WILDCAT WORD

• Feb. 17: No School.
• Feb. 18: No School. Teacher Professional Learning.
• Feb. 19: BBB @ IW
• Feb. 20: BBB vs. IH @ TR
• Feb. 24: BBB #4 vs. #5 tournament playin game (depends on our ranking)
• Feb. 24: 8th Grade MS Orchestra Festival
• Feb. 25: Band 1 and Jazz Chili Concert @ SMNW
• Feb. 26: BBB tournament @ SMN

Click Here to access the SMSD Calendar

Click Here for Trailridge's Athletics Calendar

Greetings Wildcats,

We appreciate your flexibility this week with yet another inclement weather day. January and February have proven to be challenging months for establishing a consistent rhythm at school due to the frequent days off. That being said, I am very proud of our students and staff for the hard work they continue to put in.

As we approach the midpoint of the quarter, I highly encourage you to reach out to your student's teacher to check on their progress in class. Please be sure to check Canvas regularly and track your student's progress. The third quarter can be tough, and as adults, we need to step in and help our students find success at school. We truly believe in the importance of a strong teacher-home partnership for student success.

Lastly, we have seen an increase in student reports of inappropriate social media interactions. The vast majority of these interactions are occurring outside of school, primarily on social media apps like TikTok and Snapchat. Unfortunately, these issues are creeping into the school day and affecting students' behavior. We need your help. Please remember that our 12, 13, and 14-year-old students are still learning to manage such a powerful tool as social media. It’s important that you monitor these apps regularly to ensure they are being used appropriately.

We truly appreciate your continued support of your student and Trailridge!

Sincerely,

Matt, Cara and Ericka

Trailridge Middle School Administration

#ShowUpShowOut!

The deadline to order yearbooks is Friday, February 21. Please use the QR code below or visit www.jostensyearbooks.com to place your order. A list of students who have already placed yearbook orders will be posted in the Student Services window across from the MPR. You may also email melissavanzant@smsd.org to see if you have already placed an order. We are not able to take orders after February 21st.

Congratulations to our students of the month! Our ELA teachers selected the students below to be our students of the month. We are so proud of their hard work!

Natalie Shinabargar

Madeline Kennedy

Peter Schapker

Maeve Mahoney

Emorie Murrell

At Trailridge we have a positive office referral system that allows teachers to acknowledge students when they are going above and beyond. This week the following students were recognized.

Anahi Chavez Olivares

Cooper Kennedy

Luke Bartlett

Lilyanne Dent

Griffin Hale

Lily'Ana Smith

Beacher Johnson

Torin Miller

Lucy Woods

Neymar Diaz Ravelo

This year, we have made a concerted effort to expand our Trailridge Care Closet. The TR Care Closet provides access to essential items for students and families in need. The closet contains hygiene products, clothes, shoes, jackets, etc. It’s a wonderful service to our community, and we are looking to restock some items (particularly hygiene products). Please see the information below regarding the upcoming drive organized by our PROWL students. Thank you in advance for your generosity.

Our PTA's annual Dodgeball Tournament is coming up on March 7th! Students may register individually, with a few friends, or as a full team of 8. Player / team registrations and $5 entry fee are due to the office by February 28th! Tournament is limited to 16 teams. Families and friends are welcome and encouraged to cheer on teams. Entry fee for spectators is free. Please visit trailridgepta.org for full details, registration forms, and the volunteer sign up link! Here is the link for the registration packet.

Middle & High school can feel like a pressure cooker—for both students and parents. Between academics, sports, extracurriculars, and social pressures, it’s easy for teens to feel overwhelmed and for parents to struggle with how to best support them. That’s why A Night of Mental Fitness is a must-attend event.

This engaging, interactive evening will give you practical tools to help your teen handle stress, build confidence, and perform at their best—whether in the classroom, on the field, or in life. You’ll also learn simple yet powerful ways to strengthen your relationship with them, making communication smoother and more meaningful. Presented by Triumph Performance Institute, whose experts have worked with Olympic athletes, top executives, and high-achieving students, this event will equip you with the strategies to help your teen thrive under pressure. Don’t miss this opportunity to gain real, actionable insights that will benefit both you and your child for years to come!

This week, I am excited to highlight Emily Ryerson. Emily auditioned for the Kansas Sousa Honor Band, which is for 6th through 9th grade students across the state. Emily, who plays the clarinet, had to record a piece and submit the audition. She recently found out that she made the Red Team, which is a huge accomplishment! Last month, she had the opportunity to perform at the Lied Center. She had a fantastic time and mentioned that it was an awesome experience to play music and meet new friends. Great job, Emily! We are so proud of you!

Our student highlight will run throughout the year to showcase the amazing things our talented students are doing outside of the school day. Examples may include community service, sports accomplishments, awards, and more! If your student is involved in something that deserves recognition, please email Mr. Engler at matthewengler@smsd.org with a short description and a few pictures.

The Shawnee Mission School District Research and Development Forum is coming this April and there are three ways students, educators, and family members can get ready now. The R&D Forum is a districtwide celebration of student innovation and achievement- featuring a Student Showcase open house and The Next Great Idea pitch competition.

1) 📅Save the dates! The Student Showcase, featuring student projects from across the district, will be held April 22-24, 2025. The Next Great Idea Pitch Competition will be held the morning of April 26, with an awards ceremony in the afternoon.

2) 💡Brainstorm The Next Great Idea Students are encouraged to think of a new product or solution to a problem they can “pitch” to a panel of judges this spring. There is a chance to win prize money to make the idea a reality. Initial Applications are due March 7, 2025. Learn more at this Pitch Info Session at 6 p.m. on January 23 on WebEx! Here’s the link to join.

3) 🖼️ Select Showcase Projects Students, teachers, and families are encouraged to think of projects for students to enter in the Student Showcase. Every student in Shawnee Mission is invited to share experiments, inventions, and project displays at the R&D Forum. This event is a great chance for our whole community to see the innovation and creativity of our students. If you have a project that you are unsure of where it fits as an entry, please complete the interest form on the R&D website. The submission deadline is March 28. Click here for the Research and Development Forum website. We also thank the Regnier Family for their long-standing support of this Shawnee Mission event.

This week during Wildcat hour student's participated in the Character strong lesson "Real Life Respect: Defining Respect." This lesson was very valuable because it allowed students to reflect on what they think respect is and how their definition can be different than others. They also completed their weekly grade trackers and were given seminar time to catch up on missing work.

As always, please do not hesitate to let us know if there is anything we can do to assist.

• Elisabeth Johnsrud (8th Grade Counselor) elisabethjohnsrud@smsd.org
• Kristin Warner (7th Grade Counselor) kristinwarner@smsd.org
• Anna OConnor (School Social Worker) annaoconnor@smsd.org

Important resources:

• If you or someone you know is experiencing a mental health crisis, call or text 988 immediately.
• If you are uncomfortable talking on the phone, you can chat the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988lifeline.org.
• You can also text NAMI to 741-741 to be connected to a free, trained crisis counselor on the Crisis Text Line.

Other links for Suicide Prevention:

• https://samhsa.gov/newsroom/observances/suicide-prevention-month
• https://988lifeline.org/promote-national-suicide-prevention-month/
• https://afsp.org/national-suicide-prevention-week

24-25 School Year Physicals

Student athlete physicals for the 2024-2025 school year must be completed after May 1st, 2024. Here is the updated KSHSSA Physical Packet that must be completed. Please note that the date on the bottom right-hand corner of the form is 3/2024. Every physical packet turned in must be using the updated packet. If you have any questions, please contact Ericka Corrado at erickacorrado@smsd.org.

Student Athlete Handbook

Attached is the Trailridge Student Athlete Handbook. This handbook reviews policies and procedures for being an athlete at Trailridge. Please review this handbook at your convenience.

Click Here to access the Trailridge Student Athlete Handbook.

Athletics Calendar

Be sure to visit our calendar page, and download the app to stay up to date on all Trailridge athletic activities: CLICK HERE

BOYS BASKETBALL

Students attending games as spectators to cheer on the Wildcats MUST be accompanied by their parent throughout the game and MUST sit with their parent during the game. This policy applies to home and away games.

The order of play for the rest of Basketball season will be Varsity, C Team, JV.

Weds. Feb. 19 AWAY @ Indian Woods 5:00, 6:15, 7:30

GIRLS AND BOYS SOCCER

Our pre-season parent and athlete meeting will be held on February 19 at 5:30 PM in the MPR. Come meet the coaches, learn about our season, and find out about tryout requirements. If you are unable to attend the meeting, please contact Head Coach, Ben Archacki at benjaminarchacki@smsd.org for information.

Contact Information

Athletic Director: Ericka Corrado, erickacorrado@smsd.org

Athletic Coordinator: Kelsey McCall kelseymccall@smsd.org

Football:

Volleyball: Reece Lovitt, reecelovitt@smsd.org

Cross Country: Michael Scott, michaelscott341@smsd.org

Wrestling: Justin Andrews, justinandrews387@gmail.com

Girls Basketball: Rachael Baumgartner, rachaelbaumgartner@smsd.org

Boys Basketball: Brandon Hoch, brandonhoch212@smsd.org

Boys and Girls Soccer: Ben Archacki, benjaminarchacki@smsd.org

Athletic Trainer: Josh Hardy, jhardy2@kumc.edu

If you have not logged into your parent portal of Canvas yet, I would highly recommend doing so. Canvas is the learning management system that SMSD uses. It allows you to view assignements, assessments, grades, schedules and many more important items regarding your student's day at Trailridge.

Here is the link on how to access your Canvas parent portal. If you need additional assistance, feel free to contact the office.

Please make sure your student is taking care of their device. Below is the fee structure should the MacBook be unintentionally damaged:

• 1st Incident: $100 charge
• 2nd Incident: $150 charge
• 3+ Incident: ~$750 charge (full device replacement)

If a device is intentionally damaged the student may be responsible for a full device replacement cost of approximately $750.

Our PTA is very active in supporting students and staff at Trailridge through grants, assemblies, student activities and celebrations, and more and while our events and activities will undoubtedly look different this school year, our commitment to supporting our students, staff, and families is as strong as ever! Please consider joining and getting involved in your Trailridge PTA as we find new and creative ways to support our students, staff, and families in 2024/2025!

The Trailridge Spirit Wear Store is live!! Visit the PTA website for a link to the store and to check out all of our new designs! Items are shipped directly to you and you can order anytime.

Please use the link or the QR Code to access the PTA website:

https://www.trailridgepta.org

The spring SMNW yard sign sale is happening now through March 5! These signs are only available twice a year, so 8th grade families - now is the time to order if you'd like to have your sign to kick off your freshman's first year at Northwest! CLICK HERE TO ORDER.

Attendance Line: 913 993-1012

If your child is going to miss a class for an appointment or any reason, please make sure you are calling the attendance hotline listed above and leave a message for the attendance clerk. This is important so that we can excuse the absence.

Early Pickup for Appointments:

If your student will need to be picked up early, please call the main office (913-993-1000) when you are on the way to pickup your student. We will immediately call them down so that they are ready when you arrive. Please avoid calling too far in advance.

INFORMATION ABOUT TRUANCY

The administration of Trailridge may begin to request documentation for all absences after the 10th absence in a school year. Absences without a doctor's note or administrative approval may be recorded as unexcused. A student with three consecutive unexcused absences, five unexcused absences in a semester, or seven unexcused absences in a year is considered TRUANT according to Kansas State statues. A truancy report may be filed with the Johnson County District Attorney's office.

We have now enabled the ability for parents and guardians to report student absences online through Skyward. If reported through Skyward, you would not need to call the attendance line or office to report. Multiple schools and families have reported this system is very easy to do and quicker. We hope it makes reporting absences easier for our families as well.

Below are the step-by-step procedures on how to do that.

• FRONT OFFICE 913 993-1000
• SECRETARY: Angie Marsh 913-993-1002
• ATTENDANCE CLERK: Francy Johnson 913 993-1012 (Absences should be reported by 9:30 AM)
• SPANISH INTERPRETER: 913 993-1062 Ms. Veronica Simonetti
• DS BUSING: 913 384-1190
  
• BOOKKEEPER: Ms. Gina Bristow 913 993-1003
• NURSE: Ms. Darla Denny 913 993-1007

Email: trailridge@smsd.org
Website: trailridge.smsd.org
Location: 7500 Quivira Road, Shawnee Mission, KS 66216
Phone: (913) 993-1000
Facebook: facebook.com/trailridgemiddle
Twitter: @Wildcats512