November 9, 2023

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Thursday, November 9th - Friday, November 17th - Boosterthon!

Have you signed up your kids for Boosterthon? REGISTRATION and PLEDGING are RUNNING NOW!

Our Morningside Boosterthon Fundraiser kicked off today Thursday, Novmeber 9th which means that it's time to REGISTER and start COLLECTING PLEDGES in support of our students running in the upcoming Dolphin Dash Fun Run! We are excited for two weeks of fun with your students. This year, our goal is to raise $100,000 for the MES PTA and the programs involved including:

• Community Building Outreach - No Place For Hate, Monster Bash, etc.
• Student Enrichment - Book Fair, Family Science Night, etc. 
• Teacher Support - Classroom Supplies, Teacher Appreciation, etc.
• Sustainability and Wellness Promotion - Field Day, Garden Projects, etc.
• Technology Innovation - Improving on-campus communication tools and equipment

We need YOUR help to fund all of the amazing things we have planned for the students and staff at MES. The top registered grade on November 9th will have the Booster team DJ their recess on Friday. There will be other nightly challenges throughout the event that you can see in the graphic below.

What do parents need to do?

It’s not too late to register! Learn more by watching this 90-second video or visiting the Boosterthon Page. The ‘Parent Action Steps’ during the program are simple:

1. Register your student(s) on MYBOOSTER.COM
2. Reach out to sponsors (family and friends anywhere in the world!) by sharing your pledge link. Sponsors can make a pledge per lap or a flat donation. Don’t forget to create a Student Star Video which is great for sharing via email or social media. Get your kids involved - ask your student to call their family members to explain the program and how they are helping to raise funds for their school. 
3. Cheer on your student at the FUN RUN on 11/17 – Parents, Guardians, Grandparents, etc are welcome to join in on the fun and cheer on their MES Dolphin on race day. Full schedule at the Boosterthon Dolphin Dash Page. 

We hope we can count on your support to help fund all the great programming we have planned for our students and staff this year. We look forward to a fantastic program! If want to know more about Boosterthon and/or Dolphin Dash please visit  Boosterthon Dolphin Dash, and if you have questions please contact co-chairs Mark Griffith or Mallory Rahman .

November 13th - Monthly GO Team Meeting

The next monthly MES GO Team meeting will be held on Monday, November 16th at 5pm. This meeting will be both in-person in the Amy Snowden Mather Library and live streamed via the MES YouTube channel, where you can watch the meeting live or watch the recording at a later time.

The agenda for this meeting, as well as past meeting materials and the protocol for signing up to speak during the public comment period can be found on the MES GO Team webpage.

Monday, November 13th and Wednesday, November 15th - MES Thanksgiving Family Luncheon

After a long hiatus, our annual Thanksgiving celebration is back! In the spirit of thankfulness, MES will be hosting the Nutrition Department’s annual Thanksgiving Family Luncheon the week prior to Thanksgiving Break. This special celebration will allow students and their families to enjoy traditional Thanksgiving menu offerings. Parents are invited to dine with their students on their class's assigned date, which will be either Monday, November 13th or Wednesday, November 15th (grade levels will be split in order to accommodate all visitors and guests; full class schedule here). If you are aware of a student(s) whose family is unable to attend, you may invite students in the same class to join with you and your own student.

Please note that the deadline to pre-order guest meals for this luncheon has now passed. However, you are still welcome to join your student and their classmates with your own lunch, during their designated time, even if you missed the deadline.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Assistant Principal Brian Baron.

Tuesday, November 14th - Parent University: Testing at MES

During this Parent University, we will be discussing all things testing, as our very own Mr. Brian Baron, Assistant Principal at MES, will be giving an overview of the various tests administered at our school. Please join him on November 14th at 8:00AM in the cafeteria.

Tests to be discussed (and acronyms to be defined!) include GKIDS, MAP, ACCESS, NAEP, and GMAS. Learn more about why these tests are administered and how they can help your MES student. Mr. Baron's overview will be followed by a question/answer session.

Questions can be directed to Mr. Baron for assistance.

Thursday, November 15th - Kindergarten Alphabet Parade!

On November 15th at 8:00 a.m. in the MES Auditorium, our Kinders will be participating in the annual Alphabet Parade!

They are working hard to create their letter shirts and will proudly march past as the cutest little alphabet you've ever seen. Parents and Caregivers get your cameras ready! You are invited to watch the fun unfold. All attendees will need to check in at the front office before entering the school.

Please contact your student's teacher with any questions.

Thursday, November 16th - 1st Grade Balloon Parade!

On November 16th at 8:15 a.m., our first graders will be participating in a balloon parade through the halls of the school!

They are working hard to create their STEAM inspired balloon creations, complete with at least 1 moving part! It's sure to be a wonderful spectacle of creativity. Parents and Caregivers are invited to watch the fun unfold. All attendees will need to check in at the front office before entering the school.

Please contact your student's teacher with any questions.

Friday, November 17th - Dolphin Dash Fun Run!

Our Boosterthon fundraising drive will conclude on Friday, November 17th with the Dolphin Dash Fun Run and we would love to have as many families as possible come out to cheer on our dashing Dolphins! This fall tradition is bursting with school spirit and is always a ton of fun for everyone involved!

For this year's event, grade-levels will be split into two groups, which will both run during the same time slot (with Group 1 running first and Group 2 cheering them on, and then switching). To aid in your planning, the full schedule for the Fun Run can be found below:

Monday, November 20th - Friday, November 24th - Thanksgiving Break!

The school will be closed for the week of Monday, November 20th through Friday, November 24th in honor of the Thanksgiving holiday. We hope that everyone is able to enjoy this restful time with their loved ones. We'll see you back at school on Monday, November 27th!

Wednesday, November 29th - PTA Leadership & Nominating Committee Information Session!

With a school as busy as MES, our PTA is always planning ahead! With that in mind, we are planning to hold our next PTA General Meeting on Thursday, January 25th, 2024. During this meeting, we will be electing a new Nominating Committee, which is responsible for preparing the new slate of PTA Executive Officers for the 2024-2025 school year. Please contact Jane Park before the January 25th PTA meeting if you are interested in serving on the Nominating Committee.

Are you interested in serving on the Nominating Committee (or just curious to learn more about what they do)? Would you like more information on the election process, and learn more about PTA leadership roles? Perhaps you've always wanted to get more involved in the PTA but weren't sure how to get started. If any of these sound like you, please join us for our PTA Leadership & Nominating Committee Information Session, which will be held via Zoom on Wednesday, November 29th at 8pm. Please connect using this Zoom link (Meeting ID: 824 0433 4363, Passcode: 6FXP54). Thanks!

Yard Sign Recycling Is Back!

Do you have yard signs that need to be recycled? The MES Swag Committee will be collecting yard signs all next week in the morning before school starts! The city won't take them in our blue bins, so please consider brining them to be properly recycled at MES. Simply look for our bins at the front doors of the school to drop off your signs for recycling!

The SWAG Committee is also looking for help delivering the collected signs to the CHaRM donation center. If you can help assist with this task, please sign up HERE! There's a smooth process to follow if you're able to help.

For questions, please contact Jackie Townley.

Calling all STEAM Enthusiasts!

Share your passion for your STEAM-related work or hobby by volunteering to be a presenter at Family Science Night (or recommend a friend you think might be great!). This year's event will take place from 6:00 - 8:00pm on Tuesday, February 13th (for grades K-2) and Thursday, February 15th (grades 3-5).

If you are interested in being a presenter or just have questions about the event, please contact the Family Science Night Committee at [email protected].

MES Student Council Canned Food Drive

Student Council will be sponsoring a canned food drive beginning November 28th through December 12th. Please plan to send in any type of canned food item with your students (cans ONLY please, no boxed food). Student council members will also be visiting the classrooms to talk about the canned food drive with students!

Morning Carpool Drop Off Reminder!

Friendly Reminder: The ONLY safe and acceptable method of dropping off students in carpool is through our designated carpool route. There is no drop off allowed on East Rock Springs Road as it is extremely unsafe with traffic patterns. We have even noticed a few cars dropping off students in the middle of the street, which is extremely unsafe for our children during a very busy time of increased traffic. 

You can find the carpool route on the MES website Transportation page. Thank you!

STEAM Partner Interest Form 2023-2024

We need YOUR expertise, experience and help to shine a light on STEAM/STEM amazing Careers!!

We are looking for partners who are willing to share their STEAM/STEM career with students in any way that will help bring it to life:

• field trip opportunity
• in person speaker
• facilitated hands-on class project
• zoom speaker
• donation of supplies for a project
• OR sharing resources or contacts

If it is you or someone you know can help, please complete the form here or share it to help our MES students grow in their knowledge of diverse STEAM/STEM careers!

MES Principal Blog

Principal Sofianos has been busy updating her blog this year, with some help from Assistant Principals Dr. Sinclair and Mr. Baron. Be sure to keep up with all the school news straight from the principal's desk by bookmarking her Principal's Blog and checking back often!

Howard Middle School Principal Coffee Meeting

Howard Middle School Principal Hollis will host her next Principal Coffee Meeting on Friday, November 10th at 9:45am. All Rising Rams families (or "Ramilies") are invited to attend these meetings, which are held in the media center at David T. Howard Middle School.

Rising Rams families, and anyone interested in following events happening at the middle school can subscribe to the weekly Rams Report newsletter here.

Stay Up to Date with the APS Midtown Cluster

Click HERE for resources directly related to our cluster.

Stay Up to Date with the 2023-2024 APS Calendar 

Click HERE to view the district calendar and start planning for all the breaks.

Click HERE to view the Atlanta BOE 2023 Calendar.

Thank you to our 2023-2024 Diamond Dolphin, Dolphin, and Platinum-level sponsors for supporting our school!

For more information about Dolphin Donors, please click HERE.