HAPPY HOLIDAY DAYS! ENJOY AND BE SAFE.

Greetings Parents,

We have made it successfully through the first semester, with only 2 instructional days left.  Please make sure you are working with your child(ren) make sure their grades are acceptable.  The last instructional day is December 16^th.  Make sure you check your child’s Pinpoint Grade and submit the necessary assignments.

On Wednesday, December 10^th, our 2014 girls basketball sports season ended. The championship games were played at Leon High School, and it was a very exciting night for all involved.

In the 1A divisional championship game the Griffin Tigers played a very inspiring basketball game against the Nims Trojans. Players from both teams raced up and down the floor the entire game and in a high scoring match. The Trojans pulled out a victory in the closing seconds, by a score of 44 to 41. Congratulations to both teams for great seasons.

Congratulations to our School Spelling Bee Winners!

2^nd  Place – Shemar Sandford

1^St Place – Ke’Ambernique Mason

Ke’Smbernique will represent the school in the Leon County Spelling Bee in January.  More details to follow. We are very proud of all of our participants, and the support of Mrs. O’Neil, Mrs. Taylor, Ms. Kennell, and the Language Arts department teachers.

Our Afterschool Program begins January 6, 2015. Sign up soon. There is limited space available and it is filling up quickly.

Parents, don’t forget to view your child’s pinpoint grades daily! With our joint effort, our students will continue to excel! The end of the 2^nd nine weeks is 5 days away.  Please work with you child to view grades and get the necessary assignments turned in.

EXCEL-ABRATION!!!

We are excited to announce that a vast majority of our students are passing their core academic classes with a 70% or higher. 160 students were rewarded with an EXCEL-ABRATION social event twice during the second nine weeks progress report! The next EXCEL-ABRATION will be held Friday, January 16, 2015. At the end of the day, 50 minutes will be given to students to participate in one of three options:

· Movie Time

· Social Time in the Amphitheater!

· Computers and Board Games

· Basketball

Criteria for Being Invited: All passing grades of “C” or higher in all classes. Student grades will be checked on Wednesday, November 19. This is the report of grades that will determine a student’s eligibility for invitation.

A tremendous thank you is offered to New Mt. Zion AME Church, “Zion Cares” for providing today’s “Goodies” to our Excel-Abration participants. We are always looking for parent and community volunteers to donate both time and items for events like this! Please contact either Mrs. Jefferson or Mrs. Montgomery to sign up. Remember: The next EXCEL-ABRATION will be held on Friday, January 16, 2015.  

Palmer Monroe Teen Center Presents is hosting its Annual Teen Recognition Night and Harvest Dinner: Wednesday, November 19, 2014 at 6:00P.M. If you have not done so, check out the programs sponsored by Palmer Monroe Teen Center. It is a great place for safe teen activities!

For more information stop by 1900 Jackson Bluff Road or call 891-2569.  Check with the front office staff to find out more information about Griffin students taking the school bus to the Teen Center after school daily.  This is an available resource for afterschool tutoring, teen events, and supervised activities.  The Teen Center is open daily until 8:00 pm.

· Is your child struggling in one or more classes? Would your child benefit from having a tutor in math, science, social studies or language arts?

· Does your child need an opportunity to make up a missed test or assignment.

· Do you want your child to receive extra help to bring up their academic progress and earn honor roll?

WELL, we have the answer for you. Griffin operates the  Center ever morning from 8:45 – 9:15. Students simply go into the  Center (located in the Media Center) and request the needed assistance. Teachers are available and waiting.  Please contact Mrs. Whitfield, Mrs. Carter, Mrs. Moore, or Ms. Casto for more information. You may also contact the front office at 617-5353.

100 Black Men of Tallahassee provides a Mentoring Program that meets, from 10:00am - 12:00pm in the Media Center at Griffin Middle School. It's not too late to become a part of this great program! Applications are available and this is a tremendous resource for our families to take advantage of! If you would like to benefit from the 100 Black Men program, stop by any of the upcoming sessions:

This mentorship program will return in January 2015.

Million Book Challenge

This year, Superintendent Pons has given us the charge of reading 1 million books, district-wide, by the end of the 2014-2015 school year.  His goal is to get students to love and enjoy reading so that they will be lifelong readers.  In a recent interview he stated, “The goal isn’t to make them read. The goal is to teach them to enjoy reading.” Griffin supports the Superintendent’s efforts. We want to surpass last year’s numbers, 365 from Destiny Circulation and 255 Summer Reading, and we need your help! Please encourage your child to read for at least 30 minutes each day and visit the Media Center to take an AR quiz on what they’ve read. We will do a monthly tally and as we move closer to meeting our goal, we will keep you up-to-date on how we are progressing. We are so excited about this initiative, Go Tigers!   

Agenda Books Have a Specific Purpose to Help with a Student’s Success!

Remind your child! The purpose of the Agenda Book:

· To use for Hall Passes 

· To record homework assignments

· to keep track of important due dates

· To serve as a teacher-parent checkpoint

· To serve as a reference for school rules

Parent Expectations for Using the Agenda Book:

· Ask your child for the book and review the entries

· If there are no entries, inform your child that you expect the entries

· Check the Agenda Book daily to see if your child is recording homework and important dates

· Use the Agenda Book for positive conversations about the child’s responsibility

· Model the use of the adult personal planner so your child learns a valuable life skill

· Send a note to your child’s teacher regarding a question you may have

· Check the pass page to see how many times your child is requesting to leave class throughout the school day

This school purchased tool is provided for the academic success of our students.  With parents and teachers using this tool, we will make sure all students are learning and growing.

JOIN OUR SWAT CLUB!

SWAT is Florida’s statewide youth organization working to mobilize, educate and equip Florida youth to revolt against and de-glamorize Big Tobacco. They are a united movement of empowered youth working towards a tobacco free future. If you would like to join the GMS SWAT Club, stop by Ms. Hurd’s room from 8:45-9:15a.m, meetings are held daily. Help us make our community tobacco-free!

Support Our Tigers Athletes!

Each week our student athletes compete against schools throughout the district. We take great pride in being there to cheer them on! We invite our parents to come out and support our students!  Currently, our athletes are participating in Girls’ Basketball and Boys’ Soccer. Check the weekly calendar at the end of this list serve for dates of athletic events.

Magnet Program Information

Magnet Meetings will be held on the 1^st Friday of each month. If you are a member of the magnet program, please plan to attend these meetings. We will discuss upcoming events and ways to become more involved in the community. We are asking that all of our magnet students purchase a magnet t-shirt for Magnet Mondays! Our goal is to attract more students to become a part of our programs and help us become a driving force within Griffin and the community.

All magnet students are invited to attend the monthly meetings. Meetings will be the first Friday of each month, from 9:00-9:20 a.m. in the            Media Center. If you have any questions or would like more information, please contact Mrs. Montgomery @ [log in to unmask].

The Information Technology and Advanced Placement magnet programs along with the CAPE Academy and the Junior Beta Club are collecting toiletry items for the Homeless Shelter. These items include but are not limited to toothbrushes, toothpaste, hair combs, hair brushes, soap, deodorant, etc. and can be dropped off to Mrs. Montgomery in Guidance.

PTO Meeting

Our next monthly PTO meeting will be January 12, 2015 @ 5:30 pm. and SAC @ 6:00 pm. in the Media Center. We look forward to building relationships with each of our families by finding ways to meet the needs of our students. If you are looking for more ways to become active in your child’s education, look no further! It’s never too little or too late to get started!

2014-2015 PTO Board   

Aysha Edwards- President

Beunita Lee- Vice President

Vaughn Wilson- Secretary

Thais Wilson- Treasurer

Parent Portal Access

The Parent Portal is now available! This great resource makes student grades and attendance accessible to you 24/7. While we encourage our students to view their grade progress on a regular basis, the Parent Portal is a parent resource for supporting their child’s education.  Parent Portal letters that include student’s username and passwords, have already been sent home. If you are in need of log in information, please ask your child to stop by the main office and we will be happy to assist them in retrieving this information.

If you are a new Leon County Schools parent and you are not familiar with Parent Portal, then please visit the Parent/Student User Guide link below:

Parent and Student User guides: http://parentportal.leonschools.net/PinpointPortal.html

Dress Code Policy and  Implementation

Students are reminded that our dress code policy remains the same.  Students are not permitted to wear house shoes, jeans with holes or rips above the knee (even if you have tights on underneath), see through shirts, camisoles or thin strapped tank tops cannot be worn as a shirt, anything worn underneath a vest or unzipped jacket must be within dress code (including camisoles), shorts, skirts, and dresses must be fingertip length, tank tops must not show cleavage and be 3 fingers in width.  Tights or leggings cannot be worn as pants, jeggings can be worn with pockets on the back.  Young men must have their jeans, pants or shirts on their waist at all times.  Hats are not permitted, and hoods from hoodies cannot be worn on your head.  Failure to adhere to the dress code will result in discipline as noted below and in the school discipline plan.  Please see Mrs. Montgomery if you have questions or concerns.

Students are reminded daily of the Dress Code. Students that are sent to the office, seen during transition, or warned by the classroom teacher will be issued a warning on the first offense. If clothing is distracting to the learning environment, students will be asked to contact a parent to bring a change of clothing.  A formal copy of the dress code guidelines is listed in your child’s agenda book. Listed below is an abbreviated list of violations:

1. No tights or leggings.

2. No see through tops.

3. Skirts, shorts, or dresses should be fingertip length (index finger).

4. No obscene language on any clothing item (drugs, tobacco, alcohol or inappropriate language or pictures, etc.).

5. No camisoles can be worn as a shirt.

6. Holes, rips, or tears in jeans must be below the knee.

7. Tank tops must be 3 fingers in width.

8. Tank tops worn by young men cannot expose chest.

9. No hats, bonnets, or head wraps.

10. Clothing worn underneath a jacket, vest, or sweatshirt must be within dress code guidelines.

11. Pants, jeans, shorts worn by young men must be on their waist at all times (no sagging).

What is Bullying?

Bullying is unwanted, aggressive behavior among school aged children that involves a real or perceived power imbalance. The behavior is repeated, or has the potential to be repeated, over time. Bullying includes actions such as making threats, spreading rumors, attacking someone physically or verbally, and excluding someone from a group on purpose. Griffin Middle School will not tolerate bullying.

Your administrative team is available to assist you when you need us.  Best wishes for a very good school year. Please share this information with your neighbors who have children attending Griffin.  The Griffin List Serv is published every Friday with upcoming calendar events and other information the keep parents informed.

  Griffin welcomes WGMS 1620 on your AM dial.  Tune in to Griffin’s information radio daily for news updates. Stay tuned for further information.               

Grandparents Program

The grandparents program is called “Grandparents as Parents” or GaP, for short.   It is a support group for grandparents and other relatives raising another person’s children.  They meet on the last Wednesday of every month at the main public library downtown for a free catered luncheon at noon with an educational presentation, exhibits from community agencies, health screenings and access to representatives from DCF and legal services.  But reservations are required so that they can have enough food for everyone!  If you are interested in this program, call Karen Boebinger at 891-4027 or email [log in to unmask] to make a reservation.  They would LOVE to have anyone who is raising a relative’s child join us for these lunches, or for a GaP family picnic, outing or holiday party.

Box Tops For Education

Visit boxtops4education.com to find ways to support Griffin MS as well as discovering a selection of coupons to save money on food purchases. 

Pop-Tops For Ronald McDonald House

Don’t forget to pop the tops off your aluminum cans and send them in to Griffin.  We will donate all pop-tops to the Ronald McDonald House. 

2014-2015 Calendar

(Dates may change and events will be added throughout the school year.)

Ongoing throughout the school year:

Everyday                                         Waste Free Lunch, cafeteria, 11:30-1:00

Every Friday                                   Recycle Curbside Pick Up, 9:25-9:50 a.m.

1^st Monday of the Month              SAC (6:00 p.m.) & PTO Meeting (5:30 p.m.)

Friday after 3^rd Wednesday           Faculty Meetings, 7:45 a.m.

Everyday                                         Morning Band Rehearsals 8-8:45 a.m., for students without band class

2014

December                  

22-31                     Winter Holidays – No School

2015

January

1-2                         Winter Holidays – No School

5                             Teacher Planning/Inservice Day – No School

6                             Students Return

9                              Brain Bowl meeting, Dickel Room, 8:45-9:15 a.m.

9                              Tropicana Speech Contest, Cafeteria, 10:26-11:18 a.m.  

12                           Valentines Day Fundraiser begins, 1/12-2/12, 2015        

14                           Report Cards 2^nd 9 weeks

16                           School Geography Bee, 9:45-10:30 a.m., Cafeteria, Mrs. Marshall sponsor

16                           Brain Bowl meeting, Dickel Room, 8:45-9:15 a.m.       

19                           Martin Luther King Holiday – No School

20                           Brain Bowl meeting, Dickel Room, 8:45-9:15 a.m.

20                           Girls Soccer Cobb vs Griffin, Belle Vue Field #2, 6:30 p.m.   

22                           Girls Soccer Griffin vs Raa, Belle Vue Field #1, 6:30 

21                           Boys Basketball Cobb vs Griffin @ Cobb, 6:30 p.m         

26                           Girls Soccer Griffin vs Montford, Belle Vue Field #1, 6:30 p.m.

26                           Boys Basketball Griffin vs Raa @ Griffin, 6:30 pm.

28                           Boys Basketball Fairview vs Griffin @ Fairview, 6:30 p.m.

February               FCAT Writing (Grade 8) Date TBA

2                              Girls Soccer Deerlake vs Griffin, Belle Vue Field #1, 6:30 p.m.

2                              Boys Basketball Deerlake vs Griffin @ Deerlake, 6:30 p.m.

2                             PTO (5:30 p.m.) & SAC (6:00 p.m.) Meetings, Media Center

3                              Girls Soccer Fairview vs Griffin, Belle Vue Field #1, 6:30 p.m.

4                              Boys Basketball Montford vs Griffin @ Montford, 6:30 p.m.

4                              Interim Reports 3^rd 9 weeks

5                             School History Fair Website and Documentary Judging, 9:30-4:00, Media Center

6                             School History Fair Performances and Exhibit, 9:30-4:00, Media Center

10                           Girls Soccer Griffin vs Swift Creek, Belle Vue Field #2, 6:30 p.m.

11                           Boys Basketball Griffin vs Ft. Braden @ Griffin, 6:30 p.m.

12                           Girls Soccer Griffin vs Ft. Braden, Belle Vue Field #1, 6:30 p.m

13                           Valentine’s Day Dance, GMS Cafeteria, 5:00-8:00 p.m.

16                           Boys Basketball Griffin vs Nims @ Griffin, 6:30 p.m.

17                           Girls Soccer Griffin vs Nims, Belle Vue Field #2, 6:30 p.m.

18                           Boys Basketball Griffin vs Swift Creek @ Griffin, 6:30 p.m.

March                  

2                             PTO (5:30 p.m.) & SAC (6:00 p.m.) Meetings, Media Center

3                              8^th Grade Prom, Bradley’s Pond, 5:00 p.m. – 9:30 p.m.

13                          End of 3^rd 9 weeks

16-20                    Spring Break – No School

23                          Teacher Planning/Inservice Day – No School

24                          Students Return

April                      FCAT Reading, Math, Science

1                             Report Cards 3^rd 9 weeks

6                             PTO (5:30 p.m.) & SAC (6:00 p.m.) Meetings, Media Center

22                           Interim Reports 4^th 9 weeks

May 

4                             PTO (5:30 p.m.) & SAC (6:00 p.m.) Meetings, Media Center

8                              8^th Grade Gradventure Fieldtrip, Orlando, 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 a.m.

12                          Band/Chorus Spring Concert – 6:30 to 7:30 p.m.

20                          8^th Grade Accolades, 9:00-4:00, Awards Ceremony and cookout for 8^th graders                    

25                          Memorial Day Holiday

28-29                    Exam/Early Release Days – Dismissal at 1:20 p.m.

June

1                      Exam/Early Release Day – Dismissal at 1:20 p.m.

                        Last Day of School/End of 4^th 9 weeks

2-3                   Teacher Planning/Inservice Days

10                     Secondary Report Cards

Griffin Middle Information Technology School

800 Alabama Street

Tallahassee, FL 32304

www.griffin.leon.k12.fl.us

T:  850.617.5353

F:  850.617.5354