Ashland Middle School

At Ashland Middle School, we believe building strong, trusting relationships that promote a feeling of belonging is fundamental to improving student attendance & engagement.

November 14th Mental Health Matters Please join Julie Bleicker and Lance Matthewson to learn more about the uptick in anxiety in the middle school population and how you can help. The prevalence of anxiety has become the primary mental health issue for teens at AMS. Parents are asking for ways to best support the social/emotional needs of their kids. We will talk about healthy habits, proactive strategies and ways to effectively communicate with your kids as well as create a forum for dialogue and questions parents have about preteen mental health.

October is National Principal’s Month! Help us celebrate our amazing leaders in Ashland.

Math Club is a club for Ashland Middle School students who are interested in math and love doing math problems. We meet every Thursday from 11:35 AM to 12:15 PM (during 7th and 8th grade lunch) in room 305 in the Aspen hall. Snacks are provided each meeting. Come and join the fun!

The Scholastic Book Fair at Ashland Middle School will take place Monday, October 31st - Wednesday, November 2nd during conferences. The book fair has become, in this era of limited library funding, a major source of funding for new book and material purchases for the library. We hope to see you next week! Because of a construction project, the book fair will take place in the leadership room next to the AMS Library.

The Amazing Teen Brain AMS Parents and Guardians: Please join Diane Berry to learn more about your teen’s once-in-a-lifetime brain development! Monday, October 17, 6:00-7:30 in the AMS Library Adolescence is a time of great opportunity and learning, and sobering risk and vulnerability. Parents are the most critical teachers in their teen’s life. Understanding more about this unique period in your child’s life will help you guide and support your child’s development toward strong, positive habits that will last a lifetime. Diane Berry is a school social worker and school counselor. She has worked at the elementary, middle and high school levels over the past 25 years. She currently works to coordinate and support our district’s K-12 CDSs, Behavior Health Specialists and School Counselors. She is passionate about understanding, appreciating and protecting our teens’ amazing brains.

Wow! Almost 50% of Ashland Middle School's student body (251 of our 536 students) are participating in some fall term after school activity--cross country, football, theater, and volleyball). That's phenomenal! Go Cubs!

Rollercoaster Fun! 6th grade students in Beth Oehler's class explored physics ideas around acceleration, gravity, and inertia by making rollercoasters with marbles, insulation foam, and tape. Note: no students were harmed in the making of the rollercoasters.

Rogue Valley Love Your Neighbor Day September 8, 2022 As we remember the lives, homes, and businesses lost to the Alemda and Obenchain Fires, we also remember how our community united in strength, generosity, and compassion. On September 8th, please do some good for someone else. Let’s fill our community with random acts of kindness and continue supporting each other with #roguevalleylove

We were so excited to welcome incoming 6th graders onto our campus last Wednesday! A new courtyard, a new library, and a new 6th grade wing! We (the staff and administration) couldn't be happier to be able to start the year in this new space. Thanks to all our partners who worked furiously to make this start to the school year possible!

The Ashland Middle School Theater Department will be holding auditions for our fall musical: The Addams Family (Young @ Part) soon! Any AMS student is welcome to audition, and no experience is required. They will need to sign up for a one-hour block for their audition. Sign-up sheets are located across from Room 208 (formerly the library) in the 7th/8th grade building. On Monday and Tuesday, September 12th & 13th, we will hold Audition Workshops for students who might want to audition but maybe don't know what the show is about or have never auditioned before. They will learn some of the songs and practice some scenes. This will happen from 3:15-4:30 on both Monday and Tuesday. Students can attend one or both days. The auditions will be on Wednesday and Thursday, September 14th & 15th. There will be two blocks on Wednesday--one from 2:15-3:15pm and one from 3:30-4:30pm. There will be one block on Thursday from 3:30-4:30pm. Students can sign up for the block that works best for them and their family on the sign-up board across from Room 208. They should plan on being there for the whole hour but might be let out early.

ASD is so excited to welcome our new teachers for the 22-23 school year! Please join us in extending a warm welcome to this impressive group of educators.

Verizon hosts 10th Annual Backpack and School Supplies Giveaway Jackson County, Ore. — Inflation has taken a toll on families in more ways than anyone could have imagined. But, there are a few things that still have to be done no matter what, like making sure your children have back-to-school supplies. For parents who are struggling and need extra help with that, the Cellular Connection for Verizon is hosting their 10th Annual Backpack and School Supplies Giveaway. “Every location we have around the country gets from 150-200 backpacks every year and they come filled with school supplies from folders, rulers, paper, pencils and pens,” said Daniel Varela, District Manager for Southern Oregon TCC Verizon. According to Varela, they have four locations in Southern Oregon and the event will take place July 31 from 1:00-4:00 p.m. “We ask that when you do show up that you bring your child with you so we can hand them the backpack," Varela said. "We just encourage everyone to come out, we will have food vendors and games for everyone to enjoy as well.” The locations are: Grants Pass 498 Union Ave 142 NE Terry Lane Medford 1779 N. Riverside 1315 Center Drive “We have five $10,000 scholarships we will be giving away as well across all our locations," Varela said. "There's a little QR code that we can get them signed up for the potential to win one of these $10,000 scholarships, so when they come get a backpack we’ll help them out with that part as well.” They will be announcing the winner a few weeks after the giveaway and will contact each person that won. See the original story here: https://ktvl.com/news/local/backpack-and-school-supplies-giveaway-verizon-cellular-connection-folders-rulers-pens-pencils-southern-oregon-scholarships

Familiar Faces in New Places! In case you haven’t heard, Katherine Holden, the National Association of School Principal’s AP of the Year 2021-2022, has accepted the principal position at Talent Middle School. It is a natural evolution - she is more than ready, and we are grateful for her years of service and contributions to the education of our youth here in Ashland. It’s nice to know she will continue her journey as our neighbor! We are fortunate to have an existing administrative team of exceptional caliber and will have some familiar faces in new places beginning in August 2022’ AMS Welcomes Rebecca Gyarmathy as Assistant Principal beginning in August of 2022. If you’ve been in Ashland Schools awhile, chances are you know Rebecca and her passion for making our schools great places to learn and connect. Rebecca hails from the Chicago area. She left Chicago in 2001 to earn a graduate degree and explore the Pacific Northwest. After graduating from SOU in 2003, she worked as a teacher in private setting and in the Ashland School District. Rebecca served as a Special Education Teacher and Reading Specialist for 11 years at Bellview Elementary. In 2016, Rebecca became the principal of John Muir Outdoor School and served there until 2020. For the last 2 years, she has served as an Assistant Principal at Ashland High School. Rebecca is a proponent of public schools and takes pride in making them great places for students and staff. She feels success when she sees students who have challenges be successful in school. She is looking forward to joining the AMS team! Rebecca is also the proud parent of two six-year old twin boys and enjoys exploring the Rogue valley with her family.

The Ashland Grizzly Football Team is pleased to bring back its GRIZZLY FOOTBALL KIDS CAMP! This camp is for kids in 3rd-8th grade. The camp will be held on the Ashland High School Grizzly Football Fields JUNE 27-30 from 10-noon. $25/player To learn more click the link below for the brochure, or visit the website & register! https://5il.co/1bwim https://ashlandfootballclub.com/

AHSA will be hosting a volleyball camp for boys and girls grades 4th-8th starting August 2-4th from 4-6pm at Ashland High School. Please see the printable form below to sign up! https://5il.co/1bwin

This year the AMS Girls Basketball teams attended an SOU Women’s basketball games to cheer them on and learn more about the game! Those SOU women are tough and such inspiration to our young athletes. Thank you Raiders!

Our empty planter box… sprouted some beautiful flowers on February 28th. Thank you AMS Art Students!

This week is American School Counselor Appreciation Week! Ashland School District has many talented and dedicated behavioral health specialists. Please take a moment to recognize and get to know the three fantastic people working here at Ashland Middle School! Allison Hass: Dean/Student Support Specialist This is Allison’s fourth year at AMS. She began in a CDS role and quickly moved into the broader role of Dean and Student Support Specialist. She oversees the counseling support at AMS and supervises the work of SOU interns each year. Allison goes above and beyond, coordinating additional supports for students and families through grant writing and program development. She is extremely organized and quick to take initiative. In her role of Dean, Allison shoulders many highly sensitive interactions with remarkable grace and calm. Julie Bleicker: Behavior Health Specialist Julie just joined AMS this year. She moved from the Bay Area a few years ago where she worked at the high school level for a dozen years. She brings an extensive knowledge and passion for work with students with learning differences and is now excited to support a wide range of students through individual and group counseling. She looks forward to working on broader systems of support in the future. Abdi Guled: Student Advocate Abdi really needs no introduction. We can’t imagine any community member who has not crossed paths with this extraordinary individual. Abdi is everywhere at once, organizing a lunchtime game, teaching a leadership class, co-leading a BSU meeting, coaching track, or soothing a student who feels left-out and is having a hard day. His kindness, enthusiasm, and constant efforts to support and include all children serves as inspiration to all those around him.

Get ready for the 13th Annual Monster Dash Run for Education! This year’s race is back in Lithia Park on Saturday, October 30th, or you can sign up to run the race virtually from anywhere October 22nd – 31st. 1-mile Fun Run/Walk 5k Run/Walk 10k Run Walk, run or zombie stroll for this annual family-fun event that supports grants in Ashland public schools. This one-of-a-kind race is presented by Lithia 4 Kids, the Ashland Kiwanis Club, and the Ashland Schools Foundation (ASF). This year the in-person races at Lithia Park will be modified for COVID safety, with mask requirements, staggered race-wave start times and locations, and limited numbers per race to allow for social distancing. All racers receive finisher’s medals, plus fun-filled race packets and giveaways for youth 18 and under! Register NOW for early-bird pricing for adults (thru Oct 13…kids are always $10) and before the race time you want fills up. Go to www.AshlandMonsterDash.com to sign up the whole family and get more info about this year’s race, online contests, silent auction and prizes!