Mustang Message, October Update #2

October

Week of October 16 - School Bus Safety and SMCPS Bus Driver Appreciation Week

October 16 - Elms Field Trip - Donley/Smith Click here for how to prepare students and more information.

October 17 - Elms Field Trip Simpson Click here for how to prepare students and more information.

October 18 - Unity Day

October 20 - Two Hour Early Dismissal – Professional Responsibilities/Collaborative Planning

October 20 - Boo Bash Trunk or Treat Sponsored by PTO 5-8 PM

October 23-31- Red Ribbon Week. More information to come.

October 27 - Two Hour Early Dismissal – Professional Responsibilities – End of 1st Marking Period (46 days)

October 27 - Kindergarten Field Trip to Serenity Farms

October 28 - from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm - SMCPS STEAM Festival St. Mary’s County Fairgrounds

Looking Ahead to November

November 9 @ 10 AM-12:30 PM - Veterans Day Celebration

• Assembly & luncheon for Veteran guests of the MES community.

November 10 - Holiday - Veteran's Day - All Schools and Offices Closed

November 22-25 - Holiday - Thanksgiving - No School For Students

• All Schools and Offices Closed November 24th and 25th

Spotlight on Special Education: There are so many fantastic things happening in our efforts to support SMCPS students with disabilities. Please use this survey to share your praise, story, or news about successes in your school or department!

Effective communication is critical to the success of St. Mary’s County Public Schools (SMCPS). This will be crucial not only for emergencies but for our ability to communicate with families in general. Online Emergency Information Update Forms are now available through the student’s Home Access Center (HAC). Once logged in, directions to access the online form can be found HERE. A video with instructions is available HERE. It is vital that all information is updated in eSchool. The deadline for the online submission of Emergency Information Update forms is November 14, 2023. Please click here for the Blank Emergency Form. If you have any questions, please contact Tiffany Shreve at tkshreve@smcps.org.

Click here to nominate a Food Service Worker.

In hopes of reaching more families and in place of school-based flu vaccine clinics, the St. Mary's County Health Department is hosting free flu vaccination clinics for children 18 years of age and younger at different sites throughout the county. English and Spanish flyer links.

Save the Date: This year’s SMCPS STEAM Festival will be held on Saturday, October 28th from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm at the St. Mary’s County Fairgrounds. Admission is free and open to the public. Wrap up the fall festival season with a day of learning, food trucks, and STEAM-related fun!

• Unity Day will be Wednesday, October 18, 2023. Wear orange to unite for kindness, acceptance, and inclusion to send a visible message that no child should ever experience bullying. More info about world wide Unity Day.

• The month of October always presents a climate-control challenge due to the fluctuating temperatures. Unlike a home HVAC system, once we convert from cooling to heating, we cannot revert back to cooling until the Spring. Currently, our maintenance staff is cleaning the boilers at each school in preparation for the conversion to heat. Below is the Standard Operating Procedure that the Department of Maintenance follows each year. I strongly encourage students and staff to dress in layers as there are typically both hot and cold days in October.

• SOP Heating and Cooling System Changeover: Once the forecasted nightly temperatures are consistently below 45 degrees and daytime temperatures do not exceed 55 degrees for two to three consecutive days, we will begin the two-day process of changing the schools over from a cooling mode to a heating mode for the balance of the season. This changeover typically takes place by October 15th of each year. When the ambient conditions are conducive, the changeover will be delayed to ensure the most effective use of resources.