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Willow Springs Middle School Principal Newsletter - November 8, 2019
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Dear WSMS Parents and Guardians,
This is a great time of year to be the Principal at WSMS. This past week, WSMS hosted another outstanding Career Day. Thank you to all of our parents and volunteers who presented to our students about their career. We had over 40 careers present! Our students always enjoy learning about different careers and this experience provides them with valuable info as they head into high school and beyond. See below for the list of presenters.
Last week, our middle school volleyball and football programs wrapped up successful seasons and we will be heading into our winter sport seasons over the next two weeks.
Tomorrow is the last day to bring your used shoes to donate to our recycling week project. Students can drop off donations in boxes located in the hallway leading to the cafeteria.
Next week, we are looking forward to our theatre and choir students performance of Annie Thursday, Friday, and Saturday (November 14, 15, & 16).
As we approach Thanksgiving break we have some exciting activities on campus for students to give back to their community. Please see below for more details. Go Leopards!
Thank you to all of our Career Day Presenters!
Jeff Bell - Fire Service
Rich Bluestein - Healthcare
Apiwan Born - Education/Tutoring
Roberto Bruder Agular - Power Sports Vehicles
Jamey Brumley - Oil & Natural Gas
Regan Campbell - Business Coach
Ted Chapman - Finance
Amir Choudhry - Healthcare
Mercedes David - Medical Examiner's Office
April Doyle - Attorney
Robert Dueck - Pharmaceutical
Chase Durham - Ministry
Andrea Frost - Higher Education
Bradley & Kasey Havens - HVAC
Felicial Jackson - Engineering
Dustin James - Entrepreneur
Jonathan Jennings - Ministry
Helen Kim-James - Dermatologist
Matt Lafontaine - Consumer Product Goods
Andrea Laurent-Simpson - Higher Education
Joby Mathew - Professional Services
Steven May - Law Enforcement Michel Morales - Real Estate
Shawn Mural - Aerospace
Art Ramirez - Law Enforcement
Mike Robinson - Attorney
Marina Sarpy - Financial Services
Lateef Shariff - Media/Technology/Google
Paula Simaan-Hanna - Auto/Brand Mktg
Christina Smith - Nursing
Ryan Smith - Telecommunications
Zachary Smith - Coaching
Kent Starr - Attorney
Holly Tomlin - Healthcare
Michael Walenciak - Attorney
Joshua Willard - Dentistry
Lori Willard - Physical Therapy
Robert Wise - Patent Law
Bill Yu - Music C
arey Zarate - Photography
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Shoe Collection - November 4-13
WSMS will celebrate National Recycling Day (November 15) with a shoe collection. The PTA will be collecting your outgrown athletic shoes November 4-13 at WSMS. All sizes are needed and will be donated to those in need. The students will see collection bins in the main hallway for their donations.
NJHS Service Project: ACO Thanksgiving Box Drive, November 8 - 21
It's that time of year when giving just a little can change a needy family's entire holiday season. Willow Springs Advisory classes are partnering with NJHS to hold a Thanksgiving Box Drive for Allen Community Outreach. NJHS students will be working with 7th and 8th grade Advisory classes to put together a Thanksgiving Box for needy families in our community. Each box will contain all of the items and non-perishable groceries needed to cook a traditional Thanksgiving meal. The food drive will begin on
Students will be asked to provide the following: $15 Walmart Gift Card (to purchase a turkey), Bisquick, Cornmeal or Corn muffin mix, Flour, Sugar, Pumpkin pie filling (canned), Fruit pie filling (canned), Box of pie crust mix, Box of Jell-O mix, Box of pudding mix, Canned vegetables (variety), Canned fruit (variety), Canned yams, Marshmallows, Stuffing mix, Instant mashed potatoes, Canned gravy or gravy packets, Cranberry sauce, Chicken broth, Cream of chicken, Cream of mushroom, Evaporated milk, 1 container of salt (unopened), 1 container of pepper (unopened,) 2 to 3 casserole size foil baking pans (13x9), 3 foil pie pans
NEW! Cross Country Meet/Carpool Pick Up Next Tuesday
WSMS is hosting a middle school cross country meet starting at 4:15 PM next Tuesday, November 12th. This could potentially slow carpool pick up and flow with the arrival of four other schools coming to compete in our cross country meet. Please be patient as we will have parents from other schools and buses arriving on campus between 3:30--4:30.
Thanksgiving Lunch in Cafeteria - Thursday, November 14th
On Thursday, November 14th we will offer a Thanksgiving lunch at Willow Springs Middle School. Students will have the option to purchase a Thanksgiving lunch if they choose in one of the serving lines. Additional lunch choices will be available in our other two serving lines. This is traditionally a student lunch but parents are always welcome to attend. At the middle school level, we have had very few parents participate.
WSMS Theatre - Save the Date! November 14, 15, and 16
The WSMS Performing Arts will be presenting ANNIE JR. Tickets will go on sale to the public on Monday, October 30th at 10am.
NEW! Lovejoy Letter Campaign - A Message from the Lovejoy Letter Liaison
The 6th annual Lovejoy Letter Campaign is currently underway. Our goal is to have our community write appreciation letters for each teacher and staff member in Lovejoy ISD before the Thanksgiving break. The letters do not need to be elaborate or lengthy. The goal is just for people to write a note of gratitude for supporting our students. Keep it #shortandsweet and #showappreciation!
We would be grateful if you would write letters to any teacher or staff member who has been valuable to your child's educational experience. It can be from this current year, or someone who has made an impact in the past.
Please label the envelope with "LLC" and the staff or teacher's name, then drop off the letter to the front office of your school by Friday, November 15th.
The letter campaign has become a meaningful tradition in our community. We appreciate your time and effort to this year's letter campaign. Also, don't forget the kids! The teachers and staff love to hear from the students they are impacting.
The Willow Springs campus liaisons are Lisa O'Dowd and Stephanie McGowan and the campaign is being coordinated by Maria Ritchie.
Sincerely,
Lovejoy Letter Liaison
WSMS Spelling Bee - Friday, November 15
The WSMS Spelling Bee will be on November 15th from 9:30-11, in the cafeteria. Parents are welcome to attend.
NEW! WSMS Principals Coffee - Friday, November 15, at 9am
The topic on Thursday will be WSMS Mastery Learning & Preparing for Final Exams. The meeting will begin at 9:00 a.m. in the WSMS Band Hall. The Principal's Coffee is a forum discussion for all 7th and 8th grade parents to visit with me about the importance of Mastery Learning and helping their students to Prepare for Final Exams, over a cup of coffee. During the discussion, I will provide information about the safety and security procedures at Willow Springs and answer any questions you may have. Attending parents are encouraged to park in the front parking lot to enter and sign-in through the front office.
UPDATE! Author Michael Patrick O'Neill to visit WSMS - November 19
On November 19th, our 7th graders will have a unique experience as they hear from Author/Photographer Michael Patrick O'Neill.
WSMS Turkey Trot for Dallas Tornado Relief - November 20th
WSMS will host a Turkey Trot on Wednesday, November 20th. Each grade level will participate in a race around the WSMS campus.
8
th
Grade Race: 9:15 AM
7
th
Grade Race: 10:20 AM
All students will participate in the Turkey Trot. Students will have the option to run or walk. Medals for the top 5 male and female finishers in each grade level will be presented during lunches.
As part of our community service project for the fall, we are asking students to raise funds for the City of Dallas Emergency Fund. We are asking each student to donate anywhere from $5.00--$20.00 for this project. All proceeds will benefit the tornado victims from the October tornado that tore through north Dallas. The donation drive will start Monday, November 11, 2019, and run through Wednesday, November 20. Students can donate cash or check through their advisory class or online through the LISD online payment system. A link to the online payment system will be shared next week. The advisory class with the most donations will receive a pizza party for all their fundraising efforts.
Parents who are interested in running in the Turkey Trot will be able to register for $15 through our online payment system on November 11th Parents must be on the District's cleared volunteer list to participate in the Turkey Trot. Parents will run with their students grade level. If you need any additional information, please contact Leslee Cox at
[email protected]
or Chase Crocker at
[email protected]
We are looking forward to a great Turkey Trot on November 20th.
Attention 8th Grade Parents!
Important 8th grade Recognition ADS!!!
TO ALL 8TH GRADE Willow Springs MS PARENTS: FRIDAY 12-13 IS THE DEADLINE FOR THE 8TH
GRADE RECOGNITION ADS.
All 8th grade recognition ads must be paid for and submitted online by Friday, December 13th via the
jostensyearbooks.com
link.
NEW! WSMS Guardians of the Green - Every Monday Morning
Garden Club is meeting on Monday Mornings at 8am in the garden. Come and join Mrs. Perez and other students. We will be weeding, making hoop houses and tending the garden. "
The glory of gardening: hands in the dirt, head in the sun, heart with nature.
To nurture a garden is to feed not just the body, but the soul.
- Alfred Austin
UPDATED! Robotics Club - Every Tuesday and Thursday After School
Interested in Robotics....Join Us! The WSMS Robotics Club will meet every Tuesday and Thursday after school. Students should come to room C600, right after school, with pickup being 5pm. Please sign up by joining the Robotics Club classroom. The code is
ubltty5.
If you have any questions, please contact Sylvia Woods at [email protected].
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Campus Information and Reminders
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NEW! Safety Corner - Bus Transportation
With the continued growth of our community, bus ridership has also grown. The majority of our afternoon routes are at or near bus capacity. Therefore, transportation will not be able to accommodate students riding the bus home with other when the student is not assigned to the bus route. This would include sending your child home on another student's bus for play dates, sleep over's, group projects, sports practices, etc.
In the rare instance that you have a last minute emergency and need your child to ride the bus home with someone else, please call your child's school to get permission so the school can inform the bus driver of the change.
Perfect Attendance 1st Nine Weeks
During the first grading period, we had 309 students that had perfect attendance. This means these students were in class every period of every day during the first nine weeks. Let's continue to work together to encourage students to increase our perfect attendance. For a complete list of students who had perfect attendance, please
click here.
Students feeling under the weather?
As you know, it is prime cold and flu season. To help best manage our students and to keep in line with the policy in the Student Handbook, if students are not feeling well at school, they need to be checked out through the school clinic. The student must be fever free (Temperature of 99.9 or less for 24 hours without the use of over the counter medications to keep the temperature down) and must NOT have vomited or had diarrhea in the last 24 hours. Thank you for your attention to this important matter.
ParentPortal Update - Please Complete
The PowerSchool ParentPortal is now open for you to complete the online Enrollment & Student Information Forms. Please
click here
access the
Parent Portal
. Completion of these forms is required every year for every student. Please take a few minutes to update your Contact Information, FERPA Acknowledgments, General Waivers, and other information.
As of today, there are 77 students whose forms have not been updated.
PLEASE NOTE: Regarding the Release of Directory Information for School Use:
In order for your child's picture to appear in the Yearbook, you should answer "YES".
IMPORTANT - Students and parents have a separate login/password for PowerSchool. Students should never have access to ParentPortal or use their parent login. If students were to access the ParentPortal on a school or public computer and not log out, family demographics as well as sibling's grades would be open for others to access. If you have any questions, you may contact Carol Vik at 469-742-8415.
PowerSchool App
The PowerSchool app is now available in the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. You use the same PowerSchool online login. Enter the District code NJBC.
Reporting an Incident at WSMS
One of our top priorities at Willow Springs Middle School is to ensure the safety of all of our students. Our most important asset in this is the eyes and ears our students can provide us on campus. We will begin using the Safe Schools Alert System this year for students and parents to report incidents they are aware of happening. You can access the system by going to
www.lovejoyisd.net . Under Quick Links click on "REPORT IT!" You will have four ways to submit an incident. Furthermore, you will receive an access code to follow the progression of how an incident is being handled.
November Student Nutrition Newsletter
LISD Calendar
Please go here for LISD calendars.
WSMS Twitter Feeds #wsmslovejoy
@WSMSLovejoyISD (Campus Event Updates)
@sscwsms (Counseling updates)
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Off-Season
Please remember to have your child dress accordingly, as we enter into colder weather - please bring a sweatshirt/sweatpants.
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District Communications
Student and Parent Concerns/Grievances
The faculty and staff of Lovejoy ISD are committed to the service of our students and their parents by responding promptly and professionally to concerns or grievances which may arise.
Student and Parent Complaints/Grievances are governed by LISD Board Policies FNG (LEGAL) and FNG (LOCAL).
How Do You Resolve Parent Concerns?
If you, as the parent or guardian of a Lovejoy ISD student, have concerns regarding your child's education or performance, we want to talk with you. Sitting down and talking with the people who interact most often with your child on a daily basis - his/her teacher, counselor, coach or director- can remedy the majority of concerns.
Most concerns can be and usually are resolved at the classroom/activity/sports or campus level. However, if your concerns are not addressed by visiting with the teacher, campus counselor, coach or director, you may choose to follow the three-level process listed below:
Level One:
Within 15 business days of the incident causing the concern/complaint, you may request a meeting with the next level supervisor which could be the Athletic Director, Fine Arts Director or Campus Principal. The Level One form may be found
here
.
Level Two:
If you are not satisfied with the outcome of the Level One process, within 10 business days of receipt of the Level One decision letter, you may request a meeting with the Assistant Superintendent of Operations (Athletics, Safety, Operations) or Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction (Teachers, Administrators, Student Discipline). The Level Two form may be found
here
.
Level Three:
If you are not satisfied with the outcome of the Level Two process, within 10 business days of receipt of the Level Two decision letter, you may appeal the decision to the School Board by contacting the Superintendent. The Level Three form may be found
here
.
Upcoming Events
LHS Student Council Hosts Veterans for Banquet
The Lovejoy High School Student Council is pleased to invite you to their annual Veterans Day Banquet:
November 11, 2019
5:30 PM
Lovejoy High School Commons
Dinner will be catered by Rudy's Barbecue. The student council would love for all veterans to attend as their guests.
Please RSVP to:
Safety and Security Training
Lovejoy ISD is offering "Stop the Bleed" and "Civilian Response to Active Shooter Events" trainings during the month of November. You are invited to join us for this training which is applicable and practical for all community members.
Stop the Bleed
November 19, 2019
6:30 PM - 8:00 PM
Lovejoy High School Lecture Hall
Civilian Response to Active Shooter Events
November 21, 2019
6:30 PM - 8:30 PM
Lovejoy High School Lecture Hall
Community News
We are pleased to announce the
Lovejoy ISD Community News Page
. This new addition to the Lovejoy ISD Webpage will share news from our schools, programs, booster clubs, student organizations, Foundation for Lovejoy Schools, community, and more. Check back often for up-to-date news on events and activities.
For more information on the following topics click the "Lovejoy ISD Community News Page" link above.
Senior Judges Needed!
Register Now! 10th Annual Turkey Chess Tournament
Reserved Tickets Available for Tonight's Varsity Football Game
Parking Information for Home Football Games
Football Playoff T-Shirts
Lovejoy Gifted Association Coding Event
Lovejoy Professional Network Charity Benefit Golf Tournament
Senior Project!
Boys Wrestling Camp
STEM Design Your World Conference for Girls
City of Lucas Farmers Market
Engage Collin County Music Festival
Buddy Walk
Block Party
Senior Project!
Girls Wrestling Camp
Thanksgiving Food Drive
Lovejoy Student Council Veterans Day Banquet
Soccer Fundraiser
Men's Tailgate Party and Cornhole Tournament
Benfiting the Foundation for Lovejoy Schools
Senior Project!
Running Over Depression
Safety and Security Training
Leopard Baseball Buddy League
Lovejoy High School Cheer Fundraiser
Holiday Poinsettias for Sale
Arthritis Foundation Jingle Bell Run
Turn Lucas Green
News from Collin College
For the latest Athletic News, download the "Lovejoy Leopards Athletics" app.
For the latest Fine Arts News, follow
@LovejoyArts
on Twitter, or like them on Facebook at Lovejoy Arts.
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