What an amazing week filled with adventures, honorings, and traditions! Congratulations to all of our students on completing the school year.
We're so proud of you!
It's the SCOOP for June 11, 2020
Your weekly news from Santa Barbara Middle School
Dear SBMS Families,
 
This was a year unlike any other. It was a voyage of discovery for each of us, but we showed up, we dove in, we shared our gifts, and we began again. While there were new obstacles and opportunities for us to face during this voyage, we feel very fortunate that we are able to end this year’s journey with some of our quintessential and familiar traditions. This week we successfully completed an adventure day, day of service and sunrise swim, and we hosted important SBMS ceremonies such as the 9th Grade Honorings, Ceremony of the Ashes, and Ceremony of the Phoenix. Tomorrow we celebrate our strong and resilient 9th grade class at their Rites of Passage and send them off on a new adventure. We hope that their time at Middle School has taught them grit, kindness, courage, and a strong understanding of who they are.
 
With the conclusion of this year, we are turning our full attention to the 2020-21 school year. We will be starting a week early in order to give our students as much time together on campus as possible before flu season. We also will be going over COVID-related training and education so that we all can remain safe and healthy on campus. We ask that you calendar the week of August 24 for orientation activities, bike rides and community education related to the new coronavirus protocols. With this new program we will:
  • Introduce cohort models with a new schedule
  • Establish health and safety precautions
  • Enhance life skills and advisories for building authentic relationships with our students
  • Provide two-way blended learning opportunities for our students with our on-campus program and our remote learning options
  • If it becomes necessary to transition back to online learning during the school year, we have an enhanced Distance Learning Program designed to help us pivot back to on-campus learning at the earliest possible date
 
We will be having a final Cups and Questions next Thursday at 9am, at which we will introduce the concept of our cohort plan and discuss trips. If you are unable to make the meeting and have questions, please be assured that you will be hearing from us often throughout the summer by email. We will be working hard all summer to plan out this unique upcoming year and will keep you all updated along the way.
 
Wishing you all a fun and healthy summer break!
IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENTS
RITES OF PASSAGE
We are excited to celebrate our 9th graders tomorrow with Rites of Passage. The event will be held at Godric Grove on Fr iday, June 12, by invitation only. Details and safety protocols to be followed can be found here.  For those of you who can't attend in person, we will be broadcasting the event at the links be low so you can join in on this special ceremony.
ADMISSIONS OPPORTUNITY FOR
INCOMING 8TH GRADERS
Word of mouth is always the best way to find new, awesome SBMS students. We are looking for incoming students who are, among other things, academically at grade level, kind, intrinsically hearty and responsible.

We would love your help in finding the very best fit for our open enrollment spots. If you know of any eligible candidates who may fit the SBMS profile, please put them in touch with   Whitney   or  Sue .
ARTISTE WINERY has announced a new wine release with sales benefitting SBMS! 

Our family has been so grateful for the years our son, Mason Rice, has had at Santa Barbara Middle School and are excited to give back through  Artiste . This month, we are releasing a one-of-a-kind summer Sauvignon Blanc, " Riviera " that features the imaginative work of SBMS Artist-in-Residence Richard Wilke. This delicious wine will pair perfectly with your favorite summer foods. This offer is a limited run and EXCLUSIVELY available to the SBMS community. 

We will be donating $15 to SBMS for every bottle sold to help support this amazing school and team of teachers! Cheers! - Anna and Bion Rice

*Because this wine is for fundraising purposes, no Artiste discounts apply. Thank you for supporting SBMS!
BIANCA'S BLURB

What a year! Our trajectory this school year began as usual and around mid-March quickly jumped off course. And once off course, the path for the whole world has continued to not follow a straight line. In my February 20th blurb, I referenced an article in The Atlantic that highlighted why "staying on track" isn't necessarily the answer. The study quoted in the article states that only 10% of people surveyed feel they followed a straight path throughout the course of their lifetime. "The remaining 90 percent are folks who have taken risks, failed, changed course, recovered, often failed again, but ultimately found their stride." Obviously the article was focusing on people's life paths and trajectories, but I feel the same can be said about our country and world. My hope is that society's recent wiggly, uncomfortable, and challenging trajectory will ultimately help humankind find their stride. We have known for far too long that many things needed to move in a new direction - climate change and racial inequities and injustices are examples of a couple of areas that require change. The article goes on to say that, "encouraging children to follow a linear path makes them cautious and competitive when what they are most likely to need are curiosity, a willingness to take risks, and a talent for collaboration." Curiosity, risk-taking, and collaboration are the exact tools we need as a society to face this curvy, winding path in front of us. We need to think outside of the box and be willing to move in new directions for positive progress. At Middle School, I'm proud to say that our students, families, and teachers have all embraced these unprecedented twists and curves, and we are excited to see what new opportunities the coming school year presents. We know that with a little resilience, some friends to lean on, and an open heart, we can bike up any mountain! Have a great summer and please look for Bianca's Blurb back in action this fall! Here's a poem by Leslie Dwight that reflects the intent of this week's blurb.

"What if 2020 isn’t cancelled?⁣
What if 2020 is the year we’ve been waiting for?⁣
A year so uncomfortable, so painful, so scary, so raw —
that it finally forces us to grow.⁣
A year that screams so loud, finally awakening us
from our ignorant slumber.⁣
A year we finally accept the need for change.⁣
Declare change. Work for change. Become the change.
A year we finally band together, instead of⁣
pushing each other further apart.⁣
2020 isn’t cancelled, but rather⁣
the most important year of them all.”⁣

Read the rest of Bianca's Blurbs  here .
THE WEEK AHEAD

Friday, June 12:
6:45am 9th Grade Exclusive Sunrise Swim
1:15pm check-in for Rites of Passage

Thursday, June 18:
Final Cups and Questions on Zoom

HAPPY SUMMER!
COMMUNITY
A NOTE FROM TERESA TO 7TH GRADE
7th graders! Be sure to find your English project work portfolio in your final care package from school. Take time and enjoy looking back - you've worked hard and should feel SO proud! Thank you for showing up, diving in, and sharing your gifts each day as you begin again! Have a great summer!

COMMUNITY NEEDS: SCANNER
Whit is seeking a high-quality, fast slide scanner to use next year to scan thousands of slides for SBMS archives. If you have one available, please email Whit@sbms.org .
SONGFEST
Thanks to everyone who tuned in, shared their musical gifts, and made Saturday night so special. You can watch the full concert again here at any time.

DAY OF SERVICE SUCCESS
Thank you SBMS Community!! 297 Bags Donated!!
“Small Acts. Big Impact.” We want to thank the SBMS community for coming together to deliver purses and backpacks filled with essential hygiene items to support the  Purse Project  and  Adam’s Angels  — two organizations doing good work to support the homeless. It was truly a great day of heartwarming service!

Community Action  also does not want the year to slip by without reporting on the efforts we made to support the non profit,  Cycling Without Age Our goal was to help their efforts to purchase an additional trishaw bike to get even more of our senior friends out on the bike, on the road, and in the fresh air. Between bake sales and pickle ball tournaments, raffles and the 6th grade's persuasive letter-writing campaign, we raised nearly  $1400  to donate toward that effort. Once again, the SBMS community showed up in a big way. Thank you.

Summer is great time to continue making a difference. Click here for our  SBMS Service Bucket List .
SUMMER OPPORTUNITIES

SBMS SUMMER CAMP
SBMS is offering “Build Your Own Experience” Summer Camps. Camps will run in blocks starting at 9am, 11am, and 1pm. Depending on the activity, blocks will be 60 or 90 minutes long. This leaves 30-60 minutes between blocks for snacks and lunch. Each camp/block runs for one week, Monday through Friday. Learn more about the program here and email summercamp@sbms.org  for questions or to register.

Camps Offered 
  • Watercolor (materials included) - 90 minutes - $175/Week
  • Nature Art: Painting & Drawing (materials included) - 90 minutes - $175/Week
  • Bike Mechanics (some materials included) - 90 minutes - $175/Week
  • Beginning Guitar (guitars available) - 60 minutes - $145/Week
  • Ukulele (ukulele available) - 60 minutes - $145/Week
  • Yoga - 60 minutes - $125/Week
  • Photography (Camera or phone with a camera required) - 60 minutes - $125/Week [NEW!]

BOXTALES SUMMER CAMP
A virtual summer theatre camp! The c amp will be conducted on ZOOM with both synchronous and asynchronous classes. In addition, there will be selected online classes taught by the world's most famous teachers, in the same performing art forms we base our method on, and we will curate a collection of videos of the world's best performing artists from throughout history for the students to watch. See all the details here .

THE ARTS FUND
The Arts Fund will be offering a range of online performing/visual art classes for teens totally FREE of cost (materials included + shipped straight to their doorstep) via the new  Studio to Student   program throughout the summer months. As always, the classes are being hosted by local professionals who hold a wealth of knowledge. Students ages 13 -19 are welcome to participate, although some specific classes may have an age minimum of 16 years.

MINDFUL PARENTING
ON THE HORIZON
*Please note that dates and events are subject to change. We will be in communication over the summer with event updates and date confirmations.

Start Dates
August 24: Potential Start Date for a week including:
  • Student activities
  • Safety trainings
  • Cohort education
  • Diamond Day
  • 9th Grade Orientation
  • Orientation Ride

*Academic classes will likely start earlier depending on orientation ride and schedule.

See more events here… 2020-21 School Calendar
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