The Boeckman Buzz

BMS Families,

It was a fun homecoming week! We enjoyed seeing our learners participate in all of the activities.

Farmington Schools continue to review current research and update safety plans each year. Throughout the school year, we will practice and engage students in conversations about how we would respond in different situations (e.g., Fire Drill, Tornado Drill, and Run-Hide-Fight). This week, during Tiger Connections at Boeckman Middle School, we will engage our students in a common presentation and conversation about this enhanced approach to emergency preparedness. Students will have opportunities to ask questions, seek clarification, and become more familiar with their surroundings around our school campus. We will also familiarize our students with what the lockdown tone sounds like and demonstrate our blue strobes indicating a Run-Hide-Fight situation.

To read more about this, please see the newsletter below.

If you would like to opt your learner out of these conversations or drills, please reach out to Jsage@farmington.k12.mn.us.

We look forward to another great week at BMS!

Joe Sage

Each year, our staff strives to relentlessly praise the positives! One way we do this is by sending Tiger Stripes, which deliver positive messages home to families. It also enters students into a drawing to receive a prize and be recognized with a certificate and a small gift donated by our amazing community. Congratulations to this week’s award winners! #BMSPride #WeAre192

We are excited to celebrate Molly Meinke, our amazing 7th grade Language Arts teacher! As a veteran at BMS, Molly is known for her dedication to building strong relationships with her students and for making her classroom a welcoming and inspiring place to be in!

Her passion for teaching and her commitment to fostering a love of reading and writing make her a favorite among learners. Thank you, Molly, for your hard work and the positive impact you have on our learning community!

#BMSPride #WeAre192

Monday, September 23...................................Step It Up Fundraiser Kickoff

Tuesday, September 24..................................Picture Retakes (During the school day)

This year Farmington Public Schools has updated our emergency preparedness plan in collaboration with the Farmington Police Department. The approach used this year has been adapted from the “I love u guys” foundation and many school districts across the country have adopted this framework. All district students will again receive training in a developmentally appropriate way this school year.

In an emergency situation the building may be placed into the following:

Hold: In your room or area. Clear the Halls.

Secure: Get inside. Lock exterior doors.

Lockdown: Run-Hide-Fight

Run-Hide-Fight procedures have been adopted and promoted by government agencies, law enforcement organizations, and associations such as the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, The International Association of Chiefs of Police, and the N.Y.P.D. As of June, 2013, the U.S. Department of Education stated in their Readiness and Emergency Management for Schools, recommendations that schools need to plan beyond lockdown, and provide guidance for all options such as evacuation, barricade and counter, run, hide, and fight.

Any district employee may initiate a Lockdown response. Once enacted, the safety response may only be concluded with the “all clear” given by law enforcement. Run-Hide-Fight is not designed to be sequential but rather to be utilized dynamically in each unique situation.

RUN: Evacuate the building. Meet at rallying points.

HIDE: Barricade the room. Spread out in the room. Prepare to run or fight if needed.

FIGHT: Personal choice. Last resort. Age appropriate

For clarification, in no way are we asking our staff or students to attempt to subdue an armed intruder. However, we will provide them with the knowledge and methods that, if faced with a life or death situation, can be applied in a manner that would greatly enhance their chance of survival.

We appreciate the partnership with local law enforcement as we work to ensure our buildings are safe spaces both physically and emotionally.

If you want to check progress of your student’s learning, the best way to that this year is through the Grade Book Updates tab in Infinite Campus. All classes in both middle schools this year are reporting learning through competencies. These competencies will be updated five times throughout the year and will be based on evidence a learner has submitted – these can be found in the Grades tab in Campus and are currently set to NY or Not Yet. The Grade Book Updates tab will show the most recent assignments for all classes and will have a score or learning level connected to it. It may also have a flag if it is missing or a comment. Please see the graphic below for additional information.

As a district we have realigned $4+ million dollars to balance our budget. The board also made a decision to use assigned fund balance dollars to balance the $2.7 million deficit for the 2024-25 school year. However, the district still faces a budget deficit in 2025-26 of $4-5 million. In addition, the current operating levy that was passed in 2015 will expire after the 2025-26 school year. Expiration of this levy would result in a loss of approximately $5 million per year.

To address our financial challenges, the board voted unanimously to schedule an operating levy referendum election for November 5, 2024. The proposal on the ballot will ask voters to revoke the district’s existing operating levy of $696.15 per pupil and replace it with a new levy of $1,556.15 per pupil. The new levy will provide approximately $11 million ($5 million from the previous levy and $6 million from the new levy) per year for 10 years.

For more information on the 2024 Referendum follow this link.

The NWEA MAP tests are adaptive computer delivered assessments that are administered to more than 11 million students across the country, which provides a large National Norm sample for comparison. Farmington Schools chooses to administer tests in reading and math to students in grades 2 through 8. The adaptive nature of the tests means that the test adjusts to the student's responses. As a student answers correctly, the test gets more challenging. As they get items wrong, the test presents easier items. The purpose of the assessment is to identify the student's academic level in the specific content area, regardless of age, grade level or prior achievement.

To read more about the NWEA test, please visit the school website, linked here. There is a link to the Opt Out information for the NWEA tests on the left side of the webpage. Here is a direct link to the form. Please complete the form and return it to the front office.

Specific Dates:

• Week of Sept. 16 - NWEA Math in regular math classes
• Week of Sept. 30 - NWEA Reading in regular LA classes

*If a learner misses a test, they will make it up upon return.

Only a click away, the Free Meals for Kids mobile app will help families and kids find free meals at schools and other sites across Minnesota.

How it works:

1. Download the Free Meals for Kids app to your cell phone.
2. Use the app to find the nearest site providing meals by GPS.
3. Click on the nearby site and use the Site Updates tab for more details.
4. Share the app with friends, neighbors and on social media.

Free Meals for Kids can be downloaded at Apple or Google Play app stores. There are free meal sites across the state at schools and community locations. The app provides location, directions to the site and hours and days of operation. More sites are added daily. For more information: www.hungerimpactpartners.org.

Download the free app via the app store on your smartphone, simply search "Free Meals for Kids”
App Store: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/summer-eats-minnesota/id1230666424

Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.app.p3703BA&hl=en_US

We are excited to partner with Every Meal to offer a free weekend meal program to all our learners. Every Meal is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization with a mission to fight child hunger through community and school partnerships. They strive to make a difference in children’s lives by focusing on food gaps like weekends, school breaks, and summer when they cannot receive food in school.

• Free for all families
• No qualifications required
• Students enrolled in the program will receive a 4-5 pound bag of nutritious, nonperishable food each week
• Every Meal does not collect information from families; privacy is protected
• Families may choose to participate in the program anytime throughout the school year
• Families may choose from a variety of different weekend food bag options

Here at BMS we have our food bags place on a table outside our main office doors. Please contact Tenille Jennings at tjennings@farmington.k12.mn.us or 651-460-1478 to participate or for more information.

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Farmington Area Public Schools has partnered with TEACHERS ON CALL for the hiring of our substitute teachers and paraprofessionals.

If you would like to sign up to sub as a teacher or paraprofessional for the Farmington Schools you will have to apply through TOC. Please email or call TOC directly to sign up as we will no longer be filling these positions through Farmington Schools. TOC also offers many benefits including, weekly paychecks, ability to easily sub at multiple districts and many insurance benefit options.

To Apply: teachersoncall.com

For more information contact Teachers On Call (TOC): 800-713-4439

Email: Jsage@farmington.k12.mn.us
Website: https://bms.farmington.k12.mn.us/
Location: 800 Denmark Avenue, Farmington, MN, USA
Phone: 651-460-1400
Facebook: facebook.com/boeckmantigers
Twitter: @BoeckmanTigers