THE MENENDEZ MESSAGE

Volume 2 Issue 65

https://www-pmhs.stjohns.k12.fl.us/

904.547.8660

Office: 8:30am- 4:45pm

Good evening Menendez Community,

We hope you and your child had a wonderful four-day weekend. On Friday our faculty was busy planning for the coming weeks and receiving professional learning related to data-driven instruction and supporting positive behaviors.

We are incredibly excited to see that our students have a number of reasons to celebrate, Mr. Nunamaker's SkillsUSA teams had incredible results in the most recent competition and many of the students will be going on to the state competition. Speaking of state competitions our Girls Weightlifting team competed at the FHSAA Weightlifting Championships and Elle Bays won the state individual title in both Olympics and Traditional Lifting in her weight class. We are so proud of her and look forward to her continued success.

Senior parents, as many of you know, a recent incident regarding a student from another high school has brought to light concerns regarding senior activities that take place outside of the scope of a school. there was an email sent late last week from Superintendent Forson. Please make sure to read through it for the safety of your child.

We are in the last four weeks of the third quarter, please make sure to review grades in HAC and partner with us as we push to help every student succeed.

#RISEON3 is our mantra for the year and it illustrates our focus for our students. We hope to elevate the mark in the follow areas for every student:

• Achievement (in every part of life)
• Attendance (being present and on time)
• Attitude (regardless of the situation, to exhibit an attitude of success and persistence)

This coming year these four tenets will serve as the foundation for Pedro Menendez High School.

• Communication
• Clarity of Standards/ Expectations
• Consistency
• Commitment



Visitors to campus MUST complete a School Access Form which can be found on the SJCSD website at https://www.stjohns.k12.fl.us/volunteer/.

• This clearance is for entry on campus during school hours such as a morning meeting with teachers or counselors, volunteering, or other events.

#RISEON3!

Respectfully,

Ted Banton

Principal

Pedro Menendez High School

• February 17th - No School
• February 20th - IB Pinning
• February 25th - 11th Grade ACT (Grades 9, 10 & 12 learn from home)
• March 13th - Victory Day
• March 14th - Teacher Planning Day -Student Holiday
• March 17th - 21st - Spring Break Student/Teacher Holiday
• March 24th - Classes Resume for Students
• March 26th - Cap & Gown Delivery
• March 27th - Report Cards Issued
• April 10th - SAC Meeting
• April 11th- GradBash
• April 18th - Student/Teacher Holiday
• April 23rd - Interims Issued
• April 25th - Prom

Food Delivery

Students are not allowed to receive any food deliveries (Door Dash, Grub Hub etc..). Please do not order food via door dash or any other food delivery services for students.

HAC

Please make sure all parent information in Home Access Center is updated. This ensures all teachers and staff can contact families with information and updates.

The counseling office is beginning next year's course registration process this week. Students will come to the media center with their English classes to meet with a counselor to pick their courses. All course selections will be finalized on March 14^th - any elective changes requested after this date will be denied. 

UCF will be visiting PMHS on February 27^th from 12-1 to meet with interested 10^th and 11^th grade students. You must register in order to attend - the link was posted on Schoology by Mrs. Toffaletti.

School counselors went into senior English classes this past week to help seniors apply for the Bright Futures scholarship opportunity. Students were implored to apply even if they did not think they qualified, are not planning on attending college, or are planning on attending an out-of-state college. If you senior missed this opportunity, they can apply at home but the application must be submitted by graduation. Contact your student’s School Counselor with any questions. 

The school counselors also are meeting with all underclassmen this coming week to go over registration for next year’s classes, as well as a tutorial on college applications and using Xello to aid in college & career searches. The PowerPoint presentations will be loaded to the school website shortly. 

As a reminder, the state of Florida has given every student free access to the Xello college and career planning website. We will be utilizing this tool to aid in applying to colleges (used alongside CommonApp) as well as researching careers, scholarships, etc. Parents and guardians were sent instructions on accessing their free accounts two weeks ago, let your student's School Counselor know if you did not receive yours or if you need help in accessing your account.

At the end of each quarter, the School Counselors mail letters home to seniors that are at risk of not graduating. If you receive one of these letters, please reach out to the office to schedule a meeting to discuss how your student can get back on track. Additionally, please reach out if you have any concerns regarding graduation ASAP!

For all SAC updates, agendas, and meeting minutes, please visit our page on the Menendez Website. 

Our 24-25 SAC Meeting dates are...

April 10

Please email Emily Reid, SAC Chair, at emily.reid@stjohns.k12.fl.us with any questions!

Check out our academy newsletter for a glimpse into the great things our students are doing in their academies. https://www-pmhs.stjohns.k12.fl.us/academies/newsletters/

The Academy of Architectural Design and Technology competed in the Skills USA district 2 regional competition on Friday 2/7/2025 and swept both Architectural and Technical Drafting and will be representing the school at the state competition at the end of April.

Architectural Drafting

1^st place Casey Chhour (Defending State Champion)

2^nd place Griffin Braun

3^rd Place Justin Harvey

Technical Drafting

1^st Place Henry Tam

2^nd place Elias Welty

3^rd place Wyatt Buck

Families and friends of the IB Diploma seniors are invited to attend their Pinning Ceremony on February 20^th in the PAC. Invitations were given to students in class last week, contact Mrs. Toffaletti with any questions!

Thank you to those who signed up to attend the Busch Gardens field trip on March 7th. Sign-ups are now closed, please ensure you have paid the $130 cost on SchoolPay. Contact Mrs. Toffaletti if you are unsure if you have completed everything you need to attend. 

If your student is taking an IB class, even if they're not in the full IB Diploma program, they are required to complete all assignments in the class. This includes the Internal Assessments (IAs) and sitting for the exams. Any student who fails to complete all required aspects of the course(s) will be charged the $150 exam fee that the school covers for each student, as the student will no longer be able to test. If you have any question about where your student stands in an IB course, please reach out to the teacher-they can give you the timeline of due dates and progress your student has made. 

https://schoolpay.com/pay/for/Grad-Bash-at-Universal-Class-of-2025/SbgxnEV

Parental Choice Library Book Restrictions

Parents/guardians may utilize the Parental Choice Library Book Restriction Form to restrict titles their student may check out in the school library. Please complete the form and return it to your student’s school or librarian. This form is only required when a parent is seeking to restrict access to materials in the media center. 

*Restrictions from middle school are no longer valid. A new form must be filled out and returned to the high school to meet new state requirements.

Book Club

The Book Club meet the second Monday of every month in the media center after school. Come join us to discuss books, practice for Battle of the Books, and share the joy of reading. We have cookies!

Stop by the media center or Mrs. Kennedy's classroom (rm 840) for a club permission slip for the new school year.  

You can view the student expectation assembly by visiting



https://www-pmhs.stjohns.k12.fl.us/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Student-Expecations-Assembly-2024-2025.pdf

On March 13th we will host our 7th annual Victory Day! We are reaching out to all our neighbors and community members to ask for help in making this event a great one for many St. Johns County students!

If you haven’t heard of Victory Day before, it is an event for students with disabilities in our neighboring schools. Each school brings their ESE self-contained population to Menendez for a “field day” event in which they participate in games, activities, and challenges organized by our High School Student-Athletes. Last year we hosted students from SAHS, TCHS, PMHS, GRMS, SWES, OES, and OMES. It was our largest Victory Day event in school history, and we are hoping to keep this momentum alive in our event this year! It is student organized and gives our students the opportunity to lead others while serving this incredible population of students within our community.

We need your support to make this happen! We are asking for sponsorships and donations to cover the following expenses for this incredible day:

·        Participation expenses for all students

·        Victory Day T-Shirt for all participants (color coded by school)

·        Food for all students and staff

·        Victory Day Ribbons

·        Purchase updated materials and equipment for activities & games

Below is the sponsorship packages we have to offer this year and the benefits that come with your kind donations. Please fill out the sponsor information form here and email it to Jennifer.Marston@stjohns.k12.fl.us or give it to the student collecting your donation.

Payment can be made via check or by using the following link: https://schoolpay.com/pay/for/Victory-Day-2025-Sponsorship/SpQsoZ

We thank you for your support. This is truly our favorite day of the year, and we know it is for many students in the county!

Pay to Play for the School year 24-25

$150.00 1^st Sport

$50.00 for any additional sports played.

Must be paid through SchoolPay PRIOR to sport start date. Please lest Students name and sport when paying. 

The Menendez Athletic Department utilizes an online paperless registration system, AthleticClearance.com. The registration process is attached. Additional Menendez Athletics information, including coaches’ contact information, can be found at www-pmhs.stjohns.k12.fl.us/athletics/. Our expectation is that every athlete will be registered by their parent/guardian before their desired sport’s start date.

 Athletic Clearance Instructions

Please ensure the following when completing the online process:

1.     Student ID should be entered WITHOUT a preceding “S”. Numeric ID only!

2.     Scan and upload physical as ONE document.

3.     Ensure that student information is complete on page 4 of the physical (EL2).

4.     Ensure that the MD has checked “Medically eligible for all sports without restriction” AND signed and dated page 4 of the physical.

5.     Ensure that student and parent signature/date is completed on bottom of page 4 of the physical.

The only type of physical we accept is the FHSAA EL2 physical form. The updated physical form is 4 pages. Starting the 23-24 school year, the old EL2 form WILL NOT be accepted.

Please keep in mind that the FHSAA requires all student athletes to view free video courses on concussions, heat illness, and sudden cardiac arrest (see instructions below). Signatures on the EL3 form indicate that your athlete has completed these three video courses. The FHSAA also requires that all student athletes have at least a 2.0 unweighted GPA to be eligible for participation.

Falcon Pride Store

Baker’s Sports has an online store open again for Menendez Merchandise. Click the link below to see what’s available. Ships Directly to your house.

https://bakerssport-falconpride.itemorder.com/

Parent Survey Exceptional Student Education

Each year, the Florida Department of Education (FDOE) conducts a survey designed to provide FDOE and the United States Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs, with information on how well Florida’s schools are partnering with parents and promoting parent involvement in their child’s education. The survey is open to all parents of children with an individual educational plan (IEP) receiving ESE services from preschool age through grade 12.

The 2024/2025 ESE Parent Survey is open beginning February 2025 and will close on 6/30/2025. The survey can be completed on the web or mobile phone by visiting:

2025 ESE Parent Survey

Your responses will help guide efforts to improve services and results for children and families. All information provided will remain confidential. You may submit one online survey for each child receiving services.

Jessica Richardson

Senior Director, Exceptional Student Education

600 State Road 206 West

St. Augustine, FL 32086

Main: (904) 547-8660