Ram Report - Parent Newsletter

Families, we can’t thank you enough for the incredible support you’ve given us this school year!

We had one of the highest attended PTSA meetings last Tuesday; however, we have a long way to go! Mr. Corrigan shared many updates about our school’s progress, answered questions, and took feedback on areas for improvement. Some of the discussion points led to updates in this newsletter. Your involvement is so important in your child’s success here at RMS. The next PTSA meeting is September 12th at 4:30pm.

This begins week four of the school year. Students should be well acquainted with procedures and expectations at this point and teachers will continue to dig deeper into learning. We’ve asked teachers to ensure gradebooks are updated in Skyward on a weekly basis. We’ve of course given some grace with it being the beginning of the year, but please begin checking weekly if you haven’t already.

Have a great week, and please don’t hesitate to reach out if there is anything we can do to better support your student or family!

-Nick Corrigan, Principal, njcorrigan@ortn.edu

-Christy Free, Vice Principal, ccfree@ortn.edu

-Christopher Williams, Dean of Students, cewilliams@ortn.edu

Monday – Aug 14

Cross-Country Practice 3:00-4:15pm

Football Practice 3:30-6:00pm

Lady Rams Volleyball @ RMS JV 4:30pm, V 5:30pm

Tuesday – Aug 15

Cheer Practice 2:45-5:00pm (Gym)

Cross-Country Practice 3:00-4:15pm

Football Practice 3:30-6:00pm

Varsity Volleyball @ JMS 6:30pm

Wednesday – Aug 16

Student Focus Meetings

• 5th Grade 1:00-1:45 (Room 110)
• 6th Grade 1:45-2:30 (Room 227)
• 7th Grade 2:30-3:15 (Room 120)
• 8th Grade 3:15-4:00 (Room 235)

Football Practice 1:00-2:00pm

Volleyball Practice 2:00-4:00pm (Gym)

Thursday – Aug 17

Cross-Country Practice 3:00-4:15pm

RMS Football vs. Lenoir City 6:30pm (A)

Volleyball Practice 3:00-5:00pm (Gym)

Friday – Aug 18

8th Grade Science and Social Studies CTM (115C)

GIVE Club 7:00-7:30am (Room 224)

Cross-Country Practice 3:00-4:15pm

Volleyball Practice 3:00-5:00pm (Gym)

Fall Portrait Day at Robertsville will be Friday, August 25, 2023. Paper flyers with ordering information have been sent home during the week of August 7-11. Parents may send payment in the flyer’s envelope on portrait day OR pre-order online using the school’s unique code EVTZPZKDH. Please direct questions to RMS Yearbook Sponsor Julie Kinder-McMillan (jkinder@ortn.edu).

Dear families,

When you or your child needs help, it’s hard to know where to turn. In an effort to ease the burden of finding the mental health and substance use services you need, we’ve partnered with Care Solace, your central hub of care.

With a network of over 350,000 providers and services, Care Solace will help you find the right help at the right time, 24/7/365, at no cost to you. They will connect you with providers accepting all medical insurances, including Medicaid, Medicare, and sliding scale options for those without insurance.

You can access Care Solace services in three ways:

• Call 888-515-0595 at any time. Multilingual support is available 24/7/365. A dedicated Care Companion will help you every step of the way to research options, secure appointments, and follow up to make sure it is a good fit.
• Search anonymously to get matched with an extensive list of care providers at caresolace.com/oakridgeschools.
• Contact your school health professional, and they will submit a referral on your behalf.

No matter what you're experiencing, there is hope and help. We are confident that our new partnership with Care Solace will help us build a healthier, more vibrant school community.

If you have a life-threatening emergency, please call 9-1-1 or The Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 9-8-8. Care Solace is not an emergency response service or mental health services provider.

PTSA has begun the annual Spirit Wear Drive. Students will receive order forms in their homeroom classes on Monday morning. Orders can also be made online at RMS Spirit Gear Store. Be sure to get yours today to show off your Ram Pride this year!

During our PTSA Meeting on Tuesday evening, there were several parents that expressed interest in resources for families that supported their children's learning in the math classroom. Please take a look at the following link which provides an overview of Amplify Math. Be sure to scroll down to Unit Caregiver Letters to access resources for each unit that provide an overview of what students are learning in class.

Additionally, be sure to check Canvas on your child's device for more information about their current assignments and unit of study.

Finally, please don't hesitate to reach out to your child's math teacher with any questions!

RMS has a help desk for students that have issues with their laptops. Please be sure to encourage your students to visit the help desk (with teacher permission of course) in the event there is ever any damage to their device or case.

RAM FAM, We wanted to share a few announcements about the importance of a positive environment at our athletic events. We are tremendously proud of our student-athletes and their dedication to schoolwork while also balancing the demands of being an athlete! At RMS, there is a clear understanding & school culture that success in the classroom, excellent character, and good sportsmanship are top priorities. We are equally as proud of the environment our coaches and families have built over the years at RMS to ensure a positive environment for our students and families to enjoy watching games and athletic contests.

Recently, the TMSAA passed the following in their bylaws:

For fans ejected for unsportsmanlike conduct during a contest, the school will be fined a minimum of $250.00. In addition, other non-monetary disciplinary action may occur, including but not limited to probation and/or restrictive probation for the entire athletic program (equivalent to the minimum penalty for a fan invading the playing field).

We share this to reiterate the importance of positive interactions with game officials and positive sportsmanship as a player or spectator at our school sponsored athletic events. As always, inappropriate conduct & behavior by anyone attending a school sponsored event will simply not be tolerated. If there are ever any concerns, we encourage you to speak with our Athletic Director, Mr. John Spratling. RMS Administration (Mr. Corrigan, Mrs. Free, & Mr. Williams) is also available at any home game or event. Robertsville Middle School has built a strong legacy of good sportsmanship & a positive environment. Please help us support our hard-working student-athletes this school year!

BACH TO SCHOOL WORKSHOP was a complete success with students represented from all our schools. 5-12th grade. Each student had the opportunity to study their instrument under several guest instructors including Edward Pulgar from the KSO, Jon Hamar a Bass Professor from UT, Alicia Randisi-Hooker from Maryville College, Camron Rehberg from Suzuki School of Music in Knoxville, Mrs Amy Byrd from RMS and our very own Mr. Hernandez! For 2 days after school and this past Saturday, they got together to study music in sectionals and full orchestra. Coming together for a grand finale performance... BRAVO-

Take a listen: Here's a link on our FB page Sit back and enjoy: Soloist Edward Pulgar from the KSO

Facebook - ORHSstrings

Thank you to our parent volunteers, participants, and all the families that joined us for our finale concert!

The PDFs of the bus routes have been posted online and are available to families on the transportation website. They are also linked from the back-to-school website.

Additionally, families can log on to the Tyler Versatrans website and check their route information there. The directions for that are below.

Tyler Versatran Log In

Username: (use student’s name) firstname.lastname

This is case sensitive–example: john.smith

Password: (use student birth date) in this format 03122007 for March 12, 2007

Transportation Dept Information & Points of Contact can be found at:

https://www.ortn.edu/district/bus-routes/

Hello from your counselors – Mrs. Best and Mrs. Sanford! We’re so excited to welcome back our RMS students and to welcome and get to know our newest students! We hope you had a wonderful summer!

Schedule changes are only available for elective classes, and we do not make changes within the first week of school. There will be a form available in the counseling center to request an elective change beginning July 31st. Changes can only be made up to August 18th. Students can also request a schedule change form from their elective teacher, as they will also have them available. Forms must be turned in to the counseling center with appropriate signatures by August 18th.

Our fifth grade students will have an opportunity to sample all the elective options within the first two weeks of schools and will be asked to choose an elective on Wednesday, August 9th. They will begin in their elective class on Thursday, August 10th.

Need to See a Counselor - Student Request Form

If students need to see a counselor throughout the year for any reason, we ask that they complete the online “Request to See a Counselor” form located in Clever. Once students complete this form, the counselors will receive an email and will work to schedule students based on their availability. If the situation is an emergency, we ask that students please make note of this in the comments section. We ask that students please be patient and know that we will get them scheduled as soon as possible. If it will take more than a day, we will reach out to the student by email or through their teacher to let them know.

Parents are always welcome to reach out to us with any questions or concerns. Kristy Best works with 5th and 7th grades – kbest@ortn.edu. Tarah Sanford works with 6th and 8th grades – TASanford@ortn.edu.

7th Grade TDAP Booster - Required Immunization!

• All 7th graders Must have a record of their 7th grade Tdap vaccination on file at RMS to begin their school year. Please ensure this is completed ASAP. Contact our school nurse, Meg Evans with any questions or concerns at 865-425-9201.

Additional Medication Information

• The medication administration policy of the Oak Ridge School System states: every effort should be made to avoid the necessity of children being given medication at school. If under exceptional circumstances a student is required to take medication during school hours, only the school nurse or the principal’s designee may assist the student. It is the parent/guardian’s responsibility to bring this medication to school and remove any unused medication when treatment is completed. The medication form can be found here: Authorization_for_Medication_Administration.

Families asked for more engagement on our survey last Spring with specific requests for updates on the school's plans and progress, homework support, etc. In response, Mr. Corrigan will be hosting monthly Coffee & Conversation every First Friday at RMS. We hope that you will find it convenient to drop off your children at school and stay for an extra few minutes on these mornings before work to discuss some of these important topics together!

We also encourage you to attend our PTSA meetings which include an update from Mr. Corrigan, a grade level teacher update, as well as the many events that PTSA organizes throughout the year.

Athletics

The Rams had another impressive win against CAK last Thursday night with a final score of 38-0! This puts RMS at 2-0 in the TVAC Conference along with Spring City & Norris. The next game is Lenoir City this Thursday night. Make the trip to be sure and cheer on the Rams!

The Volleyball Team fell to Norris in the third set last week in a close match! They take on Northview and Clinton on Monday and Tuesday evening respectively.

Clubs

RMS has several school sponsored clubs! These clubs are sponsored by an RMS staff member and provide an excellent opportunity to interact with peers outside of the classroom. Check out the list below for more information. The RMS Club Fair is scheduled for August 22nd! Students will have the opportunity to learn more about the many clubs offered at RMS during their rotation class period that day.

About

The Robertsville Middle School Parent Teacher Association (RMS PTSA) is part of the RMS family. Our purpose is to support fun and educational programs, events, services, and opportunities to our children, to enrich their academic experience. We work closely with the school administration, faculty, and staff to help our students achieve all that they can.

Membership

The membership dues for the current year shall be set at $5.00. At the present time, the TN PTA portion is $2.00 and the National PTA portion is $2.25. RMS PTSA will keep $.75 to offset membership processing fees.

Volunteer

Research shows that students whose parents are involved in their school get better grades, do better on tests and have fewer disciplinary problems at school.

What is your talent? Community outreach, back to school activities, spirit gear, RAM Perks reward program, donation drive/fundraising, visiting author receptions, or providing items for events like our teacher/staff luncheons, intercessions, and State testing.

While you DO NOT need to be a member of PTSA to be a volunteer, we would like to invite all adults AND students with an interest in RMS to join and have a voice in how PTSA funds are used to support RMS. Volunteer forms are in the back-to-school packets or may be found on the Forms page of PTSA website.