Mustang Families,
This is a quick week with the extended weekend and the end of the Second Trimester concluding with day two of Family Conferences on Friday. Do not forget that Thursday is a half-day of school and scholars will be dismissed at 11:30 AM. The online conference scheduler is now closed. Parents and families needing to schedule will have to contact the office to establish a student-led conference time. Remember, middle school families will have the opportunity to meet with 1-Core Teacher, 1-Encore Teacher and 1- Family Choice.
D123 Hiring: Did you know our incredible district is looking for great professionals to be hired? Check out our job opportunities with this LINK.
D123 Family Conferences: Families and parents needing to schedule will have to contact the main office to set up appointments. The online window to schedule has closed.
Parents and families will see meeting times blocked or “canceled” in Skyward. These times are listed this way due to functionality of our system and indicate times for pre-scheduled breaks and lunch times. Here is the LINK for additional information for D123 Family Conferences.
February 23rd: 5:00 PM - 8:00 PM
6:15 - 6:30 PM Scheduled Break & 7:00 - 7:15 PM Scheduled Break
February 24th: 11:30 AM - 6:30 PM
12:45 - 1:00 Scheduled Break, 2:30 - 3:30 Scheduled Lunch & 4:45 - 5:00 Scheduled Break
Parent University: The next D123 Parent University will be taking place on February 22nd! Mark your calendar for an Introduction to Restorative Practices for Families. This will be part of a series of D123 Parent Universities geared toward creating positive and conducive environments all! If you didn't get the chance to tune in to the "What Parents Need to Know" IXL Parent University, it is linked for you and on the D123 website.
5Essentials School Survey Now Open! Your input is critically important!
Once again Oak Lawn-Hometown School District 123 will participate in the 11th annual statewide survey of school climate and learning conditions conducted by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE). This survey provides a platform for students, teachers, and parents to express their opinions on ways to improve their community's schools. Please take a moment to ensure your voice is part of the process by participating in the survey. The 5Essentials survey helps school administrators in District 123 prioritize and plan for the upcoming school year. Our school will only receive the results of the survey if enough families, staff, and students participate.
Cell Phones/ Social Media: Please remind our scholars that cell phones should be turned off and locked in their lockers daily. Also, critically important is monitoring the use of our scholars' devices. We are inundated with social media concerns taking place outside of school or on the weekends! Please remain vigilant with what is happening on social media- TikTok, Snapchat and Instagram are consuming our scholars! Here is the perspective from the National Society of Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) thinking about whether or not TikTok, Snapchat and Instagram are safe for kids. Keep in mind each platform indicates a 13+ age rating.
Traffic and Buses: Thanks to our families who have continued to be respectful of our one way during arrival and dismissal. If you have a family member dropping off student(s) or adjusted your routine, please remind them of this one way pattern on Oak Center Dr. Parents it is very helpful to pull all the way up on the circle to drop off students or allow them to walk the circle drive to the entrance. We have been experiencing some delays due to cars stopping at the entrance of the half circle.
Also, another very important reminder is that our main entrance is for buses only. Parents should not be using the main entrance to drop students off in the morning or pick them up during dismissal. There is plenty of space behind the school to drop off and scholars dismiss from different exits to ensure smooth and consistent transitions at dismissal. We have also noticed a large number of students waiting at the conclusion of our school day for rides, please do your best to be here at dismissal (3:20pm).
OLHMS Career Fair: We are looking for as many different career pathways and trades as we can represent as we begin planning a Career Fair here at OLHMS in the Spring (April 6th). We are hoping to include our OLHMS families and community members. Looking forward to hearing from you and thank you in advance for your support!
So, do you love your job? Love to share your expertise with others? Love presenting and talking to young adults? If you answered YES, to all three, please reach out about presenting in our OLHMS Career Fair. Please contact our 8th grade counselor, Mrs. Vanessa Follmar, at VFollmar@d123.org.
Skyward Family Access: Make sure you are checking/ logging into Skyward Family Access routinely. This is a great place to obtain supportive information such as student's courses, bus routes, student fees/ debts.
Student Debts: Please make sure to review student debts via Family Access. There are multiple students who have accumulated debts purchasing items from the cafeteria and lost ID's.
Student IDs: Please remind our scholars that they should be maintaining and wearing their student ID daily. Students do receive charges for lost, missing or damaged ID's.
2023-24 School District Calendar Approved
During the February Board of Education meeting, the 2023-2024 D123 academic school calendar was approved.
Dates to Keep in Mind:
1/24-3/31: 5 Essentials Survey
2/13-3/1: PTSA Fundraiser
2/22: Parent University: Introduction to Restorative Practices for Families: Part 1
2/23 & 2/24: Family Conferences
2/24: End of Trimester 2
3/1: PTSA Open Gym
OLHMS PTSA: Next Meeting 3/13/23
All staff and families are highly encouraged to join the PTSA and attend meetings. This is an incredible opportunity, partnership and fun way to support our scholar’s experience at the middle school!
Welcome Olivia Masek, she is our new Vice President!
PTSA Open Gym Night is March 1st! Sign up here: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/5080d4ca8aa2aa64-march#/
Parent chaperones are needed also.
We are looking forward to our next fundraiser in partnership with Century- check out the details below and ask your child about the brochures.
Membership can be online using this link: https://olhmsptsa.memberhub.com/store
Reach out to Mrs. Shane, our PTSA President for more information (tmshane@gmail.com)
We will be looking for a New PTSA President for next year!! Do you have the desire to support or know of a great parent who might be interested, please let Mrs. Shane (tmshane@gmail.com know!
