✨ We're so excited to open our doors for the start of another school year! A big shoutout to our teachers and staff for working hard to prepare for a great year. Be sure to check out all the fun first-day photos from throughout the district in our "Back to School: 2022-2023" photo album on the JCS Facebook page. Welcome back, JCS! 🎉
Welcome back, Roadrunners!
Hello, Parents and Caregivers—-
Trying to figure out how to pay for school meals online???
Please go to Jeff Co Schools website at jcswv.org, click on “Menu”, then “Parents and Students”, then “Parents and Caregivers”.
You’ll see this—-
Hope that helps!
Ms. Mahoney
The start of a new school year means sharing the road. Please keep the following safety tips in mind when buses start rolling on Monday:
⚠️ Be alert and watch for children, especially near schools, bus stops, school buses, and school parking lots.
⚠️ Motorists are required to stop when approaching a school bus that is stopped with its red lights flashing and STOP arms extended. NEVER pass a bus from behind when it is stopped to board or offload children.
⚠️ Be especially careful when children are present in school zones and residential areas.
⚠️ Pay extra attention to lower speed limits in school zones.
⚠️ Watch for and obey signals from school crossing guards.
⚠️Only drive or park in authorized areas to drop off or pick up children at school.
We can't wait to see you on Monday!
Hello, South Jefferson families!
We are close to showtime, with the school year beginning on Monday, August 22nd, bright and early. 💜
A few things to share:
1. Our doors open at 8:35 a.m.
2. If you are privately transporting your child to school, we ask that you drop off our PreK, Kindergarten and First Grade students at the parent loop (rider circle). Our Second Grade and Fifth Grade students will utilize the MAIN ENTRANCE at the front of the school UNTIL there are buses in the bus lane. Riders can arrive between 8:35 and 8:45. When you see a bus in the bus lane, please go to the parent loop for drop off instead.
3. Our Fourth and Third Grade students will enter through their classroom doors and can be dropped off in the bus lane from 8:35 - 8:45. Again, if there is a bus in the bus lane, please go to the parent loop for drop off instead.
4. I know this sounds confusing, but I assure you we are here to help you, with PLENTY of staff members located throughout the property to guide you and assist our students. We will have class lists to help our students who are unsure where to go. There will be signs showing the way, as well.
5. The bell will ring at 8:55 a.m. to begin our day and the doors will be closed and secured. IF you and your child arrive after 8:55 a.m., please escort him/her to the main entrance so that we can sign them in.
6. Our announcements begin at 8:55 a.m. and instruction begins at 9:00 a.m.
7. Meals will not be free this year. Breakfast cost: $1.25 Lunch cost: $1.50. Extra milk cost: $.25. Menus and payment information can be found on our website: jcswv.org
8. Dismissal begins with car riders in the parent loop at 3:30 p.m. Bus dismissal will begin around 3:40 p.m. in the bus lane.
9. PLEASE be patient as we work out the kinks and teach our new families the “SJES way”. Dismissal is going to take longer for the first couple of weeks. Don’t panic if the bus is a little late. It takes time to teach almost 450 students how to exit the building.
10. My suggestion is to NOT arrive for rider dismissal all at once, at 3:30 pm. We have many car riders and the process is a little more difficult at first.
11. If your child will be a car rider EVERY day, you will be given a car rider tag to display/hang on your rear view mirror. This helps us identify you quickly so that we can alert your child’s teacher and have your child ready for dismissal. While we learn your faces, we will be asking you to have ID ready to go, as you pull into the property.
12. If you already have a rider tag from previous years, we will be using the same numbers so you’re good to go.
13. Safety will always be our priority so PLEASE pay close attention, especially during the first couple of weeks of school, when you are on our property. Students and families are learning new processes and everyone working together will make this a successful year for all of us.
14. Our entrance is very limited, in terms of how many buses and cars we can have on the property. PLEASE be vigilant and maintain your own safety as you enter and exit the property.
15. Smile. Smile when you arrive. Smile when you drop off your child. Smile when you greet our awesome staff members. Smile when you welcome your children after their school day. Smiling truly is contagious. I promise. 😉
As always, I thank you for your support, your patience, your flexibility and your kindness. We are all in this together and want this to be the most fantastic school year for every child in our community. You are a big part of that success.
Looking forward to the 22-23 school year!
💜💛
Ms. Mahoney
Hello JCS Families,
Our staff have been working all summer to prepare our schools to welcome students next week. As always, there are unexpected problems that arise. An updated version of the West Virginia Department of Education's information system (WVEIS) that all school systems are required to use for everything from class lists to schedules is being upgraded. Some of the systems we worked hard to put in place over the summer are not usable right now because that system is not functioning correctly. We have created a web page about possible changes during the transition. We have taken steps to minimize the disruption for you and for students while the WVDE completes this work. Thank you for your patience and understanding as we begin a new year together! https://www.jcswv.org/wveis
As you wrap up your back-to-school shopping this weekend, consider including a few items for the JCS Stuff-a-Bus school supply drive! Join us August 21-27 at the Jefferson County Fair, where we'll be stuffing a bus with donations of backpacks, crayons, pens and pencils, lunch boxes, notebooks, and other necessary school supplies. Volunteers from the JCS Transportation Department will be on hand to collect donations all day Sunday, August 21, and every evening from 5-8 p.m. And while you're there, learn more about how you can become a bus operator for Jefferson County Schools. It's a great way to make your mark in our caring community of educators!
Attention upcoming Kindergarten Families:
First of all, Welcome to SJES!
Secondly, on the first day of school (August 22nd), we will be hosting a "visitation" time for our kindergarten families and students instead of a FULL day of school. There will be two options of visiting on Monday, August 22nd: 9:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. This will be your opportunity to visit the classroom, meet your child's teacher and for your child to have a "test run" of school. The first FULL day for kindergarten students will be Tuesday, August 23rd. (Information about your child's teacher and "all things kindergarten" will be sent out this week). Thank you for your patience! Ms. Mahoney
From Heather L Pindell, Transportation
Super excited to announce our 3rd year of “Stuff-A-Bus” for our Jefferson County students ❤️ We will be parked and located at The Jefferson County Fair, August 22-27. Anyone in need of a book bag or school supplies, can stop by or reach out to me at 304-885-5096. If interested in donating to our students, drop off is at the Jefferson County Fair or Jefferson County Bus Garage…. Thank you for loving our kids 🚌🚌
Students are back on August 22! We want to make sure everyone has what they need to start the year off right, starting with the trip to school. Visit our website at www.jcswv.org/myschoolbus to get information about your student's bus this year. Everyone at Jefferson County Schools is excited to start the year with you!
Hello, South Jefferson!
Just a few updates about our beautiful school. I’m sure you’ve seen all of the construction out front and on the roof, if you’ve driven by the school this summer. The good news? Your bond support has helped us obtain many needed improvements to the property, including septic upgrades and a new roof on 1/2 of our building. It’s been quite the undertaking and I’ve learned more than I ever thought I would about such matters. 😉 The contractors have been hustling to meet deadlines and I cannot wait for it all to be completed.
Looking forward to welcoming all of our Roadrunners back on August 22nd. I’m excited about the school year ahead. Take care and see you soon, Ms. Mahoney
Hi, everyone!
First of all, welcome to our new families and “hello!” to our returning SJES families. We can’t wait to see you on August 22nd!
I'm sure that you've noticed the stores are already stocking their shelves with beautiful and exciting school supplies....and this often brings about questions such as "what does my child need for school?" or "why aren't their supply lists available?", "what is 'loose leaf' paper???!", etc. For schools, there is always the art of balancing between not wanting to impose on our families to purchase school supplies and the teachers purchasing things for their classrooms out of their own money. What to do??
While we provide many of the school supplies that your child may need (crayons, scissors, pencils, etc), I asked the teachers to share with me (so that I could pass it along to you) about what they'd love to have in their classrooms, if these items were donated by their parents or others in the community. I'm going to break it down by grade levels/classrooms, to make it easier to navigate.
HERE IS THE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF THIS POST:
This is NOT necessary, nor is it mandatory. These items are shared with you in case you happen to be in the school supply aisle (and you're like me and love a good bargain and can never resist a Sharpie or a cool binder!?) or you just want to be helpful and actually purchase what the students will use in the classrooms...
Kindergarten:
The K teachers love water bottles (for in class use), headphones (for use with devices), paper towels, tissues, dry erase markers, glue sticks and Crayola crayons.
First Grade: Glue sticks, scissors, tissues, headphones, water bottles,
Crayola crayons.
Second Grade: Wide-ruled composition notebooks, pocket folders, headphones, pencils, tissues, glue sticks, Crayola crayons, dry erase markers, water bottles, scissors.
Third Grade: Wide-ruled composition notebooks, wide ruled loose leaf paper, pencils, pocket folders w/ prongs, dry erase markers, highlighters, scissors, large pink erasers, water bottles and tissues.
Mangum: desk basket/tray for holding supplies,
Fourth Grade: Dry erase markers, glue sticks, tissues, wide ruled loose leaf paper, pencil top erasers, pencils (Ticonderoga preferred), highlighters, water bottles, colored pencils, 1 inch binder and crayons.
Fifth Grade: Tissues, pencils, colored pencils, loose leaf wide-ruled paper, composition wide ruled notebooks, purple pocket folders with prongs, index cards, water bottles and dry erase markers.
Library:, pencils, pencil cap erasers, tissues, index cards.
Music/Art/PE: tissues (We ask everyone to bring an old shirt for Art to protect clothing when using paint or other art products).
When the teachers responded to my request, most of the responses sounded like this----"2 glue sticks, 1 highlighter, a box of tissues would be awesome, 1 composition notebook". They didn't want to even make the request (or what they considered too large of one) because they didn't want to impose on you. But I can guarantee that they all know who has the best deals on paper right now, how many pink erasers you can get for $5 or how many composition notebooks you are allowed to buy at one time in Walmart or Staples. I can also guarantee that there are some of them standing in lines, holding 20 notebooks, while they ask their friend/child/significant other to purchase 20 more in the next aisle over so that they can get the best deal and not exceed the store's limit.
Again, NONE OF THIS IS REQUIRED. We will always make sure that our students have everything that they need to be successful.
BUT, if you are interested in picking up a few items here and there, as you navigate through the rest of your summer days, and you want to make a teacher's wallet a little happier, this is a way that you can help.
I hope that this list has been helpful and IF you made it this far in the longest post in the history of Facebook, Ms. Mahoney's supply list consists of Starbucks coffee. 😂
Have a wonderful day and we'll see you soon! 😁
Ms. Mahoney
P.S. If you’re contemplating purchasing supplies, keep in mind that there is VERY LITTLE ROOM in desks. Bulky pencil boxes and unnecessary items are not worth the investment. What IS worth the investment? Ticonderoga pencils. Crayola crayons. Expo markers. Yes, they may be brand names and more expensive, but they last longer and are good quality. They are worth it.
P.S.S. After listening to over 20 metal water bottles hit the floor on a daily basis, trust me when I say that a water bottle that is NOT loud when it falls would be awesome. 😉
Jefferson County Schools extends our appreciation to Mr. Justin P. Brown, Sr. for his service as an interim member of the Jefferson County Board of Education. Earlier this year, Mr. Brown applied and was selected in a competitive application process to serve Jefferson County students at a critical time. His dedication, thoughtful decision-making, and calm, steady leadership have been greatly appreciated in helping move our school system forward.
Jefferson County School stands in solidarity with the families, children, educators, and communities in Uvalde, Texas, in the wake of the tragic events of May 24th, 2022. There are no words that can restore what has been taken, not only from those individuals but from all of us. Everyone at Jefferson Schools is here for the community as we support our children together. You can find a list of resources on speaking to children about this difficult topic following this link: https://bit.ly/39SwBoW. We will also have counseling staff available for any of our students or staff who need that support. Please join us as we continue our end-of-year student celebrations and honors while remaining mindful of the impacted communities and our solemn responsibility for the safety and wellbeing of our children.
Good morning.
As we all awaken with heavy hearts, I want to reassure you that we will maintain all safety protocols at South Jefferson Elementary, while continuing to celebrate the end of the year with as much “normalcy” for our students, as possible.
I ask that you continue to support protocols at the school, including the front door policy, as it is only designed to maintain the safety of our students and staff. Our intention is never intended to make you feel unwelcome; it is strictly designed to maintain the safety of our 435 students and 50 staff members.
We are heartbroken today, but will support your children and keep them safe.
💜💛
Thank you,
Ms. Mahoney
Where are our basketball players???? This looks like a cool opportunity to improve your skills and have fun. Open to students in grades 3-8. See flyer for more information.
Calling all girls in grades K-5! Here’s a cool summer opportunity to engage in Twilight Camp from July 5 - 7th. Sounds like fun!
Due to a high probability of rain, we are moving Field Day from tomorrow (Tuesday) to Wednesday, May 25th.
To our Kindergarten Families:
In twenty-five years at South Jefferson, we have never had to do this, but we are going to reschedule our Kindergarten Program scheduled for this evening (Monday, May 23rd). We currently have 22 kindergarten students absent today, with a couple more leaving early, due to illness. We cannot, in good faith, push these little ones to participate in this special event, feeling sick or possibly infecting others.
I apologize for the inconvenience, but I must do what is right for ALL of the kindergarten class and their families. We are rescheduling our event for Wednesday, May 25th, at 6:00 p.m. in the hopes that everyone will feel better and have time to get well. IF your child is not feeling well, PLEASE do not send them to school. Give them the extra time to be 100% so that we can all enjoy this memorable occasion.
If you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact me at kmahoney@k12.wv.us. I am looking forward to seeing ALL of those sweet faces on Wednesday evening.
Sincerely,
Ms. Mahoney
Principal
Summer Experience registration ends on Friday, May 20th. If interested, please check out information on JCSWV.org.
Thank you,
Ms. Mahoney
