Sugar Land MS Titan News

Greetings SLMS Parents and Guardians,

Here we are, knocking on March's door. Can you believe it? We hope that those of you who suffered damage to your home during the extremely cold weather we all experienced are finding your footing again and are receiving the help you need. I spoke last week about "resilience" - the ability to recover from misfortune. My hope is that you experienced some resilience this week; though you were "bent", you did not "break." If food is a concern for your family, we encourage you to visit Mercer Stadium between 4:00 and 7:00 PM Monday, March 1, where FBISD and the Houston Food Bank will work together at a "Super Site" where food will be distributed to families in need. Read more about it below.

We are also nearing the end of Term 3 grading period, which ends on Friday, March 12. I also wanted to remind everyone that normal instruction (i.e. in-person learning on the SLMS campus for F2F students) will resume on Monday, March 1.

At some point this week, once the details are all finalized, we will send you a separate communication regarding our Spring Open House, which will be Virtual Fine Arts Showcase. It is scheduled for Tuesday, March 9, at 6:30 PM. Please be on the lookout for that communication.

I want to call your attention the information in this newsletter related to student course selection for 2021-22. Dates were revised, and now students have until March 10 to enter their selections in Skyward Student Access. Please read the information below, which includes links to important information for you and your children.

I also want to remind everyone that Spring Break is March 15-18, and that students have an additional week off as the district finalizes preparations for Term 4, which starts on Monday, March 29.

Topics in this Week's Newsletter:

• Week At-A-Glance
• Upcoming Dates
• NEW! - Houston Food Bank Super Site at Mercer Stadium - March 1 from 4:00-7:00
• REVISED: Course Selection Information for 2021-22
  
• NEW! - Kempner HS Engineer Program Information for 8th Graders
• Student Cook-Off Challenge by FBISD School Health Advisory Committee (SHAC)
• FBISD Track Meet Ticketing Information
• Semester 1 Grade Repair and March Interventions
  
• Federal and State School Report Cards for SLMS
  
• Explore UT - Annual Event Held Virtually March 5-6
  
• Resource for Parents of Online Students
  
• Immunization Reminders for Current Sixth Graders

May you experience resilience this week.

Sincerely,

Keith Fickel, SLMS Principal

#Resilience

#GracePatienceOptimism

#BetterTogether

#InfinitePossibilities

#TitansOwnIt

• March 1 - in-person learning on the SLMS campus resumes for F2F students
  
• March 9 - Spring Open House (Virtual Format - Fine Arts Showcase; details coming)
• March 11 - Career Day (details forthcoming)
• March 15-19 - Spring Break
• March 22, 23, and 24 - Interventions for Select Students
• March 29 - Start of Term 4 (T4)

The FBISD Department of Collaborative Communities, in partnership with the Houston Food Bank and FBISD Police Department, will be hosting a Neighborhood Super Site food distribution on Monday, March 1st from 4-7 pm at Mercer Stadium.

A Neighborhood Super Site allows the District to support up to 2,500 families in need. This also allows the District to host one large food distribution in a coordinated effort versus hosting multiple, smaller distributions at our campuses to ensure maximum level impact. Please see the flyer below for more information!

NOTE: The rescheduled course selection windows in Skyward, due to the Winter Storm, have been updated below

Course Selection Time is here! Current 6th, 7th, and 8th grade students received selection information from their social studies teachers during the week of February 8. Students and parents also have the opportunity to view informational videos regarding elective options before entering their choices into Skyward. All videos are available on the SLMS website under our Counselor Page. Course selection meetings for parents regarding the 2021-22 school year were held on February 9 and 11.

UPDATED 2.23.21: For current 6th and 7th grade students, course selection opens in Skyward Student Access (not Family Access) on February 23, and will close on March 10. Students should look for the "Schedules" menu item.

UPDATED 2.23.21: For current 8th grade students, course selection opens in Skyward Student Access on February 23 and closes on March 10, but students will be creating their "career plans" (4-year plan). The courses in students' career plans for 2021-22 (the first year of the 4-year plan) will become their course requests for 9th grade. The KHS counselors and SLMS counselors will be working with students and teachers to explain this process.

For all students, Click here to download a PDF of the FBISD course selection guides (descriptions of courses).

Current 8th Grade Parents

• Watch the recording of the February 9 parent meeting for current 8th grade parents
• Watch this video from the KHS Counselors
• SLMS web page for 8th graders transitioning to HS

Current 6th and 7th Grade Parents

• Watch the recording of the February 11 parent meeting for current 6th and 7th grade parents
• SLMS web page for 6th and 7th graders going into the 2021-22 School Year
• Counselors' web page with informational videos about elective choices

You may also wish to visit our campus webpage dedicated to course selection. It will be updated frequently throughout the coming days as the counselors visit with parents and with students. Also, download the document below titled "Parent and Student Communication AAC Designation" to learn about the change in name for advanced courses from Pre-AP to AAC (Advanced Academic Course)

I just wanted to reach out to you all regarding the Engineering Program at Kempner High School. My name is Ashley Duran and I am the lead Engineering teacher at KHS. With some help of the current engineering students we have put together a video about the engineering program as well as the flyer below. Please share this with your 8th graders who might be interested in the Engineering program. If you want to connect with Ms. Duran at KHS, please complete this form.

KHS Engineering Video

If you have any questions feel free to reach out to me.

Thank you,

Ashley Duran, M.Ed.

Kempner HS

CTE/Engineering (IED, POE, CEA, EDD)

(281) 327-5925

Fort Bend ISD's Child Nutrition Department and School Health Advisory Council (SHAC) teamed up to offer a cook-off for students. Students are invited to record a recipe video that shows them creating one of their favorite recipes.

The grand prize winner will receive a virtual classroom visit from a Houston Texans player, sponsored by DairyMAX.

The deadline to submit an entry is March 1. For more information, including additional rules, view the flier. Use this Microsoft Form to submit your entry.

Soon, select students and their parents will be notified of opportunities to repair grades from semester 1 in core classes or to have required academic or attendance interventions put in place. The students will generally fall in these categories:

• Semester 1 Grade Repair - Students in both learning models who had a semester 1 (S1) grade between 60 and 69 in any of their core classes will be notified of an opportunity to repair their S1 grade up to a 70. These opportunities will run February 8 until we are through. We have had to extend the timeline from its original ending point of March 11, due to the Winter Storm. These will occur during 8th period (F2F students) or during the asynchronous time for online students (2:45-3:45)
• March Interventions (March 22, 23, and 24) - Students in both learning models who had S1 (semester 1) grades lower than 60 in core courses and/or poor rates of attendance. There are other reasons students may be asked to come to these in-person sessions, as well. These sessions will be held on campus, even for students in the online learning model. Sessions are 2.5 hours/day on the three days following spring break.

Schools are required annually to share their federal and state report cards. Parents and staff will receive a separate communication with this same information by February 2, 2021. Links to federal and state report cards for our campus:

• Link to Federal Report Card for Sugar Land Middle School
• Link to State Report Card for Sugar Land Middle School
• Link to FBISD website dedicated to campus report cards

See the parent notification letters below (English and Spanish)

The University of Texas at Austin is excited to bring the wonder and discovery of Explore UT to participants in a virtual format March 5-6, 2021. This free virtual experience will feature live programming with demonstrations, hands-on activities, and other interactive elements to incorporate in the classroom or at home.

Topics covered will include campus life, science and engineering, liberal arts, business, and more—providing a unique look at life on the university’s flagship campus.

More information and a schedule of events will be available on the Explore UT website in February. To receive updates from UT about Explore UT directly to your email, visit this link.

If your child(ren) are online, they (and you), may struggle to make sense of everything. If that describes you, please take a moment to check out this "Online Learning: What You Need to Know" resource on the FBISD web page.

Your sixth-grade child did or will receive the Tdap and the Meningitis vaccines at their 11-year-old check-up. If they have had these vaccines, please provide proof of this to the clinic when your child gets them. These are the required shots for 7th grade and providing them as soon as you get them will keep your child compliant! You may email it to julie.cutaia@fortbendisd.com or fax it to (281) 327-3091.

Our experience has been that some parents wait until the last possible minute to be in compliance with these immunization requirements. Please help us help your child be ready for next year, as it will approach faster than you think!

To ensure the safety of all staff and students, it is critical that families report all positive cases of COVID-19, or exposures to a positive case of COVID-19, immediately. If your student tests positive for COVID-19 or is exposed to a positive COVID-19 case, please notify the District by reporting within the Daily Wellness Screener in Skyward Family Access.

Parent notes are required for all absences within five days from the absence date. Notes must include full student name as well as the reason for the absence (including technical difficulties). If a student misses a synchronous engagement, they are counted absent.Please email all absence notes to AttendanceSLMS@fortbendisd.com. Contact our attendance clerk, Mrs. LaVergne, at (281) 634-3089 if you have questions.

• Assistant Principal - Dr. Dawn Rogers (dawn.rogers@fortbendisd.com)
• Counselor - Eleni Smith (eleni.smith@fortbendisd.com)

Seventh Grade

• Assistant Principal - Luster Goodwin (luster.goodwin@fortbendisd.com)
• Counselor - Kim Seright (kimberly.seright@fortbendisd.com)

Eighth Grade

• Associate Principal - Monika Martin (monika.martin@fortbendisd.com)
• Counselor - Nafecia Brinson (nafecia.brinson@fortbendisd.com)

Counselor Clerk - Carmen Brantley (carmen.brantley@fortbendisd.com)

Assistant Principal Secretaries

• 6th and 7th Grade - Tina Garcia (diamantina.ibarragar@fortbendisd.com)
• 8th Grade - Sherri Woodcock (sherri.woodcock@fortbendisd.com)

Attendance - Mary Beth LaVergne (mary.lavergne@fortbendisd.com)

Registrar - Tandi Phillips (tandi.phillips@fortbendisd.com)

Nurse - Angi Lincoln (angela.lincoln@fortbendisd.com)

Executive Assistant to Principal Fickel - Mary Connealy (mary.connealy@fortbendisd.com)

45 Years

1975-2020

Inspiring and equipping the young men and women of our community for futures beyond what they can imagine since 1975.

SLMS Campus Mission Statement

Working collaboratively, the Sugar Land Middle School Professional Learning Community will commit to creating a safe environment with high expectations leading to physical, social, emotional, and academic success for all Titans.

#TitansOwnIt

#BetterTogether

#InfinitePossibilities

#GracePatienceOptimism

• 8:20-4:20 Monday-Friday

Email: keith.fickel@fortbendisd.com
Website: www.fortbendisd.com/slms
Location: 321 7th Street, Sugar Land, TX, USA
Phone: (281) 634-3080
Twitter: @SLMSTitans