OLHMS Update (11/4/25)

Did you know that we will be welcoming distinguished guests this Friday?

We are excited to welcome our community of annual Veterans Day tribute! Thank you in advance to our entire school community for taking the time to honor and acknowledge our heroes!

We would love to see our scholars further support this event by wearing Red, White and Blue!

6th Grade: WHITE

7th Grade: BLUE

8th Grade: RED

Did you know that our candy collection is underway?

Annually, we collect candy to be shipped to our military overseas. Please consider sharing your collection with our troops by donating candy. Our goal is 2,000 pounds of candy! We are so appreciative of Jacky's Soldiers for continuing to partner with us!

Mustang Families,

We are so proud of our Mustangs and our entire school community! There’s always something exciting happening here at OLHMS, and it’s all because of our incredible scholars and supportive families. Thank you for continuing to uplift one another and live our mission each day!

As a dynamic and supportive environment, we believe in the unique gifts each of us brings to the table, both individually and collectively. Please take a moment to remind your scholar of our Mustang Musts: Be Responsible, Be Safe, and Be Respectful. These simple expectations keep our learning community strong and set the stage for even greater success as we look ahead to the end of Trimester One later this month and the exciting start of Trimester Two!

We also want to share how proud we are of our scholars and staff for making last Friday’s Halloween half day such an outstanding celebration! The morning was filled with fun and engaging events, with the vast majority of students and staff participating in costumes or colors. The positive energy, creativity, and Mustang spirit on display made it a truly memorable day for everyone!

Finally, we are filled with overwhelming excitement and gratitude for one of our most meaningful annual events. At OLHMS, we extend our heartfelt thanks to all Veterans, especially those in the Oak Lawn and Hometown communities. This Friday, November 7th, our school proudly honors the courage, service, and sacrifice of these heroes during our annual Veterans Day Assembly. It is always an inspiring reminder of the importance of service, respect, and unity; values that shine brightly in our Mustang community every day.

Thank you for your continued partnership and Mustang pride!

Our main entrance vestibule will serve as the visitor reception and waiting area. Guests will continue to be warmly welcomed, greeted by the staff member hosting them, and escorted to their meeting location. This update is part of our continued effort to strengthen safety and streamline visitor check-in procedures.

As we continue partnering with our local safety agencies, we remain committed to refining our practices and keeping safety at the heart of all we do. Ensuring a secure environment for our students, staff, and families is always our top priority.

To support this shared goal:

• Please bring a valid driver’s license or photo ID when picking up a student during the school day.

• For everyone’s safety, visitors may not leave the main office without a staff escort.

• All students, staff, and guests are expected to wear their designated ID badges while on campus.

Thank you for your continued partnership in keeping our Mustang community safe, connected, and thriving.

For current 7th or 8th grade scholars

1st Petitioning Meeting will be Monday, December 8th 7:30 AM in Cafetorium

1. Community Service Hours - minimum of 15 hours -Due April 6th.

2. Grading - A majority of A’s and B’s (Every C needs to be balanced with an “A”) during Trimesters 1-3 of the petitioning year in both Core and Encore classes. No overall “D” or “F” are allowed in any trimester.

3. Creating and maintaining a Digital Portfolio which highlights examples of the five NJHS pillars (scholarship, citizenship, leadership, character, and service) -Due February 2nd

4. Completion of a Capstone Project focusing on service on Service Learning Day April 25th

5. Regular attendance at NJHS meetings before school at 7:30 am in the cafetorium

Monday, December 8

Monday, January 12

Monday, February 2

Monday, March 9

Monday, April 13

Thursday, May 7- Mandatory Induction Ceremony Rehearsals (7:30 AM) & Ceremony (7:00 PM)

NJHS Sponsors Contact: Ms. Jen DiSalvo jdisalvo@d123.org

Mrs. Maggie Omiecinski mmomiecinski@d123.org

Mrs. Alyssa Zajack azajack@d123.org

We love having fans here to support our Mustang Athletes. Here is the LINK for our Spectator Permission Form and Code of Conduct for student spectators. Student fans unaccompanied by parents, must have an electronic or paper form on file to attend home games. Students cannot stay in the building for games unless they are part of a club or activity.

As technology continues to play a central role in our students’ daily lives, we encourage families to stay actively engaged in monitoring phone and device use. Research continues to show that excessive screen time and social media use can impact adolescents’ social and emotional health, leading to increased anxiety, disrupted sleep, and challenges with peer relationships.

We know that online interactions often extend beyond “after-school hours” and can sometimes affect students’ focus, well-being, and relationships during the school day. That’s why our partnership with families is so important. By setting healthy boundaries, fostering open conversations, and supporting positive digital habits, we can help ensure all Mustangs feel safe, connected, and ready to learn.

We’ve recently noticed elevated challenges on social media, so please take a few moments to talk with your child and check their online activity. Your ongoing support and proactiveness make a tremendous difference!

Here’s a helpful resource for families on preventing cyberbullying.

Retakes will be available for scholars in the Summative Assessment category (70%). Retake procedures for the Summative Assessment category include:

• Students will complete a reflection form, which will include the corrected test.

• Students are to ensure all classwork/homework/independent work for that unit is completed before the retake date.

• Retake dates will be established within 10 days of the graded assessment.

• Retakes will not be allowed once the trimester has completed.

• Retakes will not be completed during regular instructional time.

It is great to see so many scholars taking advantage of the opportunity to come in early or stay after school for additional time and support with academics. Please remind our scholars that this time should not be treated as a social opportunity and our school expectations of being safe, responsible and respectful should be maintained at all times. We appreciate everyone's support and partnership. Parents can check out the available times for each grade level on the student portal page!

• All parents/ guardians/ staff & students are highly encouraged to join the PTSA and attend meetings. This is an incredible opportunity, partnership and fun way to support our scholar’s experience at the middle school!

• If you are interested in supporting our school in a different capacity please reach out to our PTSA! Maybe you do not have the time to donate, but your contributions can still be made through your membership!

• Thank you to our PTSA Board members, families and scholars for joining us last night for a wonderfully informative first meeting of the year.

• Membership(Click Here) is $7.00 per student and $10.00 per adult

• PTSA Meetings are at 6:00pm monthly

• PTSA Meeting- November 10, 2025 at 6:00pm
• Reach out to Delecta Harris, our PTSA President for more information (olhmsd123ptsa@gmail.com)
  
• PTSA Facebook
  

We want to remind families that OLHMS does not allow student lunch deliveries from outside services (such as DoorDash, Uber Eats, or other vendors). This practice minimizes disruptions and contributes to a safe and structured lunch experience for all students. On the note of lunches, if a student receives a lunch detention, a brown bagged lunch will be delivered to the student. Students are always welcome to bring their own lunch.

We’re glad to see our scholars taking pride in their hygiene and personal care! However, the use of cologne and perfume has become overwhelming at times and is occasionally being applied inappropriately during the school day. To ensure a comfortable learning environment for everyone, we kindly ask that students leave their scented products at home.

Please take a moment to discuss with your child the proper use and appropriate amounts of fragrance. While we appreciate the effort to smell nice, excessive scents can be distracting and overpowering in shared spaces. Thank you for your support in helping us maintain a pleasant and respectful atmosphere for all!

1. Absenteeism in the first month of school can predict poor attendance throughout the school year. Half the students who miss 2-4 days in September go on to miss nearly a month of school. Read more...

2. The most recent federal data show that in the 2020-21 school year, at least 14.7 million students nationwide were chronically absent. This means that chronic absence has almost doubled from the more than 8 million students, pre-Covid-19, who were missing so many days of school that they were academically at risk. Read more...

3. Absenteeism and its ill effects start early. Read more...

4. Poor attendance can influence whether children read proficiently by the end of third grade or be held back. Read more...

5. By 6th grade, chronic absence becomes a leading indicator that a student will drop out of high school. Read more...

6. Research shows that missing 10 percent of the school, or about 18 days in most school districts, negatively affects a student’s academic performance. That’s just two days a month and that’s known as chronic absence. Read more...

7. Students who live in communities with high levels of poverty are four times more likely to be chronically absent than others often for reasons beyond their control, such as unstable housing, unreliable transportation and a lack of access to health care. Read more...

8. When students improve their attendance rates, they improve their academic prospects and chances for graduating. Read more...

9. Attendance improves when schools engage students and parents in positive ways and when schools provide mentors for chronically absent students. Read more...

10. Most school districts and states don’t look at all the right data to improve school attendance. They track how many students show up every day and how many are skipping school without an excuse, but not how many are missing so many days in excused and unexcused absence that they are headed off track academically. Read more...