June 2020 - Posts
Dear Parents/Guardians,
Report cards for marking period four can be viewed on Parent Access at this time.
Thank you,
Dr. McCabe
pmccabe
Dear Parents/Guardians, This is my last official weekly notice for the year. To say the year has been interesting would not quite grasp it. It has been a bit of a roller coaster ride we have taken together. I am grateful for the work of my staff, my students, and our South Amboy Community for all it has done to come together for our kids.
As an administrator, I end almost all of my speeches the same way, I congratulate my students as a proud principal. I will do that again this year when I say goodbye to my graduates on Friday, our last day of the school year.
I am proud of our school and our community and I thank you for supporting what we do to benefit our students, the future of South Amboy.
Thank you,
Dr. McCabe
Some important points and reminders:
*This week our staff will be available for student support each day from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm.
*Students should be checking in each morning, as they have throughout the closure, right through Friday.
*Chromebooks: any student who has borrowed a Chromebook from the district and is returning to our school in September may keep the Chromebook over the summer. Otherwise, please return the Chromebook this week according to the schedule below.
*Student pick up of belongings and drop off school materials:
**8th grade: June 15, 2020 from 9:00 to 11:00 am
6th grade: June 15, 2020 from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm
7th grade: June 16, 2020 from 9:00 to 11:00 am
9th grade: June 16, 2020 from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm
10th grade: June 17, 2020 from 9:00 to 11:00 am
11th grade: June 17, 2020 from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm
**We will distribute caps and gowns at this time.
When arriving for drop off and pick up: please enter the rear parking lot of the school, by the auditorium entrance. There we will have a station for picking up student materials. We will ask that you open your trunk so we can place items in your vehicle without person to person contact. For 8th graders, this will include your cap and gown. We will also have a location for you to drop off school materials. At all times we ask that everyone maintain social distancing of six feet or more.
*Graduation: 8th and 12th grade ceremonies are scheduled for June 19, 2020. Please see the Moving Up/Graduation Guide, use this link:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Gt6HFONxIatJtZSXixmsTjYhJjNC36Tq/view?usp=drivesdk
*Diploma/Certificate Distribution at Graduation: I will forward by Wednesday, the exact order students will be called. Each student will be assigned a number. I will call groups of numbers, such as the First Group being numbers 1-25, the Second Group being numbers 26-50, the Third Group being 51-75, and the Fourth Group being 76 to 80.
As noted in the attached guide, when a group is called, all students in that group will exit their vehicles and go to the right side of the stage, by the middle school entrance. There our advisors will line them up six feet apart. Once that is completed, I will call each student by name to receive his/her diploma/certificate. Students will also have an opportunity to have their photo taken to the left of the stage by our photographer, at no charge; parents may not leave their vehicles for photos.
At the end of the ceremony for 8th and 12th grades, I will ask all graduates to stand outside their vehicles. For the 8th grade, this will be their final acknowledgement/congratulations as they exit the middle school. For the high school, we will have a turning of the tassel ceremony.
Parents of 8th and 12th graders: if you have any questions about the ceremony after reading the Moving Up/Graduation Guide, email me asap. I will be happy to answer your questions. I am available all week.
*Virtual Yearbook Signing: please see the flyer i attached to my weekly email from kudoboard.com. Our yearbook company, Herff Jones, works with this virtual platform. You may use kudoboard to set up an account to allow others to virtually sign your yearbook. There is information about ho
pmccabe
Dear Parents/Guardians, I hope you and your families are well.
Some important points and reminders:
*The schedule for this week: all of our virtual lessons are scheduled by period as follows:
Monday and Wednesday (Day A: Periods 1-4)
Period 1 - 9:30 am
Period 2 -10:00 am
Period 3 - 11:00 am
Period 4 - 12:00 pm
Tuesday and Thursday (Day B: Periods 5-8)
Period 5 - 9:30 am,
Period 6 -10:00 am
Period 7 - 11:00 am
Period 8 - 12:00 pm
Friday: Closed
*Civil Unrest/Concerns: given what has been occurring lately in our nation as well as a recent tragedy in town, if any of our students need assistance navigating emotions and concerns the events might bring about, please reach out to the school. Here are the email addresses for our counselors and nurse:
Mr Gonsalves: [email protected]
Mrs. Witte: [email protected]
Mrs. Housman: [email protected]
If you need to reach me: [email protected]
*Honor Societies Induction Ceremony: the ceremony was made available last Wednesday on our district website. If you have not already viewed it, you may go to this address and do so: http://www.sapublicschools.com/about_us/what_s_new/honor_society_induction_ceremony
*Student pick up of belongings and drop off school materials:
**12th grade: June 10, 2020 from 9:00 to 11:00 am
**8th grade: June 15, 2020 from 9:00 to 11:00 am
6th grade: June 15, 2020 from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm
7th grade: June 16, 2020 from 9:00 to 11:00 am
9th grade: June 16, 2020 from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm
10th grade: June 17, 2020 from 9:00 to 11:00 am
11th grade: June 17, 2020 from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm
**We will distribute caps and gowns at this time.
When arriving for drop off and pick up: please enter the rear parking lot of the school, by the auditorium entrance. There we will have a station for picking up student materials. We will ask that you open your trunk so we can place items in your vehicle without person to person contact. For 8th and 12th graders, this will include your cap and gown. We will also have a location for you to drop off school materials. At all times, we ask that everyone maintain social distancing of six feet or more.
*Yearbooks: the company producing our yearbooks has reopened their plant. Due to extended closing as a result of the pandemic and the limitations they have on the number of workers allowed in the plant, they are behind schedule. At present, they anticipate our yearbooks being delivered in the beginning of August. This date could change and the books arrive sooner; however, this is the company’s present estimate. Once we receive them, we will make plans for them to be distributed.
*Prom: It does not appear that our plan to have the prom on July 14, 2020 at the Grand Marquis will be allowed to happen; I am sorry. The Grand Marquis has been extremely accommodating. I secured August 5, 2020 as another date for our prom. I hope we are allowed to gather together by then. This would be our final opportunity.
*Linkit Testing: we have an end of the year Linkit assessment that will be completed online. Please encourage your child to complete this. We will have this for grades 6-11 in math and LAL. The Linkit results will provide a real time picture of where our students are in these important subjects to help us as we plan for September. Your child’s math and LAL teachers will provide directions.
*Physical Education: all students in grades 6-11 received information in their Physical Education classes last week about signing up for Naviance and completing an interest questionnaire. The company had a technical issue they could not resolve by the end of the week. We hope they can do so to allow us to have our students move forward with Naviance.
*Graduation: 8th and 12th grade ceremonies scheduled for June 19, 2020 with a rain date of June 20, 2020. Please see my notice below on this page about graduation.
*Please check your email everyday. It is how we reach out to you.
*If a teacher emails you, please respond so we know you received the communication.
*Please check Genesis everyday or as often as possible; a minimum of a few days a week. That is where we update your child’s progress.
*Please reach out to us via email. Calling the school is not a good idea as no one is regularly in the office due to the pandemic. We are all checking email regularly. We are all still here for you.
*If your child is having any academic difficulties, please email the teacher for the class.
*If you are not sure who to email with a question or concern, email me or Mr. Zalocki. Here are our email addresses:
[email protected]
[email protected]
Thank you,
Dr. McCabe
pmccabe
Parents of Eighth Graders and Twelfth Graders, The special day is almost here, graduation. It is going to be a really nice event! I am grateful for the efforts and support our school has received from Superintendent Jorge E. Diaz, Mayor Fred Henry, Police Chief Darren LaVigne, and OEM Coordinator Mark Herdman. This is another example of the South Amboy community working together. Our community comes together as few others do.
We will have two ceremonies for our school on Friday, June 19, 2020. Both will be in keeping with the mandates as provided by our Governor's office. The first will be our Eighth Grade ceremony; that will begin at 2:00 pm. Then our Twelfth Grade ceremony will begin at 6:00 pm. They will be held in the front parking lot of the Middle/High School.
Prior to the event, we will be sending out specific ticket codes for each graduate. This code may be displayed on a cell phone or printed to be shown when arriving, similar to the way large venues handle tickets for concerts and sporting events.
We will allow one car per graduate. Each vehicle will enter via John T. O'Leary Boulevard by first showing the attendant the ticket, then being directed to a parking spot. Larger vehicles, such as pickup trucks, minivans and SUVs, will be directed towards the rear of the lot, smaller, passenger cars to the front. This is to ensure larger vehicles do not block the view for those behind them. We cannot allow vans, limos, trailers, or any other large vehicle. We also cannot allow motorcycles or top down convertibles; this is to ensure proper social distancing. At no time may anyone leave a vehicle with the exception of one of our graduates when called.
We will open the lot to parking one hour prior to each event, so parking may begin at 1:00 pm for the 2:00 pm ceremony, and 5:00 pm for the 6:00 pm ceremony. Again, all vehicles entering through the John T O'Leary entrance to the lot only. Our Police department will provide security and will also close the grounds behind the parking lot, the ball fields, to all vehicles and pedestrians.
There will be a large drive-in movie theater type screen in front of the Sadie Pope Dowdell Library that will be approximately 10 feet off the ground. The virtual portion of the graduation will be viewed on this screen. You will be able to tune your vehicle to a specific channel to hear the ceremony, or listen as there will also be an outdoor sound system.
We will have graduates come out in small groups with proper social distancing and be called to the stage at the front by the screen. There he/she will be able to pick up his/her diploma, then walk to the side where a photographer will take photos we will make available for parents through our website at no charge.
We will provide more details, such as how to access tickets, shortly.
In the event of rain, we would have the ceremonies on Saturday, June 20, 2020, following the same time schedule.
If any family does not have access to a vehicle for the graduation, please email my office asap.
This event will include video cameras covering six different angles, and live streaming to our school webpage. it will be terrific!
Thank you,
Dr. McCabe
pmccabe
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