Meigs Memos

 Tuesday, September 15, 2009

A Weekly Publication of Meigs Middle Magnet School www.meigsmagnetms.mnps.org

From Jon Hubble, Principal….One of the most frequent questions I hear from parents is “How can I help the teachers help my child?”    Our parents want to support what our teachers are doing in their classrooms.  On Meigs’ home page (www.meigsmagnetms.mnps.org) there is a link to our Middle Years Publication.  Included in these newsletters is great information on the unique Middle School Child.  Parents and students can learn about academic issues as well as developmental concerns.   If you haven’t discovered this resource, please consider taking some time and reviewing the newsletters.  We believe you will find many ways you can help your child through these Middle School Years.

Students who receive demerits should be bringing the demerits home for parents to see.  Now would be an appropriate time to ask your child if she/he has received any demerits.  If you have any questions regarding demerits, please contact us. 

Progress reports are coming home tomorrow afternoon.  Please review the report with your child.  If there are grades of 80 or below, please go to Gradespeed and review with your child whether the grades are a result of not completing homework, quizzes, reports or test grades. 

This week kicks off the Invest in Excellence Campaign for Meigs.  It reminds me of how fortunate we are that our parents are so involved---invested---in their children’s future.  For several weeks, our PTO executive board has worked diligently with our staff to ensure that your child has all the resources necessary for a world-class education.  Everything our parents do is voluntary.  Our PTO committee chairs and officers give an extraordinary amount of time to Meigs.  We know that, at times, your commitment to our PTO is a full-time job.  Thank you so much for everything you do to keep Meigs such an awesome place!

Have a great week!

PTO NEWS

INVEST in Excellence:  Letters were mailed home to parents last week concerning the PTO’s biggest fundraising effort – Invest in Excellence.  This is your opportunity to keep Meigs the high caliber school that it is. Just think - No selling, no imposing on neighbors and friends, no deliveries, no pressure to meet quotas, and best of all … ALL MONEY GOES DIRECTLY TO MEIGS FOR OUR CHILDREN and DONATIONS ARE TAX DEDUCTIBLE.  Remember that every dollar counts.  No pledge is too big or too small.  Here are the rewards the kids can earn:

* Any student who returns a signed pledge card – whether they give or not – will receive a goodie bag with a wristband (for 5^th grade) or a dog tag (6^th-8^th grade) included.  They are also eligible for random prize drawings.

* Other prizes focus on the spirit of giving, with rewards for the classrooms at each grade level with the highest percentage of students donating money and rewards for the classrooms with 100% of the students giving money.  The amount given does not matter here. 

* There is a DJ party reward for the classrooms reaching their monetary goal. The kids love it.

* There will also be a special school-wide prize if we raise $53,000 this year.   Last year, we raised $50,000, so we know we can do it. 

Please be watching for your Invest in Excellence information in the mail. 

Meigs Mart is having a special sale date of Tuesday, September 15th after school. We now have both the gray and maroon hoodies in stock in both youth and adult sizes ($20). We also have a new inventory of the maroon mesh shorts in Youth and Adult sizes ($12 and standard school attire). And we will be unveiling the brand new Meigs zip-up hoodie that comes in black only ($25). Meigs Mart will still be open as usual Thursday after school. Please make checks payable to Meigs PTO.

Meigs Mart on Thursday: We now have both the gray and maroon hoodies in stock in both youth and adult sizes ($20). We also have a new inventory of the maroon mesh shorts in Youth and Adult sizes ($12 and standard school attire). We also have the brand new Meigs zip-up hoodie that comes in black only ($25). Please make checks payable to Meigs PTO.

Citipass Book Sale Update: Thank you parents, faculty and students for all of your hard work selling Citpass Books. We have sold over 500 books and still have a few last-minute orders to fill. Be watching next week’s Memos for an announcement about the ice cream party for those students selling three or more books, as well as our grand prize winners of the limo ride to lunch!

Smart Card Sale Update: Thanks once again for everyone who purchased Smart Cards. We have had lots of students qualify for the pizza party; details in next week’s memos. If you have decided to not purchase the sample Smart Card that your student brought home, please return it to school tomorrow. For questions about Citipass, contact Debbie Kammerman at 772-4550. For information about Smart Cards, contact Beth Anderson at 646-2199.

Meigs needs PENCIL PARTNERS!* We are looking for individuals and organizations (i.e. businesses, civic clubs, church groups) that are willing to help make Meigs the best that it can be. PENCIL PARTNERS can give to Meigs in many ways. A PENCIL PARTNER might make a one-time, in-kind donation, discount a service, provide volunteers for school projects or events, or fund a specific need. No contribution is too small. If you work for or belong to an organization that might be interested in becoming a PENCIL PARTNER, please contact Meigs parent, Bethany Jackson, at bjacksontn@earthlink.net.
  
*The PENCIL (Public Education Needs Community Involvement & Leadership), established in 1982, promotes community involvement in Metro Nashville Public Schools by helping schools build partnerships with community and business organizations. See http://www.pencilfoundation.org/.

Harris Teeter, Publix, and Office Depot all support Meigs PTO: If you shop at Harris Teeter, ask them to link your V.I.C. card to Meigs as all sales add up to a rebate check sent to us once per year. Publix cards already linked to Meigs are available free in the office. Have them swiped at checkout and Meigs benefits. Publix and Harris Teeter rebates were $300 each for the year. Parents can shop at Office Depot and earn money for Meigs. At check out, tell the clerk you would like Meigs to earn the credit for the sale. The cashier will apply your sale to our tally towards a rebate.

Meigs Mart on Thursday: We now have both the gray and maroon hoodies in stock in both youth and adult sizes ($20). We also have a new inventory of the maroon mesh shorts in Youth and Adult sizes ($12 and standard school attire). We also have the brand new Meigs zip-up hoodie that comes in black only ($25). Please make checks payable to Meigs PTO.

The Meigs PTO Landscape Committee is having a Landscape Day on November 7, 2009 at the school from 8:00am to 11:30am. Be sure to save the date on your calendar. Parents and children alike are welcome to help plant and mulch. Check out our link on the school website at www.meigsmagnetms.mnps.org to learn the plants we’ll be installing. Donations of the listed plants are welcome and we are accepting memorial gifts for tree purchases as well. Watch future memos for more updates.

Kroger cards: Beginning September 1^st, each time you reload your Meigs Kroger gift card during September you will have an entry in our drawing for a $25 Kroger gift card to be given away at the October PTO meeting. We will be sponsoring a winner every month, so keep using those cards! Kroger is a great community partner. Last year they rebated us approximately $8,000 thanks to our parents who took the time to reload those cards before the purchase. Contact Mary Ellen Pickrell for more information, mes@wallerlaw.com

BoxTops4Education: Clip and save General Mills BoxTops4Education. Send in twenty-five at a time to the office and your student will receive a thank you prize. Meigs earns ten cents per box top. This amounted to $600 for Meigs last year. Consider putting a collection container at your office, break room, or place of worship. Encourage your friends and co-workers to clip Box Tops for Meigs. To obtain a FREE General Mills collection box, contact Tracey Gholson at gholsont@bellsouth.net

THANK YOU: I would like to send out a big thank you to one of our parents who has spent countless hours of diligent work over the last four weeks that in the end will benefit all of our kids and their education at Meigs. Carolyn Sadler is in her second year as Meigs PTO treasurer and has the daunting task of guiding the PTO Executive Board in formulating the huge PTO budget of $105,000 both on the income planning side of the equation as well as the fair and equitable allocation of those projected funds to our administration and faculty. Please know that it is not a responsibility taken lightly by any of us, least of all Carolyn. She is Mom to Rosemary Kyne in 8^th grade and James Kyne in 6^th grade. Join me in sending her our gratitude! And thanks to PTO Executive Board Members Becky Harris, Leslie DiNella and Alicia Lange for all the meeting minutes/hours/days spent together fussing over all those dollar signs. ~Sincerely, Greta Requierme, Meigs PTO President

CORRECTION! Directors Art Show Miranda Jones submitted artwork that was one of few selected by Dr. Register to be placed in frames and displayed at the Board of Education for this school year. Congratulations to Miranda and her art teacher, Jan Hatleberg.  We apologize; we listed her name listed as Amanda last week.

GALAPAGOS ISLANDS TRIP Parents, there is still time to enroll in either the Galapagos Islands trip over Spring Break, or the Europe trip this summer. If you would like more information, please contact Mrs. Burnett at ext. 131, or email her at stephanie.burnett@mnps.org.

Congratulations to our Boys Football Team who beat Cameron Thursday in Overtime 27-20.  Meigs own Bryson Jarrett scored the winning touchdown!

Pianist Needed

The 7th and 8th grade Concert Choir is in need of a person to accompany the choir during performances this year. Interested individuals would need to be available to rehearse with the choir occasionally during 6th period (1:17-2:05) and concerts. Please e-mail Mrs. Egerton if you are available. delicia.egerton@mnps.org

Essential Literature Book Orders: The last day to submit essential literature book orders for the seventh and eighth grades language arts classes is this Thursday, September 17th. Order forms were sent home September 8th.  Please complete the order form and have your child return it with payment to his or her language arts teacher.

Seventh Grade Set of Four Books:  Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli, Cyrano de Bergerac (Signet Classic Edition) by Edmond Rostand, The Contender by Robert Lipsyte, and The Giver by Lois Lowery--- Please submit $17.39 in check or money order payable to Meigs Magnet.

Eighth Grade Set of Three Books:  House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer, The Pearl by John Steinbeck, and The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexander Dumas--- Please submit $17.07 in check or money order payable to Meigs Magnet.

Tardy Students:  It is our expectation for parents bringing students to school tardy from a morning appointment to come into the office with their student and sign them in.   Students arriving with a minimal tardy time to school because of traffic, overslept, running late, etc. do not need a parent to come in with them.  Students arriving tardy for any reason after 8:30 AM should have a parent escort them into the office to sign them in.

Middle Tennessee Vocal Association auditions: for 5^th and 6^th grade students to be a part of the Elementary Honors Choir.  Any 5^th or 6^th grade General Music student is able to audition.  Auditions will be recorded in Mrs. Egerton’s room Monday, October 12^th after school. There is a $5 registration fee to audition.  The registration fee is due no later than Friday, September 18^th. Contact Mrs. Egerton (Delicia.egerton@mnps.org) to sign up or for more information.

UPCOMING EVENTS

September 16              6^th Grade 4H Camp

                                    Progress Reports Go Home

                                    Soccer vs Baxter

                                    Volleyball @ Meigs

September 17              Football @ Wright

September 21              Soccer vs East Lit

                                    Volleyball @ Meigs

November 7                PTO Landscape Day

Public Notice/Accessibility Statement

  To request an accommodation please contact your building principal or department head.  (Interpreters for the deaf or hard of hearing must be requested seventy-two [72] hours prior to the event.)    Jon T. Hubble, Principal  271-3220

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