Get Your Scorpion Scoop - Week of 8/31-9/4

Posted Date: 08/30/26 (01:56 PM)

Get Your Scorpion Scoop - Week of 8/31-9/4!

Principal’s Message

Hello Scorpion Community,

This past Friday, I celebrated by birthday with the best students, staff, and parents/guardians around. The amount of love that poured out of our community was beyond heart-warming. I want to extend a special shoutout to our ELAC community, who put together a beautiful and delicious spread in honor of my special day. Thank you for your kindness, Scorpions! I think Friday may have been my best birthday yet.

The fun continued at the end of the day for our first rally of the year! Ms. Cosentino and the leadership class knocked it out of the park. Students first learned about what it means to truly be #ScorpionStrong as we reviewed our Scorpion Strong Program and ways that students can be recognized for being respectful, responsible, and all around solid humans on campus. Then, leadership hosted a slew of fun games and activities. It was a joyous way to end the week! Don't forget that every Friday is Scorpion Strong Day. Wear your SJMS gear each Friday and be recognized for your spirit.

Speaking of Scorpion spirit...you are AMAZING! We continue to be Scorpion Strong as our Family Giving campaign has raised over $16,000! 💛🦂💙

We're adding some Silly Scorpion Fun! Any family who donates by this weekend (Sunday at midnight), will have their student's name (or students' names) entered into a live Morning Announcement drawing. The 5 names drawn will get to Silly String Mrs. McEachern and Mr. Gildengorin at lunch on Monday! Get those donations (of any amount!) in. Let's gooooo!!

Class standings for Kona Ice begin Monday. We have two weeks to go!

Every single dollar counts!
How to give:
💻 Click the link to donate online. https://paybee.io/@sjscorpions@36
💵 Drop off cash or a check at the front office.

Let's make this a great year, Scorpions! 🎉

Thanks for your patience while we roll out more information regarding JumpRope, our new grading platform, including parent and student access. On Monday, August 31, middle school students and families will receive their JumpRope login information. Once you receive your login information, we encourage parents/guardians and students to log in and explore the platform.

JumpRope is our middle school platform for viewing student progress and proficiency-based grading information. Additional information and guidance will be shared at Back-to-School Night by school administrators and staff, including how families can use JumpRope to stay informed about student learning and progress.

Thank you for partnering with us as we launch this new resource!

JumpRope_FamilyPortalGuide_OnePager_R2_A2-IYA.pdf
JumpRope_Guia_Para_Familias_Espanol.pdf

Team work makes the dream work, Scorpion Families! Please review the volunteer requirements below and begin working on the process to volunteer, should you wish to support activities at SJMS this year. Thank you so much for taking the time to complete the necessary steps so you can be involved in your student's school life. All live links included in the image below can be found here: NUSD Volunteer Requirements

Please remember that every student was given both the SJMS Behavior Matrix and the NUSD Middle School Handbook either on schedule pick up day or the first day of school. Our expectation is that families review these documents at home and sign the last page of the handbook, which was supposed to be turned in by Friday, 8/28. While all of our expectations are important to follow, each week we will highlight more specific ones that need extra attention based on what we are seeing on campus. Be sure to visit the AP's Corner below for an important note regarding one of our expectations.

In collaboration,

Mrs. Whitney McEachern, Principal

Upcoming Dates

September:

📌 9/7 - Labor Day, No School

📌 9/10 - Back to School Night (Regular Schedule)

***Thank you PTA for providing breakfast for staff this day!***

📌 9/11 - Minimum Day, 12:44 PM Dismissal & Pledge Drive Ends

📌 9/15 - PTA Meeting, 6 PM, SJMS Library

📌 9/17 - Kona Ice for 1st Period Classes with Most Pledges (for PTA Pledge Drive)

📌 9/18 - Block Party, 5-7 PM, SJMS Blacktop and Field

📌 9/25 - Drama Dance a Thon, 3-8 PM, SJMS Gym

PTA Update

We hope the first full week was great for everyone. There was picture day, thank you to those who volunteered to help that day.

The pledge drive is off to an amazing start. If you have not donated yet and are wanting to, here is your reminder. It will continue for 2 more weeks so get those pledges in now.

The reflection art contest is also happening and is a great way to show your students talents.

There are a lot of activities coming up from back to school night and the block party so make sure to check the Parent Square calendar or the printed date sheet that came home at the beginning of the year.

The AP Sting

Hi Families,

It has been great getting to know everyone, and we had a fantastic start to the year with our student-led Leadership Rally on Friday!

I wanted to share a quick cautionary story regarding Principal McEachern: she fell victim to someone violating our campus policy and stepped in gum on Thursday! Please remember that gum is strictly prohibited on campus for several reasons, including keeping our school clean and Principal McEachern’s shoes safe and gum-free.

We have been utilizing a raffle ticket rewards system to recognize positive behavior. Starting this upcoming week, we are transitioning to stamp cards, which staff members will stamp to acknowledge students' positive choices. Once filled, these cards can be redeemed for raffles, rewards, and campus perks. Please feel free to ask your student how many stamps they earned this week and encourage them to keep up the great behavior!

Sincerely,
Mr. Aaron Gildengorin, Assistant Principal

Counselor's Corner

Welcome to the Counselor’s Corner!

Here is some key information as we navigate the first couple weeks of school:

Counselor Points of Contact:

Note: The best way for parents and guardians to reach us is via ParentSquare or email.

Megan Kovacevich (Ms. K): mkovacevich@nusd.org
- All 7th-grade students & 6th-grade students with last names A–G
Evan Englar (Mr. E): eenglar@nusd.org
- All 8th-grade students & 6th-grade students with last names H–Z

Schedule Change Requests

Starting Monday, August 24th, students were able to pick up a Schedule Change Request Form in the front office.

Submission Window: Students will have a two-week window to submit their completed forms. Completed forms can be dropped off in the front office.
Important Policy Notes!!
- Submitting a request does not guarantee that a schedule change can be accommodated.
- We do not grant schedule changes for teacher preferences or class period preferences.

Wellness Hub:

We are delighted to welcome the return of our Wellness Hub for the third year! The Wellness Hub is closed the first couple of weeks of school and will have more information for you to follow! We aim to keep our Wellness Hub stocked for students to have access to a safe space on campus that is filled with snacks, mindful activities, arts and crafts, board games, etc. We welcome new or gently used donations, and we also update our Wellness Hub Amazon Wishlist regularly as our inventory runs low. If you wish to support wellness initiatives at SJMS, we have linked our wishlist here! Thank you for your consideration and partnership. We look forward to sharing more news and happenings with you soon! SJMS Wellness Hub Wishlist

Thank you!

Megan Kovacevich and Evan Englar, SJMS School Counselors

Athletics

Hello Scorpion Families!

The start of our Fall Athletics season is coming up quickly. We want to thank everyone who has signed up through the Google form. As of Friday, August 28, we have 130 students signed up for Flag Football, Volleyball, and Cross Country! We will be closing the form first thing Monday morning, so please sign up through the link below if your student would like to participate.

Fall Sports Interest Form

We still have a need for more Girls Volleyball Coaches! We currently have one head coach, and enough students signed up for three teams. Please, if you have experience coaching and/or playing volleyball reach out to Mr. Gildengorin and Mrs. McEachern.

Email: agildengorin@nusd.org and wmceachern@nusd.org

Families that have signed up already will be getting an email from Arbiter, an online registration and liability waiver platform. Please fill that out as soon as you receive it, so we can start practices on Thursday Sept. 3. Practice Schedules, etc. will be sent out next week.

Community Expectations

The 2026-2027 NUSD Middle School Handbook was sent home with your Scorpion at either schedule pick up or the first day of school. The final page needs to be signed and return to SJMS by Friday, 8/28. Please keep the handbook in a safe place at home, and consistently review it, as well is the SJMS Behavior Matrix. Both consist of expectations that are reviewed regularly at school. We highly encourage you to discuss high expectations at home with your Scorpion. Thank you for partnering with us to ensure your student knows how to be #ScorpionStrong!
Middle School Handbook PDF:

MS Student Parent Handbook '26-'27 - ENGLISH.pdf
MS Student Parent Handbook '26-'27 SPANISH.pdf

SJMS Behavior Matrix:

Technology Information and Updates

This year at San Jose Middle School, chromebooks will remain on campus, stored in carts in classrooms. Chromebooks may be available for check out for very specific situations. Families will learn more at Back to School Night. All technology use/AI related documents can be found on the website below:
https://www.nusd.org/information-technology

Fliers, Opportunities, Announcements, and More!

We are absolutely THRILLED to announce that both zero-period jazz band and seventh-period choir are being offered for the 2026-2027 school year. Each course is held outside of the regular 1-6 period school day. These are attendance, credit-based classes, which means students who commit to these courses will see grades and attendance counts in their official school record. If you're student wishes to enroll, please first read the communication from both teachers, including course description and commitment requirements, and then fill out the Google Form if you are ready to rock and/or sing!

Jazz Band
Starting Thursday, August 27th, Jazz Band will be offered before school. We meet every day in the band room, 906, for 0 period. On Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday class begins at 7:18, and on Wednesday, class starts at 7:23. This is a class, meaning you get course credit for it, and you are expected to attend all class meetings, just like the rest of your classes.
Jazz band is an entry level music class, and there is no experience needed! All you need to get started is to show up! In this class, your student will get experience playing music, improvising, and performing at a variety of events. Jazz Band is a great way for parents to beat the traffic getting to SJMS in the morning and for students to participate in music even if it's not your elective during the day.

Use this form to sign up: Jazz Band Sign Up Form

Choir

Welcome to the 2026-2027 school year! Choir at SJMS focuses on music literacy through team building, creative engagement, and performance. The last 4 years we have started with total beginner singer musicians and by the end of the year we have brought home the highest scores of middle schools in our north bay section! Students who come in with a cheerful attitude, curiosity, and a love of music will find success in SJMS Choir.

Please note that Choir is an accredited course that earns students high school transfer credits. Students who commit to Choir are expected to fulfill the full year of the course.

You may use this form to sign up for choir: Choir Sign Up Form

Do you have a student who will be utilizing public transportation? Please review the information below, as Marin Transit Youth Pass is not moving to Clipper. Parents can use the QR code pictured on the flier below to register their child for a Clipper Card. Students will no longer receive a sticker on their student ID.

Safe Routes to Schools encourages bicycle riding promoting health and teen independence. Fewer cars on the road benefit all.

Learn more about what parents should know about E-Bikes HERE.

Please visit this website for important information about how to keep your student safe and healthy:

https://www.saferoutestoschools.org/e-bike-education/

Welcome back, Scorpions! We are so excited to kick off another incredible school year with you. The counseling team is currently working hard behind the scenes to finalize student schedules and make sure everyone is right where they need to be. Hang tight as we get everything sorted—there is plenty more information to come soon. We hope your summer has included plenty of rest, hydration, and self-care. Enjoy these last few days, and we’ll see you all very soon!