HAWK HIGHLIGHTS

Gompers Newsletter for the Week of 9.2.24

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lilughat alearabiati, adghat ealaa zirin "TRANSLATE" almawjud fi allawhat aleulwiat lihadhih alsafhat waqum bitarjamat alnashrat al'iikhbariat bi'akmaliha 'iilaa allughat alearabiati.

Mission and Vision!

Mission:

To provide a high-quality, inclusive, and equitable education for students to grow, lead, and thrive by empowering staff, collaborating with families, and embracing our diverse community.

Vision:

Gompers will be a collaborative community that provides a sense of belonging and high levels of achievement for all students, staff, and families.

Events this week

Monday

LABOR DAY - No School

Tuesday

Cross Country vs. vs. Dirksen at Oak Prairie, 4p

Wednesday

Cross Country @ Jane Adams, 4p

Thursday

Band/Orch Registration Night, 5p

Friday

Regular School Activities

Click Here for All 2024-2025 Calendar Events at Gompers

Labor Day

Monday, September 2, 2024, all Joliet District 86 schools are closed to celebrate the Labor Day holiday. We wish all families a wonderful holiday weekend with your families and friends and look forward to seeing everyone back at school on Tuesday, September 3, 2024, for a week full of learning.

Breakfast and Lunch Menus

The breakfast and lunch menus are posted on our school's District 86 website

at https://linqconnect.com/public/menu/8EB254?lang=English. To view them:

Select "GOMPERS" from the top right drop-down menu.
To view the hot lunch menu, click the Menu Plan drop-down box on the right side of the screen and select "2024/2025 Hot Lunch."
To view the breakfast menus, click on the word "Breakfast" under the dates on the left side of the screen.

Arrival/Dismissal Car lines

Thank you to all the families who have been very helpful with our arrival and dismissal car lines. Here are a few guidelines to help the car lines move smoothly, quickly, and safely for all students.

All car pick-ups and drop-offs must occur off of Briggs in the northeast lot.
Follow the traffic pattern by heading south on Briggs, entering the driveway, and following the pattern. Cars traveling north on Briggs will need to turn around to face south.
After 7:45am, all arrivals must occur at Copperfield as our Briggs supervision ends at that time.
Families should not park in our lots or across the street and have their children walk across traffic to avoid the car lines. This is unsafe and puts your children at a high risk of an accident.
Please display your Blue Gompers Card on your windshield for dismissal. Vehicles without a blue card will not be allowed to enter the car line in the afternoon.
Please be patient! All families need to feel their children are safe at arrival and dismissal time.

Working together, we can ensure that every student is picked up and dropped off quickly and safely.

Class of 2025!

We are thrilled to prepare the Class of 2025 for a year full of exciting events. We want every 8th grader to participate in all our end-of-the-year activities. To join in all eighth-grade activities, including the graduation ceremony, any end-of-the-year trips, and the Dinner Dance, students must throughout the year:

Maintain a cumulative GPA of 2.0 or higher
Demonstrate appropriate school behavior
Pay all school fees and outstanding financial obligations
Maintain 85% attendance for the year

Let's work together to ensure that every student in the Class of 2025 is eligible to participate in all the end-of-the-year activities. Click on THIS LINK for the letter that was sent home this week. If you have any questions, please our office at 815.727.5276 or the 8th grade Academic Advisor, Mr. Wikert, at dwikert@joliet86.org.

End the Hate

At Gompers Jr. High, we take bullying very seriously. Bullying at school, in the community, or on social media is never acceptable or should be taken lightly. If your child is experiencing any form of bullying, the first step is to report the incident to an Academic Advisor, Counselor, or Social Worker. The Gompers staff is here to help and ask that you report bullying as soon as you know about it. Please contact the following individuals via email or call our office to speak with them at 815.727.5276 during school hours. Your partnership is essential in helping keep all our students safe from bullying.

6th Grade

Laura Arias, Academic Advisor, larias@Joliet86.org
Brooke Hagadus, Social Worker, bhagadus@Joliet86.org

7th Grade

Courtney Miller, Academic Advisor, camiller@Joliet86.org
Maria Arroyo, Counselor, mgarroyo@Joliet86.org

8th Grade

Dan Wilkert, Academic Advisor, dwikert@Joliet86.org
Therese Skwarczynski, Social Worker, tskwarczynski@Joliet86.org

Attendance Matters in Joliet

Attendance Awareness Month is a nationwide campaign in September to highlight the importance of school attendance and its positive impact on student success. Every day a student is in school is an opportunity to learn, build relationships, and access support. The campaign encourages schools, localities, and states to promote the value of good attendance and take steps to reduce chronic absence. Chronic absenteeism is defined as missing more than 10% of school days, typically around 15 days or more per year.

Students who attend school regularly have been shown to achieve higher levels than students who do not have regular attendance. A missed school day is a lost opportunity for students to learn. Chronic student absence reduces even the best teacher's ability to provide learning opportunities. Encourage healthy attendance habits for your children at a young age for a lifetime of greater success.

Did you know that Fridays typically have the highest absence rates, but it is the most important day of the week to be in school? Many teachers provide instruction during the week and finish the week with a quiz or other assessment on Friday. This allows the teacher to see the gaps in student learning and fill them the following week. If your student is absent on Friday, they must remember a significant details over the weekend, which may result in lower scores and losing new content or reteaching putting them further behind their classmates. Every day is vital to be at school, but let's make Fridays even more important.

Recycle the Bag

We are starting the new year off strong and already have full bins! Last year, we collected all types of flexible plastics to recycle. For example, grocery bags, bread bags, vegetable bags, zip lock bags, or any other kind of soft plastic can be sent in for recycling. Gompers will receive a free plastic bench for every 1000 pounds we recycle. Below is a picture of the bench we earned last year; thanks for all your help. Our collections this year has started and are as follows:

8th grade: 12 lbs
7th grade: 11 lbs
6th grade: 28 lbs

Total: 51 lbs and only 949 lbs to go for our next bench as we remove 1000 lbs from landfills!

From the Gompers Health Office

As school begins, we would like to address keeping your children healthy and in school. Health history, medication orders and care plans must be done every school year.

STUDENT HEALTH REQUIREMENTS

A Physical Examination and required immunization records are required for all Pre-K, Kindergarten, 6th grade, and new transfer students from out of state. Forms must be turned into the school office by October 15, 2024. Students will be excluded from school beginning October 16th, 2024 if we do not receive the required information. Appointment dates past the October 15th deadline are no longer accepted by the State of Illinois. If you have any questions, please contact our school nurse. New students to the District from out of state or out of the country have 30 days from the first day of school to submit a health exam.

STUDENT HEALTH HISTORY and LIFE-THREATENING CONDITIONS

If your student has a significant health history, life threatening allergy, or special medical concern including asthma, diabetes, seizures, or other medical conditions please contact the school nurse so that we can create an Emergency Health Care Plan. A PHYSICIAN’S NOTE IS REQUIRED if your child has FOOD allergies so we can provide substitutions. It must be a DIAGNOSED allergy and not just a sensitivity.

MEDICATION AT SCHOOL

If your child must receive medication (prescription or over-the-counter) in order to be in school, you will need a "Medication Authorization Form” completed by a licensed healthcare provider or physician also signed and dated by the parent/guardian.

DIABETICS

We must have a School Diabetic Care Plan on file from your physician with medication orders (if needed) in case of emergencies and to assist and care for all diabetic students.

FREE DENTAL SCREENINGS

If you are interested in signing up for a free dental screening at Gompers Junior High please visit the link below. Dental exams are required for 6th and 9th grade students. Dental screenings will be held September 18-20 during school hours. Sign up at: https://opdsdentalservices.formstack.com/forms/joliet_public_schools_district_86

If you have any questions please contact the school nurse, Melissa Quitman, at mquitman@joliet86.org or at 815-727-5276

Check out the Y after school program at Gompers!

Now Hiring!

You read that correctly. Joliet Public School District 86 is hiring for a number of positions throughout the district. Go to https://joliet86.tedk12.com/hire/index.aspx and review all the current open positions. Feel free to share it with friends and other community members.