September 19, 2024

Upcoming Events / Meetings

THIRD FRIDAY COUNT DAY

TOMORROW- Friday, September 20th 

On this day the State of Wisconsin will count all students to determine the amount of funding provided to schools this year. Help MacDowell by making sure your child is in attendance on September 20! It is vitally important for our school funding. 

BACK TO SCHOOL PICNIC

Saturday, September 21st

1:00-4:00 pm

Hawthorne Glen

See flyer below for more information, to RSVP, and sign up to volunteer. 

COUSINS FUNDRAISER

Wednesday, September 25th

4-8pm

1150 Miller Parkway

15% of sales to MacDowell’s PTO – FLYER

FUNDRAISER – CLUB’S CHOICE

September 26th – October 11th

Forms coming next week

Pickup 11/12 3:30 – 4:30

NO SCHOOL

Friday, September 27th

DISTRICT ADVISORY COUNCIL (DAC)

Thursday, October 3rd 

6:00-7:30 pm

Meetings via Zoom

HOMECOMING WEEK

October 7 – 11

*7th – 12th grade students

More information to come

9th GRADE OPEN HOUSE
For 8th grade students and their families
Wednesday, October 9th
5:00-7:00 pm

WELLNESS DAY

Friday, October 11th

*7th – 12th grade students

More information to come

HOMECOMING DANCE

Saturday, October 12th

Middle school students 5:00-7:00 pm

High school students 7:30-10:00 pm

          THIS SATURDAY!!

 For more information, volunteer opportunities and to RSVP, follow link here: https://tinyurl.com/2s3t7u25

MacDowell Gear Swap: 

Do you have used and too small or not worn MacDowell Gear?? Bring them to the picnic and offer it to other families. Maybe your family will find some gear to start the year.  

~Watch later this fall for our MacDowell gear sale through Dunn’s Sporting Goods.~

SAVE THE DATE – FAMILY-TEACHER CONFERENCES

Family-Teacher Conferences will be held on the evening of Monday 10/14 and Wednesday 10/16. 

Stay tuned for more information, including Conference sign ups!

Plan to visit our Book Fair on both Monday AND Wednesday, sponsored by Rainbow Booksellers.

There will be no school on Friday, 10/18 and Monday 10/21

Middle and High School Families 

The school day starts at 8:00am. New this school year: any 7th-12th grade student arriving after 8:10am will require a tardy slip to enter class.

A NOTE TO 8TH GRADE FAMILIES

On Friday 9/20/2024 parents/guardians of grade 8 students will receive emails with letters attached that contain their child’s preliminary scores and last year’s cut score ranges for high school admissions. The purpose of this letter is to help parents/guardians work with their child to make an informed decision when selecting their first-choice school. 

 Any families without an email address on file will receive a paper copy of the letter via U.S. mail. 

 Parents/guardians with questions about the scores, scoring process, or criteria should email highschooladmissions@milwaukee.k12.wi.us. Additionally, district staff will be available for questions at the high school enrollment fair on Saturday, September 28, 2023, at North Division between 9:00 am and noon.

DRIVER’S ED STATE TUITION WAIVER

Is your student looking to start Drivers Education soon? Students who qualify for free/reduced lunch may apply below to have their classroom and behind-the-wheel driver training for a Class D  (Regular) drivers license paid for through the Driver Education Grant Program. Students with grants can enroll in any driver education program offered by an authorized driver education provider. The tuition will be paid directly to the Driver Training school. https://wisconsindot.gov/Pages/dmv/teen-driver/teen-sfty/degrant.aspx

BBBS is Enrolling Now!

BBBS Mentor 2.0 (grades 9-11)

BBBS Mentor 2.0 is a separate program open to any MacDowell 9th-11th grade student. Mentor 2.0 provides support and guidance, helping high school students graduate and succeed in both college and the workforce. We are fortunate in that MacDowell is the only school in MPS to host the Mentor 2.0 program. Mentors and mentees interact weekly online and meet monthly in-person at the school.  Once approved, matches are made when classes begin in the fall, and are based on shared interests, personalities, and experiences.

What does the Mentor 2.0  curriculum focus on?

• Relationship Building: Fosters a strong mentor/mentee relationship through sharing professional experiences, networking skills, short/long-term goal planning, and leadership development.
• Non-Cognitive Skills: Develops study skills, social skills, and learning strategies to enhance students’ educational achievement.
• College Knowledge: Strengthens college aspirations, and builds an understanding of college eligibility, the application process, and support systems.

Students at MacDowell start this program any year and continue it throughout the rest of their high school career. For more information on Mentor 2.0 see the video here https://youtu.be/dL2EHmhF9ug 

APPLY HERE: https://bbbs.tfaforms.net/f/youthenrollment-m20-0405

• For more information on how to apply: contact Natalie at njackson@bbbsmilwaukee.org or 414-831-4591

Big Brothers Big Sisters is enrolling MacDowell students now! (grades 1-8)

Big Brothers Big Sisters (BBBS) is a one-on-one mentoring program. We are very fortunate that BBBS has been a part of our MacDowell community for the last 19 years. There is no cost for families, and there are no household guidelines or qualifiers to enroll. Matching is done based on common interests and personality. Students meet with their mentor once a week during the school day.
If you are interested in BBBS for your child(ren), enroll here: https://bbbs.tfaforms.net/f/youthenrollment-school-0405
If you have questions about BBBS at MacDowell, please reach out to Pam Hinton.
Email: phinton@bbbsmilwaukee.org or at 414-831-4573.

General Reminders

PRIMARY AGED CHILDREN (K3-K5) should wear clothing that is easy for them to manage on their own when using the bathroom.  Pants with elastic waistbands are easier to manipulate than buttons, zippers, snaps, and belt buckles. Rompers and overalls are also difficult to take off and on for most students.

TRANSPORTATION CHANGES – If a student needs a change to end of day transportation please call the main office BEFORE 2:15pm so that communication can get to the teacher in a timely manner. In addition please be sure to communicate to the child’s teacher any ongoing pick up instructions. Teachers are not to rely on the child’s communication alone. In relation to early pick up for appointments etc, call the main office ahead of arriving for the student to be ready in the office when their ride has arrived.  

MacDowell Main Office : 414-935-1400

LOST AND FOUND – **Parents are strongly encouraged to label their child’s belongings, including water bottles, lunch boxes, sweatshirts, jackets, and backpacks. Young and older children have a tendency for backpacks and other personal items to be misplaced. The Lost and Found has already started to grOW. 

TEST RESULTS: Parents be on the lookout in the coming weeks for last year’s test results sent home in either the mail (7th-10th grade) or in student red folders on Thursday (3rd-6th grade).

The results are from The Forward Exam, from last year’s 3rd – 8th & 10th graders.

Lower Elementary Families

BLACK ARTS MKE OPPORTUNITY (2nd-5th Grade)

  We are continuing our FREE after-school arts program through “Black Arts MKE” and an MPS program “Partnership For The Arts and Humanities”. This year we are accepting students in grades 2nd through 5th. 

• Mondays & Wednesdays 
• 3:00pm – 4:30pm (Students must be picked up by 4:30)
• September 30, 2024 to December 4, 2024 (10 weeks) with the final mandatory performance on December 4, 2024

There are 20 openings available in Dance of the Americas (Artist – Karlies Kelley)

There are 15 openings available in African Drumming (Artist – Mrs. Oju)

Students must be able to attend both Mondays and Wednesday from September 30th to December 4th. This is a commitment we take seriously. If you are unable to participate both days, maybe session 2 after our winter break, is a better fit for your family. 

→ This is a popular program so please understand that we may use a lottery to choose students. 

Interested students should have a guardian fill out this form: https://forms.gle/CGZbytijxwYXNHS86 

**This form will stop accepting submissions at 12:00pm Thursday September 26th. 

We have seats available on a first come first serve basis.  If we are over enrolled we will move to a lottery.

Families will be emailed the results of the lottery to the email included in this form by 5:30 Friday September 27th.

💉Vaccines – All Students

School Required Vaccines Include:

K-6                                                                                                    7th thru 12th

DTaP                                                                                                 ALL those in K-6 AND

MMR                                                                                                 Tdap Booster

Polio                                                                                                  Meningococcal

Hep B

Varicella

 The following clinics will be held for MPS students ONLY to get them caught up if they are behind:

• September 20th, 2024 from 9am-1pm at Bethune
• October 4th, 2024 from 9am-1pm at Greenfield
• October 11th, 2024 from 3pm-6pm at Northwest Health Center 7630 West Mill Road
• October 12th, 2024 from at 10am-2pm at Southside Health Center 1639 South 23rd Street

 Please continue to watch the weekly newsletter for a potential vaccination clinic at MacDowell Montessori during parent-teacher conferences. 

Thank You! 🙂 – Nurse Sarah

Sports and Activities Update

High School Fall Sports:

Athletic Schedules:  https://www.mccathletics.org/public/genie/1190/school/64/

Purchase Online Tickets:   https://gofan.co/app/school/WI19445 

Winter sports season (basketball, cheer, and wrestling) will begin in November. Stay tuned for more details in upcoming newsletters.  If you have any questions, reach out to the athletic director, Ms. Schenk at schenkao@milwaukee.k12.wi.us

Elementary & Middle School Fall Sports:

All 1-8 grade sports teams are formed for the fall season. Available schedules have been sent home and posted on the Remind app. 

Questions about your students’ sports teams? Join the Remind group where all practice and game information is updated regularly, or email Ms Wanta at wantalm@milwaukee.k12.wi.us 

Fall Sports Remind Links

• ⚽1-3 Soccer Team 1: https://www.remind.com/join/e74hh6h 
• ⚽1-3 Soccer Team 2: https://www.remind.com/join/h62e48 
• ⚽4-5 Soccer: https://www.remind.com/join/b9ad44e 
• 🏐4-5 Volleyball: https://www.remind.com/join/2d3de7 
• 👟5-8 Cross Country: https://www.remind.com/join/eehh64 
• 🏀6-8 Girls Basketball: https://www.remind.com/join/ga3dh8 

OUR 2023-2024 YEARBOOKS ARE STILL AVAILABLE!

Extra copies are available in the main office on a first come first serve basis.

Elementary Yearbooks – $15, 

Middle / High School Yearbooks – $25

School Hours:

K3-K4,  8:00 am – 11:25 am, dismissal beginning at 11:15 am

K5-6th grade,  8:00 am – 3:00 pm

7th–12th grade,  8:00 am – 3:25 pm

How To Reach Me
If you need to reach me, my phone number is 414-935-1339 and my email is: mossergj@milwaukee.k12.wi.us

Please take the time to fill out the MPS School Engagement Survey– takes 5 minutes.

Your responses help identify improvement areas in our school’s engagement efforts and can provide valuable insights into family involvement, satisfaction, and connection with MacDowell. Let your Parent Coordinator know your family needs. https://mpsresearch.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_8vthsN2BBv09xpY

All school newsletters will be sent via email and text on Thursday and will not be sent as a paper copy unless requested. If families would also like to receive a paper newsletter for red folders, please fill out this form HERE:    https://forms.gle/qtgUbEcjqSx3sae47 

OPT IN TO TEXT MESSAGING

• I send school newsletters via email every week, on Thursday evening. You will receive this via email and also text message if you have opted into text messaging. School newsletters often include timely resources, school information, events, meetings, photos of our students, and so much more. If you want to receive this link via text message you must opt into the system. 
• To opt in, families should send a text message to the number 67587 with “Y” in the message.

SCHOOL FORMS: 

Please make sure you return our school forms to your child’s teacher or the main office as soon as possible:
–MPS Media Release Form
– Census Verification Report
–MPS Protocol Medical Consent Form
–Alternative Household Income Form –– It is vitally important that we receive the Household Income Form, as it is tied to funding for our school. Families who are still missing this form were sent a hardcopy home in Thursday folders and received messaging from school. 

QUICK LINKS:

MPS School Calendar

School Website

Lunch Menu – K-8th September
Lunch Menu – 9-12th September

Chromebook Agreement via Permission Click

MacDowell School Handbook

MacDowell Spotlight

HIGH SCHOOL VOLLEYBALL

Volleyball is off to a good start. Currently MacDowell/ Juneau has 30 players playing between Varsity and JV squads, being led by Seniors Mya Gladney and Kilia Mathis.  The Varsity is currently 6-4 and the JV is 3-1.

MILWAUKEE REC DEPT ULTIMATE SPORTS DAY

Last Friday MacDowell 1st – 6th grade students joined children from area schools on our recreation space for a Milwaukee Rec Dept sponsored Ultimate Sports Day. There was a DJ and passports to fill out; many children received a T-shirt, bag, or water bottle. Students had opportunities to try new and familiar sports. Stations included: lacrosse, football, golf, aquatics, wellness, sports medicine, basketball, pickleball and more.