Greetings, Midlothian Community.  This is your principal, Shawn Abel, with your weekly message.   

I could not be more proud of the effort put forth by our faculty, staff, and students returned to the building for the first time in nearly 8 months.  We welcomed back our students with the last name A – K this past Monday and Tuesday and look forward to welcoming our students with the last name L – Z this Thursday and Friday.   Don’t forget to check on the Hybrid section of our Learning hub for more information.  In our hub you can find helpful videos, our weekly schedule (including Wednesdays), informative infographics, and more.  And don’t think we forgot about our virtual students.  Remember, teachers expect you to join your classes following our updated schedule.

Before we dive into the rest of the weekly message, I want to thank all our military veterans for everything they have done for our country.  Happy Veterans Day!

Spirit Fun Fridays:

Don’t forget, we continue our Spirit Fun Fridays later this week.  This Friday, wear blue for Diabetes awareness.  

Career Day Tomorrow:

Don’t forget, we are pivoting a little from our original plans for our asynchronous Wednesday tomorrow, November 11, 2020.  Students can still check into their 1st period class to meet briefly with their teacher; however, we would much rather they attend any one or more of our Virtual Career Day sessions.   Check out the infographic below or the information shared in our Canvas Classroom for details.

Students may also work with teachers tomorrow during Midlo Morning sessions.  The sessions will be divided by content area.

The following subjects will host Midlo Morning tomorrow, from 10:45am – 11:15am: English, HPE, Science, World Language

The following subjects will host Midlo Morning tomorrow, from 11:15am – 11:45pm:  CTE, Fine Arts, Math, Social Studies

Hmm, I don’t feel so well, should I go to school?

Make sure your student completes their daily health assessment (available in English and Spanish) before coming to school.

Transportation Info:

Transportation information for students returning to face-to-face instruction is now available through e-Link. It is recommended that families review e-Link today to help plan for the coming week of school, and again on Sunday afternoon to check for any updates.

Due to safety concerns and the availability of updated information within e-Link, the school district is not publishing bus schedules in local newspapers or on the website. E-Link is where families will access that information. (Please do not reference ParentVUE for routing information as the information there may not currently be accurate).

E-Link will provide the specifics of your student’s transportation, including pick-up and drop-off location, scheduled pick-up and drop-off times, and the bus number.  If you have not used e-Link in the past, directions and a video are located on the Transportation tab of the school division’s website (scroll to the bottom of the page).

To view your student’s routing information: 

• Log into e-Link

• User Name: Enter your child’s school division-issued student ID number 
  • If your student does not know the number, it may be found on ParentVUE, a report card, or obtained by visiting your child’s school with the proper identification. 
  • If the primary contact phone number is the same for all of your children, you may access all of your children’s busing information from one login.
• Password: Enter the date Of birth for your child 
  • No spaces/dashes (Ex: A D.O.B. of 04/15/2019 would be entered as 04152019)
• Changes will likely continue to occur during the next few days, so it is imperative that parents check the e-Link today and again on Sunday afternoon. 
• Chesterfield is experiencing the same nationwide shortage of drivers as many large surrounding counties.  As a result, your student may have a later than usual school departure time.  Please pay close attention to pick-up and drop-off times in e-Link.

If you have questions, please refer to the Transportation website to determine and contact your area office.  Midlothian HS is covered by Area 2.  (Students with no transportation accommodations should contact Areas 1, 2, 3, or four based on school of attendance.  Students with transportation accommodations in their IEP should contact Area 5)

Thank you for your support of our drivers who remain committed to serving our community!

Behind the Wheel Information:

Ms. Santmyer will begin Behind the Wheel sign ups starting next week. This will be by appointment only. To find out more information on how to sign up please go to: bit.ly/BehindTheWheelMDHS

Athletic News:

Students who are coming from home to attend conditioning with a 3:30 pm start time, please DO NOT arrive before 3:20 pm. Due to buses and heavy traffic at the dismissal time, please drive slowly as you enter the bus loop. Please remember to be dressed in workout gear, check in with your coach and wear your mask! We are doing great and we want to continue maintaining the safety of all of our students, student-athletes and coaches.

Looking to purchase new MIDLO Gear? Student-athletes play more than one sport? Start shopping for the Holidays? Please support our Midlothian Athletic Department by buying some new Midlo Spirit Wear! Please see our flyer for more details. The sale ends on November 16th and all orders arrive at your doorstep before Christmas!

Do you need new ornaments? What about Midlo Ornaments? Support our Midlothian High School Library as they continue to help support our students and teachers. Please take a
lk at the flyer for more details. 

Midlothian High School Signing Days are planned for two dates – December, 16, 2020 and April 14, 2020.  If your student-athlete is a Senior and will be attending college and playing a sport, please contact their coach or Ms .Collins for more information. As more information becomes available about having events inside, it will be communicated. Midlo Athletics will work to make this event as memorable as in the past! Thanks in advance for your continued support!

A Message from the Midlothian HS PTSO:

The PTSO board would like to welcome any ​PTSO Member​ to our monthly meetings. We meet the second Wednesday of each month at 7:00 pm. Please email us at [email protected]​ ​if you would like to attend a meeting.  At this time we cannot have open meetings. We will either meet over a Zoom meeting or limited number in person meeting. 

We also are looking for volunteers to help organize our events this year. Please email us at [email protected]​ to learn more about upcoming opportunities.

Don’t forget to enroll in the Community Rewards Programs. These local community partners donate a percentage of anyone’s purchases to the MHS PTSO and reduces the need for additional fundraising.  

• Kroger Cares. Go to www.kroger.com/communityrewards and follow the steps provided to create an account and link it.  Enter 82948 in the “Find an Organization” search box. 
• Publix Partners. Go to www.publix.com and Log in or Sign Up. Select “My Account” and select by scrolling the right arrow to “My Publix Partner”. Enter “Midlothian High School” in the search box, select MHS and then select “Update”.
• Amazon.  Offers 0.5% funds on eligible purchases to nonprofit organizations through the Amazon Smiles program. Amazon customers can register by logging onto smile.amazon.com. Enter your Amazon account information and then search Midlothian High School PTSO to select the organization. 

Celebrating Seniors Committee  

Several parents of the members of Class of 2021 are looking forward to finding creative ways to make this year special for our seniors, despite the challenges we face.  With that in mind, they want to reach as many Senior parents as possible to join in the fun.  If interested in learning more about what they are doing, please contact Stacey Atkins at [email protected].

Great Food and Great Fundraiser:

“Are you hungry for some pizza? Don’t feel like cooking? Order dinner night, 4-8pm, Wednesday, November 18 from A NY Slice at 133 Browns Way Road in Midlothian and 20% of the proceeds go to support the IB Program here at Midlo. Carry out or order delivery of some delicious New York Style pizza, appetizers, salads, sub sandwiches, dinners and desserts! Call 804-379-0050 or check out their website at https://www.anyslice.com/ . Remember to let the folks at A NY Slice know that you are there to support Midlothian High School! “

Closing:

Have a great week, Midlo Community.  Thank you for your ongoing support, and as always, Go Midlo!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Previously shared information:

Attention All Student Drivers:

Midlothian HS students who meet the criteria listed below will be allowed to drive to school for hybrid learning. Additionally, our sophomore students will be permitted to drive to school on a temporary basis.   Unfortunately, due to overcrowding sophomore students will NOT be permitted to park at the school once all students return to the building. Students who drive are required to pick up a parking pass. Students MUST provide ALL of the following documents to obtain a parking pass: 

• Completed student parking application 
• Present a valid Virginia Driver’s License (or TDL-180 with a Learner’s Permit)
• Present a valid Virginia Vehicle Registration Card

Students who did not obtain a parking pass must bring the items listed above to school prior to driving.  

From the Career Center:

• GRASP Appointments: meet with Midlothian’s GRASP Advisor, Janet Andrews, on Tuesdays 10am – 4 pm (ongoing through April) to learn about college financial aid. Link here: https://calendly.com/midlothian 
• Financial Aid Workshop (Virtual): meet virtually with Belinda Hill, University of Richmond Financial Aid officer, on Tuesday, December 1 @ 6:30pm.  Ms. Hill will present an overview of financial aid and college costs: navigating the FAFSA and CSS Profile forms, understanding the different aid available, and comparing college funding packages – particularly in a year like no other!  More information later.
• FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) form: complete the form which is available NOW. Apply here: https://studentaid.gov/h/apply-for-aid/fafsa  
• Midlothian Scholarship List: bookmark this list to find scholarship opportunities for graduating seniors.  Our list is slim right now but will expand – beginning in January. 
• Toolkits for Students and Families: check out this free resource from SCHEV (State Council for Higher Education in Virginia) which offers a 1-2-3 approach (prepare – apply – pay) to access college.

News from the Library:

Please consider supporting the library by purchasing one of our handcrafted ornaments or key chains! We will take orders from October 29th – December 10th or until supplies run out.  Please use the two bitly links above to see the many design options and order yours today!  Be sure to submit your payment through our online secure payment system.

Did your student miss an announcement?  

Fear not, our morning announcements can be found on our school website – just scroll down to the section titled, “Morning Announcements”.  For example, you can learn very important information, such as, today is National Homemade Cookies day.

A Message from the Midlothian HS PTSO:

The PTSO board would like to welcome any PTSO Member to our virtual meeting this Wednesday, October 14th at 7:00 pm.  Please email us by 10:00 am Wednesday at [email protected] if you would like to join, so we can include you on the Zoom invite.

If you have not become a member of the PTSO yet please join. Your membership fee goes to provide financial support through grants for students and teachers and no fees are paid to an

association. Family memberships are $17 and individual memberships are $12. You can pay online at  https://my.cheddarup.com/c/2020-2021-ptso-membership-dues or email  us at [email protected] to arrange another method.  Students will be returning to school soon and we still are planning future events.  But we cannot do it without you and your support!

We also are looking for volunteers to help organize our events this year.  Please email us at [email protected] to learn more about upcoming opportunities.

Thank you,

Midlothian PTSO Board

Yearbook Information:

We realize everyone is eagerly waiting for the arrival of our 2019-20 yearbooks.  The reason for our delay in issuing the 19-20 yearbooks is that our production factory was closed for a period of time and our limited yearbook staff continued to run stories and take pictures into the spring.   Our goal is to issue our awesome yearbooks by early November.  Please check out our yearbook website for updates and thank you for your incredible patience.

How to have messages sent directly to your student:

Today is the first day I have sent my weekly message to the student email address or phone number shared with me – opting in.  If your student attempted to sign up to receive my phone/text or email messages and have not received today’s message, please complete this form again to ensure we have entered your information correctly.  Remember, students do not have a school-issued email with their id#@ccpsnet.net.  That address only allows access to their google drives and related resources.

If you have changed your mind and want to opt in, use the same form by clicking here.  Trust me, these messages are all the rage, don’t be left on the outside looking in.