Pony Express

• Principal's Update
• Happening This Week at O. Henry
• Course Fair
  
• Enrollment for 24-25 School Year
• Counselor Corner-, 6th and 7th Choice Sheets, Austin HS Academy News
• Athletic and PE News-Winter Weather
• Fine Art News-Art in Action
• O. Henry Times
• Hoofbeat-- OHMS Student News
• Mustang News- Episode 16
• PTA Updates- Mustang Spirit Wear, Randall's Rewards
• Other Campus and AISD News: Absence Reporting, Bell Schedule, AISD Calendar, Transportation, AISD Health Services
  

All Current and Future Mustangs-- This is the night where you learn about Math levels, choice sheets, and courses offered for the 2024-2025 school year.

Students will be provided with a paper draft copy of a choice sheet to write notes about the courses they want to take.

Dear Mustang Families,

I hope this letter finds you well. As we navigate through the academic year, we find ourselves presented with opportunities to instill valuable lessons and foster a deeper understanding of historical events that have shaped our world. It is with this in mind that I write to you today, as we approach Holocaust Remembrance Week.

Holocaust Remembrance Week serves as a poignant reminder of a dark chapter in human history, where millions of innocent lives were lost during the atrocities of World War II. As educators, it is our responsibility to ensure that our students not only learn about this significant event but also develop empathy, compassion, and a commitment to preventing such horrors from happening again.

During the upcoming Holocaust Remembrance Week, our school will be organizing various activities and discussions to engage students in meaningful conversations about the Holocaust. These activities aim to promote awareness, understanding, and reflection on the importance of tolerance, diversity, and human rights.

We encourage you to join us in supporting your child's participation in these activities and engaging in conversations at home. Understanding the historical context of the Holocaust helps foster a sense of responsibility and a commitment to building a more just and compassionate world.

If you have any questions or concerns about the activities planned for Holocaust Remembrance Week, please feel free to reach out to us. Your involvement and support play a crucial role in reinforcing the values we strive to instill in our students.

Thank you for your cooperation, and we look forward to a week of reflection and education that leaves a lasting impact on our students.

Make it a great week to be an O. Henry Mustang,

Marlo Malott

January 27th is International Holocaust Remembrance Day, and in Texas public schools, the 22nd-26th is Holocaust Remembrance Week. All of our students will engage in age-appropriate study in their English Language Arts or Social Studies classes in order to develop their historical awareness and ongoing understanding.

6th graders are reading from The Children of Willesden Lane, during English Language Arts classes. The narrative details the bravery of children escaping from Nazi-controlled Austria.

7th and 8th graders have a lesson next week in their Texas History or US History classes. It will include reflection on the role of and pressures on children during the Holocaust, with a short documentary on the Hitler Youth serving as a guiding text.

We are glad for our community's partnership as we grow our students. If you have questions or concerns not answered by this email, please contact your child's Assistant Principal.

Monday, January 22-C Day

AHS Pals

Tuesday, January 23 - C Day

All day-- 6th grade Choice Sheet Presentations

5th period- Leader in Me

4:00- HW Club, Girls Soccer

Wednesday, January 24- A Day

College Shirt Day

B Lunch-7th Grade Book Club

4:00- HW Club, Girls Soccer

5:30-7-- OHMS Course Fair

Thursday, January 25- B Day

7:00 FCA Huddle

C Lunch- 6th Grade Book Club

4:00-DND, HW Club, Girls Soccer, 7/8 C Teams

6:00/7:30 Boys Basketball vs Murchison--7th @Murchispn, 8th @OHMS

Friday, January 26- C Day

1:30- Lockdown Drill

Saturday, January 27th

9:00 Girls Soccer OHMS @Lamar

TMEA Vocial Region Clinic @AISD PAC

All families should enroll in school for next year.

Why is matters?

School budgets are based on enrollments. For O. Henry this impacts the number of courses we can offer and the number of teachers and staff members we can hire.

For students applying to high schools, an application may be necessary, This is due on February 6th.

Dear 6th and 7th Grade Parents,

Counselors will be going to the Science classes January 16th and 19th for choice sheet presentations. We will be in the 6th grade Science classes Tuesday, January 16th and 7th grade Science classes Friday, January 19th. The choice sheets will be due to the science teachers on Monday January 29th. Please check out our Transition Smore below with all the choice sheet information.

The Austin High School Counselors will also be coming to O. Henry January 30th in your Science classes to go over the 9th Grade Choice Sheet Information . The High School Counselors on this day will be having you enter in your courses in the scheduling system as well. If you are not zoned for Austin High School, you can still fill out the paper choice sheet they provide, but you may not be able to enter the courses in the scheduling system.

___________________________________________________________

Are you planning to attend Austin High School next year?

If you live IN the attendance zone to attend Austin High, go to the "Academy Admissions" tab of the Austin High School website and complete the Academy Preference Survey by February 6, 2024. We recommend you complete the survey after attending Maroon & White Night on November 15.

If you live OUTSIDE THE ATTENDANCE ZONE, go to the Enroll Austin tile on the parent portal, scroll to the yellow "Registration" box and click on "Start Application Now." You'll be completing the "Priority Registration" process and ranking Austin High as one of your top choices. To complete the Next Steps of the curriculum transfer process for Austin High, complete this Academy Preference Survey, which has the written component (short answer response) built into the survey.

Update on the process: We will not be scheduling essay writing sessions at the middle schools or at Austin High this year. All information we need will be collected through the Priority Registration application on Enroll Now and the Academy Preference Survey. Please keep in mind: students do not transfer to a specific academy at AHS. Students sign up to come to our Academy Model, and all academy placements are made via a blind lottery process. We do our best to place all students in their 1st or 2nd choice academy.

Rachel Price

O. Henry Middle School

Counselor

512-414-3229

Ext 70652

Mustangs-

Please plan on dressing for the ever changing Texas weather. We expect students to be prepared to be outside. We encourage sweatpants, hoodies, coats, beanies, etc whatever else is needed to feel comfortable.

CLICK HERE for the AISD Guidelines

Art projects by Mustangs.

Congratulations to Sabine Fernandez, Len Hanson, Kevin Hoard, Aedan Mercado, Makeyla Molina, Melody Serrano, and Ameilia Thomas for being selected to the 2024 AISD All-City Band. They represented O.Henry at the All-City concert on Saturday at the AISD PAC.

O.Henry Middle School peeps! 🎉 Guess what? The 23-24 Yearbook is packed with all our crazy moments, and awesome memories. Grab yours now for just $35! But heads up, if you snooze and wait till after December 1st, it's gonna cost ya $40. So, why pay more later when you can snag it for less today? Let's make this year unforgettable! Don't miss out! Go to balfour.com and click the "Shop My School" tab or go directly to this O. Henry hyperlink to pre-order your copy.

Let's show our spirit in 2024. Mustang Spirit wear for students and all ages can be purchased here: https://ohenrypta.org/market/spirit-wear/

Please see the attached flyer to purchase Maroon Spirit Wear for your future Maroon!

Randall's Good Neighbor Program gives 1% back to O.Henry!

Start the new year by signing up for Randall's Rewards to support O.Henry. It's as easy as 1, 2, 3!

1. Setup a Randalls for U account through the Randalls app or at www.randalls.com

2. Email good.neighbor@randalls.com with the following:

Please link my phone number to O. Henry Middle School PTA Charity #713 (First Name, Last Name and full phone number.)

3. Start shopping! Randalls will donate 1% of all sales linked to our Good Neighbor number!

2023-2024 General School Supply List

Attendance Laws and Regulations

Chromebook Distribution Questions

Enrichment/ACES Supplies We Are Looking For!

Foodservice Information: Breakfast and Lunch Menus, Meal Drop Off Guidelines

Safety Planning - Temperature and Weather Health Guidelines

Teacher Wishlist Items

Have a question or concern for the district, or aren't sure who to ask? Submit a Let's Talk at the button above.

Car Riders: To keep traffic flowing, follow the arrows on the map below. Be patient, student safety is our most important priority. To keep our Mustangs safe, do not drop off in back bus lot. If pickup is altered due to bad weather, a Schoolmessenger alert will go out from the Principal.

Bus Riders: Bus riders may only ride their assigned bus. Use the Bus Finder page to check which route you are assigned. Buses leave promptly at 3:57 PM each day - information about late buses will be available in coming weeks. Buses drop off and pick up on the east side of campus. For additional questions about transportation see AISD's website here.

Walkers/Bike Riders: If walking or biking to school please be safe and use crosswalks to get across streets. Bike racks are available for student use.

Website: https://ohenry.austinschools.org/
Location: 2610 West 10th Street, Austin, TX, USA
Phone: 512-414-3229
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ohenryms
Twitter: @Ohenryms