Welcome to this week's edition of the James Madison Middle School Newsletter! We're excited to share the latest happenings and updates from our school community to keep you informed and engaged.

James Madison 26-27 PTO and SBDM election ballot will be coming soon via Parent Square. 

In preparation of KSA Testing, we wanted to communicate some information with you for you to reinforce at home with your child. The KSA window is May 1st through May 21st. It is imperative if you have a planned absence for your child during the testing window that you communicate with the front office so we can ensure your child has an opportunity to complete testing. Please encourage your child to get plenty of rest and eat breakfast before testing. The state requires that students not have access to cell phones and/or smart watches during testing. Proctors will collect these items each day before testing and return them to students when testing is completed. If you or your child is not comfortable with this, please encourage your child to leave their devices at home on testing dates. Any student that is found to have a device on them in the testing session will receive school disciplinary action.

To motivate students to try their best on KSA we are implementing a Good Faith Effort Checklist. We are having conversations with our students to ensure that they are aware of this information. We wanted to ensure that you are aware of the same information.  

Each day students will be monitored during KSA to ensure that they have met the requirements for Good Faith Effort. The requirements for Good Faith are as follows:

In order to earn Good Faith Effort Awards, students must meet all the criteria for each day. 

6th Grade Testing Schedule:

8th Grade Testing Schedule:

There are forms available for students interested in adding or dropping Band or Chorus for the 2026-27 School Year. Students who are interested in adding or dropping one of those courses next school year must have a completed form turned into Mrs. Cardwell by May 22nd. Students who wish to remain enrolled in a course they currently have on their schedule do not need to complete a form. Forms can be found on the table outside the front office and can be turned in at the front office. The forms do require a parent signature, so please plan accordingly in order to ensure the form is turned in on time.

As the school year comes to a close, I want to sincerely thank all of our students, families, and staff for making this such a wonderful year in Health and Physical Education. It has been a joy watching students grow in teamwork, confidence, fitness, and healthy habits throughout the year. I also want to express my heartfelt appreciation for all of the thoughtful gifts, kind notes, and encouragement during Teacher Appreciation Week. Your generosity and support truly mean so much and remind me how fortunate I am to be part of such an amazing school community. With just a few school days remaining, we need to keep plugging through to the end, but remember, "we're not there yet." Thank you again for a fantastic year, and I hope everyone has a safe, healthy, and fun summer break!