Windy Hill Middle School Newsletter

Hello Knight Nation,

Get ready for an amazing start to the school year! Orientation and the first day of school are just around the corner, and our staff is absolutely thrilled to welcome you! New Knight families, this newsletter will be sent out every Friday at 5:00pm. It will provide information on all things WHMS as well as some community events and resources. For our first-year parents, this newsletter is your go-to guide for staying informed and connected with our school community.

Student Schedules - We are excited to announce that student schedules will be tentatively available on August 20th via the Home Access Center (HAC). Please keep in mind that the schedule in HAC on the 20th is unofficial. Students will receive their official schedule during orientation or on the first day of school. Due to the complexity of scheduling for approximately 700 students, we are unable to accommodate schedule change requests. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation

Our PTSO is working hard this summer too to prepare for the new year including providing breakfast for our staff when everyone returns August 19th. The link to help with breakfast and/or help with stuffing first day folders the 20th is here:

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0C45A5AA23A6FEC34-welcome#/

Please see the attached flyer from our PTSO with information about our first event on September 20th. The first dance is October 11th sponsored by PTSO! All student PTSO members get in free to the dance! You can join now using the QR code on the flyer! Watch first day folders for more information from PTSO.

We are very fortunate to be able to run numerous extra curricular programs for our students at WHMS with the support of our staff and community members. The fall sports kick off the 2nd week of school with soccer and volleyball. If your child plans to participate in these clinics, please read the sports information carefully. We are also looking for a Poms coach for the winter season and Girls and Boys Track coaches for the spring season. If you or anyone you know may be interested in coaching, please have them reach out to Mrs. Merewitz, our Athletic Director.

With August upon us, many of you will embark on school shopping. Take note of the dress code outlined in the 2024-2025 Code of Conduct Code of Conduct - Calvert County Public School District (calvertnet.k12.md.us)

For your convenience, excerpts from the CCPS Dress Code are provided below.

Students must wear:

• Shirt or top (all shirts and tops must at least cover the student’s navel).
• Bottom (for example, pants, sweatpants, shorts, skirt, dress, and leggings).
• Shoes (curricular or activity-specific shoes may be required).
• Certain body parts must be covered for each student. Clothes must be worn in a way such that the chest, navel, pelvic/groin area and buttocks are covered with material that is not transparent

Students are permitted to wear:

• Tank tops (including ones with spaghetti straps), halter tops, and strapless tops.

• WHMS allows durags as long as the student’s face and ears are visible and are not obscured, and the student’s identity is not concealed. No other head wear is permitted inside the building.
• Ripped jeans that do not expose undergarments.
• Athletic attire.

Students are not permitted to wear:

• Attire that depicts profanity, hate speech, obscenity, or violence, including by the use of weapons.
• Attire that promotes use of tobacco, drugs, alcohol, or other illegal or harmful products.
• Attire that promotes, implies, or contains sexually suggestive messages.
• Visible underwear or bathing suits.
• Headwear that obscures the face, except as a religious obligation, observation of a religious holiday, or for a school-related activity.
• Attire that depicts gang affiliation.
• Attire that causes or is likely to cause a material disruption, a substantial disorder to school activities or the orderly operation of the school, or an invasion of the rights of others. 
• Attire that contains language or symbols that demean an identifiable person or group or otherwise infringes on the rights of others.
• Attire that may be used as a weapon (e.g., chains, dog collars, hats with spikes) or that may cause damage to school property.
• Sunglasses may not be worn inside of the school building unless prescribed by a physician. If sunglasses are prescribed, a medical form must be completed and submitted to the main office.
• Wearable technology (i.e., earbuds, headphones) when it interferes with instruction or student safety.

The Board’s values for the student dress code are:

• All students should be able to dress comfortably for school without fear of or actual unnecessary discipline or body shaming.
• Teachers can focus on teaching without the additional and often uncomfortable burden of dress code enforcement.
• Students should not face unnecessary barriers to school attendance.
• Reasons for conflict and inconsistent identification of possible infractions should be minimized whenever possible

WHMS PE DRESS CODE:

PE Dress Code Rationale - Clothing designed for unrestricted body movement enhances safety during physical education activities.

During PE Students Must Wear

• T-shirts, shorts, and leggings, which must comply with CCPS dress code regulations.
• Athletic footwear should be sneakers or tennis shoes, characterized by a closed toe, durable foot covering with a rubber sole, and typically a cloth or leather upper, not extending beyond the ankle, to ensure safety during gym and field activities.

During PE Students are not permitted to wear:

• Crocs, slippers, jeans, pajama pants, dresses, and skirts.
• Jewelry that could interfere with a physical activity.

Students may bring appropriate exercise clothes and athletic shoes to change into for PE classes, with access to a gym locker and lock provided. Alternatively, they may wear suitable PE clothing to school without needing to change.

CELL PHONE/ SMART WATCH POLICY

Also updated for the coming year is the CCPS Cell Phone Policy. For your convenience, excerpts from the CCPS Cell Phone Policy are provided below.

• Students may bring their phone/smartwatch, but once school begins the device must be powered completely off (not on vibrate or silent mode) and remain in a non-visible, secure location throughout the entirety of each school day.
• Students may use their phone/smartwatch on the bus or school-charted vehicle, but it must not be disruptive or cause a distraction to the driver at any time. Sound must only be audible through headphones. Phone conversations are prohibited.
• If there is an emergency, parents/guardians are encouraged to contact the school. All cell phone/smartwatch guidelines, expectations, and discipline consequences apply even if communicating with parents/guardians.
  

Preparations are in full swing for the new school year. For the planners among us, note that our Open House Evening for parents is scheduled for Wednesday, September 11th, from 6:00 to 7:30 PM. Additionally, the PTSO will host our Back-to-School Food Truck Event on Friday, September 20th, from 5:30 to 7:30 PM. Stay tuned for more details on these and other events.

As a reminder, if you are moving over the summer or have a change of address, please contact the guidance office via email at madisonw@calvertnet.k12.md.us or 443-550-9313.

A few important items for you to note for the upcoming school year:

• SPORTS INFORMATION
  Fall sports clinics will begin the 2nd week of school. ALL PAPERWORK FOR SOCCER OR VOLLEYBALL WILL BE DUE BY SEPTEMBER 3RD. Get your sports physicals done now. The link for more information and the paperwork is https://whms.calvertnet.k12.md.us/athletics. If you have questions, please contact our Athletic Director, Karen Merewitz at mailto:merewitzk@calvertnet.k12.md.us or at 443-550-9290. You are welcome to drop off sports physicals and/or payment anytime Mon-Thur 8am-4pm or payment can be made online at https://osp.osmsinc.com/CalvertMD/BVModules/ProductTemplates/Bvc2013/Product.aspx?productid=EQ318-106.
  VOLLEYBALL CLINIC DATES: 9/9, 9/16, 9/18, 9/23, and 9/25.
  SOCCER CLINIC DATES: TBD
• COACHES NEEDED - at this time we are looking for a poms coach for the winter sports season and girls and boys track coaches for the spring. If interested, please reach out to our Athletic Director, Mrs. Merewitz at mailto:merewitzk@calvertnet.k12.md.us.
• SCHOOL SUPPLIES
  WHMS does not have a school supply list. We suggest students bring a notebook of some type, a few pens and pencils on the first day and then teachers will let them know what supplies are needed specific to their class.
• WHMS t-shirts. We have a limited number of our close out t-shirts available at $10. See the attached flyer for details. Most of these shirts are sizes Y-M and Y-L but our new line will be available by late August and will offer you the availability to order any size and include shirts, hoodies and more. If you want to grab one of the $10 close out shirts, you can order via the flyer or stop by school Mon-Thur between 8-4. A spiritwear pop up store will open on Aug 23 through Sep 23 where you'll be able to buy shirts and hoodies with our new 2024-2025 logo! Stay tuned for details.
• IMMUNIZATIONS
  Reminder to our incoming 7th graders who received an email just after school finished about your child's shot record. Please be sure they have the needed vaccines and you provide an updated shot record to our nurse Ms. Tillini. The Calvert County Health Department is offering vaccine clinics starting in August. See the attached flyer for details. Nurse Dawn's email is mailto:tillinid@calvertnet.k12.md.us
• BACK TO SCHOOL BREAKFAST SPONSORED BY PTSO
  Our wonderful PTSO is working behind the scenes already this summer and is planning a breakfast for our staff the first day they return August 19th. Watch for a link next Friday to donate towards this breakfast!
• VOLUNTEERS
  

  Calvert County Public Schools uses Raptor for visitors and volunteers to sign in and sign out. Volunteers must apply annually to be an approved volunteer. You will need to apply for the 2024-2025 school year. All volunteers will need to review the volunteer handbook and watch the volunteer training video before completing and Online Volunteer Application. Volunteers must be approved before they may begin service as a volunteer in any school buildings.

  
  

  
  

  CCPS Online Volunteer Application & Process: https://www.calvertnet.k12.md.us/departments/human-resources/become-a-volunteer

  
  

We hope everyone has a wonderful last month of summer. Our summer hours are Monday - Thursday 8am-4pm. We begin our 8:00-3:30 Mon-Fri schedule as of August 12th. Please call the building at 443-550-9310 before coming by to ensure the person you need is available.

Thank you

Mark Whidden,

Principal, Windy Hill Middle School

Fall sports will begin right after Labor Day. This includes volleyball and soccer. If your child wishes to participate in the clinics for these sports, your sports physical must be on file by September 3rd. Do NOT wait until school starts to try and get this taken care of! The sports physical is available in hard copy in our office or online at the link here. https://whms.calvertnet.k12.md.us/athletics

Our next PTSO meeting is Thursday, August 15th at 3:30pm here at WHMS. All are welcome to join us in the WHMS library for the meeting. We are looking for committee chairs to help next year. If you are interested, please reach out to the PTSO at the email below or Mrs. Merewitz directly.

You can email the PTSO officers at any time at mailto:windyhillptso@gmail.com.

Join the WHMS PTSO Facebook Page to keep up with information - Windy Hill Middle School Parents Teachers Students is the group name.

We encourage you to join PTSO. Joining PTSO does not obligate you to volunteering, but we certainly welcome your support with any events you are interested in helping with.

https://checkout.square.site/buy/PWK2E77ZYGDGEBG5FMT5KHKK.

Your PTSO officers this year are Mary Rooney, Michelle Dyro, Andrea Hoover, Cheri Kline and Karen Merewitz.

https://twitter.com/WHMSCCPS