JFK
PTO Update – February 14, 2020
IMPORTANT
DATES
February 17-21 - No School (Enjoy your
Winter Break!)
February 25 - Family Game Night at JFK
hosted by the School Council
February 28 - BoxTops Due for Spring Funds
to JFK
March 3 - JFK PTO Meeting Postponed /
Election Day at JFK
March 5 - Spotlight at JFK for New
Families
March 20 - Seventh Grade Dance (Save the
Date! 6:30-8pm)
Let’s Dance! Leap Year Winter Fest (6th
Grade Dance on February 28)
The Sixth Grade Dance Is Here! With the
help of the Student Council, the JFK PTO is planning two dances to liven up the
winter months. The first dance will be for 6th grade only on Friday,
February 28. The next dance will be for 7th grade on Friday, March 20. Both
dances will be from 6:30-8pm in the JFK Cafetorium. Tickets will be on sale
ahead of the dance on Wednesday Feb 26, Thursday Feb 27, and Friday Feb 28
during 6th grade lunch. No tickets sold at the door! More info is attached
on our flyer here.
We’ll
need lots of parent chaperones to help. Please sign up to help at our Sign Up Genius
online. Our volunteer slots include ticket sales
(Wed, Thur, Fri at 6th grade lunch), water donation, seltzer donation, snack
donation, decorating, and chaperoning. Please consider chaperoning especially
if your student is not a 6th grade student. (Sometimes students don’t want
their parents at the dance!) Not sure if your student will come? We recommend
planning on buying a ticket just in case as no tickets are sold at the door for
safety’s sake.
Get in the Spirit(wear)
Spirit wear orders were sent home this
week! Order the wrong size and need to exchange? Send us an email at jfkmspto@gmail.com.
We ordered a few extra sizes just in case. And we’ll be selling spirit wear
again at Spotlight on March 5th.
JFK Family Game Night! (Tuesday, 2/25
5:30-7pm)
An evening of FUN playing BOARD GAMES. Try
your skill at CORN HOLE, CAN-JAM, TWISTER, and more. Faculty, staff,
caregivers, students & their siblings--ALL ARE WELCOME to join in the fun!
Pizza, popcorn and drinks will be available (for $1 or blue tickets). Blue
ticket RAFFLE for PRIZES! Student representatives from the ASK Team, Student
Council and Scrabble Club will help facilitate activities. Hosted by the JFK
School Council. Location: The JFK cafeteria (snow date, 2/26). More info here.
A Note from the Superintendent of Schools:
Budget Survey
Dear Caregivers: We enter this budget
season without knowing the outcome of the Proposition 2 1/2 override vote. As
always, we will advocate for the high priority needs of our schools. Obviously,
we would be able to address those needs more effectively with additional
funding from the override. We will plan for either outcome by preparing
multiple budget scenarios this year. As is always the case, we will solicit
input from the faculty, staff, students, and community members to help us
determine priorities for our budget planning. We invite you to share your
thoughts by responding to this survey which is posted on the district website
and available directly at this link.
Sincerely, John Provost, Ed.D.
Need Help with Aspen?
Cynthia Kelley is the Aspen coordinator
for NPS. Learn more about how to contact her here: http://www.northamptonschools.org/profile/cynthia-kelley/
Health Screenings for 6th and 7th Grade
During the next two months, the JFK
nursing staff will be conducting annual health screenings for 6th and 7th grade
students. Letters went home in backpack mail on January 16. These screenings
consist of checking backs for 6th graders and checking backs, heights and
weights for 7th graders. If your child has any unusual findings, you will be
notified. Otherwise, you will not hear from the Health Office. If your child
has had a physical within the last 6 months and the provider has documented these
exams, your student can be excused from the screening. Please provide a copy of
this physical as soon as possible. You also have the right to opt your child
out of this screening. If you prefer to do this, please contact Karen Schiaffo,
JFK School Nurse via phone at 413-587-1488 or email: kschiaffo@northampton-k12.us
JFK Silverware Drive
JFK is organizing a silverware collection
to reduce plastic use. You can donate your extra items in the JFK office any
time during the school year.
The JFK Yearbook Is On Sale
The 2020 JFK Yearbook is on sale for $27.
To place an order, send a cash or check made out to JFK Middle School in
an envelope to school with your student’s name and homeroom number and
“yearbook” in the memo line. Online, go to www.coffeepond.com
and click “place an order” then “yearbook”. Order before 3/29 as the price
increases to $29 after that. The last day to order is 4/26.
5 Easy Ways to Support JFK MS PTO
·
Donate online. Your donations are tax-deductible and
help fund special programs at JFK. We accept donations year-round!
·
Link to JFK MS PTO through Amazon Smile and donate to Parent-Teacher
Organization of John F Kennedy Middle School Inc. Click here for instructions on how to use the app.
·
Send in your Boxtops with your student to the JFK office.
The next deadline is February 28, but we can accept Boxtop donations
year-round. Online we are: JOHN F KENNEDY MIDDLE SCHOOL| School ID:
573700.
·
Register your Stop and Shop card to
benefit JFK Middle School using ID#05378. Call 1-877-275-2758 to register or
log on to www.stopandshop.com
·
Be sure to vote for us in the 2020 Florence
Savings Bank Customers’ Choice Awards.
JFK PTO Meetings
Stay tuned for more info on our dances,
spring teacher appreciation fundraiser, and the 8th grade picnic. If you can
help with any of these events, join us at our next PTO meeting. PTO meetings
are usually held the first Tuesday of the month from 6-7pm. In March, because
of the election on March 3, our meeting will be postponed to April 7. But, be
sure to stop by and say hello at the JFK PTO table at Spotlight on March 5th.
If you can’t attend the meeting but can help at other times, email us and let
us know: jfkmspto@gmail.com.
COMMUNITY EVENTS
Girls on the Run’s Heart and Sole
COMMUNITY team at Smith College- Spring 2020! REGISTRATION IS OPEN
Girls on the Run is a unique 10 week
(twice weekly) after-school program led by trained coaches who lead small teams
through our research-based curricula which includes dynamic discussions,
activities and running games. Over the course of the ten-week program, girls in
6th-8th grade develop essential skills to help them navigate their worlds and
establish a lifetime appreciation for health and fitness. Each season
culminates with a Girls on the Run 5K event. Learn more on the flyer
attached here.
FOUR SUNDAYS IN FEBRUARY 2020 Winter Arts
Series!
Four Sundays in February is one of the
longest running community winter arts series in the country. Our upcoming
events include Blank - An Original
Solo Play About the Truths of Adoption and Identity
at the Northampton Center for the Arts at 33 Hawley Street, KidsBestFest 2020: A Film Festival for
Kids and Their Adults and Back to the Baystate a
one-of-a-kind event that features performances and stories from legendary Bay
State era musicians paired with archived audio/video excerpts at the Academy of
Music Theatre. This year we added another show, The Bachata Academy DREAM Project Performance,
which is a live introduction to Bachata, a genre of folk music and dance from
the Dominican Republic, featuring Grammy-nominated musicians Martires de Leon
and Abel Martinez taking place at the Northampton Center for the Arts at 33
Hawley Street.
Override Town Hall Meeting (Monday,
February 24)
7-9pm at Leeds Elementary School (in the
Cafeteria), 20 Florence St., Leeds (Ward 7). Mayor David J. Narkewicz invites
Northampton residents to join him to discuss how the March 3, 2020, Proposition
2½ Override ballot question question will allow the city to renew its fiscal
stability plan after 7 years and preserve its vital city services and excellent
schools. More info here: https://www.northamptonma.gov/2076/2020-Proposition-2-Override
Learn about Vaping
An Event
Commemorating the Career of Gwen Agna
(Tuesday, February 25) 6pm at Edwards Church, 297 Main St, Northampton. Free
and Open to All. Young People Welcome. Free Childcare Available. Traducción
simultánea en español disponible. www.umass.edu/history/agna-prashad
Massachusetts Presidential Primary and
Override Vote (March 3)
Voting will take place from 7am-8pm at
JFK. http://lwvnorthamptonarea.org/event/massachusetts-presidential-primary/
VINS 15th Annual Dog Show at NHS
(Saturday, March 7)
Save the Date! The annual VINS Dog Show
has been scheduled for Saturday, March 7 from 12-3pm. Snow date is Sunday,
March 8. This is a great fundraiser for Volunteers in Northampton Schools, Inc.
You can read more on the attached flyer.
Free entry! Only dogs pay. Registration for dogs is $8 before February 28 and
$12 at the door ($5 for non-competing dogs). Dogs compete for prizes like best
fetcher, best hair, and best smile. All dogs must be on a non-extending leash.
Join us for awards, raffle, food and fun. For more info, call (413) 587-1332 or
email: vinsvolunteer@gmail.com
Doodle for Google
This year’s Doodle for Google theme is: “I
SHOW KINDNESS BY...” This year’s contest is open for online and mailed entries
until March 13 at 8pm PST. Download instructions and entry form here.
The Sound of Music Tickets!
Tickets are on sale for this year’s
Northampton High School musical, The Sound of Music (March 19-21). Go to Brown Paper Tickets
to buy your tickets today! (Remember that last year’s musical sold out.)
The Northampton Education Foundation
Spelling Bee (March 25)
The Northampton Education Foundation
Spelling Bee needs sponsors and teams of spellers! On March 25, NEF will hold
its beloved annual event, the Adult Spelling Bee, for the 20th time. Each year,
up to 40 teams composed of three adults, most in costume, vie for awards in
spelling, costume, and humor. Funds from the NEF Spelling Bee support our Small
Grants for Teachers program. Last year, NEF awarded $45,324 to fund 20 creative
and innovative grants. However, this was fewer than half of the 43 grant
proposals we received. Help us fund more grants this year by participating in
the Bee! Do you want to sponsor, but have no team? Do you have a team but no
sponsor? Email mrzinn88 at gmail.com and we’ll set you up! The registration fee
is $275.00 per team.
We’ll recognize team sponsors in the following places:
• NEF
Spelling Bee publicity poster (if payment is received by Feb. 25)
• NEF
Spelling Bee program
• NEF
newsletter
• NEF
website and social media
April 1, 2020 Census Count: Everyone
Counts
In mid March households will receive
materials from the U.S. Census Bureau in the mail. Responding online is the
preferred method. It’s your choice: you can respond securely online, by mail,
or by phone. By law, your responses cannot be used against you. Your census
responses are safe and secure. http://lwvnorthamptonarea.org/event/april-1-2020-census-count-everyone-counts/
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