good things that happened this year.
It will be unique. But, this year our campus is Austin, our neighborhoods, cougar homes, and wherever our cougars roam.
We are looking into doing a drive by Picture Day - Look in future newsletters for more details.
Address the CAC Committee
If you are interested in speaking to our CAC using our Citizen Communication time, please email our CAC chair Emma Renault-Varian emma.renaultvarian@austinisd.org or Co-Chair Chasee chappellhudgins@mac.com for the meeting Zoom details.
Citizens Communications. For all regular and other plenary meetings of the CAC, time at the beginning of the meeting shall be set aside for citizens communications. This time is specifically for non-members to make comments to the CAC. The Co-Chairs may limit the time for citizens communications and the time given to individual speakers. The Co-Chairs shall ensure that the district’s “Citizens Communications and Visitor Guidelines” are applied. Under these guidelines, except for requests for clarification, dialogue shall not occur between speakers and members. If the CAC is interested in hearing more from a speaker, the speaker may be invited to a future meeting and placed on the agenda specifically for that purpose. Or, the CAC may call a special meeting specifically for the purpose of open dialogue with non-members (e.g., a “community conversation”), but it must be posted for discussion on a specific topic or topics.
Clint Small, Jr. Middle School
