Westwood Wire
April 13, 2021
Dear Westwood Parents,
With only 33 more days left in this school year, I continue to be grateful for the relationships and connections at Westwood. Whenever I am asked about this school year, the first thing that comes to mind is always gratitude. I am grateful for the Westwood community, for the parents, teachers and students who have come together for each other during such an extraordinary time.
As we close out the last two months, we continue to focus on each other as well as the academic excellence for which Westwood is known along with STAAR, EOC and AP testing. Our plan to celebrate the 8th graders who will be moving to high school next year is still in the works and will be announced soon. We also have our eye on next year and beyond and are very excited about the new programming and opportunities we will be rolling out at Westwood during the 21-22 school year.
Additionally, based on the recommendations of a community bond steering committee, RISD trustees voted to place two bond propositions before voters as part of the May 1 election. The total of both propositions is $750 million. If approved by voters, Bond 2021 will not increase RISD’s tax rate.
RISD community members are invited to join district administrators in four public forums in April designed to provide information and answer stakeholder questions about Bond 2021. Please be advised that occupancy is limited because of COVID mitigation protocols, and attendees will complete a health screener upon entry.
The next in-person forum is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Tuesday, April 20, in the auditorium of the Admin Bldg. at 400 S. Greenville Ave. The virtual forums are set for 6 p.m. on Thursday, April 15, and Wednesday, April 21. Links to the virtual forums as well as more information will be available at the RISD Bond 2021 information website: RISD.org/Bond2021.
Click here to view the Bond 2021 informational video. Please mark your calendars to VOTE between April 19th and May 1st.
The next Westwood Wire publications will be presented on May 4th and May 25th. We have also designed a Westwood Wire TESTING EDITION that will be sent out prior to all STAAR, EOC and AP testing. You can access our newsletters in your email inbox, Westwood Twitter & Facebook pages, school website and PTA platforms. If there is additional information you would like to receive in our newsletters, please let us know. We encourage your feedback as we work to collaborate and engage with parents to meet our goal of communication that is proactive, timely and relevant.
Sincerely,
Katie Mottram
WWJH Principal
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Morning Arrival Procedures
WWJH’s morning arrival has been adjusted slightly as students no longer need to pick up shields before class begins. The new procedures will also:
Create a routine for STAAR, EOC and AP testing days
Provide an extra 15 mins of dedicated daily morning tutoring time
Allow teachers an extra hour a week of prep time
Click HERE for the video that students were shown last week and below you can find the procedures outlined in the video.
Procedures:
At 7:45am, students will only be allowed into the cafeteria or may remain outside by the track
o If students use the front entrance, they will be escorted through the building to the cafeteria or may walk around the building to the track.
o Students may not move between the cafeteria & outside
At 8am, students will be allowed into the building
On inclement weather days, we will utilize the gym & cafeteria
Students will only be allowed to eat in the cafeteria seated with a shield
Teachers may schedule tutoring for the morning they are not on duty – students must be provided a pass to enter the building before 7:45am
Westwood Junior High Howl Out Award
Thank you to all the parents who nominated our teachers and staff for the March CARING Howl Out Award. Our nominees were rewarded with certificates and fruit for all their hard work.
This award will be given monthly in our faculty meeting and this month we are highlighting SUPPORT. Your recognition and celebration of our teachers and staff is an amazing gift and if you would like to shout out a teacher or staff member who has shown SUPPORT towards your student please complete the form below.
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1echLOcfZ7lemGMMnhbx_qhvroHNDw5LGw_2KywIg5uU/edit
Leader of the Pack
- ELA - Ayomide Johnson
- Social Studies - Estrella Ubaldo Ortiz
- Math - Siratal Mustakim
- Science - Shahanara Sultana
- Fine Arts - Kamren (Kyndal) Vaughn - Hebert
- Athletics - Carmyn Lawson
- Science - Ella Duston
- CTE - Beyonce Kelly
- Leadership/AVID - Pierce Summers
- LOTE - Luke Hunter
Cheer Tryouts
Bond 2021 Information Video:
Anticipated Projects by campus/building:
https://web.risd.org/bond2021/wp-content/uploads/BondDotGrid.pdf
Bond 2021 Information presentation slide deck:
https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1Tw-TGuJilLNJJUvzAs-hWtWw_Wgn--yvo4ywq_cvbVg/edit?usp=sharing
Public forums have also been scheduled to share information about Bond 2021 with the community:
- April 12th – In person Forum at the RISD Administration Building, Auditorium – 6:00 p.m.
- April 15th – Virtual Forum hosted on Zoom, link to be shared later next month – 6:00 p.m.
- April 20th – In person Forum at the RISD Administration Building, Auditorium – 6:00 p.m.
- April 21st – Virtual Forum hosted on Zoom, link to be shared later next month – 6:00 p.m.
Mrs. Ruttenburg and Mrs. Scoggins are going to be working with 8th graders to finish up their Personalized Graduation Plans (PGPs) before the end of the school year. If your 8th grader is virtual, the counselors are going to send a link out to schedule a 15 minute zoom meeting to finish their PGP.
The counselors will make changes to courses for next school year this week from the course verifications link submissions. Student schedules for next school year will not be released until August. Information about how/when students will see their schedules for the 21-22 school year will be communicated as soon as it’s finalized.
Summer School
Parents,
Information about Summer School has been released https://risdsummerprograms.membershiptoolkit.com/home. Registration is open now and ends April 9th. There are a limited amount of spots for junior high and high school accelerated summer school so don’t wait to register. You must pay the full amount of the class at the time you register. Current 7th graders can only register for classes that are under the 7/8 grade offerings section and current 8th graders (and older) should register for a class under the 9-12 grade offerings section. The summer programs site is still adding information about summer programing as it is being finalized.
Online Enrollment for the 2021 - 2022 School Year is now OPEN!
If you have not yet enrolled your student(s) for the 2021 - 2022 school year please do so as soon as possible! All parents recieved an Snapcode for each child enrolled in RISD, you will need this to be able to enroll. If you do not have one please reach out to Ms. Henry - the WWJH SDS at 469-593-3510.
For more information visit - risd.org/enrollonline.
Anti-Vaping Information
Upcoming Testing Dates
- April 19 - 29: ELAR & MATH MAPS TESTING
- May 5 - 12: STAAR TESTING
Track & Field:
The 7th and 8th grade boys and girls track will compete in the district qualifiers meet at BHS on Thursday, April 15th. The district track meet for the student-athletes who qualify will participate in the district meet on April 22nd at Eagle Mustang Stadium.
Soccer:
Soccer tryouts will begin during the week of April 19th You must have a current physical on file and all UIL Rank-One paperwork completed prior to practicing or working out face-to-face. Students must also be in good standings academically. Please see Coach Bristow or Coach Lockett for more details.
RHS Athletics Summer Camps
Physicals at RHS
Westwood Choirs hit the high notes at UIL Assessment
Recently the Westwood Non-Varsity Treble Choir, directed by Ms. Nolan, and the Westwood Varsity Treble Choir Bella Voce, directed by Mr. Price, participated in the annual UIL Choir Concert and Sightreading Assessment. For the assessment, choirs from all over Texas spend months learning and perfecting 3 songs chosen from a prescribed music list. Also as a part of the assessment, choirs are expected to sightread an entire piece of music that is presented to them that day. These assessments are judged by two separate 3-member panels of adjudicators who score each performance based on a standardized judging rubric. In a typical year, this would be completed live in front of judges. However, due to Covid restrictions, the performances were videotaped here at WWJH and will be judged virtually by the adjudicators.
While we won’t know right away the results of our assessment scores, BOTH choirs gave AMAZING performances in BOTH the concert and sightreading portions! We feel confident that we will once again receive top scores and continue our tradition of excellence in the WWJH Choir department. Stay tuned for the next edition of the Westwood Wire to find out our results!
Congratulations, Non-Varsity Treble Choir and Bella Voce!
Westwood Orchestra
The Westwood Orchestra received the Sweepstakes Award at the 2021 UIL Concert & Sightreading Assessment. This means they received the top "1" rating from all six judges. It doesn't get any better than that! Congratulations to our Orchestra Students!
Links to the Performance is here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1NgiUF2jce5jeDSMhl6AWoOFEf-zwJ4dl/view?usp=sharing
Westwood Junior High Math, Science & Leadership Magnet
Email: kathryn.mottram@risd.org
Website: https://schools.risd.org/WestwoodJH
Location: 7630 Arapaho Road, Dallas, TX, USA
Phone: 469-593-3600
Facebook: facebook.com/WestWoodJH/
Twitter: @WestwoodJH_RISD