Tornado Watch
North Medford High School*Volume 38*Issue 2*November 2018
Letter From The Principal
Dear Black Tornado Families,
Our first 9 weeks has just ended which means nearly all students have completed 25% of their needed credits for this year to be counted as “on track” for graduation. At each grading period, we check on these numbers to see how students are progressing and make adjustments as needed. I am happy to report that over the last couple of years our freshman and sophomore classes have shown significant improvement in the number of credits they earn each year. The end result is an increase in juniors and seniors doing better which has resulted in North Medford having the highest graduation rate in the history of the Medford School District at 90.27%! I fully expect our students to show similar gains across the board this year.
Fall has brought us our first senior meeting of the year where we introduce our Josten’s rep who helps students with ordering graduation caps and gowns and all the other things that go with graduation. A new component of graduation this year is that students will also be awarded a “Pathway Certificate” to indicate their chosen pathway and concentration of courses throughout their NMHS careers.
November brings fall leaves and parent conferences during the Thanksgiving holiday week. You will sign up electronically this year, so keep an eye on your emails for a link. During conferences, there will also be opportunities for you to attend seminars on college applications, scholarships, and success strategies for high school students. Our Tornado Future Center and our Student Services department will present these seminars. Be looking for information headed your way about the dates and times for these events.
PSAT testing was completed for all sophomores and scores will be available in December. We will remind you when they arrive so that you can ask your student to share them with you.
Lastly, all students have completed the “Youth Truth” survey in which they have given us feedback about school, classes, staff, and how they feel about their experiences at North Medford. This invaluable input helps us formulate changes and improvements to our programs that will continue our trajectory to being the best possible high school experience for ALL North Medford Black Tornado students!
Your Principal,
Daniel P. Smith, Ed. D.
North Medford High School Administrative Information:
Principal: Dan Smith 541-842-1189
Assistant Principals: Jessica Hamlin 541-842-1182
Jesse Pershin 541-842-1186, Erika Wright 541-842-5332
Counselors: Rob Cowden 541-842-5220,
Coray Dykes 541-842-1253, Mayra Garcia 541-842-1251
Michelle House 541-842-5211
Activities Office: Sheila Johnson 541-842-5215
Athletic Director: Patrick Grady 541-842-1194
Attendance: 541-842-3671 - 24 hours/7 day Attendance Email: attendance@medford.k12.or.us
District Website: www.medford.k12.or.us
Main Office Telephone: 541-842-3670
Main Office - FAX Number: 541-842-5206
Registrar: 541-842-1187
Student Center: 541-842-1191
Student Management: 541-842-1192
Tornado Future Center: 541-842-5222
Senior Pictures, Senior Quotes, and Yearbook Information
Lifetouch took a yearbook picture of each senior at registration. If you want to use this photo in the yearbook, you don’t need to do anything. However, seniors may also have yearbook portraits taken by professional photographers of their choice. We will replace the Lifetouch picture with the new photo, but pictures must be emailed to: yearbook.photos@medford.k12.or.us by December 21, 2018.
All photos must meet the following requirements:
· Full color .jpeg file with a resolution of at least 300 dpi.
· Follows school dress code (Not allowed: props, spaghetti straps, bare shoulders, and hats.)
Any senior pictures not meeting the specifications listed above will not be used.
Email photos as a file attachment to yearbook.photos@medford.k12.or.us with the subject line senior photo and student’s first and last name.
Important Senior Dates:
· Senior quotes: Due by November 2, 2018 - Submit on Google form sent through email
· Ads for Grads Early Bird (lowest price): Due by November 30, 2018
Purchase online at www.jostens.com/yearbooks/yearbook-ads.html
· Ads for Grads Deadline: February 12, 2019
· Senior photos due by December 21, 2018
Submit to yearbook.photos@medford.k12.or.us
Follow dress code; head and shoulder shot; (read flyer with requirements).
YEARBOOK PRICES
Before January 1, 2019 - $55 Purchase online at jostens.com or at the NMHS Activity Office
After January 1, 2019 - $65
If you have questions or concerns regarding senior pictures or the yearbook, please contact
Curtis Stout at 541-842-5311 or by email at: Curtis.stout@medford.k12.or.us
Sincerely,
Curtis Stout
North Medford Yearbook Advisor
Senior Dates and Deadlines
November 1 - Seniors and parents who have questions for Jostens regarding their graduation orders, please come to the Commons between 4:30 – 6:30 pm.
November 7 - College Application Day 8 am - noon in the Commons. Volunteers who have been cleared through the VIM process are needed. Please contact Jeri Childress at 541-842-1243.
November 19 - NMHS Foundation & OSAC Scholarship presentations 6 p.m.
Guide for the College Bound Athlete presentation at 7 pm NMHS Commons.
November 19 and 20 - FAFSA labs for seniors & parents who need help completing their FAFSA. Watch announcements for times. Please note: these announcements will be posted during conference week.
December 3 - North Medford Foundation Scholarship application opens.
Seniors and Parents
Please keep an eye on the Class of 2019 Information on our website. We keep it updated with current information that seniors and parents need to know! Several outside scholarships are posted on this calendar. Scholarships are for seniors, however, some can be applied for as early as your freshman year. Scholarships appear on the calendar when they are due so look ahead to give yourself ample time to complete an application.
ACT & SAT Test Dates
Medford Early College
Save Time! Save Money! Earn an associate’s degree in high school!
Medford School District will pay college tuition for any student who wants to attend classes at Rogue Community College (RCC) or Southern Oregon University (SOU).
College classes also count toward a high school diploma.
RVTD buses stop at each high school and goes to the RCC Higher Education Building and the Table Rock Campus several times a day.
For more information, contact your counselor or administrators at NMHS.
Tornado Future Center
Students, if you are looking for scholarship opportunities or have questions about your future career, take the time to check out the Tornado Future Center page on the NMHS website.
For more information about how the Tornado Future Center may assist you, come in and visit Jeri Childress or Mike Mayben in M-1.
Drug Dogs on NMHS Campus
As you know, we take drug and alcohol use at North Medford High School very seriously. To assist in the ongoing pursuit of creating a safe and drug-free school setting, we are working with the Medford Police Department to bring trained narcotics dogs on campus. We will conduct searches quarterly.
Here are a few things we want all parents and students to know:
- The police dogs are highly trained and use their sensitive noses to sniff out drugs.
- When these dogs go on alert they sit down passively.
- The dogs will be used throughout our facility, including lockers, parking lots, and surrounding areas.
- The dogs will be accompanied by local law enforcement in the event any illegal substances are discovered.
As always, our greatest concern is the safety and well being of our students. It is our hope this will be a deterrent to illegal drugs at school and will encourage our students to make safe and healthy decisions.
Fall Conference Information
Fall Conferences will be Monday, November 19, and Tuesday, November 20. We will be offering 15-minute conferences for students, teachers, and parents to dialogue about your student. All 9th grade students will be expected to attend a conference. In addition, we will also be offering several 30-minute presentations for parents and students about success in high school, next steps, and other important and relevant topics. More information will be available soon on our website regarding how to schedule a conference for your student.
Attendance Reminder
ABSENT? LATE? NEED TO LEAVE EARLY?
Call 541-842-3671
Attendance Window Reminder
If you are bringing a student to school after an appointment or taking a student out of school, please be sure to use our attendance window. It is at the front of the school which makes dealing with attendance easy and convenient for you.
North Medford Media Center
Visit the North Medford Media Center page for resources you can access from home. We have much to offer, from databases to eBooks and our regular library catalog.
Talented and Gifted
Medford District 549C schools are in the process of identifying students who are academically talented and/or intellectually gifted. Students may be nominated for the Talented and Gifted Program (TAG) by the following: national or state test scores (97th percentile or above), teachers, parents, community members, or by self-nomination. After nominations are complete, information will be gathered and a screening committee will screen each student. Students will be contacted if additional testing is needed. If you wish to obtain information on this program or you have any questions, please contact Terri Dahl, the district talented and gifted coordinator at 541-842-3633, or at NMHS contact Tracy Patterson, at 541-842-1249.
Annual Child Find Notification Services for Students with Special Needs
Are you concerned about your child’s development? Do you feel your child has significant learning, speech/language, physical or behavioral problems that interfere with their classroom performance? Medford School District 549C wants to find and evaluate the skills of children under the age of 21 years living within its district boundaries who have serious physical, vision, hearing, speech/language, learning, or emotional problems so that appropriate educational services may be provided for them. If you have concerns about your child’s development, please contact the school office or the Student Services Office at 541-842-3628.
Special Education Workshop For Parents
November 27 - Noon – 1 pm – Understanding the IEP, Part 2
November 27 - 5:30 – 7 pm – Understanding the IEP, Part 2
December 18 - Noon – 1 pm – Teaching Self-Regulation to Kids and Yourself
December 18 - 5:30 – 7 pm – Teaching Self-Regulation to Kids and Yourself
January 29 - 5:30 – 7 pm – Transition Services
February 26 - 5:30 – 7 pm Voices of our Students
March 19 - TBD – Ability Awareness Workshop for Students and Parents
March 19 - 5:30 – 7 pm – Ability Awareness Gala
April 30 - 5:30 – 7 pm – Avoiding Power Struggles
May 28 - 5:30 – 7 pm – DIY Summer Activities
International Band Clinic Honor Band
Congratulations to the following students who were selected to perform in the Western International Band Clinic Honor Bands in Seattle, November 16-19:
Kelsy Biggs, Anna Borth, Aspen Denney, Daniel Denney, Skyler Heumann, Aidan Jacob,
Alene Lila (alternate), Ellie McGary, Maddy Ray, and Alex Yu.
DECA District Competition at OIT
Congratulations to the following DECA students for their performance at the district competition at OIT University Monday, October 8:
In Marketing Communications-
Cassidy Mcdowell - 1st place overall, 2nd place testing, first place in role-play 1 and 2nd place in role-play 2,
Ryan Turner - 2nd place overall, first place in role-play 1, and 1st place role-play 2
Danielle McCormick - 2nd place in testing and 3rd place role-play 1 in Retail Marketing
Morgan Kennedy - 1st place overall, 3rd place testing, 2nd place role-play 1, and first place role-play 2
Kayla Mullenix - 1st place role-play 1 in Apparel and Accessories
Philip Cary - 1st place overall, 1st place in testing 2nd place role-play 1, first place role-play 2
Abby Christensen - 2nd place role-play, 2 in Quick Serve Restaurant Management
Kayla Mullenix - 3rd place role-play 1 in Hospitality
Jimmy Colombo - 2nd place testing.
NMHS Rocketry Group Traveling to Kennedy Space Center
The NMHS Rocketry Group will be traveling to the Kennedy Space Center (Florida) in late January to compete in a NASA rocketry competition. The Rocketry Group consists of three teams and 11 total students and is mentored by astronomy teacher Robert Black. Each Team will also compete in the National “Team America Rocketry Challenge.” Each team will design, engineer, build and test a homemade rocket that must meet very specific requirements. The top 24 teams will compete for a national title in Virginia in May. Team leaders Alice Lulich, Gabby Parks, and Rebecca Guenter recently spoke to the Medford Rotary about their planned competition.
Annual School Improvement Survey
Medford School District Families:
Please take a moment to fill out our school improvement survey. Your feedback is critical in continuing to improve the educational opportunities we provide to our students. The survey will be open until November 26.
Thank you!
Congratulations to our October Students of The Month
Kiwanis - Gabby Parks
Soroptomist - Kaily Altland
Child Development Center
The NMHS CDC currently has preschool openings for children 30 months to 5 years of age. The certified center offers full and part-time programs operating Monday through Friday from 7:30 am to 4 pm. Tuition is based on session selection.
For registration and further program information, please call 541-842-1290.