SLMS Titan News
Week #31 - April 4, 2022
Greetings SLMS Parents, Guardians, Students, and Staff,
Congratulations to our SLMS Philharmonic Orchestra on their Sweepstakes Award earned last weekend at the annual UIL Concert and Sightreading Evaluation held at Marshall HS. We are so proud of these students, as well as their directors, Mr. Ricky Lethridge and Mrs. Leslie Campbell. The UIL Sweepstakes Award is the highest award given to orchestras, bands, and choirs at events such as this. Bravo!
For 8th grade students and parents, see below for detailed information related to the 8th Grade Exit Celebration at Main Event in Stafford. It will be on Thursday, May 19. Information, permission slips, and cost details will be shared soon. Stay tuned!
Please check out the item below regarding a potential before/after school care program called Club Excel. If you need before or after school care for your SLMS child, please complete the survey. If there is enough interest demonstrated, we may be able to offer Club Excel starting in 2022-23 school year. The survey closes April 15.
Sent as a separate email on April 1 and also included below is a survey for parents and staff to weigh in on the attributes and characteristics you would like to see in the next principal for Sugar Land MS. FBISD leadership will use the survey results to help inform the selection of our school's new principal. As you know, I am leaving SLMS at the end of this school year to begin the work to open FBISD High School #12, Almeta Crawford High School, in Rosharon. ACHS is scheduled to open in August 2023. Your voice is important, so please make sure you complete the survey by Friday, April 8.
Coming in the next edition of Titan News will be information about pre-ordering school supplies for next year, which will be a convenient way for your child to be ready for the school year. We will also include a copy of the school supply list itself.
Be sure to check out other important information below that are contained in this edition of Titan News.
- National Assistant Principals Week: April 4 through 8
- SURVEY: Qualities Desired for Next SLMS Principal (Closes April 8)
- SURVEY: Before and/or After School Care Through Club Excel at Sugar Land MS starting 2022-23 (Closes April 15)
- Austin High School Dawg Fest / Community Event - Saturday, April 9
- WEB Leader Information for 2022-23 (Current Seventh Grade)
- Progress Report 7 (PR7) - Friday, April 8, 2022
- Eighth Grade Exit Celebration at Main Event - Thursday, May 19, 2022
- SLMS School Report Card
- Immunizations for Current Sixth Graders and Readiness for Seventh Grade
- Safety Reminders for Vehicle Traffic at Arrival and Dismissal
- Birthday Messages on the SLMS Electronic Marquee
- Important Contact Information
Enjoy your week!
Sincerely,
Keith Fickel, Principal
#NewBeginnings
#TitansOwnIt
#ReturnOfTheTitans
The Week At A Glance
Upcoming and Important Dates
- April 13 – 8th Grade AVID Trip to UH-Downtown
- April 19 – Science Club Field Trip
- April 23 – Lakeview ES Grand Re-Opening Celebration for the Community
- April 29 – Beginning Band & Orchestra Festival/Trip
- May 19 - 8th Grade Exit Event at "Main Event" – in the afternoon (details forthcoming)
National Assistant Principals Week: April 4 through 8
This week is National Assistant Principals Week, and we are so appreciative of the dedicated effort that our administrators put for every day on behalf of all of the students, staff, and parents in the SLMS community. Mrs. Monika Martin (6th grade), Dr. Dawn Rogers (7th grade), and Mr. Luster Goodwin (8th grade) work tirelessly to support the campus mission and to ensure learning occurs at a high level. Please take a moment to send your child's grade level administrator a note or email showing your appreciation for their dedication and love of the students in our school! Their email addresses are at the end of this newsletter.
SURVEY: Qualities Desired in Next SLMS Principal
With the pending departure of our principal, Mr. Keith Fickel, we are pleased to begin the search for our next great leader at Sugar Land Middle School. Our first step in the process is gathering input from you, our stakeholders. We value and want your feedback on what principal qualities are most important to you. Please take a few minutes to complete the survey (links are below in English and Spanish) as we prepare to select the next principal for Sugar Land Middle School. Your feedback will help guide us in the hiring process. Please complete the survey by Friday, April 8, 2022, to help facilitate the process. Thank you in advance for completing the survey.
Link to the survey in English: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/2BN3WRH
Link to the survey in Spanish: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/M7W9CNF
As always, thank you for your continued support.
Brett Lemley, Ed.D.
Assistant Superintendent for Secondary Schools
SURVEY: Possible Before and/or After School Care Through Club Excel at Sugar Land MS starting 2022-23
A number of SLMS parents have inquired about the school potentially having a before and/or after school program that would allow working parents to provide their children an opportunity to have supervision and experiences well before the school day starts, as well as in the afternoons, when the school day is over.
Fort Bend ISD's Extended Learning Department offers a before and/or after school program, Club Excel, at middle school campuses. The morning program is open from 7:00am until the doors open for all students. The afternoon program is open from dismissal until 6:30pm.
Please take a moment to complete the survey linked below to determine interest for Sugar Land Middle School for the 2022-23 school year. The results of this survey will allow us to assess the need for the program. If there is enough interest in the program, additional information will be provided about registration and plans for next year.
This survey will remain open until April 15, 2022.
Link to Club Excel Survey - Please complete by April 15, 2022
For additional information about Club Excel, visit the FBISD Extended Learning website.
Austin High School Dawg Fest / Community Event - Saturday, April 9
WEB (Where Everyone Belongs) Leader Application Information (Current Seventh Graders)
Sugar Land Middle School was the first middle school in FBISD to offer the WEB program. This amazing program is a transition program for our incoming 6th graders that starts at the very beginning. Hand-chosen applicants from our 8th grade class called WEB leaders will be ongoing mentors to students throughout the first year of their middle school experience. 6th graders will meet WEB leaders on orientation day the first week of school and will continue to work with them all year long! Our WEB leaders will meet with their 6th graders periodically during Discovery class to talk about self-esteem, study skills, friendship issues, organization, and a wide variety of other transitional issues that our 6th graders face. We are so excited to start the application process for our next round of WEB leaders.
There will be a half-day WEB leader training a few weeks before school starts and the opportunity for them to sign up to lead tours for incoming SLMS parents that would like a tour before school starts. More info to come on all these activities.
Please have your child click the link below to submit an application!
All applications are due Friday, April 8.
Progress Report 7 (PR7) - Friday, April 8
Progress Report 7 (PR7), the first progress report of the 4th nine weeks, will occur on Friday, April 8. It will be viewable in Skyward Family Access in the afternoon on Tuesday, April 12. Please use this upcoming week to ensure missing assignments are turned in and that any tests given this week are ones for which your child is well prepared. Attend tutorials, ask for help, and do what you can to ensure success. Check Skyward Family Access now to see what may be missing and that could be improved before the progress report comes out.
Eighth Grade Exit Celebration at Main Event - Thursday, May 19, 2022
On Monday, April 4, eighth grade students will receive a paper version of the document linked below regarding their Exit Celebration at Main Event in Stafford on the afternoon of May 19, 2022. They will receive the paper version in their 7th period class. This event is sponsored by our SLMS PTO. It costs $25.00, all inclusive. We will board buses at 1:30, and have time from 2:00-6:00 at the venue. We will return on buses to SLMS at 6:15, where parents will need to be waiting to pick up their child in the bus ramp parking lot (but not against the bus ramp itself).
We will collect forms and money during B and C Lunches starting Monday, April 11, and running through Friday, April 29. Contact Mr. Goodwin or Mrs. Seright with questions.
SLMS School Report Card
Please visit this link to view the 2020-21 state and federal report cards for SLMS. This information was also emailed to SLMS parents on February 26.
Immunizations for Current Sixth Graders and Readiness for Seventh Grade
Your sixth-grade child did or will receive 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 seventh grade and providing them as soon as you get them will keep your child compliant. and be one less thing for you to do in preparation for seventh grade. You may email it to Nurse Patel at Shetal.Patel@fortbendisd.com or fax it to (281) 327-8745.
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!
Safety Reminders for Vehicle Traffic During Arrival and Dismissal
Safety is important during arrival and dismissal each day. Some things we continue to notice that we want to bring to your attention include:
- Drivers on cell phones/devices while in the car rider line
- Students entering/exiting vehicles along Seventh Street instead of in the circle drive
- Students entering/exiting vehicles in parking lots on either side of the building instead of in the circle drive
- Students entering/exiting vehicles on the drivers' side rather than the passenger side
- Drivers turning left out of the circle drive (it's a posted no left turn during school zone hours)
- Speeding in the school zone and driving too fast in the car rider line
- Parents and students crossing Seventh Street in places other than the crosswalk monitored by our crossing guard
Please help us help you and your children (and our staff) to remain safe by being mindful of these concerns during arrival and dismissal.
Birthday Messages on SLMS Marquee
Does your SLMS child have an upcoming birthday? Would you like to wish them a happy birthday on our new digital campus marquee? The PTO is coordinating birthday messages to go on our marquee as a means of raising funds to help meet needs of students and teachers. Publicizing your child's birthday is only $15.00. Please follow these simple steps to get your child's birthday announced on the marquee:
- Visit https://my.cheddarup.com/c/slmspto
- Scroll down to the "Happy Birthday Marquee" item
- Click "Add to Cart"; you are redirected to another screen where you will
- Enter information about your child and select the style of announcement you wish to see on the marquee
- Click "Add to Cart ($15.00)"
- Review your order
- Click "Continue to Forms"
- Enter your child's name and grade level
- Click "Continue to Payment" and finish your purchase
Note that submissions must be received at least two weeks ahead of the desired date to be posted on our campus marquee. Please contact Heather Martin of the SLMS PTO at heathermartincpa@gmail.com with questions. And feel free to order SLMS swag like hoodies, t-shirts, and more while you are ordering your child's birthday message!
Important Contact Information
- Associate Principal - Monika Martin (monika.martin@fortbendisd.com)
- Counselor - Nafecia Brinson (nafecia.brinson@fortbendisd.com)
- Assistant Principal - Dr. Dawn Rogers (dawn.rogers@fortbendisd.com)
- Counselor - Eleni Smith (eleni.smith@fortbendisd.com)
Eighth Grade
- Assistant Principal - Luster Goodwin (luster.goodwin@fortbendisd.com)
- Counselor - Kim Seright (kimberly.seright@fortbendisd.com)
Counselor Clerk - Carmen Brantley (carmen.brantley@fortbendisd.com)
Assistant Principal Secretaries
- 7th and 8th Grade - Tina Garcia (diamantina.ibarragar@fortbendisd.com)
- 6th Grade - Sherri Woodcock (sherri.woodcock@fortbendisd.com)
Attendance - Mary Beth LaVergne (mary.lavergne@fortbendisd.com)
Registrar - Tandi Phillips (tandi.phillips@fortbendisd.com)
Nurse - Shetal Patel (shetal.patel@fortbendisd.com)
Clinic Aide - Cassandra Rodarte (cassandra.rodarte@fortbendisd.com)
Campus Assessment Coordinator - Becky White (becky.white@fortbendisd.com)
Executive Assistant to Principal Fickel - Mary Connealy (mary.connealy@fortbendisd.com)
Sugar Land Middle School
46 Years
1975-2021
Inspiring and equipping the young men and women of our community for futures beyond what they can imagine since 1975.
SLMS Campus Mission Statement
Working collaboratively, the Sugar Land Middle School Professional Learning Community will commit to creating a safe environment with high expectations leading to physical, social, emotional, and academic success for all Titans.
#TitansOwnIt
#NewBeginnings
#Resilience
Office Hours
8:20-4:20 PM
Email: keith.fickel@fortbendisd.com
Website: www.fortbendisd.com/slms
Location: 321 7th Street, Sugar Land, TX, USA
Phone: (281) 634-3080
Twitter: @SLMSTitans