Hello Dolphins!  This is Kristen Faircloth, proud Principal at Durant Road Middle School, with your April 18, 2021 Family Message.

What an exciting week here at Durant Road Middle School!  We welcomed back over 350 students to campus for the first time.  Our students were excited to be with each other and did a wonderful job with the safety protocols.  As we move into the spring season, we will continue to make tweaks, remind our students of these protocols, and have individual conversations with students if needed.  Please find a few important announcements below for the upcoming week and beyond.  Let us know if you have any questions or concerns as we are here to support you.  You can communicate with your grade level Assistant Principal, grade level Counselor, or call the Durant Road Middle School front office at 919.870.4098.  

Attendance Letters: It is required that all schools send letters to the families of students with 6 or more absences.  Letters will be sent to families of students meeting these criteria by April 23, 2021.  We have already been in contact with most of the families of students for whom we have concerns about the impact of attendance on academic performance.  If you have questions about the letters, please reach out to our School Social Work at 919-870-4098 ext 26119.

Updated Structures (Attendance & Bell Schedules):  As a friendly reminder, there have been several school structure updates as we have moved into Quarter 4.  

Our Updated Quarter 4 Attendance Plan can be viewed here.  Please note, there are different guidelines for students in our Virtual Academy and Plan A (in-person) learning.  If you have questions regarding attendance, please reach out to Kim Anderson (kanderson7@wcpss.net) or Zaquana Diggs (zdiggs@wcpss.net).

As we welcome new students back to our building for in-person learning, we have made adjustments to our in-person and web-based bell schedules to support the change.  Our web-based schedule has adjusted to include an earlier start time and more time for instruction in classes.  Please take time with your student(s) to review these updates.

• 6th Grade Quarter 4 Schedule (In-Person and Web-based)
• 7th Grade Quarter 4 Schedule (In-Person and Web-based)
• 8th Grade Quarter 4 Schedule (In-Person and Web-based)

Quarter 4 Materials:  Thank you to all the families who picked up Quarter 4 materials.  Virtual Academy students who still need to pick up their Quarter 4 materials may do so between 8:30 AM and 2:30 PM at the front office.  Non Virtual Academy students will receive their materials from their Core I teachers.  

Lunch & Learn:  Our DRMS Student Services Team is hosting monthly virtual meetings (Lunch & Learn) for parents and caregivers.  Our team will discuss topics related to supporting social & emotional wellness during remote learning and will also be open to provide support in areas you may need. Our next session is on Tuesday, April 20th at 12:00 PM.  The topic is “Recognizing Signs of Stress & Ways to Cope.”  The format will be a Google Meet.  Please sign up using the following link: Lunch & Learn Parent/Caregiver Sign Up Form. A link for the google meet will be emailed to families who register.  We hope you find this community engagement session informative!  Link/s: English - https://meet.google.com/xya-uykp-yfx  Spanish - https://meet.google.com/big-mgtb-gwv

Remote Learning/Asynchronous Day:  Wednesday, April 21, 2021 is a Remote Learning/Asynchronous Day for all students.  Students should log into their Google Classrooms and complete assignments by 3:00 PM for attendance.  There will be no live Google Meets or in-person learning on Wednesday, April 21, 2021.  

Spring Sports: SPRING sport families, this week's skill sessions will take place on April 19th, 20th, and 22nd, right after school until 4:30 PM, and are for the DOLPHINS group. Only students assigned to the DOLPHINS group by Mrs. Mauder will be allowed to attend. Virtual academy families, health screenings are no longer required prior to entering the building, but please screen your student athlete prior to bringing them to school. All virtual academy students should be dropped off at the front of the school between 3:05-3:20 PM and enter the school after the 3:05 PM dismissal bell. All families have received an email alerting them which group they are in and the dates they can attend. If you are unsure which group you are in or have any questions, please email Trina Mauder at tmauder@wcpss.net.