Fugett Flash

Current 8th grade Fugett Middle School Families,

On behalf of Dr. Graham and the entire staff at West Chester East High School, we are excited to welcome you to EHS and work with you throughout the Course Selection process for the 2026-27 school year.

Our District has been at work behind the scenes now for a few months preparing for the 26-27 school year and we are now at the point of the process where it is time for students and families to begin Course Selection.

Please consider joining us with your child on the evening of Wednesday 1/21 at 6:30pm in our auditorium for our course selection night.

The District has a webpage dedicated to Course Selection which has a wealth of information. Click here for the 25-26 version to see an idea of what to expect. More specifics, including links to the 26-27 version of the page and a course selection video will be coming soon.

Important Dates in the Process:

January 7th through January 23rd – Teacher recommendations completed in PowerSchool.

January 21st – EHS will be hosting our Course Night for students and parents from 6:30pm-7:30pm. The event will start with a brief address in the auditorium before transitioning to our cafeteria where representatives from our departments will be present to discuss their offerings with those interested or who may have questions.

January 26th through February 11th – ONLINE student elective selection window through PowerSchool (directions to follow).

January 28th – 8th graders will be visiting EHS to learn about our elective offerings. Teachers and EHS Students will discuss the elective courses and FMS Students will attend an electives fair in our auxiliary gym.

February 12th through February 27th – Hard Copy Elective Course & Level Change Window (form can be found on District website and in the Counseling office for processing with Bernadette Simpson).

June 22nd – July 30th - At EHS this year, once the course request window ends on February 27th, there will be no student-initiated course request changes entertained until June 22nd.

From June 22nd to July 30th, we are trialing a process for the District where a student may request a course change through a Google form which will be shared – please note ** this will be the only means through which a change request is considered**. The request will be evaluated for consideration by an administrator and is not guaranteed. A meeting with a building administrator is required as a part of the process to provide justification for the change request.

Starting July 31st, all requests for a course change will be frozen through September 11th with approval only occurring through the District’s level up/down protocols as stated in the course guide.

EHS Counselor Contacts

Ms. Yvonne Setlock (Last names A-Da) – ssetlock@wcasd.net

Mr. Joseph Michetti (Last names De-He) – jmichetti@wcasd.net

Ms. Lauren Otto (Last names Hi-Ma) – lotto@wcasd.net

Ms. Kelly Camp (Last names Mc-Rol) – kcamp@wcasd.net

Ms. Lauren Swinehart (Last names Rom-Z) – lswinehart@wcasd.net

Please do not hesitate to contact your child’s counselor at FMS, Ms. Bernadette Simpson (bsimpson@wcasd.net), or myself (sryan1@wcasd.net) with questions as you navigate through this process – we are here to help.

Calendar -- Look Ahead and Plan

Monday January 12 -- Day 6 (Care Period - Clubs)

Tuesday January 13 -- Day 1

Wednesday January 14 -- Day 2 (Care Period ) 6th grade Band/Jazz Concert

Thursday January 15 -- Day 3

Friday January 16 -- Day 4 (Care Period) ***HALF DAY FOR STUDENTS***

Monday January 19 -- NO SCHOOL

Tuesday January 20 -- Day 5 (Care Period)

Wednesday January 21 -- Day 6 (Care Period )

Thursday January 22 -- Day 1

Friday January 23 -- Day 2 (Care Period)

On behalf of Ms. Kelly and Mr. Hill, this year's audition process was incredibly exciting and yet stressful because you all were SO talented! What this proved is that Fugett's Drama Club community is strong and will continue to be for years to come. Congrats to ALL of you :)

Thank you ALL for pouring your hearts and talents into your audition- it was a joy to watch, and of course a bit of a heartbreak as cuts are a part of life in theater. If you did NOT make the cast, please consider joining us on January 5th to sign up for a crew, and if you would like to get feedback on your audition please reach out to Ms. Kelly (you'll have to find her in Peirce MS in Schoology or via email at kkelly4@wcasd.net) or me to ask for feedback.

We would like to welcome students to the FUGETT SKI AND SNOWBOARD CLUB! It’s time for the winter 2025-2026 season to begin! We are looking forward to several fantastic trips. DATES: Friday January 9, 23, February 6, and 20 (4 total): Bear Creek Mountain Resort (www.bcmountainresort.com) We hope to see many of you at the informational meeting on Wednesday, December 10, 2025 in the auditorium during homeroom. Listen to the morning announcements for more information.

Please see the announcement below. Thanks!

This newsletter is your guide to what your child is learning in math each month, with content broken out by grade level. Watch the videos together at home to explore the concepts more deeply, support their learning, and reinforce key skills in meaningful ways.

Cheat sheet for Schoology: https://docs.google.com/document/d/18FmsoQqNYnxqyCaLYwi35lD3Cbav9BuU3cLml052Cyg/edit?tab=t.0

How to get emails from parent portal: https://www.iorad.com/player/2478478/WCASD-Parent-Portal---Email-Notifications---Account-Preferences#trysteps-1

District webpage with resources for Schoology and Parent Portal: https://www.wcasd.net/families-students/technology-resources/parent-portal-account

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If you are trying to think of a meaningful gift this holiday season, consider ordering a yearbook for your student! Prices will go up after November 14; order now to get a yearbook at a cheaper price! NO CASH SALES will be offered at the end of the year; the only way to guarantee a yearbook for your student is to preorder. Follow the directions linked here to order!

Fall Athletics information and WCASD PIAA sports registration website (deadline 09/20/2025)

For any families looking to attend an EHS football game this year, please review the attached ticketing and attendance expectations. All tickets are purchased online.

Late Arrival - A student must be in school by 9:01 a.m. in order to participate in an athletic contest/practice/activity that day. An exception will be made if the student has an approved medical appointment, in which case, the student must present to the attendance office a signed statement from the doctor regarding the absence. A note from the parent/guardian for illness will not be acceptable. In all cases, a student must arrive no later than 11:05 am.

Early Dismissal – The WCASD policy is that in order for a student to participate in any extra-curricular activity, he or she must be present in school the day of the activity. If a student needs to have an early dismissal for any reason, he or she is expected to return at a reasonable time. If the student does not expect to return, he or she must receive prior permission from the administration or the athletic office. The Principal or his or her designee may make exceptions to this policy when a student has extenuating circumstances.

If any parent/student would like to purchase a sports photo and did not turn in a form, you can reach out and order online: https://focusonsportsphotography.com/

- Stay connected with the PTO and the Fugett community through our PTO page and the Fugett Parents Facebook page. (Be sure to fill out all the membership questions for the FB page, which helps admins keep the community FMS-focused and vet incoming members).

Fugett Middle School - Attendance

WCASD Attendance Guidelines

Family Vacations

• Students may be excused from school for up to five (5) days of school per year for a family vacation. Family Vacation days must be pre-approved by your child’s administrator. A family vacation form must be completed and turned into the office prior to the absence.

• Please submit vacation requests at least one (1) week in advance to the attendance office: FMSAttendance@wcasd.net. Please note that parents or guardians will only be notified if any or all of the request is not approved.

Absences

• If your student is going to be absent, please submit their absence on Parent Portal.

• You may also send an emailed Parent Note or copy of the doctor’s note directly to the attendance office: FMSAttendance@wcasd.net. Please note that you must send the email from the email address we have on file. If documentation is not provided within 3 days of your students’ return to school, the absence will be considered unlawful.

• A student is allotted 10 Parent Notes and 5 Family Vacation days for the school year. Every absence after that will require a Doctor’s Note or the absence will remain unlawful.

• If a student is absent for 5 consecutive days, a Doctor’s Note is required by the 6th day of absence, even if PNs have not been exhausted.

• At the 4th unlawful absence, a Student Attendance Improvement Plan (SAIP) meeting will be held with our Home & School Visitor.

Lateness & Early Dismissals

• Following ten excused tardies and/or early dismissals in a school year, the school will require a doctor’s note or other corroboration beyond a note from a parent/guardian. Failure to provide corroboration beyond the allotment will result in absences being classified as unlawful.

• All students are expected to locker and report to their homeroom by 7:30 a.m. every day. Students arriving after this time will be considered tardy.

• A tardy is defined as a minimum of one minute of lateness to school. Eight (8) tardies to school will be considered one (1) unlawful absence in grades K-8.

• Late arrivals to school due to medical appointments (doctor, dentist, orthodontist, etc.) will be excused with a note from the practitioner.

• Any late arrival when the student does not arrive by 11:30 a.m. without a doctor’s note will be considered a full day absence.

• If your child must leave school early, a request must be submitted on Parent Portal or emailed to FMSAttendance@wcasd.net. An early dismissal pass will be given to your child to meet you in the office at the requested time. A parent/guardian must come into the office with a photo ID to pick up the student.

• In order for an early dismissal to be excused, a doctor’s or dentist's note must be turned into the office or emailed to FMSAttendance@wcasd.net upon the students return to school.

• Any early dismissal where the student leaves before 11:00 a.m. and does not return to school with a doctor’s note will be considered a full day’s absence.

Just a friendly reminder to all parents that if you need to come into the building to pick up your student or drop something off to them to please check in with the main office. Thank you for your cooperation with this to help keep our school safe and secure!

Thank you for following the circle pick up path. This traffic pattern is in place to ensure the safety of students and staff.

To serve you better, families may drop off and/or pick up East and Fugett students at either building, as long at you are using the typical drop off/pick up location.

See attachment below for specific information regarding FMS carline directions and visuals.

Parents: Please encourage your children to check their backpack for toys and water guns before coming to school after a weekend. We understand that backpacks may serve a dual purpose over the weekend, but any items in violation of the WCASD Discipline Manual will result in student disciplinary outcomes.

Please note, Apple watches that are used for texting or phone calls will be treated the same as a phone in school. The same rules apply and watches will follow the same discipline pattern as a cell phone. It is possible to set phones to “Schooltime” for your child. This allows the watch to show a simplified watch face during the school hours families establish. “Schooltime” silences notifications and restricts apps.

How to set “Schooltime”:

For Family-Managed Watches (Parent's iPhone)

• Open the Watch app: on your iPhone.

• Tap All Watches in the top-left corner.

• Select the child's watch from the list.

• Tap Schooltime.

• Turn on Schooltime.

• Tap Edit Schedule to set the desired days and times for Schooltime to be active.

For Self-Managed Watches (On the Apple Watch)

• Press the side button: to open Control Center.

• Scroll to the bottom and tap Edit.

• Tap the Add button next to Schooltime.

• Tap Done.

• You can now turn on Schooltime by tapping the Schooltime button in Control Center.

Phones are “Off and Away”. When the homeroom bell rings at 7:30, until dismissal at 2:15, phones are turned off and placed in student lockers. Any phone out between these bells will be turned in to the office and will begin the progressive discipline process with the student. This practice will be strictly and consistently enforced across all three middle schools.

Bring your device charged and protected. Devices should come to school daily, fully charged, to reduce the need for charging cords and cables throughout classrooms. During the school year, if a student has a district-issued laptop not in their case, this will prompt a discipline referral. This is to ensure digital learning opportunities, protect the device, and reduce potential parent invoices for damaged devices. (*We recognize not all returning students may have a laptop case on the first day of school. Students without a laptop case should notify their homeroom teacher the first day of school.)

Attendance - Students arriving late to homeroom (after the homeroom bell rings at 7:30) must report to the office for a pass. Lateness will be handled in accordance with the WCASD Attendance Policies, and PA State Laws. Unexcused lateness will result in an after-school detention for the student. A tardy is defined as a minimum of one minute of lateness to school. Late arrivals to school due to medical appointments (doctor, dentist, orthodontist, etc.) will be excused (ET) with a note from the practitioner.

Ineligibility - Any student who is failing at least two major subjects, or at least one major subject and two minor subjects (such as a Unified Arts class like Art or PE), by noon on Friday is ineligible to attend sports practices and games, clubs, and any extracurricular, school-sponsored activities which occur from the next Sunday through Saturday of the following week. This would include musical performances*, drama, dances, and sporting events. *Culminating musical performances related to Chorus, Band, and Orchestra are not subject to ineligibility as they are curricular events and not extracurricular activities.

Monitoring grades - We highly recommend that families use the Parent Portal to monitor grades and sign up for automatic email updates in the Email Notification tab. You can also look through individual course and assignment updates by using your child's Schoology account and accessing each Class and Assignment.

Making up work – All students have two Academic Care Periods (extended homerooms) on Monday and Friday each week. This is an ideal flexible time to work with any staff member in the building. Teachers have until noon Friday to grade and update any missed work or tests to improve failing grades before the ineligibility report is generated. Turning assignments in on time is the best way to keep grades up-to-date.

WCASD Discipline and Records Policy - https://www.wcasd.net/families-students/discipline-manual

Click below for great information for families who may be facing food insecurity at this time. For further information and assistance, reach out to our Home and School Visitor, Erin

Crystle,ecrystle@wcasd.net 484-266-2920