Thank you for your continued partnership and support in your child’s education. In Meridian, part of our commitment to learning is helping students develop academic and personal skills for life.

To support this, we will be asking for your child to reflect on their own mindsets and approaches to learning via an online survey they will be completing on Thursday, October 16. The survey shouldn’t take more than 20-30 minutes to complete.

The survey content will ask students to self-reflect on overall learning experiences at school and in life, their behavior and how they respond to different situations, how they experience emotions at school and in life, and how other people help them.

We are asking that all of our students participate in the surveys, as their responses will provide invaluable insights into their experiences and how we can improve and adapt our district to their needs. If a student doesn’t feel like they have enough information to answer a question, they will be able to skip the item altogether.

If you have any questions about the survey, please contact Mr. Kratzig via email at rjkratzig@meridian.wednet.edu.

Our school will participate in the Healthy Youth Survey (HYS) this Fall. Youth in Washington State have been taking the HYS since 2002. The number of young people taking the survey has grown from only a few thousand to over 215,000 a year! The survey asks about how youth are doing, social relationships, mental health, substance use, risks for injury, and more. Communities, districts, schools, and public health agencies use survey results to inform policies and programs designed to support youth well-being. The HYS is a meaningful way for youth to guide the future of our state. Your youth’s participation is appreciated. Please share this information with your youth. Then talk about the survey and decide if your youth will participate. The survey will take place the week of October 20.

If you have any questions about the purpose of the survey or survey procedures, please contact the Healthy Youth Survey Principal Investigator at (877) HYS-7111 or by email at healthy.youth@doh.wa.gov. More information about the Healthy Youth Survey can be found at: www.AskHYS.net

If you would like to opt your student out of participating, please email Ashley Hoelzle at ahoelzle@meridian.wednet.edu

We have adopted a mental health and depression awareness program called We

All Have Mental Health. This program was developed by a highly respected mental health

education and advocacy organization, Erika’s Lighthouse: A Beacon of Hope for Adolescent

Depression. All of these lessons meet National Health Education Standards.

The program goals include:

● Raising awareness of good mental health.

● Reducing the stigma surrounding mental health issues.

● Encouraging help-seeking skills and, if necessary, additional support services.

These fact-based, student friendly and hopeful programs promote the messages we need our

students to hear, everyone deserves to have good mental health. The following lessons will be

taught, once a week over four weeks by our health teacher.

● Lesson 1 – Intro to Depression: To raise awareness of depression and reduce

negative attitudes of depression and its treatment.

● Lesson 2 – Depression is Treatable: To effectively communicate with friends in need.

● Lesson 3 – Help-Seeking: To increase student engagement and communication in

activities which promote good mental health.

● Lesson 4 – Unit Assessment: Students will have the opportunity to put their knowledge

and skills developed in this program to practice.

Our school wants all of our students to be healthy, both physically and mentally. We encourage students to take control of their mental health and learn how to seek help for themselves or a friend if needed. One of the biggest challenges to mental health is teen depression, a common, yet widely overlooked mood disorder that impacts 15–20% of young people before they reach Adulthood.

We look forward to working together to better inform students of healthy mental health and

provide the tools students need to navigate challenging times. For more information on this

program, please visit erikaslighthouse.org.

On Monday, November 10th during Homeroom, Meridian Middle School will hold our Veterans Day Assembly. To honor the service of your family members, we invite you to share their name, branch, years of service, photo, and their connection to your student. In addition, if you have a veteran in your family who would be interested in attending and possibly speaking at the assembly, we’d love to include them.

Please send information and photos to our ASB Advisor and Leadership teacher, Spenser Stumpf, by Monday, November 3rd so we can prepare to recognize them. His email is sstumpf@meridian.wednet.edu.

Our school’s all-online Popcorn Fundraiser has officially kicked off! This is an easy way to support our students—no cash to collect, no forms to fill out, and no products to sort. Everything is ordered online and shipped directly to the customer. Students will register at school and share the fundraiser with friends and family near and far. We would truly appreciate everyone’s participation to help us reach our fundraising goal of earning $15,000 profit for our school.

Please reach out to our ASB Advisor, Spenser Stumpf, with any questions at sstumpf@meridian.wednet.edu.

Fall is quickly approaching and so is cold and flu season! Please help us keep our school community healthy by keeping your child at home when they are not feeling well. Keep your child home if they are experiencing any of the symptoms: fever or chills, shortness of breath, wet or productive cough, fatigue, muscle or body aches, headache, sore throat, runny nose, nausea or vomiting or diarrhea.

We encourage regular attendance and students may return to school as soon as they are feeling better, and are fever-free for more than 24 hours without fever reducing medication. While in school, your student can help slow the spread of germs by covering their nose or mouth when coughing and sneezing, and washing hands frequently with soap and water.

Please contact your child’s school if they are going to be absent due to illness. If you have additional questions, please visit our Health Services webpage or contact our school nurses.

The Meridian Family Support Center’s Food Pantry and Clothing Closet will be open as follows:

Questions?

The Interfaith Coalition is hosting its annual Winter Coat Drive to help community members stay warm this season. New and gently used coats will be available at no cost to anyone who needs one.

Families are encouraged to come early for the best selection. No registration is required.