JMS Weekly Update
January 9, 2022
Dear JMS Families,
This week's Update contains information about the following:
- Health and Safety Updates (12+ booster clinic, live streaming, pool testing, masking)
- New News (delays/closings, CDTs, RAAPS, course selection)
- 8th Grade Transition Information
- 5th Grade Transition Information
Please complete this FORM if anyone in your family have tested positive for COVID-19 or have been experiencing COVID-19 symptoms. We want to keep the children here and we want to keep them safe. This information is critical to the safety of the students and staff at JMS.
Take Care,
Dr. Sarah Shaw, Principal
Ms. Katelyn Deet, Assistant Principal
Weekly Schedule
Tuesday - Day 5
Wednesday - Day 1
Thursday - Day 2
Friday - Day 3
Monday (1/17) - No School
Tuesday (1/18) - No School
Wednesday (1/19) - Day 4
Health and Safety Updates
12+ COVID-19 Vaccine Booster Clinic - 1/13 @ 3:30-5:30PM
On Thursday, January 13, 2022, the District will host a booster vaccination clinic for those 12 years of age and older using the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine from 3:30 pm - 5:30 pm at the High School’s Gold Gym. Student participation in a vaccine clinic is voluntary, and students will need to be accompanied by a parent/guardian.
To schedule an appointment: LINK
For a student to participate, it must be at least 6 months after the 2nd dose of the vaccine.
Please schedule an appointment by Tuesday, January 11, 2022 by 5 pm. The clinic will host a maximum of 480 participants.
Reminders of what to bring:
The completed consent form completing DOSE 3 section of the form.
A copy of your insurance card and the last 4 digits of their social security number (pharmacy requirement).
The student’s vaccination card showing 1st and 2nd doses.
Live Streaming to Class
Quarantining as a result of COVID-19 protocols (e.g. COVID-19+, unvaccinated close contact, in the process of COVID-19 testing) is the only reason that students are able to attend class remotely. Quarantining as a result of COVID-19 protocols must be approved through the Nurse's Office. Live streaming links will be availble to the children within 24 of approval from the nurse's office.
If your child has been identified as a close contact, is exhibiting COVID-19 symptoms, and/or has tested positive for COVID-19, please complete this FORM.
If your child is approved to attend class remotely, Nurse Suess will contact your child's teachers. Students who have been approved to attend class remotely will follow their normal bell schedule and will log into their classes using the meeting links on Clever, Google Classroom or form an email shared from their teacher.
JMS Pool Testing - Tuesdays beginning at 7:30AM
You can help keep our students and staff safe by participating in our weekly COVID-19 pool testing.
If you are interested in enrolling in the JMS pool testing program, use this link to enroll and when prompted, enter our school specific code: NS1M2J.
You can find more information about the District's pool testing program on the District Website.
Masking
At this time the District will follow the recommendations of the Center for Disease Control and the Allegheny County Health Department to continue requiring universal masking for all individuals in our schools and facilities regardless of vaccination status. Universal indoor masking remains a critical component of our layered mitigation strategies, which also include physical distancing, pool testing, and contact tracing.
We want to reinforce that we are taking mask wearing very seriously. Students who are not complying with our masking expectations will be sent home, as this creates a health and safety risk for students and staff.
New News
When emergencies, such as weather conditions, water main breaks, power failures, etc. require the delay or closing of in person school, notice is given as early when possible. Closings and delay notices are usually made by 6:00 a.m. Typically, when school is cancelled, after-school and evening activities are also cancelled.
Generally, when school buildings are closed due to weather, all students will learn via remote synchronous instruction. However, there may be limited situations where we need to cancel school completely (e.g., loss of power in the community.) These school day(s) will be made up as noted on the District calendar.
If we have a remote day, the children will log in to their classes using the links found on Clever, Google Classroom, Schoology, or in an email from their teacher. The children will follow the Regular Bell Schedule or the 10AM Start Schedule, whichever schedule applies to the current situation. Students who do not log into class will be marked absent.
Typically, JMS will send additional communication with specific instructions.
Students will be participating in the winter administration of the CDTs in January. The purpose of this tool is to explore students strengths and areas for growth compared to the grade level standards.
CDT results provide information that will help guide instructional programming for teachers. The CDT reports are designed to provide a snapshot of how students are performing in relation to the Pennsylvania Assessment Anchors & Eligible Content and Keystone Assessment Anchors & Eligible Content as they progress through the year. Because the CDT is diagnostic in nature relative to student acquisition of the standards, the data may be used to adjust instruction based upon the changing strengths and needs of the students.
At the end of the year, if you are interested in obtaining your child’s CDT results, please contact the teacher administering the CDT to request that they email you a report of your child’s progress.
7th & 8th Grade Families - Rapid Assessment for Adolescent Prevention Screening (RAAPS)
As parents you are well aware that the physical and mental health of young people plays a key role in their ability to succeed in school, have rewarding relationships with family members and friends, and lead productive and happy lives. Jefferson Middle School is committed to work with you, not only to educate your children, but also to ensure that they reach their full potential outside of the classroom. To that end, we are offering families of 7 and 8th grade students the opportunity to have their teens participate in a wellness check-up utilizing the Rapid Assessment for Adolescent Prevention Screening (RAAPS).
Below you will find all the necessary information regarding this program. We hope you will take advantage of this confidential check up.
JMS 2022-2023 Course Selection - 1/31-2/7
We are currently beginning our planning for the 2022-2023 school year. The course selection process will begin on January 31st and will end on February 7th.
Online course selection will OPEN for all students (incoming 6th, 7th and 8th graders) and parents on January 31st through PowerSchool/Dashboard. This system will CLOSE on February 7th at 8:00AM. Please complete the online course selections for next year's middle school courses during this time frame through your student or parent Dashboard accounts. You can access course selection in Dashboard by clicking on the chair and pencil icon labeled as "Class Registration." The directions linked above should guide you through the process.
Our counselors will be visiting all classes and elementary schools to discuss this information with students in the next two weeks.
8th Grade Transition Information
Thank you for joining us this week for our 8th Grade to HS Transition Meeting. You can review the presentation and the handout below:
If you have any questions about this presentation or HS scheduling, you can contact Mrs. Schneider or Mrs. Jackson.
8th Grade - High School Curriculum Night - 1/27
Another opportunity for additional information on high school programming is High School Curriculum Night held the evening of Thursday, January 27th. Please check the high school calendar at https://hs.mtlsd.org/about/school-calendar for more specific information when it becomes available.
Questions regarding 9th grade transition should be directed to Beth Schneider, HS Counselor, at eschneider@mtlsd.net or 412-344-2063.
Is your child interested in hands on learning? Are they interested in learning a trade. If so, learn more about Parkway West Career and Technology Center! Parkway has some really awesome programs.
It’s time again for our annual visit to Parkway West CTC! 8th grade students will have the opportunity to attend a field trip to Parkway on Friday, January 28th. While there, students will shadow and explore 2 programs of interest to them.
Below is a link to the permission slip and Parkway interest survey. Students must complete both forms to attend the field trip. Forms must be submitted to me by Wednesday, January 26th.
5th Grade Transition Information
5th to 6th Grade Parent Transition Meetings - 1/19 & 1/20 - JMS Auditorium
It's only January, but it is already time to start planning for the 2022-2023 school year and that means a move to 6th grade at Jefferson Middle School. We are looking forward to meeting you and welcoming you and your family into our school community.
To begin this process, we would like to invite you to a parent information session to discuss the middle school schedule, course offerings, interdisciplinary teams, and transition in general. The parent session schedule is below. In the event you cannot make the session assigned to your elementary school, feel free to attend a different session or the evening session. The information presented will be the same in all sessions.
January 19th @ 9:00AM - Jefferson & Hoover Elementary Families
January 19th @ 7:00PM - General Session (HES, JES, LES, MES)
January 20th @ 9:00AM - Lincoln & Markham Elementary Families
Course selection is an online process that will be completed through Dashboard between January 31st and February 7th.
We look forward to meeting with you to discuss the wonderful middle school experience your child is about to embark upon!
Other Information
Mt. Lebanon High School's Black Student Union (BSU) 1st Annual Book Drive
Beginning January 3 through January 31, the BSU will be hosting a book drive in an effort to increase the representation of Black characters in our classrooms and libraries to provide students with a better understanding of their and other cultures.
These and similar books can be found at www.mahoganybooks.com
Drop boxes will be available at each school in the Mt Lebanon School District from January 3rd, 2022 through January 31st, 2022.
JMS Yearbooks are on sale now through January 14, 2022. 8th Grade Advertisements are also for sale from now until January 14 for $35.
Prices:
- Saturday, January 1 at 12:00 AM- Friday, January 14 at 11:59 PM: $60
Limited extras will be sold on the last day of school for $60
Order your yearbook and take out an 8th grade ad TODAY! yearbookforever.com
If you are having trouble ordering your yearbook or ordering your 8th Grade Advertisement, please see the below video to walk you through the ordering process: How to Order a JMS Yearbook or Order a Grade 8 Advertisement
If you are unsure if you've already ordered a yearbook, please watch this video to see how you can check your order status: Did I Order a 2021-2022 Yearbook?
The Walsworth website may be down from time to time as many families work to make their last minute purchases across the country. If you experience technical difficulties, please be patient and refresh the website and go back if needed. If after refreshing and trying an additional time, please contact Walsworth Customer Support at 877-723-6344.
Technology
Families In Need of Technology
As we prepare to start the 2021-2022 school year, we are asking families who need to borrow student technology to please complete the form linked below:
Be sure to list every student for whom you need to borrow a device on this form. Once you have submitted your form, you will receive status emails including device pickup details from an @mtlsd.net email address. Please also be sure to whitelist @mtlsd.net email addresses with your email provider to ensure that you receive these communications from us.
Please direct any and all questions regarding loaned equipment to our support address: RemoteSupport@mtlsd.net
Athletics
Middle School Athletics
You can learn everything you need to know about Middle School Athletics, including starting dates, by visiting the MS Athletics Webpage.
JMS PTA Information
Congratulations to our Jefferson Middle School students whose entries will move onto the next round of judging. Good luck at the Pennsylvania PTA Region 3 level!
- Visual Arts Second Place - Aaisha Ansari- "Ideas of Change"
- Photography First Place - Maddie Sacco - "Kid Goats Looking into the Unknown"
- Literature Second Place - Paridhi Ganeriwal - Dear Diary, 4th of October 2041
Committee Updates
Nominating Committee
The purpose of the nominating committee is to prepare the slate of candidates for the annual unit officer elections in March. Any PTA member interested in serving on the Nominating Committee please email jmsptamtl@gmail.com.
SHOPPER & SCHOOL REWARD PROGRAMS
Amazon
If you haven’t used AmazonSmile Before:
- Go to smile.amazon.com and sign in with your regular Amazon username and password.
- You will be prompted to choose a charity. You should enter "Jefferson Middle School PTA Inc” into the search box that appears. It will say "Pittsburgh, PA" as the location for the charity.
- Make sure whenever you check out, you always go to smile.amazon.com on your browser.
If you already use AmazonSmile:
- Go to smile.amazon.com and sign in with your username and password
- Make sure the charity you’ve selected is "Jefferson Middle School PTA Inc." This information is located under the search bar where it says “supporting”.
- If it isn’t, you can change it by clicking on the charity and selecting “change”
- This will bring you to a page where you can search for “Jefferson Middle School PTA Inc” and allow you to switch charities.
Make sure whenever you check out, you always go to smile.amazon.com to checkout.
If you shop on the Amazon app. Please activate Amazon Smile on your mobile app by opening the app and finding ’Settings’ in the main menu (☰). Tap on ‘AmazonSmile’ and follow the on-screen instructions to turn on AmazonSmile on your phone.
Box Tops
Scanning Box Tops is an easy way to earn money for our school. See Box Tops for more information on how to scan Box Tops and to download the app. Receipts must be scanned within 14 days for the Box Tops to be scanned electronically.
Office Depot/Office Max
Office Depot/Office Max has a school rewards program. When shopping, remember to ask the cashier to tag Jefferson Middle School. For online orders, enter our school ID (Thomas Jefferson Middle School ID:70088453 Pittsburgh, PA) on the Thank You Confirmation page.
Resources For Families
The following resources provide information to help Mt. Lebanon School District families and staff navigate the complexities of COVID-19 and the impact the pandemic it is having on our daily lives. These resources will be updated as more information becomes available.
The MTLSD School Counselors in partnership with The Allegheny Children's Initiative Inc., have compiled a list of social services resources that may be helpful to you and your family. Please take a look and reach out to these organizations. They are here to help with any of the following:
- Food
- Rent/Mortgage
- Utilities
- Pets
- Abuse
- Mental Health
- General Assistance
Safe2Say Something is a youth violence prevention program run by the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General. The program teaches youth and adults how to recognize warning signs and signals, especially within social media, from individuals who may be a threat to themselves or others and to “say something” BEFORE it is too late. With Safe2Say Something, it’s easy and confidential to report safety concerns to help prevent violence and tragedies.
Here’s how it works:
- Submit a report through the Safe2SaySomething system
- Crisis center reviews, assesses and processes all submissions
- Crisis center sends all submissions to school administration and/or law enforcement for intervention
- If needed, crisis center may contact tipster anonymously through the app
Jefferson Middle School
The Jefferson Middle School learning community has an exceptional reputation for its dedicated teachers, staff and parents working together to provide learning experiences for our children that include high expectations, a challenging curriculum and a shared commitment to provide the best education possible for each and every student.
Email: sshaw@mtlsd.net
Website: https://jms.mtlsd.org/
Location: 21 Moffett Street, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
Phone: (412) 344-2120
Facebook: facebook.com/jmslebo
Twitter: @JMSMTLSD