Middle School Student Hours: 7:35 AM - 2:25 PM

Email Attendance & Dismissal Changes to msattendance@umtsd.org

Nurse Emails to msnurse@umtsd.org

October 31: Halloween 🎃

November 1: Oktoberfest

November 4-15: Turkey Trot Food Drive

November 5: No School (Election Day)

November 6: Parenting on Your Feet - Mock Teen Bedroom @ UMMS, 6:30 PM

November 7: Picture Re-Take Day

November 15: Turkey Trot 🦃

November 25-27: Early Dismissal @ 11:00 AM (Fall Conferences)

November 27: First Trimester Ends

November 28-29: District Closed (Thanksgiving Holiday)

All money raised will go directly towards students and teachers through HSA events, classroom materials, and special projects. Click the button below and click 'Add Registrant' to add your student to the appeal. We need your support! Campaign runs through 10/31!

Please review the important arrival procedures to ensure a safe and orderly drop-off.

We wanted to send a reminder of our Middle School Campus traffic flow to ensure we can all commute safely onto and through our campus. Failure to follow this traffic flow plan can create hazardous conditions for everyone.

GREEN Lane depicted in the lot below is the car rider drop off loop for students. Please pull all the way into the lot to the back, turn left, and proceed to the top of the lot to drop your student off at the top of the sidewalk.

The RED lane depicted on Orangemans Rd below is not a safe dropoff location for students. Dropping off on Orangemans creates a hazardous condition for our crosswalk. Please do not drop off on the main road in front of the school.

Thank you for your cooperation and your support in keeping our school community safe.

Drop Off Procedures

• Car Riders: Drivers should enter the parking lot directly off of Orangemans Road and follow the one way traffic pattern. Cars will pull up to the end of the parking lot while following the orange cones. Students should exit the vehicle at the sidewalk and enter the building from the main entrance. On the map below, student drop off will occur where the green line follows. Please follow the directions of the staff and signage. Thank you!
• For everyone's safety, drivers should not make "U" or "K" turns on Orangemans Road to drop off a student. Car riders should exit the vehicle in the designated drop off locations.
• Bike Riders: Students who ride a bike will report to the rear of the bus port to park their bikes. Students will then enter the building through the bus port.
• Bus Riders: Students who take a bus will enter the building from the bus port.
• Walkers: Students will enter the building through the main entrance.

Start Times & Late Arrival Procedures

UMMS doors open at 7:35 AM on typical school days and 9:35 AM on two-hour delayed schedules. All students are expected to be in their assigned homeroom by 7:50 AM and 9:50 AM on two-hour delayed schedules. Students who arrive at homeroom after 7:50 AM will report to the main office and be marked late.

Breakfast

Students who choose to eat breakfast will do so in the cafeteria between 7:35 AM and 7:50 AM. Students are expected to report to homeroom directly following breakfast.

On social media, there has been a popular trend featured on Tiktok, Instagram, Snapchat, and various other platforms. The "trend" focuses around the red "Sprayground" tags and Nike Elite zipper pulls, in which an individual tries to "collect" the tags or pull on zippers of some kind. Due to the popularization of this trend, some students have chosen to replicate it for amusement purposes. We are asking parents/guardians to please speak with your student about this and remind them to respect other's property and adhere to the code of conduct. Additionally, we are encouraging all students to keep expensive or sentimental items at home. Thank you for your partnership to support our students.

If you were unable to attend our Back to School night, Mrs. Franczkowski showed a short video where she addresses some concerns, especially with social media trends.

Students who wear costumes to school on Thursday, October 31 should follow the expectations as listed below.

• No face coverings or masks
• No objects which represent weapons or promote violence
• No offensive or inappropriate costumes
• No inflatable costumes

Do not hesitate to contact your grade level administrator or student services provider as listed below.

• Grade Level Administrators
• Shannon Franczkowski, Principal, Grade 7 Administrator, sfranczkowski@umtsd.org
• Kevin Burke, Assistant Principal, Grade 6 Administrator, kburke@umtsd.org
• Daneyelle Jordan, Assistant Principal, Grade 8 Administrator, djordan@umtsd.org
• School Counselors
• Brian Haupt, School Counselor, Last Names A-K (all grade levels), bhaupt@umtsd.org
• Jennifer Haney, School Counselor, Last Names L-Z (all grade levels), jhaney@umtsd.org
• Katie Beck, School Counselor, Emotional Support Program, kbeck@umtsd.org
• School Nurse
• Mary Nally, School Nurse, mnally@utmsd.org

October 28th to November 1st

The Red Ribbon Campaign is one of the oldest and largest drug prevention campaigns in the country. The goal behind the week is to build a community that stands against drugs and alcohol. During this week we have several activities planned to increase students’ awareness of the importance of making healthy lifestyle choices that will impact them today, and in the future. Students will participate in theme days highlighting positive choices, sign a drug free pledge, and experience an activity that underscores the lives lost to drug addiction and overdose.

Parents and guardians, we would love for you to join us in our effort to create a DRUG FREE community! You can help by talking to your children about making positive, healthy choices, educating them about the dangers of drugs and alcohol, and letting them know they can always come to you with their questions. You can find more information on our Middle School Guidance webpage and at UMMS Guidance.

Here are the following themes this week!

• Monday 10/28 - Wear Red - Red Ribbon Kick Off
• Tuesday 10/29 - Be a Jean-ius, Say not to Drugs! Wear Jeans
• Wednesday 10/30 You're not alone against drugs. Twinning Day (2 or more)
• Thursday 10/31 - Say Boo to drugs! Wear your costume. (No Masks)
• Friday 11/1 - Have PRIDE in your health! Wear purple/gold.

As we plan for upcoming school calendars, we wanted to gather feedback from different partners throughout our school community on the start and end dates of the school year and the length of Spring Break.

School Board Policy 803 provides guidelines that the Board uses to determine the first day of school each year.

We hope you will take the time to complete this survey which will provide us with valuable feedback as we plan for upcoming school calendars.

Best Regards,
Dr. Lawrence Cannon
Assistant Superintendent of Schools

With our clubs and sports in full swing, we have made some changes to better suit our students and drivers for our late buses. Please note that late buses have the same expectations for students are their typical buses do and to please make sure your students are aware of this.

• All students entering 6th-grade must have a physical examination
• Submitted by December 15, 2024
• All students entering 7th-grade must have a MCV & TDAP vaccine
• Submitted by September 3, 2024.

Be sure to check our website for the full calendar of athletics & activities events.

NOTE: Only 7th & 8th Grade Students Can Participate in Sports.

We're kicking off our 7th year of UMMS's #ProjectLIT Book Club! This is a book club for students, families, and staff to come together. Click here to learn more!

All you have to do to attend is read the book. If you haven't attended before or you're new to the middle school, this is the perfect time to start! All families are welcome!

A Work in Progress by Jarrett Lerner

*Where? UMMS (specific room TBD)

*When? Tuesday, October 29 from 6:30 PM - 8:00 PM-ish

*What? Powerful group discussions, fun activities, & exciting trivia!

If you are interested in attending, click this link to complete the Sign Up Genius.

How do I get the book?

• Check with your literacy teacher or the UMMS Library
• Check the UM Public Library
• Purchase a copy

What are the challenges you are facing as parents, guardians, and educators? Our presenters will address the potency of today's cannabis, other substances, impaired driving, and more, with a special focus on teens and emerging adults.

We'll also provide a tour of our Mock Teen Bedroom,* which helps adults to identify signs of substance use, and trends that put kids at risk, such as cannabis, vaping, and alcohol.

Together, we'll develop the tools we need to support young people!

*Attendees must be 21 years old to tour the "Mock Teen Bedroom"

UMMS Bears, Empathy, Achieve, Resiliency

Scan QR codes on the Conference Resource below to assist and support our students and families.

BELONG:

• Clubs & Activities: A list of after school options for all students.
• Athletics: PIAA available to 7th & 8th grade students
• UMMS eCommunicator: Weekly emails containing important information

ACHIEVE:

• ELO: After school academic support on Wednesday with late bus transportation home, contact a counselor to sign up
• HAC: Access student's grades through Home Access Center

EMPATHY:

• Food & Holiday Help: We have resources to help families experiencing financial need or food insecurities. Email a counselor or Principal.

RESILIENCY:

• Aldersgate: Ongoing group and individual student support around various pre-teen related topics, speak to your counselor for more information or scheduling.

Students should not be calling or texting parents/guardians to pick them up when not feeling well during the school day. All students are required to see our school nurse, Ms. Nally who will determine if there is a need to send the student home. Then the nurse will contact parents/guardians to pick up the student.

Students are expected to have their ID cards out and ready to scan at the cashier for breakfast, lunch and snack purchases. If students are in need of a replacement student ID card they can get a new one by stopping by to see tech aides in room CAO3. New cards cost $5.00 and can be paid through the obligations online portal.

• BREAKFAST and LUNCH MENUS
• Breakfast is FREE for ALL Students during the 2024-2025 school year.
• Lunches are at cost. Visit our website for meals and snacks price list.
• Free / Reduced Meals information and application is available on our website.

This year, lockers are done by request. If your student feels the need to use a locker, this can be done by contacting their corresponding guidance counselor and setting up a meeting.

Brian Haupt: bhaupt@umtsd.org ( A-K )

Jennifer Haney: jhaney@umtsd.org ( L-Z )

We're excited to announce that we have transitioned to a new platform for processing applications and renewals.

If you have already been approved and are in our system, no action is required. The change only applies to new applicants and those renewing their applications.

For assistance with the online volunteer registration, please refer to the Volunteer Guide for an overview, or contact Human Resources Specialist, Matthew Mastrogiovanni, at mmastrogiovanni@umtsd.org for support.

• Attendance: Please email MSattendance@umtsd.org for student absences, late arrival, or if you need to sign your student out early for the day.
• School Nurse: Visit our website to learn about health and dental requirements & to access the medication permission form.
  

If you would no longer like to receive weekly email updates from Upper Moreland School District and wish to opt out from further communications, please email mmarass@umtsd.org.