Hi all,
It’s been a short week at the middle school but a very busy week. Academics continue to be our main focus as we also gear up for our next round of sports - girls’ basketball and boys’ basketball! If your student is on the team, please remind the player that grades continue to be a priority. We will review report cards after the second quarter to see if students are meeting the standard of a 70 or at least improvement in his/her grades and we will also check PowerSchool throughout the quarter. If you have a question, please talk to Coach Jackson (girls) or Coach Ryan (boys).
MASK HELP
Please make sure our students are wearing their masks as they get out of the car/truck in the morning. It would also be helpful if each student has an extra mask in their bookbag. We have lots of students asking for a second mask but they prefer the blue masks. We have no problem giving them a mask but we only have the white cloth masks provided by the state. We are happy to give them a white cloth mask.
NEED YOUR HELP!!!!!
Our National Junior Honor Society will be hosting a Toy Drive for the Durham Rescue Mission like we did last year. Last year's drive was so successful we wanted to bless more children in Durham again this year.
Toys must be new and unused. Please do not wrap the toys. The Rescue Mission will accept all toys but are in greatest need of toys for children ages 8-12. A picture of last year’s event is included.
All toys need to be dropped off in the Middle School Office from November 15-December 3.
Last Year’s Toy Drive
PTO Meeting and Fundraiser
There will be a PTO General Body Meeting, November 16th 7pm, on zoom. Meeting will be recorded. Please mark your calendar now and try to attend. Here is the zoom link:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84442668391?pwd=aWNaWW5ObFc5T0dIQnY5dUJTMDlZQT09
The New Cheddar Up Link is now Open- Streamlining the staff gift process- One of the PTOs goals is to streamline the teacher gift collection process to make sure all staff receive a token of our appreciation during the upcoming season (and end of year). Parent donations are completely voluntary. This Cheddar Up will make it easy to give a gift and divide it among your child's teachers! Check it out:
https://voyager-staff-holiday-gift.cheddarup.com
If you are a room parent, please reach out to PTO Board member Tiffany Henrikson at tiffie130@yahoo.com and she will outline how she will work with you with regard to collection for your room and disbursement. What a great way to honor our staff during this special time of the year.
5th Grade Project Celebration:
Thanks to Susan Easterly, our 5th graders had an awesome guest speaker that spoke with the students about Veteran’s Day. Mr. Ken who is Mrs. Easterly’s cousin was terrific at sharing pictures and stories. One student shared “It was the best day ever!” Our guest had so much knowledge to share as I had the opportunity to attend one class period and enjoy his presentation. The students were awesome listeners and so eager in their learning.
November Luncheon for Middle School Staff
The sign up link for the November 18 luncheon is below. As usual the link will also be published on the middle school Facebook page. Thanks to all for your help! I think the teachers are really enjoying having this treat back in the building and I am so thankful that the parents are stepping up to participate! Thanks, Kathy Robinson
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/30E0949A8AE2A1-family
Second Semester Electives:
PE uniforms are back! Rising 6th, 7th and 8th grade students can now order. Please follow the link below. The deadline for ordering is November 11/15 at midnight. They will be delivered to the school and distributed. Starting next semester uniforms will be required once again. If you want to purchase something on your own, and not from this website, please send your student to PE with a navy sport cut short and a red, gray or white T-shirt with no logos except for Voyager logos!
This uniform requirement will go in effect in PE classes beginning in January 2022.
Thanks and any questions please contact me at dliller@voyageracademy.net
Click here to order PE uniforms below.
https://www.bsnteamsports.com/shop/BNLYc00S0q
MIddle School Parents ONLY-- An Important Reminder
Beginning Monday, November 1st, all students who arrived on campus after 8:15 am needed to sign in through the front office. Unfortunately your student was counted tardy as the tardy bell is 8:15 and that means the student should be in the classroom. Being in the classroom is extremely important as the day begins or should begin at 8:15. Last week and this week, we had way too many tardies. When tardy, students need to sign in which also takes a little time so they are even later getting to class.
Hopefully we will have less tardies next week.
Duke Children’s Hospital Drive
A huge thank you to those of you who have supported and provided supplies for the children at Duke Children’s Hospital. The Drive is over November 19.
Each grade level has assigned supplies - Dollar Tree is a great place to shop!
Colored pencils-4th grade
Construction paper (all colors)- 5th grade
Small dry erase boards- 6th grade
Ticonderoga Pencils-7th grade
Pipe Cleaners- 8th grade
Plastic clipboards- 8th grade
Basketball Info - Expectations of our athletes!
Academics - we will be checking on the grades for all the players who are trying out for basketball. We need players who will be eligible, and we want players about whom our faculty and administration speak highly.
Basketball IQ and coachability - players must understand the game and demonstrate the ability and desire to quickly learn our system.
Player development – one of our main goals as coaches is to develop players that will be ready for the level of play in high school that will keep Voyager Academy as competitive as it has been over the past years. We are looking for players that demonstrate that they are coachable and will likely succeed in their development in our program and on this team.
Work ethic - we expect our players to bring their best to every practice, workout, and game. Our expectation is that the student-athletes treat every practice like they are continuing to try out for this team.
Commitment to the program - this includes how long players have been in the program, their efforts in off-season workouts, summer events, etc.
Leadership - some players are natural leaders. We want to be sure that these players demonstrate positive leadership that leads their teammates to be their best.
Attitude/team spirit - it is critical that players are willing to play within the structure of the team, play a role even if it's not the role they expected, and be a great teammate.
Character/off-court behavior - this includes in the classroom, around the school, and in the community. We want players who are good citizens to represent Voyager Academy because the behavior of the individual reflects on the public perception of the team and the entire school.
Our team is not made up of just our student-athletes on the floor; we believe that we are a family working together towards the same common goals. We are committed to putting a competitive team on the floor every night by developing our players’ individual and team skills. As parents, your support for and commitment to this team is essential. We recognize and appreciate the many personal sacrifices that you will be making in supporting your child’s participation on this team.
We will plan to practice every day Monday through Friday from 6-8 pm and every Saturday 8-10 am throughout the basketball season (November 1 through February 15). All practices are mandatory. Tryouts and practices are closed to parents/family/friends. We will hope to have one or two open practices during the early part of the season that give parents a chance to see what happens at practice and give our guys an opportunity to play in front of a supportive crowd. By accepting a position on this team, it is understood that players and families are agreeing to fully commit to this team (attending all team practices, games, supporting this team, and complying with team and school rules).
Thank you for taking the time to read this and for your support of Voyager Academy athletics. I truly look forward to the honor of getting to work with the student-athletes at Voyager Academy and to working together with you throughout the season.
Coach Shawn Ryan
sryan@voyageracademy.net
From Mrs. Farrish, our Counselor:
October is World Bullying Prevention Month and the theme is "Stomp Out Bullying". Students will be shown a video created by our Student Services Intern Samantha Gaines called "What Students Should Know About Bullying". There will also be two large Choose Kindness: Your Words Matter posters for students to leave encouraging and positive messages for others to read.
National Bullying Prevention Month.
The Student Support Services Team invited 4th-12th graders to sign an anti-bullying pledge poster to "Stomp Out Bullying!" Posters will be placed throughout the Middle and High Schools.
In addition, the Student Support Services Team will also be showing 4th-12th grade students a bullying prevention and support video, and providing guided classroom lessons on "Kindness" (K-1st) and "Feelings" (2nd-3rd).
"Stomp Out Bullying" is a must and all of you can help!
This week our 6th, 7th, and 8th graders viewed the See Something, Say Something Video with one of their teachers. There was also time to discuss or ask questions afterwards. When we receive an alert from See Something, Say Something, Mrs. Farrish, Mr. Mitchell, and I take it very seriously.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Our School Nurse, Chelsea Skoff, created a document that has been added to our website. I’m including this document as I found it to be very informative and helpful!
Here is the link: COVID-19 Guidelines FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)
Lunch Program The Titan Family Portal and LINQ Online Ordering system work together like a checking/ debit card account. All student lunch accounts must be preloaded with funds for ordering. Parents then order lunches for students based on the funds availability in their Titan account. Families who have a negative balance on the account will no longer be permitted to order lunch online. Please be sure to send your student(s) to school with lunch if no meal was ordered. If your student's lunch account currently has a negative balance, we please ask that you pay this balance as soon as possible by either form of payment:
Online at https://family.titank12.com There is a $2.80 flat fee charged by the bank per deposit online. (Example: $100 deposit + $2.80 fee = $102.80)
A check/ money order made payable to Voyager Academy. Please include your child's name and id# on the memo line. You can also use this pre-printed form.
Lunch menus are published for the month of October. The lunch ordering rule is a week in advance. If you need assistance email foodnutritionservices@voyageracademy.net.
LINQ ONLINE ORDERING - View and order student/staff meals. Website: https://family.onlineordering.linq.com
TITAN FAMILY PORTAL -Pay your school fees, manage your students accounts and apply for free and reduced meals. Website: https://family.titank12.com
Patrice Johnson, Operations Manager
Before/After Care, Enrichments, & Food/Nutrition Services
Voyager Academy
101 Hock Parc
Durham, NC 27704
Phone 919-433-3301 ext. 243
pjohnson@voyageracademy.net
ACCREDITATION UPDATE: Voyager Academy is a fully accredited school. Every five years the school goes through a re-accreditation process. That process will take place this year during the month of November. We are thrilled to be able to share all the great things Voyager Academy does to create amazing, life-long, independent learners. This is the year for Voyager’s School Accreditation. We are in the process of preparing our documentation for the team from COGNIA who will interview staff, parents, administrators, and students. The team interviews will be virtual as well as their visit. Each school will select representatives to meet with the team. The Accreditation Visit is November 17-19. The Accreditation Team has a different agenda for each day.
Substitutes and Bus Drivers
If you are interested in being a substitute, we need you! In order to be able to sub, we would need you to complete a background check and have a Drug Screening. Information is located on the Voyager website. We also will have a small training to give you some additional information. All 3 schools need substitutes as we pull subs from the same list. If you enjoy working with children/students, we need YOU!
If you are interested in Driving a Bus, we need you! We need drivers for our Activity Buses so we can use the buses for a field trip or our athletes may possibly use to travel to away games. In order to drive you would need a CDL license along with completing a Background Check and completing a Drug Screening. If you are interested, information is on our Voyager website.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS Regarding COVID
Our School Nurse, Chelsea Skoff, created a document that has been added to our website. I’m including this document as I found it to be very informative and helpful!
Here is the link: COVID-19 Guidelines FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)
If your child needs to quarantine, teachers will provide assignments for your student. When quarantining, if the student is doing some work at home and you complete the attendance link provided below students will be counted present. The link to complete your child’s attendance is HERE
If your student has been directly exposed to someone, outside of school, who has tested positive for COVID, your student needs to quarantine for 10 days. They may return to school after the 10 days of quarantine have been completed AND have no symptoms from the time of exposure.
The 10 day quarantine protocol is not school days, it also includes the weekend. For example, if your child was exposed on Aug. 9, they can return to school on Aug. 20 (10 days).
Please keep me, your child’s teacher, and our school nurse, Mrs. Skoff updated on your child’s symptoms and/or test results.
Please do not send your child to school if your child is not feeling well, has a fever, has a sore throat, or if you know he/she is sick. That puts our students who are at school at risk of getting germs and becoming sick. We are doing our part to stay healthy and well and need all of you to do the same. THANKS TO THOSE OF YOU WHO ARE KEEPING THEM HOME!
We had several students come to school this week and they were sick when they arrived. We immediately called parents to come pick up the child/children as we do not need extra germs in our building. Please do not send your child to school when they are not feeling well!!!!!
Need Information - please contact Nurse Skoff or Gwen Johnson.
As always if you have questions or have concerns or have suggestions feel free to contact me at gjohnson@voyageracademy.net. I am happy to help you or if I don’t know the answer, I will find out for you!
I’m sending a huge THANK YOU to you for all the birthday wishes, cards, etc. The cards made by the students are absolutely precious! Even though my birthday was Nov. 8, the students continued to wish me a Belated Happy Birthday. I appreciate each of our students and am thankful to have them at Voyager.
On a different note, thanks to so many of you for your kind words and prayers as many of you heard that my brother was in the hospital due to a stroke. Throughout the week, I have been back and forth to Winston Salem. Each day has been better and better for my brother and we anticipate a full recovery. Again thank you!!!!!
Thanks for your continued support in so many ways,
Gwen
Gwen Johnson
Middle School Principal
gjohnson@voyageracademy.net