Husky Highlights
October Newsletter
Principal's Corner
Dear Parents/Guardians & Students,
I hope your school year is off to a great start. As incredible as it sounds, we are already over a month into the new school year with the end of the first marking period just around the corner.
With Homecoming already in our "rear view mirror" I hope we can all find the time to slow down and enjoy the beautiful fall weather.
Towards the end of October, we have two really exciting events that MRHS programs will participate in and showcase their talents. On October 18, 2019, the MRHS Choir will travel to Ocean Place in Long Branch, New Jersey to perform at the New Jersey Principals and Supervisors Convention. Then, on October 22nd, the MRHS Jazz Band will travel to Atlantic City to perform at the New Jersey School Boards Convention.
We are all incredibly proud of the accomplishments of all of our programs, yet, we recognize that we still have much work to be do. The truth is that the work will never be done. That's the type of high school we want to be for each of you and for the Matawan-Aberdeen community- a school that emphasizes "continuous improvement" so that we are always providing our students with the best possible experience. We can never set our expectations for ourselves too high, and it will take our collective efforts to help us achieve milestone after milestone.
My hope is that you will join us in the quest.
After School Tutorial Schedule
Matawan-Aberdeen Educational Foundation
Anyone who wishes to get more information on MAEF or volunteer opportunities can find us on Facebook or on our district web page under the "Community" tab.
PTSO
Please join us at our next PTSO Meeting on November 5th at 6 p.m.
Volunteers are needed for some committees and tasks such as plant sales, pretzel sales, vendor night, Amazon smile, Facebook sdmin/moderator, and PTSO email monitoring.
There are also a few PTSO board positions open: Ways & Means (2 volunteers needed) and Treasurer (1 volunteer needed).
Email us at MRHSPTSO@marsd.org if you are interested in volunteering or have any PTSO questions.
Consider joining our membership for $10 and get a paw print key chain as a token of our thanks.
Please visit the PTSO page on the district website for updates, future meeting dates, membership form, and more.
Thank you in advance for any help you can give!
Husky Athletics
The Matawan Family ID registration link for winter sports participation is now open! The November 6th deadline for registering in family ID and submitting an updated sports physical to the school nurse for participation in athletics, marching band, winter guard, special olympics, unified special olympics bowling, and challenger is quickly approaching. Student-athletes interested in trying out for our cooperative ice hockey team with Howell High School must also register in family ID and submit their sports physical paperwork to the high school nurse by October 17th.
Please be aware that our family ID registration link includes a newly added required video for parents and students to view on the topic of Opioids. Registration cannot be processed without confirming viewing of this video. Important: If you already registered in family ID and submitted a sports physical for fall participation, you still must re-register in family ID for winter participation. (Family ID registration is required before the start of each season). Please be sure to contact the athletic office by phone at 732-705-5346 or by e-mail at athletics@marsd.org if you have any questions concerning the expiration date of your child’s sports physical. Feel free to visit the athletic office web page by clicking on the volleyball in the upper right hand corner of the main district web page for registration instructions.
Congratulations to our Student Athletes of the Week, sponsored by the Athletic Leadership Council!
- Chris Dietrich - Boys Soccer
- Sara Margarites - Girls Soccer
- Julianna Corbett - Field Hockey
- Alyssa Funt - Dance
Football
Girls Cross Country
Boys Soccer
Girls Soccer
Girls Tennis
Field Hockey
Challenger League
Cheerleading
Matawan Varsity Dancers
MRHS Matawan Marching Band Champions
Congratulations to the marching band for winning the Yamaha Cup title at MetLife Stadium in US Bands Group 2A.
Nurse's Corner
As fall approaches so does the flu season. The flu affects people in different ways. Some have mild symptoms while others are sick for many days. The flu virus infects the nose, throat, and lungs and can cause a wide range of complications. Ear infections, sinus infections, and pneumonia are some of the flu complications.
Individuals who are at high risk of flu complications are:
- Children younger than 5 but those younger than 2 have a higher risk
- Individuals 65 and older
- Individuals with asthma, heart disease, chronic lung disease, and neurological and neurodevelopmental conditions
- Individuals with blood, kidney, liver, endocrine, and metabolic disorders, including diabetes mellitus, individuals with weakened immune systems due to disease or medication
- Pregnant women and women up to two weeks postpartum
- Residents of nursing home and other long-term facilities.
Your best defense from getting the flu is to wash your hands frequently and get the flu shot. The effectiveness of the flu shot varies from year to year, but you should still protect yourself and others from getting the flu. The flu vaccine can keep you from getting the flu and protect others around you who are more vulnerable to the flu.
Things that you can do to prevent the flu:
Get the flu vaccine
Try to avoid close contact with sick individuals
Limit contact with others if you are sick to prevent the spread of the illness
The CDC recommends that you stay home for at least 24 hours after your fever is gone without the use of fever-reducing medications
If your symptoms worsens you should seek medical attention
Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. Throw the tissue in the trash after you use it
Wash your hands with soap and water, if not available use an alcohol-based hand rub
Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth to prevent the spread of germs
Clean and disinfect surfaces and objects that may be contaminated with germs
Please speak with your medical professional about the flu and the vaccine to discuss your best options to keep healthy during this season. You may also visit the CDC website at https://www.cdc.gov/flu/index.htm for more information.
What is Pediculosis?
Pediculosis is head lice. Head lice are spread by personal contact or sharing of combs, brushes, caps and other clothing. Head lice are common in school age children due to the close contact in a school environment. A common fallacy is that head lice are only present in individuals with a dirty head or lifestyle. Head lice infestation is very common, and has been around since ancient times.
What do head lice look like? What is the life cycle of head lice?
There are three forms of lice:
Nits are the lice eggs. Nits are hard to see and are often confused with dandruff or hair-spray droplets. The nits are firmly attached to the hair shaft. They are small and are yellow to white in color. Nits take a week to hatch
Nymph: The nit hatches into a baby louse called a nymph. Nymph must feed on blood. The nymph matures into adults about seven days after hatching.
Adult: The adult louse is about the size of a sesame seed. It has six legs and is tan to grayish-white in color. Adult lice can live up to 30 days on a person’s head.
Life cycle: The nits hatch into nymphs, which become full grown lice. In order to produce more nits, the adult lice must mate.
Where are head lice most commonly found?
Head lice are most frequently located on the scalp in the hot spots of the ears, neckline, and the back of the neck.
What are the signs and symptoms of the head lice infestation?
A tickling feeling of something moving in the hair
Itching
Sores on the head
Irritability
What is the treatment for head lice infestation?
The best way to treat head lice is to treat the infested individual, other family members that are also infested, and the home. Over–the-counter or prescription medications are used to treat the affected people and their families.
Treating the infested individual:
Remove all clothing
Apply lice medicine. If infected individual has extra-long hair a second bottle (dose) may be required. Do not use cream rinse or combination shampoo/conditioner before using lice medicine. Do not rewash hair for one to two days after treatment.
Put on clean clothes after treatment.
If some live lice are still found eight to 12 hours after treatment but are moving more slowly than before, do not retreat. Comb dead and remaining live lice out of the hair. The medicine sometimes takes longer to kill the lice.
If no dead lice are found and lice seem as active as before eight to 12 hours after treatment, the medicine may not be working. See a health-care professional for a different medication and follow their treatment instructions.
Nit (head lice egg) combs, often found in lice medicine packages, should be used to remove nits and lice from the hair shaft. You may use flea combs made for cars and dogs are also effective.
After the initial treatment, check, comb, and remove nits and lice from hair every two to three days.
Retreat in seven to 10 days.
Check all treated people for two to three weeks until you are sure all lice and nits are gone.
Treating the house:
Machine wash all washable clothing and bed linens that the infested person touched during the two days before treatment (to kill the lice and nits). Use hot water cycle to wash clothes. Dry laundry using the hot cycle for at least 20 minutes
Dry clean clothing that is not washable should be stored into a plastic bag and sealed for two weeks. (By this time, any nits that have survived will have hatched and the nymphs would die without a feeding source.)
Soak combs and brushes for one hour in rubbing alcohol, Lysol, or wash with soap and hot water and then place in a bag and leave in freezer for two days.
Vacuum the floor and furniture
Student Council
Over the past few months, the Student Council has been hard at work trying to improve the school community by promoting school spirit, increasing student participation, and working with the building staff to have more events and center student voice. These efforts have led to the introduction of a year-round Battle of the Classes, with the kickoff culminating in the year’s first pep rally before homecoming. Such positive work has been made possible only through the growing amount of clubs and activities partnering with Student Council, such as the Civic Leaders and the Class Councils, which have been instrumental in creating a stronger school community. President Anthony Peters and Vice President Anthony Fosu have appeared multiple times on The Scoop and have had the opportunity to address all the classes with the various upcoming events planned. As we begin to wrap up our first Spirit Week and the Week of Respect, student council looks forward to the many spirit days, theme days, and school events that are planned. Go Huskies!
Civic Leaders
The Civic Leaders have been working hard during the month of October to contribute to the school-wide efforts of Week of Respect, School Violence Awareness Week, and Red Ribbon Week. For the Week of Respect, students wore blue on October 7th to stand up against bullying and signed our school's No Place for Hate pledge during homeroom and lunch periods. Students contributed to the Tree of Respect in the cafeteria where they identified a person or thing that they respected and earned points for Battle of the Classes.
Students also sent free compliments to their friends in homeroom.
For the week of October 14th-18th, School Violence Awareness Week was recognized by various colors for violence. On Tuesday, students will wear orange for gun violence awareness, Wednesday will be designated as a purple day to recognize the epidemic of domestic violence, Thursday students will dress in black to recognize self-directed violence, and Friday will be a tie dye theme to tie the week-long activities together. On Friday, October 18th, students will be wearing statistics about violence in order to bring recognition to this important cause.
This year, the week of October 28th will be designated as Red Ribbon Week. Students will make pledges during their lunch period to stay drug free and the pledges will be arranged in the shape of a red ribbon. Students will participate in trivia Tuesday which will consist of the Civic Leaders taking students out of the cafeteria to participate in a trivia activity in an effort to earn Battle of the Classes points for their class. Students will wear red on Wednesday and red candy will be distributed to classes on Thursday. The week will culminate in a red ribbon week Friday raffle for a gift basket. The Civic Leaders want to thank everyone one who participated in October's activities.
Club of the Month: Environmental Club
Collection bins are located in the following areas:
- Pop tabs: cafeteria and room 619
- Markers: mail room and room 619
- Pet supplies: front lobby and room 619
Dates to remember:
October 16th: PSAT 8/9- 9th Grade; PSAT- 10th /11th Grade; SAT -12th Grade
November 7th-8th: School Closed
November 14th: End of Marking Period 1