2025 JMS Eagle Eye #3

Welcome to Week 3! It is our first "full" week and academics are hitting their stride. Check in with your students about how the are keeping up with our high expectations for them.

Open House is this Tuesday, August 6, from 6pm to 8pm. We will be running the normal schedule in brief, giving you about 10 minutes to meet and greet your student's teachers. This is a great opportunity to see the classrooms, put faces to names, and leave contact information if you want to schedule a conference.

A quick reminder that this and all future JMS Parent newsletters will come through the districts new communication tool, ParentSquare. ParentSquare combines many features of Skyalert, extracurricular communication tools for clubs and sports, and easy app access for teachers to contact you and for you to contact teachers.

Monday is the first day that we will be running Pre-K buses. Since we do door to door delivery and wait for a parent to pick up, there may be some delays getting busses to the middle schools on time this week. Once students, parents, and transportation get into the flow, these delays should work themselves out.

There is much to see in the newsletter, so we will keep this section brief. Thanks for your support for our mission to make your students academically, physically, and socially the best they can be. Go Eagles!

Mr. Phil Cox, Principal pcox@ortn.edu

Dr. Benjamin Fowler, Vice Principal bjfowler@ortn.edu

Dr. Jacob Quilliams, Dean of Students jrquilliams@ortn.edu

Monday 5 B day

• Lego League Interviews Room 102
• Volleyball (Varsity ONLY) vs Norris @ Robertsville 6:30
• JV Football vs Lenoir City @ Blankenship Field 6:00
• Cross Country Practice 3:00-4:30
• Board of Ed Meeting SAB 5:00

Tuesday 6 A day

• Lego League Interviews Room 102
  
• Fall athletics combined AED drill 3:00
• Football Practice 3:00-5:00
• Volleyball Practice 3:00-4:30
• Cross Country Practice 3:00-4:30
• PTO Meeting in the Library BEFORE Open House 5:30
• Open House 6:00-8:00

Wednesday 7 B day

• Football Practice 1:00-2:00
  
• Volleyball Practice 1:00-2:00
• Cheer Practice 1:00-3:00
• Cross Country Practice 1:00-2:30

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Thursday 8 A day

• Volleyball vs Lake City @ Jefferson
  
• JV 4:30; Varsity 5:30
• Cross Country Practice 3:00-4:30
• Football vs CAK @ CAK 7:00

Friday 9 B day

• Cross Country Practice 3:00-4:30
  
• Volleyball Practice 3:00-4:30

You get a ton of forms at the start of the year, so here is a quick guide as to what is what and where.

Forms on Paper:

ORS district handbook have been sent home. There is a paper form in the front for you to sign. Please have you AND your student sign it and return it this week to your student's first period teacher.

Forms in ParentSquare:

• McKinney Vento
• Parent Occupational Survey

• Media Release

• Survey Opt-In form
• Biometric Form (Cafeteria Identification Form)

Forms in Skyward

These forms will need to be filled out in Skyward Family Access in web browser, not the app

• First Student- Bus

• Free and Reduced Lunch

If you have any issues with the forms, please reach out to John Smith, our Innovation coach at jrsmith@ortn.edu or Dr. Fowler at bjfowler@ortn.edu

Safety is our number one priority at Jefferson Middle School. The video below helps show the process for both drop off and pick up each day. We want our parents and students to be aware of the process in order to create the safest environment for all during these busy times. The following times below give you the best idea for drop off times:

There are two loops on campus. One loop on the gym/football field side of campus, which is a car drop off loop all morning long. The second loop on the softball field side is the bus loop at the beginning of the morning and becomes a car loop after buses leave. Buses will enter the loop from 7am - 7:10am each day. Please do not enter the loop if buses are present. In addition, please do not pass buses at any time while in the loop.

Please utilize the loop on the gym side to drop off your child each morning. When 5th grade students arrive on campus, they report to the gym until 7:30 am.

• Free and Reduced Lunch forms are now available in Skyward. Be sure to log in to your Skyward Account to complete the form. The sooner we get that processed, the sooner we can make sure we are serving your students as best we can.
• Students must be enrolled in a school to receive school meals. Students attending virtual academies are not eligible to participate in either of the federal school meal programs.
• Meals shall only be provided and served on days when school is in session.

For additional information, please visit:

https://www.ortn.edu/district/food-services/food-services/

The Board of Education believes that appropriate dress and grooming contribute to a productive learning environment. The Board expects students to give proper attention to personal cleanliness and to wear suitable clothing. Students are asked to wear simple, comfortable clothing that is clean and neat. Shoes should be always worn. Students are not to wear clothing which compromises safety or modesty; nor clothing which is disruptive to the educational process.

Students are prohibited from wearing:

1. Clothing or accessories which by reasonable judgment is considered unsafe, dangerous or a health hazard (examples include, but are not limited to wallet chains, spiked collars, necklaces or rings with spikes or sharp edges, oversized belt buckles, picks and combs.

2. Clothing or accessories which contain or suggest offensive or obscene symbols, signs, slogans or words degrading any gender, cultural, religious or ethnic values.

3. Clothing or accessories which contain or suggest language or symbols oriented toward violence, vandalism, sex, drugs, alcohol or tobacco.

4. Pajamas or clothing resembling sleepwear. This also includes house shoes.

5. Apparel

• a. Shirts, shorts, jeans or pants with holes, skirts and dresses that compromise modesty or are disruptive to the learning environment.
• b. The following attire is not permitted: bare midriffs; halter or tube tops; short shorts; tight, see through, or revealing clothing; or clothing which allows underwear to be exposed, such as sagging pants, spaghetti strap tops, muscle shirts.
• c. A belt is mandatory if pants or shorts will not stay at the waist without one.
• d. Hats, head coverings, bandanas, and sunglasses are not to be worn inside the school building.

6. Any articles which can be related to gang activity such as: items with gang names; gang initials; or individual gang member monikers; gang related jewelry; gang related tattoos; or self-inflicted scars. (TCA 49-6- 4215)

7. Any manner of grooming, which by its color, arrangement, trademark, or any other attribute that is gang related. This may include such items as shoelaces, belt buckles, hats or tattoos.

8. All students must wear shoes. It is strongly suggested that students wear shoes which either enclose the foot or are secured with heel straps. Flip flops are not allowed in grades PreK-4.

9. Heavy coats must be removed upon arrival at school, be placed in lockers and left there until the student leaves the building. (At campuses that have multiple buildings that require outside travel between classes, the principal may exercise discretion.)

The school building administrator may make exceptions to dress requirements to accommodate the special needs of classes (examples include but are not limited to science labs, welding, cooking labs) and/or certain sports/activities.

All students are expected to comply with the general dress code policy of the Oak Ridge School Board. Students who fail to comply with the Dress Code Policy shall be advised of the policy and offered the opportunity to take corrective action. The school shall attempt to contact the student's parents. Students who repeatedly fail to dress in accordance with the Dress Code Policy may be subject to disciplinary actions as set forth in the Oak Ridge Schools Discipline Code. The Administration reserves the right to judge what is appropriate or not.

Consequences for violations of the dress code guidelines will follow the ORS District Disciplinary Code.

https://www.ortn.edu/jefferson/supply-lists/

Please be sure to visit the link below to review this year's Student Handbook.

Students are required to turn off phones and place in lockers when they arrive to school. Students are not permitted to have phones throughout the building. In the event of an emergency, parents can contact the main phone line (425-9301) and students may use the main phone line to contact home.

Additionally, NO wired or wireless headphones or earbuds or personal electronic devices are permitted for use during the school day unless at the direction of a teacher for a classroom activity.

Due to concerns about social media and improper use of cell phones during the school day, please see detailed cell phone policy below:

1. Students must turn off cell phone upon arriving to campus and place in their locker.

2. Students are not to use cell phones during the school day unless instructed by a teacher. Teachers will make administration aware when they will be using phones in advance.

3. Any student found to be sharing or distributing inappropriate messages or pictures online will be immediately reported to our SRO and the Oak Ridge Police Department.

4. Per the ORS Code of Conduct, "students are prohibited from using personally owned devices to record (video, audio, photograph) others". This could also be considered Cyberbullying - the use of cell phones, social networking sites or other types of digital technology to harass, threaten, discriminate, or intimidate others.

Any violation of the cell phone policy will lead to action from administration including but not limited to consequences below:

1st violation: student cell phone, headphones, earbuds, or personal electronic devices will be confiscated and sent to the office. Student will be issued a warning in Skyward and phone will be kept in the office until parent/guardian comes to the school to pick up the phone.

2nd violation: student cell phone, headphones, earbuds, or personal electronic devices will be confiscated and sent to the office. Student will be assigned an after-school detention in Skyward and phone will be kept in the office until parent/guardian comes to the school to pick up the phone.

3rd violation: student cell phone, headphones, earbuds, or personal electronic devices will be confiscated and sent to the office. Student will be issued ISS in Skyward and phone will be kept in the office until parent/guardian comes to the school to pick up the phone.

4th violation: student cell phone, headphones, earbuds, or personal electronic devices will be confiscated and sent to the office. Student will be issued an OSS in Skyward and phone will be kept in the office until parent/guardian comes to the school to pick up the phone. In addition, student may lose privilege of bringing phone to school for a time to be determined.

SECURE ENTRANCE TELEPHONE USAGE

School phones are for business and emergency use only. Students who are required to remain after school to make up work or for other reasons can call to arrange a ride home.

Ms. Kala's class embarked on a delightful educational journey, transforming the simple act of selecting a sweet watermelon into a comprehensive learning experience. Through their writing research journal, the students not only honed their investigative and writing skills but also engaged their senses by tasting the subject of their study. This hands-on approach exemplifies experiential learning, where students gain knowledge by doing and reflecting on the activity. Such methods are known to enhance understanding and retention, making the lesson not just informative but also memorably 'sweet.'

Mr. Box and his students went to Japan as the first exchange since COVID to Naka-shi, Oak Ridge's sister city. They had a great time and came back to report to JMS staff. Expect their Japanese counterparts later this month!

Be sure to check out additional information about our school counselors on our webpage and in their monthly newsletters!

School Counseling - Jefferson Middle (ortn.edu)

Our counselors for the 2023-2024 School Year are:

5th/7th Grade - Ms. Candie Price (clprice@ortn.edu)

6th/8th Grade - Ms. Cassidy Coffman (cacoffman@ortn.edu)

The position of Instructional Technology Coach has now morphed into the Innovation Coach. It holds many of the same responsibilities of helping our students, parents, and staff to access our digital tool sets, as well as added responsibilities of building relationships with our community to bring our great successes out to the community and then find partnerships to bring great opportunities to our building.

Ms. Smith is our innovation coach. He has been a 6th grade math teacher at JMS for the last 19 years and he brings his love of tech, data, and kids to the position. Any questions about our technology access pieces, reach out to him at jrsmith@ortn.edu

Canvas is our learning management system. We utilize Canvas in order to communicate with students and parents including announcements, information that is important to the class, links to resources to help support in class learning and also digital assignments.

Our teachers are AMAZING in the amount of detail they provide on their Canvas page. We encourage parents to spend 10 minutes each week with their child logged on to Canvas and read the details for each teacher's page, announcements, and assignments.

In Canvas our teachers work to provide:

• Announcements - A weekly look at what will be taught throughout the week
• Assignments - Some assignments will be digital and completed through Canvas and some will be analog and completed on paper. The goal for teachers here is to update with information to help explain the assignment and the due date.
• Calendar - A student calendar that shows all of the student's class and helps to color code each. The calendar allows for parents to see due dates for assignments, quiz and test dates

To learn more about Canvas and how we use it each day, please access the video below.

The JMS PTO would like to welcome all families to Jefferson and invite you to learn more about PTO activities and how you can get involved. Please reach out by email to jeffersonMSPTO@gmail.com if you are interested!

We are moving our meetings to the evening times this year due to parent requests. We will start at 530 in the Jefferson Library. Look to this space for updates from JMS PTO President, Kayla Colwell.

Jefferson fall athletics are getting cranked up this week and we have a busy week ahead! Over the weekend, the Lady Eagles volleyball team competed in the Atomic Play Day at Oak Ridge High School. On Monday, the Lady Eagles volleyball team will travel to Robertsville, to take on Norris, in a varsity match at 6:30pm. On Thursday, the Lady Eagles will host Lake City in a JV match at 4:30pm and a varsity match at 5:30pm.

On Monday night, The Eagles JV football team will host Lenior City at Blankenship Field. Kickoff is at 6pm. On Thursday night, the Eagles varsity football team will travel to CAK for a varsity game at 7pm. On Saturday, the Eagles JV football team will host Jacksboro at 10am at Blankenship Field.

Please make plans to come out and support the Eagles this week. Go Eagles!

Ms. Kelly Jones has moved to JMS this year. She has been with ORS for quite some time. Ms. Callison has absconded to RMS. We will miss her, but Nurse Kelly is already rocking and rolling. For her first update, here is the important information you need for back to school.

Just a reminder: STUDENTS are NOT allowed to carry or bring medication to school. Parents must bring the medication in and fill out a form with the school nurse.

If a student has medications for asthma, allergies, or seizures (or any other potential emergencies) that needs to be with them at school, please reach out to me via phone (865-425-9338) or email (kcjones@ortn.edu) or come see me in the clinic.