Hi Middle School Families,
Wow, another great week and I cannot believe it is Dec. 1. It seems as if we were just in the month of November. It’s been very busy since we returned from Thanksgiving. We have so much to do between now and the Holiday Season.
Seussical
On Thursday night, our second - fifth grade students gave an amazing performance - Seussical. It was absolutely fabulous. It was also obvious that the students were performing and having lots of fun doing so. If you missed the Thursday night performance, the Friday night performance is still available. Our Seussical performance is being performed at Mt. Sylvan United Methodist Church. The performance begins at 6:30 and there is a small charge for tickets that are available at the door. You will be glad you attended!
Holiday Giving Tree
Our Holiday Giving Tree is located in the main lobby. If you are interested please stop by, pick a tag, purchase a $25 gift card from the store on the tag and bring it to the middle school by 12/16. If you have questions, please contact Ms. Purdy (spurdy@voyageracademy.net), Mrs. Farrish (tfarrish@voyageracademy.net) or Mrs. Johnson (gjohnson@voyageracademy.net).
Toy Drive
Our Toy Drive to support the Rescue Mission has begun. We have several donated items but we really need your help with more toys. We need new toys - please do not gift wrap the toys. Let’s fill the office as we usually do as the Rescue Mission will come pick up toys on Dec. 14.
Lost and Found Items
It’s the time of year that for some reason we have lots of clothing hanging on the rack in the lobby. These coats, sweaters, and hoodies have to belong to the MS students. Please feel free to come to school between now and Dec. 13 to see if your child’s clothing is hanging on the rack. We also have lots of lunch boxes and water bottles. These are also located in the front lobby.
Great News regarding Ultimate Frisbee -
Ultimate Frisbee is in full swing. I don’t know the exact number of participants but there are lots of MS students who are participating. It looks like lots of fun! Thanks to Leslie Jewell and team for making this happen.
Newline Boards
Thanks to all of you for supporting our Step It Up fundraiser. Because of you, we have all new interactive boards in our 4-8 classrooms. We are now working to provide interactive boards for our EC teachers and our Elective teachers.
Tardies
I know you get tired of me talking about tardies BUT our students need to be on time and in their classrooms no later than 8:15. If a student is not in class by 8:15, they are late. On Thursday, we had 15 students who were late. This morning we had 31 tardies which is WAY too many. I understand all that causes tardies but our students need to be in class on time so they will get all of the instruction. It’s really not fair to our students as they walk into class already behind! Please help us in getting your children/our students to school on time.
Science Olympiad
Our Science Olympiad registration deadline is quickly approaching (December 10).
Every year a student design is selected for our Science Olympiad t-shirts. If your student is planning to participate in SO, they are invited to submit a design. The deadline for submissions is also December 10 so that we have time to vote before we leave for break. Once Jan hits, we'll be ready to roll!
Please let me know if you have any questions or email scienceolympiad@voyager.net
Thank you!
Angela Ritter
Parent Enrichment Night – Fall Seminar: WE HEARD YOU! Please join the Student Support Services Team on Monday, December 5th from 6p-7:40p for an exciting night filled with enriching topics that are meaningful to YOU! Participants will be able to choose TWO of the three available sessions to attend, in seminar format. We kindly ask that you sign-up in advance in order to help us plan for space, refreshments, and childcare. We are looking forward to this evening of enrichment and fellowship with you.
Yearbook Online Ordering
Yearbooks ordered before 1/2/2023 cost $30.
Yearbooks ordered after 1/2/2023 are $35.
The final deadline to order is 2/17/2023.
Please use the link below for online ordering instructions.
MS Yearbook Online Ordering Flyer
8th Grade Yearbook Ad
Purchase a personalized yearbook ad for your 8th Grader using the following link, https://plicbooks.com/go/BVQXG5. Deadline to order 2/1/2023.
Once you place an order, an email will be sent to you with further instructions on designing your ad online. Detailed directions on using the ad designer can be found here: https://bit.ly/3ypUtb4
Some Important Dates:
Nov. 17 - Dec. 14 Toy Drive for Durham Rescue Mission sponsored by our National Junior Honor Society
Dec. 1 - Dec. 20 December to Remember Events - what is this? Be on the lookout as it is sponsored by the MS Student Council.
Dec. 2 - 8th Grade Spanish Students to Las Palmas for Lunch
Dec. 7 - 8th Grade Estuarium Trip
Dec. 9 - 7th Grade Health and Wellness Expo/Project Celebration
Dec. 20 - 7th and 8th Grade Holiday Social/Dance at the MS, 6:00-8:00, $5.00 entry fee
Dec. 20 - Fourth Grade Holiday Celebration
Dec. 20 - Holocaust Guest Speaker for 6th Grade
Dec. 21 - Second quarter ends - Early Release—our release time is 11:45! All students need to be picked up by 12:15.
Electives
It’s time for our 7th and 8th graders to rank electives for the second semester. The process took place last week. They made their rankings through a Google Doc. We work hard to have our students receive their first or second choice for their second semester elective.
This year we are also sending info to you through a Google Doc to let you know if your student is performing well along with a Google Doc notifying you that your student is not submitting all work or that your student is not making all passing grades. Our athletes must pass 4 of 5 subjects in order to stay on the team.
We are proud of all of our students and know that all can be very successful!
We are thrilled that we have a Director of Technology. Jonathan Jairam has joined our team!
WEEKLY NURSES UPDATE:
As many families might be aware, the 2022-2023 Sick Policy is a little different this year compared to last year. As we head into the Fall season and we can anticipate an increase in various illnesses, it is important to remember that while some requirements for students returning to school after symptoms of illness HAVE changed, some have not. Here are some important reminders:
If your student tests positive for COVID - please let the school know as soon as possible so that we can provide you with their correct return to school date and masking guidance. ANY person that tests positive is still REQUIRED to follow the CDC guidelines for their 5-day isolation period and 10-day masking period when they return to school. This is a Durham Department of Public Health protocol and is NOT optional. Open, transparent communication between families and the school when their student tests positive for COVID helps keep everyone informed and able to make smart decisions that keep students, teachers, and staff healthy and safe.
Nobody likes to be at school/work when they are sick. If your child is not feeling well, please keep them home from school until they are feeling better. Please reach out to your child’s teachers so that they can assist with any assignments that may be able to be completed at home and links for daily attendance. Please refer to the Voyager Sick Policy for other recommendations for students with symptoms.
Fever (100.4F and above), vomiting and/or diarrhea still REQUIRE that a student stay home from school for a minimum of 36 hours. A student may return to school once they have been symptom free without medication for at least 36 hours.
Anytime someone has a known exposure to COVID, it is a good idea to wear a mask while at school and extracurricular activities for 10 days after the exposure. Testing on day 5 is highly recommended. Voyager remains a mask-friendly environment and offers both weekly screening testing AND post-exposure rapid antigen testing by request. Email Mrs. Skoff (cskoff@voyageracademy.net) for more information on these testing services.
Anytime someone has symptoms of illness it is a good idea to test for COVID-19. A PCR test is considered the diagnostic gold standard for COVID-19. Rapid antigen tests are also great resources to test for COVID-19 infection and are readily available in the community. If using rapid antigen tests, make sure that you follow the directions outlined by the manufacturer (usually included inside or printed on the box) and remember you might need to test every day or every other day for a few days to ensure the test result’s accuracy.
You can access a copy of the 2022-2023 Voyager Academy Sick Child Policy on our website here: https://www.voyageracademy.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Voyager-Academy-Sick-Policy-2022-2023-UPDATED-8.4.22.pdf
Below are links for locations that offer FREE at-home rapid tests as well as PCR testing locations in our community:
Free At-home Test Pick-Up Locations: https://covid19.ncdhhs.gov/PickUpTests
Free On-Site Testing Locations: https://covid19.ncdhhs.gov/about-covid-19/testing/find-my-testing-place/no-cost-community-testing-events
Retail COVID-19 Testing Locations: https://covid19.ncdhhs.gov/testing-treatment/find-covid-19-tests/find-covid-19-testing-site
Everyone following these guidelines helps keep our students, teachers, and staff healthy and protects our in-person learning environment. Thank you for your understanding and support.
IT’s Time to ORDER NOW!
Order you 2022-2023 Yearbook Now
Voyager Yearbook Price $30.00
Deadline April 1, 2023
Book Price After April 1 is $35.00
Your Online Code is YB26880
Directions when ordering yearbook through Strawbridge.
First, I go to www.strawbridge.net. Then, click on the red order now in the top right corner. When prompted, I entered code, YB26880 and clicked find. After that I was able to start my online order.
Our Yearbook Club Members are Sarah, Max, Elyse, Caitlin, Cindy, Brandon Reagan, Amina, Jurnee, Bernadie, Mena, Bella, Soleil, Sean, Christina, Hayley, Whitney, and Morgan. Great team!!!!!!
The 22-23 Voyager Parent Activities calendar lists all programs and activities so all families have access to the events and programs offered on campus. The calendar is posted on the school website.
To subscribe to 22-23 VA Parent Calendar
View 22-23 VA Parent Calendar on Voyager Website under the Calendar tab
Select the plus sign at the bottom right of the calendar to add to your Google calendar
This will open your Google calendar
Select other calendars, add calendar
Select subscribe to calendar
Once subscribed, Voyager events will populate on your Google calendar
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
Website: https://family.titank12.com
TITAN SCHOOL STORE
Pay your school fees, manage your students accounts, and apply for free and reduced meals. Use the chart below as a guide for where to pay your fees or deposit money for lunch.
Deposits - The "one time" and "recurring payment" feature is ONLY for lunch accounts.
Assigned Fees- They are automatically assigned to the student it applies to, but you still have to select the item, complete any required fields and then add to your cart. Then you check out to make payment.
Transaction History -You can view payments & transactions.
Meal Application Status -You can check on the status by selecting the meal application in the menu to the left. Meal application status, if processed, is on the home screen.
Support Desk - If you have trouble logging into your account or have questions, call or email the Titan Support team. Support is available from AM to 7 PM Eastern Time, Monday through Friday, to answer your family portal questions at (844) 467 4700, option 2.
I hope all of you have a Great Thanksgiving and have time with family and friends!
Have a great weekend and week!
Gwen
Gwen Johnson
MS Principal
919-433-3301
gjohnson@voyageracademy.net