September 2025 Newsletter

Please note the following important dates in September and early October:

Thursday, September 4 @ 6:30 PM: 7th/8th Grade Back to School Night
Tuesday, September 16: Picture Day
Friday, October 3 (7 PM - 9 PM): Student Council Dance/Fun Night
Monday, October 6 - Friday, October 10: Book Fair at DHEMS

As we begin a new school year at Donald H. Eichhorn Middle School, there’s a renewed sense of excitement in our hallways. The start of September always brings new opportunities for learning, growth, and building meaningful connections. Our staff has been working hard to create a supportive and engaging environment where every student can thrive.

This year, we are focusing on encouraging students to “Own Your Experience.” Whether it’s through academics, extracurriculars, service learning, or positive contributions to our school culture, we want students to recognize that their choices shape their middle school journey. Each day offers the chance to explore new ideas, strengthen friendships, and discover personal strengths.

We look forward to partnering with families throughout the year as we work together to support our students. Thank you for your continued involvement and commitment to making DHEMS a place where students feel a strong sense of belonging and pride.

7th grade students learning cafeteria expectations (RAPS).

6th grade students in Mr. Haussener and Mrs. Smith's ELA classes getting to know one another during an activity.

"Cookie Face" during the RAPS Celebration Assembly.

7th/8th grade Back to School Night will be held on Thursday, September 4 @ 6:30 PM

All families should enter through the gymnasium lobby entrance. Doors will open at 6:15 PM. Families will have the opportunity to meet and greet their children's teachers and see the building. Members of our student services team will also be available to meet students and families and answer questions. We are excited to have representatives from our DHEMS PSA prepared to share information about their important mission!

A friendly reminder that students participating in extracurricular activities, such as sports, Fall Play, etc., should pay activity fees by visiting this link. Activity fees help us fund new and existing extracurricular opportunities and our exploratory clubs!

If you have not yet completed your annual student updates online (contact information, health updates, sign-off agreement for parent/student handbook), please do so as soon as possible. Directions to complete these forms online were mailed in a letter over the summer. If you have not completed the forms and do not have the letter, please contact the DHEMS main office.

Please remember to email msattendance@dragon.k12.pa.us or call the attendance line at (570) 522-3336 if your child was absent or will be absent from school. Please leave your name, your child's name and grade, and the reason for the absence. Any absences without an excuse will become illegal absences, so it is important to return calls, emails, or letters regarding student absences so that they can be excused! Please refer to the DHEMS student handbook for more information on attendance procedures.

Parents are able to create "observer" accounts to view teachers' Canvas pages. Our technology team has made a guide which can be used to create a parent observer account on Canvas. If you have already created an account, your account should still work and you do not need to do this again. The guide can be accessed by clicking the following link: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1HCmiEimO73QqCN1tsGyD6mwd1c-ek0-uQkATDe7jINU/edit?usp=sharing

Our first DHEMS Dance/Fun Night will be held on Friday, October 3 from 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM. There is a $3 entrance fee, and students may also bring money for snacks and drinks. Parents, please help us promote a safe and enjoyable environment by reviewing the following information with your child:

Students should arrive no earlier than 6:55 PM, and be picked up promptly at 9:00 PM. Please arrange with your child where you will be picking them up. This helps avoid confusion and helps our chaperones to get home at a decent time!
Students must remain inside for the entirety of the dance. Students are not permitted to leave the dance early.
Our cell phone policy is in effect during the dance. Students' cell phones should be turned off and are not permitted to be used during the dance.
Our dress code policy is in effect during the dance. Please review the DHEMS student handbook if you have any questions about our dress code.
Students should not bring backpacks or bags to the dance.

Tentative dates for our future dances are as follows:

Friday, December 12
February dance hosted by PSA (date to be announced)
Friday, April 10

Our students were given the opportunity to sign up for our three ensembles - band, chorus, and orchestra - last week. As a reminder, ensembles are graded courses at the middle school. Students may add or drop ensembles until the end of the third cycle (Monday, September 15). After this, the next add/drop period will not be until the end of the second marking period. If your child wants to join or drop their ensemble, please email our school counselors or have the student speak to the counselors. Students will not be permitted to add or drop after September 15. For more information on ensembles, please refer to the DHEMS student handbook.

A DHEMS parent recently donated bolts of fabric to our FACS classes. This fabric will help to supply our students who are unable to purchase their own during 7th grade FACS classes, but also give them a plethora of choices for designs! Thank you to the kindness of the donor, and all of our DHEMS parents who support our school community in various ways.

Per state requirements, incoming 7th grade students must have Tdap and meningococcal (MCV) immunizations prior to the start of the school year. Please reach out to our school nurse, Mrs. Heather Smouse, at smouse_h@dragon.k12.pa.us with any questions. Immunization records can be mailed to or dropped off at the DHEMS office, emailed directly to Mrs. Smouse, or faxed to the middle school at 570-522-3331.

The students below earned recognition as RAPS Students of the Month at the end of the 2024-2025 school year. We wanted to ensure their hard work was recognized! These students are selected by the faculty for consistently following school expectations of being Respectful, Accountable, Prepared and Safe.

6th Grade: Isley Parrish, Eli Vaughan

7th Grade: Zoe Kratzer, Elijah Strohecker

8th Grade: Richard Alexander, Kalyra Snyder

Related Arts: Zoltan Kisvarday, Reese Oberlin

If your child has a severe allergy requiring the use of an antihistamine and/or epipen, has asthma and needs to use an inhaler at school, or needs to take a prescribed medication during the school day, please contact Mrs. Smouse at smouse_h@dragon.k12.pa.us with any questions/concerns and to get the paperwork and medications turned in. All prescribed medications need to be brought in original containers by a parent/guardian. Students cannot bring medications to school.

We are excited to welcome our new professional and support staff members at DHEMS this year! Our new staff members have jumped right into their roles in the middle school, and we appreciate their hard work and commitment to our students.

Brenda Bickel: Instructional Aide
Sara Jarrett: Art Teacher
Emily Kirsch: Orchestra Teacher
Amanda Kling: School Social Worker
Kristina Rogers: 7th Grade Science Teacher

Picture Day is coming on Tuesday, September 16! You can place your order on mylifetouch.com using your Picture Day ID: EVT88GRN2. Order before midnight on Picture Day to get FREE shipping!

Your child can also bring their completed flyer with cash or check on Picture Day. Orders after Picture Day must be placed online only on mylifetouch.com .

DHEMS is participating in the Weis4School program, where you can earn money for DHEMS simply by linking your club card to the middle school. Please click here and follow the steps to link your club card to DHEMS. Please note: we are listed as D H Eichhorn Middle School (we will not show up if you search Donald...). You can also type 87592 and DHEMS will show up as an option. Thank you for your support!

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