MIHS News – August 30, 2020

8/30/2020 1:00 pm

Back to School Day

Back to School Day makeup is Tuesday, September 1, 1 – 4pm

 

Due to health and safety guidelines, “Fees & Photos Days” activities will be pared-down to the essentials for what students need for Back to School. At this time textbooks and iPad pick-ups will be the only two essentials covered on these days. Back to School day will be a drive-up service for students/parents to pick up their books, turn in any overdue books, exchange iPads (9th grade ONLY will trade their IMS issued iPad for an MIHS device) and pick-up an iPad for new students. Click here for the UPDATED Back to School Day traffic map and more information.

 

Complete Required Forms and Pay Fees Prior to Back to School Day.

PTSA News and Announcements

PTSA Store & Directory

Visit the MIHS PTSA Store & Directory to see everything our PTSA has to offer this year. Returning parents and parents of IMS students: Your login and password from last year will carry over to this year. New to Mercer Island School District: Click here and follow the instructions to set up an account.

PTSA Membership Drive Has Launched!

Renew your PTSA Membership and get immediate access to our online MIHS PTSA School Directory.  Your PTSA Membership supports our advocacy work for students and teachers at the local, state and federal level.  Purchase your membership in your Membership Toolkit account – here. 

Contribute to MIHS PTSA Annual Giving campaign to help enrich the lives of students, staff and families every day.

Your contributions make a difference to the students and teachers at MIHS.  Your contributions to the Annual Giving Campaign, Friends of the Library and PTSA Membership are tax deductible.  Make your gift today!

 

This is what your MIHS PTSA Contribution supported during the School Year 2019-20:

• For 2019-20: $15,600 in classroom enrichment grants – Field trips, science equipment, music artist in residence, drama workshops, cooking program, additional literature curriculum for English 9-10, art equipment, dance lessons, after school help, staff culture club, outdoor experiences.
• Here is more of what your dollars support.

Information for MIHS Seniors and Senior Families

Dear Seniors and Senior Families:

 

Welcome to an amazing year of your lives. We hope this is a year of celebration, joy, and rich memories of time spent together.  But it’s a busy year.  In order to help all our Seniors and their families navigate this year, we hope to share as much information, as early as possible, so planning can take place.

Important Update: The Class 2021 “Virtually Indestructible” yard signfinal deadline has been moved up to Monday September, 7th. Place your order via MIHS PTSA Store.

 

Remember you can also check the Seniors tab on the PTSA website for more information.

MIPTA Council

PTA Council Request for Nominations
There were two vacancies over the summer in elected PTA Council positions. The PTA Council Executive Committee identified and appointed candidates to the positions of President and Secretary for the 2020-2021 school year.

 

The executive committee appointed:
For the office of President: Kristy Sieckhaus
For the office of Secretary: Jennifer Selby

 

Election of these officers will be held during the first Council Meeting scheduled on September 16^th from 2-4pm. Because this will be a virtual meeting, according to WA State PTA guidance for Virtual Meetings we are not able to accept nominations from the floor during the election. If you would like to self-nominate for either position and are currently a member of the PTSA and have served previously in any position on a PTSA board, please email the Vice President, Joci Besecker. The deadline for submitting nominations is September 5^th.

 

Volunteer needed: MI PTA Council Board position – VP Communications
MI PTA Council is recruiting a volunteer for a Board of Directors position: Vice President of Communications. The role of the VP of Communications is to direct communications with unit PTA’s, Mercer Island School District, Washington State PTA, and National PTA. This person will serve as a liaison between unit PTA’s, council and MISD and community partners. The VP Communications will create and distribute council program-related content to targeted audiences; support community engagement work with surveys and questionnaires; and maintain an active social media presence. You must be a member of any MISD PTA.

 

Inquiries and nominations welcome. Please reach out to MI PTA Council President Kristy Sieckhaus.

Parent Edge

COVID 19 Resources
Never before have we, as parents, been challenged in this way.  The COVID-19 pandemic has forced us into unchartered parenting territory.  MI Parent Edge recognizes that we are all being challenged right now to utilize every tool we have in our parenting toolboxes.  We will to continue to provide content and programs that support our students, parents, staff and community.  Click here for a variety of articles, videos and resources to help us through this unchartered territory!

Mock SAT/ACT Tests

MIHS PTSA provides 6 testing opportunities as a chance to practice a real test, become familiar with a testing environment, and help identify which testing platform is best for each individual student. All this in a ‘Mock’ situation where tests are not recorded or submitted to any high school or college organization. This is a perfect chance to ‘try out’ these tests.

Learn more about the Mock SAT/ACT tests offered by the PTSA.

President’s Letter

Dear MIHS Parents:

Welcome Back!

We hope you are enjoying the final days of summer with fun adventures and time with your families.  School begins this week on Wednesday, September 2^nd, and looks quite a bit different from years past as we start with the Remote Learning schedule.  The transition back to school can be stressful during normal times, and with the remote start things may seem even more unsure. If your student is struggling a little, please know that they are not alone.  We are very fortunate at MIHS to have a great parent community committed to supporting our students’ education.  We feel honored to be working alongside such dedicated people, including our current PTSA Board and the many folks who chair and support all of our programs. We encourage anyone with interest to get involved!

 

Back to School Make-Up Day September 1
If you missed the High School’s Back to School Days last week, you still have one more chance to get your textbooks and iPads before school begins!  Makeup day is this Tuesday, September 1, from 1:00-4:00pm. 

 

PTSA General Meeting September 11
We are sad that we won’t be able to greet you in person for our traditional “Welcome Back Coffee” this year, however, we will still be meeting virtually and we hope you will join us.  Our PTSA General Meeting will be held on Friday, September 11th from 9:30-10:30am via Zoom. A link will be sent out to join the meeting. We are really looking forward to hearing from our new Principal, Walter Kelly, with introductions from his Administrative staff.

 

Annual Giving Campaign in Full Swing
We also encourage you to join MIHS PTSAand consider donating to our Annual Giving Campaign.  Membership fees and donations support so many great programs at MIHS including classroom enrichment grants, parent education (Parent Edge) lecture series, counseling department initiatives, staff and student appreciation, and more.  None of this would be possible without your support and generosity.  Thank you!

 

Stay Informed

Want to know what’s going on at MIHS?  Beyond our weekly PTSA newsletters, you can always find up-to-date school news in these links: MIHS Website, MIHS PTSA Websiteand the MIHS Daily Bulletin.

Our newsletter will continue to land in your inbox weekly. Please feel free to contact either of us anytime (president@mihsptsa.org), and we will do our best to answer your questions.  Best wishes for your final days of Summer, and we look forward to meeting with you virtually on September 11^th!  

Warmly,
Debbie Burke and Stacy Nakata
MIHS PTSA Co-Presidents

MIHS News

Schedule This Week

Click here for the Red Learning Schedule Week One.

Fall Sports

Fall Sports have been pushed back to a March 1 start date, but online registration forms can be completed now. Fees can be paid at a later date. Click here for more information.

MIHS DECA Media Campaign

Dear Mercer Island Community –

When tasked with abruptly switching to an online learning model last spring, our hardworking teachers and administrators persevered and helped our students finish their school year strong. However, with the summer break coming to a close soon, and the announcement of a fully remote learning environment being implemented this fall, our DECA team wanted to rebrand virtual learning. No longer will we view online learning as something that we will simply have to “get through”, rather we want to embrace this unique opportunity as a time for growth and development. To help promote learning this fall, we are excited to announce DoMInate

Virtually, a marketing campaign designed to help change the attitude about online learning this year. Over the next couple of months we will be rolling out posters, merchandise, and advertisements with our logo and slogan to help spread our message, create unity, and demonstrate the strength our community has during this time.

Sincerely, the MIHS DECA Officers

Community Opportunities

Seattle Advocates for Education
Seattle Advocates for Education’s mission is to expand the scope of K-12 education. We organize classes, tutoring, competitions, and speaker events. As we’re expanding our organization, we want to expand beyond our local community, as well as the diversity of our leadership team. We’re currently looking to bring in four high school underclassmen students to our leadership team as program development and marketing interns. Check out their website or contact Aaron Xie for more information.