The following is an important message from Principal Andrea Piper, Assistant Principal Victoria DeGouff and Assistant Principal Emma Steckman:
As critical partners in the educational process, we wanted to provide an update regarding the work we are engaged in at North Albany Middle School. In the past two years, our students, faculty, and staff have faced challenges like never before. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has affected and continues to affect our school community in a variety of ways, most notably, school culture and climate.
In an effort to improve the culture and climate in our building, we are pleased to announce a full reboot of our systems to maximize the learning of all students and to ensure a safe and secure educational environment.
We worked with a core group of stakeholders to define the successes and barriers to success at North Albany Middle School. We developed a comprehensive plan that will focus on acknowledging and celebrating positive behaviors and actions, as well as working to create structures that support behavioral needs. Our goals are to establish a safe learning environment, increase student learning time, and reward students for meeting expectations.
In preparation for the reboot, we are providing two opportunities for families to learn about the reboot plan prior to informing students on Friday. Please plan on joining the building leadership team on Thursday at either 9:30-10 a.m. or 5:30-6 p.m. to learn about the plan and ask questions that you may have. You can use these links to access these virtual meetings:
- 9:30-10 a.m. meeting via Google Meet
- 5:30-6 p.m. meeting via Google Meet
We will hold Town Hall meetings with our students at school on Friday. At the Town Hall meetings, students will learn about the “reboot” and what the structure will look like when they return from Winter Recess.
Immediately following Winter Recess
During the week of February 28-March 4, students will be learning and practicing the expectations associated with the mission and vision of North Albany Middle School. Most notably, we will have shortened school days as follows:
- Monday, February 28 – 8 a.m.-1 p.m. (breakfast and lunch on site; early dismissal)
- Tuesday, March 1 – 8 a.m.-1 p.m. (breakfast and lunch on site; early dismissal)
- Wednesday, March 2 – 8 a.m.-1 p.m. (breakfast and lunch on site; early dismissal)
We will use these early release days to provide additional professional development for our faculty and staff each afternoon.
We will provide updates for you at the end of each day, but during this reboot our learning focus with our students will center on five key areas/modules:
- Team Building
- Getting to Know Your School
- Conflict Resolution
- Finding Success at Your School
- Traveling Safely
Parents and guardians, we need your help with knowing, understanding, and reinforcing the expectations of this plan at home. We are excited to engage in this work with our school community. If students cannot maintain safe, responsible, and respectful behavior, our Code of Conduct will guide us in determining restorative interventions or consequences, which may include a suspension, in which you will be contacted to pick up your child. Upon their return from a suspension, a restorative plan will be created for your child to complete each of the five areas/modules and repair any harm that may have occurred.
We are excited about your partnership in our efforts to make our school a safe and fun learning environment. We appreciate your support of North Albany Middle School and look forward to continuing to make positive changes that make it the best possible learning environment for all of our students!
In the coming weeks, we look forward to inviting our families in to see some of our changes in action!
