Ben Franklin Jhs 2000 Polk Street, Stevens Point, Wi

BEN FRANKLIN JHS 2000 POLK STREET, STEVENS POINT, WI

HOME OF THE CHARGERS MAIN OFFICE: 715-345-5413 STUDENT SERVICES: 715-345-5414

February 2017 Dear Parents/Guardians,

Contents We’ve had an excellent school year so far. Students are en- Feb. Caring Corner 2 gaged in their classes and very involved in the many clubs, Open Enrollment 2 sports and activities throughout the school. February always Academic & Career Planning 3 is one of our busiest months at BFJH. With the second se- Parent-Teacher Conferences 4 mester just underway, concerts and competitions, assemblies Valuable Learning Experience 4 and field trips, there’s a lot happening. Forensic 4 Washington DC 5 In addition to all of this, students are finishing up their Solo Ensamble Festival 5 course selections for next year and our work is underway Summer Drivers Ed 5 determining our staffing needs and developing the master Freshman Formal 5 schedule for the 2017-2018 school year. Please know that we place a priority on making sure students are placed in classes Spring Sports 6 that best meet their academic needs while providing them a Work Permits 7 selection of quality elective courses through which they have Absence Reporting 7 the opportunity to explore their interests and discover their Choir Concert 7 talents. Drama Play 7 Threads of Kindness 7 Parent Conferences are scheduled for Monday, February Snow Day 8 27th from 4pm - 8pm. Please make plans to attend and take Online Learning Center 8 advantage of this important time to discuss with teachers the Non Discrimination Policy 8 academic progress your child is making. We really do look Schoology 9 forward to seeing you there! Parent Teacher Conferences Please contact me with any ideas, questions or concerns you February 27, 4:00 pm - 8:00 pm have about our school. Steven Prokop Principal

1 February 2017 Caring Corner

Attention 8th grade students and parents!!! Do you have questions about high school/SPASH, graduation requirements, or life after SPASH? Get ready to participate in your 8th Grade Individual Planning Conference at Ben Franklin!

As part of the Wisconsin Comprehensive School Counseling Model, the Ben Franklin Student Services office is offering a 35-minute conference with you, your eighth grade son/daughter, and Marilyn Devine, School Counselor or Deb Schillinger, School Social Worker. NEW THIS YEAR: conferences are mandatory for all 8th grade students and parent/guardian Open Enrollment participation is highly recommended. Conferences Pupils in 5-year old kindergarten to grade 12 may ap- will run from December 2016 through April 2017. ply to participate in open enrollment. Conference topics include: • Social/Emotional Development – Strengths, Children entering Pre-kindergarten, 4-year old kin- Goals, Hobbies, Interests dergarten and early childhood education may partici- • Academic Development – Standardized Test pate only if the child’s resident school district offers results, ACT Aspire, Grades and GPA, High School the same type of program and only if the child is Graduation Requirements, Course Choices eligible for the program in the resident school dis- • Career Development – Career Cruising Web- trict. Parents should call their resident school district site, Academic & Career Planning (ACP), Post-Sec- administrator to find out if their preschool-aged child ondary Options and Educational Goals, Career Goals qualifies. • Other important questions/concerns Parents must submit application forms to the non- Logistics and timeline for 8th Grade Conferencing: resident school district. • Approximately 2 weeks prior to your scheduled conference, a letter will be mailed home to par- For the 2017-18 school year, parents must apply no ents/guardians notifying you of your conference date earlier than Feb. 6 and no later than April 28, 2017. A and time: student may apply to no more than three nonresident • Students and parents/guardians of 8th grade school districts. students will meet with Ms. Schillinger, Mrs. Devine or our Interns. To apply for open enrollment: • Due to the number of students we meet with, You may fill out and submit the application on-line this 8th grade Individual Planning Conference cannot using the following link: http://dpi.wi.gov/open- be rescheduled. We apologize for any inconvenience enrollment. The on-line application will be available this may cause. from midnight February 1st, until 4:00 p.m. on April • 8th Grade Conferences are for students AND 29th. This on-line application is highly recommend- parents/guardians! ed. If you do not have access to the internet, you may request a paper application from the district Business Please contact the Student Services office at Office by contacting Stephanie Minch at (715) 345- 715.345.5414 if you have any questions. 5454.

2 February 2017 Caring Corner: Academic and Career Planning (ACP) Contributed by Mrs. Marilyn Devine and Ms. Deb Schillinger

What is ACP? Beginning in the Fall of 2017, school boards are required to ensure their schools are providing Academic and Career Planning (ACP) services to students in grades 6-12. ACP is an ongoing process that actively engages students with academic, career, and social/emotional development throughout their educational experience.

The Benefits The ACP process is a student driven initiative in which students will make informed decisions for their own individual post-secondary success. Students will participate in activities and experiences in order to iden- tify their strengths and abilities, improve their understanding of postsecondary options, better connect their goals to educational coursework and career goal activities, and engage in long-term planning for life after high school graduation.

Key ACP Components

Know - Who am I? • Self- awareness: personality, values, interests, knowledge, skills, abilities • Reflection and goal setting

Explore - What do I want to do? • Find out about the work world and explore careers • Career research • Career awareness assessments • Career clusters

Plan - How do I get there? • Consider skills, classes, and degrees that different jobs require • Find work-based learning opportunities • Explore and experience particular fields of interests • Look into options for experience: - Work based learning opportunities - Postsecondary training options - Financial plan for postsecondary routes - Community based learning opportunities

Go - Do! • Action and experiences • Modify your plan and goals when needed • Advanced Placement courses • Course/Youth Options courses • Career Exploration courses • Youth Apprenticeship • Job Shadowing

3 For more information on ACP, visit: http://dpi.wi.gov/acp or contact Student Services at 715.345.5414. Spring Parent-Teacher Conferences Forensics February 27, 2016 4:00 p.m.-8:00 p.m. The Forensic team participated in the Level I meet Parents are encouraged to attend Parent-Teacher Con- on January 26, 2017. All Ben Franklin participants ferences. We feel that this will be an excellent oppor- at Level I earned an invitation to Level II which will tunity to discuss the progress that has occurred since be held in Wisconsin Rapids on February 14. The the last grade/progress report. It is also a good time team will also hold the Franklin Forensic Forum on to discuss performance goals for your child for the February 12 for all team members. remainder of the school year. Teachers and parents have noticed that for some stu- Alexandra Garth dents there seems to be a general downturn in perfor- Amelia Beyer mance/grades for students during the third quarter. Bella Nimm This is an opportune time for an intervention to help Cade Larson students who are struggling. Conferences are held Clark Thompson before spring break, which gives some students more Conner Seavers time to make up missing work. We are hoping that Daniel Roach parent participation will be as high as it is in the fall. Elizabeth Oakland Students are encouraged to attend conferences with Ella Andrews their parents. Emma Hickethier Valuable Learning Experiences! Emma Meronek Faith Kempe Everything seems to be more exciting and engaging Grace Kempe when on a field trip; just ask your child! This year in Grace Smith science our students had numerous opportunities to Izzy Eppinger extend their learning from turning sometimes abstract Jacob Pezewski concepts to concrete and relevant reality. From just Jenna Karcheski getting outside, to visiting local businesses, to the Julia Barkley ninth grade annual trip to the Central Wisconsin Envi- Julia Pirog ronmental Station, to the STEM Science day at UW- Kaden Brooks Stevens Point and the planetarium, field trips build Kayla Staples well-rounded students who engage with, inspire, and Lauryn Broecker are inspired by our world. All seventh grade through Lexi Vrieze ninth grades students were (or soon will be!) also Lily Trzebiatowski treated to a trip to our district’s own forest; The Bos- Maddie Kolarik ton School Forest. The mission of the Boston School Maija Salienko Forest is to provide the youth of Stevens Point area Rachel Jorgensen schools educational opportunities that foster personal Savanah Retzke growth as well as awareness, knowledge, and appreci- Sean Arneson Sydney Grajkowski ation of the natural world leading to sound stewardship of the earth. We thank you for your support of your child’s learning inside and outside of our classrooms!

Sincerely, 9th gr. science team; Ms. Kolarik, Mr. Olson, Mr. King 8th gr. science team; Mrs. Vrieze, Mrs. Dakins 7th gr. science team; Ms. Solinsky, Mr. King, Mr. Koss

4 Washington DC Summer Drivers Ed

This year 62 students will participate in the annual Registration information is now available in the Ben Franklin Junior High School tour to Washington Student Services Office for SPASH 2016 Summer D. C. The tour dates are March 7th through March Driver Education. If your son or daughter turns 16 11th, 2017. prior to October 31, 2017 they are eligible to take advantage of the SPASH summer program. In addition to the Washington D.C. sites (the Capitol Building, Smithsonian Institute, Arlington Cemetery, SPASH Summer Driver Education program in now Mt. Vernon, etc.), we will spend a day in nearby available on-line. Links to this information can be Colonial Williamsburg. found on the SPASH web-site from the “Parents and Students” link and also from the SPASH Driver Everyone will return home with many memories and Education web-page which is located under “School new insights about America’s heritage and its gov- Information and Teacher Websites”. ernment in action. All the details are included in the registration packet. The MANDATORY Washington D.C. meeting will If you have questions please contact Mr. Chris Haka be held Monday, February 20th, in the Ben Franklin in the Driver Education Department at SPASH at auditorium beginning at 7:30 p.m. At least one par- 715-345-5407 or at [email protected]. Due ent/guardian and the student traveler must attend this to the variety of questions people may have a phone meeting. call may be the best but e-mails will be returned as well. Informational items covered at the meeting include the following: departure/arrival times, airport proce- dures, baggage regulations, trip itinerary, behavior expectations, and contact information.

Solo and Ensemble Festival

Music students in eighth and ninth grade are hard at work getting solos and ensembles ready for performance at the Wisconsin Valley District Solo and Ensemble Festival. This event will be held at FreshmanFormal Marshfield Senior High School on Saturday, March 4, 2017. Events will be scheduled from 8:00 a.m. The Stevens Point Noon Optimist Club will be to 3:00 p.m. Bus transportation will be provided for hosting the Freshman Formal Dance. This year the students. Students may also travel to the festival dance will include Ben Franklin and P.J. Jacobs’s with their parents. Good luck students and practice, Junior High schools freshman class. practice, practice!! The dance is scheduled for February 11, 2017 at SPASH. We are looking for students and parents who would like to help with organizing, decorating, promoting and chaperoning the event.

5 Spring Sports Meeting Dates To view a Grade 7/8 Game Schedule calendar please visit the Ben Franklin home page, and There is a mandatory Spring Sports Meeting that all choose r-school scheduler under the athletics link. athletes participating in a spring sport must attend with a parent/guardian. If you attended a sports meeting To participate the first day of the 2017 season already this school year it is not mandatory that you athletes will need the following materials turned attend the Spring Sports Meeting, but please make sure in: your son/daughter has signed up for the spring sport 1. WIAA Physical Card must be on file at Ben they wish to participate in. Please see the dates and Franklin Junior High. 7th grade athletes must have times below that are meaningful to your athlete. their physical/copy of their physical form on file at Ben Franklin Junior High. Youth Area Football Spring Sports Meeting and SPAPSD elementary schools do not forward Grades 9-12 will meet at SPASH for Meet the Pan- physicals onto Ben Franklin Junior High. It is your ther’s night on Wednesday, March 1, 2017. responsibility to submit a copy to Ben Franklin Junior High. Ben Franklin 7th & 8th Grade Spring Sports Meeting A. If your physical is prior to 4/1/2015 it has ex- Monday, March 6 @ 7 pm in the Ben Franklin Audito- pired. A new exam is needed for athletic participa- rium. tion 7:00 - 7:30 – Individual Sport Meeting with Coaches B. If your physical is dated between 4/1/2015 – 7:30 - 7:50 - Athletic Code of Conduct Meeting (for 3/30/2016 your physical exam is valid, but an those who have not attended this meeting yet this year) ALTERNATE YEAR CARD signed by a parent/ You will also be able to pay fees or get help with on- guardian is required line paperwork beginning at 7:30 C. If your physical is dated 4/1/2016 or after no new exam or alternate year card is needed at this Spring sport start dates time. Listed below are the start dates for all Ben Franklin 2. The Junior High Athletic Code, WIAA Con- Junior High spring sports. cussion Form and Alternate Year Card form must be filled out online under your Skyward Family Grade 9 Baseball-Monday, March 27 Access account. Please click on “Online Forms” Grade 9 Softball-Monday, March 13 to fill them out. If you filled them out for a 2016- 2017 sport already there is no need to do this Grade 8 Baseball-Monday, March 27 again. If you need a tutorial please find the docu- Grade 8 Softball-Monday, March 27 ment under “Charger Documents” located on the Ben Franklin Athletics webpage. Grade 7 & 8 Boys’ and Girls’ Track-Thursday, March 9. Spring Sports Fee Information Grade 7 & 8 Boys’ Tennis-Monday, April 3 Below you will see the fees for the spring sports that are offered. Please have cash or a check made For 9th graders trying out for SPASH teams, the WIAA out to the “Stevens Point School District” when starting dates are listed below: arriving at the meeting to expedite the process, or Varsity Baseball - March 20 you may choose to pay online if you’d like. The Varsity Softball - March 13 fee must be paid by the day of the first game/meet Varsity Track - March 6 in order to participate. Varsity Tennis - March 28 Sport 9th Grade 7th/8th Grade There will be no mandatory Ben Franklin 7/8 Sports Baseball $150.00 $50.00 practices over the 2017 Spring Break Softball $150.00 $50.00 6 Track $150.00 $50.00 Boys’ Tennis $100.00 $30.00 Work Permits Choir Concert

Work permits are available at the Ben Franklin main This month, the Ben Franklin Junior High Choir office from 7:30 am – 3:30 pm. To obtain a permit students will be having a winter concert on Tuesday, you must present the following. February 21, 2017. The concert will be at 7:30 pm in the Ben Franklin Junior High auditorium. Students Proof of age (Birth certificate, baptismal certificate, need to wear their choir t-shirts, black pants, and Wisconsin ID card or Wisconsin driver’s license.) black shoes, and be in the choir room at 7:15 pm for Your original Social Security card. warm-ups. If you have any questions, please email Parent/guardian written consent. Ms. Friedli at [email protected] Employer’s written intent to hire, including job du- ties to be performed and the hours and time of day to Ben Franklin Drama presents be worked. “What Happened After Once Upon A Time” Payment of $10 permit fee. Employer must reim- by Alexi Alfieri burse the minor for this cost no later than the mi- March 3rd & 4th, 2017 nor’s first paycheck. 7:00 pm Ben Franklin Auditorium Students must be present to sign the work permit. Join us as the Ben Franklin Junior High Drama Club Students may obtain work permits at Ben Franklin, presents "What Happened After Once Upon A Time!" P J Jacobs or SPASH. A substitute narrator is called in on short notice to read from a stack of fairy tale books. But just as Absence Reporting each tale begins its "once upon a time," the main characters show up to interrupt and correct the new- When your son or daughter is absent from school, bie narrator's telling of their story. Turns out, these please call the main office, 715-345-5413 before characters have hysterical idiosyncrasies: Rapunzel 9:00 am and inform us of the specific reason for the is an insufferable diva, Cinderella is a clean freak, absence. Unless we hear from you, the absence will the Three Little Pigs are hypochondriacs, Little Red be marked “Unexcused”. You will receive a call/e- Riding Hood is a lawyer defending the Wolf, and mail from our call center at approximately 9:30 much more! The chaos continues until the frustrated regarding the status of your student’s attendance. If narrator finally breaks down. It's up to the characters we do not receive a call from you by the end of the to finish the stories and explain what really happened day the call center will call/e-mail again that eve- after "once upon a time." So join us March 3rd & 4th ning. Our attendance line is open 24 hours a day, to relive your favorite fairy tales, and see what the please feel free to call whenever it is convenient for characters are up to now! you. Students absent from school because of illness on Threads of Kindness the day of an extra curricular activity need to be in school by 11:00 am to participate in the activity. Threads of Kindness is a program through the Ste- vens Point Public School District whose mission is to provide clothing, shoes and other necessary items to children and families in need. Needs are relayed to volunteers via mass e-mail by the School Social Worker.

If you are interested in learning more, becoming a volunteer, or in need of clothing or other items for your family, please contact your School Social 7 Worker. Snow Days Online Learning Center It is that time of year again. The Stevens Point The OLC Schools will make every effort to consider our entire district students’ safety when determin- Is your child interested in expanding their future ing school closure because of hazardous weather. educational opportunities? The world of online learn- Please listen to radio and television stations: ing continues to grow, especially in post secondary schooling and in the workplace. What better way WGNV-88FM WOSQ-94.7 FM to prepare then to take advantage of what we have WIFC-95.5FM WYTE-96.5FM available here? The OLC provides over 100 online classes in all four core academic areas (including WSPT-97.9FM WIZD99,9FM AP), world languages, technology, credit recovery, WDEZ-101.9FM WFHR-1320AM and various electives. We accept applications all year long for 7th - 12th grade students living in the school WGLX-103.3FM WLJY-106.5FM district. We promote a program that is flexible, acces- WYCO-107.9 WSAU-550AM sible, accountable, and personable. Online learning is a great option for some students in some situations. WSPO-1010AM WAOW-TV9 WXCO-130AM WOFM-94.7FM To Learn More: ◦Check out our webiste:www.pointschools.net/olc WSAW-TV7 WKQH-104.9FM ◦Contact our Online Learning Coordinator, Dana WRIG-1390AM Breed: dbreed @pointschools.net;715-343-6627 ◦Contact our Ben Franklin JH Local Education Guide Please do not call the radio stations or the Bus Garage if you have questions on school closings. (LEG) Mrs. Carrie Vrieze, cvrieze@pointschools. Schools will be open unless closures are announced net; 715-345-5413. Mrs. Vrieze supports the online on the radio and television. learners who attend Ben. In the event of rapidly developing severe weather conditions that cause school to be closed at mid-day, Non Discrimination Policy announcements will be made over the same radio/ The Stevens Point Area Public School District does not dis- criminate on the basis of sex, race, color, religion, creed, age, TV stations. national origin, ancestry, pregnancy, marital status or parental Arrangements should be made now for your chil- status, sexual orientation or disability. The Director of Pupil dren if school should be closed at mid-day. If your Services is the district Compliance Officer. If you have con- children ride a bus, relatives or neighbors on the cerns please call (715) 345-5454. same bus route as your children, should be prepared If a program or service is scheduled or available only in a loca- to accept the students. All of your children should tion which is inaccessible due to a disability, reasonable steps be told now the arrangements you have made for will be taken to relocate the program or service to an accessible early dismissal. Bussed children can let individual location to afford a qualified individual with a disability an drivers know the arrangements if and when it equal opportunity to participate in and enjoy the benefits of the becomes necessary to use the alternative arrange- programs and services provided by the District. The person(s) ments. making the request to relocate the program, service or activity must provide advance notification of the inaccessibility and We will close school early only under severe advance request for reasonable steps to be taken must be made. weather conditions. The safest most reliable time to Primary consideration will be given to the request of a quali- dismiss students is at the regular time. fied individual with a disability unless another equally effective accommodation is available, or relocation would result in a fundamental alteration of the program, service or activity, or an undue financial or administrative burden. Notification of inaccessibility and requests for the relocation of programs or services should be directed to Don Keck, Buildings and Grounds Manager, 3400 Water Street, 8 Stevens Point, WI 54481 (715) 345-5433 dkeck@pointschools. net Schoology How do I navigate to my student’s courses in Scho- ology? Dear Parents and Guardians, Once you are logged into Schoology, in the upper Our secondary schools are now using Schoology, a right-hand corner click the down arrow next to your learning management system, to post course mate- name to toggle to your student’s account. Once you rials and activities for students. Learning manage- have selected your student, you may view their courses ment systems make it easy for teachers and students by clicking the Course menu from the top navigation to access digital content, communicate and col- and selecting a specific course. laborate. With Schoology, students can view and download course materials, digitally submit assign- Are all courses using Schoology? ments, participate in interactive discussions, receive announcements, take tests, write academic blogs The District started using Schoology in the Fall of the and more. As a parent, you too have access to view 2015-2016 school year and course development is a course materials uploaded to any of your student's work in progress. When you login to Schoology you classes. will see all of your student’s courses listed. Please un- derstand that not all courses will have content. Courses Schoology is not to be confused with Skyward, are autogenerated from the Skyward schedule and so which is still the District’s official attendance and they are created whether they are used or not. You grade-reporting tool. Schoology access will provide can click to open each course to view. Please check parents more information about the content, assign- with your student and their teachers to find out which ment descriptions and requirements. Since Schoolo- courses are using Schoology. gy and Skyward are different tools, please continue to use Skyward for information about your child’s If you have any questions or feedback, please email grades and attendance. our Director of Technology, Brian Casey, at bcasey@ pointschools.net. In order to access Schoology, you will need to have your email address listed in Skyward. If you do not Thank you have this or your email is incorrect, please add or update it and wait 24 hours before attempting to log into Schoology.

How do I access my parent account?

To log into Schoology, parents should go to app. schoology.com. Click Forgot your password and on the next screen, enter your email address listed in Skyward. Click Send My Login Info. You will receive an email with a weblink to update your password. Complete this process and proceed to login using your email as your username and your updated password.

9 Ben Franklin JHS 2000 Polk Street Stevens Point, WI 54481