Thank you to all the students and families who took this past week to write a note of appreciation to our teachers and custodians. This week (10/11-10/15) is National School Lunch week in which we will be showing our appreciation to our hard-working Child Nutrition Staff. We will have a basket in the front office for anyone who would like to leave a note of appreciation for our staff who keeps our students fed every day for both breakfast and lunch.

During this long weekend, I encourage everyone to make sure you and your family members have all joined our PTA. We are in a competition against Four Points MS and surely you want to show your CRMS pride! Please don’t let CRMS lose the battle, so that me and the other administrators don’t end up having to wear a FPMS jersey to the game next week. :)

Dinner is served on Thursday (10/14)! Don’t miss out on the Chick-fil-A Spirit night from 5-8pm. Please make sure to tell them you are there to support CRMS.

Reminder: This Monday and Tuesday (10/11-10/12) are staff development and student holidays. Our office and campus will be closed while all staff attend the conference. We hope you have a nice long weekend and we look forward to seeing you back at school on Wednesday!

And keep reading below for so many events and ways to get connected at CRMS--Go Eagles!

Follow us on social media:

Twitter: @Sturdevant_CRMS

Instagram: Canyon_Ridge_MS

Facebook: Canyon Ridge Middle School PTA

First Library Club meeting was a huge success this week! 110 students have already joined Library Club! Students are taking over leaderships roles in the library for Book Fair, Adopt-a-shelf, making Kindness bookmarks, Cocoa mornings, and more!

Student Council is hard at work this week planning for Red Ribbon week later this month. Are you interested in being part of StuCo? Email Mrs. Miller at Ali.miller@leanderisd.org

Today, we had the grand opening of our second location for the Leander ISD PTA Clothes Closet at Four Points Middle School.

We are so grateful to the many volunteers who have made this Clothes Closet come together. If you would like to donate, there is a drop-off bin at FPMS.

Our PTA Clothes Closet is a resource available to all students in Leander Independent School District for free clothing, shoes, new socks and underwear. No vouchers are needed.

You can support the PTA Clothes Closet and our students by volunteering or donating gently used clothing in the bins at both of our locations. More details about our Clothes Closet can be found at http://www.lisdptacouncil.com/clothes-closet.html#/.

CRMS is in a competition with Four Points MS in a PTA membership drive. The school with the most new members between Oct 4th and noon,Oct 19th wins. Winners will be announced at the football game on October 19th and the losing principal must wear the other team's jersey at that game. All family members in the household can join so sign up mom, dad, grandparents and neighbors today!

The 2021-22 Destination Imagination teams are now forming. All student registration forms are due by Oct 8th. More information can be found on the CRMS Clubs page or contact Mrs. Seema George.

Is your group interested in having a float in the parade? Please complete this form here in order to be placed on the homecoming parade email list.

FIND all HOCO 2021 info and details here.

VHS October 18th - 22nd themes

It's time for Reflections! We are hoping to bring our school and community together this year to show off our talented students. This year's theme is "I Will Change the World By..." Any student can enter with their answer to this prompt and share their interpretation in the form of dance choreography, film production, literature, musical composition, photography and visual arts. Entries are due Monday, November 1st.

Here is a link for Entrance forms and they can be returned to Margie Aston. Feel free to reach out with any questions.

Yearbooks for the 2021-2022 school year are available online NOW! Don't miss out on the lowest price of the year; Order your yearbook before December 1st for $35. On December 1st, yearbook prices increase. Additionally, we are offering an opportunity for CRMS families to highlight their 8th grade students with a shout out. Shout outs are very similar to senior ads in a high school yearbook and are only available for 8th grade students. They can be purchased as an add on to the yearbook for $25. Shout outs must be purchased on or before January 31, 2022 and your short message and photos must be submitted by February 15, 2022. Our school orders a limited number of yearbooks each year. By pre ordering your yearbook now, you ensure that you will receive a yearbook. If you have any questions please email Jared.Lichtenberger@leanderisd.org .

Students begin their high school four year plan during their 8th grade year. Over the course of this year, Mrs. Cote will be delivering student lessons as part of the 8th to 9th grade transition. Additionally, Vandegrift High School Counselors will be meeting with your child and hosting events in the spring semester for this transition. See VHS dates below and mark your calendars!

• 1/10/22 VHS Counselors to CRMS Campus for Course Registration Presentation
• 1/11/22 8th Grade Family Night @ VHS (may be virtual)
• 1/18/22 VHS Counselor to CRMS Campus for Review of 9th Grade Choice Sheet
• 1/19/22 VHS Counselor to CRMS Campus for Review of 9th Grade Choice Sheet

*Dates subject to change. Accurate as of 10/8/2021

Each year, LISD offers students an opportunity to take an Exam for Acceleration (EA) at no cost to the family. LISD offers multiple EA testing windows each school year. Click this link for more information and dates. Students and parents can request the exam through their grade level counselor. The next testing window and deadline to register is listed below.

Testing Window Two: December 6-8, 2021

Registration deadline: November 1, 2021

Time: Arranged with student's counselor

Location: CRMS

Logistics: Arranged with student's counselor & UTHS

Note: Students who pass an Exam for Acceleration in the December 2021 testing window will complete the 2021-2022 school year in his/her current class. Students will receive their acceleration in the 2022-2023 school year.

Students from Vandegrift High School began a homework help service in 2012. Today Viper Nation Homework Help continues as a student-led, free tutoring service for elementary, middle and even high school peers in our community. To sign up your student for one of the Tuesday evening sessions, please visit https://signup.com/go/zmqysDO.

In Leander ISD, students in Grades 7–9 are taught Human Sexuality Curriculum through presentations by LifeGuard, an independent organization. The topics covered in this abstinence-based curriculum the Texas Health TEKS. All content has been reviewed by the Leander ISD School Health Advisory Council (SHAC) and is grade-level specific and developmentally appropriate. This material will be taught in 2-3-day windows at every LISD middle and high school campus from Sept 14 – April 21.

CRMS Student Presentation Dates

• 7th Grade: October 18-20th
• 8th Grade: October 21-22nd, 25th

Opt-In Google Form

**For your child to be able to attend the presentations, you must submit this OPT-IN form:

• 7th Grade Opt-in form

• 8th Grade Opt-in form

Curriculum Preview

If you wish to preview the curriculum, you may do so at your home campus library. Parents/Guardians may stop by or contact their school librarian to schedule an appointment for viewing. You may also request an electronic parent preview via the LifeGuard website.

When completing parent preview request:

• 7th grade enter team lead, Cody Redfern, as Instructor for CRMS
• 8th grade enter team lead, Rachel Schnee, as Instructor for CRMS

Parent Workshop Information

We will host virtual parent workshops via Zoom throughout the year; future times are listed below. Parent workshops are designed to give parents helpful tips for communicating with their children (grades 7-9) about human sexuality, allow them to review the district curriculum, explore statistics from health officials, and ask questions of LifeGuard and LISD staff.

To register for a parent workshop and to access additional LifeGuard information, please visit the LISD Human Sexuality Curriculum website.

October 6th is now added and available as a parent workshop date. This is the last one prior to CRMS lessons.

• October 6, 2021
  6 p.m.–7:30 p.m.
  Zoom Meeting Registration Links

Leander ISD updated our Health Response Protocols and on August 17th, elevated to a new Red Stage. Please review and partner with us to keep people healthy and schools open:

• COVID-19 Update: New Health Response Protocols
• August 6th Update to COVID Notifications, Contact Tracing and Dashboard data
• August 17th Update: Mask Requirement for All
• Leander ISD COVID dashboard

CRMS Frequently Asked Questions - COVID

• Beginning Monday, Aug. 30, indoor extracurricular events in Leander ISD will be limited to 50% capacity. This will remain in effect while LISD is in the “red stage.” Masks are required at indoor LISD events. More info

• Effective Monday, August 30th, STUDENT SPECTATORS must be accompanied and supervised by their parent/guardian to attend indoor events. In order to ensure family members of our student athletes and performers are able to attend and support them, student spectators will be required to be accompanied and supervised by a parent/guardian at indoor events. We recognize that our students are eager and proud to support their peers at games and performances. When LISD returns to the Yellow Stage we will adjust this policy.

Our Board of Trustees called for a Bond election to:

• Keep up with growth.
• Take care of existing schools and impact every student.
• Replace equipment and technology.

Three propositions will be on the ballot for voters to consider. Proposition A includes $727.2 million worth of new construction, renovation, and equipment replacement projects. Proposition B includes $33.3 million to replace existing technology devices, including student and staff laptops, over the next three years. Proposition C includes $11.7 million in renovation and lighting/sound upgrades to our high school and district performing arts centers.

We worked with a community committee of over 150 volunteers to identify and prioritize our district’s needs over the next three years. The proposed projects impact every student and school in our district and can be financed without a tax rate increase and will be paid for by layering in debt payments using tax collections from rising property values.

Election Details

• Last Day for Voter Registration: Monday, Oct. 4, 2021
• Early Voting: Oct. 18–29, 2021
• Election Day: Tuesday, Nov. 2, 2021

ALL tickets for all high school and middle school athletic events hosted at LISD facilities will be sold online only. There will be NO cash sales at the gate. Tickets can be purchased through link on the athletics webpage: https://www.leanderisd.org/athletics_ticketspasses/

Many have generously reached out and asked how you can donate or support the teachers/school during this time. If you are wanting to donate and unsure how, we will gladly accept donations on campus of the following:

• bottled water
• masks
• paper towels
• hand sanitizer
• Clorox wipes

Currently, there is no state funding for PPE this year, so donations will be accepted and very appreciated! You can drop off in the school front office at your convenience during school hours.

Just a reminder that CRMS will not be proctoring the PSAT 8/9 for our 8th graders this year. We are partnering with More Than A Teacher to host 2 options for students to take a practice PSAT test either on November 2nd or November 6th. Here is the link to the information (registration link is embedded).

Home Access Center (HAC) provides families with an online tool where they can view helpful student information to support and guide their children through the educational process. From home or work, at any time of the day or night, parents can access the web portal to track academic achievement.

Features include:

• Grade notifications,

• Class schedules

• Attendance records.

Visit the Home Access Center page to learn more. Please allow time for our campuses to complete schedule and teacher assignments in the coming days prior to the start of the school year.

Beginning Aug. 5, Leander ISD parents can enter their home address into Infofinder to look up their child’s bus route number, pick-up/drop-off times, and bus stop locations for the 2021-22 school year. Bus routes are subject to change, so LISD parents are strongly encouraged to confirm their child’s bus information again the week prior to the start of school.

The Transportation Department will continue to use the Remind platform to communicate delay notifications and other important updates. Bus riders and their guardians will be added to a Remind “class” for their assigned bus route.

All students at CRMS must have a working computer/device with a keyboard. If you do not have your own device, that is okay! Click on this link to sign-up/re-enroll and pay the 2021-2022 mLISD non-refundable security deposit so you can get your computer as soon as possible!

Our schools and teachers use Remind to send text messages and emails to our parents. Make sure you log into Remind to set up your notification preferences, see archived messages, and send messages directly to your teachers and school staff. Download the mobile app (Google Play, Apple) for the best user experience.

Click here to learn more about Remind.

As Leander ISD Child Nutrition Services will continue to offer free breakfast and lunch meals to all students for the 2021–22 school year, low-cost meals are not being served at this time. To manage your student’s meal balance for snacks or extras beyond the meal service, please create your Titan Family Connect account (formerly MealTime). Leander ISD school menus, along with complete nutrition information, are available through Nutrislice.

School start and end times for elementary, middle and high school are listed below.

• Elementary School: 7:40 a.m.–2:55 p.m.
• Middle School: 8:10 a.m.–3:25 p.m.
• High School: 8:40 a.m.–4:00 p.m.

90-minute Early Release Schedule for 2021–22 School Year

• Elementary School: 7:40 a.m.–1:25 p.m.
• Middle School: 8:10 a.m.–1:55 p.m.
• High School: 8:40 a.m.–2:30 p.m.

*District Calendar linked below

Turn your sound on and please watch this video from CRMS students!

*Randall's will donate to CRMS PTA if you select us as your Good Neighbor Program just because you shop there! Complete this form and then e-mail to good.neighbor@randalls.com or take to any store customer service location..

*Did you know you can buy all your Amazon purchases through Amazon Smile, and they will donate to our PTA all year long?!?! It doesn’t cost you anything and you order the same way. Just set up your Amazon Smile profile to donate to PTA Texas Congress Canyon Ridge Middle School PTA.

*CRMS PTA: If you have not yet, please consider joining the CRMS PTA. Memberships start as low as $10.

*SPIRIT WEAR: Spirit Wear is restocked. Porch pickup is very close to CRMS.

Be sure to follow Canyon Ridge Middle School PTA on Facebook and join the Facebook group for your child's grade level. Thank you for your time and all of your support for our Eagles!

AP/Counselor by grade-level for 2021-22:

• 6th: Monica Diaz Carle/Sabrina Anderson
• 7th: Cassandra Ricks/Katie Young
• 8th: Leah Cox /Staci Cote

Email: Wendy.Sturdevant@leanderisd.org
Website: crms.leanderisd.org
Location: Canyon Ridge Middle School, Country Trails Lane, Austin, TX, USA
Phone: 512-570-3500
Twitter: @Sturdevant_CRMS

Mark your Calendar: October 22nd during all lunches. All students who took school photos earlier this year have received those pictures back. October 22nd is for those who missed the earlier photos or prefer to re-take this year's school photo.

More information will be posted on the website soon.