Dust Devil Weekly

Once again this school year we will be focused on improving school wide attendance at JMMS! Each week we will report out our daily attendance rates. Our goal is to be above 96% each day...we can do it!

Monday 1/27: 89.25%

Tuesday 1/28: 92.25%

Wednesday 1/29: 94.00%

Thursday 1/30: 89.75%

Friday 1/31: 93.25%

Did you know that an Excused absence is the same as an Unexcused absence for a student? If your child is going to be out for an extended amount of time, you can request and Independent Study Contract. This contract acts as attendance for the time they are not in school, as well as, allowing students to stay on top of their studies!

- Ms. Maize's Science classes made models of the respiratory system to wrap up their recent unit of study!

- This week had all 5th grade classes from Shadow Hills and Boulder Oaks visit Joan MacQueen! The students were all buddied up with a JMMS student. They shadowed that student for a couple of periods and then got to experience a spirit assembly. After they attended our 6th grade lunch and even got a coveted JMMS Slushie! It was a blast having the future Dust Devils on campus!

-Valentine Grams will be on sale for $3. They will include a carnation, a bracelet and a ring pop!

It was another successful AEF STEAM FAIR on Saturday! Many JMMS students participated in the Science Fair and in the Vendor Fair. They presented well prepared Science Fair projects to the judges and had amazing display boards. The vendors were selling everything from homemade salsa and baked goods to jewelry and art. What talented students we have at JMMS! Thank you to Alpine Education Foundation and to Jessica Manning Ross for making this event a success!

Learn valuable tips and strategies from our students and financial literacy experts. Join us as we explore how to make smart money decisions and plan for the future.

As we plan for the 2025-26 school year, we invite you to take a few minutes to complete the LCAP (Local Control and Accountability Plan) survey for Alpine Union School District.

Your feedback helps shape important decisions about academic programs, student support services, school climate, and more. This is a valuable opportunity to share your thoughts on how we can continue improving our schools and ensuring success for all students.

Please take a moment to complete the survey here: 2025 LCAP Family Survey

The survey will be open until Friday, February 21st, and we truly appreciate your time and input. Thank you for being an essential part of our school community!

Mientras planificamos para el año escolar 2025-26, los invitamos a tomarse unos minutos para completar la encuesta LCAP (Plan de Control Local y Rendición de Cuentas) del Distrito Escolar Alpine Union.

Sus comentarios ayudan a dar forma a decisiones importantes sobre programas académicos, servicios de apoyo para los estudiantes, el clima escolar y más. Esta es una valiosa oportunidad para compartir sus ideas sobre cómo podemos seguir mejorando nuestras escuelas y garantizar el éxito de todos los estudiantes.

Por favor, tómese un momento para completar la encuesta aquí: Encuesta Familiar LCAP 2025

La encuesta estará abierta hasta el viernes 21 de febrero, y realmente apreciamos su tiempo y opinión. ¡Gracias por ser una parte esencial de nuestra comunidad escolar!

• Parent Volunteers NEEDED for our Winter Wonderland Dance on Friday, February 7. Please contact Mrs. Tompkins if you would like to help.
• If your child sold See's Candy online as a part of our fundraiser during the Holidays, please email Mrs. Tompkins with any names so she can give credit to your child for the sales. You can email her at dtompkins@alpineschools.net
• ASB is looking for any donations of candy for rewards during our Spirit Days. If you would like to donate any candy to our JMMS ASB, please send it in and make sure it has a note that states it is for our ASB class! Thanks in advance for your support!

Freshman Showcase - February 5th, 5:00pm to 7:30pm at Granite Hills HS

Freshman showcase is an opportunity for families to come visit our campus and see what our school has to offer. Families will be able to get information on curriculum, athletics, clubs, information about our PTSA and much more. Please refer to the attached flyer for the event.

Register Your Student(s) at Granite Hills

Enrollment to Granite Hills High School is now open. Follow the instructions below to begin that process. (Registration is not required to attend our showcase).

1. Go to bit.ly/GUHSDRegister to begin the registration process through our district. Complete all sections and click the red “Submit” button when finished. District staff will process your registration within 5 - 10 business days.
2. After your registration is processed, you will receive an email to create an Infinite Campus Parent Portal Account. This account allows you to check your student’s schedule, attendance, grades, etc. throughout the school year.

Thank you and we look forward to seeing many of you here at Granite Hills High School!

We appreciate your patience as we put all of the pieces in place to get our JOAN MACQUEEN PTA MEMBERSHIP DRIVE underway! And....it is time! Our Membership Drive has begun! You can join online beginning NOW for just $15 a membership. We have set a goal of 200 members and we are well on our way with already 50 members! Please consider joining our newly formed PTA. PTA is a vital part of any school community and JMMS is excited to have a PTA back on campus to support our students, staff and greater school community! We will be hyping up the students by hosting a little membership competition. The grade level with the most memberships will receive a MEGA ICE CREAM SUNDAE SOCIAL! The second place grade level will receive ice cream cone party and the third place will receive a popsicle party. We want to reward all grade levels as this is an exciting time for JMMS and our newly formed PTA! You can join by using the link here:

https://jointotem.com/ca/alpine/joan-macqueen-pta/join

We are excited to announce that our 6th grade class will be attending Camp Cuyamaca from March 17-21, 2025! We know that is months away; however, because the week has a cost of $350 we like to give our families the time to start making payments asap. If you would like to start making payments or pay for camp in full, you can pay cash or make a check payable to Joan MacQueen Middle School beginning now. You can bring the cash or check to the JMMS office. Time to start getting excited for camp!

As we begin the year, it is important to remind your student that they need to have their Chromebook each day charged and in their backpack. While we know that we want our middle schoolers to work on becoming more independent, we also know that it takes time. So, as they work to develop these skills, please help them by giving them reminders nightly to charge their Chromebooks and then to put it in their backpack in the morning. Thanks for your continued support!

JMMS is excited to offer Spirit wear for our Dust Devils! You can find offers and options here:

https://macqueenmiddlespiritwear.com/

Weds 2/5 - Late Start Morning (8:30am)

Fri 2/7 - Winter Wonderland Dance

Mon 2/10 - No School

Fri 2/14 - Lunch on the Lawn

Mon 2/17 - No School

Weds 2/19 - Late Start