Falcon Flyer for Families!

November 4-November 8, 2024

Hello Falcon Families!

We hope that you have had a safe and relaxing weekend! We had an exciting week at "the Nest" with the Symphony, the Hispanic Heritage/Native American Assembly, and the Going Global Festival! Thank you to all the sponsors and those of you who came out to support the event! Special thanks to the Going Global team, especially Dr. Cordoba and Ms. Julio, for organizing the event.

We are excited to enter into November, and we look forward to this week. Winter sports begin tryouts and practices this week. We have district formative assessments for Quarter 2 in Language Arts and Math; these assessments are to help gauge readiness for the Quarter 2 benchmark assessment. Tuesday is Election Day, so there will be no school. Thursday evening, 8th grade Dual Language Immersion students have a meeting at Rock Hill High in order to learn more about the program as they move into 9th grade. Friday will be especailly exciting as we have the fall pep rally planned for Friday.

Don't forget, Friday is also Assistant Principal Day, so please give a shout out and thank you to your grade level administrator. They are amazing, and we couldn't run school without them!

Have a great week,

Dr. Persinski

Did You Know...

Falcon families, students are allowed to bring water and refillable water bottles to school. However, we are seeing an increase of energy drinks on campus in the morning and energy powder packets brought in lunch packs at lunch. Students will be asked to throw these items away, including unfinished Starbucks, Dunkin, and other breakfast items when they begin class.

According to Johns Hopkins Medicine, "Due to children’s developing brains, decreased impulse control (placing self-imposed limits) and smaller body sizes, they are more susceptible to the effects and risks of caffeine ingestion. Children who consume caffeine can have difficulty sleeping and may develop behavioral or mental health issues, such as increased aggression, anxiety, stress and depression. Energy drinks provide those same effects, along with the added negative effects of sugar." Read more HERE.

Halloween Festivity

A special thank you to our amazing PTO for arranging games and treats for teachers!

Teacher Participation!

We, at Sullivan, have the most amazing teachers who dressed up for the holiday!

1st Going Global International Festival!

The first Going Global International Festival was a success! Many thanks to Dr. Cordoba and Ms. Julio for writing the RHSEF grant, and for Ms. Dawson and the committee for organizing! Thank you to the sponsors! This was a wonderful event that showcased our amazing cultures that we have present at Sullivan and through Rock Hill. We look forward to hositng this event again next November!

Students, if you attended and had your passport stamped, then turn your passport into your FT teachers. We will announce the dress down day in the coming week.

Hispanic Heritage/Native American Heritage Assembly

Special thanks to Mr. Donado, Ms. Jordan, and Ms. Dawson, along with our students who organized and performed!

8th DC Trip

Trip Meeting

November 13th, we will have a DC parent meeting at 6pm in the auditorium. We will go over the basics of the trip and the expectations for our students. If your student is going on the trip, is interested, or you just have questions, please plan to be there!

"Let's Can Hunger"

Junior Civitans are collecting cans and non-perishable food items for those in need over the next four weeks. Please consider donating to the cause! The Falcon Time with the most raised cans will earn a pancake breakfast!

Shout Out!

Thank you, Ms. Brackett, for adding the quote to your mural! It looks amazing, and we love that students will see this daily!

Trojan Turkey Trot!

Sullivan Sweatshirts

They are selling fast!

Show your Sullivan pride by purchasing a Sullivan sweatshirt! Only $15!! Pink is almost sold out, so we have ordered more. You can purchase in the front office by check or cash.

Grade level Ts are available, as well, for $10.

Sports and Activities

Winter Sports: Students must have a physical to tryout and be in good academic/behavior standing.

Cheer - Auditorium Nov 6th and 7th 3:30-5:30, final night of cheer in the gym Nov 8th 3:30-5:30.

Girls Basketball Tryouts, Nov 6th 7th and 8th 5:30-7:00 gym

Boys Basketball Tryouts Nov 4th,Nov 6th and 7th 3;30-5:15 gym

Wrestling Practice will begin Nov 4th 3:30-5:30 Mon -Fri

A softball interest meeting will be held on Friday, November 8 during Enrichment. Please listen for the annoucement!

Upcoming Assessments

Q2 Formative #1 for ELA and Math: Week of November 4

Progress Reports November 10 *Check Parent Portal

Q2 Formative #2 for ELA and Math: Week of December 2

Winter MAP Assessment: ELA December 10 and Math December 12

Benchmark (Major grade for ELA and Math): Week of December 16 (End of Grading Period Q2)

**Formative assessments are not graded, but the data is used to gauge performance on the district benchmarks.

SIC/PTO

SIC and PTO Meetings 2024-2025

The next SIC and PTO meeting will be held Tuesday, November 19, at 5:30 and 6:30 in the Media Center!

SIC--If you would like to join our SIC meetings, or if you have any questions, please reach out to Kati McFadden, Parent and Chair. More information can be found HERE.

PTO-If you would like to assist PTO, please reach out to one of the officers.

President: Erica Smith
Vice President: Ashley Lang

Secretary: Melissa Maynard

Treasurer: Amanda Winters

sullivanmspto@gmail.com

Tutoring!

After School Tutoring for core classes is held from 3:45 - 5:00.

Remaining dates:
Nov 6-7; Nov 12-14; Nov 19-21
Dec 3-5

Native American Heritage Month

We are celebrating Native American Heritage to recognize the achievements and contributions of Hispanic American champions who have inspired others to achieve success.

To learn more about how you can celebrate Native American culture and heritage, visit: https://www.nativeamericanheritagemonth.gov/

PBIS: Store items needed

Help support our students who have displayed positive behavior! Contribute to our Falcon Store where students can use their hard-earned Falcon dollars for various snacks and other items. The most requested items are:

Walmart Wish list: https://www.walmart.com/lists/shared/WL/9255b584-b4af-4240-ba3f-3b2b4b875d32

Amazon Wish list: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/28KJCRMKVATGL?ref_=wl_share

Home Depot Wish List: https://www.homedepot.com/list/view/details/shared/b1751560-7601-11ef-80f3-f96e8524e63a

Cotton Candy (found at Sam's for 9.98/box) 6 boxes

District Career Fair

Flu/Covid

COVID and flu can cause mild to severe respiratory illness in children and adults. The symptoms include fever, chills, cough, fatigue, body aches, headache, sore throat, congestion/runny nose, nausea, or diarrhea. Children typically experience nasal congestion, sore throat, and headache with COVID. They experience cough, sore throat, and fever with flu.

If you suspect your child is getting sick, please do not send them to school. Students who are experiencing any of the symptoms listed above should complete the following steps:

Stay home from school
Call the school to report your child’s symptoms
Utilize the district COVID/Flu testing sites if you would like your child tested. This testing is free for all students and staff.
Notification of illness and testing will ensure your child’s absences are coded correctly for COVID or flu. High school students will not have to make up seat time related to an absence if they have a positive COVID or flu test. Home tests are not accepted.
Return to School Criteria: Students and staff must be fever free for 24 hours without medication and symptoms significantly improving without medication

Here are a few things parents can do to help our schools reduce the spread of illness:

Teach your children to wash their hands often with soap and water.
Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue or upper sleeve when you cough or sneeze.
Take time to get a flu and/or COVID vaccine. Vaccination is the best way to prevent the flu and COVID. SC Department of Public Health strongly recommends all South Carolina residents older than 6 months old get the flu vaccine as soon as possible to prevent the flu, unless they have a medical reason not to be vaccinated.
Teach your children not to share personal items like drinks, food, or unwashed utensils.
Know the signs and symptoms of the flu and COVID.
Please don’t send children to school if they are sick. Any child that comes to school sick will be sent home. Staying home when sick will allow your children to rest and prevents the spread of illness in our school.

Parent Portal & Canvas

Parent Portal

Please register for Parent Portal. This hub includes our Transportation Forms, Technology Agreement forms. surveys, and updated attendance and grades.

Parent Portal access is available on the PowerSchool website: https://rock-hill.powerschool.com/public

For PowerSchool questions, email askpowerschool@rhmail.org

Want to follow your student's Canvas to view assignments? See directions HERE.

Yearbooks!

Sullivan Administration!

Upcoming Events and Calendar

November 5: Election Day--No school

November 7: DLI Rising to RHH 9th at 6 pm.

November 8: Pep Rally!

November 13: DC Meeting @ 6 pm.

November 14: Career Day 7th grade; Rising DLI 6th at 6 pm Sullivan Media Center

November 19: SIC/PTO Meeting

November 22: PTO "Thankful for You" Lunch!

November 27-29: Thanksgiving Break

Family Academic & Community Nights at SMS 2024-2025

Through the 24-25 school year, SMS will host family academic & community nights. Study tips, IB and World Language information, adolescent social-emotional support, and other safety information will be shared! Save the dates!

January 23

March 27 *Also IB Showcase Night!