TVMS News

Greetings TVMS community,

We had another great week at Thomas Viaduct. This week, we addressed a concerning trend observed nationwide: an increase in students making verbal threats of violence against schools. While we understand that some statements might be made in jest, it's crucial for students to grasp the seriousness and potential consequences of such comments. Each threat will be treated with the utmost seriousness, including thorough investigations and, if necessary, involvement from HCPSS Safety and Security and the Howard County Police Department. While it has not been a concern at TVMS this school year, we encourage you to remind your student to report any unsafe comments or situations to administration immediately.

On a positive note, improving attendance is a key focus for us this year as part of our school improvement plan. Below, you'll find details about our procedures for absences and tardiness. If you have any questions about your child's attendance, please send an email message to tvmsabsence@hcpss.org

Thank you for your continued support in helping us maintain a safe and productive learning environment.

Have a wonderful weekend,

Mrs. Denise Young, Principal

September

Wednesday, September 18-- 3 hr Early dismissal, Professional Work and Wellness day

Wednesday, September 25-- PTSA meeting, 6:00-7:00 PM, TVMS media center

Friday, September 27-- Fall Picture Day

October

Thursday, October 3-- Rosh Hashanah, schools and offices closed

Friday, October 18- Schools closed for students, Professional Work Day

Tuesday, October 29-- Vision & Hearing Clinic

Wednesday, October 30-- End of first marking period

Thursday, October 31-- Schools closed for students, Professional Work and Development Day

Parent letter regarding High School Credited Courses

Starting Monday 9/16/2024, breakfast will be offered to students at their 6th , 7th and 8th grade school entrances, inside the building.

The students will enter the building and will be offered to pick up their breakfast

before heading to their homerooms/1st period. Same as lunch, the student will need to put their

pin number in the keypad. The paraeducators will help assist students that don't

know their pin number or have not been issued one as of yet.

When your student is absent from school, please submit an email to tvmsabsence@hcpss.org. Include the student’s first and last name, and reason for the absence. If this process is not convenient, your student may drop off a paper note to the front office. Please do not give/email attendance notes to your child’s teacher.

All notes must be submitted within 5 days of the absence.

This is a partial list of common types of excused absences: Illness, Court, Family Death, Immunization, and No Transport – bus did not show, not because the student missed the bus.

The following are absences that are not excused: personal, family emergency, travel, mental health, birthday or other chosen days away from school.

If an absence is based on these or any other unexcused reasons, parents/guardians may submit a Local Discretionary Absence form to request approval for the absence. Please complete this form - prior to the absence: Discretionary Absence Form FILLABLE.pdf form. Once completed, please email the form to: tvmsabsence@hcpss.org. Each student may be approved for up to 3 days of local discretionary absences for the current school year.

TVMS doors open for school at 8:15 a.m. Students should be in class by 8:30 a.m. School is dismissed at 3:15 p.m. When school days dismiss early or begin late, due to weather or other conditions, the start and end times are calculated based on the special directive. For example, if schools close 3 hours early, all students will be dismissed at 12:15 p.m. If schools encounter a 2 hour delay, the doors will open at 10:15 a.m.

Students who arrive after 8:30 a.m. are late to school and will be documented for the unexcused tardy. If a student arrives late, based on a medical appointment or approved delay, the student’s tardy will be excused. In this case, the student must bring in a note from the provider or have a parent/guardian sign them in at the office.

We welcome the partnership with you and your family. Attendance and timeliness play a critical role in the success of your student at school.

HCPSS Attendance Policy 9010

The Forensics and the Little Bits/Coding seminars are closed to any new enrollees.

G/T Instructional Seminars are open to ALL students in grades 6-8 at TVMS. Students do NOT need to be in a GT class in order to sign up for an instructional seminar. We are offering 14 different instructional seminars this year. They are: African American History, Board Game Design, Book Club, Cryptography, Debate & Advanced Debate, Forensics, Green Team (Environmental), Photography I, Photography II, Timberwolf Times (Student Newspaper), Television Production, and Writer's Workshop. For more information, please check out our brochure that contains descriptions, meeting days, and more! If your student is interested in any of the seminars, please have the student fill out the Google Form. It is also in an announcement in your student's ELA Canvas Course.

https://www.pgparks.com/event_list/hispanic-festival-2024

Hispanic Festival

• Dates: September 15, 2024
• Location: Lane Manor Park
• Time: 12:30 PM to 5:30 PM
• Price: FREE for all ages

Historic Change: An Evening Celebrating the Life and Legacy of Celia Cruz

https://latino.si.edu/events/historic-change-evening-celebrating-life-and-legacy-celia-cruz

• Date: Friday, September 20, 2024
• Location: 1300 Constitution Avenue Northwest Washington, DC 20560
• Time: 7:00 - 10:30pm EDT.
• Price: This event is FREE

Celebrate the life and legacy of Celia Cruz, the legendary queen of salsa, with a night of music, dance and culture on Friday, Sept. 20. The evening event kicks off with a short program to commemorate the 2024 Celia Cruz Quarter, the 14th coin in the US Mint’s American Women Quarters Program™, and culminates in a dance party.

Fiesta DC

https://fiestadc.org/

• Date: Saturday, September 28 and Sunday, September 29
• Time: 11:00 AM to 7:00 PM
• Location: Pennsylvania Ave NW between 7th NW & 3rd St NW
• Ticket Price: FREE for All ages

700 Pennsylvania Avenue NW Washington DC

Immerse yourself in the sights, sounds, and flavors of Latin America. Discover authentic culinary delights, explore handcrafted art, and be captivated by live performances. Every corner brims with the energy of Latino music and dance.

The Howard County Public School System (HCPSS) is committed to providing a safe, engaging, and supportive school environment that fosters the social and emotional safety, dignity, and well-being of all students. HCPSS acknowledges the need for employees

1. to use an array of research-based positive behavior interventions, strategies, and supports to address student behaviors and keep students safe.

2. to minimize the practice of exclusion from the classroom environment

3. to minimize the practice of physical restraint (which may only be used when necessary to protect a student or other person from imminent, serious, physical harm and only after other less intrusive, nonphysical interventions have failed or been determined inappropriate).

It is an expectation that HCPSS employees will be responsive to all incidents of exclusion or physical restraint and appropriately case manage impacted students to minimize unsafe behaviors and maximize instructional engagement.

Additional information can be found at HCPSS Policy 9400 - Student Behavior Intervention. If you have any questions regarding this policy or its implementation, please contact a school administrator.

Our first TVMS PTSA general meeting will occur on September 25 at 6 PM. Stay tuned for more information. As part of that meeting, since we didn't get it done at the end of the last year, our first order of business will be to elect a new PTSA board. We need to fill four positions, and we have one candidate for each. Since this is an election, if you are interested in running for one of these positions, please reach out to tvmsptsa@gmail.com to let us know you're interested. As it stands, the current candidates are:

* President: Sable Boone

* Vice President: Bertina Suber-Hanley

* Treasurer: Stephen Boone

* Secretary: Greg Ambler

Mrs. Boone has graciously written an introduction for herself to send to PTSA members.

As an enthusiastic advocate for our school community, I am excited to express my interest in becoming the 2024-2025 Thomas Viaduct Middle School PTA President. As a parent of a seventh grader and a second grader, I have a personal stake in creating a supportive and engaging environment for both students and parents. I am eager to lead our PTA in driving meaningful initiatives and creating positive change. My background in leadership, higher education, and project management has equipped me with the skills necessary to collaborate effectively with diverse groups, manage projects efficiently, and ensure that our PTA’s efforts align with the needs and aspirations of our school community. Together, we can strengthen our partnerships, enhance communication, and work towards creating an enriching experience for all involved. I am passionate about this role and ready to bring my dedication and energy to the position of PTA President.

Please come out in force on September 25 to elect your new TVMS PTSA board!

To become a supporting member, please sign up here.

For questions about the PTSA email TVMSPTSA@gmail.com

https://facebook.com/groups/616511753256107

Terracycling is a company that helps to recycle material that is not normally collected for collection. Through November 19, 2024, we are participating in the Takis recycling competition. Please help us by collecting your empty Takis bags and bringing them to TVMS to place in the collection box in the cafeteria during all lunch shifts. The top 3 schools will win some fabulous prizes and the top school will win a Takis celebration with a Takis truck!!! Help TVMS win by collecting your empty Takis bags and bringing them to school! Thanks!

• TVMS Green Team

Our large white collection bin is at the edge of the school parking lot nearest Hanover Hills Elementary School. Please help us fill our bin with as many plastic bags of new or gently used clothing, shoes and other textiles. Our school will earn money for every pound we collect.

2024-2025 School Supply List can be found here

The school supply list can also be found on the TVMS website:

http://tvms.hcpss.org

Corded Headphones for academic use

In addition to the linked school supply list, students will need to bring a pair of headphones with a cord to plug into their Chromebooks. Students are no longer permitted to use AirPods and other wireless ear buds in an effort to eliminate cell phone use and distractions. Classrooms will also have headphones for students to borrow if they do not bring their own.

View, download, print or subscribe to the HCPSS 2024-2025 calendar online. The calendar is subject to change; the online calendar reflects the most recent version. There will be no printed 2024-2025 calendars.

• Cell phones and wireless earbuds will remain off and away during school hours.

• Students who do not meet this expectation will be sent to the office to store their device for the remainder of the day.

• This is in accordance with the Board of Education Policy 8080.

• If chronic issues persist, disciplinary actions may be implemented in alignment with the HCPSS Code of Conduct.
  

To support this, please refrain from calling or texting your child during school hours. If you need to get a message to them or contact them, please call the Front Office at 410-313-8711

Food delivery services (i.e. Door Dash, Uber Eats, etc.) are not allowed. Delivery will be refused as we do not have the capability to process this during the school day. If a parent would like to bring their child's lunch to the school, we ask that you do so prior to the start of your child's lunch shift. Parents will need to leave the lunch with our Front Office staff.

Update your family information for the new school year. It is mandatory that all parents/ guardians verify and/ or update emergency information for each child each school year. Updating this information provides us with the most current emergency contact information, and also ensures that you are receiving important information and updates for HCPSS and TVMS.

Log in to HCPSS Connect, select the More Options tab on the left and then select Family File in the center column.

LINQ Connect is a secure, online portal that allows families to view breakfast and lunch menus, make online meal payments, monitor their child’s account, schedule automatic recurring payments, set up low balance alerts, submit a Free and Reduced Meals program application, and more. Details and information are available online.

In alignment with Howard County Board of Education Policy 10010, Distribution and Display of Materials and Announcements, the following announcements have been approved by the Public Information Office for distribution. Please visit Distributing Community Information through the School System or contact the Public Information Office at 410-313-6682 if you have any questions.

https://community-programs.hcpss.org/

Website: http://www.tvms.hcpss.org
Location: 7000 Banbury Drive, Hanover, MD, USA
Phone: 410-313-8711