SMS Jag E-News
December 20, 2020
Hey Jags,
We have reached the end of the semester...congratulations parents and students. It has been a challenging road, but we have all made it! This week's newsletter wraps up the semester and also looks forward to the start of the next semester, which begins for students on Thursday, January 7, 2021.
The health and safety of our students and staff remain our top priority. As such, Fort Bend ISD will continue to conduct contact tracing over the Winter break. Please continue to report any symptoms, exposures and positive cases immediately in your daily wellness screening.
The District’s Contact Tracing Team will work every day over the Winter Break, with the exception of, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and New Year’s Day. Students and staff will be contacted directly by the team if you are identified as a close contact
to someone who tests positive.
Our campus will provide updates with any new cases reported over the break before students return to campus.
We also have some celebrations to share with you. We are excited to announce our 2020-2021 Teacher of the Year is Mrs. Cynthia Hitchcock. Mrs. Hitchcock is our Math Intervention Teacher and Technology Integration Champion, and she will represent our campus well at the district level. Congratulations, again, go to our two Teacher of the Year finalists, Mrs. Becki Smith and Mrs. Tony Reeley. We also announced our HAABSE Outstanding Teacher Award to Mrs. Andreana Grall (8th Grade Science Teacher and Science Olympiad Sponsor). Congratulations to all of these wonderful individuals for these well-deserved accolades. SMS is a fabulous school with a terrific staff and amazing students! See below for some photos of these wonderful staff members.
Jumping ahead to T3 (Term 3), our incredible counselors are currently proofing the adjustments they made to students' schedules for T3, and your child's schedule will be viewable in Skyward Family Access on or about December 26, 2020. As mentioned in last week's newsletter, it is possible that due to the complicated dynamics in shifting our master schedule to accommodate 150 new face to face students some students who did not request a learning model change may experience an adjustment to their schedule. It is no small task to make these adjustments, and we recognize the importance of keeping any kind of disruption limited to what truly has to happen to accommodate all students' scheduling needs. If your child will be F2F (Face to Face) in January, you will receive a separate email as we get closer to January 7, 2021 with important information regarding F2F expectations.
Happy Holidays,
Cholly Oglesby
Principal
Sartartia Middle School
Reminders for Jag Families
Waiting List for Learning Model Selection:
The deadline for parents to make a change to their child’s learning model was November 12, 2020. If a parent missed that deadline and contacted us regarding the desire for a change, their child’s name was placed on a waiting list while we built a T3 schedule to honor the requests that were made by the deadline. When we return to campus in January, we will review the schedules of all students who are on the waiting list. If we can make the requested change without overloading the seat capacity in each class, we will honor the request. All parents who put their child’s name on the waiting list will receive a phone call regarding the determination by the end of the day on January 8, 2021.
Support Saving Student Work
As Fort Bend ISD students have increased their use of digital platforms, it has become increasingly important that students save and back up their work as a best practice. This best practice is critical to avoid data loss in instances of student schedule changes. The District recommends two methods for students to save and back-up their work: Schoology Portfolios and Microsoft OneDrive. This document below will provide information on how to use the Schoology Portfolio and Microsoft OneDrive to save student work.
Upcoming Opportunities for Students
Pennies for Patients
Join our Jag Discovery students and teachers as they partner with the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society to take on the mission of ending cancer once and for all. The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s (LLS) Hero Squad Program is working with thousands of schools across the country to raise funds for blood cancer research and patient support services. Visit our school's fundraising page for more information and to find out how to donate.
Gifted & Talented Updates
GT Student Project Selection
Jaguar Athletics
The FBISD Athletics Department and District campus athletics coordinators continue working to provide a safe environment for our student athletes this school year. In preparation for successful basketball, track, tennis and soccer seasons, parents are asked to ensure that their students’ Pre-Participation Physical Exam form and Rank One electronic forms are submitted to their campus head coach by the dates listed below in order to be eligible to participate in the first day of tryouts. Visit the FBISD Athletics webpage to learn more about the District’s health and safety protocols. Be sure to check out the Boys' & Girls' Athletics Newsletters for the most current information about games, tickets, tryouts, and character education videos.
Go to the Library Schoology Course for great virtual library programming!
Code: ZCT2-DBDB-CDPHQ
PTO Corporate Sponsorships
Do you own a business or know someone who does? Would you like to get your business name out in the community? The SMS PTO is looking for business sponsors for the 2020-2021 school year. There are several different sponsorship levels. If you or someone you know would be interested, please click here for more information. Questions? Contact Nina at ninacsepta@gmail.com
SMS Teacher Shout Outs
Assistant Principals & Counselors
6th Grade
Paul Wells-Assistant Principal
281.634.6331
Kat Friedel-Counselor
katherine.friedel@fortbendisd.com
281.634.6320
7th Grade
Courtney Border-Assistant Principal
courtney.border@fortbendisd.com
281.634.6314
Brandi Goodly-Counselor
281.634.6318
8th Grade
Dr. Sunday Johnson-Associate Principal
sunday.johnson@fortbendisd.com
281.634.6316
Abby Ibrahim-Counselor
281.634.6319
SMS Helpful Resources
Sartartia Middle School
Help us grow our fan base! Follow us on:
Twitter @sms_jaguars
Instagram @sartartiams_jaguars
Email: cholly.oglesby@fortbendisd.com
Website: www.fortbendisd.com/sms
Location: 8125 Homeward Way, Sugar Land, TX, USA
Phone: 281-634-6310
Twitter: @sms_jaguars