LAST CALL FOR LOST AND FOUND
We will be donating all items on October 29, which means October 27th is the last school day for students to check and see if anything they’re missing is in there. Please remind your student to do so in the coming days – and to be mindful of where they leave sweatshirts, lunch boxes, jackets, hats, gloves, water bottles, books, scarves, and so much more!
Conferences Next Week
Conferences will be held Wednesday October 27th and Thursday October 28th via WebEx. I shared details of the conference format and instructions on how to sign up in a separate email home this week. Conferences are a great opportunity to have a discussion with your student and their teachers to better understand what is happening in their learning and how you can support their efforts at home.
Those of you who have 8th graders or who have students attend Pacific Crest in the past may remember the limitations on how many of your student’s teachers you could conference with we had to place when we hosted in-person conferences due to time, but we have no such limitations now. You are welcome to sign up for as many teachers as you’d like, so long as there is room in the teacher’s conference schedule.
During our conferences, our school counselors, Abigail Clark and Sarah Girard, will be hosting a presentation to inform families about the school counseling program here at Pacific Crest. This presentation is geared towards families that are not familiar with our counseling program. This WebEx will be hosted from 5:00-5:30 on Wednesday in the Ms. Girard’s WebEx room:
https://bls.webex.com/meet/sarah.girard
The presentation will last approximately 20 minutes and then there will be time for questions after.
Lunch Update
We are moving to TWO lunches starting Monday, 10/25 in order to prepare for the inevitability that the weather will force us to host indoor lunch at some point this fall/winter/spring, as we do not currently have the capacity to host 610+ students inside for lunch while maintaining the required 6 feet of social distancing. This was announced to students this afternoon and there are some students upset that they will no longer have lunch with friends because of this change. Please know that two lunches is not an ideal situation for us, as it represents an increase in our coverage needs and for the fact that it creates situations like this where students feel like they are missing out. Safety continues to drive our decisions and this is no different.
The breakdown of whose Advisory class has first lunch and whose Advisory has second lunch can be found here; the bell/time schedule with the addition of the second lunch can be found here. While I do appreciate students advocating for themselves and requesting schedule changes as a result of this shift, we will continue to not permit schedule changes at this point in the year.
A Message from Pacific Crest Community Organization (PCCO)
Our annual Fill Our Nest Giving Campaign kicks off today. Many of you may not be familiar with this campaign because we did not roll it out during the 2020/21 school year due to the pandemic. Funds raised this year will support things such as scholarships, classroom grants, academic enrichment and professional development. None of these programs would be possible without the participation of this fantastic community. Every donation makes a difference, and no contribution is too small.
Please consider enriching your child’s middle school experience by making a one-time, tax-deductible donation that will help support programs at PCMS. Contributions can be made online here or you can complete the attached form and return it to PCMS main office. We appreciate your support, especially after last year’s hiatus.
One more thing…PCCO is currently seeking people to fill two board positions, Vice-President and Treasurer. This a great way to be involved and support our school. Please contact Anne Westerhoff for more information at [email protected] or (562-225-8297). We would love to hear from you!
Spirit Dress-up Week
Get your SPIRIT on! Our first spirit week (3 days) kicks off on Monday, October 25th, and we are looking forward to students and staff dressing up thematically to show their school spirit.
- Monday, 10/25: Monochrome Day (dress in one color)
- Tuesday, 10/26: Wild Hair or Crazy Hat Day
- Wednesday, 10/27: Halloween Costumes
When selecting costumes for the week, we are directing students to put some thought into their costumes to avoid costumes that are offensive, mock cultural or religious symbols or beliefs, trivialize human suffering or oppression. For more info, see these guidelines. Additionally, the increasingly popular blow-up costumes are not allowed, as they are too large. Students not in line with our expectations will have to call home to change clothes.
Outdoor Lunch
While we will be splitting into two lunches next week to prepare for the inevitability of the weather forcing us inside, we will continue to make use of our ability to host students outside during lunch as long as weather permits. With the colder temperatures, please make sure your student is dressed in layers and is prepared to spend 30 minutes outside for lunch. And please help them remember to take those layers home so they don’t end up in our lost and found!
Student Photo Make-up Day & Retake Day
On Tuesday, 10/26, Dorian Studios will be here to photograph students who missed the original photo day on Monday, 9/13 AND the students who guardians would like to have their photos retaken, which is typically a very few students.
VERY IMPORTANT NOTE: It just so happens that re-take day falls on the Spirit Day that is themed as Wild Hair or Crazy Hat Day. Student photos will NOT be taken if they are in costume.
Also, for those who purchased photo packets early this year, your student received them today in Advisory to take home.
‘Tis the Giving Season!
As part of the Annual PCMS Gives Back to the Community Campaign, our WEB Leaders are hosting a 10-day holiday food drive in partnership with The Giving Plate Food Bank, which serves local residents in Bend. The collection will begin Monday, 11/1 and will end Wednesday, 11/10. The grade level (6th, 7th 8th) that donates the most items will receive a prize.
- Holiday Food Drive Flyer
- The Giving Plate Website
- The Giving Plate YouTube Video
E-Bike Update and Information
Office Brandon Gould, our school’s School Resource Officer (SRO), shared a pocket guide to two-wheeled modes of transportation that outlines the legality of operating each. In short, the operation of E-Bikes on public roads is restricted to those individuals 16 years of age or older. We are working with Officer Gould to determine a plan on how to address this with our students (none of whom are 16 years old or older) so that we can ensure they are following the legal requirements. I will share more as I know more.
Calendar
- Oct. 25 – 27 | Spirit “Dress UP” Week
- Oct. 26 | Student Photo Retake & Make-up Day
- Oct. 26 | School Board Meeting | 5:30pm |
- Oct. 28 & Oct. 29 | NO SCHOOL | Conference Days
- Nov. 3 – Nov. 10 | Holiday Food Drive (more info above)
- Nov. 1 | Boys’ Basketball Season Begins
- Nov. 11 | No School | Veteran’s Day
- Nov. 22 – Nov. 26 | No School | Thanksgiving Break
- Dec. 20 – Dec. 31 | No School | Winter Break
- Jan. 17 | No School | Martin Luther King Day
Helpful Links