Mustang Messenger A U G U S T | S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 5

V O L U M E 2 , I S S U E 1

The School Day

6:50-7:20 Breakfast

7:25 First Bell

7:30 Classes Begin |

Tardy Bell

*Students not in class will be

marked TARDY

7:30 Morning

Announcements

DISMISSAL:

2:05 Bus, Day Care,

PreK, K, 1st Grade

and their Older

Siblings

2:10 Walkers, PERK,

and Office PPU’s

2:15 First PPU’s

2:20 Remaining PPU’s

Inside…

Mixed Bag Sale, pg. 1

Principal Letter, pg. 2

Introductions, pg. 2

School Hours, pg. 3

FERPA Notification, pg. 4

PeachJar, pg. 5

Cyberbullying, pg. 6

School Calendar, pg. 7-8

TITLE I School

(2015-2016)

Mixed Bag Fundraiser

August 19th - September 9, 2015

For more information, see the packet that was sent home with your child or call the school.

Sales Prizes Include:

Remote Controlled Minion

3D Art Pen, Flying Monkey, Minion Key Chains

Free Kona Ice (Must sale 10 items)

Class Pizza Party with the Principal

(Class with the most sales from each grade)

Message From The Principal Dear Parents and Students:

It gives me great pleasure to welcome you to Millwood Elementary School. The faculty and staff are

excited about working with you during the 2015-2016 school year. We need your help and support as

we provide learning opportunities for the academic, ethical, physical, and social development of your

child. Our goal is to furnish educationally enriching, stimulating, and enjoyable activities that recognize

the varied abilities of each student.

This is an exciting time to be part of the Millwood family. We are adding two full-time interventionists to

our team, in addition, to a full-time reading coach which was added last school term. All of our students

are being provided differentiated instruction based on their levels of academic achievement. We believe

this opportunity for students to receive instruction on their academic level will result in greater learning

and improved academic achievement for all students. We are continually refining our curriculum and

instruction to use best practices. We will need help from parents and the community working together with our teachers to provide the

most effective learning opportunities for our children.

I am proud of the tradition of excellence, which has been established by the Millwood family over the years. These accomplishments were

realized because of a team effort put forth by the students, parents, and teachers. I look forward to working with each of you as we

strengthen this team. We will be counting on your participation each day to encourage and help your child with his or her academic, social,

and ethical responsibilities at Millwood Elementary School. The future of our community rests upon the development and enrichment of

our children.

Sincerely,

Stella S. Hall Principal

P A G E 2

Meet Our New Assistant Principal Dana Williams, has lived in Sumter County for more than 30 years. She attended Millwood Elementary from

kindergarten through fifth grade. Mrs. Williams graduated from Lakewood High School in 1998. After

graduation, she attended USC-Sumter to pursue a degree in teaching. She graduated from USC-Spartanburg

in December of 2003 and went straight into teaching at Shaw Heights Elementary. Mrs. Williams continued

her education while teaching and earned two master degrees. One in Curriculum and Instruction,

Specialization in Integrated Teaching Through the Arts K-12 from Leslie University and the other in

administration from the University of South Carolina. Most recently, Mrs. Williams served as curriculum

coach at Manchester Elementary. She will miss the teachers and students there as she returns home to

Millwood Elementary, no longer as a student, but as the new Assistant Principal. On a more personal note,

Mrs. Williams and her husband, Joshua, have two boys, Hunter age 12, Bryson age 8, who both attend schools in Sumter School District.

She enjoys reading, swimming, and spending time with her family. Mrs. Williams is eager to begin a new adventure here at Millwood

Elementary and is excited about meeting everyone. She knows this year is going to be great!

Meet Elyn Croft! She will be our new guidance counselor this year. She is originally from

York, South Carolina, but moved to Sumter twelve years ago, so Sumter feels like home!

She previously worked as a case manager for the Department of Social Services and then as

a case manager for Pre-Trial Intervention. Mrs. Croft attended Winthrop University where

she obtained her Masters in Guidance. She is married and has two children, ages 11 and 9.

She loves children and loves to feel like she is making a difference in their lives. Mrs. Croft is

excited to begin her career at Millwood and to have the opportunity to meet and get to

know our children. She is looking forward to a wonderful school year!

Meet Our New Guidance Counselor

P A G E 3

Menus

Inclement Weather Procedures

Ident-A-Kid

Millwood has an electronic sign-in system for school visitors. It is called Ident-A-

Kid. Located in the front office, this special computer program allows visitors to

input their name, reason for visit, and have their picture taken for identification.

Once completed a yellow ID label will print from the machine for our visitors to

wear while in the building. This system is also used by parents to sign in their

children who arrive after the 7:30 a.m. tardy bell and to sign children out for early

dismissal. Be sure to bring your driver’s license with you because it is needed when

you first use Ident-A-Kid.

Be A Volunteer

Please consider becoming a certified volunteer this year at Millwood. To

participate in school activities (field trips, school-wide parties, field day, etc.),

volunteers must have completed an application and a background check. The

Sumter School District has decided this year to cover the $25.00 background check

fee. Volunteer applications can be picked up in the front office or can be found

online on our school’s website in the Parents tab.

(http://mwe.sumterschools.net)

*All volunteers must be at least 18 years old.

NEW School Hours

Breakfast: 6:50 a.m. First Bell: 7:25 a.m.

Tardy Bell: 7:30 a.m.

DISMISSAL

Bus, Day Care, PreK, K, 1st Grade and their Older Siblings: 2:05 p.m.

Walkers, PERK, and Front Office PPU: 2:10 p.m.

First PPU’s: 2:15 p.m.

Remaining PPU’s: 2:20 p.m.

OFFICE HOURS 7:00 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.

Millwood opens for students at 6:50 each morning. Students MAY NOT be dropped off before 6:50 a.m. because there are no teachers on duty.

During periods of unsafe weather conditions when it may be questionable to hold school, the

school district has several options including closing school, opening schools one hour late, or

opening schools two hours late. Announcements will be made on local radio and television

stations, and the school will send an EduLink message by phone.

*Announcements are only made through the media if there is a delay or closing.

Breakfast and lunch menus will be placed on our school’s website each month as soon as the District makes them available. Remember that all Sumter student’s qualify for free breakfast and lunch!

Social Media Keep up with what is going on at Millwood by following us online!

https://www.facebook.com/millwoodelementary

https://twitter.com/millwoodelem

P A G E 4

P A G E 5

Introducing Peach Jar… the future for school flyer delivery.

Sumter School District is getting ready to launch a new electronic

flyer communication tool called “Peachjar.” To view

school-approved eflyers, simply click the Peachjar button on our

school’s website homepage.

This “green” initiative will save our schools tons of paper and

reduce copy costs by thousands of dollars. On top of that, posting

school flyers in this electronic backpack saves time and help

enhance communication with our families.

No action is required on your part. Once your email address

is entered into Power School, you will receive a welcome email

from our service provider (Peachjar) that includes a username and

password. This is provided to give you the opportunity to manage

your account and flyer delivery preferences. You do not need to

login to receive or view school eflyers.

To ensure smooth delivery of this communication, we suggest you

add “school@peachjar.com” to your email contacts. When

you receive your first eflyer, be sure to click “always display

images.”

This system is used exclusively for distribution of school-approved

flyers. Your email address will not be shared or used for any other

purpose. Thank you for supporting our efforts to ensure parents

are well informed about school programs, activities, and events.

P A G E 6

P A G E 7

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

24

4 5 6 7

11 12 13 14

17 18 19 20 16

15 10 9

8

3 2 1

25

21 22

FIRST DAY

OF SCHOOL

23 28 27 29 26

Next Steps / MAP Testing

AR BEGINS

MIXED BAG

FUNRAISER

BEGINS

Next Steps / MAP Testing

31 30

MAP

TESTING

BEGINS

PTA Board

Meeting @ 5:30 p.m.

PTA OPEN House

6:00—7:30 p.m.

(Sign up for Boy Scouts will be

available)

BACK TO

SCHOOL

ORIENTATION

Next Steps in Guided Reading Assessment

Sumter School District does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, disability, or age in admission to, treatment in, or employment in its programs and activities. For inquiries regarding the policy, contact the Assistant Superintendent of Personnel or the Director of Specialized Programs, Sumter School District, 1345 Wilson Hall Road, Sumter, SC 29150 or call 803-469-6900.

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

28

1 2 3 4

8 9 10 11

15 16 17 18

21 22 23 24 20

19 14 13

12 7 6

5

29

25 26

27 30

VISION &

HEARING

SCREENING

Next Steps / MAP Testing

NO SCHOOL

MIXED BAG

FUNRAISER

ENDS

Next Steps / MAP Testing

FALL

PICTURES

INTERIMS

ISSUED

PTA BOARD

MEETING

5:30 P.M.

PTA MEETING

6:00 P.M.

PROGRESS

REPORTS

MY

COMMUNITY

& ME

(4TH GRADE)

HANDBOOK

REVIEW

LETTER DUE