It is hard to believe that we are over halfway through the 20-21 school year! Although there have been roadblocks and detours, it is great that we have been able to stay in school with only a few weeks of remote learning. LTMS is ready to begin the second semester!

Reflecting back on what has been one of the most challenging school years for us all, there have also been silver linings that have appeared. Our students (and staff) have really done an outstanding job getting used to the safety protocols, even though we will all celebrate the day we will not need masks and Plexiglas dividers. Our problem solving skill continue to grow with each new challenge that is thrown our way. We are also learning better productive conflict and debate skills when we do not agree.

A big thank you to our families, our students and our staff for all you have done to keep us going this year, no matter what. Many of you have dealt with or are dealing with illness or quarantine. As always, do not hesitate to reach out if you need any support or have questions. Do not forget to check marking period 2 report card grades via Parent Portal. Have a fabulous February!

Important Dates:

Tuesday & Thursday - After School Detention and Homework Club

Monday, February 1 - Friday, February 5 - National School Counseling Week

Wednesday, February 3 - Marking Period 2 Honor Roll Posted

Wednesday, February 10 - School Board Meeting

Friday, February 12 - School in Session (due to December 17, 2020 School Closing)

Monday, February 15 - School in Session (due to December 18, 2020 School Closing)

Friday, February 26 - Marking Period 3 Progress Reports

• Please follow any or all of our social media accounts on Facebook: @ltmsprincipal, Twitter: @LTMS_Principal and/or Instagram: ltms_principal

Remember... be respectful, be responsible, be kind and be courageous... in everything you do and say... be a LANCER!

Sincerely,

Mrs. Sekel, Proud Principal

Loyalsock Township Middle School

Our LTSD Student Information System (SIS) has been developed by Central Susquehanna Intermediate Unit (CSIU). The SIS is used to develop class schedules, take attendance, store grades, track discipline, produce report cards, and more. The CSIU Parent Portal provides guardians with the opportunity to access up-to-the-minute grades their children are earning in each of their classes, missing assignments, attendance records and other school information that parents may find useful. It may be accessed from any computer with Internet access.

Instructions to register on the Parent Portal are contained in the video tutorial on our website. To register, you must know your student's ID (#####) number. Please ask your student(s) or contact your LTMS building secretaries. Once the registration is completed and approved by the school district, families with more than one child in the district will be able to use one login to access student(s) information.

Our school has been doing fantastic work through Word Generation. This program was designed as an interdisciplinary approach to to improve the academic vocabulary, critical thinking, oral and written argumentation skills of middle school students. Each five day week students have an essential question and a list of vocabulary terms that they work through in their English, math, science, and social studies classes. We have already completed and had success with the topics What is the purpose of school? Should schools be responsible for students’ mental health? Are kids responsible for stepping in to prevent bullying? Should middle and high school students have to meet a grade requirement to participate in sports? School dress codes: not strict enough? Should everyone get a trophy? and Should students be paid for performance in school? Who is responsible for childhood obesity? and High school dropouts: What can be done? Students enjoy our "word wall" proudly displayed in the main lobby! We look forward to the upcoming topics:

February 8-12 Should schools have a vocational track? 3.13

February 22-26 Climate change: who should pay for the consequences? 1.08

March 1-5 Teen smoking: who is responsible? 1.16

March 22-26 Asthma: more than a medical problem? 1.14

TBD - Today’s news: information or entertainment? 1.15

TBD - Should the government impose a mandatory year of service? 3.07

LTMS congratulates our Student of the Month nominees for the month of January. These students are respectful (role models to their peers), responsible (take personal accountability), kind (helpful to others) and courageous (strive to improve well-being of others)!

LTMS congratulates Mr. Fisher, for being nominated as Staff of the Month for January. He was described by his students as energetic, kind and courageous. Mr. Fisher reminds students, “Always be you, but do it in a respectful way!”

6th Grade

Ivan Baker, Addison Barowy, Hannah Bastian, David Bjorkman, Olivia Bortz, Ethan Boyer, Karlee Brouse, Brendan Clune, Caroline Crawford, Nathan Kyle Cruz, Ezra Dance, Luke Edmonds, Wyatt Emerick, Ronald Emery, Simone Gehr, Dana Kiriaki, Kristina Kranz, Kaylene Kriner, Jahvon La Rosa, Ryan Lingg, Mackenzie Miller, Dhruv Patel, Natalie Pearson, Tyler Pham, Justin Richards, Miles Shipman, Blake Stevens, Madelyn Williams, Rebecca Winter, Claira Wurster

7th Grade

Hannah Ash, Indira Bagal, Caroline Baker, Alena Barone, Lilly Elizabeth Belvin, Marco Blas, Kathryn Clapper, Vanessa Creveling, Alaina Dadzie, Gabriel Danley, Alice Ecker, Kendall Eichensehr, Megan Garrison, Adam Ghayyada, Morgan Hersh, Jillian Kennedy, Lydia Kresock, Sadie Magill, James Neely, Hudson Ott, Nolan Ott, Zowie Rinehart, Molly Savidge, Iyana Sewell, Vera Shadle, Aydric Spivey, Taylor Sullivan, Sienna Terpak, Madison Wertz, Ethan Wetzler, Madelyn Wolford, Hazel Zajack, Tiffany Zapata

8th Grade

Kaeden Badger, Layla Bagal, Lena Frederick, Brianna Helmrich, Lauren O'Malley, Maria Pardoe, Colby Peters, Abigail Pietraski, Kaitlynn Rodriguez, Caidence Smith, Cheyanne Tedesco, Lucy Tripp

6th Grade

Jaiden Ayers, Trey Borgess, Cai Cassel, Declan Dougherty, Mia Girio, Juliet Harris, Caleb Hartsock, Kathrine Heiser, Kaylee Kwasney, Madalyne McGarr, Ava Mersinger, Trenton Miller, Ella Porter, Breeze Sauers, John Smith, Jordan Walker

7th Grade

Adelyn Bastian, Jacob Baylor, Alexander Bolt, Colby Bower, Ian Bower, Noelle Collins, Connor Cowden, Gabriel DePrenda, Elaina Ertel, Kolin Gardner, Kayden House, Kennadee Houseknecht-Sauers, Seth Janovitz, Ella Kaufman, Kayden Keefer, Meredith Kelly, Caitlyn Killian, Brooke Lowe, Violet McLaughlin, Sophia Miller, Scarlet O'Brien, Carter Runner, Grace Schwanger, Jonathan Shimko, Jacob Stopper, Reese Temple

8th Grade

Dawn Agbemabiese, Kendall Brouse, Jordyn Buffington, Kendall Cohick, Isaiah Dance, Julianna Ellis, Jenine Ghayyada, Gavin Grieco, Samantha Hauke, Ruby Klowas, Sofia Mileto, Amalia Panaccio, Kinley Rodarmel, Luke Severn, Chase Stevens, Mallory Storm, Adara Whitehead

Congratulations to our Students of the Quarter! This honor recognizes academic excellence and Lancer (Respectful, Responsible, Kind and Courageous) behaviors! We are thankful and so proud of your efforts during the second marking period!

We are hopeful the virtual learning hub's will enable success for each student particularly during quarantined or remote learning. If you wish to have a Zoom or phone conference in the future, please reach out to individual teachers or grade level team leaders directly. We will have an opportunity for conferences again on March 19.

6th Grade - Mr. Hessert nhessert@loyalsocklancers.org

7th Grade - Ms. Cozza acozza@loyalsocklancers.org

8th Grade - Mrs. Bomboy jbomboy@loyalsocklancers.org

Must be submitted two (2) weeks prior to planned vacation for approval process.

Please consult the PA DOH’s travel page, it requires Pennsylvanians returning to the Commonwealth, to test (secure a negative test result) or if choosing not to get a test, must quarantine for 10 days upon arrival before return to school. https://www.health.pa.gov/topics/disease/coronavirus/Pages/Travelers.aspx

Please contact our technology team if you have questions or need assistance. A response will be provided within 24 hours (exceptions for weekends and holidays).

The Online Learning Support system is available for parents and students and can be contacted through one of the following methods...

🌐 Submit a Technology Helpdesk Ticket

📧 Send an Email to egee@loyalsocklancers.org

☎️ Phone 570-323-9439 x1217 and leave a message

*Please NOTE this is for parents and student support only. Staff should continue to use the staff portal for support.

Mrs. Preisch, school counselor and Mr. Smith, outreach counselor, presented a lesson to all 7th grade students in the building that utilized the Signs of Suicide (SOS) curriculum. SOS is a nationally recognized suicide prevention program offered by The Center for Suicide Prevention and Research (CSPR) at Nationwide Children’s Hospital. Students were taught possible warning signs of depression and suicide and were encouraged to ACT if they or someone they know could be in need.

Our counselors will be available Monday through Thursday (by appointment) from 3:15 p.m. to 4:15 p.m. to support students and their families.

We know that many of our students have struggled with COVID-19 issues, social emotional issues, family issues, lack of socialization with friends and many other issues. We are excited to provide this extra support for our students and look forward to assisting our students during this challenging time.

Use MyConferenceTime to schedule an appointment: https://www.myconferencetime.com/lths/schedule/497490

A youth violence prevention program run by the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General for schools. The program teaches youth how to recognize warning signs and signals, especially within social media, from individuals who may be a threat to themselves or others and to “say something” BEFORE it is too late.

We want to hear about your experiences with your student's education! This survey includes questions about your student’s learning, school safety, and interpersonal relationships, as well as your attitudes about our educational environment and your personal involvement in school. Your responses will be very helpful in improving student relationships, learning conditions, and the overall school environment.

All your responses are completely anonymous. We have no way to connect you to your answers, and results will only be reported as group responses. There are no right or wrong answers. We just want to know about your experiences to make LTMS even better!

As you respond to each item, think about your own personal experiences as a parent/guardian at LTMS. Please answer all items, or your answers won't count. This survey should take approximately 10 minutes.

Thank you for your time and participation!

Schoolwide Positive Behavior Interventions & Supports (PBIS) is a framework for creating safe and orderly learning environment in school while improving the social-emotional outcomes for students. It is a proactive approach that relies on research-based practices, including developing clear behavioral expectations, teaching these expectations, acknowledging appropriate behavior, consistently correcting inappropriate behavior, and using behavioral data to systematically solve problems.

Tier 2 & Tier 3 Supports

When schools have a solid foundation of Tier 1 SW-PBS systems, data, and practices for all students, planning may begin for Tier 2 systems, data, and practices. Tier 2 provides targeted small group interventions for up to 15% of students who are at-risk for negative social, emotional, and/or behavioral health outcomes. Interventions should prevent the development of problems and also decrease the frequency or intensity of problem behaviors, thereby minimizing their impact. Tier 3 supports approximately 1-5% of students that continue to experience difficulty after participation in ongoing Tier 1 support and inclusion in a Tier 2 intervention. In many cases these students have school histories of significant academic and behavioral difficulties over an extended period of time. Because their needs may be more intense and chronic, Tier 3 support systems are individualized.

1. Cell phones put away out of sight (inside locker or leave at home) from 7:50am - 3:00pm.

2. Follow dress code and masks must cover nose and mouth (unless 6ft away while eating or during assigned mask break in cafeteria or classroom).

3. Social distance and follow directional signage in hallways and communal areas.

4. Transfer big backpack to locker, use drawstring bag (donated by PTO) throughout the day to minimize locker usage.

5. Bring a water bottle (donated by PTO), put your name on it and use throughout the day. Water filling station located near the main office.

6. Bring student ID card daily for FREE breakfast and lunch.

7. Remain in Maroon and Gray hybrid groups (locker use, transitions, cafeteria/gym lunch assignments, etc.)

Our students have been ROCKSTARS on wearing masks/face coverings. The Pennsylvania Department of Health guidance issued August 17, 2020 and posted to the PDE website requires masks to be worn at all Pennsylvania schools at all times, even if individuals are more than 6 feet apart. There are unique considerations for individual students who have health issues and are documented in a 504 plan. Students who refuse to wear a mask properly will be secluded or sent home in order to maintain the safety and welfare of everyone.

What if a student doesn't wear a mask properly?

1. Student will be asked by a staff member to put on the mask and cover required areas.

2. If student refuses, and administrator will ask the student to put on the mask properly.

3. If student refuses, parent/guardian will be contacted.

4. If a student continues to refuse, they will be placed in isolated area away from others or need to be picked up by guardian.

Masks and face coverings are most definitely not comfortable, but are our new reality. We want to focus our time at school on learning, building positive relationships and keeping each other safe and healthy. We want to maximize every moment we are at school. Thank you for your support!

Sports competition is in our Winter season. See the athletics page for more information on our resocialization of sports and extra-curricular activities and competition schedules: https://www.phacathleticsconference.org/public/genie/377/school/8/

You can also email coaches for specific information:

7th Grade Boys Basketball - Eric Nagy ewn2@pct.edu

8th Grade Boys Basketball - Ryan Cioffi ryan.cioffi00@gmail.com

Cheerleading - Erin Brouse efbrouse@gmail.com

• We will continue to have practice, Mondays, through basketball season

Wrestling - Derrick Hicks dhicks@wasd.org

Below are the allowable occupancy rates (10% capacity) within our schools under the governor. This includes sports and all after school activities. More information can be found here: https://www.health.pa.gov/topics/disease/coronavirus/Pages/Guidance/Event-Occupancy.aspx

Weight Room: 36 students & staff only

Wrestling Room: 22 students & staff only

MS Gym: 101 maximum capacity

HS Gym: 67 maximum capacity

There are no parents/spectators allowed indoors at practices. In addition, masks are required at all times, including during competition. The PA mask order was updated in December to include those participating in indoor physical activity who are not members of the individual’s household are present in the same space, irrespective of physical distance.

Winter updates:

1. All league matches for wrestling were rescheduled
2. Regular season for basketball has been extended to February 27
3. Regular season for JH basketball has been extended to March 6

Spring sports must register on Family ID as soon as possible. Spring sport physicals are scheduled on Thursday, February 18, 2021 from 3:15 p.m. - 5:15 p.m. Student-athletes can stop in or call the high school main office to reserve a time slot.

General athletic questions can be sent to:

Athletic Director - Ron (CI) Insinger rinsinge@loyalsocklancers.org

Athletic Secretary - Shannon Butters sbutters@loyalsocklancers.org

Our LTHS/LTMS new student picture day is scheduled on Wednesday, February 10th. See the attached form for ordering purposes! Our distance learning students are welcome to come in through our main entrances from 8:30-9:30am for a 10 minute time slot. Please contact our LTMS yearbook advisors Ms. Cozza (acozza@loyalsocklancers.org) and/or Mrs. Rohrer (brohrer@loyalsocklancers.org) if you have additional questions.

The yearbook is in the final stages of creation and we need YOUR help! Unleash some of those great photos on your camera roll and send them to us. We need photos of students outside of school, in the community or at home, making the best of the pandemic... Little League, AYSO, karate, golf, tennis, swimming, hiking, kayaking, reading, tik-tokking... anything! Also, we would love to feature students showcasing talents... if you have photos of recitals or performances... dance, playing an instrument, singing, theater, etc... send them OUR WAY!

Submit using replayit, or email brohrer@loyalsocklancers.org.

The deadline to order a yearbook will be Friday, February 26! So, order yours today at jostensyearbooks.com

New student ID cards (with photograph) were distributed to ALL students who took a picture with our school photographer. It is important for students to bring IDs every day for identification purposes and take care of them (we purchased ALL students lanyards with plastic sleeves) to receive FREE breakfast and lunch daily through our touchless scanners. If a card was lost, students can ask the front office for their temporary original card that was collected or pay $5.00 at the main office for a replacement ID.

FREE school breakfast and lunch meal program for ALL students has been extended for the entire school year! We hope that all students take advantage of this amazing opportunity. Also, family food boxes are available from our Sock Pantry. Please call Beth Hufnagel at 570-323-3211 to arrange for a pick-up of a family box. As always, we are glad to be able to support our families in every way possible!

Our goal is to provide students with experiences that will empower them to become thoughtful, meaningful contributors to society. Our teachers and staff are committed to offering students a wide range of learning experiences that will enable them to discover their passion and to discover how they learn best. While empowering students to uncover their true passion, Loyalsock Township Middle School prepares, engages, and inspires all students to seek academic and personal excellence.

Email: asekel@ltsd.k12.pa.us
Website: https://www.ltsd.k12.pa.us/schools/middle-school/
Location: 2101 Loyalsock Dr, Williamsport, PA 17701
Phone: (570)323-9439
Facebook: facebook.com/ourschool
Twitter: @LTMS_Principal