Great evening fantastic families,

We are now in week 4 of our team and just 2 short weeks away from the Thanksgiving break. Special thanks to those who came out this weekend for the November Service Day! We have a busy week ahead of us. I am excited to see how well our online bookfair does, The Alice in Wonderland Evening Show, Hornet Basketball vs Murchison, The Kealing Showcase, Kealing Clothes Pop Up Event, and the AISD Choice Fair Saturday Morning. This will truly be a week to remember. Campus wide we are beginning to see a trend of tardies and we have established a list of expectations in this area. Please speak to your scholar about the importance of arriving to class on time and encouraging their friends to do the same. We have a parent compact review meeting coming soon where we can discuss other ways parents can help assure school expectations are reinforced at home as well. Thank you for choosing Kealing Middle School and Austin ISD as your child’s primary educator.

#BEGREATMentality

#ProgressNotPerfection

Instructional Initiatives

1.) Daily Formative Assessment

2.) Literacy in Every Classroom

3.) Standards Aligned Instruction

4.) Progress Monitoring

Academic Goal

Utilizing an array of assessments (MAP- Measure of Academic Progress, SCA - AISD Short Course Assessment, and STAAR - State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness), the percentage of each demographic/special group of students performing at the meets level in Math & English will increase by at least 5% - 10% from August 17th, 2021 to May 27th,2022.

Social Goal

- TBA (we are still working on this but planning to look at the types of counseling visits our students are requesting)

All Day

Mask wearing is mandatory

Before School

All staff, students, and visitors are encouraged to self screen for COVID 19 symptoms before entering into a campus or other Austin ISD Facilities each day

Arrival

- We will maintain outdoor markers to social distance

Transition

- we will encourage moving halls where students are encourage to not stop while transitioning to classes

Classrooms

- We are space seating/desks at least 3 feet apart when feasible

- Each classroom will have a HEPA (High Efficiency Particulate Air) filtration unit

- Personal Protective Equipment will be available in each room

- Plexiglass dividers available

- Additional outdoor seating

-Volunteer lunch monitors

Breakfast & Lunch

- Assigned seating

- Students are allowed to eat lunch both inside the cafeteria and outside in the courtyard

- Plexiglass accordian dividers.

Dismissal

- we will have staggered dismissal where scholars will be dismissed by areas of the building to reduce traffic.

Our Kealing Hornets who are enrolled in a high school credit class (Algebra I, Geometry, Algebra II, World Languages, and CTE courses) will participate in semester exams the week of December 6-10. This week, the entire campus will operate on Semester Exams Bell Schedule. You can find the schedule by clicking the button below.

It is important that our Hornets participating in high school credit classes, perform well on their semester exams, as they will count towards a percentage of their semester grades. To help prepare, please have your student attend teachers' Office Hours. Reach out to you student's teachers or Program Directors if you have any questions.

Monday - November 8 B DAY

Alice in Wonderland Evening Show @ 6p (Kealing Theater)

Tuesday -Novemeber 9- A Day

WALKING GROUP- ALL are WELCOMED @ the track 7:30am

Title One Compact Parent Meeting (Virtual)- Zoom Link to posted Tuesday morning

Wednesday - November 10- B Day

Thursday - November 11 A Day - Veteran's Day

WALKING GROUP @ 7:30am Kealing track

Kealing Showcase! , 5:30p - 7:30p

Friday - November 12 B Day

Kealing Clothes Closet pop up event , 10:30a - 12:30p Room 109-A

Saturday- November 13

East Austin Studios Series at the Carver Museum

AISD Middle School Choice Fair

Free Family Resource Fair

Sunday-November 14

Rally for Kindness

Time to clean out your coat closet! National Junior Honor Society is hosting a School-Wide Winter Wear Drive from November 1st through December 3rd. If possible, please donate new or gently used coats, scarves, hats, jackets, or any other winter-wear. Socks are also identified as high need, but will need to be new and in original packaging to be accepted. Items can be any size- from toddlers to adults!

Donated items will first go to Kealing Community Members/Families, while the rest will be donated to SAFE Austin and the ARC. You can drop off your items in Ms. Chambers' room (116) at the beginning of the school day (no earlier than 7:20) or during advisory.

All students are invited to come to ROOM 109-A during lunch time to "shop" at the Kealing Clothes Closet. We will have pants, long sleeve shirts, socks and other items needed for the cooler weather slated for this weekend.

****Parent volunteers are need to assist Ms. Perez with folding and distribution of items.*****

The Kealing Showcase is Thursday, Nov. 11, from 5:30-7:30 at Kealing and we need parent volunteers. We're excited that this year the showcase will highlight both the academy and magnet programs!

Please take a look at the available shifts and sign up to help out. You can help for an hour or the whole time. We need help with parking direction, sign in, directing families in the hallways, and clean up. Spanish speakers needed. Click on the SignUpGenius for more details. https://m.signupgenius.com/#!/showSignUp/10c0f45a9af2ea7f58-kealing

Thank you!

Rally For Kindness
Nov. 14, 2-4 p.m.

Location: Capitol South Steps

Please join in support and solidarity with the Jewish community at Austin's Rally for Kindness. Our city has recently weathered multiple incidents of hate. This event will be an opportunity to heal, get inspired and take positive action. We will feature a wide range of speakers from different communities and faith groups. Austin students will display banners with positive messages, and attendees can learn more about volunteer and donation opportunities with Central Texas nonprofits. We are stronger together!

The Annette Strauss Institute for Civic Life at The University of Texas at Austin is conducting a research study about parental and family attitudes on topics in education. Parents and guardians are requested to complete the 8-minute online survey by December 10, 2021. Participation is completely voluntary, and all answers will be anonymous. If you are interested in participating, please click on the link for the survey and additional information: https://utexas.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_7WCiUjAuVOeVZoW

Research results will be shared during the 2022-23 school year. If you have any questions, please contact heather.vaughn@austin.utexas.edu.

Thank you for your participation.

HEATHER VAUGHN, Ed.S., Sr. Educational Outreach Coordinator, Lecturer

The Annette Strauss Institute for Civic Life

Moody College of Communication | The University of Texas at Austin

El Instituto Annette Strauss para la Vida Cívica de la Universidad de Texas en Austin está llevando a cabo un estudio de investigación sobre las actitudes de los padres y la familia sobre temas de educación. Se solicita a los padres y tutores que completen la encuesta en línea de 8 minutos antes del 10 de diciembre de 2021. La participación es completamente voluntaria y todas las respuestas serán anónimas. Si está interesado en participar, haga clic en el enlace de la encuesta e información adicional: https://utexas.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_7WCiUjAuVOeVZoW

Los resultados de la investigación se compartirán durante el año escolar 2022-23. Si tiene alguna pregunta, comuníquese con heather.vaughn@austin.utexas.edu.

Gracias por su participación.

HEATHER VAUGHN, Ed.S., Sr. Educational Outreach Coordinator, Lecturer

The Annette Strauss Institute for Civic Life

Moody College of Communication | The University of Texas at Austin

We will be celebrating the opening reception of our group show, Pieces and Parts, and experiencing musical performances by the electrically aligned Ivy Roots, and ATX's most ‘Ballsy’ Mama Duke!

Every year Carver Museum invites three artists of Color on the rise to participate in a group show during the Studio Tours. ' Pieces and Parts' features Textile artist Siena Smith, experimental animator Julia Zipporah, and concept artist Alexis Hunter.

Register Here

Hello, Children & Nature Team!

Fall migration season is in full swing - a great time to get out to the parks with binoculars in tow. This week we have a collection of community updates including summits and fellowship opportunities along with some community events and exciting award announcements.

OPPORTUNITIES

• EngineerGirl Ambassador Program - applications are now open for the 2022-2023 EngineerGirl Ambassadors Program! An EngineerGirl Ambassador is a female, U.S. high school student who designs, develops, and implements a project in her local community that will encourage younger girls - particularly those with little access to engineering role models - to think about engineering and engineering careers and give them practical experience in engineering design. Ambassadors will receive training and support from the National Academy of Engineering, $250 in project funding, an all-expense paid trip to a training and networking event, and more. The deadline to apply is March 15, 2022.
  
• NGCP Fellows Program - the National Girls Collaborative Project is offering a remote-based, nine-month professional development program open to early career professionals, and graduate students interested in gender equity and informal STEM education. Fellows will contribute to NGCP’s ongoing STEM and equity projects and will have diverse opportunities to learn and collaborate with the NGCP national network. Fellows will also participate in advanced training on gender equity and cultural responsiveness and receive ongoing mentorship and support. Application deadline is November 23, 2021.

COMMUNITY EVENTS

• Hot Science at Home: Space Environmentalism - the Environmental Science Institute's next Hot Science At Home event will feature Dr. Moriba Jah on Nov 12th at 7:00pm. The talk will be streamed through YouTube and Facebook and will focus on what we can do to make space safe, secure and sustainable in the long term.
  
• Odditree + Austin Studio Biking Tour - Odditree Society and Ghisallo Cycling Initiative are hosting a bike ride on Nov 14 from 2-4:00pm to connect with trees and art in Austin. Meet at 654 Tillery St, under the 7th Street overpass near the Tree Garden. All ages and abilities welcome! Skill level: Beginner.

INSPIRATION

• Net-Zero Hero: Sheridan Ray - our own Youth Leadership Working Group Tri-Chair Sheridan Ray was featured this month as the Office of Sustainability's Net-Zero Hero. From interning with the Youth Forest Council to advising on the Climate Equity Plan, Sheridan has had a large impact on Austin's conservation community in her 19 years. Thank you, Sheridan, for being a champion of equity and sustainability in Austin!
  

That's all for now - keep an eye to the sky for our traveling monarch friends!

Julia Hill (she/her)

Program Coordinator – Cities Connecting Children to Nature

City of Austin | Parks & Recreation Department | Park Planning Division

+1 512-974-9466 | julia.hill@austintexas.gov

http://www.austintexas.gov/CCCN

Thank you, community, for your ongoing support via the Amazon Wishlist. Students are using the supplies for organization, collaboration, and creativity! Teachers continue to update the list as needs arise. "Thank you, community, for your ongoing support via the Amazon Wishlist. Students are using the supplies for organization, collaboration, and creativity! Teachers continue to update the list as needs arise. https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/B7BQHNMLAOP/ref=nav_wishlist_lists_2?_encoding=UTF8&type=wishlist

"

Kealing is teaming up with the UT School of Business to provide Thanksgiving Meal Boxes. The box will included items needed to prepare a holiday meal for Thanksgiving. The Kealing PTA is also assisting the PSS office with contributions to the boxes.

If your family would like to sign-up to receive a box, please call 512-414-6700. We have 30 spots available. The list will close on Thursday, Nov. 11 @ 3:30pm.

The Junior League of Austin (JLA) will hold the 35th annual Coats for Kids Distribution December 4–11, 2021. Together with our long-standing partners—Jack Brown Cleaners, iHeart Radio, and KVUE—The Junior League of Austin aims to provide 35,000 warm winter coats to Central Texas children in need.

The Junior League of Austin, its partners, and the community at large have an impressive and beautiful history of bringing warmth to the children and families in our community. In response to the continued COVID-19 pandemic, and to best serve the health and safety needs of our recipients and volunteers, Coats for Kids will continue to have a modified format in December 2021.

https://www.jlaustin.org/coats/

Operation Blue Santa 2021 Applications

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Applications are on-line only and will start on October 11, 2021 and end on November 24, 2021.

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Due to Covid-19 all applications will be online only.

https://www.bluesanta.org/apply-solicitar-2

Facebook -https://www.facebook.com/KealingMS/

Hornet Herald - http://www.kealingmiddleschool.org/parents/hornet-herald

Twitter - @KTXHornets

Webpage - https://kealing.austinschools.org/