McPherson News for October 18, 2026

Hello McPherson Families,

We have a fun week ahead at McPherson! Join us for McTeacher Night on Tuesday and our annual Trunk or Treat event on Friday. We are also in the middle of our annual PTSA Fall Fundraiser! Funds raised help support many of the special programs and enrichment opportunities we offer our students, including our elementary PE program. Please consider participating and helping us continue to provide these valuable experiences for our Meteors. Thank you for your continued support of McPherson!

Have a great week Meteors,

Dr. Godsey, Principal

We are excited to announce that McPherson teachers and staff will be taking over McDonald’s for our very first McTeacher’s Night on October 20!

McDonald's Teacher Night

4200 E. Chapman

October 20 - 4:00pm to 7:00pm

This is a fun-filled fundraiser for the whole McPherson community, and we hope to see lots of our students and families come out for dinner, visit with their teachers and staff, and support a great cause!

During McTeacher’s Night, you may see some familiar McPherson faces taking orders, calling out order numbers, filling drinks, greeting families, selling raffle tickets, and maybe even making a special appearance at the drive-thru window! Best of all, while we’re having fun together, we’ll also be raising money for our scholarship field trip account. We also encourage carpooling as parking is limited.

So bring the whole family, grab some dinner, say hello to your favorite McPherson teachers and staff, and help us make our FIRST McTeacher’s Night a huge success! Good Food • Great Fun • McPherson Community! We can’t wait to see you there!

McPherson Magnet School is proud to congratulate Ms.Perla Ramos and Mrs. Jennifer Angel, McPherson kindergarten teachers, on being recognized at the 2026 UC Davis C-STEM Conference on Friday, October 16!

This wonderful recognition is a testament to their dedication, innovation, and commitment to inspiring our students through Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education. Their passion for teaching and providing meaningful learning experiences makes a difference in the lives of our students every day. We are so proud of you both! Thank you for representing McPherson Magnet School and showing everyone what makes our school so special!

Congratulations, Ms. Ramsos and Mrs. Angel!

🏀 LET’S KEEP THE BALL ROLLING! 🏀

The McPherson PTSA Fall Fundraiser continues this week, and it will take all of us to reach our $40,000 goal! Funds raised will support the elementary P.E. program our teachers have requested, giving students dedicated P.E. time while providing teachers valuable time for lesson planning and classroom preparation, as well as monthly enrichment activities for our middle school students. Students can earn fun prizes along the way, and if we reach our goal, the Principal and teachers from the top-fundraising classes will face off for the Top Ball Trophy! Check out the attached flyer for all the details and scan the QR code—or visit https://tinyurl.com/McPhersonPTSA2026 register and get started. Let’s rally our teams, score some prizes, and get the ball rolling! 🏀⚽🏐

Get ready for a night of candy, costumes, creativity, and community! We’re excited to invite all of our McPherson families to join us for this year’s Trunk-or-Treat!

📅 October 23rd
🍬 5:30–7:00 PM — Candy Collection
🏆 7:00–7:30 PM — Costume Contest & Trunk Awards

🚗🎨 DECORATE A TRUNK!

Show off your creativity and bring your best trunk-decorating ideas! Come out, have some fun, and help make this a spooktacular night for our McPherson community!

Want to participate? Sign up to decorate a trunk here:

Sign Up to Decorate a Trunk

CANDY MONSTER & VOLUNTEER HOURS

Our Candy Monster will be in front of the school this week!

Need volunteer hours? Donate 1 large bag of candy to help support Trunk-or-Treat. Be sure to label your candy donation with your student’s name to receive 1 volunteer hour.

🍿 Support Leadership & 8th Grade! While you’re enjoying the festivities, stop by the concession stand to purchase a treat and support our Leadership and 8th Grade students! Please bring cash for concession purchases.

We look forward to celebrating with our McPherson families!

Boo Grams

Leadership is selling Boo Grams this week from the 19th through the 27th. Grams range from 25 cents to 75 cents. Boo Grams are a fun way to celebrate this spooky season. Boo Grams are fun decorated cards that you can send to friends or teachers at McPherson. Leadership will begin to accept class-set orders after the 19th of October. Grams will be sold to students before school, after school, and during lunch this week. Just as a reminder if you are buying grams, please make sure to include the first and last name of the student you are sending the card to. Leadership would like to have all of the Boo Grams returned by October 29th because grams will be delivered to classes on Friday October 30th.

Red Ribbon Week Theme - "Make a Difference. Be a Hero. Stay Drug Free.
Let’s work together to help our students make positive choices and build a healthy, drug-free future.

Monday, 10/26 - "RED-y to Save the Day"

Wear a Red Shirt & RED accessories with your uniform bottom and show that you're ready to make a difference.

Tuesday, 10/27 – Spirit Day "Western Day"

Heroes Ride for What's Right! Saddle Up and Say Yeehaw to a Drug-Free Life" Wear jeans, plaid, boots or cowboy hats and ride toward a healthy future!

Wednesday, 10/28 – "Pajama Day"

Dream Big!! Heroes Stay Drug Free!" Wear your favorite pajamas and dream of a bright, healthy future!

Thursday, 10/29 – Sunglasses Day

Heroes Have a Bright future and Mine is So Bright, I don't need drugs. Wear your sunglasses show that heroes make choices for a bright future!

Friday, 10/30 - "Scare Drugs Away"

Wear your favorite school-appropriate Halloween Costume or Fall Attire and celebrate making positive choices!

Looking for a volunteer opportunity?

Come join us on Sunday, October 25th at 10:00 AM as we decorate our campus and get ready for Red Ribbon Week! 🎀

We’d love to have you join us!

Please fill out the volunteer form below if you’re able to help:
Volunteer Sign-Up Form

We hope to see you there! ❤️🤍

All School Flag Assembly and PTSA Meeting

Our school Flag assembly will be on Wednesday, October 28. Each grade level will be recognizing one student each month as "Meteor of the Month". All parents are welcome to attend. If your student is receiving an award, you will be notified via ParentSquare. The Flag assembly is immediately followed by a Principal's Coffee and PTSA meeting in Room 700.

SAVE THE DATE: SciOly Astronomy Night is Tuesday, Nov 10 from 5pm-7:30pm. In addition to the annual Bake Sale to raise funds for SciOly competition fees, the In N Out truck will be there to make it a full dinner family night.

Pre-order your In N Out meal now for only $8! Yes, a full In N Out meal, hamburger or cheeseburger, chips and a drink for $8 with 75% of the proceeds benefiting the McPherson Education Foundation to support SciOly and all of our other STEM programs.

Quantities and Time slots are limited, so order early for the most options. When we are out, that’s it, we are limited with how many we can sell. There will be no In N Out sales at Astronomy Night as the focus will be on the Bake Sale! More info about the Astronomy Night program and Bake Sale coming soon.

Purchase your In N Out meal here: https://www.jotform.com/form/262255082291051

Help us make the end of the year extra special for our 8th graders! Purchase a beautiful $15 red poinsettia and support their end-of-year events and celebrations.

🌺 15" Red Poinsettia
💲 $15 each
📅 Pick-Up: Wednesday, December 9

We want to give our 8th graders a memorable end to their elementary/middle school journey, and we can’t do it without our amazing school community's support! Every purchase helps us get one step closer to making their celebrations unforgettable. 🎉

Thank you for supporting the Class of 2027! ❤️

https://8thgradepoinsettiasale.cheddarup.com

PTA Reflections Contest: It’s time to call for entries for the 2026–2027 National PTA Reflections program! This year's theme is "What My Culture Means to Me." Students are invited to submit new, original work in visual arts, photography, literature, film, music, or dance. Every submission requires a title and an artist statement (no group projects permitted). Please submit your entries to Ms. Leon, McPherson art teacher, at kleon@orangeusd.org by Wednesday, 10/21.

At McPherson, we value our partnership with parents and families, and we encourage you to take an active role in your child’s education. We have an expectation that every family will contribute 10 hours of volunteer time each school year.

There are many opportunities to volunteer throughout the year. However, if you plan to volunteer on campus or with students during the school year—including classroom help, classroom parties, field trips, school events, and other activities—you must complete the OUSD Volunteer Application and approval process.

You may complete the application now, and once approved, it will be valid for the entire school year.

The majority of our McPherson volunteers will be volunteering 5 hours or less on campus, so please complete the requirements listed under #1 and #2 on the links below and select the “5 Hours or Less” Volunteer Application.

IMPORTANT – PLEASE READ

Completing the required trainings alone does NOT mean you are approved to volunteer.

To receive volunteer approval, you must:

• Complete all required trainings.
• Take and upload screenshots of your completed training documents/certificates.
• Complete the 5 Hours or Less Volunteer Application in its entirety.
• SUBMIT the application.
• Receive an email confirming that your application has been approved.

YOU MAY NOT VOLUNTEER UNTIL YOUR APPLICATION HAS BEEN COMPLETED, SUBMITTED, AND APPROVED.

Please do not wait until the day of a field trip, classroom party, or other activity to complete the process. You must receive your approval email before you are permitted to volunteer.

If you have any questions regarding the volunteer application process, please contact Ms. Erica in the McPherson office.

English:

https://apps.raptortech.com/Apply/MjY4OmVuLVVT

Spanish:

https://apps.raptortech.com/Apply/MjY4OmVzLVVT

It is always fun to post a special message for your child's birthday. You can purchase Birthday Marquee messages now at - https://mcp-birthday-marquee.cheddarup.com

McPherson Magnet School participates in Box Tops for Education, which means you can help our school earn cash simply by purchasing products you may already buy!

Each Box Top is worth 10¢ for McPherson! Every scan counts, and everyone’s participation makes a difference. Let’s work together to help provide our students and classrooms with the supplies they need — and see how much we can earn this year!

NEW TO BOX TOPS? EARN AN EXTRA $2.50!

If you are new to Box Tops:

Download the Box Tops app, select McPherson Magnet School, and enter referral code C86O5H22 to earn an extra $2.50 for our school!

Please spread the word to grandparents, relatives, friends, neighbors, and other McPherson families!

HERE'S HOW YOU CAN HELP:

• Download the Box Tops app on your smartphone if you haven't already.

• Purchase participating Box Tops products.

• Scan your receipt within 14 days of purchase. Every eligible Box Tops product on your receipt earns money for McPherson, and your earnings are recognized in the app right away.

• Give your student credit! Be sure to enter your student's name and teacher's name under "Give Credit Memo."

• Refer friends and family! Invite others to sign up for Box Tops. Our school can earn Bonus Box Tops when your referral scans their first qualifying receipt.

• Turn on notifications in the Box Tops app to receive scan reminders and information about special offers, bonus opportunities, and new participating products. Tap the person icon in the upper-right corner of the app to access your Communication Settings.

• Shopping online? You can earn Box Tops with eligible digital and email receipts, too!

MCPHERSON MAGNET SCHOOL

School ID: 227368

MEET OUR NEW BOX TOPS COORDINATOR!

A BIG THANK YOU TO OUR NEW BOX TOPS COORDINATOR, JULIE ALTSTAETTER!

If you have any questions about Box Tops, you can reach Julie at meteorsboxtops@gmail.com. If she doesn't have the answer right away, she will find it for you!

Thank you for supporting the Box Tops Program and McPherson Magnet School. We couldn't do it without you!

10/16 - Boo Grams Go on sale

10/20 - McTeacher Night @ McDonalds

10/23 - Trunk or Treat

10/30 - Free Halloween/Fall Dress

11/10 - Education Foundation Astronomy Night