Mustang Matters

Greetings MMS Families,

I hope your Mustang is having a good start to their long weekend and you are able to get some rest this weekend as well. We had a short, but busy week with evening Parent/Teacher/Student Led Conferences. Thank you to all of our families, students and staff for coordinating so many successful engagements to support our Mustangs. If you were unable to connect with a specific teacher or missed a conference, please follow up with your grade level administrator who can support you in making the connection.

This coming week we have our October PTO meeting and a couple other events despite the short week. Please see below.

Have a great weekend!

Cooke

• October PTO Meeting – 14th 6:00pm - MacFarlandMSPTO@gmail.com
• Next Curbside Coffee – Friday, October 17th – out front 8-8:45
• Hispanic Heritage Month Celebration – Friday, October 17th - Next Friday, October 17th during block A4, we will have our annual Hispanic Heritage Month culminating event. Last year's event was a huge hit, one of the big reasons being that students were able to sample foods from various Latino countries. If families would like to contribute to the event they may donate store-bought or homemade foods, and any quantity is appreciated. If interested, please let Ms. Gibian know at jessica.gibian@k12.dc.gov

Parent Resource - October Resource - Oct. Resource - An Infographic Comparing Parents’ and Teens’ Biggest Concerns – This graphic and article reviews the threats students and parents feel toward their mental health. This is interesting and useful to review in conversation with our young people.

PTO Liaisons have been coordinated to support each grade level and grade level families. You can expect to see them at PTO meetings and connect with them if need be. For 25-26 SY the staff liaisons are:

- 6th Grade – Jessica Gibian – jessica.gibian@k12.dc.gov

- 7th Grade – Fadwa Hussein – fadwa.hussein@k12.dc.gov

- 8th Grade – Sarah Riggen – sarah.riggen@k12.dc.gov

In addition, the family Grade Level Liaisons for this year are:

• 6th Grade – Anita Rechler and Julie Gallo – rechlera@gmail.com, julie.schwenk@gmail.com

• 7th Grade – Patrique Smellie – pacamp01@gmail.com

• 8th Grade – Nidia Dence – nidia.dence@gmail.com

A huge thanks to all of our liaisons for this year, and a reminder to all families: be sure to join the PTO’s WhatsApp or email list if you haven’t already (see info at the bottom of this message)!

Shout Outs and Celebrations: Please check out a few shout outs to MacFarland community members who are embracing our belief that we are one MacFarland!

Shout out to the Wellness Team for tabling at SLC on Monday and providing information and connection to our visiting students and scholars! Just like in the morning it’s great to have such a welcoming team be the first faces MacFarland guests see. Thank you team!

Shout out to the families who joined our first Open House of the season during SLC this week on Monday evening! We had a lot of activities this week and it was great to see so many current and future Mustang families engaging and sharing the evening!

Via email or by appt. – lucas.cooke@k12.dc.gov

Next Curbside Coffee – Friday, October 17th – out front 8-8:45

October PTO Meeting – 14th 6:00pm - MacFarlandMSPTO@gmail.com

Open House Dates: if you would like to support an Open House please reach out at least one week prior!

Monday, November 3rd, 2025 - 11:00am-12:00pm

Thursday, December 11th, 2025 - 5:30pm- 6:30pm

Thursday, January 8th, 2026 - 5:30pm -6:30pm

Monday, January 26th, 2026 - 5:30pm-6:30pm

REMINDER - Student-Led/Advisor Facilitated Conferences – Monday 10.6, Tuesday 10.7 4:00-7:00pm – Please note the dates for Fall Teacher Conferences. All advisors are to schedule meetings for all advisees – you should anticipate outreach in the next couple weeks. In person is the expected format unless a parent requests otherwise – and our teachers will also offer walk-in hours on these dates for the duration noted. Staff members who are unable to complete both evening sessions will be available on Thursday, 10.9. We will share an updated schedule for our staff soon, but please reach out directly to teachers you would like to connect with.

The goal of the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) Safe Routes to School

(SRTS) program is to get more students walking and biking to school and doing so safely.

Please take a few minutes to share your thoughts in this anonymous, 10-minute survey to

help us customize our programs and services around the challenges faced at your school.

https://survey.alchemer.com/s3/8271328/58f491c68c8e

A través de nuestro programa de Rutas Seguras a la Escuela (SRTS) del Departamento

de Transporte del Distrito (DDOT), queremos conseguir que más niños vayan a pie y en

bicicleta a la escuela y que lo hagan de forma segura.

Le pedimos que participe en esta encuesta anónima de unos 10 minutos y comparta

con nosotros su opinión y experiencia para que podamos adaptar nuestros programas

y servicios a los retos a los que se enfrentan las personas.

https://survey.alchemer.com/s3/8271328/1a5e102c9600

NEW ATTENDANCE EXCUSE NOTE PLATFORM: Families can now submit attendance excuse notes via the Aspen GO (Parent Portal). Step-by-step instructions attached below.

At DC Public Schools, we want every student to feel loved, challenged, and prepared to positively influence society and thrive in life. To reach this ambitious goal, every student needs to be in school every day. However, too many of the young people in our city are not coming to school every day.

The Office of the State Superintendent’s (OSSE) finds that one in four kids in DC are chronically absent from school – which means missing 10 percent or more of the school year. At some DCPS high schools, three out of four students are chronically absent.

DCPS believes that every day counts.

Students, families, and the community must be empowered to track our progress in helping every young person get to school. By being transparent about our challenges, our city can work together to reduce the barriers that too many students and families face.

Definitions

• Truancy: Measures the percent of students aged 5-17 who are considered truant. To be “truant” means that a student has 10 or more unexcused absences from school – with or without – parental knowledge, consent, or otherwise securing prior approval from the start of the school year.
• In-school Attendance: Measures the average percent of students who are attending school.
• Chronic Absence Rate: Measures the percent of students who miss 10 percent or more days in a school year from the start of the school year.
• Attendance Entry Rate: Measures the percent of classes for which a school has entered attendance.
• 60/40 rule: Students are considered legally absent for the day if they miss more than 40% of their classes.

Regular school attendance is critical for academic success. Our goal is to ensure that every student attends school regularly and on time. Daily presence in school has a huge impact on a student’s academic success, starting in kindergarten and continuing through high school. Even as children grow older and more independent, families can continue to play a key role in making sure students get to school safely every day and understand why attendance is so important for success in school and in life.

We realize some absences are unavoidable due to health problems or other circumstances. But, we also know that when students miss too much school—excused or unexcused—they can fall behind academically. Your child is less likely to succeed if he or she is chronically absent—which means missing 18 or more days in a school year. Research shows that:

Children that are chronically absent in kindergarten and 1st grade are much less likely to read at grade level by the end of 3rd grade. By 6th grade, chronic absence is a warning sign for students at risk of dropping out of school. By 9th grade, good attendance can predict graduation rates even better than 8th grade test scores.

Questions/Concerns:

If you have any questions or concerns please contact Ms. Claribel Salgado via email at claribel.salgado@k12.dc.gov or by phone at (202) 671-6033.

• https://dcps.nutrislice.com/menu/macfarland-middle-school

The allergy season is here and many individuals who suffer from frequent asthma attacks are beginning to feel the impact of the various allergens and irritants in the air. For students and families, we are sharingthis link to Children’s National -- https://www.childrensnational.org/get-care/departments/impact-dc-asthma-clinic -- as a resource for helping to manage your students’ asthma related-illnesses. If your child suffers from asthma, be sure to complete and submit the Asthma Action Plan and Medication Plan and Procedure to the Nurse. The Anaphylaxis Plan must be completed for acute allergy sufferers who need to be administered an Epi-pen. Also, if your child is on any medication during school hours—including over-the-counter medications—a Medication Plan and Procedure Form must be completed and submitted to the Nurse along with your child’s Medication Treatment Administration Form, signed by your child’s primary care physician. All these documents must be provided to the Nurse by parents, along with the medication/s your child is taking during school hours. Students are not permitted to self-carry or self-medicate. All the forms mentioned in this message are attached, for your convenience.

For Mental Health Support Resources in English and Spanish for Students, Parents, and Teachers. Topics include: Stress, Grief and Loss, Anxiety, Suicide and Self-Harm, Healthy Relationships, Social Media, and much more! -- Mary`s Center (maryscenter.org)

This school year, DCPS is partnering with Children’s National Hospital to support our students’ health and attendance through the Collaborative for Attendance Resources in Education and Health (CARE-H); CARE-H is now available in all DCPS schools. Through this program, parents or guardians can give permission to DCPS to securely share attendance information with their child’s doctor(s), nurse(s) and medical office staff. This information will help these healthcare professionals to provide special outreach and medical attention to children that might be missing school and their families. Information about this initiative can be found here.

POC: Andrea.Allen@k12.dc.gov

The MacFarland PTO has set up an email list for discussion and connection among current and enrolled MacFarland families. Any family member or guardian of a MacFarland student can join by either of these methods:

Attention families, anyone with a child that would like a Kids Ride Free SmartTrip Card can sign up for one in the main office. We will process and distribute on a rolling basis.