Leyla Krahl is our STUDENT OF THE WEEK was nominated and selected for our student of the week recognition by Mrs. Hallenberger!
“Leyla is such a delight to have in class. She is so positive, hard-working and extremely helpful! She recently befriended a new student and got her completely caught up to where we were at as a class without even being asked. Thank you, Leyla, for being such a positive influence on your peers!” CONGRATULATIONS!
8th Grade Boys Basketball: Our boys basketball teams had a great showing at Star with 3 out of the 4 teams getting the W’s on Monday. On Wednesday their winning ways continued with the A, B, and C teams getting wins over Meridian. The A game was exciting as it took an OT period to pull out the victory. It’s great for the boys to be in these closely contested games to learn how to win and persevere.
A huge highlight of the week was getting a text message from the Star Athletic Director telling me that he was so impressed with your sons. He said “that our student athletes that came over were the nicest most cordial kids I’ve ever had come to our school. They did a great job”. This is the stuff that makes us so proud! Great job Kodiaks, keep representing.
Free Girls Rugby Camp for 6th-8th Graders
Idaho girls rugby is hosting a free rugby camp on Saturday, February 18th at Meridian Middle School for all girls interested in rugby. It will run from 10a-12p. For more info contact: idahogirlsrugbycamp@gmail.com
Raffle tickets are all gone! Congrats for being the first middle school to sell out. We appreciate the wonderful support, and it speaks volumes about our awesome community! Hope someone is going camping in their new RV soon!
Go Kodiaks!
JJ Riley, VMS Athletics Director
There are still a lot of BLOOD donation times available for the March 2nd, 2023, VMS Blood drive.
Whole blood donations times seem to be the ones hard to fill.
If you're not sure which blood type of donation you would be willing to give, check this webpage out from the American Red Cross: https://www.redcrossblood.org/donate-blood/how-to-donate/types-of-blood-donations.html
Whole Blood Donation explained: "Whole blood is the most flexible type of donation. It can be transfused in its original form, or used to help multiple people when separated into its specific components of red cells, plasma and platelets. Learn more about whole blood donations. Who it helps: Whole blood is frequently given to trauma patients and people undergoing surgery. Time it takes: About 1 hour
Ideal blood types: All blood types Donation frequency: Every 56 days, up to 6 times a year"
Congratulations to our top two VMS Spelling Bee winners: Abbie Marcoux and Emily Lavergne! During our February final Spelling Bee competition hosted by Mrs. Lisa Calloway, these two young ladies spelled A-M-A-Z-I-N-G-L-Y by getting the spelling of so many words some of us cannot even pronounce correctly.
Abbie will represent VMS at the Southwest Idaho Regional Spelling Bee on March 18th: Scripps Southwest Idaho Regional Spelling Bee - Research and Economic Development (boisestate.edu).
The winner of the Regional goes to Nationals and competes for the title and $50,000: About the Bee | Scripps National Spelling Bee.
We're routing for you, Abbie! Make sure they all get to know the spelling of your name.
Friday Feb. 17th we have a No student contact Day – K-12 Parent-Teacher Conferences. Spring parent-teacher conferences are designed as an opportunity for schools to target selected students, based on need (academic or behavior) and are scheduled by request of the teacher or the building MTSS team. Conferences may be scheduled via TEAMS or by phone call. Most meetings today have been scheduled prior to today with the parent.
Individual teachers may decide to call you to touch base, so please do pick up the phone if possible when you see that VMS is calling. Some of the phone calls will be to let you know how AWESOME your child is doing in a particular class.
Students are advised today to check their grades in Power School. They all have access to PS via West Ada Website. Teachers and students use email (Outlook) as well to communicate, so it would be a great day for students to read their school related email, delete unneeded ones and pin important ones until done. If a student turns in a late assignment, it is good general practice to email a teacher that the late work has been completed with the assignment name.
Have a wonderful Presidents' Day Weekend!
PARENT TEACHER CONFERENCES
Friday, February 17th is a non-student day. Parent-Teacher Conferences are set to be held from 11:30am-3:30pm here at VMS. These conferences will be set for individual students and their families based on academic or behavioral concerns. Individual requests will be sent by email requesting parents/guardians of students to attend in person. If you do not receive a request, there are no academic or behavioral concerns at this time, however, you can always reach out to the teachers by email if you have any questions.
For questions about Parent-Teacher Conferences, please email Leslie Yingling at Yingling.leslie@westada.org
Congratulations to Erin Anderson who is our STAFF MEMBER OF THE WEEK!
"She's really kind and makes me feel better about myself."
"Mrs. Anderson is one of the nicest teachers I've ever had, and I loved her class."
"Your class was one of the best I have ever been in. I loved how many non-paper assignments we did. we had a lot of easy and fun projects that made me remember what I know. Thank you so much for the great teaching and the best world civ glass I have ever seen."
Congratulations! Charlotte Cosio is our STUDENT OF THE WEEK! She was nominated by Ms. Hylands who says, “Charlotte is a kind, polite, caring, hardworking student with a fun sense of humor. She comes into class with a smile and a warm greeting every day, listens well to others, offers to help in class anytime she sees a need, and uses her time wisely always setting a positive example for her peers. Charlotte is a bright light in my classroom and in our school!”
Valentine's Day Grams with the help of our VMS PTSO's hard work made some Kodiaks' day especially sweet! HAPPY VALENTINE's DAY, and thank you for supporting our school with your Candy Gram dollars!
Valentine's Day Grams with the help of our VMS PTSO's hard work made some Kodiaks' day especially sweet! HAPPY VALENTINE's DAY, and thank you for supporting our school with your Candy Gram dollars!
Don't forget to buy your yearbook no later than March 27th via bookkeeper check or myschoolfees.com!
Interested in learning about what Career & Technical Education (CTE) programs are offered in West Ada?
Please join us tonight, Monday February 13th from 5-7pm to learn about the programs and see the facilities our students get to learn in.
Refer to this flyer for which programs are located at which campus. For more information on CTE programs, please visit: https://www.westada.org/o/wasd/page/career-technical-education
We look forward to seeing you there!
Tonight don't miss the PTSO meeting at 7 p.m. in the library.
Tomorrow while you're saying thank you (via email) to the PTSO for organizing such a fun, exciting Valentine's Gram exchange for our school, don't forget to send your VMS webmaster and school yearbook advisor your best photo with your Valentine's Gram in hand during your lunch when it's time to pick them up. The secrets of whether you're getting a Valentine's Gram will be revealed during Advisory tomorrow when you get your ticket for picking one up at lunch.
You only have until the end of tomorrow (Friday) to purchase your Valentine's Gram through our wonderful PTSO online store for $1 to be delivered Feb. 14th to a student or staff member of VMS.
Here is the link: https://victoryptsostore.ecwid.com/Valentine%E2%80%99s-Day-Grams-p503590980
Congratulations to our VMS CERTIFIED STAFF MEMBER OF THE YEAR 2022-23: Mr. Brendan Grzanic! Mr. Grzanic's amazing work with his band and symphonic band students has gotten him the distinction of being only one of the few middle school teacher's who has ever been able to take his students to perform at the annual All State Symphonic Band Concert in Pocatello. His dedication to his students has gone beyond regular school hours as he has tirelessly invested many hours into his teaching craft and community. Thank you for all you do, Brendan! Congratulations!
Congratulations to our CLASSIFIED STAFF MEMBER OF THE YEAR 2022-23: Mrs. Mel Cook! Mrs. Cook is loved by all students and colleagues as one of the nicest people at VMS. Her work in the Special Education department has given her the reputation of a very caring, patient and knowledgable person who makes anyone smile in her presence. THANK YOU for all you do, Mel! Congratulations!
Congratulations to our STAFF MEMBERS of the MONTH: Jerren Summers, Lee Cornell and Chris Cottle! Their extra work as technology school digital leads during our Schoology pilot was recognized during this morning's staff meeting. Their readiness to help students and staff with any technology needs during the school year is much appreciated. Thank you for all you do!
If you missed today's Valentine's Day Gram Sales, then please know that it is NOT too late to go online to the PTSO store and order your favorite Valentine a VMS Valentine Gram ....OR... Thursday at school during ALL LUNCHES will be the last in person sale day.
Students! Enjoy your day tomorrow getting caught up with your class work, resting and/or reading a great book. Teachers will be working hard to collaborate for your best results at learning.
You have until March 26th to buy your YEARBOOK from the bookkeeper or online. Don't forget!
8th Grade Boys Basketball: Our boy's basketball teams took on Eagle Middle School this past week and the atmosphere was electrifying in the gym. The A-team game down to the wire and we unfortunately came up short by 1 point. It was a hard-fought game with a ton of highlights and great back and forth play. The B-team came out victorious in their game with a strong showing. Our C-teams rounded out the evening winning both of their games as well. Great job Kodiaks! The boys will be back in action on Monday, February 6th when they travel to Star.
Raffle: We are down to the wire - Drawing is in April. Get your raffle tickets for a great chance to win some amazing prizes and to help all our extracurricular activities and teams. Thank you for supporting the Kodiaks!
