Can you believe we're halfway through September already? What a QUICK month this has turned out to be. I think this rapid feeling is due to the fact that we have so many activities going on at Heartland and it makes the time move by quickly! Just a quick reminder that picture day is tomorrow (9/19/22)!

Looking back at this past week, we had a great time promoting our Think Before You Post campaign. This charge was led by our amazing SRO, Officer Amy Brooks, and the Edmond Police Department. We were able to bring awareness to the cause through fun dress up days and contests, but more importantly the message that came with it. Students were encouraged to write kind notes to their peers and send a positive email to an adult. Officer Brooks highlighted how important it is for our Hawks to think before they post on social media or any other platform as those posts will be tied to them for the rest of their lives! Hopefully your student came home talking about how they would like to have a positive digital footprint!

Looking ahead, we have a very BUSY week in front of us! As we all know, October is Breast Cancer Awareness month! Join us this upcoming week as we highlight the cause through our volleyball Pink Out Week! Show your support by participating in our dress up days, purchasing items from our volleyball players and attending the Pink Out volleyball games on Thursday from 5pm - 7pm. All proceeds from the fundraising and volleyball games will go to the Vera Bradley Foundation for Breast Cancer Research. For more information on how you can support this foundation CLICK HERE. See the graphic below for this week's dress up day themes!

Additionally, Friday September 23rd will be the first of two back-to-back Santa Fe High School EDLAM football games! We will definitely be inviting our students to come join us as we route SFHS to victory! Just a couple of quick reminders:

1. Please have a family plan for picking your student(s) up. We will have them begin calling you at the beginning of the 4th quarter. As administrators, we will not leave the stadium after the game until every HMS student is picked up. If your student is not picked up within 20 minutes of the end of the game, they risk losing the privilege of attending athletic events moving forward.
2. Heartland will have a sectioned-off area on the North end of the Edmond Memorial stadium. We ask that our Thunderhawk students stay in that specific section as a unified group. Please be sure that if your student is going to be in attendance - you have a conversation ahead of time about your family's expectations regarding staying in this area.

All four HMS administrators will be at the game to help assist in monitoring students. Just as mentioned in the letter sent home by Jason Hayes, principal at SFHS, students will be required to stay in the Heartland student section and not freely wandering about in the stadium. Should we encounter repeated behavioral issues with Heartland students, they will be asked to call their parents and removed from the event. It's something that I hate - but has happened a couple of times this year so well worth mentioning. The game starts at 7pm and our admin team will try to be in place by around 6:30pm. We look forward to a GREAT evening and a SFHS Wolves victory!!

WE ARE...HEARTLAND!

Respectfully,

Veronica Johnson

Principal, Heartland Middle School

405-340-2972

Resiliency Makes a Difference!

What makes students persevere despite adversity? Resiliency makes the difference!

Resiliency is a set of protective characteristics possessed by those who are able to

adapt to hardship and succeed. It determines why one group or individual student

succeeds and another does not. Research found six interrelated resiliency skills that

are critical to student success. These skills include: valuing education, academic

confidence, connectedness, stress, health and well-being, and intrinsic motivation.

A student becomes more resilient if they improve performance (includes

attendance, behavior, coursework), take ownership of their education, set and work

towards goals, take responsibility for their lives, manage adversity, and thrive in

school and beyond.

Edmond Public Schools is implementing a Resilience Curriculum and survey called,

Success Highways and Intellispark. Our 6th, 7th, 8th, and 9th-grade students will

take a resiliency survey during Advisory or other class time to aid the district in

determining student needs and providing proactive, prevention programs. Sample

questions from the surveys will be made available for viewing at our schools or the

district office.

You may choose to withdraw your child from the surveys at any time. This is NOT

a psychological evaluation, and the information will NOT be included in your child’s

permanent academic records.

Our 6th, 7th, 8th, and 9th grade students will then receive lessons on resilience,

through Advisory in middle school and Health/History classes in 9th grade.

If you have any questions or would like to opt your child out you can reach the

following grade level counselors by email:

6th Grade - Lisa Edwards - lisa.edwards@edmondschools.net

7th Grade - Whitney Davis - whitney.davis@edmondschools.net

8th Grade - Kim Treece - kim.treece@edmondschools.net

• Eligibility is run mid-week. For example - we run eligibility on Thursday morning based on grades posted on Wednesday evening. If a student is listed as "ineligible" - that means they can not participate in any OSSAA games scheduled for the next calendar week of Sunday - Sunday. By OSSAA rules - students can still practice during that time. However, individual coaches may have other team rules regarding practice.
• Probation vs. Ineligible. The first week a student has a grade that qualifies them for the eligibility report - they are listed as "on Probation"... At that point in time - they can still participate and play in games. (Again - team rules may be more strict) If the student raises the grade by the next eligibility report run - their name comes off the list and they are good to go. If there is still a grade in question - the student becomes ineligible.
• If a student is listed as ineligible - AND - raises their grade (yay!!) the next time there is a grade in question -- they move back to the probation category. Therefore, there is always a week of grace after a student has worked to get their name off of the list.

Please feel free to contact Heartland Athletic Director Laura Brown with questions as I know it can be confusing.