KAMSC Newsletter

I’d like to take a moment to express my heartfelt gratitude to the entire KAMSC community. Our 8th Grade Open House this week was truly a highlight. We felt incredibly supported, and the number of parent and student volunteers was remarkable. Your presence made a meaningful difference, giving visiting families the chance to speak directly with those who know the program best. It also demonstrated—so clearly—the strength of this community and the commitment our parents have to supporting one another.

Giving Tuesday was equally inspiring. I was moved by the generosity shown not only toward KAMSC but throughout our broader community. Seeing so many people give back in so many ways filled me with gratitude.

Our 9th graders also had a successful trip to WMU’s Waldo Library this week. Thank you to the parents who rearranged schedules to drop students off on site and to Mrs. McCarthy and Mrs. Joyce for their hard work in planning the annual trip. We’re excited to begin research season, though we know it adds an extra layer of responsibility for students. Please check in with your students regularly between now and the end of April. A few supportive questions you might ask include:

1. What topic have you chosen?

2. What have you learned about your topic so far?

3. How many sources have you gathered, and how many do you still need?

4. Are you using AI only as directed by your teachers? (Most of the time it will not be appropriate, but teachers may guide them in specific situations. Ask what guidance their teacher has provided.)

5. What is the next part you need to turn in?

6. If your student is working in a group (10th grade and up), do they feel they are contributing well to their team? What responsibilities are they taking on?

Research is one of the most enriching experiences students have at KAMSC, and our goal is to ensure it remains positive, meaningful, and manageable for everyone involved.

Heather Kortlandt

Director, KAMSC

Alumni Day will be held on Friday, December 19th from 11:30-2 pm. We are in need of donations of food for the event and a couple of parent volunteers for set up and tear down. Click the button below to donate items or your time.

Thank you!

Princeton Admissions Information Session for KAMSC Students

Monday, December 8 2:00-2:45 PM

Email Rebecca.Joyce@kamsc.org to register. Meet in Ms. Joyce's room, room 434. Mr. Johnson, the Admissions Officer for our region, will join remotely.

Come and meet KAMSC alumnus Reid Blanchett, PhD, who is currently a Postdoctoral Research Fellow studying sex-chromosome epigenetics in pediatric leukemias at the Josep Carreras Leukemia Research Institute (IJC) in Barcelona, Spain. She loved her time at KAMSC and was actively involved in science, math, and CS (and currently uses all three of these pieces in her career). She will be at KAMSC in the commons area at 2:00 pm (after school) and 6:00 pm (Open Lab) on December 10th to talk about science, careers, and anything else you may want to learn about.

The KAMSC parent organization would like to invite you to keep abreast of their meeting agendas/minutes and dates so that you can be as involved as you like. It would be great to get more underclassmen parents involved so that you can help lead as some of our families "graduate" out. Click this link to review meeting minutes.

If there are any KAMSC families that ever wish to use the food pantry on the third floor, you can simply contact Mrs. Allbee, and she will work with you to get you what you need. It is all anonymous and very simple.

Click this link, look at the pictures, if any of this is yours, please come to the office and collect by Dec. 15 or it will be donated.

I hope that you all have had a chance to review our KAMSC Handbook and sign the acceptance form through PowerSchool. Here is a direct link to it again. I would invite you to be sure that you have read through the MTSS support procedures. I will pull grades to review the 3.0 requirements and use that as a gauge to get more support for students. If your child is showing that need, Mrs. Allbee or I will email you and the child to set up support provided by KAMSC. This is required for a three week interval and then we pull grades again to review. Our hope is always that that three week interval is enough support but students will sometimes move in and out of support throughout a semester. Please know, that this is meant to be a supportive measure. We take our responsibility of helping your child achieve the high standards of KAMSC seriously.

If you are dropping off or picking up your student at KAMSC, please do so at the Vine Street entrance. Please find a safe place to pull over and then have you student proceed to the Vine street entrance. If students are driving themselves:

1. They need to acquire a parking pass from the KAMSC office - please fill this out

2. They need to park by the El Sol playground off of Dutton Street (but then walk to Vine street entrance)

3. They should be reminded to not keep anything valuable in their car and to keep their cars locked at all times.

4. The building will have a campus security officer at the Vine Street entrance during times of arrivals and dismissals.

Dec 10 - Open Lab 6-7:30 (Only one in December)

Dec 10 Parent Org Meeting - 6:15-7:15

December 20-January 4 - Winter Break (KAMSC Closed)