Banks Middle School

Dear Students and Families,

There is no school tomorrow due to statewide inservice day for teachers, we hope you all have a great weekend! We have lots of fun activities happening in October that our Leadership students are working on. Additionally, we are looking for parents to help us chaperone the dance. You can sign up to chaperone here, please make sure you have filled out the volunteer background check prior to volunteering.

I also have an important request, we have a staff member and several students who are severely allergic to perfume and cologne. We recently have had multiple students bringing these items to school and spraying them in the hallways, which has caused health issues for these individuals. If you could please make sure your students are not bringing perfume or cologne to school, it would be greatly appreciated!

Below is a message from our ASB president, Molly Schoolmeester, to keep you all in the loop on October happenings at BMS!

We have several important dates coming up in the month of October!

We are starting off with our assembly and Fall dance (6-8p) on Friday the 25th. Then, on the 28th- 31th, we will be having our Spirit Week. Monday will be USA Day, Tuesday will be Sports Day, Wednesday will be Pink Out Day, and Thursday will be Costume day. We have been receiving Halloween decoration donations for the haunted hallways (also happening the night of the 25th), and hope to continue to do so until the date of the dance. If families have any decorations they are willing to donate or loan for this, that is much appreciated and you can bring them to Ms. King. Families are also welcome to participate in the Haunted hallway, and the entry fee is $2 (no advance purchase). Leadership has also been recognizing athlete of the week through social media, and will continue to, while also beginning to recognize artist of the week coming soon! Follow the BMS accounts to see these recognitions!

Best wishes,

Caitlin Everett

BMS Principal

October 11- No school Statewide Inservice Day

October 25- Fall Dance at BMS @ 6-8 pm, including a Haunted Hallway put on by Leadership (open to families starting at 6:15)

October 25- Concert Band Assembly @ BHS (Choir and Beginning Band will not participate in this one)

November 5th and 6th - Evening Parent Teacher Conferences (detailed schedule TBD)

November 14th (new date!)- K-12 Special Education Parent Night at BES @ 5:30

Every Tuesday and Thursday after school from 3:15-4:00 - Homework Club

Washington County is hosting a few forums coming up in November. These are great ways to learn more about teen/pre-teen parenting, including communication and skills for avoiding drug and alcohol use. See below for information, and you can sign up here. You can also view recordings of past forum's here, where there are many helpful topics such as supporting students through anxiety and depression, social skills development, healing from traumatic experiences, and screen time limits.

Fall Dance Friday October 25: Tickets are on sale now! Students can purchase tickets to the dance with Ms. Turner in the main office. Tickets are $10 each. If your student is not able to pay this fee and would like to attend the dance, just email Caitlin Everett to request assistance (caitline@banks.k12.or.us). This dance is only for students enrolled at BMS and Homeschooled students who live within Banks SD boundaries (homeschool students must pick up a permission slip from the main office). Students will be asked to check in their phones at the entrance and pick them up upon leaving. Phones are secure with an adult for the whole dance. Students are expected to stay the full 2 hours unless their parent or guardian comes to pick them up; students may not leave early without parental permission. We are looking forward to this fun event!

On Thursday, Oct 31 students can wear their costumes to school and.or the dance as long as they meet the following guidelines:

• No masks, face paint, or anything that completely disguises their identity.

• No weapons, props or anything that requires items to be carried around.

• No blood or gore

• No inflatable costumes

• No mid-drift shirts or undergarments exposed

• No inappropriate language or symbols on costumes

• Please keep costumes culturally respectful.

We want students to have a fun day but also acknowledge that we have learning to do as well that day. If you have any questions about costumes, please ask!

Washington County has released our immunization rate report. You can view it at the link below.

Leadership is kicking off our first fundraiser of the year! We are now a BottleDrop Give organization and participating using “blue bags”.

Once you fill the bag, you can:

1) Have your student pick up a blue bag with QR code sticker from Ms. King

2) Return it to Mrs. King full of cans/bottles and she will take it to a BottleDrop

3) You can also return it to a BottleDrop location and make sure they scan the BMS Leadership QR code.

Yearbooks are now on sale!

We want to feature many amazing students and staff, so we are increasing the size of the book!

The cost is $25 and money can be turned in to Mrs. Turner in the office or online at Jostens. Books are on sale until February 28, 2025

Homework club is an after school activity where students can work on school work in a supervised setting. Homework club is from 3:15-4:00 on Tuesday and Thursday in the library beginning 9/3/24. Permission slips are required, students can get a permission slip in the office. Please note, a student needs to have work to do during homework club. It is not a place to "hang out" or pass time after school. Also note that attendance is not taken, please be aware of your child's homework club attendance plans ahead of time and ensure they have a way home, as transportation is not provided.

September is Suicide Prevention Month. Fall and winter can be a challenging time for Oregon’s youth for many reasons. At BMS, we want to support all out students and their overall wellbeing. Please reach out to us if your child could use mental health support, and see the attached picture for Oregon Mental Health Resources.

If you would like a refresher on the criteria the Oregon Health Department uses to determine whether a student should stay home from school due to illness, here is a helpful chart detailing the symptoms and criteria for exclusion. Thank you for your attention to this so we can help prevent the spread of communicable illnesses.

If you shop at Fred Meyer you are now able to support our PTO by enrolling in the Community Rewards program with Fred Meyer. Once enrolled, they will contribute $ to the PTO for all eligible purchases.

Signing up is easy. Visit https://www.fredmeyer.com. Once logged into your Fred Meyer account, you can search for Banks Middle School PTO either by name or "VI069" and then click "Enroll". New users will need to create an account, which requires some basic information, a valid email address and a rewards card.