In This Edition
Message From Maeser Administration (COVID Update, Academic Expectations & Homework Deadlines, Attendance School), Winterim: Independent Applications Due Soon!, Summer Reading, Fall Fees, Volunteer Opportunities, Uniforms (Maeser Hoodies & Sweatshirts, Lands’ End 20% Off Sale), Sports Announcements (Sports/Academic Eligibility, Proposed MS Baseball Fee, Ultimate Frisbee), Counseling Announcements (Senior CCRs, Miss Krystal’s Counseling Corner Podcast, FAFSA Portal Opens October 1), Help Us Stay In Touch!
Front Office Hours This Week
Procedures for Front Office Visits
CLOSED Monday for the Labor Day holiday
7:30am-4pm Tues-Thurs
8:30am-1pm Fri
Upcoming Dates and Deadlines
Monday, September 7
Labor Day – NO SCHOOL
Tuesday & Wednesday, September 8-9
FULL DRESS Uniforms
Friday, September 11
Summer Reading Responses Due
Wednesday, September 16
Independent Winterim Applications Due
Thursday, October 1
Fee Payment Deadline (more info below); Late Fee ($15) after this date
Monday, October 12
Picture Day for A-Day students (last names A-J)
Tuesday, October 13
Picture Day for B-Day students (last names K-Z)
Wednesday, October 14
PSAT/NMSQT Day – Juniors ONLY on campus
Thursday-Friday, October 15-16
Fall Break – NO SCHOOL
A Message From Maeser Administration
Dear Maeser Families,
Many of you have undoubtedly heard about local school cases of COVID-19 and their need to rearrange and adapt their school plans. When this happens, we see the ramifications in the stress levels of our students. We understand there is a lot of fear based in the unknown of these unusual events and the uncertainty of how this will affect our community. We all need a little reassurance that we can get through this. As we watch these events unfold in the media, it is noteworthy to see that the steps these schools are making have already been considered and are in the framework of Maeser’s Pandemic school plan. Our plan was created so that we could easily pivot when necessary by creating a strong educational scaffolding and foundation for possibilities. Our community was instrumental in our plan and we continually collaborate to make sure our community’s needs come first.
As of today, we do not have any reported positive student cases. We have had some family members with positive cases, but they have been proactive in keeping their students home as their family is recovering. We appreciate each of you keeping your students home if they have any illness at this time and alerting attendance@maeserprep.org that your student and/or family is ill. This helps mitigate any exposure to our high risk staff and students. Additionally, the Utah County Department of Health will direct each family in their quarantine needs as Maeser can not diagnose or make those types of recommendations.
We have heard some reports from parents and a few students of increased stress in students, from workload to social concerns of missing friends. We are finding that the 5 month hiatus from our normal Maeser routine, and now moving to a hybrid schedule is different. Change requires some patience and resilience as we all adjust to our current situation. Each day of school, whether on campus or online, is a day of progress. When we start to wax impatient with our perceived limitations, please remember that there are positive things happening each day. For example, at no other time, except for our very early days, have we been able to have such small class sizes which allows even more time for individualized attention. Students are reporting that the two days on campus are much better than what we experienced in the spring “crisis”. Every positive reinforcement creates new resilient habits in each of us and allows us the opportunity to appreciate the mission of Maeser and the culture we have built together. We encourage our Maeser community to focus on the positive aspects of our current situation to build up our students and our community at large, instead of crippling them with the negative. We are doing everything we can at this time, but we need your help.
Please remember that “remote” learning days are not “off” days. Students can and should continue to progress during their online days. One of the ways that families can reinforce this idea is through the language and attitude we use when talking about online learning days. The language we use is vital in setting the tone for the seriousness of what we are trying to accomplish. The following information on academic expectations and homework deadlines will be helpful in supporting our students:
Academic Expectations & Homework Deadlines
Online Learning Days
- As a reminder, students are expected to be engaged in school, even during their online learning days. These days are specified as online learning days, and teachers are assigning coursework.
- Due to the restraints of our hybrid schedule, students may have to access new material during their online learning days. Many teachers post videos of themselves teaching this new material, while others post links to other resources.
- We encourage students to maintain a routine on their online learning days: wake up early, get ready for the day, and begin working on schoolwork just like they would for on-campus learning.
- Teachers will post all online learning materials and assignments by 8am. This means that your student should not be receiving assignments, notifications, etc. throughout the day. This will help students plan their online learning days effectively and avoid communication overload.
Attendance on Online Learning Days
- All teachers have attendance assignments which are separate from their regular coursework/homework during online learning days to keep track of attendance. Online learning absences count towards the attendance threshold and may result in NGs (See the section on Attendance School below).
Due Dates and Deadlines
- All online assignments and attendance assignments are due at 11:59pm. This allows for flexibility for those families who may have parents working from home, limited access to devices, or other accessibility issues. However, we encourage students to complete school assignments earlier in the day to help maintain a healthy schedule and routine.
- Teachers will not assign due dates on the weekends. However, students may need to work on schoolwork on the weekends. For example, if a teacher assigns a project on Wednesday or Thursday that is due the next week, students may need to work on their project over the weekend. Students who take longer to complete assignments or procrastinate may need to do schoolwork on the weekends.
When students accumulate enough attendance points that triggers a No Grade (NG) in PowerSchool, they will need to go to Attendance School to make it up. NGs = NCs (no credit) at the end of term so students will want to make that up in order to participate in Winterim/MSI and/or any extra-curricular activities.
Attendance School
Students who have an NG must go to Attendance School. Attendance school will be held each morning of your assigned days (MW or TTh) beginning August 31st.
- Room 155
- $5 per session
- 7:00 – 7:55 am
- Monday through Thursday, on assigned campus days
- Must remain in the classroom in assigned seat with mask for entire time to follow COVID compliance.
- Plan early, as seating is limited due to COVID.
We hope this information is helpful to you. Please do not hesitate to contact administration (robyn.ellis@maeserprep.org; dustin.simmons@maeserprep.org; or jared.norris@maeserprep.org) or any specific teacher for clarification or to give additional feedback. We LOVE our Maeser community and are so happy to serve!
Sincerely,
Maeser Administration
Winterim: Independent Applications Due Soon!
All students interested in applying for an Independent Winterim must complete the Independent Winterim Application. Guidelines and instructions can be found on the school website. In order to be considered, applications must be received no later than 11:59pm on Wednesday, September 16th. Late applications will not be considered.
Additional information about Winterim, including the Winterim catalog, will be coming soon.
Summer Reading
It’s time for your students to report their summer reading! If your student participated, please remind them to take a few minutes to fill out the 2020 Summer Reading Response survey. A few things to remember:
- Your student must be signed in to his/her school email to complete the survey.
- Responses must be completed by September 11th to be considered.
- Your student will only receive credit towards the “Maeser Scholar” and “Maeser Scholar with Distinction” awards for books assigned to their grade.
- We are in the process of getting awards for last year’s Summer Reading program, so if your student did the Summer Reading program last year, they’ll be recognized soon.
- As always, all students are welcome to peruse the bookshelf outside Mr. Simmons’s office and keep any book they want to read–they just need to make sure to write down which book they took on the sheet of paper on the bookshelf.
Fall Fees
Year-long class fees (incl. AP guides & AP exams) and first semester class fees were added to student accounts last Friday. These are in addition to the annual fees assessed earlier in the school year. Fees must be paid by Thursday, October 1 to avoid a $15 late fee.
Keep in mind:
- If you’d like to request a payment plan, please contact the Finance Office at finance@maeserprep.org by Thursday, October 1. Student Fees, Winterim, Graduation and most class fees are eligible for payment plans; AP exam fees, PE uniforms and extracurricular fees are not.
- Fee waivers are available based on eligibility. To discuss a fee waiver, please stop by or email the Finance Office at finance@maeserprep.org.
- If you have any questions or concerns about your student’s fees, please stop by or email the Finance Office at finance@maeserprep.org as soon as possible so we can try to help.
Making Payments
We highly encourage payments be made by credit/debit cards. Of course cash or check will still be accepted. The following are payment options in order of our preference:
- Pay with a credit/debit card online at: https://maeserprep.revtrak.net/school-fees
- Pay with a credit/debit card over the phone by calling the front office at 801-235-9000 during business hours (7:30am-4:00pm Mon-Thurs, 7:30am-1:00pm Fri)
- Mail a check to the school
- Pay with a credit/debit card in the front office during business hours
- Pay with cash or check in the front office during business hours
If none of these options work for you, please contact the finance office at finance@maeserprep.org.
Volunteer Opportunities
College Carnival coming soon! Please help the counselors make this virtual event FANTASTIC for all our students: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/8050A4AABA82FA4FA7-college
Uniforms
Maeser Hoodies & Sweatshirts
As stated in the uniform policy, only uniform approved sweatshirts and hoodies may be worn in the classroom.
MAESER hoodies and LIONS sweatshirts are available for purchase at Timpanogos Embroidery: https://timpembroidery.com
Lands’ End 20% Off Sale
Land’s End is offering 20% off through next Tuesday, September 8! Use promo code PLAY and PIN 5267 when you shop the sale online at https://www.landsend.com/school and receive 20% off school uniform items.
Sports Announcements
Sports/Academic Eligibility
Eligibility for winter sports/activities will be based on 1st term grades for all grade levels. Students must earn a 2.7 GPA with no Fs/NGs. In addition, high school students cannot have any Fs/NGs/Incompletes from previous high school terms. If the F/NG/Incomplete is made up by the beginning of the sports season they will be able to participate.
Proposed Middle School Baseball Fee
Middle school baseball was just approved at the August board meeting and thus was not on the original fee schedule. The proposed fee is $130 which will cover uniforms, umpire fees, and field rental. If any parents or students have any questions or feedback regarding this proposed fee please contact Sam Urie (sam.urie@maeserprep.org).
Ultimate Frisbee
Maeser Ultimate Disk starts next week! The first practice will be at 4:00pm on Tuesday, September 8 at Bonneville Park. Come play!
Counseling Announcements
Senior CCRs
It is time for your senior’s final college and career readiness meeting (CCR) with their counselor. In this meeting we will go over graduation requirements, college and scholarship plans, and make sure your senior is on track for graduation. I have reserved meeting times for Seniors ONLY between Sept 8th through Oct 23rd.
I encourage all parents to attend WITH their student. Parents, please check with your students before signing up. Some of your students have already scheduled appointments.
Please make an appointment using the following link: Mrs. Anderson’s Calendar
Appointments are between the hours of 8am and 3pm. An online google chat link can be provided if you choose to join online.
Miss Krystal’s Counseling Corner Podcast
Episode 13: Don’t Hesitate When You Should Act
FAFSA Portal Opens October 1
The FAFSA (Free Application for Financial Aid) Portal Opens on Oct 1st Due to COVID they are offering free online help sessions. You can get one on one help filling out the form by clicking on this link and scheduling a session: http://www.completefinancialaid.org/.
Help Us Stay In Touch!
Opt In For School Text Messages
Our school utilizes the SchoolMessenger system to deliver text messages to your mobile phone with important information about events, school closings, safety alerts, student fees, and more. We will only use text messaging for urgent and important information.
You can participate in this service by sending a text message of “Y” or “Yes” to our school’s short code number, 67587. You can also opt out of text messages at any time by simply replying to one of our messages with “Stop”.
Thank you for helping us keep in contact with your family!
Update Your Contact Information
If any of your contact information has changed – email address, mailing address, phone number – please let us know so we can stay in touch with your family.