Midterms are this week! We will not be sending home paper copies. Instead, on Friday afternoon, we will send you an email and a phone call reminding you that Midterms have been posted to Skyward. We encourage parents to look at Skyward weekly for grade updates.

Academically, we are fully into the learning cycle. Sportingly, we have now had home games for Volleyball and Football, and Cross Country has their first meet this week. Our clubs have started meeting, and students should reach out to the club sponsors if they want to join. As we head into WEEK 5, we are full speed ahead!

We hope that you carefully take a look at our updates and information below; we do our very best to provide clear information, present opportunities, and update you on processes. Finally, we encourage all of our students and families to take a few moments to look through our JMS Handbook. We want you to know we love your children and have the highest expectations for academics and behavior!

The JMS administrative team is here to support students, teachers, and families. If you need anything, please reach out to us. As always, we thank our parents and our staff for what they do to help our students be the best they can be.

Phil Cox, Principal, pcox@ortn.edu

Ben Fowler, Vice Principal, bjfowler@ortn.edu

Jacob Quilliams, Dean of Students jrquilliams@ortn.edu

Elizabeth Leavitt, Instructional Technology Coach, ealeavitt@ortn.edu

Monday 21 A day

• Cross Country Practice 3:00-4:30
  
• Cheer Practice 3:00-5:00 Chess Club 3:00-4:00
• Volleyball vs. Horace Maynard (Varsity ONLY) @ RMS 6:30
• JV Football vs. Lenoir City @ Lenoir City 6:00

Tuesday 22 B day

• Football Practice 3:00-5:15
  
• Volleyball vs. RMS @ RMS JV 4:00, V 5:00
• Cross Country Meet-Panther Creek Invitational @Panther Creek State Park, Morristown Girls 6:00, Boys 6:30

Wednesday 23 A day

• Cheer Practice 1:00-2:00
  
• Football Practice 1:00-3:00
• Volleyball Practice Gym 1:00-3:00

Thursday 24 B day

• Cross Country Practice 3:00-4:30
• Volleyball Practice 3:00-5:00
• Football Game vs. Lenoir City @ Blankenship Field 6:00

Friday 25 A Day

• Midterms Grades Posted, and communication sent to parents 5pm
• Volleyball Practice 3:00-5:00
• Cross Country Practice 3:00-4:30
• Football Practice 3:00-5:15

Saturday 26

• JV Football vs. Jacksboro @ Jacksboro 10:00AM

We are currently in the process of assessing the roster for students in the Talented and Creative Learners courses for this year. However, we will send an invitation to parents and students this week.

Our TACL programs will start meeting the week of August 27.

We have been back to school a couple of weeks now and the back to school illnesses are working their way through the student body. As always, we want your student to be present. However, if they are sick, we also understand them staying home until they recover.

Any time a student is absent, they can always work on the classwork they missed by checking Canvas. Students will always have time to submit assignments when they return. Students are allowed 7 parent notes through out the year. You may email them to us or your student can drop them off when they return. Often students will hand the note to an administrator standing at the front door, and we will make sure it gets to Ms. Langford, our attendance coordinator.

Be safe and be well!

Last week, 5th grade students received their TCAP documents. This is the last newsletter we will put this news in. Any questions, let us know.

Please contact our HR Department TODAY!

$94.00 - $141.00 / Per Day

https://ortn.tedk12.com/hire/index.aspx

Remember when dropping off/picking up your student:

• JMS's weather policy is to load busses and release car riders during most weather events EXCEPT lightning or severe rain/wind. When lightning is present we will push our students back to the building and delay releasing students. We have had three major lightning issues and a major wind/rain events during our releases over the first term of last year, and we wanted to reiterate what our hold policy is. We thank our parents for their patience as we do our best to keep our students safe.
• DO NOT enter the bus loop when buses are present!
• Please pull your vehicle all the way up so we can keep as many cars as possible off of Fairbanks Road.
• When dropping off AFTER 7:30am, students will be directed towards the main entrance. Go ahead and pull all the way up.
• Make sure your child is ready to exit the vehicle and doesn't have to access the trunk for items, as this holds up the line.
• DO NOT park or leave your vehicles in the neighborhoods across the street from Jefferson. Traffic is heavy during pickup and drop off and parking on those streets only increases the danger to our students and parents attempting to navigate the traffic.

You have received many communications this summer from the district about registering for the Bus through Skyward. If you have, but are not sure what bus your student is riding, here is how you check it.

FIRST! Log into Tyler's Versatrans E-Link https://transportation.ortn.edu/elinkrp/Login.aspx

Username: (use student’s name) firstname.lastname This is case sensitive–example: john.smith
Password: (use student birth date) in this format 03122007 for March 12, 2007

Click on Students, then View My Students. If you see a bus route there, you should be good. If you DO NOT see a bus route, you will need to update bus service! You will not have bus service on the first day of school.

To get bus service, log into Skyward and click on Forms. There is a bus request form. Transportation is working to move quickly to add new students to the bus, but it will take a few days before your student can be added to bus service.

First Student Transportation is working hard to get routes assigned to all students who requested bus service.

Once you are registered for transportation, you will be able to track your child's bus using the app information detailed below. Please see information on how to register for MyStop below.

MyStop - Parent/Student Login (You may click on the MyStop Picture to the left!)

• Username: (use student’s name - case sensitive) firstname.lastname
• Password: (use student birth date) in this format 03122007 for March 12, 2007

MyStop Phone App Available In Your App Store

Go to: Versatrans My Stop™ provides mobile access to bus information. This app displays the location of the user’s assigned school bus, as well as the estimated time of arrival to their stop. Students can plan for late or on-time arrival, and prevent missed pick-ups or being left outside in inclement weather.

Can’t Access the MyStop App?

If you are having difficulty accessing the MyStop App please take the following steps:

1. Please confirm the following:
2. You have downloaded the App from Tyler Technologies.
3. You are using the legal student name as listed in Skyward.
4. You have selected all lower case letters.First Student Transportation is working hard to get routes assigned to all students who requested bus service.

   
   

No worries! Though the video is an old one, it still checks out for all of our current procedures. If you are unsure of where or how to drop off or pick up, watch the video below!

PARENTS on the Softball Field / 5th Grade:

You may be asked to move by Dr. Quilliams, Mr. Cox, or Mr. Fowler if you are parked right at the bus loop entrance OR next to the small median between the loop. Parking in these locations makes it more difficult for bus drivers to maneuver into position.

Additionally, STUDENTS SHOULD NEVER CROSS THE BUS LOOP. They may take the sidewalk around, or cross into the parking lot under direction from the administrator there and walk down the grass field to the sidewalk. This is a safety issue for students and drivers.

The links below contain resources for setting up and accessing Skyward and Canvas, an updated calendar, along with a welcome message from our ITC coach and a link to district and school websites.

• Elizabeth Leavitt, ITC: Welcome Message

• School Calendar

• ORS District Website

• Jefferson Middle School Website

• Canvas Parent Account Setup.docx
  
• Skyward Family Access Account SETUP .docx
  

Please reach out to Elizabeth Leavitt at ealeavit@ortn.edu

We have another busy week of JMS athletics ahead! On Monday night, the Lady Eagles volleyball team will travel to Robertsville to take on Horace Maynard at 6:30pm. The JV football team will travel to Lenoir City for a JV game at 6pm. On Tuesday, Jefferson will take on cross-town rival, Robertsville, for the first of the two City Championship volleyball matches. JV will play at RMS at 4pm, followed by varsity at 5pm. Our cross country team will travel to Panther Creek State Park in Morristown for their first meet of the season at 6pm. On Thursday night, the Eagles football team will host Lenoir City at 6pm at Blankenship. Please make plans to come out and support the Eagles and Lady Eagles this week!

As always, GO EAGLES!

Thank you,

Coach Bolling

Volleyball - $3

Football - $5

Students Aged 0-Kindergarten free!

Meet your School Counselors

Ms. Katie Cormack (5th and 7th Grade)- My name is Katie Cormack and am the school counselor for grades 5 and 7, following their cohort until they go to the high school! I am entering my 6th year as a school counselor and was previously a special education teaching assistant. This is my third year at Jefferson Middle School, and it absolutely feels like home. JMS is a very special place. I consider working with your children a true blessing. Please know I am always here to help in any way- just reach out! My office number is 865-425-9252. Here’s to a great year!

Ms. Candie Price (6th and 8th Grade)- Hello JMS Family! I will be the School Counselor for grades 6 and 8 this year. In my spare time, I enjoy spending time with my husband and our three children. I love being a school counselor and am thankful to have the opportunity to work with you and your children. Please contact me with any questions or concerns! Go Eagles!

Please contact our school counseling department with any other questions at 865-425-9302. Ms. Amy Myers, school registrar, is happy to assist with enrollment, withdrawal paperwork, transportation, Skyward, school updates, etc.

Free Laundry Resource for Families

Milestone Church is partnering with Bob’s Washboard Laundromat to offer Free Laundry Services on the last Tuesday of each month from 7pm-9m. The next event is 8/24. Milestone Church will provide each family with $10 of laundry coins and 5 laundry detergent pods.

Parent Needs Assessment

We have had a great first full week with students. If you have not already done so please, take a minute to complete the JMS Parent Needs Assessment so we may know how to best serve our students this year.

JMS Family Resource Survey

We are happy to partner with some great community resources in order to help our families and students. Please complete the digital form below if you would like to receive any community services at this time.

School Programs:
1. Second Harvest Food Bags: Bag of nutritional snacks placed discretely in student's lockers every Friday before dismissal.
2. Angel Tree Gifts: Supports through the Holiday Season with buying your children a gift(s)
3. Holiday Food Baskets: Helps to put a meal on your table during the special holiday season!
4. ADFAC Backpack program: Helps provide students with a new backpack and school supplies each year

Family Resource Survey Link

Kidcentraltn.com- A Resource for Families!

KidCentral TN - KidCentralTN.com

KidCentral TN is a one-stop shop for Tennessee families to raise healthy and happy kids. Find parenting tips, track child milestones and access TN state resources.

www.kidcentraltn.com

This month’s Character Strong focus is Respect. One way to think about respect is “seeing value in all people and things & treating them with care.” Many people feel Respected in different ways and we hope this month inspires discussions with your family about what Respect means to you and how you can practice it together! Respect is 1 of 3 traits we will focus on throughout the year that helps students Be Kind. Throughout the school, students will be developing skills like perspective-taking, conflict resolution, and leadership.

Have some fun connecting as a family this month while practicing Respect. Here are family activities for you to complete together. How many can you do this month?

Family Pursuit #1:

Review Respect as a family! Remember that in our lessons we are teaching that Respect means to see value in people and things and treat them with care. Agree as a family to set aside a certain time each day this week to unplug from devices and plug into family time. It shows Respect to practice being present in the moment without the distractions that can come from technology. Debrief and discuss this challenge afterward and commit to this practice at least 1 day each week!

Family Pursuit #2:

Find a time to sit in a circle together and celebrate all the ways you have seen each other practice Respect. Take turns sharing responses to the following prompts or make up your own! Remember to practice Respect as you listen to each other. Pursuit #1 Pursuit #3 Have some fun connecting as a family this month while practicing Respect.

Celebration Prompts:

• What family member(s) do you want to celebrate for their Respect?
• Share 1 way you have demonstrated leadership

Parents,

We are sad to report that student vaping has increased significantly at the secondary level this school year. School Administration and staff are committed to addressing this concern, but effectively controlling this trend will be challenging. Student access, the ability to hide vapes and the odorless nature of vapes increases the difficulty of monitoring and reducing this dangerous trend.

This trend is resulting in lost instructional time for many students. Students using or possessing vapes that contain nicotine products are being assigned multiple days of out of school suspension. Students identified as using vapes or being in possession of vapes containing THC, are being expelled for a full calendar year. Approximately 50% of the students currently assigned to the Secret City Academy are there due to using a vape that contained THC.

Due to the increase in vapes containing THC, we are informing parents that the Secret City Academy is currently at capacity. The Oak Ridge Schools Code of Conduct clearly communicates our expectations regarding the unauthorized use or possession of drugs. Students confirmed of using or being in possession of drugs at school, or at a school activity, will be expelled in accordance with the Oak Ridge Schools Code of Conduct.

If your child is expelled, it is likely that they will only have the option to participate in on-line learning. Expelled students will be placed on a waiting list and granted access to the Secret City Academy when a student complete their time at the SCA. Choosing to use a vape containing THC or participating in other zero tolerance events while at school or at a school event will remove your child's ability to participate in face-to-face instruction.

Oak Ridge Schools clearly recognizes the value of attending school in person, but we also understand the importance and are committed to providing students a drug free learning environment.

Please continue speaking with your child or children regarding the harm of vaping and drugs. We are in the process of scheduling a Vaping Education Week which will focus on providing students an educational assembly to communicate the harms of vaping. We are also looking to provide a similar evening opportunity for parents to attend.

Respectfully,

Oak Ridge Schools

Youth Vaping Prevention - Additional Resources & Information

2022-2023 ORS Student Code of Conduct Handbook (see pgs 22-24)

National Institute of Health (NIH) - Smoke Free Teen

Alcohol & Substance Abuse Prevention of Anderson County - Parent & Teen Resources

CATCH My Breath - Vaping Epidemic - Parent Toolkit

The local news has reported a small rise in COVID cases over the last couple of weeks. Below is a screenshot of the Isolation Guidance from the TN Department of Health (last updated 11 October 2022). The full document is linked below: https://www.tn.gov/content/dam/tn/health/documents/cedep/novel-coronavirus/Isolation-QuarantineRelease.pdf