Mandarino Minutes for 9-17-18

Dear Parents/Guardians,


Thanks for coming to Back to School Night- 
We appreciate you coming to Back to School Night last Tuesday evening.  The staff really enjoyed sharing a bit about themselves and their curriculum.

Late Start Wednesday-
This Wednesday, September 19th is the first late start of the school year.  School will begin at 8:45 AM.  Bus routes will run exactly one hour later than normal.  Breakfast is available starting at 8:15 AM. We still have supervisors here at 7:15 AM as normal.

UPTO-
The Upton PTO (UPTO) does not do a formal fundraiser.  They just ask for a donation that your family feels comfortable in giving.  Please make checks out to St. Joseph Public Schools and put UPTO in the subject line.  Any donation is really appreciated!

We have our first UPTO meeting of the school year this Thursday, September 20th at noon in the Upton conference room.  We welcome all parents if your schedule allows.

Passports for appointments-
If your daughter/son has to leave the school for any reason, we request that you have them bring in a note before school starts and a passport will be given to them.  The passport is put in a metal basket by the door when they leave.  This passport also serves as their pass back into class when they return from their appointment.  Students must be signed out by an adult, but they may return without an adult coming in with them.   If the doctor/dentist has a return slip we appreciate having those on file.

Bus Passes-
Please have your son/daughter submit a bus pass by noon on the day they are requesting to ride home with a friend.  Some of our busses are full and can't take bus passes.  Having this submitted by noon gives the students time to make alternate plans.  We can't honor a bus pass brought to us at the end of the day.

Spanish Club-
The registration deadline for Spanish Club is this Friday, September 21st.  We have an introductory class and an intermediate class.  The signup flyer is in the office for those that are interested.  Mrs. Ellspermann does a wonderful job with this!

Buzzer System-
Just a reminder that every school in the district had buzzer systems installed over the summer by our main entrances.  When you are visiting, please push the button and one of the secretaries will be with you as soon as they can.

Upton Bears Student Credit Union-
The Upton Bear Student Credit Union is a division of Honor Credit Union.  It will be open every Tuesday during our lunch periods very soon.  We have informational handouts in our office if students are interested in opening an account.

Community Corkboard-
Our district has a page that advertises outside group activities.  Here is the link to that page:  https://www.sjschools.org/sjps-parents/community-cork-board-district

Quote of the week 
(in honor of Constitution Day)-
"The Constitution only gives people the right to pursue happiness.  You have to catch it yourself." - Benjamin Franklin

Have a great week,

Mr. Mandarino

Mandarino Minutes for 9-10-18

Dear Parents/Guardians,


Back to School Night-
Where: Upton Middle School
When:  Tuesday, September 11th from 7:00-8:30 PM
Who:  Parents only
What:  A time to hear about the school year from your daughter/son's teachers.  Please ask your son/daughter who they have for their 1st hour teacher and report to that room to receive the schedule/map and to start the evening.

Mike Smith Assembly today-

Please ask your son/daughter about the assembly today at Upton Middle School. Mike Smith gave a lot of great advice and motivation to our students to start out the school year.  Things to ask about:  

• Wishing, Talking, or Doing
• Their dream
• How they are going to treat people
• The person they will be remembered as 
• Wanting things or wanting expeiences

We had many other great takeaways, but these would be some good conversation starters around the dinner table.  This assembly kept over 700 kids on the edge of their seats for one hour this morning. 

Interact Meeting Kickoff-

The first Interact Meeting of the year is tomorrow morning at 7:10 AM in the media center.  The interact club is open to all Upton Middle School Students.  Interact is the middle school version of the Rotary club, and is a service club.  

Mike Wagner Glow in the Dark 5K Walk/Run-

Please click on this link to find out more about this event that will happen on Saturday, September 29th.  Link:  Mike Wagner Memorial 5K Walk/Run Link

Quote of the week-

"Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see." - Mark Twain

Have a great week and see some of you tomorrow,

Mr. Mandarino

Mandarino Minutes for 9-6-18

Dear Parents/Guardians,

Back to School Night-
Next Tuesday beginning at 7:00 PM we will have the Upton Middle School Back to School Night.  You will get the opportunity to go through your daughter/son's schedule and hear each teacher talk about their respective class.  They will talk briefly about communication, curriculum, etc.  This evening is for parents only.  Each class will be about 11 minutes with some passing time in-between.  Parking is always crowded that evening, so please allow enough time to enter.  

Dropping off in the morning-

I hope you have been following Mr. Jeffers messages about drop-off in the AM.  Student safety is what is most important!  We ask that you do not drop your students off in the street on Maiden Lane.  Please continue to pull forward, drop off, and remind your daughter/son to be ready to get out as soon as your car comes to a complete stop.  We appreciate your patience and allowing extra time for this process.

NWEA testing next week-

We will begin NWEA testing next week at Upton.  This will give us a baseline to see growth from Fall to Spring.  

Home Football games-

We ask for your help at Friday night football games.  Students must be with you or in the Upton Middle School section during home football games.  Our section is on the South end of the stadium (end where the scoreboard is).  Students should not play football behind the stadium, bring footballs to toss around, and we ask that our students use the concession stand at the end of quarters and at the half.  We have at least two adults in this section every game.

Special Education News-

Here is a link from our special education department :

https://spedsjps.blogspot.com/ Mrs. Reisig and her staff do

a wonderful job!

Mike Smith assembly this Monday, Sept. 10th-

Our wonderful SJPS foundation is sponsoring a motivational speaker at Upton Middle School and SJHS this Monday, September 10th.  Mike has spoken to thousands of schools nationwide.  Here is a link to Mike Smith's site: http://www.mikesmithlive.com/#intro

Quote of the day-

"Whatever you want to do, if you want to be great at it, you have to love it and be able to make sacrifices for it."  - Maya Angelou

Have a great rest of the week,

Mr. Mandarino

Mandarino Minutes for 8-30-18

Dear Parents/Guardians,


Welcome Back-  
We hope you had a wonderful summer!  It was nice to see many of you last week at Start-up day!  We had over 600 students come through the school to walk through their schedules.

Start Time and End time-
School begins at 7:45 AM. We no longer begin the day with announcements, so class begins right away.  The day concludes at 2:40 PM.  Our secretaries are here from 7:00 AM-4:00 PM Monday-Friday.  If you need to leave a message before or after our number is: (269) 926-3400

New Faces at Upton-

Mrs. Beck- 7th and 8th Math

Mr. Bongiorno- 7th and 8th Math

Mrs. Britton- 8th grade Spanish

Mrs. LoPresti- 6th and 7th ELA

Mrs. Martin- 6th-8th Paraprofessional

Mrs. Menke- Guidance Secretary

Mrs. Portenga- 7th grade Science

Door Buzz In System-
Just a reminder, over the summer we had Security Buzzers installed at the main entrance of each school building.  When you plan to visit one of our schools, please use the button on the intercom for entrance to the main office.   

New Drop Off Procedure-
Please take a look at this(see link below) to see the new drop-off procedure at Upton.  We will no longer drop-off in the front of the building before school.  Click here:  Upton drop-off procedures

First Day of School Gathering Areas Before School-
6th grade- Cafeteria
7th grade- Auditorium
8th grade- Maize Gym
New students to St. Joseph Public Schools who were not at start-up day will meet in the conference room by the office.
We have adults out helping students find their way to these areas.

Dates to Remember-

August 31st and September 3rd- School Closed for the Labor Day weekend

September 4th- First day of School

September 11th- Back to School Night

September 26th- Picture Day (For those not at Start-Up day)

Quote of the week-

“A positive attitude causes a chain reaction of positive thoughts, events, and outcomes.  It is a catalyst and it sparks extraordinary results.” - Wade Boggs

Have a great weekend and see your daughter/son on Tuesday!

Mr. Mandarino

Mandarino Minutes for 6-11-18 (last one of the 2017-2018 school year)

Dear Parents/Guardians,


Thanks for a great year!- 
The staff at Upton Middle School would like to thank you for a great school year!  We hope you have a wonderful summer with your family!

Report Cards & NWEA scores-
Report Cards and NWEA scores for the 2017-2018 school year will be mailed out towards the end of the week.  They will be addressed to the parents of ...

Laptop pickup for 8th to 9th graders-
Your son/daughter's purchased laptop is available for pickup between 8:00 AM-12:00 PM or 1:00-3:00 PM this Monday-Friday.

8th to 9th grade Girls/Guys Cross Country-

8th to 9th grade Girls Swimming-
PARENT AND SWIMMER MEETING: WEDNESDAY, JUNE 20 – 6 PM at the SJHS pool
SUMMER TRAINING: M/W/F from 10:00 – 11:30 AM. 
Come swim, do some dry land training, and hang out with your teammates. Bring your swimming stuff, shorts, t-shirt and shoes. This is totally optional but coaches hope to see you there.
DATES For Summer Training:
JUNE 25, 27, 29

JULY 9, 11, 13, 16, 18, 20, 23, 25, 27
For more information please contact:
Janet Beemer 
269-930-3055 
jbeem2323@yahoo.com 

Tim Straub
269-930-2907
tmstr73@ymail.com

From the IT Dept:  Passwords Changing -

This summer, we will be making a change to STUDENT PASSWORDS in an attempt to meet the password complexity requirements that keep getting tighter for online programs.  On July 16th, students will have the first LETTER in their password capitalized.  So a password of apple52 would be Apple52, or 52apple would be 52Apple.  bears123 would become Bears123.  If you have students doing work online over the summer or need access to any of their SJPS accounts this WILL affect them on or immediately after July 16th.   

Report Card reward at Family Video-

• When you receive your final report card (paper or electronic) you will bring it in to Family Video.
• You will receive a voucher for a Free movie or game for each final grade of "A" in a core subject (Math, ELA, Science, & SS)

Upton Start-Up Day-

The Upton Start-up day will be on Thursday, August 23rd.  On this day you will take your photo, get your schedule, receive your laptop (returning 7th & 8th graders), etc.

Medications at Upton-
If you have any of your son/daughter's medications at Upton, please pick them up between 8:00 AM-12:00 PM or 1:00-3:00 PM this Monday-Friday.

Quote of the week-

Have a great summer!

Mr. Mandarino

Mandarino Minutes for 6-4-18

Dear Parents/Guardians,


Computer turn-in all grades-
This Thursday, June 7th 6th graders will be turning in their computers, and this Friday, June 8th 7th & 8th graders will be turning in their laptops.  We ask that the bag is cleaned out completely of various items, and that the charging cord be placed back in the bag for the summer.

8th grade computer pickup-
8th graders can purchase their laptop through this Friday, June 8th.  The $350 check or cash must be brought to Mrs. Bolt in the Upton office.  

8th graders will be able to pickup their laptop between 2:00 PM-4:30 PM this Friday, June 8th in the Upton Media Center.

Another Exam Schedule Reminder-
Dismissal for Wednesday- Friday will be 11:04 AM.

Tuesday, June 5th-  5th hour exam (All grades) 
6th hour exam (6th grade)

Wednesday, June 6th- 1st and 2nd hour exams

Thursday, June 7th- 3rd and 4th hour exams
Laptop turn in for 6th graders

Friday, June 8th- 6th hour exam (7th & 8th grades)
Laptop turn in for 7th & 8th grades
6th grade track meet

Golf Tourney Winners-
The 2018 middle school winners from the golf tournament that took place in late May were:  Morgan Guzzo (6th-8th girls division), and Charlie Uzelac (6th-8th boys division).  We would like to thank Mr. Ryan Walters for sponsoring this event.

Cross Country meeting for 8th graders going into 9th grade-

8th grade pictures from Farewell-

Thank you so much for sending in pictures of your 8th grader!

If you sent in larger pictures than we could use, or extra pictures, they can be picked up in the office through Friday. You will find them in an envelope with your child's name on it in a box in the office.

Community Corkboard-
The district has a lot of summer opportunities for students on the community corkboard.  Please click here:  SJPS Corkboard

Upton Start-up Day Early Heads up-
The Upton Start-up day for next school year will be on Thursday, August 23rd, 2018.  Same times and same place.  We will send out more reminders about this over the next few months.

Quote of the week-

Have a great last week of school,

Mr. Mandarino