Dear Shepard Families:
Happy November! Can you think of a better way to represent this time of year in the Midwest than weather ranging from the 40s to the 80s over the course of the week? At Shepard, we definitely took advantage of some warmer weather in PE, completed breakout rooms in 8th-grade ELA, and continued various lab work in science to name a few of the cool learning experiences occurring in our classrooms and learning spaces.
As a reminder, we have no school on Tuesday, 11/5 due to Election Day and no school on Monday, 11/11 due to Veterans Day. We are—and continue to be—eternally grateful for the service of our veterans and active-duty members of the United States Armed Forces.
In this edition, you will find:
New Information:
- Elyssa's Mission Next Week
- Chasing Childhood
- Parental Tech Tips #5
- Parent-Teacher Conference Feedback
- Yearbooks
- Cheer/Poms Tryouts
- District 109 Annual Food and Supply Drive
- Clubs and Activities at Shepard
- ARC at Shepard
No Place for Hate at Shepard and Caruso
- Arrival Lanes Reminder
- Middle School Health Curriculum Note
- Remind App Information
- 8th-Grade Yearbook Flashback Page
- Lockers, Locks, and Personal Responsibilities
- Lunch Information
- Medication and Attendance
- PTSO Information
Sincerely,
Rob Wegley, Principal
Cathy Van Treese, Associate Principal
Ginger Logemann, Director for Student Services
Upcoming Dates
November 4 - Cheer/Poms Tryouts - 3:00 - 3:55 pm
November 4 - 7th & 8th Girls Basketball — Home vs. Attea - 4:30 - 6:30 pm
November 4 - 7th & 8th Boys Basketball — Away @ Attea - 4:30 - 6:30 pm
November 4 - DHS/Middle School Choir Concert @ DHS - 7:00 - 8:00 pm
November 5 - No School (Election Day)
November 7 - 7th Boys and Girls Basketball — Home vs. Caruso - 4:30 - 6:30 pm
November 7 - 8th Boys and Girls Basketball — Away @ Caruso - 4:30 - 6:30 pm
November 7 - 6th Boys and Girls Basketball — Home (Sachs Center) vs. Maple - 4:30 - 6:30 pm
Dear Parent or Guardian:
The adolescent years are marked by a roller-coaster ride of emotions—difficult for students, their parents and educators. It is easy to misinterpret depression as “normal” adolescent moodiness; however, depression (among the most common of mental illnesses) appears to be occurring at a much earlier age. Depression–which is treatable–is a leading risk factor for suicide. In addition, self-injury has become a growing problem among youth.
To proactively address these issues, Shepard Middle School is offering depression awareness and suicide prevention training as part of the Signs of Suicide (SOS) program. The program aims to increase help-seeking behaviors among students concerned about themselves or a friend. Listed on SAMHSA’s National Registry of Evidence-Based Programs and Practices, the SOS program showed a reduction in self-reported suicide attempts by 40-64% in randomized control studies (Aseltine et al., 2007 & Schilling et al., 2016).
Our goals in participating in this program are as follows:
To help our students understand that depression is a treatable illness
To explain that suicide is a preventable tragedy that often occurs as a result of untreated depression
To provide students with the training on how to identify serious depression and potential suicidality in themselves or a friend
To impress upon youth that they can help themselves or a friend by taking the simple step of talking to a responsible adult about their concerns
To help students know whom in the school they can turn to for help, if they need it
This program will be presented to our 6th to 8th graders during the week of November 4, 2024. The SOS program is brought to us by Elyssa’s Mission, a nonprofit organization dedicated to suicide prevention. Elyssa’s Mission is the only organization in the state of Illinois to fund, distribute and implement SOS. To get more information on suicide prevention, visit their website at www.elyssasmission.org. Make sure to view their online Parent Presentation at https://elyssasmission.org/for-parents/ for specific information on warning signs and how to keep your child safe. We also encourage you to visit www.sossignsofsuicide.org/parent for information on warning signs for youth suicide, useful resources, and some of the key messages students will learn.
As part of the program, facilitators, which includes our social workers, counselors, psychologists, and P.E. staff will show SOS video clips and lead students in discussion. Students will then complete a brief depression screener, as well as fill out a Response Card indicating whether or not they would like to speak to an adult about themselves or a friend. The depression screening tool addresses thoughts and feelings which a parent may be unaware their child is having. This tool does not provide a diagnosis of depression, and rather alerts school staff to those students requiring further investigation. School mental health staff or a qualified community mental health partner will be available to meet with designated students; school staff will subsequently notify parents/guardians regarding any needed next steps.
In addition, attached here is a parent/caregiver handout for your review.
If you do NOT want your child to participate in the SOS program, please complete THIS form by TODAY, Friday, November 1st. If we do not hear from you, we will assume your child has permission to participate in this program.
Thank you to those of you who joined us for parent-teacher conferences at Shepard this fall. We are seeking feedback from our parent/guardian community on how conferences went from your perspective as well as on the structure of conferences. If you are interested in providing feedback, here is a link to a Google Form to do so. Thank you!
As you have noticed, we continue to emphasize inclusion at Shepard. One of the key ways to foster inclusion and a sense of belonging is through students getting involved in athletics, clubs, and activities at school. We have an updated clubs and activities page on our website. We have the same for athletics. We encourage you to take a look with your child to see if they may express interest in any they want to give a try!
As we focus further on student sense of belonging and inclusion, we are excited to announce that both Shepard Middle School and Caruso Middle School will be participating in the No Place for Hate program this school year. This initiative, created by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), is designed to foster a positive, inclusive school environment where all students feel safe, respected, and valued.
As part of No Place for Hate, our schools will focus on promoting respect, empathy, and kindness among students in partnership with student leadership groups. Throughout the year, students will engage in activities and lessons that celebrate diversity and encourage a culture of acceptance and unity. More information will be coming soon after our first student committee meeting. Together, we can emphasize a school community where everyone belongs.
If you have any questions about No Place for Hate or would like more information, please feel free to contact Mark Schwarz at mschwarz@dps109.org (Caruso) or Rob Wegley at rwegley@dps109.org (Shepard).
Thank you for your continued partnership in creating a positive learning environment for all of our students.
As part of the Physical Education/Health curriculum at Shepard, your child will take part in lessons designed to develop life-long health habits. Topics are aligned with the National Health Education Standards (NHES), which are designed to help establish, promote, and support health-enhancing behaviors. Middle school units of instruction are as follows:
Social and Emotional Health (6th Grade)
Nutrition (6th Grade)
Mental Health (7th Grade)
Injury Prevention & Safety (7th Grade)
Violence Prevention (8th Grade)
Substance Abuse & Prevention (8th Grade)
Specific sexual health topics are addressed in partnership with outside agencies. In February, 8th-grade classrooms partner with Candor Health for a live virtual session called Teen Sexual Health. Similar to the 5th-grade session titled Puberty I, an on-demand parent webinar will be provided prior and an opt-out made available. In April, speakers from Childhood Victories, Inc. provide age-appropriate presentations focused on sexual-assault and abuse awareness (Erin’s Law). This program occurs for all grades and an opt-out is made available. While not a stand-alone unit, sexual health topics may be discussed in Health classrooms as a result of student questions or in connection to related topics. If parents/guardians have concerns, they should email their child’s PE teacher no later than 12/20/24.
As we strive to keep you informed about important events and updates at Shepard Middle School, we are excited to use the Remind app again as a valuable tool to strengthen our school-family partnership. Through this app, you will receive announcements from our Student Council (also known as StuCo), led by Mrs. Greenberg. These announcements will not only keep you informed about spirit days, fundraisers, and other important events throughout the school year but will also actively involve your child in the exciting activities shaping our school community.
To sign up, please follow the directions below. Check out this video if you would like step-by-step instructions.If you require any assistance setting up the app, please do not hesitate to reach out to Mrs. Greenberg.
Students are doing a nice job using their lockers during the school day. Sometimes, though, students are leaving locks unlocked or not putting a lock on their locker. To protect your child's materials and personal items, please reinforce the need to use a lock! Students are responsible for their own materials and items during the school day, and we want to help our students continue to learn that crucial skill of personal responsibility.
Our amazing PTSO shared information on this in their welcome back letter, too, but we wanted to add a reminder that you can purchase school lunches through Lunch Solutions in advance! Ordering opened Tuesday, August 6th. Ordering for the following week closes at 10:00 am on THURSDAY each week. For information and ordering, please visit http://ptgms.com/lunchsolutions/shepard.
Medication
Please do not send any medication, over-the-counter pain pills (Tylenol/Advil/aspirin), or cough drops with your students. State law prohibits students from taking medication at school outside of the nurse's office with a doctor's note on file. We will confiscate any medications as listed above found outside of the nurse's office.
Attendance
If your student will not be in school, please report the absence to the health office by phone—(847) 948-0620 x5103 or email (shepardattendance@dps109.org) before 8:00 am. If you do not contact our school nurse by this time, she will contact you at home or at work to ascertain your child’s whereabouts. Children must be fever free for 24 hours before returning to school. Students will only be dismissed to a parent/legal guardian or to emergency contacts designated in Family Access.
Student Tardiness to School
Students who arrive late are greatly disadvantaged because they miss starting the day with their peers and miss out on the instruction given at the beginning of class. This means that they are often unsettled and confused about tasks, resulting in reduced achievement, regardless of academic ability. It is also very important that students establish good routines and habits in preparation for the rest of their lives. Punctuality is a life skill that is important to develop.
Tardiness to school will be unexcused even if a family member brings the student(s) to school. Oversleeping, missing the bus, car/traffic problems, etc. are all unexcused. Tardies are excusable under the following circumstances: personal illness of student, serious illness or death in the family, a doctor/dentist/professional appointment (a note or phone call from a parent or a professional), family emergencies, and religious holidays.
School begins promptly at 8:00 am. Students are expected to be in class ready to learn by 8:00 am.
Student Tardies to Class
Students are expected to be in class, in their seats, ready to learn at the start of class. Students who are not are subject to school discipline.