Hornet Herald

News and Notes for the week of 2/21/2021

Monday(2/22) & Tuesday(2/23) - No School for students, Wednesday(2/24) and Thursday(2/25)- Remote Learning for students, Friday(2/26) Asynchronous Learning for students

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Sam's Barbecue - 2000 E 12th St, Austin, TX

Sam's is one of the East Austin Staples just around the street from Kealing Middle School. This location has survived two fires and multi million dollar gentrification offers. In 1954 it was called the Friendly Barbecue Pit. The fire department was called to the address in the early morning of August 10, 1959, for a barbecue pit fire, which may have been the first time was almost lost. Sam Tasby’s Bar-B-Q was listed there the following year, and it was run by Sam Tasby Jr. It’s not until the 1967 Austin directory that the barbecue joint was listed as Sam’s Bar-B-Q, with Samuel H. Campbell Jr. as the owner. Like Sam Tasby Jr. and Clarence Green before him, Campbell was an African American veteran of WWII and a native Texan. In addition to Stevie Ray Vaughan, the East Austin institution has hosted Stevie Ray’s brother, Jimmie Vaughan; actor Richard Roundtree, the original Shaft; and Questlove, of the Roots. Since his mother’s passing in 2010 and his father’s in 2012, Brian Mays has been the Sam’s Bar-B-Que owner.

Principal's Message to Hornet Families for the week of February 21st 2021

Hello fantastic family members,

This past week was completely unprecedented. It was the coldest period of time the city has ever seen and the longest period we have been without power, and to top it off another boil water warning. These are horrible events and circumstances, but we still have hope. We are able to see the beauty of humanity with Austin ISD opening warming centers (some were 24 hours), countless restaurants offering free food while supplies last, volunteer groups providing hotel stays for the homeless, and to top it off countless videos of good Samaritans helping those in need. This upcoming week we will focus on a soft return and easing back into this school year with grace and empathy for our scholars and families. Teachers and students will have time to collect and prepare themselves on Monday and Tuesday, then Wednesday and Thursday all learning will be done remotely, and Friday there will only be asynchronous learning available as we deep clean our school. The grading cycle ending date will still be Tuesday 2/23. Students will still have the opportunity to submit any missing work. Grades will still be finalized on Thursday 2/25 but grade changes are still possible. We will not not begin any new content until Monday 3/1. Thank you all for choosing Austin ISD and Kealing Middle School as your child's primary education provider, we are appreciative of you.

#BEGREATmentality

AISD Meal Pick up Information

Here is a list of 31 AISD Locations where families can pick up meals . Details are inside.

Snow Day for our Garden! New Service Day is Saturday February 27th

Our garden will need lots of love after our snow days and we still have plenty of trees to plant too! Do you want to dig a giant hole? Do you like feeling mulch ooze through your hands? Do you want to use those fine motor skills to do something other than clicking a mouse?!? Then join us for our 2nd Gardens & Grounds service day!! Hang out with friends, plant a tree and have some fun! The gardening teacher Mrs. Bergman will share some cool info about the Monarch Butterfly and Rain Gardens! *** Sign up now to join us on Saturday, February 27th *** All COVID safety protocols will be followed and masks are required. https://signup.com/go/XJuJRWj

Kealing CyberHornets excel, repeat as Texas State Champions!

Congratulations to all 31 Kealing CyberHornets who competed in the US CyberPatriot National Cyber Defense competition! Special shoutout to the new Texas State Champion Cyber_Potatoes (Arhant Choudhary, Pedro Couto, Jackson Edwards, Rachit Kakkar, Malcolm Roalson, Grant Salmon) and third-place team Mighty Foam Gamers (Evan Anderson, Grant Bell, Max Bentley, William Floyd, Benjamin Goodman, Jack McKinney). Signups for next year begin in April -- for more information, contact coach Ms. Johnson.
Please Complete AISD's Campus Family Survey

We want to know how well we are doing and what adjustments we need to make to ensure we are providing A GREAT learning experience for our scholars. Please complete the survey for us.

Please click here to submit Hornet Herald entries

Entries must be submitted by Thursdays weekly to be included in the upcoming week's communication.

KMS Spirit Wear!

Support Kealing and order your spirit wear today! Orders can be picked up during school hours February 4th and 5th (first Thursday and Friday of the month).

Upcoming Dates - A Week!

Monday - February 22nd- No School for Students


Tuesday - February 23rd - No School for Students


Wednesday - February 24th - A Day

Remote Learning for students


Thursday - February 25th - B Day

Remote Learning for students


Friday - February 26th - Asynchronous A Day

Asynchronous Assignments and office ours only


Saturday - February 27th

KMS February Service Day

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Announcements!

FOOD PANTRY FRIDAY

The Parent Support Specialist Office is hosting a food pantry every Friday for anyone needing assistance. The Food Pantry is open every FRIDAY that school is in session from 8:30-2:30. Please contact Ms. Perez at 512-414-6700 for further information.
La Oficina del Especialista en Apoyo para Padres está organizando una despensa de alimentos todos los viernes para cualquier persona que necesite ayuda. La despensa de alimentos está abierta todos los VIERNES que la escuela está en sesión de 8: 30-2: 30. Comuníquese con la Sra. Pérez al 512-414-6700 para obtener más información.

Virtual Registration Sessions

Join us for a week of Online Registration/Únase a nosotras durante una semana de registro en línea.
Dates/Fecha Time/Houra

Monday/Lunes 2/22- 9:00 am -10 am
Tues/Martes 2/23 1:30 pm- 12:30 pm
Wed/ Miercoles 2/24 11:00 am-12:00 pm
Thurs./Jueves 2/25 2:00 pm- 2:30 pm ( 30 minute session)
Friday-/Viernes 2/26 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm

Junior Achievement of Central Texas

AVID is now offering its students Junior Achievement (JA)! Students will be taught crucial financial literacy, entrepreneurship, and work-ready skills and that is where you can help by becoming a volunteer. JA volunteers come from all walks of life. But they all have a common vision: sharing a message of hope and opportunity with each and every young person they reach. They are committed to the idea that as a community, we have a responsibility to ensure this generation is better prepared for success than any generation in history. JA staff will give you everything you need to be fully prepared and supported while delivering the curriculum. Check out the JA website: https://www.jacentex.org/ja-volunteer or contact Emily Long at emily@jacentex.org to learn more.

Spring 2021 Girls' Youth Lacrosse

For any Kealing girls interested in playing Lacrosse this Spring, registration is now open! While Kealing will not field its own team this season, there are multiple Austin area teams ready and willing to accept Kealing players! All grade levels are welcome and no prior experience necessary. Most programs are even able to provide equipment as needed. To find a program nearest to you, visit the Capital Area Youth Girls' Lacrosse League (CAPLAX) website at caplax.org and choose "find a team". Questions can be submitted directly to the program contact, or to CAPLAX at caplaxgirls@gmail.com.

Break Through for 6th Graders!

Breakthrough is looking for 6th graders who will be the first person tin their families to graduate from college, would like school support, and want something interesting to do during the summer time.


We now have an online application. For English click here

Ahora tiene una aplicación en línea. Para espanõl haga clic en

www.breakthroughctx.org

STEM Summer Opportunity for 8th Grade Students - GeoForce Texas!

GeoFORCE Texas is a completely free outreach program run by The University of Texas at Austin’s Jackson School of Geosciences. The program takes students on week-long geology summer academies over the course of 4 years. We inspire students and give them an experience that will help prepare them for college. Our program also offers scholarship, internship, and other opportunities for support to our academy alumni throughout college. We have been running successfully since 2005 and were recognized by President Obama in 2015 as one of the best STEM outreach programs in the country.

This year we’re piloting a new GeoFORCE Austin cohort, taking students from schools in and around Austin. Applications are open to 8th grade students thru February. Please visit our website for more information and instructions on applying to the program. If you have any questions, feel free to email cara.collins@austin.utexas.edu.


Link to the GeoFORCE website: https://www.jsg.utexas.edu/geoforce/

UT Engineering Days for Girls - Feb. 20-March 1

Girl Day at UT Austin, including Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day and the Girl Day STEM Festival, will be held virtually Saturday, February 20, 2021 through Monday, March 1, 2021. K-12 students and their parents or educators are invited to join us for 10 days of virtual FREE hands-on science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fun. See https://girlday.utexas.edu for more information and to sign up!

Friendly Reminder: 2021-2022 Online Enrollment is Open

Our 2021-2022 Online Enrollment is Open for our returning students, if you have moved please provide new proof of residency to Mrs. Rivera, Thank You

Book Drive and PTA Service Project

AVID and PTA are partnering up to collect as many books possible, levels Pre-K through 12th grade. Our book drive has started!!!

We are asking for any gently used books that you do not want anymore. These books will be donated to Kealing students and students at our feeder schools!

Luckily, we have KMS community members around town who are willing to be drop off sites so that you don’t have to travel all around Kealing. So go through all your books you no longer need or want anymore, and drop them off at one of the designated locations below!

Locations:

Address Part of Town
5310 Musket Ridge 78759 (183/360/MoPac- Great Hills)
2410 Bridle Path, Austin, TX 78703 (Central)
3101 Beverly Rd, 78703 (Central-Mopac and 35th)
1516 West 29th Street 78703 (Central /Mopac)
1702 Linscomb Ave, 78704 (Central/Zilker)
11617 Georgian Oaks Drive, 78739 (Circle C)
1607 Pennsylvania Ave (EAST)
4518 Sidereal Drive, Austin, TX 78727 (Milwood /Mo Pac and Parmer)
3102 Rexford Dr., 78723 (Mueller/Windsor Park)
5200 Magdelena Dr/78735. (Southwest)
4610 Copano Court, 78749 (Southwest)
5708 Trelawney ln, 78739 (Southwest)
3818 Arrow Dr., Austin TX 78749 (Southwest)
7304 Journeyville Drive, 78735 (Southwest /Lantana/Oak Hill)
5323 Western Hills Drive, 78731 (Central/2222& Mopac)
812 W Gibson St, Austin, TX 78704 (Central/Lamar/Zilker)
6801 Tree Fern Ln, Austin, TX 78750 (North/ Jester Estates)


Thank you to all for helping us promote literacy through Austin!

Kealing Yearbook Scholarships


The Kealing Yearbook Staff is committed to documenting the Kealing middle school experience each year through our award winning yearbook. We are also committed to ensuring that every student who might not be able to afford a yearbook has access to one through our scholarship program. This year's yearbook theme is "We're Kealing It", in other words we want to highlight the various way students and staff are persevering and even thriving during this challenging academic year.

Your generosity will be noted in each of the 650 copies that we produce. Further, as a nationally recognized publication, our book is often seen across the country at conventions and as a publisher’s sample, which may further its reach.

Can you help me raise money for Kealing Middle School Yearbook 2021Scholarship Fund? Together we can keep Kealing It!

https://www.snap-raise.com/v2/fundraisers/kealing-middle-school-yearbook-2021?fbclid=IwAR0_JTgWhwm4dsBpxDbkFFAoZcN45Z1_cuqhsh_B_mWIKMEGUDP8xjwWHdo&share_type=clipboard_sharewizard_v2#/
AISD's iReady Smore

A link to view Austin ISD's I Ready Newsletter. iReady testing opens 1/25.

AISD Family and Community Engagement Newsletter

Please click here to learn about Austin ISD's efforts to engage and support our communities.

AISD Curbside Meal Site

AISD to Continue Free Meals through the 2020-21 School Year

The Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) recently announced an extension of current school meal programs through the 2020-21 school year. Through the federally-funded program, all Austin ISD students will receive free school meals through June 3, the last day of school.

For students participating in remote, off-campus learning, free 7 day meal packs will be available each Thursday at more than 40 curbside locations throughout Austin. While Austin ISD plans to continue curbside service as long as needed, meal sites are subject to change as more students transition to on-campus learning.

Curbside meal sites and more information can be found here

Austin ISD COVID-19 Dashboard

Austin ISD is committed to putting health and safety protocols in place that will prevent the occurrence and/or spread of COVID-19. However, we must be prepared to quickly and effectively respond to and communicate a lab-confirmed or suspected case of COVID-19 at a school or other Austin ISD facility.


The Austin ISD COVID-19 Dashboard will be updated by noon each Tuesday, starting the week of Sept. 21. All lab-confirmed positive cases on campuses will be communicated directly to the campus community. Individuals who may have been exposed will be contacted directly and provided information on the next steps, including a quarantine timeline if needed.

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