Dear Pershing Families,

Happy New Year! I can't believe we are nearly half way through this school year - it is going fast.

When school resumes on Tuesday, January 3rd, we will only have three weeks until the first semester ends. It will be important that students work hard to keep up or improve their grades before the final grading window closes on January 20th. If you have any concerns about your child's progress please be sure to reach out to their teachers directly for feedback and support. Let's finish this semester strong.

As we move into 2023 we will be reminding students about the importance of practicing Panther Pride both inside and outside the classroom. Our goal is to continue to provide a fun, engaging, and academically rigorous learning environment where your children look forward to coming to school every day. It has been such a pleasure working with your children so far this year, I can't wait to see what we accomplish together in 2023!

Sincerely,

Melanie Kray

World Cup Fever Hit Pershing Middle School so our PE Department held an informal 4x4 soccer tournament during lunch the final week of school. A big thank you to Coach Carroll, Coach Cott, Coach Green, and our counseling team Mr. Salazar, Mr. Castro, and Ms. Vu for all their help putting this lunch time event together and congrats to all our student participants!

SCHOOL RESUMES ON TUESDAY

Student return to campus on Tuesday, December 3rd.

SPRING ROBOTICS IS COMING

Applications for the Spring Season of the Pershing Robotic Panthers Robotics Club will be available starting Tuesday January 3rd in the front office. Applications will be due January 13th.

A parent/student informational meeting will be held via zoom Monday, January 9th @ 6pm.

https://us04web.zoom.us/j/9954586416?pwd=K2lXSHowc1hwcmY0T0JOUndhM1FZQT09
Meeting ID: 995 458 6416
Passcode: 6T2r28

STUDENT PASSWORD RESET IS COMING

We want all families and students to be aware that IT will be resetting all student passwords shortly after the winter break. As indicated in the December 1, 2022 Superintendent email communication ‘San Diego Unified Incident’, IT will be resetting passwords as a precaution for all students. IT will be performing the student password reset shortly AFTER winter break, being mindful of schedules such as end-of-semester activities, holidays, etc. Another communication with a detailed schedule will be provided next week along with other related guidance and PowerSchool report job-aids.

CLEARING ATTENDANCE

We are requesting that if you have to pull your child out of school early for a medical or dental appointment that you provide written documentation (such as a doctor's note) in order to clear the absence upon the student's return. Without the written documentation the absence will remain unexcused.

PHOTO ID REQUIRED FOR STUDENT PICK UP

A friendly reminder that students can only be released to people listed on the emergency contact list in PowerSchool and the person must have photo ID to verify their identity when picking up students. Student safety is a top priority and we take that responsibility seriously at Pershing. Thank you in advance for your support.

PERSHING FOUNDATION UPDATE - STAY CONNECTED

There a lots of a ways to stay involved and support Pershing Middle School starting with our fabulous Pershing Parent Foundation. Be sure to check out their website: https://pershingmiddleschoolfoundation.org/ and visit them on facebook @parentsofpershingpanthers. On their facebook page they have information on how to sign up for Amazon Smile so that a portion of your amazon purchases support our school.

PERSHING SCHOOL WEBSITE

https://pershing.sandiegounified.org/

Do you have suggestions for our school website? CLICK HERE to complete our website feedback survey.

Due to the overwhelmingly positive response of student/school signups for winter Middle School Athletics, we wanted to inform all potential middle school athletic participants that the tryouts for the winter season of soccer and volleyball are being delayed so that we have equity for all participating schools.

The positive response has created supply and staffing shortages that we are working to resolve. For fairness purposes we believe that all schools should have a coach and proper supplies in place before we begin our winter season. Our distributors are working to fill new orders as quickly as possible and we are searching for additional qualified candidates to coach soccer and volleyball.

If you know of any qualified candidates to coach either boys or girls in those respective sports, please share this information with them:

SLIM STUDENTS CAROLING FOR THEIR CLASSMATES

A big thank you to our entire SLIM Program as they brought holiday cheer to the Pershing campus on the Friday before break. I apologize for my poor videographer skills but in the video above you can see our SLIM student's first caroling stop in the 6th grade corridor. They made multiple stops throughout the campus that day and as you can see in the video, teachers had their classes came out to hear the songs and show their support.

SPANISH TUTORING AVAILABLE

Does your child need help with Spanish? Mr. Barry is offering tutoring support on Tuesdays in Rm. 104 afterschool.

8TH GRADE HENRY HIGH SLIM PARENT NIGHT

If you were not able to attend the meeting CLICK HERE to see the slide deck the Henry team presented.

COVID-19 cases are on the rise in our area, with San Diego County recently entering the Medium COVID-19 Community Level. Other illnesses such as the influenza virus (flu), respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and the common cold also remain highly prevalent and easily transmissible. Practicing good health hygiene habits – washing hands, staying home when sick, and considering wearing a mask indoors and in crowded areas – can help prevent the spread of illness and is especially important during this time when many will be traveling or gathering with family and friends.

The district is providing all students and staff with at-home COVID-19 test kits to help our school communities have greater peace of mind about returning to school safely on Tuesday, Jan. 3 after the winter break.

The California Department of Public Health now recommends self testing for COVID-19 the day before coming back to school and two or three days after returning. We encourage students and staff to test on Monday, Jan. 2 and again on either Wednesday, Jan 4 or Thursday, Jan 5.

Testing before returning to school is recommended but not required. Additional test kits for students and staff are available at the Ed Center COVID-19 testing facility. If you test positive for COVID-19, please do not attend school and report your illness here.

Please do not send your child to school if they are feeling sick or experiencing symptoms of any cold-like virus, until those symptoms start to improve and there is no fever for 24 hours (without use of fever-reducing medication). Keeping your sick child home will be a great benefit for the health and wellness of our students and staff.

What Symptoms to Look For

• The flu and COVID-19 are both spread from person-to-person, especially indoors and in crowded places. Symptoms for both viruses can include nasal congestion, fever, headache, and muscle and joint pain, as well as a sore throat and coughing.
• RSV is a respiratory virus that has been detected in previous cold and flu seasons. Symptoms of RSV include cough, runny nose, and fever. Treatment consists of managing symptoms.

Tips to Avoid Getting Sick [English | Español)
Public health officials offer these tips to prevent getting sick:

• Consider wearing a well-fitting, good-quality mask, especially indoors or in crowded spaces
• Wash hands thoroughly and often
• Use hand sanitizers, if unable to wash hands
• Stay away from sick people
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth
• Clean commonly touched surfaces and/or wash/sanitize your hands after using them.
• Stay up to date on COVID-19 and flu vaccines

Jan 3 - School resumes

Jan 11 - Pershing Foundation Meeting @6:30 PM in the Library

Jan 16 - MLK Day: NO SCHOOL

Jan 18 - Coffee with the Principal @8:30 AM via zoom

Jan 19 - Henry Cluster Meeting @5:00 PM via zoom

Jan 20 = Semester 1 Ends

Jan 23 & 24: Feeder Elementary School 5th Grade Tours

Jan 23: SGT (Governance) Meeting @3:00 PM in the Library

Jan 24 - SSC Meeting @3:00 PM in the Library

Jan 26 - Tobacco Use Prevention Education (TUPE) Parent Presentation @6:00 PM in the Auditorium