Straus

Hello Straus Families!

We’ve had an incredibly busy October, filled with wonderful events and activities! As we transition into the holiday season, we invite you to join us on campus for the exciting programs we have scheduled. Your participation makes a huge difference in our school community, and we’d love to see you there!

Color Battle Fundraiser
A big thank you to everyone who participated in the Color Battle! We raised an amazing $20,600 for our programs. Special thanks to our PTA President, Tamara, and Vice President, Danny, for their leadership and hard work, as well as all the parent volunteers. The kids had a blast!

Dia De Los Muertos Celebration
Join us this Friday November 1st from 5-7 PM to celebrate Dia De Los Muertos! Come and see the creativity of our electives department and enjoy a vibrant cultural experience.

Safety Updates
Please note that metal detectors will be on campus in the near future as part of our commitment to student safety.

Sports Update

• Football Semi-Finals: Don’t miss the game on Wednesday at 7:00 PM at Farris Stadium!
• Volleyball Season: The season has wrapped up. Thank you to our players and coaches for a fantastic season!
• Cross Country: We had a great success and even had a student break district records.
• Girls Basketball: Tryouts begin Tuesday, October 29th at 6:15 AM
• Boys Basketball: Tryouts will be November 8th,11th and 12th 4 PM to 6 PM

Performing Arts
Fall concerts are in full swing. It’s a wonderful opportunity to see our talented students perform!

Costume Day
On Thursday, October 31st, students are invited to wear costumes! Please remember that masks are not allowed, and costumes should adhere to Northside dress code.

Thank you for your continued support, and have a great week!

Warm regards,

W. Autumn Peralta

Calling all veterans...

Please join us for our Veterans Day Celebration Breakfast on Monday, November 11th @ 8:00 am in STRAUS Library. We would love to celebrate you!

First Fridays

PTA is excited to host a VIP party for all student PTA members on the First Friday of every month! PTA membership offers many benefits for your child and is easy to join. Scan the QRCode on the flyer to get your child started on a year of fun!

We are excited to announce our upcoming Career Day on February 28th! This event is a wonderful opportunity for our students to explore various career paths and gain insights from professionals in the community.

We would love for you to participate! If you are interested in volunteering to speak with our students about your career journey, please sign up!

Feel free to share this message with friends and family who might also be interested in participating. The more diverse experiences we can offer, the better!

Thank you for your support in making Career Day a success!

Please feel free to reach out at any time. Our office number is 210.398.2574.

A reminder that our administrators are responsible for supervising students during lunches (11:15 AM - 1:35 PM), before school, and after school until our buses arrive at 4:35 PM. We encourage making appointments for meetings to ensure we can dedicate the necessary time to address your concerns.

Please check HAC on a regular basis and set up notifications for grades and attendance.

Northside has begun issuing Attendance Warning Notices for any student with three unexcused absences in any class period. To avoid these warnings, ensure that any notes or documentation regarding absences are submitted within 2 days. This will help us change unexcused absences to excused and prevent Attendance Warning Notices. If you feel there is a discrepancy in tardies or absences, please email the teacher that marked your student and CC carla.brown@nisd.net

This year, we anticipate a student body of approximately 1450 students and our priority remains the well-being and safety of every individual on campus. To ensure a secure environment, we will continue our policy of limiting visitors. Please note that Straus is a closed campus which means no lunch deliveries from parents or external services. We understand that students will forget their lunch on occasion and we only ask that any lunch be dropped off by 9:45 in the morning. Students should either bring lunch from home or plan to enjoy a meal from our cafeteria.

Maverick families, please take time to read through this national research based initiative to help transform schools by increasing student engagement and reducing negative social distractions. Away For The Day encourages cell phone free spaces that allow students to thrive socially and academically. Our expectation is that students put away their cell phones, earbuds, and gaming devices at 8:35 every morning in their backpacks or lockers and to be used again at 3:50 at the end of the day. Telephones are available in all classrooms and all campus offices in the event that a students needs to contact a parent.

All Lost and Found items can be found in the Library classroom and will be donated at the end of each marking period. In addition, the campus cannot be responsible for lost/stolen items. We encourage everyone to leave expensive items at home. Please remind your child that they should not be borrowing, trading, or loaning personal items while on campus. In addition, all PE/Athletics lockers should remain locked at all times.

At Straus, we are fortunate to have a very active PTA that works closely with the school to meet student needs. Please join our Straus PTA!

PTA (strausmspta@gmail.com)

Become a NISD Volunteer or Mentor

NISD requires that anyone volunteering on campus complete a background check. This can be completed on the district website at https://hrvolunteer.nisd.net

Girls basketball Tryouts are October 29th, 30th, and 31st from 6:15AM-8AM. Doors will open at 6AM. If a 4th day is needed, we will communicate. More information regarding the basketball season will be provided at the conclusion of tryouts once the team has been established.

As a reminder, anyone interested in trying out must be eligible and cleared by completing all required online forms (NISD Compliance Requirements), have submitted a cleared NISD Sports Physical on the 2024-2025 NISD Sports Physical form, and if applicable have submitted an asthma action plan along with an inhaler (inhaler must remain with coaches throughout the year). The Straus Athletic Policy and Parent Athletic Meeting Acknowledgment forms must be completed.

Boys basketball tryouts November 8th,11th and 12th 4 PM to 6 PM. Anyone wanting to try out must have a physical on file and all required online forms completed before tryout.

Our Attendance/Withdrawal staff is as follows:

Carla Brown carla.brown@nisd.net 210.398.2558

Claudia Duby claudia.duby@nisd.net 210.398.2582

• October 28: Orchestra Fall Concert
• October 29: Dyslexia Parent Night
• October 30: Football Semi-Finals 7:00 @ Farris
• October 30: Spirit Night @ Bubba's 33-Culebra
• October 31: Book Fair ends Nov. 8th
• November 1: Dia De Los Muertos Fest 5:00-7:00
• November 1: Book Fair
• November 1: Straus Band plays at Harlan Game
• November 1: PTA First Friday-Apple Bar
• November 4: Progress Reports
• November 5: Student Holiday/Staff Development
• November 6: Football Championship -Farris Stadium-TBD
• November 8: Theater Fall Performance
• November 11: Veterans Day Breakfast
• November 19: Incoming 5th Grade Elective Fair
• November 20: Girls' Basketball vs. Briscoe
• November 21: Boys' Basketball vs. Briscoe
• November 25: Thanksgiving Break through November 29th