Holmes Middle School

⏰ Weather Alert: RCS on a Two-Hour Delay ⏰ Due to forecasted inclement weather, RCS will operate on a two-hour delay for all students and staff tomorrow, Tuesday, February 11, 2025. The two-hour delay does include RCS Child Care Services. Please stay tuned for any additional information on our website, social media and local news affiliates. Please take your time, stay safe on the roads, and we’ll see you a little later than usual!

🚨 Attention RCS Parents & Guardians! 🚨 Join us for an important Parent Information Session with District Attorney Katy Gregg as we tackle crucial topics impacting our students today, including: ⚠️ Bullying ⚠️ Drugs & Vaping ⚠️ Sextortion ⚠️ Truancy 📅 Date: February 18, 2025 📍 Location: WRMS Auditorium ⏰ Time: 6:00 PM This session will provide valuable insight to help parents protect and support their children. Don’t miss this opportunity to stay informed! Tag a fellow parent and spread the word! #RCSParentSession #KeepingOurKidsSafe #StayInformed

RCS Celebrates School Bus Drivers! Bus drivers are the person who ensures their safety each time they step on the bus. On School Bus Driver Appreciation Week, we send our appreciation and support for our bus drivers and thank them for taking care of our children!!

Neil Degrasse Tyson #blackhistorymonth

Updates for 2/10 Exciting Updates from Our Mustang Family! Candygrams Are Coming! Student Leadership will be selling Candygrams during lunch from January 29th – February 12th. For just $1, you can send a sweet message with a card and a Blow Pop 🍭 to a friend, teacher, or special someone! Don’t miss out on spreading the love! Yearbook Baby Pictures & Tributes: Attention all 8th grade families! This week, you will receive information on how to submit baby pictures for the yearbook and details about tributes. These special opportunities are only for our 8th-grade students, so start finding your baby pictures now! - Due 2/14 Spring Sports Tryouts Spring sports start on Feb. 12. Dates for tryouts will be announced soon. Remember, students must have a current physical on file with the school to participate. 🩺 Physicals can be turned in at the office. Eligibility for spring sports is based on fall semester grades and attendance. Valentine's Dance Student leadership is hosting a Valentine's Dance on Friday, Feb. 14. Permission forms are in the front office. Tickets are $10 and due by Feb. 12. Mark your calendars for a night of fun! Spring Sports Announcements! Girl's Soccer: Girl’s Soccer Tryouts: Start Wednesday, Feb. 12 right after school! Make sure you have a current physical on file. Volleyball: Tryouts begin Monday, Feb. 10 right after school! Don’t forget—a current physical must be on file to participate! Basketball Players: If you haven’t turned in your uniform yet, please drop it off at the front office with your name on it! You won’t be able to try out for a spring sport until it’s returned. Wrestlers: Please bring any washed uniforms and bags that still need to be returned! Golf: Interested in golf? Let your teacher know! . Golf tryouts will begin Wednesday, Feb. 12 right after school at Oak Hills Golf Course. Meet at the putting green! Remember, a current physical is required. Baseball: Tryouts also begin Wednesday, Feb. 12 right after school! If you’re interested, stop by the office and add your name to the sign-up sheet. And yes—a current physical is needed to try out! Track: Tryouts will begin March 10, after school. *Remember your child must have a current sports physical on file to tryout. *Sports eligibility is based on your child's grades and attendance from the fall semester of this year. Let’s get ready for an amazing spring sports season! Go Mustangs! Menu Update! Monday: Pizza will be served instead! Friday: Chicken Wings will stay as planned! Thanks for understanding, and enjoy your meals! Happy Valentine's Day! We love celebrating this special day with our students! But just a quick reminder—for safety reasons, balloons and glass vases are not allowed on the bus . Thank you for understanding, and we hope everyone has a LOVE-ly day! #HappyValentinesDay Let’s have a fantastic week! 🚀🙌

Bessie Coleman #blackhistorymonth

Spring Sports Tryout Schedule Volleyball-Tryouts begin Monday, Feb. 10 right after school. Girl's Soccer-Tryouts begin Wednesday, Feb. 12 right after school. Baseball-Tryouts begin Wednesday, Feb. 12 right after school. Golf-Tryouts begin Wednesday, Feb. 12 right after school at Oak Hills Golf Course. Meet at the putting green. Track-Tryouts will begin Monday, March 10 right after school. *Remember your child must have a current sports physical on file to tryout. *Sports eligibility is based on your child's grades and attendance from the fall semester of this year. If you have any questions please contact Kelly McCorkle, AD (kmccorkle@rock.k12.nc.us)

Good afternoon Rockingham County Schools families, As we previously communicated to you in early January 2025, PowerSchool – a cloud-based software vendor used by the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction and Rockingham County Schools until this school year, recently experienced a cybersecurity incident involving unauthorized access to certain information in the PowerSchool Student Information System (SIS). Neither Rockingham County Schools nor the State of North Carolina could have done anything to prevent this breach from occurring. We are reaching out to share more information and next steps that we recently received directly from PowerSchool: Notifications from PowerSchool have begun Identity Protection and Credit Monitoring Services: PowerSchool has engaged Experian, a trusted credit reporting agency, to offer two years of complimentary identity protection services for all students and educators whose information from our PowerSchool SIS was involved. This offer will also include two years of complimentary credit monitoring services for all adult students and educators whose information was involved. Notification to Individuals Involved: Starting this week, in collaboration with Experian, PowerSchool will provide notice to students (or their parents / guardians if the student is under 18) and educators whose information was involved, as well as a phone number to answer any questions you may have about the incident. The notice will include the identity protection and credit monitoring services (as applicable). PowerSchool has worked with Experian: to set up a dedicated, toll-free call center to answer any questions associated with these offerings and the incident. All the information regarding the activation of and access to these services will be included in the email sent to you by Experian. Whether or not you receive an email, you may also visit PowerSchool’s website to learn how to activate the offering from Experian, linked here: http://www.powerschool.com/security/sis-incident/notice-of-united-states-data-breach/. As soon as PowerSchool learned of the incident, they engaged cybersecurity response protocols and mobilized senior leadership and third-party cybersecurity experts to conduct a forensic investigation of the scope of the incident and to monitor for signs of information misuse. PowerSchool is not aware of any identity theft attributable to this incident. In the meantime, we encourage you to visit https://www.powerschool.com/security/sis-incident/ for up-to-date information on the cybersecurity incident. We care deeply about the welfare of our Rockingham County Schools families and thank you for the important role you play in our community and your shared commitment to putting our students first. We encourage all of our families and students not to wait to receive the letter or email notification from PowerSchool and/or Experian to register for the identity protection and credit monitoring. Sincerely, John O. Stover, III Superintendent

Atlanta Trip Refund 💰 Refund Update for Canceled Trip 💰 Parents, we want to keep you informed about the refund process for the canceled trip. Please know that this will take some time as each passenger must be canceled individually, and the refund must be processed in full for each person. Initially, we thought it was but automatic. It is a longer process than we anticipated. We appreciate your patience and understanding as we work through this process. I am actively working on getting it done as quickly as possible! Thank you for your support! 😊💙

Harriet Tubman #blackhistorymonth

Valentine Dance Help 💃🕺 We Need Your Help for the Dance! 🎉 Parents, we are looking for volunteers to help set up for the dance 🎈 and chaperone 🛑 to ensure a fun and safe event for our students! 📅 Dance Date: February 14 ⏰ Dance Time: 3:30 - 6:00 PM 🛠 Set-Up Help Needed: 1:30 - 3:00 PM 👀 Chaperones Needed: 3:30 - 6:00 PM If you're willing to lend a hand, we’d love to have you! 💙 Please message me if you’re interested in helping out. Thank you for your support! 😊 #HolmesDanceParty

🎉 It's School Counselor Celebration Week! 🎉 Every student deserves a supportive, caring, and encouraging school counselor who helps them realize their potential and become the best they can be! 🌟✨ Let’s take a moment to appreciate our amazing school counselor for the incredible work they do every day! 💙👏 Thank you for making a difference! 😊💐 #SchoolCounselorWeek Mrs. Higgs recently remarked: I strive to help students fill their toolbox with the resources they need to make informed decisions about themselves and their future. It is my goal to champion students to run their own race at their own pace and learn to not measure their success by anyone else’s standards. As a school counselor I want to empower students to discover their dreams, and then encourage them to pursue those dreams with confidence. 🎉 We are so thrilled to have Mrs. Higgs representing Holmes Middle! 🎉 She brings positivity ✨, encourages students to take ownership of their choices 💡, and celebrates their wins with them 🎊👏! Thank you, Mrs. Higgs, for making a difference every day! 💙🙌 #HolmesProud #ThankYouMrsHiggs

🚍 Important Transportation Update 🚍 🚍 Important Transportation Update 🚍 This afternoon, we received a last-minute notice of a bus driver absence, which was unexpected. We appreciate the patience and understanding of our students and families as we worked quickly to ensure a smooth transition. We are incredibly grateful to our dedicated bus drivers who stepped in to safely transport students home. Their commitment to our students does not go unnoticed! At Holmes, we strive to keep families informed and appreciate your support as we navigate these situations. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation! 😊

6th and 7th Grade Atlanta Field Trip Update 😔 Sad News & a Positive Update! 😊 Unfortunately, the 6th & 7th-grade trip to Atlanta has been canceled ❌. The price was set to increase, and we felt it wouldn’t be fair to our families. 💰 Good news! All money will be fully refunded tonight! 💰 We know this is disappointing, but stay tuned 📢—your teachers will be sharing new field trip opportunities soon! 🚌✨ Once again, we truly apologize for this change, but we wanted to honor the original cost we shared with you. Thank you for your understanding! ❤️

Parent Mtg with the district attorney to discuss student safety Important Holmes Announcement: Our schools are partnering with the Rockingham County District Attorney, Ms. Katy Gregg, and are hosting an eye-opening and informative session for PARENTS on Tuesday, February 18 at the Western Rockingham Middle School Auditorium at 6 PM. This session is for parents from all of our middle schools in the county! During this session, Ms. Gregg will discuss some of the things our teens and preteens are facing. She will inform you of laws, statutes, and consequences regarding some very real topics that our children could be involved with. Topics such as Sextortion, Drugs, Vapes, Truancy, and Bullying will be discussed. Due to the nature of the discussion, we ask that only the ADULTS attend this session, not the students or younger children. RCS district leaders and the county government are committed to working with families in order to help our students succeed! We hope you plan to join us on February 18 at 6 PM. The address of the school: 915 Ayersville Rd, Madison, NC

Maya Angelou

Rosa Parks #blackhistorymonth

February is Black History Month. Each week, we will be sharing some of the amazing people who have contributed to this rich, and often overlooked, history.

📣 Exciting Updates from Our Mustang Family! 🐴✨ 🎉 Congratulations to our Mustang Wrestlers for an incredible performance at the wrestling conference this weekend—they brought home 2nd place! 🏆💪 Way to go, team! 💌 Candygrams Are Coming! 💕 Student Leadership will be selling Candygrams during lunch from January 29th – February 12th. For just $1, you can send a sweet message with a card and a Blow Pop 🍭 to a friend, teacher, or special someone! Don’t miss out on spreading the love! ❤️ 💃🕺 Valentine's Dance 💌❤️ Student leadership is hosting a Valentine's Dance on Friday, Feb. 14. 💃 Permission forms are available in the front office. Tickets are $10 and due by Feb. 12. Mark your calendars for a night of fun! 🎶🎈 📢 Exciting Update! Deadline Extended! 🎶🎉 The FCA is sponsoring a bus trip to Winter Jam 2025—a Christian music tour coming to Greensboro on Saturday, February 15th! 🎤✨ 🎟️ Cost: $30 (includes concert ticket & food) 📅 New Deadline: Friday, February 7th 📍 Who can go? ALL students are welcome! There are extra seats available, so grab a permission slip from the front office or Ms. Huovinen’s room in the elective hall. 📝💛 Don’t miss out on this amazing experience! 🎶🙌 📚 Check-In Testing This Week ✏️ Please remind your student about upcoming Check-In Testing this week. A good night's sleep and a positive mindset go a long way! Thank you for supporting our students as they do their best! 💡📖 Let’s have a fantastic week! 🚀🙌 This Week: February 💌 2/3-7- Check in Testing: 2/3- 6th & 8th ELA Testing 2/4-7th ELA Testing 2/5- 6th & 8th Math Testing 2/6- 7th Math Testing 2/7- 8th Science Testing 2/7- King/Queen Monies are due at 10:00am to school Upcoming Dates: February 💌 Valentine’s Spirit Week: 2/10-Monday "Love to be comfy-PJ day" 2/11-Tuesday "DRESS AS YOUR “TYPE” DAY: Dress as your ideal partner 2/12-Wednesday PINK OUT DAY: Wear pink in honor of Mrs. French’s win over cancer 2/13-Thursday JERSEY DAY: Wear your favorite team jersey 2/14-Friday DRESS TO IMPRESS: Wear dance ready or Valentine attire 2/12- Spring Sports Begin 2/12- Valentine’s Dance Paperwork & $ due! 2/12- CTE High School Option Meeting for 8th grade 2/13- All County Choir Performance; 7pm Rock Middle 2/14- 8th Grade students, don't forget to get those baby pictures to Mrs. Meadows for the yearbook. You have until February 14th, Valentine's Day, to get them turned in. 2/14- Sweetheart Dance, 3:30pm- 6:00pm 2/15- FCA Winter Jam 2025 Concert Event 2/27- Early Release 2/28- Teacher Workday, no school for students March ☘️ 3/4- Battle of the Books Competition 3/5-6: 6th & 7th Grade Field Trip to Atlanta 3/11- Future Mustang Day! Rising 6th graders visit Holmes during the day and parent visit at 6:00pm. 3/14- Park’s Club Fieldtrip 3/23- End of the 3rd 9 weeks 3/24-25: 8th Grade Field Trip to Outer Banks 3/26- Early Release 3/26- PBIS Celebration #3 3/27- Teacher Workday, no school for students 3/28- Teacher Workday, no school for students April 🐇 4/1- Last day to order a yearbook 4/8- Spring Picture Day 4/10- 7th Grade NC A & T Visit 4/11- Early Release 4/14.21SpringBreak! 4/25- 7th Grade Carowinds Education Day Trip May 🪻 5/1- 7th Grade Guilford Courthouse Trip, Group #1 5/2- 7th Grade Guilford Courthouse Trip, Group #2 5/22- PBIS Celebration #4 5/26- Holiday, Happy Memorial Day, No school for students 5/27- 6/6- EOG Testing Window 5/28- 8th Grade Dance June ⛱️ 6/6- 8th Grade Move Up Ceremony 6/6- Last Day of School for the 2024-25 year ✨ Reminders: ✨ 📢 Field Trip Volunteers: Would you like to attend a field trip? 🚌 Please complete the mandatory field trip background check here: Background Check Link ✅ 📋 8th Graders: The new application for Early College for the 2025-26 school year is now available! 🎓 Here’s the direct link to apply: Early College Application. Don’t miss this opportunity! 📝 📸 Yearbook Baby Pictures & Tributes: Attention all 8th grade families! 🎉 This week, you will receive information on how to submit baby pictures for the yearbook and details about tributes. 💕 These special opportunities are only for our 8th-grade students, so start finding your baby pictures now! 📷✨- Due 2/14, ⚽🏀 Spring Sports Tryouts 🏐⚾ Spring sports start on Feb. 12. Dates for tryouts will be announced soon. Remember, students must have a current physical on file with the school to participate. 🩺 Physicals can be turned in at the office. Eligibility for spring sports is based on fall semester grades and attendance. 📅✅

If you'd like to order a yearbook online, use the following information: www.strawbridge.net Code YB30632