SMS Jag E-News
Back to School
A Message from Mrs. Oglesby
My name is Cholly Oglesby, and I am the Proud Principal of Sartartia Middle School. I would like to let you know how excited and honored I feel to lead the finest middle school in FBISD.
We have been busy making plans and preparations to welcome your child to SMS. Our teachers and staff will return to work on Friday and we just completed 3 full days of Jag Camp. I can assure you that the energy and excitement coming from our Jaguar Staff and the camp participants will set the tone for your child to have an extraordinary school year.
I recommend you check out the district's "Back to School" web page. It has many helpful resources and links. One of the more important resources on this web page is the Return to In-Person Instruction and Continuity of Services Plan (Spanish version here). Starting on page 10, there is considerable information related to health and safety guidelines that we will be implementing at the start of the year. We recognize that ongoing concerns regarding the COVID-19 pandemic, especially with the rise of the Delta variant, may cause parents, students, and staff to wonder what we are doing to mitigate spread of the virus and to keep everyone at SMS safe. As always, we have no higher responsibility than to attend to the safety of everyone at SMS. Therefore, we will follow the protocols prescribed in this document, including training/re-training staff and students at the start of the year.
Please know that we are here to help your child and family have an awesome middle school experience. If you need anything, don't hesitate to reach out to one of our staff members for assistance. Whether your child is a returning Jag, or new to the Jag Family, we welcome you and are ready to get our 2021-2022 school year underway.
Please join us to welcome your Jags for the start of the new school year at our annual Chalk the Walk on Tuesday, August 10th at 6:00 PM!
Enjoy your last few days of summer. See you soon!
Sincerely,
Cholly Oglesby
Principal
Sartartia Middle School
Tuesday, August 10th
Chalk the Walk 6:00-7:00pm @ SMS
Wednesday, August 11th
First Day of School
College Shirt Wednesday
Football Equipment Pick Up
Thursday, August 12th
First Day of Football Practice
Friday, August 13th
Jag Spirit Day
8th Grade Assembly
SAVE THE DATE
August 16th: Volleyball Tryouts Begin
August 20th: School Picture Day
September 2nd: Fall Open House
If you missed the opportunity to purchase a grade level shirt, you may order and pay now by clicking on the appropriate grade level:
Our Jag Camp parent presentations are attached below. Don't forget to submit your 1st day Gram to your child by clicking here. Let's put a big smile on your child's face their first day back on campus.
First Day of School Information
The school doors will open at 8:20am and students will verify their advisory teacher on the lists posted around the school. Students will report to the locations listed below before they are dismissed to their advisory classes at 8:50am. All students will go to advisory at the beginning of the day Wednesday, Thursday & Friday and student schedules will be distributed during advisory on Wednesday morning.
6th Grade: Commons/Cafeteria
7th Grade: Gym 2
8th Grade: Gym 1
First Day of School Reminders:
- SMS strives to maintain a welcoming, yet safe environment and to give superior customer service to our community. On the first day of school, please support our transition process, and allow your middle-schooler to enter the building independently, unless you are dropping off medication at the clinic or have a pre-arranged meeting. Parents will have the opportunity to visit their child’s classes at Open House on Thursday, September 2nd.
- School Hours: 8:55 (tardy bell) to 4:10 (dismissal)
- Traffic will be heavy on the first week of school. We appreciate your patience. Please allow extra time.
- Be safe and patient during arrival and dismissal. Drive carefully!
- Bus route information may be found on this district webpage (if your child is eligible for bus service). Make sure your child knows his/her bus route information.
- We enforce the FBISD dress code, which is available in the Student Code of Conduct. Please help in ensuring that your child complies with the dress code every day at school. We will also review this with students on the first week of school.
- If your child requires medication during the school day, parents must bring the medication directly to the clinic and complete the necessary paperwork.
Arrival/Dismissal
Bikers: Students that ride their bikes to school should park and lock their bicycles in the bike racks near the cafeteria/common entrances. Students should remain on the sidewalks while riding their bikes and pay attention to traffic around them. Once students enter the bus ramp area on their bike, they will walk their bikes into the bike rack area and enter the school through the exterior doors near the commons. At dismissal, bike riders will leave before the buses and students should ensure they stay on the sidewalks while riding their bikes.
Bus Riders: Please visit the district's Transportation/Bus Route Finder webpage to find out more about bus routes and service. All bus riders should be at their designated bus stop 10 minutes before the pick up time. Students riding a bus at the end of the day will need to know their bus number. Students will exit from the commons at dismissal and bus numbers will be posted on the white board. Students should get on their bus immediately to ensure they do not miss transportation.
Walkers: Students walking to and from school will leave from the front entrance of the school. Remind your student to always be aware of the traffic around them, don't wear headphones while walking, and use the designated crosswalks or pedestrian lights when crossing the street.
Backpacks
Backpacks will be allowed during the school day because we will not be issuing lockers during the 2021-2022 school year. Please note that rolling backpacks are not allowed. More detailed information regarding lockers is listed below and titled: Lockers and School Supplies.
BYOD: Bring Your Own Device
We are continuing the use of electronic devices for educational purposes this year. While we encourage children to bring their device to use with teacher permission for instructional purposes, it is important to know they are not required. The FBISD Responsible Use policy is located in the FBISD Student/Parent Handbook. Sartartia’s guidelines are listed in the SMS Supplemental Handbook located on the SMS website. Please know that your child is responsible for his/her device at school and SMS is not responsible for lost or stolen items.
Dress Code
Planners
Each student will receive a planner at the start of school. Students are required to have their planner with them every day and will utilize their planners in each class. Parents should review planner with their student to check assignments and other important information. Replacement planners can be purchased for $5.
Water Bottles
SMS Updates
Bell Schedule: Sartartia Middle School
Here are some updates to our 2021-2022 bell:
- Students will have every class every day
- Transitions between class periods will be 5 minutes in length
- There are 7 class periods daily on Monday, Thursday & Friday
- Tuesday and Wednesday will have a 7-period day with an additional Advisory period between 6th & 7th period. Advisory will be used to conduct interventions, enrichments, and focus on social-emotional learning through goal setting, team-building, and collaborative communities that focus on student growth and connectedness.
Free Breakfast & Lunch Student Meals
Throughout the 2021-2022 school year, the District will continue to provide NO COST breakfast and lunch meals to students at each campus. While no application or eligibility determination is required for students to receive free meals this school year, income eligibility requirements will likely resume in the 2022-2023 school year. As such, to establish eligibility for free or reduced-price meals for the 2022-2023 school year, parents must complete an application for free or reduced-price meals this school year (2021-2022). Parents that received a notification letter stating a child is directly certified for free or reduced-price meals, does not complete an application. However, they must let Child Nutrition know if any children in the household attending school are not listed in the letter.
Students will need to go through the cafeteria serving line during their campus breakfast and lunch serving times to receive free breakfast and lunch meals. À la carte items will be available for purchase. We encourage families to apply money on to their student(s) meal account where students can use the SchoolCafé app to scan for additional purchases.
Lockers & School Supplies
Sartartia Middle School, along with nearly all district middle schools, has made a decision this year to discontinue the use of the hallway lockers for students. We recognize that this may come as a surprise (and maybe even a disappointment) to some students and their parents. The reason for this decision has many aspects:
- We did not use lockers last school year when students came F2F, as we allowed them to carry their backpacks from class to class, and it worked very well. Students who had lockers the previous year did not miss having them.
- We have created a supply list for each grade-level to limit the amount of items that students need to carry in their backpacks. Remember, not everything on the school supply list is meant to be carried around daily.
- We do not issue hardcover textbooks to students, but rather we use class sets and encourage all students to access their textbooks online.
- With the continued concern regarding COVID-19, eliminating the locker means significantly less time being near others in a confined space between before, between, and after classes.
- Students will go directly from class to class with no need to go to their locker, which means students will arrive on time and not have a stop that could make them late for class.
PE uniforms and band/orchestra instruments will be brought to school and taken home, but they will not be carried around throughout the day. Band/orchestra instruments will be be brought to their rehearsal spaces at the beginning of the day, and then picked up and taken home at the end of the day. Students will continue to be issued a PE locker for their PE uniform and will bring their washed, clean PE uniform to class on Monday and place it in their PE locker; they will take it home on Friday for it to be washed and bring it back on Monday.
PE Uniforms & Lockers
All students will need a PE uniform to dress out when attending PE and/or Health or Kickstart. This year we are offering SMS PE joggers as a full coverage option. Below is the sizing chart for the joggers. Students are always allowed to wear their own athletic pants as long as they are black with minimal branding or markings. Uniforms can be purchased through RevTrak on the SMS website. Many students at SMS purchase two PE uniforms, however there is no limit to the number purchased. Students are encouraged to take uniforms home on Friday to launder and bring back on Monday.
- Order the size you think will best fit your child as all uniforms are true to size. We will allow exchanges before the uniform is worn in PE class if necessary.
- PE uniform distribution will happen August 20th during all PE classes
- All students will be expected to dress out on August 23rd
You will need to order a PE uniform if your child is in PE 6, *PE 7, or PE 8. Every 7th grade student will take health for one semester, but still needs a PE uniform for the semester of PE.
PLEASE ORDER UNIFORM NOW. DO NOT WAIT UNTIL JANUARY.
You will receive information from Ms. Rivera about a Kickstart uniform if your child is in: KS 6, KS 7, or KS 8. If your child is scheduled into kickstart, do not purchase a PE uniform.
You will receive information from the coaches about athletics practice uniforms if your child is in: 1st period girls athletics (8th grade ONLY) or 7th period boys athletics (8th grade ONLY). If your child is scheduled into 8th Grade athletics, do not purchase a PE uniform at this time.
This year all students will be given a PE locker. Only clothes, shoes and electronic devices will fit inside. When dressing out for PE students will take their clothes, shoes, and will remove any electronic devices they want to secure from their backpack and place them into their locker to be locked for the entire period. Students are not allowed to use electronic devices while participating in class. Please keep in mind students will be using physical education equipment and we are not responsible for any electronic devices brought into the gym and accidentally damaged.
Football & Volleyball Information (7th & 8th Grade)
Are you a 7th or 8th grader interested in playing sports this year? Don’t forget to get your physical first! Football equipment pick-up is scheduled for August 11th and practice begins on August 12th. Volleyball tryouts start on August 16th.
School Reminders
SMS Facilities
Fort Bend ISD encourages the use of District facilities in a manner that best serves the needs of the community within the laws, rules and regulations that govern the operation of a public independent school district. District facilities are designed for educational purposes and for that reason we ask all those who we share our facilities with to do so in a way that preserves their condition, providing a safe and healthy place for children to learn. We ask that you please abide by all laws and policies when using our facilities and help us by placing trash in appropriate receptacles, be considerate of other patrons and avoid any activity that could damage or alter school property.
Sartartia Middle School is no longer an open campus year round and the new Outdoor Facilities for Public Use is posted below. Facilities that are not open for the time frame will be locked beginning Monday, August 16, 2021. As always, facilities are closed to community use during paid rentals.
Verification of Enrollment
The FBISD Enrollment Verification process to update your child’s information is now open for the 2021-22 school year. The deadline has been extended to 10 a.m. on Monday, August 9. Verification is required for all new and returning students, and families can complete the process in Skyward Family Access. Student schedules will be visible on August 6 for families that have completed verification.
Please note: this is your opportunity to submit new contact, consent and emergency information for your student or confirm previous information for the 2021-22 school year. Please know that your information remains confidential. The annual Enrollment Verification process is an important action for parents to take to help their students have a productive and safe school year.
For the 2021-22 school year, parents are asked to complete the following forms:
- Student & Family Information Verification – Verify and update contact information
- Parent and Student Consent – Directory information, photography release and students’ digital citizenship
- Medical/Emergency Information
- Food Allergy Information
- Student Residency Questionnaire
- Military Connected Form
- Migrant Family Survey
- Student BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) Use Agreement
- Child Nutrition Acknowledgement
Parents are also encouraged to update their student’s contact information in Blackboard Connect in order to receive important campus and District emails, calls and texts. Visit www.fortbendisd.com/blackboardconnect to learn more about adding and updating contacts. A job aide on how to add an additional contact is attached below.
Visit the FBISD website for help in completing the Enrollment Verification process, for a job aid in English and Spanish.
Immunizations
All students entering seventh grade should have received the Tdap and the Meningitis vaccines at their 11-year-old check-up. If they have had these vaccines, please provide proof of this to the clinic when your child gets them. These are the required shots for 7th grade and providing them as soon as you get them will keep your child compliant! You may email it to amy.schepanksi@fortbendisd.com or fax to 281-327-6325.
Our experience has been that some parents wait until the last possible minute to be in compliance with these immunization requirements. Please help us help your child be ready for next year, as it will approach faster than you think! Note that if this is not taken care of before the beginning of school, your child will not be able to start school on the first day of the 2021-22 school year!
Textbooks & Fines
When students leave school at the end of a year, all textbooks and materials must be returned to the school or purchased by the parent or guardian at current prices. Students that still have outstanding fines will be notified by letter and phone. If the textbook(s) are lost or not available, as a parent/guardian you must pay for the lost books. Please remember that student textbooks were distributed by request during our at-home learning kit distribution last fall and when students returned to campus. Textbook fines remain on a student account until the book is returned or paid for. Outstanding fines can prevent students from receiving report cards, textbooks, or their high school diploma if the fine is not paid. If you have been informed of a textbook fine, you can return the textbook to the Sartartia Middle School front office or pay for the book here before August 20, 2021.
Yearbook Pre-Orders
Did you know you can already pre-order your SMS Yearbook?! If you order online before September 17, 2021, you will save $5. Don't miss out on the opportunity to commemorate an amazing year at Sartartia Middle School. Order your yearbook here.
Assistant Principals & Counselors
6TH GRADE
Dr. Sunday Johnson-Associate Principal
sunday.johnson@fortbendisd.com
281.634.6316
Tanya Johnson-Lead Counselor
281.634.6319
7TH GRADE
Paul Wells-Assistant Principal
281.634.6331
Kat Friedel-Counselor
katherine.friedel@fortbendisd.com
281.634.6320
8TH GRADE
Courtney Border-Assistant Principal
courtney.border@fortbendisd.com
281.634.6314
Amy Melby-Counselor
281.634.6318
Sartartia Middle School
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Email: cholly.oglesby@fortbendisd.com
Website: www.fortbendisd.com/sms
Location: 8125 Homeward Way, Sugar Land, TX, USA
Phone: 281-634-6310
Twitter: @sms_jaguars