Mills Elementary School

Please Support the 'We Love Mills' Boosterthon School Fundraiser!

Every year, Mills Elementary continues to stand out within Austin ISD because of our strong commitment to instructional excellence, innovation, and meaningful support for our students, families, and staff. As schools are continually asked to do more with fewer resources, a critical part of our sustained success comes from the intentional “extras” we choose to invest in as a campus through our own funds.

Each year, we host a Boosterthon fundraiser to support programs and positions that are not funded by the district, including:

• The Mills MakerSpace and MakerSpace Teacher (this position is not district-funded)

• Lunchroom monitors (not district-funded)

• Instructional extras, such as enrichment and intervention software and classroom materials used directly by students and teachers

• Professional development, including training and collaborative planning time for teachers and staff

• School-sponsored clubs, including Super Fun Book Club, Mills Running Club, Newspaper Club, Mills Choir, Mills Musical, and more

Your student(s) will be coming home this week with information about our We Love Mills Boosterthon fundraiser. Thank you in advance for your continued support of our amazing campus and community.

School Counselor Appreciation Week & Healthy Heart Week

• If your child has been supported by Mrs. Murphy or Mrs. Oyss this year, please consider sending them a note of appreciation or a gesture to show your gratitude! School counselors are the heart of every school and work with the classroom teacher to respond immediately when our children are struggling. Mills has the best school counselors!
• It's Healthy Heart Week, too! Every year, schools partner with the American Heart Association to focus on teaching students how to care for their hearts through healthy habits, movement, and kindness. The school gym will be open from 7am-7:30am each morning for students, with heart healthy activities facilitated by our PE coaches. Take a look at the flyer below and have your Mountain Lion join in on the fun!

Responsible Student Online Usage: Please Read

AISD campuses use Gaggle to monitor student online activity, including searches, images, and text within learning platforms. Content related to violence or self-harm, inappropriate language, bullying, drugs, or explicit material may be flagged and reviewed by safety experts.

All alerts are investigated by campus administration. Concerns involving self-harm are shared with counselors and addressed through AISD crisis protocols. Any threats of imminent danger or weapons are reported to AISD Police.

Please remind your child(ren) about this online monitoring and making responsible choices while online. Thank you for partnering with us to support responsible digital citizenship.

Reference the AISD Student Responsible Use Policy for further details. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out.

With Mills Pride,
Angela Frageman
Principal, Mills Elementary School

Spring Parent Conferences are coming up on February 17, and we’re looking forward to welcoming families to campus for this important opportunity to connect. Please be on the lookout for communication from your child’s teacher with details on how to sign up for a conference time.

Our goal is for every family to participate in a spring conference. Even if your child is doing well academically and socially, conferences are a valuable time to discuss how to sustain progress, set goals, and explore ways you can continue to support learning at home.

Here are some helpful resources on having a successful parent–teacher conference:

• https://childmind.org/article/parent-teacher-conferences-guide-for-parents/
• https://www.understood.org/en/articles/tips-successful-parent-teacher-conference

Character Strong Definition- Being truthful in what you say and do

Honesty Song- https://youtu.be/Wi6Hs2ISK88

Family conversation starters-

• Can you share or show me what Honesty means?
• When you are Honest, how does it make you feel? Why?

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We’re excited to share that this year, all PK–5th grade students at Mills are participating in Character Strong, our new social-emotional learning and character development curriculum.

Character Strong focuses on supporting the whole child by teaching essential life skills and positive character traits. Each month, students will explore a different trait through engaging activities, discussions, and school-wide themes. This is a great video that shares highlights of the CS program: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LlPnwxHOTpc

February Celebrations: Black History Month, Lunar New Year, Ramadan Begins, School Counselor & Heart Health Appreciation Week(s)

Feb 2- Campus Advisory Council Meeting (CAC) 3:30pm Google Meets

Feb 2-13 We Love Mills School Fundraiser

Feb 2-6 School Counselor Appreciation Week

Feb 2-6 Heart Healthy Awareness Week

Feb 6- Small MS Choice Sheet Visit (5th graders)

Feb 6- Lunar New Year Lion Dance Performance (students only)

Feb 10- 100th Day of School

Feb 11,12, 13 STAAR Interim Assessments (Reading, Math)

Feb 13- Principal Coffee: Special Guest, Sarah Tanner, Gorzycki Middle School Principal

Feb 14- Valentine's Day

Feb 16- Student Holiday/President's Day

Feb 16- General Enrollment Open for K-12, School year 2026-2027

Feb 17- Elementary Parent/Caregiver Spring Conference Day

Feb 17- Lunar New Year

Feb 18- Ramadaan Begins

Feb 20- Spring Class Pictures; Spring Individual Pictures

Feb 23- 5th Grade Middle School Visits

Feb 26- Summer Camp Fair- by Mills PTA 5:30pm-7pm

Feb 28- UT Girl STEM Day Field Trip

Need to load your child's lunch/breakfast account? Need to take a peek at the menu offerings?

Visit: https://www.schoolcafe.com/AustinISD

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1qMjuu-Fgltqt7vgLbP8lOTyZrWe0euH3/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=104188077472205154841&rtpof=true&sd=true

Support our School! Join PTA!

We encourage you to join the PTA. By becoming a member, you'll be directly supporting our school's teachers, students and community.

JOIN HERE (Select Joe Dan Mills Elementary PTA)

Be sure to register as a user on our new website and stay up to date with all of our PTA happenings! https://millspta.membershiptoolkit.com/

It's always a GREAT day to be a Mountain Lion and we're extremely proud to be recognized as one of the top schools in the state by US News & World Report: https://austin.culturemap.com/news/city-life/best-elementary-middle-schools-list/