News Archive

Dear Parents and Guardians of 7th Grade Students,

The American Heart Association has called for a national effort to train individuals to perform CPR. Alameda County’s response to this challenge is the CPR 7 program.

In Alameda County only 30% of the victims that sustain cardiac arrest receive CPR in the critical minutes before professional help arrives. Without CPR a person’s chance of survival decreases by 7-10% every minute. Cardiac arrest is the leading cause of death in the United States, killing more than 300,000 people annually.

Alameda County has embarked on a program utilizing 7th graders to increase community capacity. On Friday, February 10th, your 7th grader will be trained during one class period in CPR with their personal CPR kit that they will take home and keep. We ask that the students train friends and family members using the watch while learn CPR Anytime kit. The kit is yours to use at home to practice those important CPR skills. Students will be asked to have friends and family members “sign off” on a survey form and return the completed form to their teacher.

Thank you for your support and participation.

Tim Wisniewski
Piedmont Middle School Physical Education Teacher

For questions contact:
Jamie Hintzke
Community Relations Coordinator
Alameda County Health Care Services Agency
Jamie.Hintzke@acgov.org
510.618.1956

Or (Tim Wisniewski: PMS PE Teacher)

January, 2011

Dear Parents of 6^th and 7^th Grade Students,

Happy New Year!

We are busy working on the master schedule for the 2011-2012 school year. Ms. Carera, our 7^th/8^th grade counselor, will conduct an elective
assembly with the 6^th and the 7^th grade students on Wednesday, February 2, to give them an overview of the Course Catalogue and the Elective courses from which to choose.  Elective teachers will then give short presentations to describe their elective classes.  Ms. Lasky, grade 6 counselor, will also be going into each Core 6 class to further explain the elective course selection process and to answer any questions.

The Course Catalogue may be accessed on the PMS website at http://www.piedmont.k12.ca.us/pms/new/uploads/Course-Directory.pdf
on Feb. 2^nd.

The Elective request cards will be distributed to each 6^th and 7^th grade student in their core classes on Feb. 2.  All elective cards are due to core teachers by Wednesday, February 9^th.  Please be sure to have your student return the elective cards by the due date, otherwise their electives will be automatically chosen for them.

Every effort will be made to place students in their top choices.  Yet, given the complexity of the master schedule, sometimes it is just not possible.  There are many factors to consider when building a master schedule.  These include projected enrollment, number of full-time employees allocated to teach these courses, number of sections, minimum number of requests necessary to offer an elective course, the finite number of available seats, balance of class size and gender, availability of teachers who also teach at other school sites, room availability, etc.  Hours and hours of hard work go into meeting the needs of students and teachers as well as meeting academic requirements.  The planning requires that every student have a seven-period schedule at the correct grade level.  At the same time, it must also allow space for new students who enroll throughout the school year.

As we build the master schedule for the next school year, we build it with one important goal in mind – all students will complete the academic program that will prepare them for high school and beyond.  Consequently, as in prior years, we may not be able to accommodate all of the elective requests.  However, we will make every effort to do so consistent with the aforementioned complexities and our primary academic requirements.  As always, we appreciate your understanding, cooperation, and support.

Jeanne Donovan
Principal

Exciting things are always happening in the PMS library. Click here to check out our latest newsletter to see what your kids have been up to!

November 5, 2010

Dear PMS Families,

In recent weeks, PMS has experienced an increase in students who are habitually tardy as well as students who cut class.  As educators, we take our obligation very seriously to confront these offenses appropriately and effectively.  Because experience shows that suspending students for these violations is counter-productive, the school has chosen to use lunch and/or after-school detentions as consequences for these infractions.  Unfortunately, these consequences— even when incorporated with warnings, counseling, parent conferences, coverage during grade assemblies, etc.—are currently failing to make an adequate impression on certain students.  It is time to try something new.

Commencing in November, PMS will initiate Saturday Detention School–a four-hour session from 8:00am to 12noon–as a consequence for truancy in lieu of suspension.  We hope that this program will deter students from being habitually tardy or from cutting class by producing an effective “disincentive” for students.  The following students will be required to attend Saturday Detention School:

• Students who have six or more unexcused tardies, or
• Students who are absent from class of their own free will, without a legitimate excused absence (such as those related to medical conditions)

Students will be assigned to a four-hour session from 8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m., and will be supervised by a certificated staff member.  The student’s family will be responsible for any necessary transportation.  Failure to attend an assigned Saturday Detention School session will result in two Saturday Detention School sessions.  Both student and parent will be notified of the assigned Saturday.  Students will be assigned either academic work or work around campus or in classrooms. Students who fail to attend, when assigned, may be suspended from school.  The terms are non-negotiable.  In other words, students must attend Saturday Detention School on the assigned day.  Parent support around complying with terms, including attendance on the assigned day, is crucial to effecting change in student behavior.  All school rules apply to the student’s presence on campus.  Any disruptive and/or defiant behavior will result in dismissal from Saturday Detention School and subsequent suspension.

This program is under construction and students and parents will be kept informed as it evolves.  Please feel free to contact Dan Bonnin if you have any thoughts, questions, or concerns.

Yours truly,

Jeanne Donovan         Dan Bonnin                             Kech Carera                Jaimie Lasky
Principal                     Assistant Principal                 7^th/8^th Counselor         6^th Counselor

October, 2010

Dear Families,

Although I’ve said it before–what a special group of teachers and staff we have working here at Piedmont Middle School.   During common planning Mondays they continue to look at the heart of their curriculum in order to hold themselves and all of their students to rigorous standards.  They are committed to working together as teams to ask questions that focus on quality learning opportunities and accountability, aiming for results that reflect continuous improvement.

Our Academic Performance Index (API) from Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) shows that the middle school’s score increased from 928 in 2008-09  to 942 in 2009-10.  PMS met all of the Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) criteria including participation rate, percent proficient rate, and API score.  Although the STAR tests are important, they are just one indicator of how a school or student is progressing annually.  Of equal importance are the emotional, physical, and social needs of the students.  I am proud of the achievements and the diligence of our faculty and staff in continuing to increase the students’ engagement and learning both inside and outside of the classroom.

Site Council is a group of teachers, parents, administrators, and students working together to develop, review, and evaluate the Single Plan for Student Achievement (SPSA).  SPSA’s purpose is to create a cycle of continuous improvement in student performance and to ensure that all students succeed in reaching academic standards set by the State Board of Education.  The Site Council also serves as a forum for faculty and administrators, parents and students to discuss a variety of issues affecting student performance at Piedmont Middle School.  Curriculum is discussed at Site Council and areas of continuous growth are identified.  Since September 14^th, Site Council members have been meeting to develop new goals for the SPSA based on results from the English Language Arts survey, STAR results, and goals from last year’s SPSA.  In addition, the Site Council and attendees work to identify and address the instructional needs of our students and to develop new goals for the SPSA.  Anyone is welcome to attend these meetings.  Our next meeting is on November 9^th.

Parent-teacher conferences for 6^th grade students will be conducted differently this year.  Since there are no set days for conferences, Core 6 teachers will contact parents regarding student progress via phone, email, or in person sometime before the end of January.

We have a wonderful faculty and support staff dedicated to making each day a positive learning experience for your students.  We have a supportive parent community helping to create a strong partnership with the school to meet all of the students’ needs.  Most importantly, we have great students who enjoy being at the middle school.

Sincerely,

Jeanne Donovan, Principal