Dear Lake Elkhorn Families,
Greetings and welcome to the 2022-23 school year! I hope your children and you are having a wonderful summer, and that you have taken time to rest, rejuvenate and have some fun! We have missed your children and are so excited to see them in just under 3 weeks, on August 29, when we kick-off another school year in HCPSS and at Lake Elkhorn Middle School (LEMS)!
We have been busy this summer, preparing for your children to return to school this fall! Classrooms are getting their finishing touches as we await the return of our teachers and staff, bulletin boards and display cases and covered in bright colors with positive messages, lockers are ready for distribution to our students, the master schedule is complete and students schedules are just about ready for your children to preview, our professional learning plan has been created to support our teachers and staff so they can best meet the needs of all of our students, our PTSA has been hard at work all summer, new student orientation is scheduled, and the floors are just about done getting their final coats of wax - we are ready and can’t wait to see your children!
On August 25 we are hosting a new student orientation for our rising 6th grade students and our new 7th and 8th grade students who did not attend Lake Elkhorn last year. We look forward to meeting our new students, and then seeing all of our students on the first day of school, on August 29!
In the meantime, enjoy the rest of your summer, and do not hesitate to reach out to me with any questions you may have. Thank you for being partners with us in your child’s education, and we look forward to a great year!
Sincerely,
BACK-TO-SCHOOL NEWS AND UPDATES
SAVE THE DATES!
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8/25 |
6th Grade and Newly Enrolled Student Orientation, 1:15 p.m. |
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8/29 |
First student day of the 2022-2023 school year:
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9/5 |
Schools and offices closed, Labor Day |
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9/7 |
Back to School Night, 6:00 p.m. |
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9/20 |
PTSA Meeting, 6:15 p.m. |
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9/26 |
Schools and offices closed |
UPDATE YOUR FAMILY FILE!
HCPSS utilizes Family File for parents/guardians to complete emergency information. All parents/guardians must verify and/or update information for each child each school year. Parents/guardians can complete the Family File by logging in to HCPSS Connect, selecting the “More Options” tab on the left and then selecting “Family File” in the center column.
6TH GRADE AND NEWLY ENROLLED STUDENT ORIENTATION
6th grade and newly enrolled 7th and 8th students and parents/guardians are invited to join us on Thursday, August 25, from 1:15 p.m. - 2:45 p.m. for orientation. Click here for more information. We look forward to meeting you! Please note: This orientation is designed for new students.
SCHOOL SUPPLY LISTS
Click here to see our 2022-23 school supply lists. It is important to keep in mind that this list is a guide, and we encourage you to recycle and reuse the previous year's supplies when possible. As a reminder, your child will have different teachers for each subject, and there may be some variations once your child receives his/her schedule. We encourage you to keep your receipts in case items are not needed.
SCHEDULE AND LOCKERS
On August 24, student schedules will be available for all parents/guardians and students to view in Synergy. In addition, new students who attend orientation, will receive their locker and a print-out of their schedule on August 25. All other students will receive their lockers and a print-out of their schedule during Eagle Time on the first day of school, August 29.
WHERE DOES MY CHILD GO WHEN THEY ARRIVE ON THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL?
Students should be at Lake Elkhorn no later than 7:50 a.m. The late bell rings at 8:00 a.m. When they arrive, they will go directly to their Eagle Time (administrative homeroom) on the first day. Click here for the list of Eagle Time assignments; note: please check back on August 27 as there may be minor changes based on enrollment.
SCHOOL BASED WELLNESS CENTER AT LAKE ELKHORN!
The Howard County Health Department in partnership with the Howard County Public School System has selected Lake Elkhorn to be one of the eleven schools to have a school-based wellness center! Starting this year, LEMS will have a part-time nurse practitioner and part-time Direct Care Associate on site performing school entry physicals, writing school medication orders, co-managing chronic health problems with your students’ pediatric providers, and providing health education. Students must be enrolled to participate. Click here for more information, and to enroll.
IMMUNIZATION REQUIREMENTS – 7TH GRADE STUDENTS
This is a reminder to parents of incoming 7th grade students: All children must have the required State of Maryland immunizations in order to attend school, including in districts utilizing virtual instruction. The following are required by the state of Maryland for all students entering Grade 7:
Click here for more information about this requirement.
Click here for information about a back-to-school vaccination clinic!
Many students may have already received these immunizations, but the Health Room may not have the updated immunization record. Please contact your child’s doctor and send/fax us an updated copy of your child’s immunizations to the Health Room. Our fax # is 410-290-6430 or you may email a copy to anna_quinn@hcpss.org.
BUS SCHEDULES
Bus schedules should be posted on the HCPSS Transportation webpage by mid-August, at www.hcpss.org/schools/transportation. As you prepare for a great start to school, keep in mind that sometimes it takes a week or two for the arrival times to be completely accurate due to the variety of bus routes. For this reason, we recommend that students arrive 15 minutes prior to the published, scheduled pick-up time. Thanks for your patience!
DOES YOUR CHILD NEED TO TAKE MEDICATION AT SCHOOL?
Any medications required during school hours including prescription, “over-the-counter” (OTC) and homeopathic/herbal medications require a medication order signed by an approved health care provider and are subject to the HCPSS medication policy and procedure. For more information click here to visit our website.
SCHOOL MEALS
Breakfast will continue to be free for all students at Lake Elkhorn this year, but school lunch will no longer be free for all students (like they were for the past two years). If your family needs assistance paying for your child’s lunch, please see the information below regarding the Free and Reduced Meals Program.
FREE AND REDUCED MEALS PROGRAM - MORE THAN MEALS!
Lake Elkhorn participates in National School Lunch and Breakfast Programs. All students at Lake Elkhorn receive breakfast every day, provided by Maryland Meal For Achievement (MMFA). School lunches are available for $3.30. In addition, milk may be purchased separately for $.50.
For more information about school meals, Free and Reduced Price Meal Applications, menus, and the cost of school meals, click here.
Important Note: If you applied and your student received Free or Reduced Meals in the past, please be reminded that a new application must be completed each year. For more information about school meals and programs, please visit the HCPSS website at: http://www.hcpss.org/food-services/.
For more information, or to apply, click here.
LEMS LITTLE FREE LIBRARY
Is your child looking for a good book to read ? Be sure to stop by and visit our Little Free Library, located right outside near our school’s main entrance. Take a book, share a book, and visit often!
CELL PHONES AND ELECTRONIC DEVICES
Cell phone use is a popular topic among middle school students. Click here to review the "LEMS Cell Phone and Electronic Devices Policy", and please, please, please review this with your child before the first day of school. Thank you for your ongoing support!
WELCOME NEW STAFF!
We are pleased to welcome the following new staff members to our Lake Elkhorn community:
STUDENT SERVICES
Our Student Services Team is made up of professionals dedicated to helping your child succeed in middle school. Please do not hesitate to reach out to a member of our Student Services team whenever you have questions or concerns:
SUPPORT OUR SCHOOL AND JOIN THE PTSA!
At Lake Elkhorn, we are very fortunate to have such an active, supportive and involved PTSA. Get a jump start on the school year and join the PTSA today! Your membership helps support our students and school community! Click here for more information.
UPDATING COMMUNICATION & STAYING CONNECTED
UPDATING EMERGENCY CONTACT INFORMATION
Family File is now available for the 2022-23 school year: Parents/guardians can now access and complete the family file for this school year using HCPSS Connect. Parents/guardians must complete the family file every year to ensure HCPSS has the most current information for each child.
Once logged in, parents/guardians will be asked to verify, or update the following information: Student Information, Parent/Guardian Contact, Emergency Contact, Medical Information, Arrival/Dismissal Procedures, Photo Approval, Data Confidentiality, PTA/PTSA Directory.
Updating your information, including email addresses and contact information, and pushing the submit button will ensure that you are receiving the most recent news from Lake Elkhorn Middle School and HCPSS.
If you have forgotten how to access your HCPSS Connect account, or are new to the system, click here for more information and support including instructions in English, Korean & Spanish as well as a video link.
Please have this back-to-school necessity completed by August 29, the first day of school. If you have any questions please contact Ms. Lobdell at melissa_lobdell@hcpss.org who is available to assist you. Thank you for completing the Family File and for your continued support!.
Please note: changes of address may not be made through Family File. If you have recently moved, please contact your child’s new school as soon as possible. As we are preparing for the upcoming 2022-2023 school year, it is imperative that we have accurate addresses on file for all of our students. If you have moved, and have not provided us with your updated information, we ask that you complete the following and send them to Ms. Burdette, Student Service Secretary, at kara_burdette@hcpss.org:
SCHOOL MESSENGER: STAY UP-TO-DATE WITH HCPSS AND SCHOOL NEWS
Parents and guardians of currently enrolled HCPSS students automatically receive HCPSS News emails from the district and from Lake Elkhorn; this is based on the contact information currently in your child's Family File account. The program we use is called SchoolMessenger. SchoolMessenger automatically uses your contact information in the Family File, which is another reason it is so important to update and confirm your information as soon as possible.
Contact information for parents and guardians of newly enrolled students and students changing schools (including incoming 6th graders) has been automatically added to each school’s main contact list.
Reminder: Parents and guardians do not have to sign-up to receive SchoolMessenger emails. Your information is automatically added to SchoolMessenger based on data from the Family File.
NEWSLETTERS
Our newsletter will be emailed every other Friday. PTSA newsletters will be emailed on opposite weeks. Important news and updates will be emailed, as needed, and posted on our website.
SOCIAL MEDIA AND WEBSITES
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Website Principal's Instagram |
lems.hcpss.org @hcpss_LEMS principal_shindel |
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PTSA online
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WE HOPE YOU ENJOY THE LAST FEW WEEKS OF SUMMER BREAK AND
WE LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING OUR STUDENTS ON THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL!