PTMS Weekly Parent Newsletter
January 26, 2024
Coming Up
January 16-March 16 - Residency Verification for ALL CURRENT STUDENTS
January 23 - Spelling Bee - 11:45-1:00 p.m.
January 23 - ELAC Meeting - 5:30 p.m. - CVMS Learning Commons
January 26-February 16 - Online High School Selection Window for current 8th graders
January 30-31 - 8th Grade Vision & Hearing Testing through History Classes
February 2 - Learning Commons - PTSA General Meeting/Coffee with High School Principals - 8:45a
February 2 - Quad - 11:45-1:00 p.m. - Club Fair for students
Message from the Principal
Wolfpack families,
Happy Friday. What started as a wet and windy Monday shifted into a beautiful end to the week. We held our annual spelling bee on Tuesday sponsored by our English department. Thank you to Mr. Copeland, Ms. Gahagan and the entire English department for facilitating the event. We had tremendous student participation, and after many challenging words, 8th grader Pranav Mahendran emerged as the winner and will represent Pacific Trails in the San Diego county competition. Congratulations Pranav! On Tuesday many of our students stayed after school to test their math skills with the AMC 10 math test. This test, sponsored by the Mathematical Association of America challenges students with complex math questions, and I really applaud students for stretching their brains.
In classrooms this week, I want to highlight our 8th grade English classes in which students are giving speeches on a figure who fought for justice. This includes people like the Dhali Lama, Oskar Schindler, Chief Joseph, Dolores Huerta and Yuri Kochiyama. In a 2-3 minute speech, students selected a person they were interested in learning more about, and then highlighted how these individuals fought for justice in their communities and countries. I was impressed with the information shared and our students' public speaking skills.
Next week on Friday, ASB will host our Spring club fair. It gives students a chance to see what clubs they can join, and if they don't see anything of interest, please let your student know they are always welcome to start a new club. We always want to create opportunities for kids to find their interests and passions, and clubs are a great way to do this.
Have a wonderful weekend, and we will see your student at 9:25 a.m. on Monday morning.
In gratitude,
Scott Wild
Principal
A Night with the School Board
Dr. Hake, Mr. Wild and Mr. Olson attend the SDUHSD board meeting on Tuesday night
Message from the Assistant Principal
Greetings Wolfpack Families,
In my first ever newsletter post, I want to begin by stating how honored I am to begin working at PTMS to serve the community of Carmel Valley. I am continually impressed by the levels of student engagement and curiosity, connection with peers and staff, commitment to academics, and displays of good citizenship that I observe when walking around campus at any given moment. I have spent the past two months building relationships and learning our systems. This week, I spent time in classes giving behavior presentations to all 980+ students, which included a review of some basic rules from the Family Handbook and also some newer topics, like "The Wolfpack Way to Interrupt Bias," which is a graphic on a poster that has recently been hung around campus and discussed in Homeroom classes. I enjoyed spending time with students, answering questions, and also discussing some end-of-year activities to look forward to. Please feel free to review the slides that were presented. If you have any questions or comments, please reach out. Thanks, Wolfpack!!
From the Attendance Office
Greetings, Wolfpack, from the Attendance Office!
As the new semester begins, there are important reminders and updates we'd like to share with you regarding student attendance, specifically absences and tardies. The Attendance Office will continue to mail attendance letters home as students meet various thresholds for unexcused and excused absences. Once a student reaches seven (7) days absent or 28 class period truancies (whichever comes first), school officials will reach out to check-in on your student and partner with you to discuss barriers to attendance and brainstorm solutions as a team. Please note that the intent of the attendance letters is to inform you of your student's absences and begin a conversation about supporting your student holistically.
Regarding tardies, the Attendance Office will be implementing a new protocol to communicate on a timely basis if your student has been tardy. Tardies are recorded in Aeries for your review. If you need help accessing Aeries, please contact our front office staff for assistance. Please be aware that tardies can be marked for any class period. Also, if students are not in their seats when the period begins, they can be marked tardy. Finally, teachers may not verbally notify students when they have been marked tardy. The Attendance Office will notify you via Parent Square when your student has been marked tardy. Once three tardies have been accrued, your student may be assigned to after school detention, which will occur weekly on Wednesdays from 2:45-3:15 PM. Students will be assigned detention after every third (3rd) tardy. The purpose of this protocol is to guide students towards punctuality, good attendance, and time management skills that will serve them in college, career, and beyond.
For more attendance information, please see the PTMS Family Handbook posted on the homepage of our website, or you can refer directly to the Attendance Page. If you have questions or concerns, please contact our Attendance Secretary, Elizabeth Williams, at (858) 500-1000 ext. 4609. If you wish to speak with an administrator, please contact Dr. Stephanie Hake, Assistant Principal at (858) 500-1000 ext. 4615. Thank you!
~ Make good school attendance a habit in the new year!
High School Selection for Current 8th Graders
The Online High School Selection window for 8th Graders is January 26 through February 16. I
Who should submit a high school selection during the window?
1. Students currently attending SDUHSD District schools:
Current Grade 8 - All SDUHSD 8th grade students currently residing in the district must select a high school that they wish to attend in the fall of 2024.
Current Grades 9-11 - SDUHSD students currently attending a district high school who wish to change high schools must also make a selection.
SDUHSD high school students who do not wish to change and will remain at their current high schools for fall 2024 do not need to make any selections during high school selection and will automatically be re-enrolled in their current school.
2. Students who reside within District boundaries but do not currently attend SDUHSD schools:
Current Grades 8-11 students who reside within SDUHSD boundaries but who do not currently attend SDUHSD schools, including private and Rancho Santa Fe schools, must make a selection if they plan to attend a SDUHSD high school in the fall of 2024.
Students must currently reside within SDUHSD district boundaries to participate in high school selection. Students are only eligible to attend an Academy school if their primary residence is within the district boundaries and they are actually residing in that residence prior to the close of the selection at 4:00 pm on February 15, 2024.
It is the intent of the Board of Trustees to provide equitable educational opportunities for all students of the district. In order to maintain an equitable balance in the enrollment at each campus, the Board of Trustees established attendance boundaries for each school in SDUHSD. Boundaries of school attendance areas in the district are as follows:
1. La Costa Canyon High School (LCC) shall include the boundaries of the Encinitas and Cardiff school districts and the area north of Escondido Creek in Rancho Santa Fe district.
2. Torrey Pines High School (TP) shall include the boundaries of the Del Mar, Solana Beach and Rancho Santa Fe School Districts, with the exception of the area north of Escondido Creek in the Rancho Santa Fe School District.
3. San Dieguito High School Academy (SDHSA) and Canyon Crest Academy (CCA) shall be open to all district residents in grades 9-12 on an equal basis through the high school selection administrative regulation approved by the Board of Trustees. To be eligible to attend SDHSA or CCA, a student must have selected the school during the established high school selection window process.
Parents and students seeking additional information about each high school are invited to attend the high school information nights as listed below:
San Dieguito Academy - January 31 - 5:30 p.m. - Bell Tower Quad
Torrey Pines HS - February 1 - 5:30 p.m. - Virtual
Lottery (If Necessary) -- Friday, February 23, 2024, 5:00 pm
For more information about the various district high schools, please refer to their individual websites.
Residency Verification REQUIRED for ALL CURRENT STUDENTS!
The window to submit your Annual Residency Verification is January 16 through March 16. You might feel like you've just done this (and maybe you have), but this is for the 2024-25 school year. Not this school year.
Here are the quick specifics:
- If your student is CURRENTLY enrolled in a SDUHSD school and plans to go to a SDUHSD school for the 2024-25 school year, completing this process is REQUIRED! ** If your student will NOT be attending a SDUHSD school for the 2024-25 school year, please contact the Registrar - Marielle.BravoSaltzman@sduhsd.net. If you don't, we will bug you relentlessly for Residency Verification paperwork. **
- Complete this Residency Verification Affidavit.
- Attach a copy of your current SDGE bill (Category 1 on the form)
- Attach a copy of a cable or water bill (Category 2 on the form)
- Upload those three (3) documents in Aeries as per these instructions - OR -
- Scan/email those three (3) documents to Vetha.Pierce@sduhsd.net - OR -
- Print out and Turn-in those three (3) documents at your student's school.
If you have more than one student CURRENTLY ENROLLED in one or more of our SDUHSD schools, one packet with all current students' names can be turned in at one of the currently attending school sites (i.e. your middle school twins currently attend PTMS and older brother currently attends CCA - one packet with all 3 names can be turned in/uploaded to either PTMS or CCA) **Please do not include your incoming 6th grader on this form! A separate Enrollment packet will include a Residency Verification packet.**
For questions, please contact Vetha Pierce.
Is Your Student Going to a Private School Next School Year?
If you and your student are thinking of applying to a Private School for next year. Please fill out the link below for each school.
Mental Health & Wellness
Mental Health & Wellness Resources for Students, Staff, and School Community.
Click on the QR code to discover your PTMS Support Staff.
Free Mental Health Webinar Series
Suicide Prevention QPR Training
Operation School Bell
The Assistance League of Rancho San Dieguito has a program called Operation School Bell. The goal is to help children thrive and succeed in school by providing new school clothing for those that might have need. This year they are providing students in need with a Target gift card to purchase new school clothing.
Please email your counselor and let them know if this is something your child could utilize.
ASB and Student Announcements
You can check them out on the Students tab of our website under "Student Announcements" for a running post of each week's student announcements.
The PTMS Spelling Bee
This year's winner - after several rounds - of the PTMS Spelling Bee is Pranav Mahendran and our second-place finisher was Nikhil Shome.
Congratulations, Wolves! Well done!
Pranav will go on to represent PTMS in the San Diego County Spelling Bee in March.
Pi Day - March 11th - VOLUNTEERS NEEDED
PTMS will be celebrating Pi Day on Monday, March 11th, and we need your help! We are looking for parent volunteers to help us supervise different Pi Day activities for students throughout the day. Please use the link below to sign up. Thank you!
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C084FA5AB22A6FAC16-47421172-piday
Department News
From the PE Department
Please follow us on Instagram to see what your student is up to during PE class.
Learning Commons News
Please click here to see everything that the Learning Commons has been up to so far this year.
From Yearbook
Equity Conference
Last week, four PTMS staff members attended the SDCOE Equity Conference in Mission Valley. Pictured are Mr. Wild, Ms. Richards, Ms. Bravo-Saltzman and Ms. Osbourne-Hall.
Clubs
Math League - AMC 8 Exam
Congratulations, PTMS! Over 100 students participated in the AMC 8 exam on Tuesday. Way to go , Wolves!
~ Club activity will be posted here throughout the year. To get a list of all Clubs currently active, please check the Activities page on our website.
Bike and E-Bike Safety Class
Sign up for a February 10 bike and e-bike safety class
Join the Carlsbad Police Department to learn about bike and e-bike safety on February 10.
What you’ll learn:
- Tips for being safe on your bike or e-bike
- Rules of the road for bicyclists and drivers
- Carlsbad-specific e-bike laws
Class times: Choose from 10 – 11 a.m. or noon – 1 p.m.
Location: Georgina Cole Library, 1250 Carlsbad Village Dr.
- Space is limited. Advanced registration is required. Sign up.
- For more tips and safety information, visit the Safer Streets Together webpage.
From the PTSA
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED!
PTMS will be celebrating Pi Day on Monday, March 11th, and we need parent volunteers to help supervise different Pi Day activities for students throughout the day. Please use the link below to sign up. Thank you!
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C084FA5AB22A6FAC16-47421172-piday
Multilingual Learner Corner
Special Education Sessions and Events
For a list of Special Education Informational Sessions and Family Events, please click here.
For meetings, trainings, workshops, and more from the North Coastal Consortium for Special Education, please click here.
San Dieguito Academy Parent Information Night
CCA TV Competition
Other Important Items
- Boys & Girls Club - Seasonal sports information/registration.
- PTMS Live Calendar of Campus Events and 2023-24 Instructional Calendar.
- PTMS Spirit Wear/Gear - PTMS Spirit Wear and accessories for the whole family!
- PTMS Student Vehicle Permit - Register your bike/e-bike/scooter/skateboard with PTMS. Complete this form and turn in to the office.
- PTMS Webstore - PE clothes/Limited Series Clothing
- PTMS Webstore - Spirit Wear
- PTMS Yearbook. - Order today!
- San Dieguito Alliance for a Drug-Free Youth - complete the Parent Pledge here.
- San Dieguito Boys & Girls Club - click the link to the left for 2023-24 athletic schedules.
- SDUHSD - Employment Opportunities. To view a list of openings and to apply, please click https://www.edjoin.org/sandieguito or you can call Susan Gray at 760 753-6491 x5543.
This newsletter has also been posted to our website under "Parent Communications."
Deadline to submit articles for publication is Thursdays.