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Pony Express
Week of April 15- 21, 2024
In this Issue
Newest Updates in BOLD
- Principal's Update
- Happening This Week at O. Henry
- Charger Replacement
- Mustang News- Episode 27
- National Junior Honor Society- Application for 7th Grade and New 8th Grade Due Monday
- Counselor Corner-High School Credit Drop Dates, AVID Summer Bridge, Updated 24-25 Transition Newsletter
- Athletic and PE News- Track and Field
- Fine Art News- UIL Guitar Highlights, Freshman Band
- PTA Updates- Save the Date for Cornhole, Directory Spot, AHS Parent Mingle
- Summer Camp
- Other Campus and AISD News: Attendance, Enrollment for 24-25 School Year, Bell Schedule, AISD Calendar, Transportation, AISD Health Services, Weather Guidelines
Principal's Update
Weekly Principal Update--Week of April 15-21, 2024
Mustang Families,
Last week was one of the busiest weeks of the school year with an Eclipse, STAAR testing, a school holiday, the birth of a baby goat, staff in-service, and a school play. Congratulations to all our Fine Arts students this spring and a shout out to our talented students and Director White for an outstanding school musical.
We had a great first day of STAAR last week and only had 11 students out of 694 who did not have a school computer. This is phenomenal and I know our students will remember to bring their fully charged device to school each day. This week we will continue with STAAR testing for our 8th graders taking Science and Social Studies. Math will be administered campus wide on April 24th so there is still time to get a charger(see below).
Be sure to check out the Happening This Week section as our Bell Schedule is a bit different due to testing, and we have two important due dates for our Mustangs on Monday and Friday.
We hope that you saved time on your calendar for our Cornhole Tournament and Social on Friday night. This is one of my favorite adult events of the season as parents and staff can mingle and play together. It is a great way to get connected and meet new people and see current Mustang Adult Friends. I hope you will join us for this fun evening.
Make it a great week to be an O. Henry Mustang!
☮❤️&🐴's,
Marlo Malott
Happening This Week Around Campus
Monday,April 15- C Day
- 4:00 HW Club, Track
- NJHS Application is DUE TODAY
Tuesday, April 16- B Day
- 7:15 6th Grade Girls Fitness Club
- 8th Grade STAAR SCIENCE
- 4:00- HW Club, Track Practice
Wednesday, April 17 - A Day
- 8th Grade STAAR SOCIAL STUDIES
- 4:00- HW Club, Track Practice
Thursday,April 18- C Day
- 7:30 FCA Huddle- Student Meeting
- STAAR Make Up Days
- 4:00-HW Club, DND
- 6:00 Tennis OHMS vs Kealing at AHS
- 6:00 Track at Murchison
Friday, April 5-C Day
- 9:30 Field Trip to Sweet Berry Farms
- 4:00-7:00 PTA Cornhole Tournament @ Zilker Lodge
- Last Day to Drop a High School Credit Class
Get Your Charger!
Mustangs,
Do you have a charger? Mustangs will need a charger for the STAAR test and to keep their computer charged for learning.
Need a replacement?
Here is the link for the chrome book chargers if you want to purchase from OHMS
https://austinisd.schoolcashonline.com/Fee/Details/34984/63/False/True
To purchase on Amazon
Library News
National Junior Honor Society
NEW NJHS Applicants
NEW NJHS Applicants--
APPLICATION due April 15th- No exceptions
Counseling Corner
Action Item: HS Drop Deadline
High School Drop Deadline
Middle School students enrolled in the high school credit courses listed below, have the opportunity to drop the course so that the course and grade do not appear on the high school transcript. The deadline to make this change is Friday, April 19, 2024. In order to make this change, please reach out to your child's teacher for the appropriate course. Counselors will change the student to a middle school credit course with the same teacher in the same period, so no changes will be made to their physical schedule.
Students who remain in the course past the deadline will have the class and the grade posted on the high school transcript and will have the grade calculated in their high school grade point average (GPA).
With a month left of projects, tests, and a midterm, this can be a difficult decision to make. Please contact your child's teacher to make sure you understand your child's progress and options. If you would like to drop the course please sign the Opt Out form from your child's teacher.
HS CREDIT COURSES for this April 19th deadline:
Geometry - megan.aguilar@austinisd.org
HS Art - jenny.parker@austinisd.org
Health (only semester 2 students) - Macie.cohen@austinisd.org
Profesional Communications - dell.mann@austinisd.org
French 1 & 2 - chandra.morgan@austinisd.org
Spanish 1 - michael.jurkovic@austinisd.org
Spanish 2 - francisco.munoz@austinisd.org
Spanish for Spanish Speakers 3 or 4 - michael.jurkovic@austinisd.org
Principles of Arts, AV Tech, and Communications - gerard.castillo@austinisd.org
Principles of Applied Engineering - scott.gray@austinisd.org
Principles of Business, Marketing, and Finance - dell.mann@austinisd.org
Digital Media - luke.borders@austinisd.org
Digital Communications in the 21st Century (Mustang News) - Luke.borders@austinisd.org
***The deadline for Algebra 1 and semester 1 Health and Professional Communications have passed and we can no longer drop students from those courses.
AVID Summer Bridge
AVID Math Summer Bridge Opportunity
- 7th Grade Accelerated Summer Bridge -This course is designed for rising 7th graders who would like to be part of the pathway to take Algebra I in 8th grade. 7th Grade Accelerated sign up form
- Algebra Readiness Summer Bridge - This course is designed for rising 8th graders who were not on the pathway to take Algebra I in 8th grade. Students will need to show mastery of 8th grade math at the end of the camp in order to take Algebra I in 8th grade. Algebra Readiness sign up form. This opportunity is only for rising 8th graders
AVID Summer Bridge is designed to strengthen students' math skills over the summer to prepare for Algebra. Deadline to register with transportation is April 21, 2024. Registration for students who do not need transportation is open until May 10, 2024. Please note: Students must be enrolled in Austin ISD in Spring 2024 to participate in summer programs.
June 3- June 20 (No Fridays or June 19th) (Please note the flyer listed May 29 incorrectly as the student date)
8:30 am -1:00 pm
It is important that students make a commitment to attend all 11 days. Space is limited please fill out this Google form.
ATHLETICS NEWS
Track and Field
We're excited to get going with track practice and another meet again this week! Below is our schedule. Please let us know ASAP if your student will not be at the Murchison meet this Thursday.
Monday practice 4-5:15
Tuesday practice 4-5:15
Wednesday practice 4-5:15
Thursday meet at Murchison Middle School (details coming soon!)
FINE ARTS
Art in Action
BAND NEWS
Austin HS Band Marching Camps for Incoming Freshmen
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1ODKxBRWeauxkuY74Z2ZxobfctVHEv7Um&usp=drive_fs
Guitar News
Congratulations to our Guitar Students and Director Jennifer Boltz on earning Superior "1" Ratings at UIL.
O.Henry PTA Scholarships for Seniors!
Do you know a senior in high school who has fond memories of their years at O.Henry Middle School? In recognition of the outstanding students that O.Henry produces, our PTA offers two college scholarships for graduating AISD seniors who attended O.Henry Middle School for at least two years. The one-year scholarships are paid directly to the college that the two awardees will attend. Details on how to apply for the two $500 OHenry PTA Scholarships can be found HERE. Applications are due by May 1, 2024. Questions? Please contact Melanie Dow at mdow722@gmail.com
PTA Thanks You
Thank you to Karen Harrell for providing snacks for teachers and staff during STAAR testing last week.
2ND ANNUAL CORNHOLE TOURNEY & MUSTANG MIXER - Friday, April 19, 4:30-7:30 p.m.
Mark your calendar for the 2nd Annual Cornhole Tournament & Mustang Mixer at Zilker Sunshine Camp in Zilker Park. This adults-only event is a great way to see friends and meet OHMS parents, caregivers and staff. Click here to Sponsor, Buy Tickets or Register to Play. Questions? Email Co-Chairs Greta Goldsby or Meredith Marks
APRIL GENERAL MEETING & VOLUNTEER BREAKFAST Tuesday, April 30, 8:30 a.m.
O.Henry PTA 's annual General Meeting and Volunteer Breakfast will be held on Tuesday, April 30 in the O.Henry Library. All members are welcome to attend to celebrate the many volunteers who contributed this year to O.Henry's success, as well as meet speaker Tammy Caesar, Director of AISD's Career and Technology Program. The 2024-25 Executive Board slate will also be presented for a vote. Coffee and breakfast treats from EASY TIGER will be served!
NEW PARENT WELCOME COFFEE
Friday, May 17, 8:30 a.m.
For current and incoming Mustang parents - all are welcome!
June 24-27 - Middle School Summer Camp Opportunity with Austin High Lady Maroons.
Austin High coaching staff will offer elementary (3-6th) and middle school camp (7-9th) skills and fundamentals camp. All equipment provided, $150 for the week. To learn more and register, go to https://austinisd.schoolcashonline.com/Fee/Details/34842/63/False/Trueand search for Lady Maroons Summer Camp.
Upcoming Events for parents and students
AUSTIN HIGH GLOBAL STUDIES PARENT/CAREGIVER MINGLE
All current and future AGS parents and caregivers are invited to an adult mingle for the AHS Academy for Global Studies evening on Wednesday, April 17, 6-8 p.m. at St. John Studios, 705 W. St. John Avenue. This casual event is a great way to meet other parents, staff and student ambassadors of Austin High Global Studies.
Other Campus and AISD News
Attendance and Absence Reporting
Feeling Sick?
NEW AISD Enrollment System
All families should enroll in school for next year.
Why is matters?
School budgets are based on enrollments. For O. Henry this impacts the number of courses we can offer and the number of teachers and staff members we can hire.
For students applying to high schools, an application may be necessary, This is due on February 6th.
Weather Guidelines for PE and Athletics
Please plan on dressing for the ever changing Texas weather. We expect students to be prepared to be outside. We encourage sweatpants, hoodies, coats, beanies, etc whatever else is needed to feel comfortable.
Regular Bell Schedule 2023-2024
Transportation and Traffic
Car Riders: To keep traffic flowing, follow the arrows on the map below. Be patient, student safety is our most important priority. To keep our Mustangs safe, do not drop off in back bus lot. If pickup is altered due to bad weather, a Schoolmessenger alert will go out from the Principal.
Bus Riders: Bus riders may only ride their assigned bus. Use the Bus Finder page to check which route you are assigned. Buses leave promptly at 3:57 PM each day - information about late buses will be available in coming weeks. Buses drop off and pick up on the east side of campus. For additional questions about transportation see AISD's website here.
Walkers/Bike Riders: If walking or biking to school please be safe and use crosswalks to get across streets. Bike racks are available for student use.
Local Enrichment Opportunities
AHS Summer Golf Program
Austin High Feeder Schools,
My name is Nick Lebo and I'm the Head Golf Coach at Austin High. Each year we offer a golf camp for our elementary feeder students. The camp is an official AISD event and all funds raised go directly to the Austin High Golf Team. Would you be willing to send out the following information in your campus newsletter or PTSA communications?
Loyal Forever!
Nick Lebo
Calling all future Maroons to join us this summer at Jimmy Clay Golf Course for AHS Mini-Maroons Golf Camp. This camp is open to all K-5th grade students and is intended for golfers of all skill levels from beginners to advanced. The dates of the camp are 5/28-5/30 from 9am to noon.
Please RSVP and make payment using one of the methods below. If you have any questions, please see the attached flyer and/or email Head Golf Coach Nick Lebo at nick.lebo@austinisd.org
RSVP: bit.ly/MiniMaroonRSVP
Payment:
Venmo $250 to MaroonsGolfers
Request a Credit Card invoice through Square by emailing Lauren at ahsgolfbooster@gmail.com
Bring a check made out to Austin High Golf Boosters to the first day of camp
Sincerely,
Coach Lebo
Performance Course
Performance Course visited with O.Henry Middle School Athletics recently about an upcoming opportunity for athletic development that will be taking place this Summer! This program was developed by Performance Course to offer athletes the opportunity to develop both physically and mentally.
PC takes a goal-oriented approach to develop speed, agility, mobility, functional strength and power. Performance nutrition, character development, mental preparation and goal setting techniques are also included in the curriculum to develop the whole athlete!
We want to ensure all athletes have the opportunity to participate. To receive more information from Performance Course, please fill out this link:
http://info.performancecourse.com
and select “SUMMER” and “AUSTIN”. This will ensure you receive information about the summer!
LINK TO REGISTER: https://www.performancecourse.com/school-district/austin-isd
If you have any questions or need help with registration, please contact the Austin High Performance Course Director, Dylan Hall (mail to: dhall@performancecourse.com) and he will be glad to assist you.
Thanks and we hope your child has the opportunity to participate!
O. Henry Middle School
Website: https://ohenry.austinschools.org/
Location: 2610 West 10th Street, Austin, TX, USA
Phone: 512-414-3229
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ohenryms
Twitter: @Ohenryms