Welcome Back

Hello Monticello Families,

I hope all of you have had some time to relax and enjoy the beautiful weather with your kids this summer. Although school does not officially start until August 28th, our staff is already planning for the 2024-25 school year. Below you will find some helpful information regarding the upcoming year. I will continue to update this newsletter as more events and information are finalized. We realize how important it is to work together with you to ensure your child has a positive and safe learning experience at Monticello. Please reach out if you have any concerns, questions or suggestions on how to make this happen. We look forward to seeing all of you in a few weeks.

Mr. Merzoian

For the second time in 6 years, Monticello has been recognized by the State of Washington for outstanding achievement. In 2018, Monticello was recognized as a School of Distinction for closing the achievement gap and for demonstrating outstanding student growth in math and literacy. Due to the pandemic and limited state testing results, the recognition program was put on hold. Last spring, the state restarted the program and have retroactively awarded schools for their outstanding work. In the fall, we will receive a banner for closing the gaps for English language acquisition by English Learners. Our school improvement goals have always centered on improving student achievement in literacy and math, so it is exciting to see the hard work of our students and staff paying off.

August 26th First Football Practice 2:30-5:00

August 26th First Cross Country Practice 2:30-4:00

August 27th 6th Grade Orientation 12:00-2:30

August 27th 7th/8th Grade Class Schedule Pick-Up 2:30-3:00

August 28th First Day of School - First class starts at 7:55am

August 28th Early Release Wednesday 1:25pm

Sept. 2nd No School - Labor Day

Sept. 3rd First Volleyball Practice 2:30-4:00

Sept. 3rd PTO meeting 5:30pm in the lobby

Sept. 5th Open House 5:30-7:00pm

Sept. 13th School Picture Day

Sept 13th Football, Volleyball & Cross Country Pictures 2:30pm

Oct 11th No School - State Inservice Day

Oct. 25th Picture Re-Takes

Transitioning to a new school can be overwhelming. To alleviate some stress, we will hold our 6th Grade Orientation on Tuesday, August 27th starting at 12:00pm (more information will be sent out by email). All 6th grade students will enter the gym from the back parking lot. Students will receive their schedules, tour the building, and attend classes for a short period of time. This is for students only. We ask that you pick up your student in the back parking lot.

6th Grade students will receive their class schedules during the orientation. 7th & 8th grade students will be able to pick up their class schedules from 2:30-3:00pm in the gym on August 27th. During this time, students will also have an opportunity to tour the school and meet their teachers. Class schedules will also be posted online and can be viewed by accessing Skyward. Schedules will not be posted until late August before school starts. To learn more about Skyward, please click here

Mrs. Thompson - Special Education Teacher

Mrs. Guler - 6th/7th Grade Science Teacher

Mr. Riley - Extensive Para Educator

Mr. Chinchen - 6th Grade Math Teacher

Mrs. Paul - 8th Grade Math Teacher

Mrs. Matson - 6th/7th Grade Math Teacher

Mrs. Cowell - LAP Intervention Specialist

Mrs. Box-Hernandez - 6th Grade ELA/SS & ELL Teacher

Would you like to meet your child's teachers and tour the school? We will be holding our open house on Thursday, September 5th from 5:30-7:00pm. Students will have an opportunity to introduce you to our staff and show you their classrooms.

Skyward Family Access is an online tool that gives families the opportunity to participate more fully in their students’ education. It offers up-to-the-minute student information, including attendance, schedules, food service balances and immunizations. It also includes a calendar and message center. If you have not yet obtained a username, submit an application to a school where you have a student attending. Your username will work for all active students living in your household. Each guardian may have a separate user name and password. Click here for a link to skyward family access.

Free Sports Physical August 23rd, 2024 from 12:30-4:30 Does your student need a Sports physical for the 2024-2025 school year? Physicals are good for two years. Please don’t let your students current physical expire. This clinic will be held at the Family Community Resource Center, located in the back parking lot of Monticello Middle School near the stadium. Clinic is by appointment only. If interested, please contact Breann Syron, MSN, RN at bsyron@longview.k12.wa.us. Student will need to have a parent or guardian present.

7th and 8th grade students are eligible to turn out for Football, Volleyball, and Cross Country. 6th Grade students are able to participate in cross country. This year, all athletes must be signed up online to participate. See information below on athletic paperwork for more details about online registration.

• Football - 1st Practice is on August 26th 2:30-5:00
• Cross Country - 1st Practice is on August 26th 2:30-4:00
• Volleyball - 1st practice is September 3rd 2:30-4:00

We are very excited to announce that the Monticello Middle School Athletic Department has partnered with FinalForms, an online forms and data management service. FinalForms allows you to complete and sign athletic participation forms for your students. The most exciting news is that FinalForms saves data from season-to-season and year-to-year, meaning that you will never need to enter the same information twice! FinalForms also pre-populates information wherever possible, for each of your students, saving you time. You may review your data at any time to verify it is current. You will be required to sign your forms once per year and after any update. We are asking the parents/guardians of all students planning to play sports to create accounts in FinalForms and register your student(s).

Please register at: https://longview-wa.finalforms.com/ and follow the prompts to create your account, create your students and sign your forms.

Thank you for your assistance in streamlining our paperwork processes at Monticello Middle School.

Please fill out Final Forms information as soon as possible. Please also use your students school email. They will need to login to their google account and sign forms themselves. If you have any questions please email – crogers@longview.k12.wa.us.

Gina Ramsey

Athletic Director

If you are looking to rent or purchase an instrument for band or orchestra, we have included a couple of links below. Our band teacher recommends Beacock Music in Vancouver as they tend to have lower prices. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to our band teacher, Mr. Reed at mailto:dreed@longview.k12.wa.us or our orchestra teacher. Dr. Shepherd at mailto:lshepherd@longview.k12.wa.us

Music Instrument Rental Information

Beacock Music in Vancouver

or

Ted Brown Music in Tacoma

• Backpack or bag to carry supplies from classroom to classroom
  
• School Supplies (paper/notebooks/pencil/pen) Click here for school supplies list.
• Water Bottle
• Dress for the weather. Students will be asked to go outside for lunch each day.
• Growth Mindset - Everyone makes mistakes. It is what you do after the mistake that defines you.

Middle school can be a challenging time for students as they navigate their way through the teenage years. We have several counselors and support professionals on hand to meet the needs of our students. Mr. Rodman and Mrs. Opgrande serve as our school counselors. If you have a concern regarding your child's school experience, please reach out to Mr. Rodman & Mrs. Opgrande by email. Mr. Rodman works with students whose last names start with A-K. He can be reached at mailto:drodman@longview.k12.wa.us Mrs. Oprande works with students whose last names start with L-Z. She can be reached at mailto:mopgrande@longview.k12.wa.us They also oversee the 504 planning process.

CORE Health, Columbia Wellness and other local agencies also provide services for our students here at Monticello. If you would like your child to receive those services, please reach out to one of our counselors mentioned above.

We also have a Student Assistance Professional (SAP) in our building to support students in a variety of ways. Her name is Ms. Jodi. She works to reduce the risk of alcohol, tobacco, and other substance abuse issues. She strengthens healthy attitudes, models positive decision-making skills, and provides clear standards of behavior. She also teaches healthy ways to deal with stress and anxiety. Ms. Jodi works closely with school administrators, teachers and counselors as well as community services. Her goal is to help assist students in achieving academic and social success. If you would like Ms. Jodi to reach out to your student, please email her at mailto:jfowler@longview.k12.wa.us

• Attendance is one of the top indicators of student success.
• Our goal this year is to exceed 90% regular attendance for all students.
• It is very important that your student is in class every day when healthy.
• Attendance will be taken each day during the first 5 minutes of class.
• All students are expected to be in class on time and at their learning station.
• If a student arrives late to school, they need to check in with the attendance secretary in the office to to get a note before walking to class. The secretary will make sure the attendance is corrected in skyward.
• If a student is marked absent, parents/guardians will receive a phone call notifying them of the absence. If there is an error, please call our attendance office 360-575-7041.
• If your child is ill, we do ask that you keep them home and contact the office.
• If you know, in advance, that your child is going to be absent from school, please contact our office. We have a protocol for students that are going to be out of school for multiple days.
• If you are planning to pick your child up from school early, please contact our office at least one hour in advance so that we can make sure your child is in the office when you arrive.

When students arrive in the morning, they will enter through the double doors located by the back parking lot. The double doors lead to the courtyard. The doors will open at 7:30am. Students will need to stay in the courtyard or walk to the cafeteria for breakfast. Students will not be allowed in the halls or classrooms until 7:50am. It is best to bring a coat if planning to stay outside in the courtyard. Once students enter the building for school, phones are to be placed on silent mode and put away until the end of the school day. Students can use their phones outside during lunch.

All students are able to receive free breakfast and lunch this year. However, we are asking that you still complete the free and reduced lunch form now called the Education Benefits Form. This information helps us receive additional funding for Monticello which helps us provide additional support for academics, attendance and behavior. The form can be downloaded by clicking the following link. https://www.longviewschools.com/family-resources/food-and-nutrition Under the Menu and Nutritions title, click on the button labled 'How can families access the Education Benefits Form'.

• Take all belongings with you.
• No hanging around after school, unless you have an arranged meeting with a staff member or an after school club/sports activity.
• We have two bus routes. The busses will be parked out back by the tennis courts.
• Click here to get more information about bus transportation.
• All other pick-ups will occur in the back parking lot.
• Phones can be used once the final bell rings at the end the school day.

When a teacher or staff member need to gaint the attention of everyone, they will say give me 5. At that time, students are asked to quickly quiet down to a 0 voice level. Staff members will then usually countdown from 5 to 0. At 0, all voices should be off.

When students arrive on campus, it is expected that all cell phones and electronic devices will be silenced and put away. They are not to be used during the school day, except outside during lunch. If a student needs to make an emergency phone call, they can use the phone in the office. If a parent/guardian needs to reach their child, they can contact our office at 360-575-7056. Thank you in advance for helping us manage this expectation to help students focus in classrooms.

Dress Code: No Bare Zone

The shaded portion in the figure represents the front and back parts of the body. These parts of the body must be covered (in all positions, e.g., sitting, standing, bending, and reaching while attending school).

• Arrive on-time and prepared
• Follow the 10-10 Rule (no need to leave first and last 10 min of class)
• Students will have assigned seats
• Follow specific directions from your teacher
• Be respectful of others' learning

• Stay on the right side
• Go directly to class
• Keep your hands and feet to yourself (no horseplay)
• Take your materials with you (lockers will not be used at this time)
• Notify a staff member if you see or hear something that doesn't seem right

• Sign out in your classroom
• Grab a pass with your teacher's name on it
• Attach your pass next to the bathroom sign by the door
• Wash your hands for 30 seconds
• Return directly to class

• Sanitize hands upon entry and exit
• Form two lines (one for each side of the kitchen)
• Remain seated while eating
• Level 2 Voice
• Clean up your area before leaving (see video below)
• Students can have up to 10 people at a table
• Students will go outside for lunch
• Lunches will be split into 4 groups. Two groups for first lunch and two groups for second
• One group will be outside, while the other group eats
• They will switch after about 15 minutes
• We will ensure that students have enough time to eat their lunch

We will not be using lockers at the beginning of the year. We may provide lockers at some point during the year. Students are encouraged to bring a backpack to carry school supplies, lunch and/or water bottle. Click here to see a list of recommended school supplies for Monticello.

At Monticello, we use different voice levels to ensure that all of our students are able to receive quality instruction without disruptions.

Level 0 - Sitting in seat with no voice listening to the speaker.

Level 1 - Whisper

Level 2 - Partner/Small Group Work

Level 3 - Presentation Voice

Level 4 - Outside: When instruction is not happening.

Level 5 - Outside

We want all students to feel safe at Monticello. If you see or hear something that may cause harm to another student or staff member, please talk with a staff member immediately. Drugs, alcohol and weapons are not allowed on school grounds. Reporting can be done confidentially. You can write a teacher a note, or find a time when other students are not around.

The picture above helps define mean, rude and bullying behaviors. Students are asked to report these incidents immediately to the nearest staff member. When incidents are severe, students will be asked to fill out a What Happened Form so our principals can gather all of the details to help it stop. All incidents will be handled and addressed by our administration. Students that continue to demonstrate mean, rude or bullying behaviors will receive progressive discipline which could include long term suspension.

The safety and well-being of our students, staff, and families are a top priority at Longview Public Schools. We collaborate with local first responders and regional emergency management officials to stay updated on best practices for health, mental health, safety protocols, and incident responses.

In preparation for the new school year, our school district is adopting Standard Response Protocol (SRP) terms. Developed by the “I Love You Guys” Foundation in response to school violence, SRP aims to standardize vocabulary and reduce miscommunications during emergencies.

Why standard terms?

It has been brought to school leaders’ attention that there may be confusion associated with language involving emergency action. Terms like “lockdown,” and “lock-out” are a few examples of how terms can evolve and their intended meanings may become unclear. Having clear communication, especially in emergencies, is important for everyone’s safety.

Our district has teamed up with other school districts and emergency responders in our region to use standard, agreed-upon terms for emergency situations. These terms are: Hold (in your classroom area),

Secure (get inside and lock outside doors), Lockdown (locks, lights, out of sight), Evacuate (to a location), and Shelter (for chemical or other hazard). We are including a flier with SRP terms and symbols with this message so families can become familiar with the language and visuals.

Having clear and well-understood communication, especially in emergencies, is important for everyone’s safety. Thank you for partnering with us in this effort. If you have any questions, please call the school.

Respectfully,

Scott Merzoian

Principal Monticello

Our PTO meets the first Tuesday of each month from 5:30-6:30 in the lobby. The first meeting will be on September 3rd. We are still looking for volunteers interested in helping our PTO. If you are interested, please reach out to Heather Peterson-Woodruff by emailing us at mailto:heatherbethpeterson@hotmail.com

Fundraising Events

• Mustang Market- We are looking for volunteers to help run the Mustang Market. You must be CHAMP Approved.

CHAMP Approval Process

Follow this link to start the process to volunteer in the Longview School District.

https://www.longviewschools.com/family-resources/voilunteerget-involved

Check out our online Monticello spirit wear store by clicking the link below. You can customize your own school gear using the online store.

https://www.monticellomiddlespiritwear.com/

We believe we make a difference in the lives of our students by providing a safe and supportive environment where ALL students receive a high-quality, comprehensive education that inspires them to become life-long learners and equips them with the skills and knowledge to succeed in high school and beyond.

We Believe. We Inspire. We Succeed.

Email: smerzoian@longview.k12.wa.us
Website: https://monticello.longviewschools.com/
Location: 1225 28th Ave, Longview, WA, USA
Phone: 360-575-7056
Facebook: facebook.com/monticellomiddleschool