October Update for GMS Families

Gettys Middle School - Easley, SC

Gettys Middle School Students Excel

We are so proud of all our students are accomplishing in the First Quarter of this school year! We have a number of award-winning students that are showing #GettysGreatness and we would like to recognize them for their outstanding work!

The Gettys Middle School Student Recognition Program's focus for September was: Positive and Encouraging. ELA and Social Studies teachers nominated students who personified these traits. Click HERE to see the list of September's Student of the Month. There were 33-6th grade students, 24-7th grade students and 22 8th grade students recognized. Each month there will be a colorful display in the cafeteria, grade level announcements/hall posters and school-wide monitors featuring the student's names. Each student will receive their display item, a coupon and GMS PTO supplied treat at the end of each month. Exploratory teachers will select October nominees with the focus of: Courage and Honesty.
State test results from May 2021 are in and we had several students with perfect scores and the highest results a student can achieve! Current 7th grade students: Joslyn Bakeman, Anna Owens, Anders Mikkelson: 8th grade students: Aiden Sewell and Afton Staudt as well as current 9th grade student: Michael Tate were all PERFECT! These students will receive a plaque and one will also be displayed in our main lobby with other perfect score recipients. They will be recognized at our academic awards at the end of the year.

We are proud of our students and staff for producing these results!

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6th Grade Students

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7th Grade Students

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8th Grade Students

STEM Programs at GMS Win National Award

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Our STEM Programs have been recognized as a Project Lead The Way (PLTW) Distinguished School for the fourth year in a row providing broad access to transformative learning opportunities for students through PLTW Gateway. We are just one of just 158 middle schools across the U.S. to receive this honor. To receive this honor, GMS has offered broad access to transformative learning opportunities for students through PLTW Gateway Programs that emphasize STEM skills for future careers.

“It is a great honor to recognize Gettys Middle School for their unwavering commitment to provide students with an excellent educational experience despite the unusual circumstances and unique challenges that the COVID-19 pandemic presented to the educational landscape this past year,” said Dr. Vince Bertram, President and CEO of PLTW. “They should be very proud of their achievements in unlocking their students’ potential and equipping them with the knowledge and skills necessary to thrive in life beyond the classroom no matter what career path they choose.”

Press Release

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Dr. Yemothy Recognized as a PLTW Outstanding Teacher of the Year

Dr. Yemothy inspired and encouraged her students by her dedication to drive exceptional student learning outcomes. She is one of only 79 PLTW teachers across the U.S. to earn the 2021-22 PLTW Outstanding Teacher of the Year Award. Whether she delivered learning experiences in a classroom, distance, or hybrid setting, Dr. Yemothy showed up every day to “Lead The Way.” We are thankful for Dr. Yemothy’s outstanding leadership in the classroom! Dr. Nicole Yemothy continues to set a standard of excellence in STEM education.

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Sport Tickets are Paperless and Online Only

All sport tickets will be handled online so be sure to check out our website prior to your event for online purchasing. The best way to secure a ticket for the big game is to purchase in advance of your contest.

Families Opportunity to Teach Students about Social Media Safety

Recently, a national Tik Tok video was unfortunately posted that encouraged students to steal or vandalize school property like school restroom soap dispensers that were installed in the recent pandemic for students own safety. As our administration encountered four or five students following this national social media posting and addressed the unacceptable behavior, we are reminding all families and parents that you should be actively involved in monitoring and teaching your child appropriate online behavior during the middle school years.

Social media accounts from Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook and others have user agreements that require a person with an account to be 13 years of age or older. If students establish their own individual social media accounts when they are 11 or 12 years old, they are violating these companies user agreements. The Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, or COPPA, imposes certain requirements on operators of websites and online services – including social media sites. Many social media sites track your child's data, share the data and actively mine the data. GMS recommends that students should wait until they are 13 years of age to create any individual social media accounts and when they do that parents should actively be involved in monitoring their incoming and out-going content. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that they do not sleep with devices in their bedrooms, they avoid using devices for an hour before bedtime and they avoid using devices during family dinners.

In the past month, internal research from Facebook and the owner of Instagram featured a negative impact on teens' mental health from Instagram. In one study of teens in the U.S. and U.K., Facebook found that more than 40% of Instagram users who reported feeling “unattractive” said the feeling began on the app. About a quarter of the teens who reported feeling “not good enough” said the feeling started on Instagram. In their report on body image in 2020, Facebook’s researchers found that 40% of teen boys experience negative social comparison. Many also said the app undermined their confidence in the strength of their friendships. “Teens told us that they don’t like the amount of time they spend on the app but feel like they have to be present,” an Instagram research manager explained to colleagues, according to the documents. “They often feel ‘addicted’ and know that what they’re seeing is bad for their mental health but feel unable to stop themselves.” The entire article can be found HERE.

2021-2022 Student Agenda and Handbook

Please review this student agenda and handbook with your child.

Care For School-Owned Devices and Library Books

There is a significant investment by The School District of Pickens County in providing devices for every student and having a large collection of library books available to all students. We need all students to care for these devices and library books. Please make sure water is away from these items and that students close the device screen prior to any movement with their device. Devices should not be left on the floor where a screen can be damaged or stepped upon. Shipping delays are also impacting these areas so even if we can fix or repair the item, there is a longer delay in having these items restored or returned. To prevent any disruptions to your child's learning, please encourage them to care for these district-owned resources.

Chromebook Technology Repair Form

Enter repair information into the Google Form and Ms. Stokes will provide additional support at school. Incident IQ is available from the student's LaunchPad.

592 GMS Students Completed a High School Course Last Year

592 students completed rigorous high school credit courses last school year and were successful in these rigorous courses while earning credits towards their high school diploma. These classes typically include Algebra 1, English 1, computer classes such as Computer Fundamentals 1 or 2, virtual school classes, or Spanish classes. This year we also added American Sign Language. It is important for students to know that these classes are starting their high school transcript and high school GPA as they earn high school credits. These are high school courses and students should be prepared to work harder in these 9th grade classes. South Carolina has several in-state scholarships for college that are based on a student's high school GPA. Therefore, if they are enrolled in high school courses they should be aware of these scholarships and their requirements to focus their efforts. South Carolina offers the Palmetto Scholarship, Life Scholarship, and Hope Scholarship. The link is below for a brochure on these scholarship programs that your student can earn.

State Scholarships for College via High School Courses

Easley Schools in K-12th Grade Contribute To Our Best High School Graduation Rate

Thanks to the teachers and staff of Gettys Middle School for helping the graduation Class of 2021 in achieving the highest on-time graduation rate for Easley High!

Reading and the 25 Book Challenge This Year

Did you know that reading is one of the most important skills to acquire during the middle school years? Reading is at the heart of every class and often times a learning issue can be traced back to a reading issue. Students can be knowledgeable of Social Studies, Science or Math content but just like on our state tests students may not do well because 40% of students are not at the minimum reading level of the state test . Investing in reading is a great place to start.

This year our students have been challenged to read a total of 25 books. Research states that students who read a lot tend to be more empathetic, something we could all use right now. Did you know that statistics show that 53% of 9-year olds are daily readers but 17-year olds are only at 17%? That is why we are issuing a challenge to our students to read 25 books this school year. This will help build our students’ vocabulary, their writing skills, improve their comprehension of nonfiction content reading, be more creative, and yes, it will help to raise their reading scores. So encourage your child to read. Buy them books for presents for birthdays, holidays and just because they are a good kid. Find books that interest them. Read a book together with your child. You read a chapter and have them read aloud the next chapter. Have fun reading with your child!

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After-School Program Gettys U Has Begun and Is Accepting Applications

Gettys University, our after-school program, has now begun Monday through Friday from 2:30-6:00 pm. Parents can pick up their child any time after 4 pm or have their child ride the bus starting at 5:00 pm. This program is free for students that are free or reduced lunch. It offers homework help after school for the first hour and clubs and activity time after that daily. You can contact Mrs. Gilcrease, Director at 397-3900 extension 3941.

Gettys 3 pm to 6 pm Programs Offer Clubs To Increase Student Engagement

Our school knows that engaged students are present students that attend daily. A great way to get your middle school student engaged is through our school activities or clubs. In addition to the traditional sport programs or fine arts programs, GMS also is currently offering a Board Game Club that meets weekly, a History Club that meets monthly, a school musical and theater club and a Robotics Club that meets weekly. All of our clubs meet after school hours generally from 3:30-4:30 pm.

Parents Sign Up For Schoology

It is important that all families sign up for Schoology on their computer or the app for their phones. You can have access to daily grades, upcoming assignments and information from teachers. This is a great resource!

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PSAT at GMS October 13

8th grade students that preregistered will take the PSAT at GMS. Registration is now closed. The PSAT is the Preliminary SAT. The PSAT is a great primer for the SAT, and even the ACT, but it’s more than just a trial run. PSAT scores are used to identify SC Junior Scholars, which is a high academic honor for 8th grade students across South Carolina. The criteria for a SC Junior Scholar is: students who score 550 or higher on the Evidence-Based Reading and Writing subtests of the PSAT or who score 530 or higher on the Math subtest of the PSAT.

Contacts for COVID-19 Reporting

The COVID-19 contact for our school is our school nurses: Mrs. Leslie Butts and Ms. Lesley Ellison. They are available by calling our school 397-3900 and entering their extension 3923 and 3907 respectively. If your child has any COVID symptoms they should stay home and please communicate with our nurses for further information.

Keep Safe and Helping Decrease COVID Cases at GMS

We appreciate all family members doing all they can to help mitigate spread of the COVID-19 virus. We continue with 3 ft or more of spacing in our classrooms, hand sanitizer stations, water bottle filling stations, contact tracing with family communication, students in academic cohorts and general cleaning and disinfecting. All of your efforts are helping as our school's COVID-19 cases has declined in the past three weeks:

Week One: 8 positive student cases
Week Two: 10 positive student cases
Week Three: 15 positive student cases
Week Four: 15 positive student cases
Week Five: 19 positive student cases
Week Six: 12 positive student cases
Week Seven: 7 positive student cases
Week Eight: 4 positive student cases