Our School

December 6, 2021

Dear Ron Russell Families,

Student Safety:  With the recent school shooting in Michigan, once again school safety has been in the news.  This is another reminder of how important it is to be diligent about what our students are feeling, what they are doing online, and how they see themselves.  At RRMS, we have a Social Emotional Learning (SEL) curriculum in our advisory classes, counselors who support students’ mental health, and an administrative team who continue to reinforce positive behavior.  All staff at Ron Russell understand that safety is priority #1. If your child is feeling anxious about the recent events, please let us know and we can connect them with a trusted adult at school.

Youth Truth Survey:  The Youth Truth Survey is a nationally recognized survey we use to harness student perception to help our school further accelerate improvements.  We review results at both the building and district level.  The feedback you and your student provide is very valuable.

• Student Survey: Students will be taking the Youth Truth Survey this Thursday, November 9th during their advisory class.  Please be sure bring you charged chromebook to school
• Family Survey: There is also a family version in multiple languages.  Please take the Youth Truth Family Survey at your earliest convenience.  You can find more information about Youth Truth here.  Your feedback is very important to us. 

Tracker Party:  We will be having our second tracker party of the year on Friday, December 17th.  Students will be able to choose various activities like arts & crafts, trivia context, and karaoke.  Students must be in good disciplinary standing including no suspension between now and the tracker party. We look forward to a good time. 

Girls Basketball and Wrestling:  Registration is now open for Girls Basketball and Wrestling.  Registration must be complete by January 20th with tryouts beginning the week of January 24th.  Students must have an up to date physical to be able to participate.  You can register at: https://www.ddouglas.k12.or.us/community/community-sports-recreation/

Food Boxes: We have food boxes for Winter Break available from a new resource. The boxes will be available for pick up or delivery on Thursday, December 16th from noon until 3pm. Families are responsible for picking up the items from RRMS. **Please note that there is a limited number of food bags available for families, so this is on a “first to sign up, first serve” basis.  Fill out this form (Linked) Food for Winter Break sign-up

December Calendar: As you can see, we have many upcoming events before the new year.

• Thursday, December 9th:  Youth Truth Survey in Advisory
• Friday, December 17th:  11:20am Dismissal & Tracker Party
• December 20th – 31st:  Winter Break, we return to school on Monday, January 3rd

Music Department: We had our first Choir, Orchestra and Band concert of 2021 on Tuesday, December 7th. It was a blast and students and staff enjoyed it a lot. We recorded the entire concert and you can watch it by clicking on this link. You may have to download the video before viewing it.

Sincerely,

Michael Contreras

Principal, Ron Russell Middle School