Travis TAG School Newsletter

Dear Travis TAG Families,

The first day of school is almost here, and our Timberwolves are ready to begin another exciting quest together. This year’s theme, “Timberwolves on a Quest: Reaching New Heights,” is a call for each of us to learn, grow, and strive for excellence every day.

In this newsletter, you will find key updates to help you feel confident and prepared for the start of school, including the slide deck we will use on Day 1 to share our cellular device expectations in compliance with House Bill 1481. We encourage you to review it at home so students are ready for a smooth and focused start.

Thank you for your partnership in making Travis TAG a place where curiosity thrives, character grows, and every Timberwolf reaches new heights.

With excitement,
Principal Mercon

P.S. The slide deck for our grade level assemblies will be shared by Tuesday evening in preparation for middle school on Wednesday August 13 and elementary school on Thursday August 14. This slide deck is separate from the cellular device plan presentation, which will be shared first thing on Tuesday August 12 and is linked below in this newsletter.

A huge thank you to all the families who joined us this past Thursday for Meet the Teacher Night. It was wonderful to see our hallways filled with excited Timberwolves and their families, ready to launch into a new school year. We hope the evening gave you a chance to connect with teachers, explore classrooms, and get a head start on building strong relationships for the year ahead.

If you were unable to attend or would like to revisit the information shared, here is the slide deck from my short presentation in the auditorium: Meet the Teacher Slide Deck

We are so grateful for your partnership and enthusiasm as we begin our quest for another incredible year at Travis TAG!

Doors open for students at 8:00 AM

Arrival Locations:

• 4th Grade: Enter through elementary doors, go to cafeteria

• 5th Grade: Enter through elementary doors, go to gym

• 6th Grade: Enter through secure entry, go to gym

• 7th Grade: Enter through secure entry, go to auditorium

• 8th Grade: Enter through secure entry, go to auditorium

Faculty and staff will be on hand to guide students to their correct locations.

Once in their designated grade-level spaces, students will receive a short presentation about our cellular device plan, including the what, why, and how, along with expectations and consequences. More information, including a link to the slide deck, can be found further down in this newsletter in the Cellular Device section.

Student schedules for the 2025–2026 school year are now available in PowerSchool. We encourage families to log in and review schedules before the first day of school.

📲 Accessing Schedules Online
View your child’s schedule anytime through the PowerSchool Parent Portal. If you need help logging in, please call the main office at 972-794-7500.

📝 Hard Copies Provided
If your student did not attend Meet the Teacher, we will provide a printed copy of their schedule during arrival on the first day of school, Tuesday, August 12:

• 4th Grade: Cafeteria

• 5th & 6th Grade: Gym

• 7th & 8th Grade: Auditorium

We want every Timberwolf to start the year confident and ready to go — schedules in hand and prepared for a great first day.

Students should arrive in dress code each day. Full guidelines are on our website here: Dress Code School Website Link
Clear backpacks are required for all students at Travis TAG. This allows for a smoother and more efficient secure entry each morning so students can quickly connect with friends and get ready for class.

Student school lists can also be found on our school website: Student Supply Lists by Grade Level

In compliance with House Bill 1481, Texas public schools are required to limit student access to personal cell phones and wireless communication devices, including smartwatches and wireless earbuds, during the instructional day. We have previously shared this information in our newsletters and discussed it at Meet the Teacher Night.

💡 What You Can Do Now:

• Decide if your student truly needs to bring a device.

• Provide wired headphones for classroom use (wireless earbuds will not be allowed).

• If your student brings a phone, know that secure storage pouches will be issued on the first day of school.

• Families may use a tracker like an Apple AirTag or Tile in student backpacks for location updates before and after school hours.

We are sharing the slide deck in this newsletter for families to review with students prior to the first day of school. On Tuesday, August 12, we will review this slide deck with students and issue their cellular device storage pouches in grade-level assembly spaces. We expect this process to take less than an hour and will have students in classes and back to their schedule as quickly as possible.

Click on the button bellow to access the slide deck.

It was brought to our attention that some families did not receive the 4th grade welcome email that Mr. Delgado sent on Friday, August 8. We know how important it is for our new Timberwolf families to feel prepared, and we apologize for the inconvenience. We are working to ensure all families are registered in the correct communication groups.

For your convenience, here is a PDF of the email with all working links (click PDF below).

Good afternoon parents of Travis TAG,

Welcome back to school! Woo Hoo! 😊

As we start off a new school year, I have a few reminders for everyone to make sure every student is safe and taken care of while they are here at school.

1. Parents of incoming 7th graders!- please review your student’s shot records and make sure they got those 11 y.o. Tdap and Meningitis vaccines before coming back to school. If they have already gotten them, please go ahead and send me their updated shot record so I can make sure we have them marked as compliant in the district electronic health records. If they have not yet received these shots- please make an appointment and get me that updated shot record as soon as possible! All of this should go through me, or the front office directly - if you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to me!

1. If you have a student with any sort of medical diagnosis (diabetes, ADHD, asthma, food allergies, etc.), I need to know about it! Please reach out to me directly so we can make sure your student is set up for success and safety while they are on Travis campus.

1. If your child needs to take any medications while they are at school, I need to have the proper paperwork filled out. They are not allowed to carry it by themselves in their backpacks. The only exception to this would be inhalers, but we still need the proper paperwork filled out for self-administration. So please let me know this asap as well!

- If your child had medication here on campus last year, I will need updated paperwork for this year, as well as new (non-expired) meds.

If you have any questions about the above points, or anything at all, please do not hesitate to ask!

I am so looking forward to this 2025-2026 school year with you all! 😊

Thanks so much,

Abby Mertz BSN, RN

William B. Travis Nurse

amertz@dallasisd.org

972-794-7507

Please review our PTA and SBDM arrival and dismissal guidelines for a safe and efficient process.
Key points:

• Enter the carpool line from Carlisle Street only.

• Do not block trolley tracks, intersections, or teacher parking.

• Bus riders enter and exit on Sneed Street only.
  Full details, maps, and videos are available here:

🔗 Travis TAG PTA Carpool Information Page

Thank you for your cooperation in keeping our arrival and dismissal safe and respectful for all. Please be patient, courteous, and model kindness for our Timberwolves!

To help ensure a smooth start, all student passwords have been reset to the Dallas ISD default password. This helps minimize login issues and reduces instructional disruptions during the first few days of school.

What Families Should Know:

• Students will use their district default password to log in on the first day of school.

• We encourage students to change their password to something secure as soon as possible.

• Teachers have the ability to reset student passwords if needed and will help students who have trouble logging in.

📌 Important: For security reasons, the default password format cannot be posted publicly. If your student does not know their default password, they can ask their teacher or the school office when they return to campus.

By making sure students can log in without issues, we can spend less time troubleshooting and more time learning from day one.

In order to best plan for next school year, we encourage you to complete your Enrollment/Registration online forms today! Just click the Enroll Here button below.

PLEASE COMPLETE AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.

The video below will walk you through the steps if you need assistance.

Travis TAG uses the Remind app to send out important school updates, reminders, and announcements.

If you're not already receiving our messages, please sign up by joining the appropriate class code(s) below based on your student’s 2025–2026 grade level:

🏫 Schoolwide Announcements

• Class code: @travis-tag

📚 Grade-Level Codes:

• Grade 4 – @wbt2030
• Grade 5 – @wbt2029
• Grade 6 – @wbt2028
• Grade 7 – @wbt2027
• Grade 8 – @wbt2026

How to Join:
✅ Download the Remind app
OR
✅ Text the class code (e.g., @wbt2028) to 81010
OR
✅ Sign up at remind.com/join

Already joined last year?
No need to sign up again! We move students up automatically with their grade level, so your messages will continue without interruption.

Thank you for staying connected—we look forward to an amazing year ahead!

📣 Staying in the Loop

In addition to Remind, you’ll receive regular newsletters and email updates. Make sure your contact information is up-to-date in PowerSchool, and follow our website and PTA Facebook group for the latest!

We are excited to welcome back Mad Science as our official afterschool care provider at Travis TAG for the 2025–2026 school year!

🕒 Program Hours:
Monday through Friday | 3:30 PM – 6:30 PM
Note: The program follows the school calendar and will not operate on early dismissal days, holidays, or inclement weather days.

📋 Registration is Now Open:
Register online by visiting: https://dfw.madscience.org/parents-register-a.aspx

💬 Questions?
You can email them at: info.request@msgdallas.com

We’re grateful to partner with Mad Science to offer a hands-on, curiosity-driven afterschool experience for our Timberwolves!

We know that planning ahead is important for families, and we want to make it easier to stay informed and prepared for the year ahead. We are excited to share two key calendar resources with you:

📘 Middle School A/B Day Calendar (Grades 6–8 Only)

Our 6th–8th grade students follow an A/B day rotation to support our block schedule. This calendar outlines which days are designated as "A Days" and "B Days" throughout the school year.

📎 Click here to view the A/B Day Calendar

📙 Comprehensive School Events Calendar

This calendar includes major events, testing windows, holidays, family nights, PTA events, and more.

📎 Click here to view the Full 2025–2026 Travis TAG Events Calendar

🔄 Please note: These are working documents and subject to change throughout the year. We’re sharing them now so you can plan ahead with your family. Any updates will be communicated in our newsletters and through Remind.

Thank you for staying connected—we’re looking forward to an amazing year together!

August 12 - First day of school!

August 14 - School Picture Day (in school uniform)

August 18 - iReady BOY Reading (Grades 4-8)

August 19 - iReady BOY Math (Grades 4-7)

🔗 Click the button below to view our full calendar of events. Please note this is a working calendar and is subject to change as the year progresses.

Travis TAG is proud to offer bus transportation for all of our students. Transportation routes are determined by Dallas ISD Transportation Services, based on student applications submitted during the spring semester.

🗺️ You can view the current 2025–2026 bus routes and bus stop locations by clicking the button below:
📎 Dallas ISD 2025-2026 Bus Route and Bus Stop Information Page

Please Note:

• We do not provide transportation for afterschool programs.

• If you notice a discrepancy in your student's assigned route or home school location is missing, please contact our front office at 972-794-7500. We will follow up directly with Dallas ISD Transportation on your behalf.

Thank you for your patience and partnership as we support a smooth and safe start to the school year.

Below you can see our current bus routes for the 2025-2026 school year in a PDF.

🧩 Join the PTA

Support our school community by becoming a member of the Travis TAG PTA!

🌐 Join online: www.joinpta.org
➡️ Select: Dallas ISD – William B. Travis Vanguard and Academy

⚠️ Please Note: PTA membership renews annually. If you joined prior to August 1, 2025, your membership has now expired. To stay active for the 2025–2026 school year, you’ll need to re-enroll beginning today, August 1.

📘 PTA Facebook Group
Stay in the loop with updates, events, and community conversations.
🔍 Click and join: Travis TAG PTA

👕 School Spirit Stores
Show your Timberwolf pride all year long!

• PTA Spirit Wear Store: open now! Find the online spirit store on the PTA website.

Your partnership with PTA helps bring enrichment events, student celebrations, and more to our campus. Thank you for your continued support!

Need to revisit something quickly? Here are some of the most helpful links from this newsletter:

• 📅 Travis TAG Events Calendar

• 🚌 Bus Routes and Transportation Info

• 📝 Enrollment and Registration Help

• 🎒 School Supply Lists and Dress Code

• 🧩 Join the PTA

• 👕 Spirit Store – Opens August 8