Hornet News

Our focus is to BE HERE, BE PRESENT~ Pursue Excellence in our academics and character. We are Driven, Bold, Kind, Proud, and Honest.

Hello Hedrick Families,

I’m excited to welcome you to a new school year full of growth, learning, and connection.

Our dedicated staff is eager to support each student’s success and celebrate their contributions through our continually evolving Advisory program, designed to foster deeper relationships, stronger support systems, and a sense of belonging across our school community. More information from our staff will be available at our Back to School night September 9th, more details coming.

Fall I Ready testing in ELA & Math will begin September 4th. Please encourage your child to do their best on these two assessments. These are important as it gives us a starting point for each student and how best we can support students individually.

Thank you for all your support and patience as we work through our new Drop Off & Pick Up procedures. Below is the diagram of the parent pick-up/drop-off locations and the bus parking area. We will not be using Jackson St for student pick up and drop off. This area will be citable by MPD.

For information about athletics, school programs, or upcoming events, visit our website and follow us on Instagram and Facebook, where we regularly share updates.

Each month we will send home an Family Newsletter with important information on upcoming events, principal's message, classroom and school highlights, reminders, announcements and more.

It's a GREAT day to be a Hornet!
Lori Higgins, Principal, Hedrick Middle School

Opportunities occasionally arise for your child to be photographed and/or videotaped at school, school activities, or for staff development/educational purposes. Use of such photographs/video includes, but is not limited to: school or school district marketing and publications and websites, news media stories on school programs or activities, slideshows or videos.

When these opportunities occur, the student’s image may be accompanied by his/her first and last name, classroom work, and information regarding the student’s participation in a program or activity.

If you DO NOT want your child’s photograph to be published for any or all of the uses described, please check the box below, sign the form, and return it to your child’s school. This form stays in effect unless you visit your child’s school to revoke the publicity denial.

this form

Medford District 549c schools are always in the process of identifying students who are academically talented and/or intellectually gifted. Previously identified TAG students remain identified and their services will continue as needed. Students may be nominated for the Talented and Gifted Program (TAG) by the following: national or state test scores, district achievement tests (i-Ready), a teacher, parents, community members, or by self-nomination. After nominations are complete, information will be gathered and a screening committee will screen each student. Students and parents/guardians will be contacted if additional testing is needed. If you wish to obtain information on this program or you have any questions, please contact the school office with questions- 541-842-3700 or Rebecca Sha, the district Talented and Gifted Specialist at 541-842-1043.

Our back to school night will be divided by grade level. We hope this will help with parking and for those parents who have more than one student at Hedrick. Please enter through our lower Jackson St doors. The evening will start in your child's Advisory teacher's classroom. Then you will be able to move about the building to meet your child's other teachers as well. Here is the breakdown on times:

• 5:15-6:00- 6th
• 6:15-7:00- 7th
• 7:15-8:00- 8th

We look forward to seeing all our Hornet families!

Attendance Matters - Every Day Counts!

Welcome back to school! Did you know students who miss two days a month, excused or not, are at risk of falling behind academically? Help your child develop strong attendance habits early. Every Day matters! Attendance will be a school wide focus at Hedrick. Please reach out to your child's Advisor or Administration team if you need support or have questions please reach out. The image below is one example of how families can track the maximum days a student should miss without being considered CHRONICALLY ABSENT. This image is in the front of student planners if you would like to use it as a family.

Hedrick MS and the Medford school district are working alongside our community partners: City of Medford, Medford PD, and our community neighbors to ensure student drop off and pick up are safer for all. Our buses will now be along Pearl St (between HMS & the market). Parents will now use the old bus alley behind the school. Jackson St will be a ticketed area. Please do not use this area for before school or after school student drop off or pick up. There will be parking spots along N Kenne Way as needed during school hours. Please view the map below.

Hedrick Middle School is a place for all students to be safe and successful, both academically and socially. To support in this mission, we will implement our Away for the Day cell phone policy for the 2025/26 school year in the Medford school district.

We ask that families and students use the main office when communicating messages from home or school.

Research:

Science supports an "Away For The Day" policy. When students do not have the freedom of accessing their phones during school hours, they are more engaged socially and academically. 97% of students aged 11 to 17 used their phones during the school day. Daily in-school phone use ranged from less than a minute to 6½ hours, with a median of 43 minutes of screen time.

Dear Parents and Guardians,

We hope this message finds you well. As part of our ongoing commitment to provide students with the tools they need for academic success, your child has been assigned a Chromebook by the Medford School District for educational use throughout the school year.

We would like to take a moment to remind families that students are expected to be responsible for their Chromebook at all times. This includes handling the device carefully, storing it safely, and using it appropriately both at school and at home.

Responsibility and Damages
Students and their families are financially responsible for any damage that occurs while the Chromebook is in their possession.

• Reporting Issues: If your child’s device experiences any issues or damage or is lost, please report it promptly to the school’s Media Technician. A replacement device will be checked out to your student at that time.

• Manufacturer Defects: Any damage found to be the result of a manufacturer defect will be repaired or replaced at no cost to the family.

• Accidental Damage: Most accidental damage will result in a $100 repair fee. If the device is beyond repair, the full replacement fee of $350 may apply.

• Intentional Damage: If the damage is determined to be intentional, families will be responsible for the full replacement cost of the Chromebook.

• Replacement Chargers: Lost or damaged chargers may incur a replacement fee of $10. Repeated lost or damaged chargers may result in a fee of $25.

• Fee Determination: Final decisions about fines are made by school administrators based on available information.

Please take a moment to discuss these expectations with your student and help reinforce the importance of taking care of their assigned device and treating it with care. Our goal is to maintain the quality and availability of these tools to support learning and success for all students.

If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to contact your child’s school or the district’s technology department.

Thank you for your continued support.

Need a break from the busy cafeteria or loud gym at lunch time? Lunch Bunch is a chill space where Hedrick students can eat lunch, hang out with friends, play games, listen to music, or just relax. Whether you’re looking for a quieter spot to eat or want to meet new people in a low-key setting, Lunch Bunch is the place to be. Stop by room 214 to grab a pass from the counselors before going to the cafeteria to get food, or grab your lunch box and walk right in. Remember, if the door is closed and locked, we may have had an emergency pop up. So don’t wait in the halls for us - we will catch you in Lunch Bunch the next day. Have questions about joining Lunch Bunch? Give us a call and we will happily help to get you connected.

Your Counselors

Mr. Downey (A-K) 541-842-1617

Mrs. Meyer (L-Z) 541-842-1540

The Fall athletic season is officially underway, with contests beginning the week of September 8th. Our Cross Country, Volleyball, and Football student-athletes have been working diligently, and we are proud of the commitment and effort they continue to demonstrate.

We are fortunate to have outstanding coaches guiding our programs. However, in order to make our home contests successful, we are seeking additional volunteers. Opportunities include serving as scoreboard operators for Volleyball and Football, working with the chain crew for Football, assisting as line judges for Volleyball, and supporting as course judges for Cross Country.

If you are interested in volunteering, please contact our athletic department at Hedrick.Athletics@medford.k12.or.us

Your support helps provide the best possible experience for our student-athletes.

Payments are going online!

Hedrick Middle School is moving towards online payments for almost all things throughout the year. We are encouraging families to make the move to using our InTouch Payment Portal for all payments. Field Trips, Fundraisers, PE Uniforms, Chromebook fees, Yearbooks, prior year unpaid balances, and much more will be available online for payment throughout the year. If you have not created an InTouch Account, please do so! We are moving away from collecting cash and checks as much as possible. Use the link below to access the online portal for InTouch.

https://or-medford.intouchreceipting.com/

Our PTSA formed this past year and we are looking for more parents and students who want to get involved in what is happening at Hedrick Middle School!

From going on field trips to planning student socials, selling concessions at sporting events to monthly meetings to discuss fun ideas. There is room for everyone!!

Please join us on September 23rd @ 5:30 at Hedrick MS. We will will have table at Back to School night with more information.

We hope to see you there!

If you would like to volunteer or chaperone you must go through the district VIM process. Use this link:

https://www.medford.k12.or.us/get-involved/volunteer-at-the-msd

September 4- School Pictures

September 9- Back to School Night- times see above

September 16- Lockdown Drill- student friendly

September 26- No School

Lori Higgins, Principal lori.higgins@medford.k12.or.us

Jeremy Durst, Asst. Principal jeremy.durst@medford.k12.or.us

Chad Johnson, Asst. Princpal/ AD chad.johnson@medford.k12.or.us

Karlie Blair karlie.blair@medford.k12.or.us

Hedrick MS- 541-842-3700