8/28/24
RGMS Weekly News 8/28/24
Community ~ Equity ~ Growth
Important Dates Ahead
- 09/02 - NO SCHOOL
- 09/09 - Picture Day
- 09/10 - Late Start Tuesday, School Starts at 9:25am
- 09/19 - Back to School Night
- 09/25 - Early Release Wednesday, School is over at 1:45pm
- Click here for the full RGMS calendar
Daily Bell Schedule
Late Start Bell Schedule
Early Release Bell Schedule
From Principal Lisa Newlyn
Wow wow wow! What a difference it makes to return to home sweet home!
I gave our Superintendent, Dr. Kimberlee Armstrong, a tour of our campus this morning. She came after the bell, and we noted how remarkable it was to hear the sounds of students productively working - all 450 of them - our tone is amazing. It struck me how much our students have grown over the summer. Our 7th and 8th graders look different - taller and more confident. It's been a great day to reunite and connect.
Updates and Reminders for the Good of the Order
Schedule Change Requests are in process. Thank you for your patience as we work through priority requests and negotiate tight schedule configurations. As promised, we will complete this process by end of day 09/06.
Highlights to note from our RGMS Family Handbook
Bus Routes and Changes:
- If your student needs a bus route change for the year, please let PPS Transportation know.
- If you student needs a temporary change for a single day, bring a written note to the office. We must verify bus rosters with a communication to our drivers.
Device Use during the School Day:
- All student watches and smartphones must be off and away all day. If you need to contact your child - or your child needs to contact you - call our office (503) 916-5676.
It's been a great start to our year - thank you so much for your help and support in our return to campus. It's been a journey and we are all grateful for your patience and encouragement along the way.
In Community,
Lisa Newlyn
Principal
6th Grade Jumpstart 2024
Welcome Assembly with Ms Newlyn
Lunch/Recess
6th Graders in classrooms
Morning Meet Up
Passing between classes
Setting up a game on the field
First Week Back 7th/8th Graders
RGMS New & Timely
From the Office
If your student will be absent, please email grayattend@pps.net. Be sure to include your student's full name, date of absence and the reason for the absence.
ParentVue Trick
The ParentVue trick to not getting your account disabled is to only try password twice, then just click on forgot password.
After 3 unsuccessful password tries your account is disabled. When disabled you have to call the school and have the office enable your account. Then to complete the reset, you have to click on forgot password and update your password.
RGMS Weekly Announcements are LIVE!
RGMS Reminders and Weekly Announcements
Remind
Remind is the new program the District uses to send out our weekly newsletter. Need to download the app? Here is a link on how to set up your Remind account and some frequently asked questions: https://www.pps.net/Page/15513
School Picture Day - 09/09/24
School pictures will be taken on Monday, September 9 during the school day. All students will have their pictures taken for ID cards.
If you would like to purchase pictures, order forms will be sent home with your student. You can also purchase online at mylifetouch.com using Picture Day ID EVT44447T.
RGMS Counselors' Contact Information
Gray's counselors are Lisa Hyde, A-K & Laureen Held, L-Z.
Lisa Hyde - lhyde@pps.net
503-454-6829
Laureen Held - lheld@pps.net
971-231-4621
You can also contact them through this link: https://bit.ly/2024-25RGMSCounselorHelp
Donations through SchoolPay
What is School Pay?
Throughout the year we will use School Pay as a way for families to pay for a variety of things. Currently, we are asking families to consider making small donations to offset printing costs for student planners, handbooks, class supplies and other curricular tools.
School Pay is a convenient way to pay school donations with a debit card or credit card. Use this link, https://pps.schoolpay.com/, to enter the School Pay site. Set up an account if you don't already have one.
Donation items are grouped by grade level.
Schedule Change Request Form
RGMS is excited to release student schedules for the 2024-2025 school year. Since 2019, we have worked to build a school schedule that maximizes academic opportunities for students. We've reviewed each student schedule in order to ensure that it meets core programming requirements and have made every effort to ensure that students are able to take at least one of their top elective choices.
If you feel that we have made an essential scheduling error, please let us know by completing the SCHEDULE CHANGE REQUEST FORM for Semester 1. All requests will be reviewed by our scheduling team. Change recommendations will be sent to Principal Newlyn for approval and next steps.
Student scheduling is complex and space in some sections is limited, and not every request can be accommodated. We will review each request, look for possible solutions, and make schedule changes when able. Whether your request can or can not be accommodated, we will email you directly and let you know when your request is reviewed. A second window for change requests will open for Semester 2 classes in January 2025.
Requests are due by 08/30/2024, and all requests will be processed and schedules finalized by 9/06/2024.
School Supply List
Click here for school supply list.
Student Handbook
Our Student Handbook is a resource all students will receive on their first day of school. You can preview our draft version HERE. We're still updating some of the content to reflect how our 24/25 school year. This is a great source of information for our schedule this year and some basics on life at RGMS.
Family Handbook
The RGMS Family Handbook is a useful tool to answer questions about our school. From Registration to Device Use, the handbook is meant to be a handy tool to answer questions and give insight into our work at RGMS. Use this link to view the 2024-2025 RGMS Family Handbook.
PPS PIL Cross Country
The first Cross Country practice was Tuesday, August 27th, 4pm, covered area. Practices are held Monday, Tuesday, and Thursdays at Gray, 4pm to 5:30pm. It's not too late to join!
We meet on the field each practice day.
Our website has more information. Wells Youth Cross Country 2024
RGMS PTA NEWS
As we wrap up the last several weeks of summer, and look to the start of the new school year, we have a couple opportunities for volunteers from our wonderful community to help get our campus ready for students on the first day of school. The first step for anyone willing to volunteer is to be cleared through PPS (info here). The process is straightforward and only takes a couple minutes of your time. Please do it sooner rather than later as it does take time for the office to process.
We’ll share more information on each of these volunteer opportunities in the days and weeks to come, but if you want to sign up and block out your calendars for one or all of the below, please do!
Sign up to volunteer here
Get RGMS Text Alerts!
Get text alerts about school closures, delays, emergencies and school events:
Text YES to 68453
Fliers Approved for Distribution by PPS
About Us
Email: lnewlyn@pps.net
Website: https://www.pps.net/gray
Location: 5505 Southwest 23rd Avenue, Portland, OR, USA
Phone: (503) 916-5676
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robertgraymiddleschool
Attendance Reporting: grayattend@pps.net