DKMS Newsletter
"It's a great day to be a Panther"
Happy Friday Panther families! We had a great first week of school at DKMS!
Next week Tuesday 9/9 and Thursday 9/11 we will be having our first round of district testing. This year instead of using the NWEA assessment, we will be using the STAR Assessment. It is similar to the NWEA assessment, but a huge advantage for us is that the STAR assessment's data feeds directly into FRECKLE, which is a program we use for interventions and enrichments. We will begin testing around 9:45 am on both days and should be done before 11:00 am. Please make sure your child:
- Has a good night's rest
- Comes to school in time for testing
- Eats breakfast
This summer our district staff had Capturing Kids' Hearts (CKH) training and we are implementing that program within our schools. Some CKH things that we are already doing in the middle school are:
- Hand Signals: Timeout (to get a group's attention), Check (to help others meet expectations), and Foul (when someone has said something hurtful).
- Starting each class with sharing Good Things (a few people sharing something good happening in their life and being celebrated for sharing).
- Social Contracts created by the students and teachers in each class.
- CKH behavior questions for students when they are not meeting the classroom expectations.
A quick reminder that we have a "no cell phones" during school policy. This means from when the student enters the building until 2:50 pm, we should not see or hear any cell phones. If a student has their phone out or it begins to make noises we will take the phone and hold it in the office. For the first offense we will hold the phone in the office and return it to the student at the end of the day. On the second offense we will hold the phone in the office until a parent/guardian picks it up. On the third offense we will hold the phone in the office until a parent/guardian picks it up. Also, on the third offense students will be put on a cell phone contract where they agree to drop their cell phone off in the office at the beginning of every school day and pick it up at the end of the day. If you have questions about our cell phone policy please reach out to me via email at bobby.tillman@dkschools.org or by calling my office at (269) 623-1544.
As always. I would like to thank our students, staff, families, and community for a great start to the 2025/2026 school year! The school year is a marathon, but it is always a good idea to get off to a great start and we are doing that here at DKMS. We look forward to working with your child this year. Have a great weekend!
It's a great day to be a PANTHER!!!
Bobby Tillman, Principal
6325 Delton Rd
Delton, Michigan 49046
PH 269-623-1544 / FX 269-623-1548
On Friday, September 12, students are invited to wear their Caleb’s Comeback t-shirts to show support for 6th grader Caleb Poirier.
His strength, courage, and determination have been an inspiration to our school community.
To show our support, we’ll be taking a group photo near the end of the day for any students who wear their t-shirt and would like to participate.
This is a special way for us to stand together and celebrate Caleb’s comeback journey.
