Sugar Land MS Titan News
Week #12 - November 2, 2020
Greetings Titan Families,
I hope that you and your families had a good three-day weekend. I wanted you to know that the district has extended extra time to teachers to finalize their Progress Report 3 grades until the evening of Wednesday, November 4, even though PR3 ended this past Thursday, October 29. Therefore, you should expect a slight delay in seeing your child's PR3 grade. On Thursday last week, I sent an important message to parents and students about backing up students' Schoology work (i.e. items submitted to their various teachers), due to some impending updates the district is doing with Schoology. I have included that message in this newsletter, in case you missed it. We are launching a Virtual Book Fair soon, and you may read about that in this newsletter, as well. If your child is a face to face student, an important message about safety and dress code was sent to parents on Friday, and it is repeated in this newsletter, in case you missed it.
Please look for information in your email later this week from the district regarding a brief window of opportunity for parents to request a learning model change for T3 (starting in January). It will only be necessary to complete the request if you want to make a change. If you are satisfied with the model your child is in, there will be no need for you to complete the request form when the district makes it available.
Picture Day for F2F students is coming a week from this Friday--on Friday, November 13. We will send a separate message regarding how this will work once the details are complete. Online students will have an opportunity to have their picture taken on January 5. Details forthcoming. See the posting below.
Applications for free and reduced priced meals are still being accepted. Be sure to read the post below about the benefits to all students through December 31 and the changes that will come with the start of the second semester.
Be sure to check out the following topics in this week's newsletter. A few are new, and a few have been updated:
- Week At-A-Glance
- Upcoming Dates
- SLMS Virtual Book Fair (Nov.8-21) - NEW
- Schoology Student Work Backup - NEW
- Picture Day is Coming November 13
- Safety Message and Dress Code Info for F2F Students - UPDATED
- Apply for Free/Reduced Meals through December 31 - NEW
- And MUCH MORE...
Thank you for your time and support of our school. Our ongoing priority is to serve our community in the best way possible.
Sincerely,
Keith Fickel, SLMS Principal
#GracePatienceOptimism
#BetterTogether
#InfinitePossibilities
#TitansOwnIt
The Week At-A-Glance
Upcoming Dates
- November 2 – “A” Day (off-cycle) – meaning there are two “A” days in a row: Oct 29 and Nov 2
- November 8 - Start of SLMS Virtual Book Fair
- November 13 – Picture Day for F2F students (online students’ portrait day is Jan 5)
- December 1 – PSAT administration (8th grade)
- January 5 - Online student portrait day (more details and schedule forthcoming)
- February 19 – Career Day (Moved from December 3)
SLMS Virtual Book Fair - November 8 thru 21
This fall Sugar Land MS will host its first virtual book fair! A school-specific link will lead to the Scholastic Online Store, where students and their families can purchase any of over 6000 items, a much bigger selection than what is available through in-person fairs. Every purchase helps us raise money for the school library program, so we can provide even more great reading materials for our students. Make sure to use only this website to make purchases, otherwise we won’t get credit! The online store link will be live for two weeks from November 8-21. Make purchases at your leisure, then ship them directly to your home. Any questions about the book fair should be directed to the campus librarian at david.sinclair@fortbendisd.com. Thank you for helping us cultivate a culture of literacy at SLMS!
Click on the image below to watch a Titan TV interview with Mr. Sinclair (or click here)
The SLMS book fair website mentioned in the video:
Schoology Student Work Backup - By November 4
The district's Information Technology department will be running processes in Schoology next week designed to simplify the teacher and student view of the courses, which will benefit your child as they work within their classes. This is scheduled to take place on November 5. During that time, if you are in Schoology, you could see changes in the courses listed as the process is run. These changes do not indicate a schedule change, just a change of view (how Schoology may look) for your child. If there is any information that your child wants to keep, it is recommended that they save this on their Microsoft OneDrive or create a portfolio in Schoology to save their work. Otherwise, there is a potential for data loss. Please use this helpful document which we hope will help you and your child with the process of saving work and information by November 4
Picture Day is Coming
- Face-to-Face Students - Friday, November 13
- Online Students - Tuesday, January 5 (details forthcoming...stay tuned)
Picture Day ID is EVTVMK24K
Visit the Lifetouch website for more information, and enter the Picture Day ID above.
Safety Message and Dress Code Info for F2F Students
Please review the FBISD Dress Code. This one-page document has been extracted from the 2020-21 FBISD Student/Parent Handbook. Students attending F2F must adhere to the dress code, and students online must be in dress code while on camera. Common issues and their resolutions are:
- Students wearing leggings, tights, or tight-fitting clothing - Students must wear a top whose hem goes to at least mid-thigh or lower (but not above mid-thigh). This has been our #1 item to address the last three weeks
- Shorts, skirts, etc. that are too short -- hem must be no higher than 3" above knee
- Footwear - shoes must have a back for safety reasons in our stairwells. No flip-flops or sandals unless they have a back/heel covering
- Tears/Rips in pants - cannot reveal undergarments. If rips/tears are higher than 3" above the knee (like shorts and skirts), they must have an under-layer that extends to 3" above the knee
- Pajamas - no sleep wear except on designated spirit days (this includes slippers)
The document below is extracted (p. 70) from the larger Student/Parent Handbook.
Application for Free/Reduced Price Meals Program for 2020-21 Remains Open
FBISD Child Nutrition is still strongly encouraging all families to complete a Free & Reduced Meals application at www.schoolcafe.com/fbisd. After December 31, 2020, meals will no longer be free to everyone, and starting in January 2021, regular status of free, reduced, or paid will begin.
Student Password Expiration
As the school year progresses, we are noticing some secondary student account passwords are expiring. Password expiration is a normal cycle with network accounts. The new security implementation from last year requires student accounts to change passwords at the start of a new school year. While communications were sent out for students to change passwords, many remained unchanged. Secondary students are able to manage their own passwords by going to my.fortbendisd.com. Campus staff are also able to help any students at the campus with password problems by visiting the same site. If the student is experiencing issues with logging into Skyward, Global Protect VPN, or a district-issued laptop please have them follow instructions provided in the attachment to set up a new password. Keep in mind that not all secondary students are impacted by password expiration, only students that had not previously reset their password since July 2020 are impacted. As a proactive measure, IT is sending weekly, targeted messages to students in advance of their password expiration. Both the guardian registered in Blackboard Connect as well as the Student will receive the proactive password change notification. If the student fails to change his/her password in advance of expiration, they will be locked out of the system. They will be able to regain access once they reset the password by going to my.fortbendisd.com.
Resources/Helps:
- How to Update Password guide will guide a student with password reset
- Getting Logged In video to assist with creating new passwords
PE Uniforms Now on Sale!
Student Daily Wellness Screenings and Clinic Information
Many parents may have concerns about their students being sent home from the clinic due to the guidelines FBISD is following (based on CDC recommendations). Here are a few important points…
List of symptoms that can be present in a person who may be potentially sick with COVID19
- Runny nose/congestion
- Sore throat
- Persistent cough
- Difficulty breathing
- Headaches
- Chills
- Loss of taste/smell
- Significant muscle pain/aches
- Diarrhea/vomiting
These symptoms are also synonymous with many other illnesses or may be caused by a variety of reasons. For this reason, I would like to share a few tips!
- Make sure your child has breakfast and drinks some water every morning. This will help ward off headaches and stomachaches
- If your child has seasonal allergies, consider giving them a daily over-the-counter allergy medication to help distinguish between allergy-related or illness-related symptoms including headache, runny/stuffy nose, and sore throats from all that drainage
Please know that the nurse cannot determine whether your child’s symptoms are, or are not, COVID related. Rather, to keep all students and staff safe, it is important to strictly follow the CDC guidelines and the FBISD policy. Thank you for understanding. Please call the clinic with any questions 281-634-8745.
Parents, if your child is absent, please remember to fill out the Wellness Screening, even if you are keeping them home. Also, be sure to fill it out every day they are absent. In addition, please call or email Nurse Lincoln. Students with illness must meet specific criteria before they can return to school and Nurse Lincoln will help you through that process.
Reporting a Positive Case of COVID-19 or Exposure to a Positive Case
To ensure the safety of all staff and students, it is critical that families report all positive cases of COVID-19, or exposures to a positive case of COVID-19, immediately. If your student tests positive for COVID-19 or is exposed to a positive COVID-19 case, please notify the District by reporting within the Daily Wellness Screener in Skyward Family Access.
Attendance Information for Parents
Parent notes are required for all absences within five days from the absence date. Notes must include full student name as well as the reason for the absence (including technical difficulties). If a student misses a synchronous engagement, they are counted absent.Please email all absence notes to AttendanceSLMS@fortbendisd.com. Contact our attendance clerk, Mrs. LaVergne, at (281) 634-3089 if you have questions.
Important Contact Information
- Assistant Principal - Dr. Dawn Rogers (dawn.rogers@fortbendisd.com)
- Counselor - Eleni Smith (eleni.smith@fortbendisd.com)
Seventh Grade
- Assistant Principal - Luster Goodwin (luster.goodwin@fortbendisd.com)
- Counselor - Kim Seright (kimberly.seright@fortbendisd.com)
Eighth Grade
- Associate Principal - Monika Martin (monika.martin@fortbendisd.com)
- Counselor - Nafecia Brinson (nafecia.brinson@fortbendisd.com)
Attendance - Mary Beth LaVergne (mary.lavergne@fortbendisd.com)
Registrar - Tandi Phillips (tandi.phillips@fortbendisd.com)
Nurse - Angi Lincoln (angela.lincoln@fortbendisd.com)
Campus Secretary - Mary Connealy (mary.connealy@fortbendisd.com)
Counselor Clerk - Carmen Brantley (carmen.brantley@fortbendisd.com)
Assistant Principal Secretaries
- 6th and 7th Grade - Tina Garcia (diamantina.ibarragar@fortbendisd.com)
- 8th Grade - Sherri Woodcock (sherri.woodcock@fortbendisd.com)
Sugar Land Middle School
45 Years
1975-2020
Inspiring and equipping the young men and women of our community for futures beyond what they can imagine since 1975.
SLMS Campus Mission Statement
Working collaboratively, the Sugar Land Middle School Professional Learning Community will commit to creating a safe environment with high expectations leading to physical, social, emotional, and academic success for all Titans.
#TitansOwnIt
#BetterTogether
#InfinitePossibilities
#GracePatienceOptimism
- 8:00-4:00 Monday-Friday
Email: keith.fickel@fortbendisd.com
Website: www.fortbendisd.com/slms
Location: 321 7th Street, Sugar Land, TX, USA
Phone: (281) 634-3080
Twitter: @SLMSTitans