Greetings Walden Middle School Community! The Walden Weekly will provide you with important information, dates, and events to help you to stay on top of all things happening during the 2024-2025 school year and to ensure the success of all our students. Thank you for your ongoing support of Walden Middle School and our incredible community!

Visit the Walden Middle School Website - https://walden.parkhill.k12.mo.us/

• December 23 to January 3, 2025 - Winter Break - No School for Students
• January 6, 2025 - Students Return to School from Winter Break 7:15am
• January 20, 2025 - ML King Day - No School
• January 21, 2025 - PTA General Meeting - 6:00pm - Speaker Kara Lane

• January 9, 2025 - Girls Basketball A and B Team @ Walden vs. Congress - 4:00 pm
• January 9, 2025 - Boys Basketball A, B, and C Team @ Congress - 4:00 pm
• January 14, 2025 - Girls Basketball A and B Team @ Walden vs. Excelsior Springs - 4:00 pm
• January 14, 2025 - Boys Basketball A and B Team @ Excelsior Springs - 4:00 pm
• January 16, 2025 - Girls Basketball A and B Team @ Heritage - 4:00pm
• January 16, 2025 - Boys Basketball A, B, and C Team @ Walden vs Heritage - 4:00pm
• January 21, 2025 - Girls Basketball A and B Team @ Plaza - 4:00 pm
• January 21, 2025 - Boys Basketball A, B, and C Team @ Walden vs Plaza - 4:00pm
• January 23, 2025 - Girls Basketball A and B Team @ Walden vs. Lakeview - 4:00 pm
• January 23, 2025 - Boys Basketball A, B, and C Team @ Lakeview - 4:00 pm
• January 27 to 31, 2025 - Girls and Boys End of Season Tournament - TBA

As we continue to work toward improving our school social work program, we ask that stakeholders complete this survey. This year, we are offering a parent/caregiver survey. This VERY short surveys that should take less than 5 minutes to complete. Survey results are confidential, and responses will be used to create program goals for the upcoming year. Please complete the survey by December 20, 2024.

The purpose of the survey is twofold:

1. To gather perception data about the role of the school social worker within the school building

2. To gather perception data regarding each social worker’s visibility, responsiveness, and availability

HERE is the link to the PARENT/CAREGIVER survey.

Thank you!

I am very excited to let you know that we have a unique topic coming in a webisode of the Family Webinar Series I produce entitled Mental Health & Resilience.

The webinar is called Beyond the Game: Supporting Young Athletes in a Competitive World, and will be presented by Devin Utz, a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and a Certified Trauma and Resilience Practitioner. Mrs. Utz works with many student athletes, supporting their mental health needs in the competitive world of athletics, while fostering resilience and coping skills. The webinar will be held on Tuesday, January 21, 6:00-7:00 PM. The webinar will be recorded, and the link to the recording sent to those who register.

You can read the full description of the webinar, and get the link to register, by visiting the Student and Family Support page on the district website.

At Walden Middle School, the safety of our students in our top priority and ensuring an efficient and orderly morning drop-off process is one of the most important aspects of maintaining the safety of our students. Below is a map of the traffic pattern and how cars flow for morning drop off. We ask that students only be dropped off along the sidewalk colored in yellow. We understand that this takes a bit longer but dropping off students along NW56th street or in the parking lot creates a safety risk. To help expedite the process please encourage your student to be ready to exit your car when you pull up into the yellow area. Again, the safety of our students in our top priority and we appreciate your support.

The Walden PTA has finally joined Instagram! Follow them for updates, events, volunteer opportunities and more! ! !

If you are planning on attending an athletic event at Walden such as Volleyball, Basketball, or Cheer, you will need to enter through entry 9 which is in the rear of the building as indicated on the map below. The front door and other doors will be locked.

Nominate a Walden Star today at https://www.parkhilllistens.com/park-hill-stars

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/11wx99MnhjzVHHC6MoE-99ZKrTIJ45js8sSl3N7qobck/edit?usp=sharing

Our Walden Middle School DEIB Council aims to cultivate an inclusive school environment through advocacy, education, and collaboration that celebrate diversity, ensure equity, and promote a sense of belonging for all students, staff, and families. Join today!

• With the school year quickly approaching, and fall athletics are just around the corner! This year, Park Hill School District is moving forward with an online platform called Privit for submission of participant eligibility documents, including physician sign physical forms. Families who will have students participating in athletics and activities (Speech and Debate, and Scholar Bowl) will need to create an account for their Walden student using this link. More information can be found on this flyer to support with Privit.

Walden Middle School is lucky to have a very involved PTA that connects with students, staff, families, and the greater community. They provide items for teachers and students to enhance learning and promote a positive and fun learning community. Just a few of the initiatives that PTA supports are:

• Spirit Carts
• Classroom Supplements
• Cultural Arts Events
• Awards Assemblies
• Reflections Art Contest
• Student Appreciation
• Staff Appreciation
• Student Incentives and more.

Individual memberships are $15, family memberships are $30 and business partner memberships are $100. For family and business partner memberships, a portion is tax deductible. A few benefits of a business membership is your logo in the PTA newsletters, social media posts, and banners.

You can join our incredible PTA today by logging in to the weblink below:

https://walden-pta-membership-2025-copy.cheddarup.com

If you have questions about how to get involved and volunteer for this coming school year, please feel free to reach out to us at waldenjaguarspta@gmail.com

For more information, check out the PTA page on the Walden Middle School webpage.

https://walden.parkhill.k12.mo.us/families/pta

Thank you for your help and support by joining the Walden PTA! We wish all of our Jaguars a very successful school year!

Afternoon student pick up at Walden is a bit different from morning drop off. To expediate the process of student pick up, students are picked up at three different areas of the building which allows a faster and safe process. The map below highlights the three pick up locations. 8th grade students are picked up behind the school off of N. Northwood, 7th graders are picked up at the front entrance, and 6th graders are picked up at the west entrance to the building. If you have students in multiple grades, work with them to determine which area will be your common pickup area.