Eye on the Junior High



Recent Posts
August 2024 - Posts
August 29, 2024 
Welcome!
Good afternoon, RJ Grey families! I hope you all had a safe and relaxing summer! As you know, we welcomed our 7th graders on Wednesday and our 8th graders today. Our students did a great job with our routines and seemed happy to be back. Each grade spent some time in an assembly with us where we were able to revisit our desire to create a joyful, inclusive community of engaged learners. One characteristic of a positive community, for me anyway, is how we welcome those who are brand new. We have close to 30 students who did not attend school in Acton or Boxborough last year. I encouraged all of our students to reach out and connect with someone who is new to make them feel included. I am always impressed by the maturity and willingness that our students show to welcome newcomers. When your child shares a bit about their day, ask them if they met anyone new!

This year, I have decided to share my weekly Eye on the Junior High column with all parent/guardian email addresses. In prior years, families received this message by opting in. I don't want to put more in your inbox than is necessary, but I often write about upcoming events or school-wide topics that are important for everyone to know  - not just for those who subscribe. I tend to get these messages out on Thursdays and occasionally on Friday during a busy week!
School Council Nominations
Every year, I recruit interested parents or guardians who would like to serve on the RJ Grey School Council. The School Council meets with me seven times during the year to talk about school-related items, the School Improvement Plan, and ideas to make our school an even better place to be. I am seeking two parent/guardian reps from the 7th grade. Anyone interested should send me an email with a brief bio and why you're interested. If I hear from more than two parents, we'll hold a virtual election later in September. Thank you for stating your interest by September 13th. You should feel free to view past meeting notes on our School Council website. 

Safety Assemblies
Starting tomorrow for 8th grade, and on Tuesday for 7th grade, we will hold our annual safety assemblies. I will speak to students about the important elements of maintaining a safe building. We will review procedures for fire drills and other emergencies, including our ALICE protocol. ALICE is the protocol we would follow if an intruder were to enter our building. I tell students that what we talk about is very unlikely to ever happen at RJ Grey, but we are all better off when we are prepared. We will have two ALICE drills this fall - one in September and one in October. I will be in touch when those drills are upcoming.
Communication
414 of you have signed up to receive our Daily Announcements email. If you haven't already done so, please sign up to receive our Daily Announcements email. Please click this link to join our group.

I am very aware that with the start of the school year, you are receiving lots of messages. I see them from my own kids' schools, too. If you haven't already done so, please take a look at your settings in Parent Square. You can refine how and when you receive messages from RJ Grey. You may want to turn off the text feature if you have the app notifications, as an example. Start here if you'd like to learn more about Parent Square and update your settings. If you have any questions, please let me know!

Fall Athletics
  • All students interested in playing Fall Sports here at RJG need to sign up on Family ID AND have an updated Physical on file with the School Nurse ([email protected]) by 2:36pm on Friday, August 30th.  Students who aren't signed up on Family ID and or who don't have an updated Physical on file will not be allowed to try out for a fall sport. 
  • Tryouts for all sports except Cross Country start on Tuesday, Sept 3rd.  Cross Country will start on Tuesday, Sept 10th. Please visit the Fall Sports Website for additional information about locations, times, coaches, and criteria.
And while tennis is not a sport at RJ Grey, AB Community Ed has a fall tennis offering for RJ Grey students. The Marcus Lewis Tennis Program is offering a program for RJ Grey students this fall. Click here to learn more and register for this Comm Ed program.

I hope your students report that they had a good first (or second) day! 

Take care,
Jim

Posted by jmarcotte  On Aug 29, 2024 at 4:16 PM
  
 
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