Thurston Middle School, Springfield, Oregon

School Safety Training 10/19/2018

Safety of students and staff is of the upmost importance to Springfield Public Schools, and while tragic and highly covered by media, school violence is actually quite rare.

We at SPS are acutely aware of the tragic nature of such situations and are committed to equipping our schools with the best practices to keep everyone safe. The way that we have trained for dangerous intruders is not changing it is evolving. SPS is implementing best practices and is working in collaboration with our local law enforcement partners to implement the ALICE method.

ALICE empowers everyone to use his or her best judgment on each unique situation.

ALICE stands for Alert Lockdown Inform Counter Evacuate.

Here at TMS we will be training on Friday,  October 19th.  Please don’t hesitate to contact us should you have any additional questions.

Brandi Starck – Principal

On Saturday, October 13, 2018, Springfield Public Schools will hold their district wide Fall TAG Testing at Ridgeview Elementary School. The TAG test assesses whether or not your child is at the 97%ile or above in the areas of Reading, Math, or Intellectual giftedness. The 97%ile means that if your child was in a line of 100 students, they would know more than the first 97 students in line. These children are at the top of their class, and typically above most students at their entire grade level at school.

If you feel your child may fit into this category, please talk to your child’s teacher and your school’s TAG contact to begin the referral process for fall testing. After you refer them for testing, the teachers will gather data and fill out a referral form. They will share with you the data they have gathered and let you know whether your child meets the criteria to test for TAG. If they qualify for testing, you will receive a packet from your school with a parent questionnaire and more information about times of testing for your individual child. If they do not qualify, your child’s teacher will meet with you to discuss options to best meet the needs of your child.

If your child is already qualified as TAG in reading, math, and cognitive ability, and you feel that your child may need to be accelerated a grade level, you would also speak to your child’s teacher and the TAG contact to refer your child for acceleration. If your child is not yet qualified in all three areas, please refer your child for testing. The testing for acceleration will take place Saturday, October 13, 2018, for the above grade level test in Reading, Math, Writing, Science, Reference & Research and/or Social Studies. After testing, we will meet as a team with your school to discuss the next steps and fill out the Iowa Acceleration Scale. At this point in time, a meeting will be called with the family to discuss the results and next steps.

Questions?   Please call Brandy Selby, Thurston Middle School TAG Contact, at:541-744-6368 (school) or email her at brandy.selby@springfield.k12.or.us

Thurston Middle and Willamalane are proud to offer an after school program that is open to all TMS students!

Grades 6-8. More than just an after-school program, Thurston After School Academy offers intentional academic support that encourages academic growth by encouraging every kid to explore their potential. With custom-tailored support, we are able to challenge kids who seek to broaden their academic horizons, while engaging youth that need a daily check-in. One-on-one mentoring allows kids to have a guide on the side who helps them to set goals, organize work and even receive tutoring sessions. We will also provide student-led recreational learning opportunities that allow children to explore art and STEM topics of their choosing.

Program Dates: November 5, 2018 through May 30th, 2019.                            Time is 3:05 pm to 4:40 pm.

To learn more about this and register your student – please click the following link:

TMS After-School Academy

TMS welcomes new staff this year!  We are excited for our 18-19 School Year!

• Ashley Banks- 8^th Grade Math/Science
• Mindy Henricks- Administrative Secretary
• Kendra Litalien- 6^th Grade Language Arts/Social Studies
• Steven Twomey- 8^th Grade Language Arts/Social Studies
• Francesca Wilson- 7^th Grade Math/Science

The Oregon Health Plan is now open to more children and teens, regardless of immigration status.  OHP is free health coverage for Oregonians who meet income and other criteria. It covers many health care services such as check-ups, tooth fillings, glasses and prescriptions. It also covers labs, x-rays and hospital care. It even pays for rides to and from the doctor’s office. Apply to see if you qualify. Help is free.

Call the Access Team at Community Health Centers of Lane County at 541-682-3585 for more information. They are trained and certified by OHP to answer your questions and help your family apply for free. OHP is now for me!

School attendance matters!  There are only a few reasons that are acceptable for “Excused Absence”:

Illness
Death in the Family
Medical Appointment (please bring a note from Doctor)

Reasons that are considered “unexcused” include haircuts, birthdays or other family celebrations, shopping or errands, and yes, also vacations.

To learn more about attendance, check out our District link for an overview:

ATTENDANCE MATTERS

SUMMER ACADEMY TO INSPIRE LEARNING

What’s SAIL all about?
SAIL is an innovative pipeline program that helps local eighth
through twelfth graders prepare for college.
SAIL offers free one-week summer camps, where students
learn about various subjects from distinguished University
of Oregon faculty members through fun social and interactive
activities. Each summer, returning students choose a new
academic subject. SAIL camps include sessions on the
college admissions process, scholarship availability, and
the financial aid process.
During the school year, SAIL offers mentoring—administered
by UO college students—to eligible students in local high
schools who are navigating the college admissions process.

To learn more about this program – please click this link:

https://sail.uoregon.edu/

Our District is partnering with an electronic flyer information system called Peachjar.  We at TMS will be using this to help share information instead of the old traditional newsletter.  The flyers are specifically designed to work well with the modern smart phone or computer when opening email.  Parents who have provided emails to us that are in Synergy have just started receiving these flyers.

You can see our most recent flyers (shared by us and also the District approved flyers) by clicking on the menu link that says PEACHJAR Eflyers.  After you get to this page – click on the big orange button.  This will show you all flyers that have gone out to Parents so far.

To learn more about this, you can visit our District website at the below link:

SPS Peachjar

Great pics of our June 2017 6th Grade Outdoor School Program are posted.  Please go to our 6th Grade Outdoor School page and check out the link for the pictures of both 1st and 2nd Session, as well as fun staff pics!   A great time was had by all!

Thanks to Mr. Kinzer for taking all of these great photos!

2019-2020 TRANSFER WINDOWS

High Priority Transfers:     Begin accepting WITHIN DISTRICT student High Priority transfer requests January 7 through January 31, 2019.

Open Enrollment Transfers:   Begin accepting Open Enrollment transfer requests March 1 to April 1, 2019 (both Within and Into District students)

Space Availability Transfers:
Within District Students:     Begin accepting after May 1, 2019.
Into-District Students:
Returning Students – Begin accepting after May 1, 2019.
New Students – Begin accepting after July 1, 2019.

NOTE: Space availability transfers will not be processed until after Fall registration is

Please click on this link to learn about School Transfer Information for next year:

Transfer Information