Southwest Junior High School
2511 Inverness Drive
Lawrence, Kansas 66047
785-832-5550
January-February 2011
vol. 16 no. 3
Published bi-monthly
http://swjhs.usd497.org/
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March Parent Conferences
Monday, March 14, 5:00 – 8:15 p.m.
Wednesday, March 16, 5:00 – 8:15 p.m.
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Thank You, Parents!
Southwest is very appreciative of all the parent support and volunteers that we get each
year. We want to say a special thank you to Kelly McReynolds who is heading up the
parent volunteers this year. So many parents volunteer to help in so many ways, from
chaperons to activity support. We offer our heart-felt appreciation as a staff and student-
body here at Southwest Junior High.
.
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Yearbook Sale
Purchase a Southwest yearbook for $30 before Spring Break. This book tells the story of
your son/daughter’s year and is filled with activities, friends, and memories that he/she
will treasure forever. Checks made out to SWJH can be turned in to room 607 or the
office.
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Track and Field News
Track Sweats: If students would like to order their own track sweats for the track
season, order forms are available in the Southwest office or in room 406. Orders for
track sweats will be due Friday, February 11th. The sweats should be ready to pick up by
the first track practice. Track sweats can also be checked out through the Southwest
Athletic Department during the track season. If you have questions about ordering
sweats, contact Patty Coffey at 832-5550.
Track Information Meetings: Students interested in being part of the Southwest Junior
High Track and Field team must attend an informational meeting before the first practice.
The meetings will be in the Southwest gym at 3:15-4:00. Seventh graders will meet on
Monday, February 28th. Eight graders will meet on Tuesday, March 1st. Parents are
welcome to attend the informational meetings. If you have questions about Southwest
Track and Field, contact Skip Bennett or Patricia Coffey at 832-5550.
Required Track Paperwork: Southwest Track and Field begins Monday, March 7th.
Students who plan to participate in Bulldog Track need to prepare now so that they will
be ready for the season. Each track and field participant must have a doctor’s physical
dated after May 1, 2010. Besides the physical, each athlete must have a notarized
medical/insurance authorization form. The forms are available in the Southwest office.
If the student has already participated in other sports this year (including cheerleading,
but not including 7th grade football), the physical and insurance should already be on file.
If you are not sure whether your son or daughter has the proper paper work, you may call
Deb Rhoton at 832-5550 during school hours.
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Vocal Music Events
Bel Canto will participate in the annual All-City Choral Festival on Tuesday, February 1,
2011, at 7:00 p.m. at the Lied Center. This event will feature all four zero-hour choirs
from the four Lawrence junior high schools as well as the top auditioned choirs from
LHS and FSHS. The guest clinician for this event is Dr. Paul Tucker, Director of Choral
Music at the University of Kansas. The concert is free and open to the public.
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E-Mail Southwest Teachers
Parents wishing to contact Southwest teachers can find e-mail addresses for teachers on
the school website: http://swjhs.usd497.org/ Most SW teacher have a website on which
they post their assignments so they can be accessed from home.
Simply click on “Faculty” and then on the teacher’s name to be taken to his/her e-mail
address and website.
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Southwest Site Council
Southwest's Site Council serves in an advisory capacity regarding the school's
Continuous Improvement Plan and other topics. Discussions range from academic
programs to safety and security to political trends affecting education state-wide and
nationally. You can read the minutes of this year's meetings at
http://www.usd497.org/Schools/SiteCouncil/
The Site Council is made up of staff, parents, and community members. Individuals who
have an interest in serving on the Site Council in the future can contact Trish Bransky,
Principal, or Matt Fearing, Assistant Principal, at 832-5550.
The SW administrators encourage parents to contact them directly with questions or
suggestions about the school. In addition, the Site Council members welcome parent
input.
Mark Bradford mbradford@usd497.org
Trish Bransky tbransky@usd497.org
Nici Coulson ncoulson@usd497.org
David Cunningham dcunnin@usd497.org
Daniel Dorado dan_dorado@hotmail.com
Matt Fearing, Co-Chair mfearing@usd497.org
Maggie Fieger, Co-Chair margaret.fieger@intrustbank.com
Elizabeth Gabel egabel@usd497.org
Terri Johnson tjjohnso@usd497.org
Bob Kircher RKircher@usd497.org
Diane Knapp Diane@ink.org
Trish LaRue trishlarue@sunflower.com
Will Lockwood wdl@ku.edu
Patrick Manning pmanning@mclawrence.com
Kelly McReynolds mackellym@msn.com
Paula Pepin ppepin@usd497.org
Lian Rajewski lianrajewski@sunflower.com
Mark Schmidt mschmidt@usd232.org
Pam VanSchmus vanschmus@sunflower.com
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Silent Auction Update
We want to thank everyone who made our first SWJH Silent Auction a big success.
Through bids and donations, we were able to raise over $2800 for our school.
We would like to thank the following donors:
Aldi Kroenke Sports Kim Clements
Auto Plaza Car Wash Enterprises Joyce Collins
Brigid Murphy’s Art Lawrence Country Club Cheri Drake
Students Legends Outlet Mall David Drennan
CiCi’s Pizza Lied Center of Kansas Matt Fearing
Clinton Marina Inc. Maceli’s Charles Gabel
Commerce Bank Maximus Fitness & Robyn Garcia
Community Mercantile Wellness Tami Hoffman
Dale Willey Automotive Royal Crest Lanes Suzanne Hutchens
Don Don Restaurant Sycamore Ridge Golf Michelle Jensen
Eileen’s Colossal Cookies Club Terri Johnson
First Watch Travelers, Inc. Kathy Klocke
Foxfire Neighborhood Walking Well Massages Sally Landoll
Hamm, Inc. & Body Works Elliott Pees
HyVee Weaver’s Department Carla Pfortmiller
Jasmin Restaurant Store Julitha Rials
Jayhawk Trophy Westside Storybook Club Melissa Stucky
KC Chiefs Maureen Williams
KC Royals Marleen Woodard
KC T-Bones
We would also like to thank the auction committee which included parent volunteers
Kelly McReynolds, Dr. Lian Rajewski, Dianne Knapp, and Twila Baker.
~*~
Guidance Notes
Enrollment News:
The counselors are working with district and school administrators on student enrollment
for the upcoming school year. This is a big transition year, with eighth and ninth graders
going to the high school as well as fifth and sixth graders attending the middle school.
Southwest’s Parent Enrollment Information meeting will be the evening of February 17th.
Parents of future 6th and 7th grade Southwest students are invited to attend from 6:30-
7:15 p.m. Parents of future 8th grade Southwest students are invited to attend from 7:30
to 8:15 p.m. We hope to see you all on February 17th.
Parent Enrollment Information for next year’s 9th and 10th graders at Free State will be
the evening of February 28th.
Lawrence High School’s Parent Enrollment Night date will be posted shortly.
Grade Cards
Grade cards for first semester will be printed by January 7, 2011. They should arrive in
the mail the beginning of the next week.
Ike’s All Stars
The following students were chosen as Ike’s All Stars for the first quarter by the
Southwest staff. These students were recognized by their teachers for their daily
demonstration of the following characteristics: good citizenship, positive attitude, strong
academic effort, random acts of kindness, good relationships with peers and adults and no
office referrals.
7th grade 8th grade 9thgrade___
Angela Gao Caroline Carter Martha Fister
Sydney Bollinger Ellie Dunlap Sarah Whipple
Sanithia Edwards JooYoung Lee Grace Cairns
Price Morgan Randall Schmidt Evan Barnes
Steele Jacobs Brian Chang Storm Myer
Joaquin Dorado Noah Hogan Josh Eudaly
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Office Reminders
Fee Payment
If you did not receive fee information in the mail, please contact the school for
instructions. Fees may be paid in full by check, with Mastercard or Visa, or the payment
plan option. Fee statements for 2nd semester course fees will be mailed out the week of
January 24th, 2011. All fees for current 8th and 9th graders must be paid in full by the end
of the 2010-2011 school year to avoid being sent to collections. Please call the school at
832-5550 and speak to Lisa Koppes with any questions.
Attendance
Parents please remember to notify the attendance office by 8:00 AM when your
student is to be absent for all or part of a day. If it is more convenient, a parent can
call 832-5550 the evening before or early morning the day of the absence and leave a
message on the recorder.
If your student will be absent from school for several days, please contact the attendance
office first. Mrs. Packard, the attendance secretary, will provide an extended absence
form that covers teacher notification and homework for missed days.
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Game Day T-Shirts
Southwest GAME DAY shirts are on sale again this year. Please stop by the front office
if you are interested in purchasing one. T-Shirts are $15 and are being sold as a
fundraiser for Southwest Sports.
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News from the Bulldog Café
Free and Reduced Lunches
If you have a change of circumstance during the school year (even temporarily), you can
apply for free/reduced meal benefit. An application can be completed any time during
the school year. Please remember that if your child qualifies for the free/reduced benefit,
it includes breakfast. Breakfast serving time is 7:45am and the reduced cost is 30 cents.
We ask your assistance in making sure your child understands he/she must purchase a
reimbursable meal (main dish & one other item) to receive the free/reduced benefit. If
students bring lunch from home and get milk, they will be charged the milk price of 65
cents.
Online Payments
Parents/guardians are able to make payments for school lunches with a credit card and are
able to check the balance of their student lunch accounts online at mynutrikids.com. Go
to the district website at www.usd497.org, link to Food Services, then to mynutrikids.
If you are new to the system, be aware that you will need each child’s 8 digit student ID#
to set up an account with nutrikids. Please note that you do NOT have to make online
payments to use this service. If you have set up an email alert but are not receiving
emails, please check your spam filter or your internet provider as some “automated
emails” are blocked. If you continue to have problems, please contact Technical Support
at mynutrikids.
Student ID Cards
When purchasing a school breakfast/lunch students should scan their student ID to insure
proper identification. A key pad is available for occasional use when a card is forgotten.
Students have been keying their numbers rather than using their student ID which causes
the cashier lines to move slower than necessary. Please discuss with your student the
importance of scanning their student ID to insure proper accounting and more time to
socialize with their friends.
If you have any questions regarding your child(s) account please contact SWJH Café at:
Manager/Cashier Office 330-1919 or Kitchen 330-4813
Deb Frye, Manager at dfrye@usd497.org
Susan Curtiss, Assistant Manager at scurtiss@usd497.org
Teresa Magnuson, Cashier at tmagnuso@usd497.org
JANUARY, 2011
Sun MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SAT
1
2 3 4 5 6 7 8
No Classes 7-12 Second Semester
Starts
9 10 11 12 13 14 15
8 BBB @ Central
8 BBB @ South 3;30 3:45 8 BBB @ West 3:45
16 17 18 19 20 21 22
8 BBB (H) vs Bishop
No Classes Seabury 4:15
23 24 25 26 27 28 29
8 BBB (H) vs 8 BBB (H) vs West
Emporia 3:45 3:45 Site Council 4:15
30 31
No Classes K-12
FEBRUARY, 2011
Sun MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SAT
1 2 3 4 5
8 BBB (H) vs South
8 BBB @ Turner 4:00 3:45
6 7 8 9 10 11 12
8 BBB (H) vs West Stuco Valentines
3:45 8 BBB @ WRMS 3:30 Dance 7:00 PM
13 14 15 16 17 18 19
8 BBB @ Atchison BBB @ Atchison BBB @ Atchison Parent Enrollment
Tournament Tournament Tournament Mtg 7:00 PM
20 21 22 23 24 25 26
Honor Roll
Reception 7:00
27 28
Driver Education-- Summer 2011
There will be two sessions of Driver Education offered: Session A and Session B.
Session A is 7:00 – 11:00 Session B is 11:30 – 3:30
The dates are: June 2 – July 1, 2011 at Free State High School
The course is competency based – COMPLETION MEANS THAT A STUDENT HAS: 1)
Successfully passed 14 written tests 2) Successfully passed required driving skills.
IMPORTANT: STUDENTS MUST BE PRESENT IN ORDER TO ENROLL & MUST BE AT LEAST
14 YEARS OLD BEFORE CLASS BEGINS. Parents are not required to be present. The students will
complete an enrollment form, an Instructional Permit (DE99), and have an eye check.
Students will need to bring:
☺ Eyeglasses or contacts, if they are prescribed
☺ Learner’s Permit (if you have one, although it is not necessary to have a
Learner’s Permit before you enroll in Driver Education, it is recommended)
☺ Check, money order or cash in the correct amount. Fee must be paid at
time of enrollment. Checks & money orders are to be made payable to
USD 497.
Enrollment fee will be $225 for each student.
Enrollment is on first-come, first served basis. The lines may be long and we ask for your patience. This is
an important process, as the Driver License represents a primary identification card as well.
Enrollment will be held:
Saturday, April 9, 8:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. @ Free State High School
In order to expedite the enrollment process, please complete the following form & bring with you to
enrollment. Please print legibly and use your legal name (no nicknames).
Last Name______________________ First Name_____________________ MI_____
Date of birth ___/____/_______ Grade completed in 10-11 school year ___________
(Month day year)
Address______________________________ City_____________ Zip ____________
Parent’s Name________________________________
Parent’s Phone # @ home__________________ work____________________ cell_________________
Instructional Permit *YES ____ NO_____ Hours of driving _____ *Bring permit with you to enrollment
I understand that I must (to receive credit) attend class & driving sessions, successfully pass 14
written tests and successfully pass required driving skills.
____________________________________
Student signature
You may call 832-5000, ext. 1700 with questions.
FOR OFFICE USE ONLY
DE99:_______________ Receipt #_____________ Check # _________Other Information ______________________________