AGS NEWS

Eric Rettenmund, Principal

Megan Yelle, Assistant Principal

Lisa Wissinger, Dean of Students

Melissa Welsh, Counselor

Paige Millikin, Social Worker

Stephanie Miller, Social Worker

Barb Stinson, Secretary

Randi Thorp, Clerk

March

21: End of 3rd Marking Period

31: Spring Break

April

7: Return from Spring Break

8: 1/2 day

9: 1/2 day - **PSAT 8 - State Testing Day

• **ONLY 8th Grade Reports (No school for 6th/7th)

18: No School - Good Friday

28: No School (students) - Staff PD

May

9: 8th Grade Awards/Dance (6:30 PM)

16: 7th/8th grade Field Trips

19: 5th Grade Transition Day

22: FHS Graduation

26: No School - Memorial

29: 1/2 Day Exam

30: 1/2 Day Exam (LAST DAY)

Get ready to dive into a week of fun, friendship, and celebrating everyone's unique awesomeness! Inclusion Week is HERE, and it's going to be a blast! 🎉

Some super LINK Leaders – Emma Dean, Kellyn Conley, and Palmer Hendrick – put their heads together and thought up a week of amazing activities just for YOU! They picked all the fun days and even designed the flyer! How cool is that? Let's give them a HUGE round of applause! 👏

From St. Jude's Church (a valuable community partner):

For those on a tight budget, Spring Break can put a damper on a family’s food budget when your children are home during the day. St. Jude’s Church can help. We would like to provide the children in your family with a week’s supply of breakfast and lunch groceries to help your family bridge the gap for meals your child would normally receive during that week.

The Spring Break Food Distribution is at St. Jude’s Church (106 E. Elizabeth St. at

corner of S. Leroy St. and Elizabeth St.) on Saturday, March 29th between 9 am and

3pm.

We are excited about partnering with Fenton, Lake Fenton and Linden schools to

help people in our community. There are no pre-requisites for the program, just show up

(if you have a reusable grocery bag, you could bring it along). We look forward to seeing

you on Saturday, March 29th.

If transportation to St. Jude’s is an issue for you, please let us know and we can

arrange to have the groceries delivered. Simply call the church office at 810-629-5681

and let us know how many children there are in your family and the delivery location.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us at the number above.

Thank you to students, staff, and parents who were able to attend and participate in the presentations. We would like to thank everyone for their attentiveness at these meetings and for your continued feedback as we support our students with their suggested movements. If you haven't, we recommend that you check out a few of Jared's resources.

The Culture Shift Tour Resource Page

Identity Shift Worksheet

The Culture Shift Blueprint

Please click on the BUTTON below the flyer to access the order form.

STANDARDIZED TESTING IMPORTANT DATES -

PSAT 8 - 8TH GRADE ONLY -

- Monday, 3/24 - Counselors are meeting with & registering all 8th grade students in their Math classes. This will provide an opportunity for students to become familiar with the PSAT 8 testing process & to practice prior to the test on WEDNESDAY, APRIL 9TH.

- The PSAT 8 test will be given on WEDNESDAY, APRIL 9TH. ONLY 8th grade students will come to school that day & it is a 1/2 day. More information to follow.

MSTEP - 6th, 7th & 8th graders -

- Tuesday, April 15th & Thursday, April 17th - more information to follow.

Mrs. Melissa Welsh, MA - School Counselor (last names A - M) - mwelsh@fentonschools.org

Mrs. Stephanie Miller, MSW - Social Worker (last names N - Z) - stmiller@fentonschools.org

AST is available Tuesdays and Thursdays from 2:15 to 3:15 p.m. AGS Teachers are present and transportation is available for students residing within the district. AST is on an as-needed basis so students can come as much or as little as they would like. On the days of AST, students will need to sign up using a Google Form on the AST Google Classroom page before 2:00 PM to be able to stay. The purpose of AST is for students to receive help with homework/class work, ask questions from the teachers, or have a quiet place to work. However students must have something to work on. A light snack will also be provided. Please make sure to pick up students by 3:20.

A parent preference Google Form is included below. Please fill it out if your child plans on attending AST.

AST Google Classroom code for your child: rzzjgqy

Please email Mrs. Sayer for more information.

Mrs. Sayer: mailto:esayer@fentonschools.org

The AGS PTO meets on the second Thursday of each month at 1:00 PM in the AGS conference room. The PTO helps to support school assemblies, teacher supplies, 8th grade honors/dance, library books, scholarships for field trips, and much more! Thank you for supporting our PTO.

Next Meeting: April 10

Last Meeting: May 8

ProtectMiChild is a free, secure program that keeps kids safe from adult-oriented advertising via social media, text, and email.

Parents can register their children’s social media handles, phone numbers, and email addresses to block ads for products like alcohol, tobacco, pornography, and online gaming.

Link to Website: https://www.protectmichild.com/

Community Share is a FREE resource for our Fenton community families. It is located in the World of Wonder Early Learning Center. Community Share is run and maintained by Fenton Area Public Schools and Joy Inc.

1. Families can donate their gently used clothing, childrens’ items and household essentials, as well as take what they need.
2. Donations can be done Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursdays between 8:00 AM - 3:30 PM and "shopping" hours are Monday-Thursday 10:00 AM-2:00 PM.
3. Community Share serves a threefold purpose:

• To keep items out of landfills by allowing families to pass on items they are no longer using,
• Allow families access to a free resource to get what they need
• Provide a work site for high school students to practice their job skills.

For questions, please contact the WOW office at 810-591-8349.

Link To Community Share Newsletter: https://secure.smore.com/n/r8bky

During second semester our district has started the process of adding additional security features to our schools including, high visibility placards, emergency pull stations in student areas as well as linked security lighting in our buildings. The implementation is taking place between now and February, and we will be having training with our staff, students and administrators as well as educating our community on the importance of these features and what the use for them is. Below is a picture of a smart classroom with some of the features that we are adding to help keep our students and staff safe. If you'd like to learn more about these added features please take a look at the link to the LockOut USA - https://lockoutusa.com/

The Varsity Tutors Platform gives your student more opportunities to learn at their own pace. 24/7 on-demand chat tutoring and on-demand essay review are live tutoring resources to help your student with any questions about homework, classwork, or test prep. Live group classes, recorded classes, and celebrity-led StarCourses allow your student to learn more about the subjects they’re interested in, and add a touch of fun. Assessments and self study practice problems provide

opportunities to drill skills towards mastery. And college prep & admissions resources ensure that

your student has the best resources available to secure their future.

Link: https://varsitytutorsforschools.zendesk.com/hc/en-us

The middle school health curriculum is delivered by PE/Health teachers in SRT class throughout the school year. This will begin in in the next couple of weeks and will continue until the end of the year. The teachers will teach approximately 4 lessons/units for 30 minutes during SRT. Attached below is a health letter that contains more information. Additionally, a health waiver form is attached. The waiver is only required for those who choose to OPT OUT of the district mandated health class. Students will receive a copy of the letter and waiver 2 weeks prior to taking health class. If you choose the OPT OUT option, please return the waiver before health class begins. You may print the form attached to this email and return it to the main office at any time or complete/return the form when your student receives it 2 weeks prior to class. There are also additional copies in the main office. We will be posting updates in the AGS NEWS, including a schedule of when the class will be taught in your child's SRT.

Please contact the main office (810 591 7700) with any questions. Thank you!

Attachments:

Health Letter .png

Health Waiver.png

Below is the code to join PhotoCircle. You'll want to download the app & then request to join the group for this year's yearbook album where you may submit photos to be considered. The link is also posted in the comments for those who have issues with the posted link below.

Submission Guidelines: Please only add photos of AGS events, sports & activities. Please add a caption to each picture with a short description of what the picture is of & who the students are in the picture. PLEASE DO NOT ADD NON-AGS RELATED SPORTS & ACTIVITIES TO THE ALBUM. This causes many wasted hours to the yearbook design process when things such as youth sports, sleepovers & parties are added. Thank you!

Please email Ms. Fleury with any questions or concerns regarding the yearbook. mtodorovsky@fentonschools.org

Photo Circle Link: only click this link once you have downloaded the app.

https://join.photocircleapp.com/NZB1CW0AYY

School of Choice window for 2025-26 school year is Monday, February 24 - August 15, 2025. School of Choice paperwork will be posted/available on the Fenton Area Public Schools website on Monday, February 24th as well.

This School of Choice form will be found on our enrollment page at www.fentonschools.org closer to the March 1st date.

Online enrollment for new students and the registration of current students who may have moved out of the district will be open on Monday, February 24, 2025.

• New families will want to create a Parent Vue account to enroll students.
• Current FAPS families will login to your existing Parent Vue account to add new students and/or update your current students' information. NOTE: If you are a current FAPS family and having trouble logging into your account please contact Mrs. Ebert at cebert@fentonschools.org. DO NOT CREATE A NEW ACCOUNT.
• Enrollment info link:

https://fentonareaschoolsmi.sites.thrillshare.com/page/enrollment

Explore local happenings! Our district website features a 'Community Bulletin Board' with digital flyers showcasing community events, clubs, sports programs, and more. Check it out to see what's going on in Fenton! #WeAreFenton

Below are a few updated photos showing the progress of our new main office addition. During this time, the entrance off of Shiawassee may be closed. There will be more details in the FAPS newsletter and on the FAPS website as the project continues. We are excited about improving the facility for our staff, students, and families.

To help keep our schools and community safe, you can use this confidential tip line to report any suspicious or threatening behavior.

Email: erettenmund@fentonschools.org
Website: http://fentonschools.org/andrew-g-schmidt-middle-school/
Location: 3255 Donaldson Drive, Fenton, MI, USA
Phone: 810.591.7700
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Fenton-Area-Public-Schools-110556712352619/
Twitter: @fentonschools