For Thursday, February 20
Hit the GLIC!
The Grade-Level Information Center has information that is relevant for each class.
An index and archive for this year’s weekly Mustang Minutes
Our Daily Announcements to our students
The new Skyward attendance system and what we have learned
Thank you to the patient parents who have tried to use their Skyward app or on a web browser to report our kids’ attendance. As we have worked through that together, we have learned a few things that we thought might be helpful to you as you think about how it is best for you to communicate attendance.
First, you can always use the tried-and-true ways:
Phone calls – 269-323-5259
Emails – jthrash@portageps.org
We like hearing from you! Many of us have known each other for years (even decades!), and it’s good to stay connected.
If though you would like to try to use the new Skyward approach, here are some hurdles we have discovered in the system.
If you put in an incorrect date for an absence, we can’t fix it.
For example, let’s say on March 11 you mean to input an absence for your daughter on March 12 – but on accident you push March 11. We can sometimes notice the error – but we can’t fix it for you.
If you put a comment or question into Skyward intended for us, we can’t reply – unless we look up your email address and respond. We might be able to do that some days. But the number of kids out lately for flu or other reasons, our focus has to be on responding to families who reach out to us directly.
Also, if you put in a comment, you have a limited number – 50 – of characters.
Let’s say you put in an absence into Skyward for a morning dental appointment, and your son (because he’s like my son) forgot to check in at the Attendance Office when he got back here. As a result, he would be marked absent for more hours than he was actually gone.
There are some other, smaller hurdles that we think we are managing okay. To be clear, we appreciate good folks trying to make Skyward more useful for families. And just like anything that is new, there are kinks we might be able to fix or they might just be embedded in the system. So thank you – again and again and again – for your patience as we do what we always do: figure stuff out, together.
Save the dates!
Parent-teacher conferences are right around the corner
We have two sessions: Tuesday, March 4 and Thursday, March 6. They start at 3:30 and end at 7:15 each evening. Both sessions are online this spring. Colleagues here pulled together a
step-by-step guide to show you how to connect with your daughter’s or son’s teachers.
Thank you – and see you there!
Can you bring in some food for parent-teacher conferences?
Our teachers work so hard during parent-teacher conferences, and we’d love to show our appreciation by providing them with a delicious meal! If you’d like to help, please consider signing up to donate using this link. Every contribution, big or small, makes a difference! Thank you for your support!
Thank you to our local businesses who support us in so many ways!
It was wonderful to learn last summer that Portage graduates can take their first two years at Kalamazoo Valley Community College tuition free! What a great opportunity for our kids. KVCC has long been a great partner for us and for our community – and their financial support is only a small part of it. Their sponsorship signs out at McCamley-Knight Field, at Mustang Field and in the Mustang Commons are all recognition of their donations that have helped us accomplish so much, from Holiday meals for PC families to our golf cart that shuttles members of our community to PC events. .
We will continue to publicly thank these businesses here in Mustang Minutes and elsewhere on campus. And if there is any way she can show your thanks as well, we would appreciate it!
Do you hold a Bachelor's, Master's or Doctoral Degree and would you be interested in sharing your career experience with PC students?
Our library is hosting a career fair series called "Future Me: Success Your Way". We've already had the first event which was focused on careers requiring a high school diploma or Associates degree and are looking for volunteers for our next two events.
March 7- Careers requiring a Bachelor's degree
April 11- Careers requiring a Master's degree and above
These events will take place between 11:20-12:50 p.m. in our high school library.
We have specific interest in the fields of web or graphic design, biology, dermatology, radiology, chemical engineering, anesthesiology, computer or data science, robotics engineering, video game development, law, nurse practitioner or doctor, aerospace, and biochemistry, but we aren't limited to those.
If you would be interested in talking to students about your degree, career path, opportunities your degree offered you, and future considerations we would love to talk with you more. Contact Sara Brown sbrown@portageps.org by February 27th for more information. Thank you for considering!
Really grateful for our community supporters,
Eric Alburtus
And if you want even more PC news…