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Horizon West Middle School |
HWMS Community Member,
We have had a great first few days back to school! We are so happy to have all of our hornets back on campus buzzing around! Students have already started to be engaged in rigorous classroom instruction and learning the policies and procedures of Horizon West Middle School.
Just a few reminders for our families:
• Students can be dropped off at school no earlier than 9:00 am. The students are unsupervised under the car loop pavilion before 9:00 am. If you are in the car loop before 9:00 am, students must stay in your vehicle with their families before this time.
• Please follow all traffic procedures for arrival and dismissal. When dropping and picking up students, we ask that you pull all the way forward to allow as many
• Starting Friday August 18th, students will be able to fill out the online Add/Drop form to request an elective change. Our school counselors are in the process of leveling out classes and the Add/Drop Request from will be released via Canvas on the 18th under the Counselors Corner tab.
• Parents, please remember to log into Skyward to complete the Parent Consent Forms (PCF). There are 5 forms to complete. If you need assistance, please go to our school website, click on parents, and then Skyward and Canvas Family Access. You’ll find helpful videos and step by step guides there.
• Families with bus riders that are inconvenienced by dismissal delays are strongly encouraged to enroll in our after-school program through Boys & Girls Club which is free program offered at the school for all students. The program runs from 4:04-6:00 PM with the earliest pick up at 4:35 PM and the last pick up at 6:00 PM. For more information, please contact our B&G director, Ms. McCallister at 117284@ocps.net.
• Delayed Dismissal is where we cannot dismiss students as we normally have due to inclement weather in the area. This is the time of the school year we have these frequently.
Thank you for your patience with our procedures in order to keep all our staff and students safe. We have had a wonderful start to our school year.
Please, don’t forget to regularly visit www.horizonwestms.ocps.net to get more information concerning all things Horizon West Middle School.
Thank you for your continued support!
Michelle Thomas
Principal
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8200 Tattant Drive
Orlando, FL 37486
(407) 554-1570
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Communication is KEY to the SUCCESS of our SCHOOL, STUDENTS and FAMILIES. Stay connected to our school by following and liking our OFFICIAL social media accounts. |
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Student Health & Safety
Critical parent form in the event of an emergency.
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Use of the Student Health Clinic |
In order or your student to be cared for at the School Health Clinic you must fill out the Parent Consent forms. Please do so immediately if you have yet to do so. Thank you.
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Severe Weather Holds
Our top priority remains student and staff safety.
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Thank for your cooperation during the Florida storm season. |
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Above all else, the safety and welfare of our students and staff is of paramount importance every school day at Horizon West. We begin and end each day with this objective top of mind. And as you may know, we have already had a number of storm delays since school began last week. We understand this can be frustrating, but the wait time is necessary for the protection of everyone.
Outdoor activities stop and students are sheltered when lightning occurs within a 6 mile radius of the school. Normal activity resumes when no lightning has occurred within a 6 mile radius for 30 minutes.
Severe weather holds are followed not just at our middle school, but by organizations all over Florida: at airports, with outdoor college and professional sports competitions, at construction sites, in farming, and in power utility field repair to name just a few Orange County examples.
- Lightning Is The #1 Weather Killer In Florida -- Killing More Than All Other Weather Sources Combined!
- Florida Leads The U.S. In Lightning Deaths, Injuries, and Casualties!
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Above: Lightning strikes within range of the Orlando International Airport shutting down all ground operations and outbound flights.
For safety reasons, the airlines won't have agents at the ramp available or personnel working outside during this type of weather condition in order to provide a risk-free environment. Sometimes travelers get quite impatient as they want to board their plane or pick up their bags at baggage claim, but the airport and airlines ask them to be patient until the all clear sign is given.
HORIZON WEST PARENT REMINDER:
Warning from the National Weather Service
Lightning can strike as far as 10 miles away from the base of a thunderstorm, which is about the distance from a storm that you are able to hear its thunder. If you can hear the thunder, then you are within striking distance of that storm. When you can clearly hear thunder in an urban setting above the city noise, it is a serious sign that it is time to abandon outdoor activities.
Follow the lightning safety rules when thunderstorms threaten your area. It is time to go indoors when, after seeing lightning, you cannot count to 30 before hearing thunder. Stay inside for 30 minutes after hearing the last clap of thunder. Do not prematurely resume outdoor activities as the storm moves away. Following this simple rule will help prevent you from becoming a victim of the deadly beauty of lightning.
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6th ELA– Ms. Ivory, Ms. Warid, Ms. Hanson (not pictured) |
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7th ELA- Ms. Harrell, Mr. Roman, Ms. Cabrini |
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8th ELA- Ms. Painter-Dangler, Mr. Fluke, Ms. Ocampo, Ms. Lawless |
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Reading- Ms. Urbanovich, Ms. Gonzales, Ms. Hartin, Dr. Pagan |
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7th Math- Ms. El Nagar, Ms. Olivier |
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7th Science- Mr. Connelly,
Ms. Rifenberg, Ms. Chiomadzi
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8th Math- Ms. Rea, Ms. Hockersmith, Ms. Blalock, Mr. Gonzalez,
Ms. Schmidt (not pictured)
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6th Science- Ms. McCallister,
Ms. Nkich, Ms. Rose
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6th Math- Ms. Van Bart, Ms. Hamaric, Ms. Schram |
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8th Science- Mr. Spangler, Ms. Chiomadzi, Ms. Martinez, Mr. Karim |
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6th World History– Mr. Monk, Ms. Branum, Mr. Nguyen |
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8th US History- Ms. Pagan-Davila, Mr. Hurn, Ms. Ainsworth, Mr. Mangiello |
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Art- Ms. Smith, Ms. Rodriguez,
Ms. Mullings
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PE & Dance- Coach Roman, Coach Hortas, Coach Bergin, Coach Vivi, Ms. Zuckerman |
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STEM- TV Production-
Ms. Moore, Ms. Burt
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Spanish Teachers–
Ms. Negron, Ms. Arce
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7th Civics– Ms. Lettieri, Ms. Causey, Ms. Bontempo |
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Edgenuity/PASS Coordinator-
Mr. Cassin
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Behavior Specialist, Ms. Chasen & ESE teacher Ms. Kelly |
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Performing Arts- Ms. Parrish,
Mr. Corneau, Ms. Rodgers
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Counselors- Ms. Cosme,
Ms. Ferrand, Ms. Stepp
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Starting Friday August 18th, students will be able to fill out the online Add/Drop form to request an elective change. No teacher change requests or class period swaps will be accepted. Once students fill out the form, the counselors will meet with them in the order in which their request was received. This form will close on Monday August 28th. The link to the Add/Drop form is:
Please keep in mind that this is not a guaranteed schedule change. Thank you!
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Hornets, we are implementing a new program this year called HERO! Our students will earn points for positive behavior from teachers and staff. Then, they can use those points to get a reward of their choice. We are working on getting our store ready for our kiddos and need your help! We've created an Amazon wish list to make it easy for you to support us in making this a success. All items will be sent directly to the school. Thank you for your consideration and all donations!
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Hornet's 2023-24 soccer season opens August 30th vs. Hamlin: |
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Congratulations to all who made the soccer team! Come cheer on our Boys and Girls Soccer teams in their upcoming games! |
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Wednesday, 8/30 @ Hamlin Middle
Wednesday, 9/06 @ Water Spring Middle
Monday, 9/11 Bye
Wednesday, 9/13 @ Ocoee Middle
Monday, 9/18 vs. Lakeview Middle
Wednesday, 9/20 vs. Bridgewater Middle
Wednesday, 9/27 vs. SunRidge
Monday games start @ 5:30
Wednesday games start @ 5:00
Boys play first, followed by girls.
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Thank you to the volunteers that came in this week to help with laptop distribution. |
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Hornet in the Spotlight!
Performing Arts
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Cody Corneau performs at the State level! |
This summer, 8th grader Cody Corneau was selected to perform as part of the 7 Star Honor Band at the Florida Bandmasters Association's Summer Conference! |
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Mr. C., Cody, and composer Larry Clark |
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Cody with Conductor Jim Matthews |
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Chess Club with Mr. Fluke on Friday mornings: |
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Mr. Fluke is once again this year planning to sponsor a Chess Club in his classroom (Room 3-108) to meet most Friday mornings at 8:30am for Chess play and competition. Please look and listen for future announcements or email Mr. Fluke with a notice of your interest at William.fluke@ocps.net. |
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Superintendent's Weekly Message
Monday, August 14, 2023
Dr. Maria Vazquez, Superintendent of Schools
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This week Superintendent Vazquez talks with Jamie Holmes about about the new student cell phone policy and how it came about. |
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OCPS Parent Academy Next Saturday! |
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WELCOME BACK HORNETS!
Ms. Thomas, Principal
Horizon West Middle School
Friday, August 18, 2023
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Horizon West Leadership Team |
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This communication may contain information that is legally privileged, confidential or exempt from disclosure, and intended only for the use of the addressee(s) named above. If you are not the intended recipient, please note that any dissemination, distribution, or copying of this communication is strictly prohibited. Anyone who receives this message in error should notify the sender immediately by telephone or by return e-mail, and delete the message from their computer and any printout thereof. Please note that OCPS utilizes spam and junk e-mail filtration applications in its e-mail systems. That filtering process may prevent or delay delivery of certain e-mail communications. If you do not receive a timely response to an e-mail communication, please contact the intended recipient by phone. |
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Copyright Notice
Reproduction of this material, either written or electronically, including the general layout, graphics, analyses, and content topics without the express approval of Target Performance Systems, Inc., a Florida corporation, and OCPS-Horizon West Middle School is forbidden without written consent. Thank you for your support of the Orange County Public Schools and OCPS-Horizon West Middle School. Please contact Ms. Tiffany Stanley at tiffany.stanley@ocps.net with any questions.
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