Ridgeview STEM Junior High
September 13, 2024 Vol. 10
PRINCIPAL'S WEEKLY MESSAGE
Happy Friday Ridgeview families! Here are your weekly updates.
We will be having a special parent meeting for our families whose students receive EL services on Thur Sept 19th at 6:30 pm at the building. The purpose of this meeting is to help get students and families better acclimated to Ridgeview, academic expectations, and the overall junior high school experience. An official invite through talking points will be sent out to those students/families who should attend. We hope that you’re able to join us. District Liaisons will be in attendance for language needs. We will also have Infinite Campus help to either set up/get into the parent portal. If you have any questions about the upcoming meeting, please contact Mrs. Skarsten or Mrs. Roe through the main office.
September is Attendance Awareness Month! Pickerington Local Schools are
partnering with the Stay in the Game! Attendance Network to promote the importance
of daily attendance. Join Pickerington Local Schools in making attendance a priority. Let’s work together to ensure every student stays in the game and on the path to success by showing up to school daily. Join us in building a school-going culture at Ridgeview. To show students their support, the district is giving any student who has perfect attendance for the month of September a free ticket to a High School fall sporting event (not the North/Central football game). At Ridgeview, the grade level who has the highest attendance percentage from Sept 3rd to Sept 19th will earn a popcorn party during their Pawtime period. We will do an attendance challenge at least each grading period. We want to build on our great attendance here at Ridgeview, with a goal of reaching at least 95% attendance for the school year. Click here for a letter explaining this more in depth. Thank you in advance for your support and help making it happen!
First Quarter Interim Reports will be available in Infinite Campus the week of Sept 23rd. This same week is also our first round of Parent/Teacher Conferences. It will take place on Thur Sept 26th from 3:30-7:00 pm. Teachers will send out sign-up information to families soon. We hope you can join us!
Our kitchen staff have been working extremely hard getting students through the breakfast and lunch lines this school year. With the addition of free breakfast and lunch for all students, our serving numbers have gone up extensively, serving close to over 300 for breakfast and 700 for lunch daily. It’s imperative, especially in the mornings, that if students are eating, they immediately get in line when they enter the cafeteria. We don’t have the space for students to “hang out.” If they are not eating, they will be asked to leave and go to class. We want to make sure we give those who want to eat the opportunity to do so and not turn students away for messing around and not following expectations. Please have a conversation with your student about this as a reminder.
As a reminder to our families about attending sporting events, especially high school events, per the district office the following will still be in effect this school year:
K-8 students must be accompanied by an adult (high school siblings do not count) and seated/supervised by that adult throughout the event.
Backpacks are not permitted in the stadium.
Students should make transportation plans before attending a high school sporting event.
Sporting events are an extension of our school day. Please press upon your student about behaviors and applying our T.I.G.E.R. expectations, even when they are away from Ridgeview. If you have any questions about this policy, please contact the district office (614-833-2110).
If you missed our parent meeting at Open House, below were the main points that were discussed. We communicate this information to students regularly. If you have questions, please speak to anyone on our administrative team.
Dress Code:
All students should have shoes that cover their toes and that are appropriate for school (no slides, sandals, or slippers). Crocs are appropriate but must have the strap for the heel.
Clothes should be appropriate length and cover all parts of the body (ex: no crop tops, spaghetti straps). If writing or pictures are on the clothing, it should be appropriate to wear at school. PJ’s are not appropriate clothing to wear to school.
Students are permitted to wear hooded sweatshirts to school, but cannot have the hood (or any hat) on their head during the school day.
Personal Communication Devices:
For this school year, when students enter the building, all devices (phones, wireless headphones or pods, iPads) are to be turned off and put out of sight for the entire school day. Smart watches may be used as a watch only. If it’s used for anything else, it will be confiscated.
If a student is seen with a device OR uses their smart watch for anything other than a watch, the device will be confiscated and locked up in the main office. The first time it’s taken, the student may pick it up at the end of the school day. After the first time, a parent will have to pick up the device - it will not be returned to the student moving forward.
Pick-up times for Personal Communication Devices will be Mon - Fri in the main office from 8:00 am - 1:45 pm and again from 2:30 pm - 3:00 pm as long as school is in session. The main office closes at 3:00 pm daily.
The purpose of this is to have our students more engaged in classes. Devices are becoming more of a distraction every single day. We want to set our Ridgeview students up for success in every class. We believe this will be a better start to doing just that!
We’re collecting more devices daily. If your student has a device confiscated and it doesn’t belong to them, the person that it belongs to AS WELL AS the student who had it taken from will be added to our spreadsheet for a confiscated device. Please make a note of this.
Take care and we’ll see everyone soon! GO TIGERS!
Important Dates:
Th Sept 19th: End of the Grade Level Attendance Challenge
Th Sept 19th: EL Student / Family Meeting
Week of Sept 23rd: 1st Quarter Interims Available in IC
Th Sept 26th: Evening Conferences
Sheila A. Evans, Principal
Ridgeview STEM Junior High School
From the Office of Assistant Principal, Kevin Smith
Dear Ridgeview Families, based on feedback from some of your peers, we wanted to share some tips that will help you support your student here at RJH, helping them to be successful and helping you to know how to support their academic growth.
We look forward to a great year!
Early Dismissal Information
District Policy states that only guardians listed on Infinite Campus are permitted to pick up their student. If your student needs to be picked up early by someone who is NOT their guardian, a guardian must call the office to let us know who will be picking up their child. The other adult must present a valid ID to office staff for the student to be released to them.
Need To Reach Your Student During The Day?
Due to the new cell phone bill recently passed in Ohio, students will not have access to their personal devices during the school day - including lunch periods. If you need to reach your student we encourage you to email them, as they always have access to their Chromebooks during the school day.
Become A Volunteer At Ridgeview!
Ridgeview is always looking for volunteers from our families and it's now easier than ever! If you're interested in sharing your time, please click the link below and fill out the Google form. Approval will be communicated once the application process is complete.
Care Closet
Ridgeview's Care Closet is in need of a little TLC. The care closet is a quick and easy way to ensure our students are prepared to start each day as a successful TIGER! We are looking for donations for both boys and girls. If you're able to help, our immediate needs are listed below.
deodorant
short/long sleeve shirts (S-XL)
shorts/pants (S-XL)
shoes
coats/jackets
backpacks/lunch boxes
Contact the Clinic
A NOTE FROM THE NURSE
IMMUNIZATION REMINDER: In order to start school, all immunizations must be up to date.
Click HERE for complete guidelines.
Student Counselor (A-Ga)
Student Counselor (Ge-N)
Student Counselor (O-Z)
Fall Panorama Survey during P.A.W. - September 26th & 27th
Students will complete Panorama SEL Surveys during their P.A.W. time on Thursday, September 26th and Friday, September 27th. The survey will provide social and emotional learning (SEL) information. SEL is the process through which children and adults apply the knowledge, attitudes, and skills necessary to understand and manage emotions, set and achieve positive goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain positive relationships, and make responsible decisions. These are the skill sets that promote success in life.
While our goal is 100% participation, parents may choose not to have their child participate. If you prefer your child not to participate in this survey, please fill out the opt-out form below or email your child’s School Counselor by September 20, 2024.
One 7th & one 8th grade P.A.W. time class with the highest completion percentage will receive a special treat from Mrs. Evans! If there is a tie, a draw will be conducted.
Panorama SEL FALL Survey Nepali 2024
Career Day
We Need Your Help!
Families, we are having a Career Day on Oct. 4th and we need your help. We love it when parents, grandparents, siblings, friends come in to share their career with our students. Your career can be in any field, it doesn't have to be high profile. Those who present would only have to prepare 20-25 minutes of a presentation. Hands on activities or props that relate to your career are great time fillers too. We are asking for people to present 6 sessions from 9:30-1:30 (you would also have a half hour lunch during that time.) If you or someone you know could present a session or would be a great keynote speaker or both, Please complete this form ASAP. Thanks in advance for your help. https://forms.gle/VeTmYCVrUSGt6ZJ97
ATHLETIC INFORMATION
Drug Testing Information:
If you missed drug testing, please test at any AverHealth location.
NEXT PAY TO PLAY PAYMENT IS DUE SEPTEMBER 20:
Your fees can be found and paid on your Infinite Campus Parent Portal
PTO CONNECTION
Happy Friday All!
Your PTO is working on dates for a Teen Night and will have all details by next Friday's newsletter. New members be sure to check your email for details about our first PTO meeting - we want to welcome you in style but also discuss the dates with you first and share all upcoming events, more to come.
We have Parent Teacher Conferences coming up, PTO will be providing lunch/dinner for our staff on October 1st. We will provide a Sign-Up Genius for our Ridgeview families to provide a treat or donations - the sign up will be available next Friday and all drop offs will be accepted in the office on September 30th and the day of up until 1:15pm. We appreciate all your support in advance.
We still have Roosters Discount Cards for $10. By purchasing this discount card, you get 10% off your bill at Roosters and the card doesn't expire until 12/31/2025. You can find details on our Facebook page or send us an email to purchase! Let's support our Pickerington Roosters, as they help support all of our Pickerington Schools.
If you are interested in joining us, please see the link below to sign up, and as always feel free to email us or message us on Facebook we are always available to answer any questions you may have. Also be sure to follow us on Facebook "Ridgeview STEM Junior High PTO (look for the Tiger logo and Ridgeview STEM logo). This year we will also have our Instagram page up and running - follow us there as well "ridgeviewstemjuniorhighpto".
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1r2CTnX9t8EWOc67w6w17zQ5AbXc_aC8Zo0YsdCnDuOA/edit
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1DU6NxxmCQuonuRFOw3ftj8c_qdRF58Cvypl9w7nmoq4/edit
Have a great weekend!
Kelly Martin - kelly.martin_rvjhpto@hotmail.com
Qiana Ellis - qsmith6@hotmail.com
2024/25 PLSD Language Assistance Guide & Helpful Links
We have a new Family liaison that speaks Amharic, Oromo, Afan Oromo. We would like to get him connected with families that could use his help. The new liaison's name is Wagari Beti. He can be reached at wagari_beti@plsd.us or 614-638-7292.
Ridgeview STEM Junior High School
Email: Sheila_Evans@plsd.us
Website: pickerington.k12.oh.us
Location: 130 Hill Road South, Pickerington, OH, USA
Phone: 614-548-1700
Twitter: @RidgeviewPLSD