OLHMS Update 5/7/24

Did you know that our OLHMS Career Fair is coming up?

We are in the process of recruiting professionals to join us this year!

• Are you interested in sharing your career with our scholars?
• Do you have any family members or friends who are passionate about their careers?
• How about any OLHMS alumni who are now successful professionals and would want to come back to their old stomping grounds?

The basic information is below - if you have any questions or recommendations, please reach out to Vanessa Follmar (vfollmar@d123.org ), Mary Kate Farnan (mfarnan@d123.org), or Colleen Hoeksema (choeksema@d123.org )

Did you know that parent/ family pick up and drop off takes place in the back of our building on Oak Center Drive?

Do not drop off or pick up students in the main parking lot on 99th St. during arrival and dismissal. It is imperative that we maintain a safe environment for our students at all times. Recently, a driver was arrested for reckless driving as they endangered students and staff during dismissal. As the weather continues to improve, please set up meeting spots for pick up and/ or drop off. Typically, we are clear of buses and traffic within 10 minutes of arrival and dismissal.

Mustang Families,

This is Teacher Appreciation Week!! Please take a moment to celebrate our amazing staff by sending them a email or letter of gratitude! We really appreciate our PTSA creating an eventful week of mini celebrations!

Our OLHMS PTSA has been busy with the Helen Whalen Scholarship Dinner and 5th Grade transitions! Thank you to our entire OLHMS PTSA and volunteers who were instrumental in leading and supporting a wonderful 5th Grade Parent Night and Open Gym last week. Equally impressive were our student Ambassadors!! We are so fortunate to have scholars who volunteered their time to demonstrate vast knowledge and pride in our school! Congratulations to Anna Driscoll, Nora O'Shea and Julia Stalzar as this year's Helen Whalen recipients!

Congratulations to our entire Band and Music Department!! Our Jazz Band and Band both received a Superior rating at their state competitions and our Concert Chorus earned an Excellent rating! Thank you to our musicians, talented artist and teachers for proving so much pride for our school, district and community with all of your dedicated efforts.

D123 Returning Student Registration Now Open in Skyward! Oak Lawn-Hometown School District 123 is committed to always ensuring a successful launch to our upcoming school year for every student who learns here.

As a district, we are setting an ambitious and crucial goal: to complete 100% of our returning student registrations by Friday, May 17, 2024.

Incoming 6th Grade Information: If you have a current 5th grade student, please check out this special newsletter with lots of information as our transitions to OLHMS are now complete!

Check our this Special Newsletter to explore our OLHMS Service Day 2024!

Service Day at OLHMS is an incredible opportunity for each of our scholars to participate in projects geared to highlighting and living our mission here in D123! This is an annual event allowing each grade level to progress in their service experiences.

MAP Assessments: Our scholars completed the ELA portion of the Spring MAP assessment this morning and will complete math tomorrow. We look forward to great growth! Ask your scholar about the test this evening! All of our scholars were given their goal sheets and should know how they did results and we know our scholars enjoyed the raffles!

Main Parking Lot, Circle Drive and 99th Street: Students should NOT be dropped off in the morning or picked up during dismissal via the main parking lot while buses are present. Family drop off and pick up is done on Oak Center Dr. If family members are helping out, please let them know to use the rear of the building for drop off or pick up. As the weather continue to cooperate, please designate a pick up and drop off area or place for our scholars to meet you and avoid the congestion!

During drop off and dismissal, please do not pass cars in the circle drive without staff support. Please do not have students run across 99th street or Oak Center Dr. to be picked up without adult supervision. We want to make sure all of our students and families are kept safe. Please be patient and courteous! The rear doors (Oak Center Dr./ Circle Drive) will close at 8:35am and the rear doors will be closed at 3:30pm.

Our Community: Please be respectful of our neighbors around our school during arrival and dismissal. It is also important to remind our scholars about staying off community members property while waiting for a bus or walking home.

D123 4WARD: We have begun a new effort to engage our alumni!! From the classroom to the stage, the athletic field to the culinary club, and everywhere in between, we want to know what our graduates have been up to in "tomorrow's world."

Whether these alumni excelled in high school, found opportunities in college, or started a successful career, the stories, adventures, and triumphs shared will inspire us, current students, and future leaders. This program is an opportunity to celebrate these achievements together and keep the D123 community spirit alive long after middle school graduation.

Families of alumni and D123 graduates themselves are invited to fill out this form to submit for possible inclusion in our alumni spotlight E-Newsletter, "D123 4-WARD." The newsletter will be produced and sent semiannually in December and May. Participants will be notified if their story will be included in the publication.

D123 Summer Programming is now available!! Check out the full brochure for options!

Graduation Expectations

Our 8th grade scholars and parents have been given the information in this updated Parent Letter. These expectations have been discussed with scholars and families throughout the beginning of the year and sent home on multiple occasions. The end of year events for the Class of 2024 are detailed in this letter. Class of 2024 families make sure to send back the permission forms! Graduation this year is scheduled for June 4th at 7:00pm.

Graduation were due payments on April 5th! If you have questions or need to make this payment please contact the main office.

SELECT 123 Scholars will be announced the week of May 13th!!

The last PTSA meeting of the school year will be Tuesday, May 7th at 6pm. Officers for next school year will be introduced.

Let's show our amazing OLHMS staff how much they are appreciated by giving them the best Staff Appreciation Week ever. Please consider signing up on the SignUp genius: https://m.signupgenius.com/#!/showSignUp/10C0848AFA82EA6FAC25-48927467-staff

The next pick up for 8th Grade Graduation Lawn Signs will be Thursday, May 9th from 4-6pm at OLHMS.

Glow Night 8th grade dance will be on May 31st. Get your tickets now.

Please support our school with Box Tops. If you receive a paper receipt, a quick scan with the Box Tops app will identify participating products and automatically credit the school's earning online. Download the app and make every shopping trip count including purchases made online. Digital receipts are accepted as well. Use this referral code NXVB5P83 when you sign up and you’ll get 25 Bonus Box Tops when you scan your first receipt now through 05/31/2024, while supplies last. Use this link to download the Box Tops app: https://btfe.smart.link/c2jjdifkw?referral_code=NXVB5P83

Thank you for your time and support!

Contact us at: olhmsd123ptsa@gmail.com

Follow us on FB at OLHMS PTSA

5/9/24: International Cultural Celebration

5/10/24: OLHMS Spring Band Concert

5/14/24: Spring Chorus Concert

5/16/24: NJHS Induction Ceremony

5/17/24: Career Fair at OLHMS

2023-24 School District Calendar

CLICK HERE TO VIEW CALENDAR