Monday, February 24, 2020

Mandarino Minutes for 2-24-20

Dear Parents/Guardians,



Congratulations to Jason Shi! -

We are so happy to announce that Jason Shi won the Cloverleaf Spelling Bee last Thursday at Lake Michigan College.  Jason will now head to the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington D.C. in late May.  Jason's winning word was "grunge".  Jason is a really humble, bright, and nice young man!  We wish him good luck!


Coach Cathy Gressley and Jason Shi




32nd Annual Battle of the Books-

What a wonderful morning we had on Friday with our 7th graders!  They really worked hard the last seven weeks reading, competing, and having fun.  The students were so well behaved and fun to watch!  


The winning team:  Overbooked
L to R:  Abbas Jaffal, Anthony Immoos, Jillian Bartz, Aaron Teng (Captain), and Rylynn Hein




Choir Festival Tomorrow -

Tomorrow our 6th-8th grade choirs will perform at The Chapel for their choir festival.  

6th grade will perform at 9:45 AM
7th grade will perform at 11:15 AM
8th grade will perform at 1:00 PM

*** If you plan to attend please arrive a few minutes early as they will not let you enter during a performance. ***







7th & 8th grade Pre-festival Concert this Wednesday -

Our 7th & 8th grade Bands and Orchestras have a pre-festival concert this Wednesday evening at the John & Dede Auditorium at SJHS beginning at 7:00 PM.  Festival will be next week at Lake Michigan College at the following times:

Next Monday, March 2nd:
7th grade orchestra performs March 2nd at 9:00 AM
7th grade band performs March 2nd at 11:20 AM

Next Wednesday, March 4th:
8th grade orchestra performs March 4th at 9:30 AM
8th grade band performs March 4th at 10:30 AM






Scheduling for 7th and 8th graders -

This Friday, February 28th by 3:00 PM all 7th and 8th graders should have their schedules for next year submitted via PowerSchool.  7th and 8th graders should also be sharing with you their proposed selections.  In addition 8th graders have a blue sheet that should be singed and returned to the office this week as well.  If your son/daughter has any questions they can schedule an appointment with their counselor in our main office.





Career Day and Half Day -

This Friday, February 28th will be our annual Career Day for students.  Our students will get the chance to interact with 3 different career fields.  Our 6th graders will make their selection for next school year for band, orchestra, choir, or PE on this morning as well in PowerSchool.



Friday is also a half day of school with dismissal at 11:00 AM.  Please make sure rides are here by 11:15 AM.






8th grade free ice skating this Friday, Feb. 28-
Who:   Upton 8th graders only
What:  Free ice skating (Rental and admission)
When:  Friday, February 28th from 7:00-9:00 PM
Where:  John & Dede Howard Ice Rink in St. Joseph
How:  This is made possible by our UPTO





Late Start Wednesday -

This Wednesday, February 26th is a late start Wednesday.  School will begin at 8:45 AM and breakfast will be available starting at 8:15 AM.







Locker Clean Out this Thursday-

We will have a locker clean out this Thursday, February 27th.  We encourage students to not let things pile up, but sometimes it does.  If your son or daughter wants to bring some items home before Thursday that would be great also.





UPTO Officers-






Illnesses - 

Parents, please do not send your kids to school until they are fever-free and/or vomiting free without medication for 24 hours.  We’ve had too many kids return to school too soon, just to be sent home again a few hours later.  Thank you for your cooperation!






Quote of the week -

"People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel." 
- Maya Angelou




Have a great week,
Mr. Mandarino


Monday, February 17, 2020

Mandarino Minutes for 2-17-20

Dear Parents/Guardians,


Wonderful News-

The Michigan Context and Performance report card recently came out and Upton Middle School received an "A".  (Top 8% in the state) This is based on several factors including multiple year standardized test scores, student background, etc.  I would like to recognize the hard working staff that we have at Upton.  We do a lot of this work during our late starts on Wednesdays.  It is also the parent support that we receive from you!  We appreciate it!  Here is a link to this report:






Last day of Rotation 3/Tomorrow Rotation 4-

Today is the last day of rotation 3 for 6th and 7th graders.  Tomorrow (Tuesday, February 18th) will be the start of rotation 4.




Cloverleaf Spelling Bee this Thursday-

This Thursday, February 20th at Lake Michigan College on the Mendel main stage will be the Cloverleaf spelling bee.  Good luck to our three participants :  

David DeVore
Pihu Sahai
Jason Shi



32nd Annual Battle of the Books-

This Friday, February 21st will be the 7th grade Battle of the Books.  It will take place at around 8:00 AM.  The 7th graders have read a ton and are ready to stretch their minds.  It is always a fun event!





UPTO meeting this Thursday, February 20th-

This Thursday, February 20th at 12:00 PM in the Upton Conference room will be our February UPTO meeting.  We hope to see you there!



Upton Bears Credit Union Student of the Month-

Congratulations to Greta Dockham for being the January Upton Bears Student Credit Union student of the month.  Greta won a gift bag that included a $25 Visa gift card.





February 28th half day/Career Day-

A week from this Friday is February 28th and this is a half day of school.  Dismissal will be at 11:00 AM.  

Friday, February 28th will also be our 2020 career day.  Students will get the opportunity to go to several local presenters from Southwest Michigan and see what their respective job entails, how you aspire to this job, some of the skills, background, etc.  It is a great morning for the students!




Calendar Photo Contest-








Choir Festival-
Tuesday, February 25th will be the choir festival at The Chapel in St. Joseph, MI.  Our 6th-8th grade choirs will perform in front of an audience and judges.  You are welcome to attend these performances.
  • 6th grade will perform at 9:45 AM
  • 7th grade will perform at 11:15 AM
  • 8th grade will perform at 1:00 Pm
***You will want to be a few minutes early, as they do not let people enter during the performances.***







We will have a late start this Wednesday, February 19th.  School will begin at 8:45 AM and breakfast will be available starting at 8:15 AM.



Quote of the week-

"Every great dream begins with a dreamer.  Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world."  - Harriet Tubman







Have a great week,
Mr. Mandarino



Monday, February 10, 2020

Mandarino Minutes for 2-10-20

Dear Parents/Guardians,


Congratulations to our Spelling Bee Winners!-

We had many students participate in our spelling team at Upton.  We had an in-house spelling be to see who will represent us at the Cloverleaf spelling bee at Lake Michigan College and the three winners were:

  • David DeVore (6th grade)
  • Pihu Sahai (6th grade)
  • Jason Shi (6th grade)
  • Elizabeth Fiesbeck (7th grade- alternate)





Congratulations to our Scholastic Art Winners!-

This past weekend in South Bend, Indiana several of our students won art awards through the Scholastic Art Competition.  The gold key winners pieces will now go on to a national competition.   We congratulation toe following students:

Gracie Cole- Honorable Mention (2)
Emie Flynn- Gold Key
Eliza Kuhlmann- Gold Key, Silver Key
Grace Mollison- Honorable Mention
David Scharich- Honorable Mention
Lily Shasky- Silver Key (2)
Emma Teng- Silver Key
Kayla Valdes- Silver Key
Arianna Waters- Silver key, Honorable Mention
Grace Yuan- Gold Key





Count Day Wednesday-

This Wednesday, February 12th is Count Day for the state of Michigan.  We encourage all healthy kids to be in attendance and on time for their classes.





Late Start Wednesday-

We do have a late start this Wednesday, February 12th.  School will begin at 8:45 AM and breakfast will be available beginning at 8:15 AM.





Planetarium Community Show-

This Wednesday, February 12th at 6:30 PM will be a planetarium community show at Upton Middle School.  These shows are free and open to everyone on a first come first serve basis.  For a sneak peek here is the trailer:  One World, One Sky Trailer






Mini Spirit Week-

Wednesday- Favorite Sports Team Day
Thursday- Mismatch Day
Friday-  Wear Red for Valentine's Day





UPTO meeting reminder for next week-

Thursday, February 20th at 12:00 in the Upton Conference room will be the next UPTO meeting.  Please join Dr. Bruce, Mr. Mandarino, and the wonderful UPTO board and parents if your schedule allows.





Quote of the week-

"How far you go in life depends on your being tender with the young, compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving and tolerant of the weak and strong. Because someday in your life you will have been all of these."                      
-George Washington Carver






Have a great week,
Mr. Mandarino





















Monday, February 3, 2020

Mandarino Minutes for 2-3-20

Dear Parents/Guardians,


Important 8th grade parent/student meeting tomorrow-


CLASS OF 2024


Informational Scheduling Meeting for 8th Grade Students & Their Parents 
who plan to attend
St. Joseph High School Fall 2020

Tuesday, February 4, 2020 
6:00pm

John & Dede Howard Auditorium at SJHS

You will receive 2020-21 scheduling materials, learn about the high school scheduling process, meet department representatives and tour the school. 
This is a very important informational meeting and encourage all 8th grade students and their parents to attend.





National Kindness Challenge Week Wrap-up

Thank you Upton community for making The Great Kindness Challenge a huge success! I really have a lot of optimism for the future generation as a lot of really kind acts were abundant last week! We talked about how this should be a part of our daily lives everyday all year. 😄

Because of your generosity we are passing on kindness to those in need:


  • BLOM (Blessed Life Outreach Mission) in Benton Harbor received bags upon bags of warm winter wear 
  • $1 Hat Day donations will go directly to the Benton Harbor Soup Kitchen
Our wonderful PTO was such a huge help and worked hard to make last week possible!





UPTO Executive Board Needs YOU! -

We have 3 PTO positions open for next school year!  
Please consider joining the board and participating in your child’s education!  All positions could be shared with a co-chair.  If interested, email the PTO at: uptonmiddlepto@gmail.com



8th GRADE PARENTS - SAVE THE DATE! -

Friday, February 28th from 7-9 pm is a FREE night of ice skating at the John and Dede Howard Ice Arena for 8th grade only!
Sponsored by UPTO



DON’T FORGET- Save the Date!
 Please consider joining us on Thursday, February 20th for our monthly PTO meeting in the Upton conference room at 12 pm.  We’d love the opportunity to share the many ways in which we are enriching our students’ educational experience, as well as working together to build connections with other families in our school community.  
Superintendent Dr. Tom Bruce will be joining us and would love to meet you and answer any questions as well as hear your ideas.



Please no fast food-
It is a policy that we do want fast food at Upton Middle School.  We also have a no pop/soda policy as well.

Late Starts all Month-
This Wednesday and every Wednesday in February we will have a late start. School will begin at 8:45 AM and breakfast will be available starting at 8:15 AM.


Have you visited the Guidance Blog in awhile?-
If you have visited the guidance blog in awhile, please take a few moments to see all the great resources they offer. UMS Guidance Blog Link



Upcoming February Dates to be aware of-
February 4th-  8th grade Parent/Student informational meeting at SJHS Auditorium 6pm
 February 3rd & 5th-  5th grade band/choir/orchestra parent meeting 7-8pm at Upton
  February 12th-  Count Day (Please make every effort to have       your child here on this date
  February 12th-  Planetarium Community Night at 6:30 PM  
  One World, One Sky Trailer
February 17th-  end of 3rd Rotation
  February 17th-  Presidents’ Day
  February 20th-  next UPTO meeting at noon
  February 20th-  Cloverleaf Spelling Bee at LMC
  February 26th-  Upton Band/Orchestra Pre-festival 7-9pm at
  February 28th-  Career Day at Upton Middle School


  February 28th-  Half day of school (11:00 AM dismissal)



Quote of the week-
"If you are humble nothing will touch you, neither praise nor disgrace, because you know what you are." - Mother Teresa


Have a great week,
Mr. Mandarino



Mandarino Minutes for 6-9-23

  Dear Upton Middle School Families, Thanks! - We thank you for sharing your daughter/son with us this school year!  We also appreciate your...