Hamilton Headlines

News and notes from
Hamilton Middle
June 4, 2020
Vol. 1, Issue 38
June Principal Update
As the calendar turns to June, we find ourselves excited about the prospect of a summer that waits just around the corner. Two-thirds of our community will rejoin us in about three months at summer’s end, but there are those folks who retire, move on, or move away, leaving behind fond memories of years gone by. And of course, June is a time when we say goodbye to over 250 important friends who leave behind the 6-8 schooling environment and head off to high school.

As the year comes to a close, we say so long to our eighth grade students. I wish our eighth-soon-to-be-ninth grade students much success in high school as they begin to experience the independence and expanded array of choices that come along with this important step. I also take a moment to wish the parents of these soon to be high schoolers much patience and serenity in the years ahead. I hope you will join me in wishing all our eighth grade students and families nothing but the best in this next chapter in their lives!

Some important points and dates as we look ahead to when we will be seeing each other again at summer’s end. At this time, I do not yet know if we will be back holding classes inside our Hamilton building, but for the sake of planning, let's assume that we will be. First, be reminded that Hamilton is changing its start time to 8:40am, with dismissal on Mondays at 2:20pm and on Tuesday-Friday at 3:52pm.  With regard to dates, please mark your calendars for our fall enrollment day on Thursday, August 20 from 10am-1pm for new students. Returning students should be able to take care of re-enrolling online, but can come to Hamilton on August 20 from 1pm-6pm if there are changes like a new address. Our first day of school is on Tuesday, September 1 f or sixth grade students only . Seventh and eighth grade students join us on Wednesday, September 2. Students will enjoy a three-day Labor Day weekend with no school on Monday, September 7. Our fall Open House event is scheduled for Thursday evening, September 24, and we hope to see returning families there!

I hope all of you find plenty of time to enjoy your summer with your family, and with some luck, perhaps we can all get out and explore more as pandemic restrictions are relaxed. It has been a pleasure working with our entire community over this, my first year as principal at Hamilton Middle. We’ve had a great, albeit different sort of year! I look forward to seeing you again at summer’s end and to working with you for many years to come!
8th Grade Movin' On: A Virtual Celebration
The 8th grade staff at Hamilton is preparing a video and printable program to celebrate the 8th grade graduating class. The video will include a brief message from Principal Burkholder, as well as student speeches, staff video, student photo montage, and announcements of award winners . All students have been asked to submit a photo for the photo montage. If your student has still not submitted a picture and would like to, please do so asap to their homeroom teacher. The video and printable program will be shared with all families electronically the morning of our last day of school, June 10th. Special thanks to Nate Olsen and Kathleen Doherty for making all of this possible.
Picking Up Where We Left Off
Many families were able to stop by Hamilton this week to pick up items that students left in lockers, and to drop off items belonging to the school including library books, textbooks, instruments, etc. We have scheduled one more opportunity for families to pick up and drop off items for this coming Wednesday evening, June 11, 4pm-7pm. Please come to our main entrance on Waukesha.
Summer Reading Recommendations
Check out our 2020 Middle School Summer Reading Recommendations  book list , put together by all MMSD middle school librarians. The link also includes ideas for getting books virtually, and virtual summer reading activities.
Monitoring Your Child's Chromebook Use
As you know, we asked students to keep their Chromebooks at home over summer. For many parent, monitoring their child's Chromebook use can be difficult. To help you monitor your child's Chromebook use, we encourage you to enroll in a program called Securly that will allow you to get updates on your child's online activities as associated with their MMSD account. To find out more, see the below link.
Quick Links
Additional Nutrition Resource in a Time of Pandemic
If your income has changed due to our recent circumstances, please apply at the MMSD Food & Nutrition Website for free and reduced benefits at this link . Income eligibility guidelines are on the website.
COVID-19 Resources and Information
Use the links in this section to access a variety of resources and information pertaining to the COVID-19 pandemic. The link directly below offers a compendium of most anything that you might want to know about COVID-19 including links to resources to address issues that include financial, emotional, logistical, and childcare challenges. Resources have been collected from news articles, local Facebook groups, grassroots organizations, etc. This document is not an MMSD creation.
The below last link is to a survey provided by Madison General Defense Committee and is a way to request support for basic needs. Again, not an MMSD link.
Photo Finish
Pick up and drop off days at Hamilton Middle!
Bags with locker contents wait for retrieval and delivery to cars and families.
Picking up!
Waiting in the shade for the next customer as three of our pick up days were fairly hot!
Hamilton Middle Website