The Scot's Scoop

Highland Park Middle School families,

Below you will find the weekly family newsletter that goes out every Sunday at 6:00pm via email and text message to all families.

Please read the newsletter in its entirety as there are important calendar dates and information below. Have a great week!

Archived 2026-2027 Family Newsletters

Monday, September 14 (A day):

• Fall sports practice begins

Tuesday, September 15 (B day)

Wednesday, September 16 (A day)

Thursday, September 17 (B day)

Friday, September 18 (A day):

• 5:00pm Chinese Immersion bonfire

Monday, September 21: No School; staff development

Tuesday, September 22 (B day)

Wednesday, September 23 (A day)

Thursday, September 24 (B day)

Friday, September 25 (A day)

• 5:00pm Spanish Immersion bonfire

Other important upcoming dates:

• Eagle Bluff family information session for 8th Grade Spanish and Chinese immersion families, on September 30 from 6:00-7:00pm in room 1415
• MEA/No School: October 15 & 16
• Flipside Afterschool Program: begins Monday, October 19

The Smore family newsletter, along with other school documents and notices, can be translated. For the newsletter, click on the button for translation and select the language preferred.

Chinese Immersion families: please join us for our annual fall bonfire the evening of Friday, September 18th, at Como Park from 5-7pm. All family members are welcome to join, but students must be accompanied by an adult. See here for more details and a map. We are looking for several volunteers to help out! (Sign up here) If you have any questions, please contact Rachel Hoheisel (rachel.hoheisel@spps.org). We hope to see you there!

Dear families,

We have had a successful first week of school. Thank you for your patience and support this week as we get school rolling after a long summer break. This week students spent time engaging in meaningful community building activities, learning classroom routines, and establishing the foundation for the year.

Families should have access to campus and Schoology to stay up-to-date with their students' learning. Please make sure that the email you have on campus is accurate. For day-to-day course access, and updates, you will use Schoology. If you have questions on Schoology or Campus, connect with teacher, admin, or counselor. We have many opportunities throughout the year where we go over Schoology, MYP teaching and learning, and grade-specific topics. These Family Communication & Connections sessions take place in person and online and are posted on our website with details of topics covered. Please see below for other important updates.

Survey of the 6th grade orientation and Open House

Thank you for attending the 6th grade orientation and Open House! It was wonderful to meet so many families and students. Please complete a survey about Orientation and Open House below. Your feedback is important to us:

For English, click here.

For Spanish, click here.

To reset your guardian username and password for Campus Parent

Update: On the Password Reset Tool for Guardians, guardians must use the email address on file in Campus to retrieve their username or reset their password. If a guardian doesn’t have an email address or isn't sure which one is on file, they should contact the school's main office.

Parents and Guardians should log in to Infinite Campus Parent to stay up to date on your student’s attendance, schedules, grades, contact information, notifications and more! Download the app for easy access.

Here are directions for how to get logged in to Campus Parent: https://www.spps.org/families/campus-parent-portal-onestop

Transportation Requests

Back to School Forms: Families now need to contact their school’s main office for alternate transportation requests. This option is no longer available through Back-to-School forms. School phone number: 651-293-8950

Click on your child's team link below to view their monthly team newsletter, which shares information about curriculum and important things to know

6th grade Phoenixes (Chinese & Spanish immersion) - coming soon

6th grade Eagles (community school)

7th grade Panthers (Chinese & Spanish immersion) - coming soon

7th grade Jets (community school)

8th grade Tecolotes (Spanish immersion)

8th grade Sharks (Chinese immersion & community school)

Welcome back letter from Principal Mohamed

To read Principal Mohamed's 2026–2027 Welcome Back Letter, please click here for [English] or [Spanish].

Hello Flipside Families!

We’re gearing up for another amazing year of Flipside, and I can’t wait to get started! Our program is packed with hands-on classes—art, science, fitness, tech, and more—plus academic support from staff who truly care about our students.

New to Flipside? We’re a free afterschool and summer program designed to help middle schoolers grow, connect, and have fun.

Key Details

• Program Begins: Oct. 19
• Registration Opens: Sept. 16

• Class List: Link to Class Descriptions

• Transportation Deadline: Sept. 25
• Confirmation Letters: Week of Oct. 12

Questions? Reach out anytime—I love hearing from families 😊 Nikol.gordon@spps.org | 651‑420‑0134

See you on the Flipside!

Ms. Nikol

We believe that a strong partnership between home and school is essential for student success. Join us for our monthly Family Community Connection meetings!

Family Communication & Connections (FCC) Dates: Below are the dates and times for the upcoming FCC meetings. These meetings are a great opportunity for us to connect, share important information, and answer any questions you may have.
9/28/26 6:00pm

10/12/26 6:00pm

11/23/26 8:00am

1/11/27 8:00am

2/8/27 8:00am

3/22/27 8:00am

4/19/27 6:00pm

5/24/27 6:00pm

Know your child's Grade Level Norms & Practices and review them together! During the first week of school, we met with each grade level (6th, 7th, and 8th) to go over a set of slides that establish shared norms, expectations, and practices for our school community. These slides can be found below. Please take a few moments to review them with your student. This will help reinforce what was discussed at school and ensure we are all on the same page as we move forward together.

6th grade Slides

7th Grade slides

Hola Familias,

¡Bienvenidos al Nuevo Año Escolar 26-27!

Les quiero compartir el boletín mensual dirigido a nuestras familias latinas. En este boletín encontrará actualizaciones e información relevante sobre asistencia y apoyo para las familias Latinas de las Escuelas Públicas de Saint Paul.

Por favor, abra el siguiente enlace:

Boletín Informativo para Familias Latinas

Gracias,

8th Grader 2027 Travelers (current enrolled):

• The deadline to apply for an EF Tours scholarship is September 30, 2026.

• Families should have received an email on Thursday with scholarship details and other fall notes.

8th Grade families:
Haven’t signed up yet? Enrollment is still open for any 8th graders interested in joining our 2027 trip to Washington DC. This year’s trip runs from Wednesday, March 10, 2027 - Saturday, March 13, 2027. (Hint: Enroll now to be eligible to apply for an EF Tours scholarship. Scholarship applications are due September 30th).

7th Grade families:

Stay tuned. We will start sharing information about our 2028 in late October/early November. 7th graders will learn about the trip in their American Studies class. Information will go out to families in the Scoop.

Email Kristin King (kristin.king@spps.org) for more information.

Highland Park Middle School fall athletic season starts tomorrow, September 14th.

Registrations received before 3:00 on Friday, September 11th, have been processed. If your student is registered and eligible, you should have received an email with information about the fall athletic season.

If you did not receive an email, your student is not eligible to participate. Common reasons may include incomplete registration or missing sports qualifying physical. Please email highlandmsathletics@spps.org if you have questions about your student's eligibility status. Please note that emails sent over the weekend or on Monday may not receive a response until Tuesday or Wednesday. I will be extremely busy finalizing arrangements and addressing issues related to the first day of the fall sports season. Thank you for your patience and understanding.

All middle school teams practice Monday - Thursday, 3:15 pm - 4:45 pm. Game schedules and locations can be found on the BOUND St. Paul Highland Park MS Scots page either by clicking on the activity link for a specific sport or choose the 'Calendar' link near the top of the page.

More helpful links:

FAMILY/STUDENT

Create a family account in the app

Register a student for activities - web browser

Upload a physical

Add a Student to a Second Family - add a student to your family who is already a part of another family in Bound.

We are the Highland Park Middle School Solidarity Parent Network. If you are looking for a way to get involved as a parent, we would love to have you join us! We are a 501c3 focused on mutual aid, fundraising and supporting the school to increase equity, and building community across all programs at our school. If you are interested in joining, please email us at highlandmiddlesolidarity@gmail.com. Thank you!

There are rights students are guaranteed when they are at school as well as responsibilities that accompany those rights. Both are summarized in the Rights and Responsibilities Handbook. In addition, the Rights and Responsibilities Handbook outlines the work SPPS is doing to build a positive school culture and hold students accountable for behavior that is not appropriate.

At Highland Park Middle School, our mission is to:

• Provide our students with a sense of community and global perception in a nurturing and caring learning environment,
• Help students acquire the skills necessary to value themselves, and take pride in their accomplishments, and
• Develop respect and understanding of other people and their cultures.

Website: https://www.spps.org/highlandms
Location: 975 Snelling Ave S, Saint Paul, MN, USA
Phone: (651) 293-8950