WMS Weekly Newsletter

We hope everyone has had a wonderful summer! School is about to begin and we wanted to give you some helpful information to get you started.

Windham Middle School Mission

Windham Middle School faculty, staff, and students foster a diverse learning community where creativity and curiosity are encouraged, and student growth and development are supported as all students strive to reach their potential as lifelong learners.

Windham Middle School Vision

The vision of the Windham Middle School is to establish a community of open-minded, curious, and engaged learners in which all members belong.

Windham Middle School Staff:

• Madisen Bentzlin--ELA Teacher

• Robert Greenlaw--Math Teacher

• Kimberly Capel--Digital Literacy

• Holly Hollingshead--Literacy Tutor

• Christine Iarrobino-Art

• Luis Martinez- Custodian

• Phil O'Loughlin-School Marshall

• Rafael Rodriguez--Science

• Amy Tremblay--ELA

We are proud to introduce a new parent platform, MyPowerHub. This platform enables our district to utilize a centralized platform from PowerSchool, consolidating the flow of information from schools to parents and guardians. In MyPowerHub, parents/guardians can:

1. See their child’s progress in one place

2. See school, classroom, club, and district communications in one place

3. Get direct messages from teachers and staff

4. Submit forms

5. View fees

6. Sign up for parent/teacher conferences

7. View transportation information

You should have received a message from the district to log in to the platform to complete your yearly registration forms and to view the updated bus routes. If you have not logged into the platform yet, please follow the instructions below to log in before the start of the school year.

Instructions

Desktop view - Login and Overview

Mobile App - Login and Overview

View Bus Routes Instructions

Complete Registration Forms Instructions

• Wednesday, August 27--Wildcat A Day--First Day of School
• Thursday, August 28--Wildcat B Day
• Friday, August 29--Wildcat A Day

• Monday, September 1--No School--Labor Day
• Tuesday, September 2--Even B Day
• Wednesday, September 3--Odd A Day
• Thursday, September 4--Wildcat B Day
• Friday, September 5--Wildcat A Day

• Monday, September 8--Wildcat B Day
• Tuesday, September 9--Even A Day
• Wednesday, September 10--Odd B Day
• Thursday, September 11--Wildcat A Day--No Tech Day
• Friday, September 12--Wildcat B Day

No cell phones during the school day--students can only use your cell phones before or after school. Cell phones should be kept in students' locked lockers and not on their person.

Wired headphones are a supply request-- students should not be using Airpods or wireless headphones throughout the school day.

Beginning in the 2025 school year, New Hampshire has enacted a statewide “bell-to-bell” ban on student cell phone use from the first instructional bell to dismissal, except in very limited cases.

Although this is a new statewide policy, the Windham School District already had a cell phone, smart watch, tablets, or personal laptop policy in place for students in grades K–8. For our students, this will not be a change. Cell phones are expected to remain off and stored in student lockers for the entire school day.

We ask parents and guardians to please remind your child of this expectation so we can continue supporting a focused, distraction-free learning environment.

If you have an outstanding Annual Chromebook Technology Fee balance, that overdue balance will be credited first. Please make sure you are up to date with all Annual Chromebook Technology Fee payments, you pay this fee every school year. If you are not up to date on your Annual Chromebook Technology Fees, you will be charged full price for any repairs until the balance is paid.

Students will not be able to take their Chromebook home until all Annual Chromebook Technology Fees have been paid.

If your student did not turn in a charger at the end of the school year, you must pay for the lost one before they will be issued a new one.

Your student will be responsible for their Chromebook, charger, Student ID, lock and any textbooks/library books/classroom books.

August 27--First Day of School

September 1--Labor Day, No School

September 10--School Pictures--C3 will be here 7:30am-9:30am

September 10--Open House--6:00pm-7:15pm

September 10--8th grade Health Informational Night--7:15pm

September 11---No Tech Day

September 26--Project Blackout Game

October 10--Trimester 1 Progress Reports

October 10--Color Run

October 13--Columbus Day--No School

Join us for the WMS Open House on Wednesday, September 10 from 6:00pm-7:15pm.

After the Open House is the 8th Grade Health information night. This event is for 8th Grade parents only. More details to come.

We will be offering MyPowerHub training for parents on the following dates

• Wednesday, September 24--6pm-7pm
• Thursday, September 25--11am-12pm

This training will be via Zoom. Please watch this space for the links when the become available.

School begins promptly at 7:30am.

Students cannot be dropped off before 7:15 am. There is no supervision. Please do not arrive to drop off your student before 7:15am as staff needs access to parking.

Please be sure your child has a charged Chromebook and all items he/she may need for the day. We do not have loaners and they will be calling home to have their Chromebook brought to school.

Whenever a student is going to be absent or tardy a parent should notify the school by calling the absent line at (603)845-1556, entering it into PickUp Patrol or sending an email by 8:30am to wmsattendance@windhamsd.org. PickUp Patrol is the preferred method to notify the school of any attendance changes.

Absent or tardy without notification is considered unexcused.

For students interested in attending the 8th Grade Philadelphia trip, students with 30 or more unexcused tardies and/or 10 or more unexcused absences, are unable to participate in the trip.

Tardies- For tardy students, please email wmsattendance@windhamsd.org or enter it into PickUp Patrol if your student will be tardy. Parents will not come into the building for tardy students. Tardy without notification will be considered an unexcused tardy.

Dismissals-Please use PickUp Patrol to notify the school of a dismissal. Paper notes don't usually make it to the office, that is why we ask you enter it into PickUp Patrol. Parents will come in, show photo ID and we will call your student down. Students will sign themselves out on our Raptor Attendance system. We need written permission if someone not on your contact list is picking up your student. You can put their name in the note line in PickUp Patrol. We ask for no dismissals after 1:50 pm as the buses are arriving and we can not have cars in the bus lane. Please use PickUp Patrol. Please do not call ahead for pick up. We will call your student down when you arrive.

ATTENDANCE FOR AFTER SCHOOL SPORTS AND ACTIVITIES If you are participating in an after school sport, club or activity, you must be in school for at least a half day in order to participate.

From the handbook--"The halfway point for arrival/dismissal time is 11:15 AM and will be considered as such for any after school activities or sporting events. Students must be in for at least half a day in order to participate in these activities".

Student Handbook--https://wms.windhamsd.org/our_school/mission/student_handbook_2024-25

Material drop off- Please place clothing items, especially shoes, in a bag before coming to the school. Please make sure the item is clearly marked with your students name. A table will be located in the foyer for you to leave the item. Please fill out the red form on the table. Your student is responsible for checking the digital board.

Please do not drop your students off in the back of the building in the morning.

Please do not drop off or pick up students from the Heritage Hill access road. It is dangerous for our students.

For Athletic Information and Events please visit our website @ https://wms.windhamsd.org/about_wms/athletics/general_information

PickUp Patrol is the schools preferred method of notifying the school of any attendance changes.

Please make sure you are notifying the school if your student will be absent or tardy. Whenever a student is going to be absent or tardy a parent should notify the school by calling the absent line at (603)845-1556, sending an email by 8:30am to wmsattendance@windhamsd.org or entering it into PickUp Patrol.

If your student will be absent 3 or more days, they will need to come to the office and get an extended absence form. This form needs to be signed by all of your students' teachers, the assistant principal and a parent/guardian.

Only the office can enter an absence as excused, not teachers or administrators. Please make sure you are using the above options to notify us of your students absence.

We are using the Raptor Kiosk for students who are tardy and dismissed and for all visitors to our building.

When you are being dismissed, you need to now stop in the main office to check yourself out at the Raptor Kiosk, parents will no longer be signing you out.

Visitors need to sign themselves in and out using the Raptor kiosk in the office.

If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to e-mail Mr. Moyer at kmoyer@windhamsd.org or go to the WMS Athletics page at https://windhamsdwms.ss18.sharpschool.com/about_wms/athletics/general_information

Tryout Information

WMS will be using Final Forms to register students who want to try out for sports. Parents and students must complete their sections on Final Forms before trying out for a fall sport. Parents can follow the instructions below to register on Final Forms and then sign up their students for the sport they'd like to try out for in the fall.

If a student makes a team, an up-to-date physical also needs to be submitted on Final Forms. These are due before the first game or meet of the season.

Tryouts for boys' soccer, girls' soccer, field hockey, and volleyball will begin on Monday, 8/25. Cross-Country will start on Tuesday, 9/2. Please go to the WMS Athletics Page for more information about tryout times and locations.

Please let Mr. Moyer know if you have any questions.

WMS will be using Sports You to communicate with students and parents regarding sports updates. Students and parents can sign up for sports notifications by using the QR code below or following the instructions on the website.

Is your student looking for a quiet place to study and get your work done? Homework Club will start sometime in September/October. Watch the Newsletter for more information.

For any questions about clubs or activities, please reach out to the teacher running the club or activity.

• Art Club-- ccolbeth@windhamsd.org or ciarrobino@windhamsd.org
• Book Beat--ksmith@windhamsd.org or cstonge@windhamsd.org
• Chess Club--hnoel@windhamsd.org
• Coed Volleyball--Winter--jbartlett@windhamsd.org
• Destination Imagination--ksmith@windhamsd.org
• Drama--ekoenigsbauer@windhamsd.org or sgerstein@windhamsd.org
• Game/Baking Club-- syandow@windhamsd.org or ksmith@windhamsd.org
• Homework Club--koneil@windhamsd.org or emoran@windhamsd.org
• Math League--jzannoni@windhamsd.org
• M2M--ljodoin@windhamsd.org or rjohnson@windhamsd.org
• Robotics--ktenhagen@windhamsd.org or jroy@windhamsd.org
• Ski Club--Winter-scurry@windhamsd.org
• SMILES--hnoel@windhamsd.org
• Student Council--ksteward@windhamsd.org or emoran@windhamsd.org
• Tennis Club--Spring--tlamb@windhamsd.org

All student reports are available for viewing/printing in the PowerSchool PowerHub You can view current and previous reports in the portal.

If you encounter difficulties logging in or accessing PowerSchool or Schoology, please complete the Parent PowerSchool Account Support form or Schoology Account Support form for assistance.

What is the PowerSchool Mobile App and is it right for you?

The PowerSchool Mobile App is a great resource for keeping on top of your student’s grades and attendance. It is nowhere near as robust as the full web version of the PowerSchool

PowerHub.

See more information below.

Schoology is an online Learning Management System (LMS) that helps you stay informed about your student’s classes and assignments. Parents will have the ability to access their student’s coursework via a parent portal. Instructions for Parent Access are attached for your reference.

We are thrilled to continue offering Tutor.com services to grades 4-12! This partnership with the New Hampshire Department of Education and Tutor.com provides unlimited access to the tutoring service – anytime, anywhere, from any internet-connected device. This means your child can get the academic support they need, even from the comfort of home. Our students can access Tutor.com through their Schoology course pages. Please click here for more information.

Bus Routes for the 2025-26 school year are now available in MyPowerHub! Please follow these instructions to view your child's routes.

Parents should plan for a buffer of 10-15 minutes between their estimated arrival times for the first two weeks to get a better sense of what will be a more accurate timeframe. If there are changes to your child’s route, the district will notify you separately, and the change will be visible in PowerSchool.

If you have any questions about the bus routes, please contact Kristina Greene at First Student Transportation at 1-603-377-8878 or by email at bus@windhamsd.org. For PowerSchool portal assistance, please complete this form.

First Student offers a mobile app that allows parents to view their child’s bus route in real-time. FirstView will track your child’s bus on its routes and allow you to set up a customizable geofence around your pick-up/drop-off location.

Policy ECAF: RECORDING DEVICES ON SCHOOL BUSES

Food Nutrition

LINQ Connect is the payment platform that our food nutrition services uses.

Nutrition Services Meal Pricing SY26:

https://www.windhamsd.org/our_district/superintendent_s_office/nutrition_services/meal_prices_and_details

The Free/Reduced Meals Application and Instructions

https://www.windhamsd.org/our_district/superintendent_s_office/nutrition_services/free_and_reduced_meal_program

Additional School Fees

The Windham School District has transitioned electronic payments for school fees (such as laptop fees, Chromebooks, etc.) to Vanco RevTrak.

If you plan to set up an electronic payment option through Vanco, please follow these instructions after logging into the PowerSchool Parent Portal.

Please remember that the electronic payment centers are set up for convenience. All parents still have the option to send in a check to pay for food nutrition and/or school-based fees at any time. Please contact your child’s school directly if you have questions.

If you have an outstanding Annual Chromebook Technology Fee balance, that overdue balance will be credited first. Please make sure you are up to date with all Annual Chromebook Technology Fee payments, you pay this fee every school year. If you are not up to date on your Annual Chromebook Technology Fee, you will be charged full price for any repairs until the balance is paid.

What is MTSS?

The Multi-Tiered System of Support (MTSS) establishes a process for providing increasing levels of instructional frequency and intensity whereby the needs of all learners are identified and supported.

All students within the Windham School District are provided effective standards-based core instruction and best practices in a system that includes: universal screening, progress monitoring, data-driven decision-making, academic, social-emotional, and behavior supports, and researched based instruction and intervention.

For more information on MTSS, please view our available resources below.

WSD Multi-Tiered System of Support (MTSS)
Multi-Tiered System of Support (MTSS) Informational Brochure

The dress code can be found in the Student Handbook which can be found here, Student Handbook.

Thank you for your interest in becoming a school volunteer!

New Volunteer Fingerprint Scan at SAU:

The Windham SAU office is pleased to offer interested new volunteers the opportunity to schedule fingerprinting appointments at 19 Haverhill Road on Tuesday, August 26th, and Wednesday, the 27th, from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM. With the last appointment being at 1:30, if you would like to book an appointment, please click here. Please note, this process can take up to several weeks for the results to be returned. Additionally, if the SAU submits fingerprints and the results are rejected, you may need to use LiveScan, an efficient background check method outlined on our website and available at local DMVs. For complete background check information, visit our website.

All required training will be completed through our online system, Vector Training.

As a reminder, All “Designated Volunteers" are mandated to complete annual training required by the following RSAs; RSA 189:13(a); RSA 193:J(2); RSA 193:F(5); and RSA 189:13(a), XII.

The definition of a "Designated Volunteer" is defined in Policy: GBCD and is any volunteer who comes into our schools on a regular basis or to chaperone a field trip of any kind.

Volunteers who do not fall within the definition of a designated volunteer (i.e. volunteer for an occasional classroom party), only need to complete steps one and two outlined above.

All designated volunteers must complete the steps below in order to be approved for the Windham School District.

1. Submit Volunteer Form
2. Background Check/Fingerprinting (NEW VOLUNTEERS ONLY)
3. Please complete the online training through Vector Systems. The training login will automatically be sent to you from Windham School District (SAU #95) after you submit the volunteer form. If you are still waiting to receive the login information within one week of submitting the form, please contact the Human Resources department at hr@windhamsd.org.

PLEASE NOTE: IF YOUR FINGERPRINTS HAVE ALREADY CLEARED IT IS NOT NECESSARY TO REPEAT THE FINGERPRINTING PROCESS).

If you are thinking about participating in a field trip; you must have completed the steps outlined above.

If you are unsure if you are a designated volunteer, or if you have any questions, please contact the Human Resource department, hr@windhamsd.org.

Our volunteers are a critical component to the success of our school district and we appreciate and thank you for your time and commitment!

https://www.windhamsd.org/resources/parents/volunteer_information

Windham Middle School is seeking parent volunteers to become a part of our School Council. The purpose of this council is to provide communication with parents, teachers, and administration. The meetings are usually sounding boards for Principals for implementing changes or initiatives and to get the pulse of the school community. The meetings are advisory in nature and are not designed as a “work” group, but there may be some assignments that the group decides to do in order to increase communication. The meetings are held monthly after school in the Media Center from 2:40-4:00pm.

Please contact Mrs. Morrow, bmorrow@windhamsd.org or Mr. Gratton, jgratton@windhamsd.org if you are interested.

WMS will be implementing the One Trusted Adult Program with our students. One Trusted Adult offers research-based programs and professional development opportunities that teach the fundamentals needed to build strong connections and healthy boundaries with young people.

Our goal of the One Trusted Adult Program is to prevent our biggest worries and promote our biggest hopes for youth. We do that by looking to ensure that every young person has accessible boundaried, and caring trusted adults, and those trusted adults have the training and tools they need to build healthy and appropriate relationships.

ROAR

R-Respect

O-Opportunities

A-Achievement

R- Responsiblity

25/26 Student Handbook

25/26 Student Athlete Handbook

Communications Guide

Policies and Procedures

Parent Technology Resource Center

Instagram--https://www.instagram.com/windhamms/

Email: sgerstein@windhamsd.org
Website: https://wms.windhamsd.org/
Location: 112a Lowell Road, Windham, NH, USA
Phone: (603)845-1556
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WindhamMiddleSchool

Find us at WindhamPTA.org and on Facebook. Stay informed by joining your child’s school Facebook PTA Volunteer Group page.

https://www.facebook.com/Windham-Middle-School-PTA-Volunteer-Group-Page-112467067714393

https://www.facebook.com/windhamnhpta