October 13th
vol. 6
Dear Parent Community:
As a school community, we are disturbed by the hostile situation, acts of terrorism in Israel, and the continued global unrest we are experiencing. As the principal of LCJSMS, I want to assure our community that Summit Middle School is an institution where antisemitism, racism, hate, bigotry, homophobia, and religious bigotry of any kind will NOT be tolerated. Many of our families in this community have been impacted by these heinous acts of terrorism. We see you, stand with you and support you. This is a moment where we need to unite as a community to ensure our students feel supported and safe in the school environment.
As such, our exceptional team of educators and administrators are actively examining ways to further embrace inclusivity and tolerance within our school. Complacency has no home here. Our school culture and climate team meets every few weeks to gather resources, develop instructional lessons rooted in Social Emotional Learning, and examine the complexity of societal issues. Our team is continuing to create lessons that denounce antisemitism, racism, hate, bigotry, and homophobia. Moreover, as previously communicated, our school has partnered with The Social Institute, where we actively incorporate contemporary issues into the advisory curriculum. We continue to learn and grow together as a school community.
Please know that I always encourage keeping the lines of communication open. Please contact me if you have a question, concern, or comment.
Thank you,
John Ciferni
Principal
8th Grade DC Trip
As many know, our trip to Washington, D.C., was reinstated. As was communicated at the coffee, the cost of the trip has increased because of transportation and lodging. We are adjusting to make the trip more attainable for all our students. Our PTO parent community recently started a GoFundMe to help subsidize the cost of the trip. Please see the link below and consider sharing it with your families, friends, relatives, and loved ones. Thank you for your continued support.
DROP OFF/PARKING CHANGE
Student drop off/parking in the back of the building will not be available beginning on Monday, October 16th. Construction that is part of the Bond Project will be taking place in that area. We understand the inconvenience this may cause, and appreciate your patience during this time. Please keep in the mind that additional time may be needed in order for students to attend homeroom on time.
Hispanic Coffee with the Principal
We will be hosting an evening Coffee with the Principal for our Hispanic community. This will be on October 19th at 7:00pm in the auditorium.
Winter Clothing Drive
The collection for the winter clothing drive will begin on October 16th with an end date of October 31st. The date of the event is November 2nd from 4:00pm - 6:00pm. Families can choose to donate an item, take an item or to trade for a different size. You don’t have to bring something to take something. This activity is for anyone! You can also view the flyer for the event here.
Parent Wellness Toolkit
CDC on Children’s Mental Health
Upcoming events:
Oct 17 at 7 pm: “Not My Kid” by Stephen and Kevin Hill of Sobriety Speaks in the Summit High School Auditorium
Oct 21: Red Ribbon Drug Prevention 5K and Walk. Aimed at educating youth on the dangers of drugs and encouraging them to live a drug-free lifestyle at Nomahegan Park, Cranford, NJ.
Halloween Costume Drive
Stephen Hill Presentation
On Tuesday, October 17th, our 8th-grade students will hear Stephen Hill's presentation. Stephen is the founder of Speak Sobriety, a young person in recovery, bestselling author, a recovery coach, and a defense attorney. His story was the main feature in Surviving the Hill, a recently released documentary on the drug epidemic focusing on prevention and recovery. He will talk about his story of addiction that began in middle school and his eventual recovery. We hope our students will resonate with his story and learn a valuable lesson they can carry as they navigate their teen years.
On Monday, October 16th, from 7–8:30 pm, all parents in the district are invited to attend the parent portion of his presentation in the high school auditorium. Stephen will speak with his father, attorney, and advocate, Kevin Hill. Together, they will discuss how parents can look out for warning signs within their child, how to communicate with parents of their child's peers when noticing something of concern and offer a parent’s perspective on adolescent substance use. We hope to see many parents and guardians at this critical presentation, and we are grateful to the Summit Educational Foundation for making it possible.
After these presentations, we hope families will have the opportunity to have open and honest conversations about the dangers of substance use during adolescence.
Doors will open at 6:30 pm.
This event will be held at Summit High School, 125 Kent Pl Blvd, Summit, NJ 07901.
Doors open at 6:30pm. We look forward to seeing you there!
8th Grade Community Service Opportunities- Supporting Civic Engagement In Summit
Jefferson School PTO
The Jefferson School PTO is hosting the annual Fall Festival on Saturday, October 14th, from 11 a.m. - 3 p.m. This is a fun, community-wide event with pony rides, a petting zoo, bounce houses, raffles, various carnival games, and more! Please consider volunteering for this fun event!
*Please bring any paperwork that needs to be signed with you to the event. We will sign it that day.
Brayton Fall Fest
Wilson Family Fun Day
Wilson Primary Center is looking for volunteers to help with their Family fun Day on October 21st. Please review the available slots and select whichever best fits your schedule. If you are able to help out for the whole event, please sign up for both slots. This is an outdoor event that will take place at the Wilson Primary Center at 14 Beekman Terrace , Summit NJ. Parking will be available in the WPC parking lot. Please email wilsonpcpto@gmail.comwith any questions.
*Please remember to check the daily announcements and our website for more community service opportunities.
Student Identification Badges (Student IDs)
Our school district is placing a strong focus on school safety and security. As such, we are intensifying our focus on students wearing their student IDs at all times throughout the school day. Students who are not wearing their IDs could incur disciplinary consequences, after a certain number of infractions (3 or more per month). We would appreciate the support of our parent community in emphasizing that message at home.
Student Lateness to School
Our school district holds student attendance and timeliness to school as an utmost priority to ensure student academic success. Students with four (or more tardies) per month will be assigned a Central Detention. Students will be given additional detentions for subsequent tardy points (8, 12, 16). These totals will be run once per month at the end of the month. Central Detentions are held from 2:55-3:35 PM Tuesday through Thursday. Further, extended detentions (until 5 PM) will be assigned for students with chronic tardiness. Additionally, students may be excluded from school activities for chronic lateness. We know the traffic in this area is a challenge and we are appreciative of parent support in helping students to arrive on time to school each day!
Executive functioning
6th-Grade Parents:
We are excited to announce that the "Let's Get Organized" topic for our first round of Executive Functioning classes was a hit! We have another series of classes scheduled called "Active Listening". Please be advised that there is a class limit and students can only be signed up for once class in each series.They are first come, first serve, and you must sign up in advance.
Please fill out this form in order for your child(ren) to attend the class. The first topic "Let's Get Organized." will have another class on October 18th from 3-4pm after school. The second topic "Active Listening" will be held from 3-4 p.m. after school on the following dates:
Wednesday, Oct. 25th
Thursday, Oct. 26th
Wednesday, Nov. 1st
Thursday, Nov. 2nd
We will have more course offerings on a variety of Executive Functioning topics throughout the duration of the year. These courses will be available later in the year for students in grades 7 & 8.
*All who submit a request will receive a follow up email before their scheduled class regarding registration status.