The Principal's Office

Email: jhutchinson@nasd.k12.pa.us
Website: https://www.nasd.k12.pa.us/enms
Location: 330 Roland Drive, East Norriton, PA, USA
Phone: 610-275-6520
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/category/Middle-School/East-Norriton-Middle-School-121770504834624/
Twitter: @EastNorritonMS

I'd like to welcome all of you to the start of the 2023-2024 school year. Our staff has worked extremely hard getting our school ready for this year.

I want each of you to know we will take care of your student, provide them with excellent learning opportunities, and provide them with skills to become productive members of our school community.

This year we have a new English Language Arts program called Wit and Wisdom. You can find more information about this program at https://greatminds.org/english/witwisdom. This is a new series and our teachers have prepared over the summer for its implementation.

We will be in our second year of Envision math. This program was very successful last year, and helped to raise math achievement in the building. You can find information about this program HERE.

All of our other resources for other classes have remained the same. We will provide regular updates on our curriculum materials and how they are being utilized in our classrooms throughout the year.

Great things will happen this year and I want to encourage all of you to be partners in this work. Pay attention to our PFC meeting schedule and become involved in our work to learn more about the school and ways parents can contribute. Our meeting schedule will appear in next week's newsletter.

Have a wonderful weekend and let's Go Phillies!

Mr. Hutchinson, Principal

August

28th First student day

September

1st Schools and offices closed today

4th Labor Day no school

19th Picture Day

22nd Early Dismissal

25th Yom Kippur No school

Here are a few tips for the first days of school.

1. Please arrive at your bus stop a few minutes before the scheduled time. You should also expect some delays with pick up and drop off times as buses are learning their new bus routes.

2. Please review the car rider process so parents understand how students are to be dropped off and picked up. It is a very smooth process.

3. Students will receive lockers the first day of school. Encourage them not to share locker combinations with their friends.

4. Students should never share their Chromebook login username or password with a friend.

5. School begins at 8am so students should arrive via car no earlier than 7:45. We will allow students to exit their vehicles at 7:45. Students must remain in their vehicles until the staff on duty signals for students to exit.

6. Cell phones are encouraged to be left at home. However, if your student has their cell phone it must be turned off and placed in their locker.

7. Students must follow the schedule they are given. If there are issues with a schedule students can report the issue to their homeroom teacher or school counselor. We do not make schedule changes based upon parent requests for a child to have a particular teacher.

8. Middle School is a great time. Teach your student to get to know their classmates and make new friends. If you student is having difficulty making friends please contact your child's counselor.

9. ENMS is a big place but we make it much smaller in how we schedule. Teachers walk students to and from all classes during the day. Do not worry about 5th grade students having classes in an 8th grade hallway. The school is all separated into different pods and the older students do not really see our 5-6th graders during the day.

10. Encourage your student to be ready for a wonderful school year.

Fall Athletics Announcement: Sign-ups & Physicals

Dear Parents of Students Interested in Playing Sports,

We are excited to announce that sports sign-ups for fall sports will take place Monday through Thursday of this coming week. Students can sign up during their lunch period. All students who are interested must take home a blank physical form and have a parent sign the top. This signature authorizes your child to receive a physical through the school district, which will be held on Tuesday, September 5, after school.

In addition to the physical form, both students and parents are required to create BigTeams accounts and complete athletic forms 1-6, located under the 'Athletic Forms' tab. Detailed instructions and a walkthrough on how to complete this task can be found on our middle school athletics website.

Don't miss this opportunity for your child to get active and be part of our school's athletic community. Contact Mr. Stem if you have any questions: LStem@nasd.k12.pa.us

Scan the QR code to follow our middle school athletics program on Instagram.

Stay updated with the latest news, enjoy spotlights on athletes, and get a behind-the-scenes look at our various sports programs.

See the new middle school athletics website for more information!

Middle School can often be a tough transition for some students. Below are some key questions and our answers that can help you navigate the middle school experience.

What do I do if I am having an issue and I would like to speak to the principal or vice principal?

One of your first steps for parents having an issue related to the school should be to reach out to your child's counselor. They can usually resolve 90% of issues. Our counselors and administrative team meet daily to discuss issues that arise and how we address them. The names and emails of the school counselors can be found in the story below.

If you still would like to speak to the principal or vice principal please contact the main office at 610-275-6520 and follow the prompts to speak to the correct administrator. We will return all phone calls within 24 hours. You can also email us directly using the email addresses below. Email will usually yield a quicker response.

Mr. Hutchinson -jhutchinson@nasd.k12.pa.us

Dr. Harper- tharper@nasd.k12.pa.us

What if I am really upset as a parent, can I come to the school and demand to see the principal or vice principal?

We ask all parents not to show up at the school with an expectation you will be able to meet with the principal or vice principal. Often we are in classrooms, working with teachers, or doing other scheduled activities and may not be available. Therefore, there are some other options that will help you resolve the issue much more quickly.

The best course of action when a parent has a concern or issue they would like to have addressed immediately is to contact the school secretary or community liaison (for Spanish-speaking families) to arrange an appointment with Mr. Hutchinson or Dr. Harper. We can usually see parents within 24 hours, but that is not always the case. I would also encourage parents to reach out to your child's counselor to speak to them. They may be able to resolve the issue very quickly.

What if I want to meet with my child's teacher or the school counselors?

Parents should email the teacher or counselor and the teacher or counselor will arrange a time for a meeting. We can hold meetings on Google Meet (virtual meetings), or in-person. Parents maynot arrive at the school to ask to meet with a teacher without contacting the teacher in advance to schedule a meeting.

I am not getting school emails or newsletters from the school, how can this be fixed?

Parents should check their emails regularly. We communicate 95% of our information via email and social media. If you are not getting emails from the school or the weekly newsletter please contact Ms. Clemons, our school secretary at tclemons@nasd.k12.pa.us and she can check the email we have on file.

When I send an email to a teacher or counselor when should I expect a response?

Our teachers are teaching students at various times during the school day. Our counselors have many different roles during the day as well. They do have prep periods where they can check emails, but they may not be able to respond to all emails immediately. Parents should receive a response within 24 hours. I wanted to emphasize this because often parents send an email to a teacher and expect a response within an hour or two. This is not a realistic expectation for our teachers or counselors because they are teaching students and do not have the ability to check email while they are teaching. Most teachers check their emails first thing in the morning, and immediately after school.

Each week I will post a few questions like these during the first few weeks to hopefully answer some questions you may have and direct you how to get them resolved in the most efficient manner.

Attached are the 2023-2024 parent engagement pact between the school and parents. This is a nice document that outlines expectations for the school, and the school's expectations of parents. Please email Mr. Hutchinson if you have questions.

Attached is the school district's annual family privacy policy. Please take a few moments to review.

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), a Federal law, requires that the Norristown Area School District, with certain exceptions, obtain your written consent prior to the disclosure of personally identifiable information from your child’s education records. However, the Norristown Area School District may disclose appropriately designated “directory information” without written consent, unless you have advised the District to the contrary in accordance with District procedures. Please review this attachment to understand "directory information."

Our website is full of information, and is a good place to check out on a regular basis. Our food service will be updating menus in the coming week. The link below directly links you to the Food Services website which contains menus and other helpful information.

Lunch is free for all students. Students will swipe their student IDs to receive lunch. IDs will not arrive until after fall pictures. In the meantime, students will type in their ID numbers on the register keypad.

If students bring drinks for lunch we want to discourage energy drinks such as Monster, Celsius, Prime and other drinks that are very high in caffeine. We do allow outside drinks during lunches only. Students may carry water bottles with them to classes. We are also in the process of installing a refillable water bottle station. This should be installed in September.

*note the new menus have not been published yet

Food Services of the Norristown Area School District.

We have two counselors at ENMS. These individuals should be one of your first points of contact if you need guidance related to any issue or problem your student may be facing during the school year. We can usually resolve issues quickly when parents contact their child's counselor. If you need to speak to your child's counselor their contact information is found below.

5th and 6th grade School Counselor: Ms. Gena Bussell gbussell@nasd.k12.pa.us

7th and 8th grade School Counselor: Ms. Sarah Raimondi sraimondi@nasd.k12.pa.us

Below is the map of our car rider arrival and dismissal process.

You may enter the school from either Township Line road (the front of the school) or off Stoney Creek drive (the back of the school). Please take turns turning into the car rider line.

The car rider line is in yellow in the picture below. Notice it snakes along the side and back of the school and brings all cars to the pick up and drop off spot. Please stay in line and follow the cars in front of you. It is a very smooth and quick process during the school year.

During the start of the year it will be a little slower as we train our new families. I promise as we get everyone following the process you will be in and out in minutes.

All cars exit following the red line and all cars MUST EXIT ON TOWNSHIP LINE ROAD. The neighbors off Stoney Creek become upset when we have large numbers of cars exiting in that direction. Therefore everyone has to exit on Township Line road by following the red line between the hours of 7:45-8:00 and 3:00-3:15. We want to be a good neighbor so please help us out by following the exit procedure. We have a East Norriton Township police officer at the red light and it will remain green for long periods of time to get everyone out efficiently.

We will have extra people in the car rider line at the start of the year helping direct traffic.

The biggest issue we face is people trying to park in parking spots waiting to pick up their children. We cannot allow students to leave the curb and get into cars in parking spots. We have a lot of cars moving and we cannot have students crossing into traffic as we loop cars along the property. So everyone must be in the car rider line. If you park in a parking spot we will have to ask you you to move.

Just trust the process and follow our staff directing traffic and we will get you in and out very quickly.

Our 5th grade teachers are organizing a fundraiser for their field trips this year. They are hosting a ENMS family night at Urban Air. We will need a certain number of families to purchase tickets to hold this event. All students must be accompanied by a parent to attend this event.

See the flyer below for information.

Fall athletes on NASD teams will receive individual lockers to use in the boys and girls' locker rooms during the fall sports season. These lockers can be used to store their sports equipment until practice is held after school.

Students are encouraged to purchase their own locks for the large lockers in the locker rooms. However, we will have some locks available for students to borrow until the season ends.

All fall athletes that make the team will be given a locker to use during the fall season. The same will apply to students for the winter and spring sports seasons.

Bus information was emailed to families on or August 21, 2023. Please check your email.

Additionally, we will be conducting PBIS bus safety lessons beginning on the second day of school. We will review seating arrangements on the busses. 5th grade students sit in the first few rows, following by 6th, 7th and 8th grade sits in the last few rows of the bus. This is the expectation on all bus runs.

Students who receive bus referrals from the drivers will be given a warning the first time, followed with a parent phone call. Additional referrals will result in office detentions, bus suspensions, and out of school suspension. If a student is suspended from the bus the parent is responsible for providing transportation during the time of suspension from the bus.

Please take a few minutes to remind your student of this expectation and the consequences of receiving a bus referral for unsafe behavior.

If you want to track the location of your child's bus you can use the First View Buss App on your smartphone. The passcode for East Norriton is 7VZ9. The link to the free First View app is available in the Apple Store and Google Play Store. Download it, add your student and enter the school code.

Nurse Reminders

Medication: If your child needs to take medication at school the nurse will need a doctor’s order to give medication. This note from the doctor should include the name of medication, amount to give and what time to take medication. It should be signed by the doctor. Medication must be in the original container with prescription on the bottle.

Injuries: If your child is injured and/or broke a bone and is in a brace, cast, sling or on crutches please remember to call the nurse. She can help accommodate your child in school for safety purposes. She would need documentation of the injury from the doctor.

6th grade physicals: All 6th graders should go to the doctor for a physical exam. If the child is 11 years old they should receive a Tdap and Meningitis vaccine at this appointment. Have the doctor fill out the PA Private Physical form so you can give that to the nurse as proof of physical. Updated vaccination records should be attached.

School Screenings: All students will receive a health screening which consists of height, weight and vision. Students in grade 7 will also get hearing and scoliosis screenings. If results are abnormal, parents will receive a letter to see a doctor. Screening will start in September and will take a few months to complete. If your child wears glasses please make sure they are using them in school so we can test them with their glasses on.

If you have any questions or concerns about your child’s health please call Lynne Zangara, School Nurse at 610-275-6520 ext 3 or email at Lzangara@nasd.k12.pa.us.

Please see the graphic below to make sure your student has the required immunizations for the fall of 2023. Students without immunizations in 7th grade are excluded from beginning school.

Any questions please contact our school nurse.

Below is the bell schedule for the 2023-2024 school year.

Additionally, one unique aspect of ENMS is that we change our class order each quarter. For example, this means your student might have math first and second period during marking period 1. However, during marking period 2 their math class may change to periods 8-9. We feel that offering classes at different times of the year allows for students to learn different subjects at different times. If they are not a morning person, then they do not always have the same class during the morning all year. This also applies to lunch periods. Students will have lunch during each of the four lunch times during the year. This helps because 10:30 is an early lunch time, so understand they will only have that lunch one marking period of the year.

Another unique feature of ENMS is that we offer WINN (What I Need Now) each morning. Students may be pulled into different groups, work on their IXL, or receive enrichment during WINN time. We run WINN pretty much every day of the school year, with some exceptions.

More information on the scheduling rotation, WINN lunch times will be given to your student during the first days of school.

All students must have their cellphones turned off and placed in their lockers. Below are the consequences for cellphone violations.

1st-3rd offenses: Teachers will ask the students to turn their phone off and place it in their locker, or ask the student to give it to the teacher. It will be returned to the student at the end of the school day.

4th offense: Students will give their cell phone to a teacher and the teachers will give it to the main office. The parent or guardian must report to the school to pick up the device. Cell phones are placed in a locked safe in the main office until parents arrive. A one-hour office detention will be assigned for each violation.

Chronic cellphone offenses: It is the policy of ENMS that students who chronically violate the cellphone policy despite warnings, parents picking up the phone etc. will not be permitted to bring their cell phone to school. This is not negotiable and even if a parent disagrees with this policy it is still our policy and it will be enforced regardless of parental agreement. I am asking parents to please discuss these rules with your student.

All classrooms and office have telephones inside them. If there is an emergency we have plenty of phones to handle any emergency situation.

ENMS does not have a dress code for our students. Many of our students choose to wear hooded sweatshirts. The only rule we have around hoodies is that students must have their hoods off. We need to see students faces and when students wear hoodies, combined with masks it makes it extremely difficult to recognize a student from a distance. Therefore, students who choose to wear hoodies must leave their hoods pulled down.

If we run into situations where students do not remove their hood they will receive consequences ranging from a simple discussion all the way to a suspension for chronic offenders. This is usually not an issue for us, but I like to remind parents at the start of the year of this policy.

Lastly, students also cannot wear "slides." All students must have shoes that have a back on them. Croc style shoes are fine as long as students wear the strap along the back of them. The biggest issue with slides is the tripping hazard they pose on stairs. Therefore, students cannot wear slides to school. Again, this is not a big issue here at school, but I like to remind parents of those two simple rules around our dress policy.

Here are the first and last days for the 2023-2024 school year. Below is a pdf file of the calendar for next year. Plan those trips now :-)

First Day for Students - Monday, August 28, 2023
Last Day for Students - Thursday, June 6, 2024

Here is a link for you to complete a note when your student is absent. Please fill this out the morning of the absence, or within three days of their absence.

You can also send in a paper note with your student the day they return to school.

2023-2024 Student Excuse and Early Release Form

Safe2Say Something is a youth violence prevention program run by the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General. The program teaches youth and adults how to recognize warning signs and signals, especially within social media, from individuals who may be a threat to themselves or others and to “say something” BEFORE it is too late. With Safe2Say Something, it’s easy and confidential to report safety concerns to help prevent violence and tragedies.

Here’s how it works:

• Submit an anonymous tip report through the Safe2SaySomething system
• Crisis center reviews, assesses and processes all submissions
• Crisis center sends all submissions to school administration and/or law enforcement for intervention
• If needed, crisis center may contact tipster anonymously through the app