It’s always fun to come back to school after a long summer to see the excite-ment and anticipation on the faces of the students and staff! Although the start of the 2014-2015 school year brought us a record number of students (992), it has gone very smoothly! At some point dur-ing this school year, we’ll become the first middle school in the history of Kennewick to surpass 1000 students!

This is an exciting year for Desert Hills! It is our turn to be remodeled! There will be a bond issue presented to the voters in February. If it passes, construction on a brand new middle school will begin in March, and the replacement school for Desert Hills will start construction shortly thereafter! Watch for more details in this newsletter as they become available!

This year we will again be focusing on literacy skills, math skills, and improving the quality of instruction we deliver to students. Staff members will be attend-ing weekly workshops and professional learning communities to analyze student data, adjust curriculum accordingly, cre-ate common assessments and work on improving their teaching skills and tech-niques.

The School Board has again asked us to increase the amount of time struggling students spend in math and reading classes. This year we have reading lab and math lab classes for students who score below the 30th percentile on their MAP (Measures of Academic Progress) Tests. Our goal is to help them achieve “catch-up” growth and be at grade level before they move on to the high school.

Parents have access to their students’ grades and assignments through the Parent Portal. You should have already received your student’s password and instructions on how to use our Parent Portal. Also, every teacher has a com-puter in his or her classroom. Please feel free to e-mail your child’s teacher if you have any questions or con-cerns. Teachers usually answer their e-mails within 24 hours.

Have a wonderful and productive school year!

Steve Jones Principal

WELCOME BACK!

September - October 2014

Office Staff

Steve Jones: Principal

Dan Meyer: Asst. Principal

Ann Wilson: Asst. Principal

Marie Twomey: Secretary

Melissa Gregory: Secretary

Molly Floyd: Secretary

Terry Smith: Secretary

Katie Isley: Nurse

Tyree Finney: Security

HAWK EXPRESS

D e s e r t H i l l s M id d l e S ch o o l

Important Phone Numbers

Office: 222-6600 Attendance: 222-6614 FAX: 222-6601

Athletic Schedules

The bell schedule

Forms and documents

Nutrition services

A link to the Parent Portal

A link to the on-line text-book sites.

What is on the Desert Hills Web Site?

Homework Corner

Newsletters

The daily Bulletin

Our office hours

Calendar of events

Make sure to “bookmark” the Desert Hills web page so you can access it easily and often!

ATTENDANCE:

There are three ways to clear attendance: Write a note and

send it to school with your student.

Call the attendance office at 222-6614

Email: terry.smith@ksd.org

PLEASE USE Our Web Site! http://schools.ksd.org/DH/Pages/default.aspx

THINGS TO REMEMBER

The first warning bell rings at 7:55 am, school starts at 8:00 am. The doors to the Com-mons open at 7:30. Students should not arrive before 7:30 unless they are in intramurals or a zero hour class. THERE IS NO SUPERVISION UNTIL 7:30 AM!

School gets out at 2:28 (except Wednesdays ). Students are expected to be off-campus by 2:43 unless they are participating in after-school activities.

On Wednesdays, school gets out at 1:23 . All students need to be off-campus between 1:38 and 3:00 so that teachers can attend their Professional Learning Communities. Sports Place-To-Be is available for athletes in the Commons.

Quack Attack - the DUCKS are baaaack!!! The DHMS annual fundraiser, begins with grade level as-semblies on Friday, September 5th. This fundraiser is our big moneymaker for the year. It supplies most of the ASB funds needed to sponsor sports and other student activities offered here at Desert Hills. All of the necessary sale infor-mation will be provided at the assemblies. This year the

students will be selling a variety of items from a catalog. Students will be asking their friends and neighbors to pre-pay for their items. The items will be ordered at the end of the sales peri-od and delivered a few weeks later. Please stress safety with your student. Although this fundraiser is extremely important in order to sponsor student activities, your student’s safety is paramount. Students may also take donations from people who don’t wish to purchase any-thing. Please call Mrs. Wilson at 222-6600 if you have questions or would like to volunteer.

FUNDRAISER KICKS-OFF SEPTEMBER 5TH

HAWK EXPRESS

FUND RAISER

ORDERS AND

MONIES

SHOULD BE

TURNED IN

SEPTEMBER 22,

23, 24

September is Attendance Awareness month! Showing up to school has a huge impact on a student’s academic success starting in kindergarten and continuing through high school. Families play a huge role in support-ing the importance of the student’s “job”. We realize that some absences are unavoidable due to health problems or other circumstances. But we also know that when students miss too much school - regardless of the reason - it can cause them to fall behind academically. Our regional data showed a significant correlation between good grades and attendance. Missing 10 days or more per year results in academic struggles. United Way and local businesses have partnered with us to provide prize incentives for our students. Be sure to be supportive of these businesses: United Way, Dairy Queen, Wendy’s.

Month Item

September Chameleon Pencil October Wendy’s Burger or

Dairy Queen Blizzard coupons

End of First Quarter String Bags

November/December Candy Canes

End of First Semester T-shirts

January/February Wendy’s Blizzard cou-pons

March Pencils

End of 3rd Quarter Neon sunglasses

April Smiley Pen

May Blizzard coupons

End of 2nd semester Water bottles

Incentive Program

Music Department Jog‐a‐thon is October 9th  

School Social is October 31st right a er school  

Teachers’ dinner on November 24th  

Hawk Trot on November 26th   PTO mee ngs are at 12:30 in the 

school library (September 30th, November 4th, December 2nd). If you are unable to make it to the mee ngs but would like to receive the agenda please con‐tact the PTO with your email. 

Thank you to all the parents and grandparents who have helped this year already!  Also, a HUGE thank you to all that have donated to the PTO this year.    

Check out our Desert Hills Middle School PTO Facebook page.    

Watch your inbox for emails from Volunteerspot.com (how we are doing sign ups for volunteering).  

Upcoming volunteer opportuni es are:  Help the ASB with their fund‐

raiser during lunch  me 

Wednesday afternoons from 1:30 to 3:00 pm are set aside each week for workshops and teacher planning. Students are released from school at 1:23 one hour and five minutes earli-er than on the other four days of the week. With all of the students off campus, staff members are free to attend building meetings.

Problems arise when students choose not to go home but hang around the school and the neighbor-hood looking for something to do. This is especially a problem for stu-dents who need to come back to par-ticipate in after-school sports.

All students will need to go home immediately after school on Wednes-days. They are not to be on campus

between 1:38 and 3:00. Those par-ticipating in sports will need to ar-range for a ride to return for practice no earlier than 3:00 unless they have signed parent permission to attend our “WEDNESDAY SPORTS PLACE TO BE” in the Commons. Those not involved in sports may return at 3:50 on game days to watch their peers perform. Students who violate these guidelines will receive disciplinary action. Athletes may lose playing time.

We know this policy will be inconven-ient for some families, but we believe it is necessary to ensure the safety of our students and to make sure our staff can have the time they need to improve your child’s instruction.

PTO NEWS

WEDNESDAY SPORTS PLACE TO BE

HAWK EXPRESS

2014‐15 PTO Board  

President:  Angie Schwartz Vice‐President:  Leigh Wick Secretary:  Wendy Cico e Volunteer Coordinator:  Lisa Howell Treasure:  Michelle Swaney 6th Grade Parent Rep: Mary Hillyer 7th Grade Parent Rep:  Kim Chen 8th Grade Parent Rep: 

  

SPORTS PACKS

Coaches have identified recommend-ed sports gear (usually at least a prac-tice T-shirt) and other optional sports gear. Funds from this program go directly to support our athletic pro-grams! Thank you to our coaches and Mrs. Petragallo for working to design and sell the sport packs! Thanks to you parents for purchasing SPORT PACKS!

BOX TOPS FOR EDUCATION!

Natural Helpers will be having a Box Tops contest Sep-tember 22 through October 9. Students should take their box tops to 7th grade teachers where the contest will take place. Here’s a link to find out what products have Box Tops:

http://www.boxtops4education.com/participating-products

JOG-A-THON Thursday, Oct. 9 during classes.

FALL CHOIR CONCERT : Monday, Oct 20, 6:00 pm at Kamiakin High School Auditorium. FALL Costume ORCHESTRA CONCERT: Tuesday, Octo-ber 29, 6:00 pm in the Gym.

FALL BAND CONCERT: Oct 23, 6:00 pm in the Gym featuring: Jazz Band II 7th Grade Blue Band Jazz Band I 8TH Grade Gold Band

VETERAN’S DAY ASSEMBLY: MONDAY, November 10 at 1:23 pm in the Gym featuring all musicians and the Leadership class.

Students need to remember that how they look/dress affects how others will treat them. A student’s dress or appearance cannot cause a disruption at school. Clothing must be modest and without unnecessary exposure, vulgar or sexual content. Dress must promote learning and safety. Students will be asked to change if apparel does not meet dress code. In addition:

Clothing is to fit the individual; sagging pants or extremely oversized clothing is not to be worn.

Pants must be worn at the waistline. Undergarments must be completely covered. Shirt necklines should be no lower than the armpit. Tank tops must have straps that are at least as wide as

two fingers and arm holes no lower than mid bicep. Dresses, shorts, and skirts must be modest. (Modesty

is determined by administrators and teachers-the standard we expect is that when students have their hands at their sides, the dresses, shorts, and skirts should be at least fingertip length or lower.)

No hats or head coverings may be worn. Bandanas of any kind or color are not allowed. Any behavior, clothing, or communication associated with gang behavior is

forbidden. These include such things as graffiti, hand signs, colors, inscriptions, belts, and weapons.

NEWS FROM THE MUSIC DEPARTMENT

HAWK EXPRESS

Mark your calendar - Fall Conferences are

November 21, 24, and 25 No school on 11/24

  DRESS CODE

Curious about the new building(s)?

Get the low-down on KSD building plans and the Feb. bond from Superin-tendent DAVE BOND on Tuesday, No-vember 18, 6:30-7:30 in the Library.

ZERO HOUR TECH AND ART CLASSES

October 6-December 19 7:55-7:55 am

Email Change?

Please email terry.smith@ksd.org with your student’s name, your name, and your new email address.

The Leadership Class is putting to-gether a tribute for the Veterans Day Assembly honoring service men and women from our Desert Hills family. The tribute will be played during the Veterans Day Assembly on Friday, November 10th starting at 1:23 pm. Family of Desert Hills students are welcome to attend the assembly, just check into the office before going to the gym. If you would like to submit a photo of your family member who is or was a member of the armed forces, please send the photo of them in uni-form to Mrs. Murphy at kim.murphy@ksd.org or bring it to room 416 before 1st period. Photos will be accepted until Wednesday, November 5. Information needed with the photo: Name, rank, and branch of the

military of the person in the photo. Name and grade of person at De-

sert Hills and how they are related to the person in the photo.

VETERAN’S DAY

Halloween Social The first Social of the year will be held on Friday, October 31 from 2:45-4:00 pm in the Gym. Cost is $3.00 with ASB, $5.00 without. Wear your costumes! There will be pizza and pop for sale $2.00 for both. Also candy and glow sticks! Games!

Mealtime Online

Did you know that you can check your student’s lunch ac-count balance? Or see when and what they’ve been eating for lunch? By

simply setting up an account at Mealtime Online, via the ksd.org website, you can make sure your student never misses out on a nutri-tious lunch. You can also make de-posits to the account for a nominal fee, but you can set up an account and never make a deposit. There is no charge for reduced price breakfasts or lunches for grades K-3. Reduced price lunch is $.40 for grades 4-12.

Link to middle school menus: http://www.ksd.org/District/Departments/Nutrition-Services/Menus

MEALS 2014-2015

Elementary Lunch $2.55

Secondary Lunch $2.80

Elementary Breakfast $1.40

Secondary Breakfast $1.65

Adult Breakfast $2.25

Adult Lunch $3.50

Milk $.55

HOME ACCESS FOR THE LIBRARY AND INTERNET RESEARCH RESOURCES

Kennewick School District subscribes to several internet research services that will help students at home doing homework and research. The district CAN-NOT put the login and password on the public site, so please keep these handy. When students come into the library during their reading classes in Oc-tober Mrs. Zoerb instruct students on how to best use these research re-sources. DHMS Library Site http://destiny.ksd.org/ Select Desert Hills Middle School Username: firstnamelastname ie: carlazoerb Password: Student ID number

World Book On-Line http://www.worldbookonline.com/wb/Login Username: ksdhome Password: School On-Line Encyclopedia GREAT starting point for any topic.

CultureGrams http://online.culturegrams.com/index.php Username: deserthills Password: cgrams Country: Facts, Songs, Recipes & More

ProQuest http://portal.bigchalk.com/portalweb/home.do Username: 80-36189 Password: bigchalk e-library=Reviewed Websites History Study Center-Any Period and People in History. ProQuest Learning Literature

Safari Montage http://safari.ksd.edu/SAFARI/montage/login.php Username and Password is your school computer and email login. On-Line Videos and Uses the FIREFOX browser only.

CAVALCADE OF AUTHORS On March 13, 2015, 50 students will have the opportunity to attend author workshops and spend the day at Columbia Basin College. For more infor-mation about the 16 authors please visit the Cavalcade of Authors website http://www.cavalcadeofauthors.org/ or Facebook https://www.facebook.com/cavalcadeofauthors.

Dates for Student Registration packets will be announced in the bulletin and web site. The first 50 students who turn in their completed packets and $5.00 to the library will attend the event on Friday March 13, 2015. If you have any questions please contact Mrs. Zoerb at 222-6250 or Carla.zoerb@ksd.org.

There are always opportunities to volunteer to help with this great event by attending with our school or at CBC. If you would like to volunteer to help DHMS students, contact Quynh (222-6455) If you’d like to help with the visit-ing authors, please contact Lisa Shoop at 222-6455 or lisa.shoop@ksd.org.

News from the Library

Your 8th grade child has a great opportunity to visit Washing-ton DC during the week of Spring Break 2015. If you were

unable to come to the information meetings please contact Mrs. Zoerb for more information. The deadline for the 100.00 deposit will be September 30, 2014. You can register at the World Strides Site http://dn.educationaltravel.com/?destinations=washington-dc and our trip ID is 104265.

8th Grade Washington DC Trip INFO

The Kennewick School District pro-vides equal access to all programs and services without discrimination based on sex, race, creed, religion, color, national origin, age, honorably discharged veteran or military status, sexual orientation, including gender expression or identity, the presence of any sensory, mental or physical disability, or use of trained dog, guide or service animal by a person with a disability, and provides equal access to the Boy Scouts and other designated youth groups. Questions and complaints of alleged discrimi-nation can be directed to the Equity and Civil Rights Director, Doug Christensen at (509) 222-5010.

Kennewick School District

NON-DISCRIMINATION POLICY

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

1 Labor Day NO SCHOOL!

2 12:30 pm PTO meets

3 1:23 pm Early Release 1:30-3:00 Wed Sports Place

4 5

Fundraiser Kick Off Assembly

6

7 8 MAP TESTING all week (READING)

9 10 1:23 pm Early Release 1:30-3:00 Wed Sports Place

11 12 Wear DHMS Spirit colors!

13

14 15 MAP TESTING all week (MATH)

16 17 1:23 pm Early Release

1:30 pm FIRST ASB MEETING - Library 1:30-3:00 Wed Sports PL

18 19 Wear DHMS Spirit colors!

20

21 22 Turn in Fund Raiser monies

Picture Retakes!

Box Top Competition begins

23 Turn in Fund Raiser monies!

24 Turn in Fund Raiser monies 1:23 pm Early Release 1:30-3:00 Wed Sports Place

25 26 K-12 NO SCHOOL! District Professional Day

27

September 2014

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 28 29 30 ASB Fall

Leadership Conference sponsored by DHMS

1 Zero Hour Art starts

Zero Hour Tech Class starts 1:23 Early Release

1:30-3:00 Wed. Sports Place

2 3 4

5 6 7 8 1:23 pm Early Release

1:30-3:00 Wed. Sports Place

9 Music Jog-a-thon

10 K-12 NO SCHOOL

State Professional Day

11

12 13 14 15 1:23 pm Early Re-

lease 1:30 pm ASB - Library 1:30-3:00 Wed. Sports Place

16

17

Wear DHMS Spirit colors!

18

19 20 7th period:

Staff vs. Student VB Game 6:00 pm Choir Con-cert @ Kamiakin Auditorium

21 6:00 Costume Orches-tra Concert—gym

22

1:23 pm Early Release 1:30-3:00 Wed. Sports Place

23 5:30 pm Fall Band Concert—DHMS Gym

24 K-12 NO SCHOOL!

25

26 27

28

29 Last day : Box Tops 1:23 pm Early Release 1:30-3:00 Wed. Sports Place

30

31Happy Halloween!

Wear Costumes! 2:45-3:45 pm SOCIAL!

1

October 2014