Welcome to the 2024-25 School Year

It is my pleasure to welcome you to the 2024-2025 school year! I hope this smore newsletter finds you well and excited for the start of the new year. In just a few days our halls will be busy with students engaged in learning, exploring the many options we have available to them, and establishing new relationships with peers and staff. We look forward to welcoming our students back to school and partnering with our parents and guardians in support of helping our students reach their potential.

We hope this newsletter is a valuable resource in preparing our students and families with the necessary information to start the school year. Please be sure to check out the Welcome Back Letter below and take the time to look through the content of this newsletter.

On behalf of the faculty and staff of Lower Merion High School, welcome back for the 2024-2025 school year. We hope to have an exciting and positive start to the year.

Sincerely,

Mike Johnson Ed.D.

Principal

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All students should report to their Advisory by 8:30AM on the first day of school, Tuesday, September 3rd. The doors of the building will open for student entry at 8:00 AM. Dismissal is at 3:15 and all students are expected to exit the building at that time, unless they are involved in a club, sport, or activity.

Please notice that every student’s Advisory teacher and room is listed on their PowerSchool schedule.

Click the link below to access the bell schedules for September 3 - 6. You will notice that we have scheduled multiple lunches by grade level during this time period, which allows for us to facilitate grade level orientation meetings and advisory time prior to the start of Lunch and Learn on September 9th.

For students who did not pick up their laptops during early deployment, distribution will continue the first week of School from the Black Box Theatre. Specific information will be shared with students during the opening days of school.

Our school-wide expectations, known as the ACES Expectations stand for Accountability, Character, Effort, and Safety. We will be covering these expectations during our grade level assemblies the first week of school. Please click the image below to access a more comprehensive look at our ACES Expectations. Your support in reinforcing expectations such as staying on campus (not walking to Wawa or Suburban Square or to move cars), keeping doors closed, and not ordering from apps like Grub Hub or Uber Eats are appreciated.

Students will have an Advisory period every day from September 5th through September 12th. During this time they will attend grade level meetings with administrators, teachers and counselors. They will learn about supports, programs, logistical information, and our ACES Expectations. After September 12th, Advisory will then be on every "A" day from 9:27 - 9:47.

In May of 2023 we implemented the requirement for all students to wear ID cards. We will move this initiative forward for all students in October/November of 2024. We will share additional information during the beginning weeks of the year regarding a date for implementation and other clarifying details and expectations. Thank you for your support in keeping our campus safe.

It is important that we have a record of students who are in the building so we are capturing accurate attendance. If your student will be absent or requires a late “arrival” or early “dismissal” from school, please utilize the Safe Arrival Form or call 610-645-1898.

As a reminder, students who enter the building after 8:30 are late and must obtain a late pass at the front office.

In addition, students with free periods must enter and sign-in at the main office. Students with frees are also required to sign-out prior to leaving the building if departing before the 3:15 dismissal bell.

When the bell rings for dismissal at 3:15, it is the expectation that students exit the building. For students involved in after school activities and athletics, there will be late buses starting Tuesday, September 6th after school. The buses will leave from the bus cutout adjacent to Owen Road (please see the attached map). There are two departure times for late buses each day, 4:45pm and 5:45pm.

• If you are struggling with accessing or completing schoolwork, please reach out to your school counselor (posted above).
• If you are finding day-to-day life as we know it now to be overwhelming or difficult, we want you to know you can email your school counselor, our Wellness Counselor, Mrs. Stief StiefC@lmsd.org or our Social Workers, Ms. Montalvo MontalJ@lmsd.org or Ms. Hensel (HenselA@lmsd.org)
• If you’re a teen who is starting to feel overwhelmed and need another teen to talk to, please call Montgomery County’s teen talk line at (866) 825-5856 or text (215) 703-8411. It is available, free of charge, Monday through Friday, from 3:00 pm to 7:00 pm.
• Montgomery County Children’s Crisis Support Program provides not only immediate support for crisis situations but also assistance with managing recurring or future crises. Support is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at 1-888-HELP-414.
• LMSD Reporting Form and Safe2Say forms are available HERE.
• New suicide and crisis hotline number: 988 (https://988lifeline.org/current-events/the-lifeline-and-988/)

Below are links to the Athletics and Activities page on the District website. Students can find current information, meeting dates, fundraisers, and more for clubs and athletics that may be of interest to them.

Athletics: https://www.lmsd.org/lower-merion/athletics

Activities: https://www.lmsd.org/lower-merion/activities/activities

• School Cafe will allow you to add funds to your child's meal account.
• Medical Forms Make sure you are up to date (Class of 2024 Physical Required)
• 🚌Check Class and Bus Information in PowerSchool
• 💁‍♀️Volunteer Registration You must do this to volunteer in LMSD schools in any capacity.
• Sports Physical Form Have it ready for Winter or Spring sports
• 💾 Keep Tech Support contact handy: techsupport@lmsd.org and LMSD Helpdesk

If you are a LMHS parent or guardian, we invite you to learn more about our Home and School Association. We encourage you to create a free account on the LMHS, MembershipToolKit (MTK) and subscribe to the LM Aces Update. MTK is our HSA’s communication platform that houses our school directory, important HSA information, calendar of events, and communication tools to help us build school community at the individual/grade level through directed emails and school-wide through our weekly HSA newsletter. We look forward to a great school year!

We are looking forward to a great year,

Dr. Mike Johnson on behalf of Lower Merion's Faculty and Staff

Email: johnsomic@lmsd.org
Website: lmsd.org/lower-merion
Location: Ardmore, PA
Phone: 610.645.1810