JMS Weekly Update
May 28, 2023
Hello JMS!
This week's Update contains information about the following:
- ALiCE Safety Drill - 5/30
- 8th Grade Pool Party Update - Change in Time and Date - 6/2
- Spirit Week - 5/30-6/2
- Philly Pretzel Sale - 5/31
- Kona Ice Sale - 6/2
Please notify our nurse, Mrs. Raco, and complete this FORM if your child has tested positive for COVID-19.
Take care,
Dr. Sarah Shaw, Principal
Mrs. Amanda Jackson, Assistant Principal
Weekly Schedule
Tuesday - Day 3 - Safety Drill
Wednesday - Day 4
Thursday - Day 5
Friday - Day 1 - Kona Ice & 8th Grade Pool Party
Monday (6/5) - Day 2
New News
JMS Safety Drill - 5/30
In an effort to continually prepare our staff and students for emergency situations, JMS will be conducting a School Safety Drill on Tuesday, May 30th. We will run this drill at a walk through pace. We are interested in discussing options with students and then carrying out those options in a slow and organized manner, as the instruction is equally as important as the actual evacuation and/or lockdown & barricade. An additional focus for this drill will be to discuss how students can stay safe when out in public (at the mall, movie theatre, restaurant, sporting event, etc), as our ALiCE procedures are not only specific to staying safe in a school building.
The drill will begin with the teachers reviewing and discussing our ALiCE procedures (Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter, Evacuate) with the children. Following this review, we will walk through an "unidentified intruder" scenario. There will not actually be an unidentified intruder, but rather we will make an announcement stating that there is an "unidentified intruder" in a specific location of the building. Based on this information the teachers and the students will discuss their options to stay safe (evacuate and/or lockdown and barricade), then they will either practice evacuating the building or they will practice locking down and barricading. The teachers and students will discuss these options and then carry out those options in a slow and organized manner.
This drill will not be a surprise. Teachers and students will be notified about the drill. They will also be notified before the drill begins. It is our goal to create a calm and educational environment during these drills. The power of this practice is in the discussion and thinking through scenarios so that we are all prepared.
You can learn more about our ALiCE School Safety Program by visiting the district website. You are also welcome to view our ALiCE Parent Informational Presentation: Keeping our Schools Safe
The Mt. Lebanon School District is committed to taking proactive measures to protect the safety of all our students and staff members. Thank you for your support of this important program.
We have been working very closely with the Mt. Lebanon Pool and Rec center over the last few days. The pool shared that they are experiencing a lifeguard shortage and were unable to provide enough lifeguards to swim safely for our originally scheduled date. We discussed many alternative dates and the pool was not able to provide a sufficient number of lifeguards for any daytime reservation between 5/30-6/6. Therefore, in an attempt to keep this celebration alive we have made the decision to move this celebration to the evening on 6/2 from 7:15PM-9:15PM and the pool has been able to secure lifeguards.
I have heard from several families who are dissatisfied with this change. I ask that you keep an open mind and focus on celebrating our 8th graders the best way we can with the circumstances that we faced to plan this celebration.
8th Grade Pool Party Details
When: Friday, 6/2 @ 7:15PM-9:15PM
Where: Mt. Lebanon Rec Center Pool
Drop Off & Pick Up Information: Students can be dropped off by parents at the Mt. Lebanon Rec Center Pool (900 Cedar Boulevard, Pittsburgh, PA 15228) entrance starting at 7pm. Food, drinks, games and supervision will be provided. Students will be promptly dismissed from the pool at 9:15pm.
Class of 2027 t-shirts will be distributed to students before the end of the school year. We look forward to an evening of celebrating for our 8th graders before sending them off to their final middle school summer and Mt. Lebanon High School.
Please note that Tuesday, 6/6, will be a regular school day for all JMS students.
Any questions? Please contact the 8th Grade Celebration Committee at:
- Marisa Hupe- chicc35@aol.com
- Carol Rosetti- carolguy72@aol.com
- Jen Kelly- indyheaven@gmail.com
JMS Student Council is sponsoring one last Spirit Week!
Tuesday - District Wear Day - Dress in your best Mt. Lebanon Gear
Wednesday - Twin Day - Dress like your friends
Thursday - Color Day - Wear your team color
- Wildfire - Red
- Twister - Orange
- Thunderbolt - Purple
- Star - Yellow
- Emerald - Green
- Sapphire - Blue
Friday -Decade Day - Dress in your favorite past decade
JMS Student Council is hosting a Philly Pretzel Sale on Thursday, 6/1 after school.
Don't forget to order your Philly Pretzel Factory soft pretzel(s) to enjoy after school on Thursday, June 1st. Don't miss out on your ability to buy up to 5 fresh soft pretzels for $1.50 each! Just fill out the Google form below and, on Thursday, June 1st, bring your money and stop down in front of Mrs. Cherry's room, 110. Your pretzel(s) will be warm and ready for you!
Proceeds from the pretzel sale will be used to buy gifts for the crossing guards volunteering in the Jefferson Middle School area, so fill out the form and get your pretzels today!
ALL FORMS MUST BE SUBMITTED BY 3:00 ON TUESDAY, MAY 30th.
The JMS PTA is sponsoring a Kona Ice sale on Friday after school. Students should bring money if they would like to purchase Kona Ice. Students will be dismissed at 3:00 and will be permitted to purchase their Kona Ice before walking/driving home. Please remind your child to make sure that their garbage finds a garbage can, so that we can continue to keep our community clean.
Reminders
Parents! Are you looking to know more about the status of your child's assignments. Are you curious about what they have turned in and perhaps what is still missing? Schoology can help you with this! Learn how to set your schoology preferences for easy notification HERE.
Check out this week's Schoology Tip for Students!
Technology
The federal government released an additional program this year for families in need that will subsidize their home broadband Internet access as well as partially reimburse the purchase of personal devices at home.
The FCC's Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) is highlighted on our Families=>Technology Resources=>Internet@Home page (LINK).
Families In Need of Technology
As we prepare to start the 2022-2023 school year, we are asking families who need to borrow student technology to please visit www.mtlsd.org/families/technology/one-to-one
Athletics
Middle School Athletics
You can learn everything you need to know about Middle School Athletics, including starting dates, by visiting the MS Athletics Webpage.
Please see the attached information about summer Volleyball Camp.
Lebo Rifle
Attention Rising 9th graders, the High School Varsity Rifle Team hosts an introductory summer session to help athletes gauge if Rifle may be the WPIAL sport for them!
Attendance is required at the first session on July 12th with optional practice sessions continuing thru July into August on Wednesdays at 1:00pm. For more information, to register, or with questions, please contact: Assistant Rifle Coach Natalie Kukla, nkukla@mtlsd.net.
The Lebo Guard invites all students to their Try-It-Out clinics starting next Tuesday, May 16th at the high school C-20 patio. Come join us from 6-9pm to learn about Color Guard, learn new skills and make new friends! No experience is necessary! For more details and head to www.leboband.com/guard to register.
Cheer Tryouts are right around the corner. Please contact Tracey Green tgreen@mtlsd.net with any questions. Click here for tryout registration https://forms.gle/n7axBsiGYZz69n1a8
We wanted to share information about 6th and 7th grade about athletic opportunities during the fall season of their 7th and 8th grade year in order for you to begin to plan. Please find attached the opportunities for 7th and 8th graders during the fall sports season, each sports start date, and its head coach.
We will be continuing to offer the convenience of online registration for our athletic programs through partner company, FamilyID (www.familyid.com).
JMS PTA Information
PTA Membership and Directory Access
Our Membership Store is now open! We hope you will consider joining out PTA to help fund excellent educational opportunities for our children. Directory access is available to JMS PTA members only.
You can join the PTA HERE.
Please email jmsptamtl@gmail.com if you have any questions.
Box Tops
Scanning Box Tops is an easy way to earn money for our school. See Box Tops for more information on how to scan Box Tops and to download the app. Receipts must be scanned within 14 days for the Box Tops to be scanned electronically.
Office Depot/Office Max
Office Depot/Office Max has a school rewards program. When shopping, remember to ask the cashier to tag Jefferson Middle School. For online orders, enter our school ID (Thomas Jefferson Middle School ID:70088453 Pittsburgh, PA) on the Thank You Confirmation page.
Resources For Families
The MTLSD School Counselors in partnership with The Allegheny Children's Initiative Inc., have compiled a list of social services resources that may be helpful to you and your family. Please take a look and reach out to these organizations. They are here to help with any of the following:
- Food
- Rent/Mortgage
- Utilities
- Pets
- Abuse
- Mental Health
- General Assistance
Safe2Say Something is a youth violence prevention program run by the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General. The program teaches youth and adults how to recognize warning signs and signals, especially within social media, from individuals who may be a threat to themselves or others and to “say something” BEFORE it is too late. With Safe2Say Something, it’s easy and confidential to report safety concerns to help prevent violence and tragedies.
Here’s how it works:
- Submit a report through the Safe2SaySomething system
- Crisis center reviews, assesses and processes all submissions
- Crisis center sends all submissions to school administration and/or law enforcement for intervention
- If needed, crisis center may contact tipster anonymously through the app
Jefferson Middle School
The Jefferson Middle School learning community has an exceptional reputation for its dedicated teachers, staff and parents working together to provide learning experiences for our children that include high expectations, a challenging curriculum and a shared commitment to provide the best education possible for each and every student.
Email: sshaw@mtlsd.net
Website: https://jms.mtlsd.org/
Location: 21 Moffett Street, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
Phone: (412) 344-2120
Facebook: facebook.com/jmslebo
Twitter: @JMSMTLSD