Family Update

There are no classes on Monday September 23rd for staff development.

Dear GJPS Families,

Beginning last school year, districts in Ohio have been navigating new legislation related to

health and safety lessons that schools are required to include as a part of the curriculum. House

Bill 123 and Senate Bill 288, as outlined in the chart below, provide instruction to students in

grades K-12 on these topics.

We have developed our plan for delivery and have begun communicating with parents in

preparation for instruction. There are many details related to both House Bill 123 and Senate Bill

288 and we wanted to provide clarifying information on both components of our curriculum.

Complete this form only if you would like to OPT-OUT your student out.

n accordance with Ohio law, the District includes venereal disease education as part of the health curriculum. As outlined in Ohio Revised Code 3313.6011, venereal disease education must emphasize that abstinence from sexual activity is the only protection that is one hundred percent effective against unwanted pregnancy, sexually transmitted disease, and the sexual transmission of a virus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. As a result, the course material and instruction must do all of the following:

School Districts have the option of offering additional instruction beyond what is listed above,
and our District has chosen to do so by using the vendors and curricula listed below. In order for your student to receive this instruction, we require written permission from you as the parent/guardian.

PLEASE USE THE FORM BELOW TO GRANT PERMISSION FOR YOUR STUDENT TO RECEIVE THIS INSTRUCTION, OR TO EXCUSE YOUR STUDENT FROM THIS INSTRUCTION.

Parent Consent Form: Venereal Disease Education in GJPS Health Classes

Learn more about this requirement.

Family conferences (parent teacher conferences) are October 1st, 3rd and 9th. You can sign up for conferences starting Monday September 23rd at 3pm. You only need to attend one of the three days, however if your schedule does not allow you are able to sign up for different days for each teacher.

Family Conference Sign up

The Columbus Urban League’s Young Engineers Society (YES!) Afterschool and Summer Learning program is an Outside-of-School-Time (OST) initiative for middle school aged youth. The program exposes participants to Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM) and career readiness related concepts through engineering while providing an academic support, social-emotional strength-based curriculum, digital literacy, and early career exploration. Students 14yrs of age have the opportunity to Learn and Earn $15.00 an hour.

We are partnering with The Ohio State University Engineering Department, Columbus State Community College, the Franklin County Commissioners and organization to offer amazing STEAM experience learning opportunities.

YES! operates September to May, Monday through Friday, from 3:00 PM to 6:00 PM.

Transportation from school, meals, and supplies are included at no cost. Click the link or scan the QR Code and APPLY TODAY !!

7th grade students must have their immunizations up to date by October 7th or will be excluded from school. Please contact nurse Gunther if you have any questions @ gunthera@gjps.org

Here are the basics of the trip:

• The trip will be May 6-9, 2025
• The cost is $880 per student.

  This includes bus transportation, all meals, hotel accommodations (4 students to a room), and any required ticket prices to enter historic locations. For those of you familiar with the trip, or maybe had a child participate in the trip last year, you may notice that this is an increase from last year. While working with Prodigy Student Travel for this year's trip, we received notification that due to economic shifts, our Washington D.C. trip was slated to increase per student. This increase was for a replica trip as last year and would have caused a significant increase to families, roughly a 31% increase. While $880 is still an increase in the overall cost, we were able to rework our packaging to reduce the initial increase while also creating a robust trip that now includes each middle school being at a different hotel, attending a baseball game, and going through Old Alexandria, Virginia on a Ghost Tour.

• We will be working with Prodigy Student Travel, a tour company out of Worthington, Ohio.

• Registration for the trip will open on September 23rd, immediately after the virtual information meeting for families of students interested in participating in the trip. This meeting will begin at 7 p.m. (The link to this meeting will be sent at a later date). If you cannot make it to this meeting, it will be recorded so that you can watch it at a later time.

• Upon confirmation of registration (after the parent meeting), you will receive access to the "Behavior Contract" and the "Medication Form" through Infinite Campus. These must be completed in order for your child(ren) to participate in the trip.

Come and join the fun, whether you dash, walk or run!

Come see the progress of the new GLHS!

Do you own a business or work at a business that would like to have a decorated trunk at the Stash?

If you would like more information, please contact Dianna Bessignano at bessignanod@gjps.org OR (614) 269-4262.

Attention current students in grades 8-11. Are you interested in travel? If you have ever wanted to travel outside of the United States with friends to learn about different cultures and more. Mrs. Bommer and Mrs. Baker, science teachers at the high school, are taking a group of students on a 14 day tour of Australia during the summer of 2026. If you would like to hear more about all of the exciting opportunities on this trip, we will be hosting an informational meeting on Wednesday, September 4th at 5:30pm in the GLHS Library. We will cover important information like itinerary, cost, what is included in the trip, and answers to any other questions you may have.

Please RSVP using the link HERE or the QR code provided on the attached flyer. If you are interested and unable to attend the meeting Wednesday, please fill out the RSVP and let us know that you are unable to attend. We will contact you with the necessary info after the meeting is complete. We look forward to seeing everyone there!

Ous STEM Fest event will be Held on October 17th! Don't miss it!

The Heart and Pride Award recognizes two outstanding staff members each month who make a profound impact on our students and Gahanna-Jefferson Public Schools.

The Heart & Pride Nomination Form will remain available year-round and is open to any member of our staff, regardless of position.

No School- September 23rd- Professional Development Day

Family Conferences- October 1st, 3rd & 9th

Stem Fest- October 17th