September Newsletter
CMS
A Message from the Principal
As we close to the first month of school, I would like to share how proud I am of the manner in which students have strived to adapt to our new normal. We are committed to building a school culture of academic excellence, building relationships and introducing students to sports and clubs. My staff and I are committed to our students and we are honored you selected Combs Middle School. I welcome feedback to make sure we are in tune with our school community and we are meeting the needs of our families. (lridge@jocombs.org)
The staff at CMS understands the importance of building relationships with parents. One way this occurs is through parent-teacher conferences.
This year, conferences will take place virtually. Teachers pushed out time slots through Sign Up Genius. Should you need an admin or counselor meeting, please email us directly. We will send you an invitation via Google Meets. Please sign up early. Slots are limited.
Dates &Times
Conferences will take place on Thursday, September 2nd (2:30 - 6:30 pm) and Friday, September 3rd (1:30 - 4:00 pm). Students will be dismissed at 1:00 pm on each of the parent-teacher conference days. The middle school will follow the 1:00 pm early release schedule; breakfast/lunch will be served on these two days.
As the first semester continues to move forward, we are looking forward to meeting with parents to form partnerships. This is a perfect opportunity to address concerns and also share the many successes our students have experienced so far this school year.
Progress Reports
We send home progress reports every 4 weeks. We require a signature from a parent or guardian. This is another way we attempt to keep you in the loop with student progress.
Please make ParentVue your best friend.
Principal Ridge
Counseling Corner
Social Emotional Learning at CMS:
Mindfulness curriculum through the Mindful Schools program will be taught to all CMS students by trained CMS counselors and social workers. Mindfulness lessons are aimed at benefiting students in the following areas: improved attention, emotion regulation, behavior in school, empathy and understanding of others, social skills, test anxiety, and stress. Mindfulness helps students learn to take a pause when they feel upset or overwhelmed, during which thoughtful responses can replace impulsive reactions.
PBIS At CMS:
We are excited to be utilizing the PBIS (Positive Behavioral Interventions & Supports) framework on campus to improve our overall school culture and promote a safe learning environment for all. Please see the attached informational flyer for more information regarding PBIS.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1TGyiFHCIHG_d47MH9zkltOCIqKSncr3cRf1GgXxQXi0/edit?usp=sharing
We want to give an honorable mention to the Encanterra Country Club members. For those of you who don't know, on Monday, we sent the members a letter asking their supportive community for donations for our PBIS Store and they have already begun donating. They have been a huge help in getting us ready to get our PBIS store up and running. With that, if any of you know anyone at Encanterra, please give them a HUGE thank you!
PARENT UNIVERSITY VIRTUAL EVENT
CMS Parents, we hope that you can join us for our first J.O. Combs Unified School District Parent University Meeting of the school year. This meeting will be virtual. Please see the attached flyer for details.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1IRSDGG99gfZ4UXeBkn9wn-N1gIzmfkpGvHB1CrjCTB0/edit?usp=sharing
MAJOR CLARITY
We are so excited to introduce this amazing tool to help your students find careers they might be interested in according to their personalities, interests and learning styles. We are visiting Science classrooms to use a platform called Major Clarity that will explore your child’s learning style (i.e. do they learn better by reading/hearing/doing), take a personality assessment to find out their interests (i.e. do you like to garden/talk to people/do bookkeeping/build things) that will lead them to an opportunity to open their minds to careers that might be interesting to them. They get to explore these “career clusters” which will break the careers down into individual jobs that will show them how much schooling they need and how much the average person in that job makes here in San Tan Valley.
We introduced this through 8th grade science classes last week. This week is the 7th grade’s turn. It’s so fun to see them learn more about themselves and their possible futures! Parents! Ask your student about this! They were engaged and excited to look toward their futures!
CONFERENCES
The CMS Counselors and Social Workers are available to schedule conferences should you find the need to meet with them.
For parents of students with the last name A-F, please sign up through this link: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F054DAAA822AAF49-mrs (Shindledecker)
For parents of students with the last name G-M, please sign up through this link:
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0F4FADAA2FA4FCC52-mrs (Raksinh)
For parents of students with the last name N-Z, please sign up through this link:
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0F4EA8AC28A0FE3-parentteacher (Wiberg) or email Dr. Wiberg at lwiberg@jocombs.org
Athletic Updates
Cougar Family,
Baseball and girls basketball are off and running. With sports underway it is extremely important for students to stay on top of their grades so they are able to participate in competition. We offer tutoring once a week per subject and students are able to attend after school study hall on Wednesdays. If your child’s athletic fee has not been paid they will not be able to participate in games until we receive the fee.
Sports pictures will be on Wednesday, September 15th. Please make sure your student brings their uniform for the group picture and individual photos. Picture packets will be available in the front office. If you have any questions or concerns please reach out to me.
Go Cougars!!
Mr. Clark
Dean of Students
Athletic Director
Combs Performing Arts Center News
Combs High School Band Concert, September 9 at 7 pm. Free tickets available at www.etix.com. Seating is limited.
Combs High School Orchestra, Choir and Guitar Concert, September 22 at 7 pm. Free tickets available at www.etix.com. Seating is limited.
Combs Middle School Orchestra Concert, September 20 at 6 pm. Free tickets available at www.etix.com, Seating is limited.
Combs Middle School Band Concert, September 21 at 6 pm. Free tickets available at www.etix.com, Seating is limited.
Combs High School presents
"Trap!" by Stephen Gregg October 14, 15, and 18 at 7 pm, tickets available at www.etix.com
Community Auditions for "Dustin the Star Duster" Sept. 18 from 12 to 6 pm
Ages 7 and up. For information www.art4kids.net. Performances December 18 at 3 pm and 7 pm at the Combs Performing Arts Center.
TAD Management presents 2021/22 award winning Tribute Concerts!
Tickets at www.cofare.io search San Tan Valley
December '63 Tribute to The Four Seasons-November 12, 2021 at 7 pm
Tickets at www.cofare.io search San Tan Valley
Sister's Christmas Catechism-December 4, 2021 at 7pm
Tickets at www.cofare.io search San Tan Valley
Please contact Corianna Lee at 480.882.3540, Ext 7591 for any questions.
Join the Combs Team
Combs Middle School
Email: agonzales@jocombs.org
Website: https://combsms.jocombs.org/
Location: 37611 North Pecan Creek Drive, San Tan Valley, AZ, USA
Phone: 480.882.3510
Twitter: @CombsCougars
J.O. Combs Unified School District #44 does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, disability, age or sexual orientation in admission and access to its programs, services, activities, or in any aspect of their operations and provides equal access to the Boy Scouts and other designated youth groups. J.O. Combs Unified School District #44 also does not discriminate in its hiring or employment practices. The following employees have been designated to handle inquiries regarding the nondiscrimination policies: Compliance Officer for Title IX, Assistant Superintendent, 43371 N. Kenworthy Rd, San Tan Valley, AZ 85140 or 480-987-5300 and Compliance Officer for Section 504/ADA, Director of Student Services, 43371 N. Kenworthy Rd, San Tan Valley, AZ 85140 or 480-987-5300.
El Districto Escolar Unificado de J.O. Combs #44 no discrimina en base a su raza, color, religión, origen nacional, sexo, discapacidad, edad, o la orientación sexual para la admisión y su acceso a sus programas, servicios, actividades, o en cualquier aspecto de sus operaciones y proporciona un acceso igualitario a los Boys Scouts y otro grupos de jóvenes designados. El Districto Escolar Unificado de J.O. Combs tampoco discrimina en sus prácticas de empleo y contratación. Los siguientes empleados han sido designados para manejar las preguntas en cuanto a las pólizas de no discriminación: Funcionario de Cumplimiento de Título IX, Superintendente Asistente 43371 N. Kenworthy Rd, San Tan Valley, AZ 85140 or 480-987-5300 and Funcionario de Cumplimiento para la Sección 504/ADA, Director de Servicios Estudiantiles, 43371 N. Kenworthy Rd, San Tan Valley, AZ 85140 or 480-987-5300.