Ram Nation News
Week of May 21, 2018
Vision
#AlltheWayUp
I want to thank you for all the things you have done throughout this school year. Even though we can see the light at the end of the tunnel, we are still in session. In order for us to make sure that light is not another train coming at us, we need to take an active role in some very important items.
As you have already noticed, our students are a little more active now than they were during the first part of this semester. With one more week of instruction, and with ACPs around the corner, we need to make sure we provide high quality and engaging instruction to our students. The best discipline and classroom management strategy is students’ engagement. Make sure that with our actions, our students do not get the false impression that they are “off the hook”, and take a relaxed attitude towards their education. We will all have time to relax when the time comes, but for these two weeks, we must make sure our students know we all mean business; we are still getting ready for the next grade level.
Additionally, during students’ transitions, it is imperative that every teacher and staff member supports passing periods, every period, every day. Your presence in your posts during student’s intake and throughout the day makes a huge difference. The same applies during dismissal. Let’s all enforce dismissal procedures as it has proven to be a best practice to keep crowd control in check. Supervision during dismissal is key. I know that we don't have anyone assigned to a specific post; however, please make yourself available to supervise students during the short 20-25-minute student pick up period for the next two weeks. We all can contribute to have a smooth end of school year.
Let’s all be committed to a strong finish to get ready for our well-deserved summer break.
Thank you
- ALL staff members for the flexibility and support during testing. It takes everyone's efforts to ensure that we can provide an ideal testing environment. Our students were able to stay focused and give their best effort.
- Everyone who submitted his/her responses to the climate survey. As of Thursday, we had 49% participation; however, I know I received many response confirmations after this number was reported. As a reminder, everyone who submitted their responses, and sent this confirmation to Ms. Saucedo, may wear jeans Monday - Thursday. As you know, by providing your feedback, it helps us to improve as an organization. Thank you for taking the time to respond and let your voice be heard.
- Ms. Davis, Ms. Maloy, Ms. Woods, and Ms. Wells for their leadership and coordination of testing. They did an awesome job and everyone responded positively as the execution of the plan was very smooth.
- Ms. Guerra for her support and leadership as she attended the job fair last Saturday. We have 4 good leads about candidates who we will bring back to campus to be interviewed by their respective teams.
- Ms. Michael and Ms. Lewis for their leadership during our end of the year presentation, Plan for Change, for Teaching Trust Teams 2. They did an awesome job with the preparation and delivery of this presentation. We received feedback and will be adjusting our presentation to share with the various teams.
TEI Roster Verification (TRV) Completion
Congratulations to the following teachers for having completed their TRV.
STRIPLING, KELLYE
BROWN, ANGELAHAYES, IRESHA
KING, MICHAEL
PROCTOR, MICHAEL
SAFFORD, MICHELE
GUILLORY, JIMMY
VARGAS, ADELINA
BICKFORD, CARRIE
MITCHELL, AUDRIA
PEREZ, BARBARA
The deadline for teachers to submit rosters is May 25 at 5:00 pm. Approvers have until June 9 to approve submitted rosters.
8th Graders Visit UNT
Ms. Vargas
was selected by Honored , an organization that celebrates exceptional teachers across the country. Each month, they recognize one teacher who has changed the life of a student, and I am delighted to tell you that based on Perla Rosas' extraordinary student nomination, Ms. Varas will be receiving an Honored award in August! The nomination described the incredible impact she has had on our students’ lives.
7th Grade Field Day
Inspiring Relationships
8th Grade Science Camp
Mr. Geiger
Ms. Miller
SCHOOL PRIORITY # 3 - BROADEN CONSTRUCTIVE RELATIONSHIPS WITH THE MEMBERS OF SCHOOL COMMUNITY
Under Ms. Saucedo's leadership, we had our volunteer recognition event to honor parents who continuously support our efforts. Last Friday, a group of parents brought food, drinks, and dessert as a token of appreciation for our teachers. We appreciate having parents and volunteers who want to help us go #AlltheWayUp
DAILY EVENTS
Monday, May 21st
- Career Day - Ms. Shelby and Ms. Calderon. See e-mail sent by Ms. Shelby for rotation and logistics of this day.
- Student Voices: Gun Violence and School Safety
- 7th Grade Science PreAP field trip to Perot Museum - Ms. Rendon
- 4:40 p.m.- 5:30 p.m. Attendance for Credit Meeting - Ms. Woods - Room 103
- 4:40 p.m. - 5:30 p.m. Staff Meeting - EOY expectations and closeout procedures - Library
Tuesday, May 22nd
- 8th Grade Field Day from 1:30 - 4:30 p.m.
- 6th Grade Science field trip to Perot Museum - Ms. Cooray/Ms. Iberosi
- 5:30 - 6:15 p.m. Spring Band Concert - Mr. McCann and Mr. Alarcon
Wednesday, May 23rd
- 8th Grade Field Trip to Downtown Dallas - Ms. Blanks
Thursday, May 24th
- 8th Grade Field Trip to SMU - Ms. Blanks
Friday, May 25th
- ACP testing begins
- 7:00 - 10:00 p.m 8th grade EOY Dance
Upcoming Events
Based on feedback received, I am sharing as many dates/events for the month of May as possible to ensure appropriate planning is taking place.
Thursday, May 31st
- 3:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. 8th Grade Awards Ceremony
Friday, June 1
- 2:00 p.m. EOY Luncheon at Pappadeoux
Monday, June 4th
- Grades due at the end of the day
- Summer Dress Code begins through September 28. See this memo for more details.
- Teacher work day
- 4:30 p.m. Happy Summer Break!!!!
June 7 - June 8
- AVID Pathway training - This is a training for everyone who has not been trained by AVID certified trainers. There are two options, option one: you can get paid for both days; option two: you can get paid for one day and get credit for 7 hours toward your required 21 hours.
June 11 - June 21
- Summer Readiness Summer School
June 11 - June 27
- SSI Summer School
June 19 - June 22
- Responsive Classroom Training - Team of 8 staff members. The Responsive Classroom Course for Middle School Educators is designed to empower educators to create a middle school experience that’s responsive to the developmental strengths and needs of young adolescents, while helping students develop the academic, social, and emotional skills they need to be successful in and out of school.
Please, access the link containing the information referenced in the subject line. This is very important to avoid having to hand write these numbers if it is not done using GradeSpeed.
The most important part of this memo is to ensure that subjects that do not have an ACP grade will have a grade assigned by the teacher; this will be the grade for the teacher made exam or the grade for the project for that class. Also, it is very important that students who had an incomplete in prior marking periods to have an updated grade. Students must have grades in the 6 marking periods, 1st - 6th six weeks + an ACP or TM grade so that the grades will average and provide a semester grade and end of the year grade.
Also, as a reminder, grades are due on June 4, 2018 at end of the day so that we may be able to export on time.
Thank you so much for all your support and dedication
Rusk Middle School
Email: jcordoba@dallasisd.org
Website: www.dallasisd.org/rusk
Location: 2929 Inwood Road, Dallas, TX, United States
Phone: 972-925-2000
Twitter: @RuskAllTheWayUp