April 11, 2024

Ver esto en español

用中文（简体）查看

Atlanta Public Schools (APS) is currently in the process of updating student information and pre-registering students for the 2024-2025 school year. This process ensures that each school has adequate information about the anticipated student body to guide planning for next year as well as maintaining up-to-date records for all students. APS, MES, and all of the Midtown Cluster appreciates all of our families for addressing these requests in a timely manner!

Re-Registration Information for Rising 6th Graders

Atlanta Public Schools requires all parents or guardians to re-register (including providing proof of residency) their children when entering 6th grade, including all students continuing on from MES to Howard Middle School. To ensure that adequate space and resources are allotted for your children at their new school, APS is asking all rising 6th grade families to complete online registration via their Infinite Campus Parent Portal accounts by Friday, March 29th, 2024.

Parent Portal accounts can be accessed by clicking here (or using the button below!). The APS Parent Portal Help Page can be found here, just in case you need it.

After logging into your, click on "More" and then select "Online Registration for Existing Students". If you are having difficulty completing online registration, please contact Howard Middle School at 404-802-3200 or by emailing DTHRegistration@atlanta.k12.ga.us to request a virtual or in-person registration appointment. Rising 6th grade students who do not complete Online Registration will not receive class assignments for the 2024-2025 school year and may be withdrawn from school at the end of the current school year.

Additional information for Rising Rams families was sent out yesterday in this Special Edition Digital Dolphin. Rising Rams families should join the Howard Class of 2027 Facebook Group to keep with all of the latest information.

Registration Information for Rising Kindergarteners

Online registration is also open now for Rising Kindergartners who will be starting school in August 2024! Families with children who will be five years old before September 1, 2024 should complete Kindergarten registration via the APS Kindergarten Registration website, which can also be accessed by clicking the button below. If you are having trouble with online enrollment, please contact Ms. Aquilla Jones (the MES school clerk) via email at aquilla.jones@atlanta.k12.ga.us.

Please note that the MES Dolphin Splash event for Rising K families is coming up quickly on Thursday, April 18th. Incoming Kinder students must have completed Kindergarten Registration in order to participate in Dolphin Splash, so please do not delay in completing your registration.

Additional details about Kindergarten registration, Dolphin Splash, and much more can be found in the MES Rising K Facebook Group.

Friday, April 12th - Are You Smarter Than A 5th Grader?! Game Show Night!

The MES 5th grade class is getting ready for an epic game show night that puts kids and caregivers to the test! If you have a 5th grader, you won't want to miss your chance to finally prove that you're Smarter than an MES 5th Grader!!

Friday April 12th

5:30pm-7:30pm

Dinner RSVPs are now closed but please join the game show portion that begins at 6:30pm in the MES Auditorium.

Please note that this event is for MES 5th grade students AND their caregivers. Unaccompanied students must be promptly picked up at 7:30pm.

Sunday, April 14th - Kinder, 1st and 2nd Grade Social!

Join us for our last social event of the school year at Sidney Marcus Park!

This event is for all students in grades K through 2nd and their families. Come ready to dance with DJ Oppy and bring your pennies to purchase sweet treats from the ice cream truck. Don’t miss it!

Thursday, April 18th - Dolphin Splash!

Rising K families, please save the date for MES's annual Dolphin Splash - the first opportunity for our future MES Dolphins to see what life is like swimming with our pod! Join your fellow incoming Kindergarten classmates and parents on Thursday, April 18th as we introduce you all to Morningside Elementary!

Please note that advance registration for this event is required. The event registration link will be shared with Rising K parents as they complete their kindergarten registration with APS (see details about how to register at the top of this newsletter). Families eligible to participate in Splash will have the opportunity to select a morning session time (between 9:30am and 12:30pm) to attend the Kindergarten Splash at MES. During your scheduled session time, Rising K students will meet with our Kindergarten teachers to complete a brief assessment to help with classroom planning, while parents will meet with school administrators and MES PTA and Foundation leadership to learn more about our MES community.

Friday, April 19th - MES Field Day

MES Field Day is always one of the best days of the year - a day for all of our students to get outside and enjoy a full day of sun, fun, and friendly competition. This year's Field Day will take place on Friday, April 19th, with a back up rain date of Monday, April 22nd. While Field Day is first and foremost about giving our students a day to remember, all parents and caregivers are encouraged to come out and cheer on our Dolphins throughout the day!

Coach Corso and the Field Day Committee have been hard at work pulling together ambitious plans for this super heroic day. On the day of the event, all MES students will rotate with their classes and grade levels through three activity stations as well as lunch. Each zone will feature a different type of activity designed around this year's theme: "Kindness is My Superpower"! You can get a sneak peek at all the fun to come in Coach Corso's MES Field Day Guide. We'll share more details as the event gets closer, but please prepare for students to wear athletic clothing to school on this day and to be outside for most of the day.

Sounds Fun! How Can I Help?

As you can imagine, pulling off an event this size requires A LOT of volunteer support. If you are willing and able to help on Field Day, you can sign for a time slot via the Field Day SignUp Genius. Additional details about what volunteers can expect are included in the MES Field Day Guide linked above.

We can't wait to spend the day out on the field with our Dolphin community! If you would like to learn more about this event, please contact Jackie Townley or Matt Fox.

Saturday, April 20th - MES Night Out at Atlanta United

On Saturday, April 20th, MES alumnus Caleb Wiley and his Atlanta United teammates will take on FC Cincinnati in what is sure to be a great game! The MES PTA sold tickets to this event back in February, and now the game is finally upon us! If you purchased tickets for this game through the PTA, your tickets will be sent electronically to the ticket purchaser's email address by Thursday, April 18th. Reasonable requests for sitting with other families will be considered. Inquiries about seating can be made to Justin Hubbarth.

MES students selected to participate in the pregame "High Five Tunnel" or post-game "On Field Penalty Kicks' will be notified via email by Monday, April 15th. Please note that only 85 MES students can be chosen for the two experiences due to availability.

Finally, if you are interested in sponsoring the ticket of an MES Atlanta United fan who would not otherwise be able to go (chosen by Mr. LaSalle, our school social worker), you may do so on the MES Square Site by selecting "Scholarship Ticket". Please note that the MES Night with Atlanta United block of tickets are completely sold out and that the scholarship tickets still on sale have already been promised select students chosen by Mr LaSalle. This option is simply to help cover the costs of these tickets.

Friday, April 26th - Final Principal Coffee Talk of the Year!

The final Principal Coffee Talk for the 2023-2024 school year will be held on Friday, April 26th at 8am in the MES Auditorium - please join us as we wrap up the school year and start to look ahead to next year! Please note that all coffee talks will also be live streamed to our YouTube channel if you cannot attend in person.

Register Now for Dolphin Dive In Camp (Rising K ONLY)

It's back! Morningside Elementary will again host a summer camp for our Rising K students this summer during the week of June 3-7. Our 'Under the Sea"-themed camp will run from 9am to 12pm each day, with arrival starting at 8:45am. Tuition is $275 for the week. Dolphin Dive-In camp is taught be MES Kindergarten teachers and is a great opportunity for our newest Dolphins to test the waters at MES before they start kindergarten in August!

To register your Rising K students for Dolphin Dive-In camp, please click here. Please note that your child MUST be registered for Kindergarten at MES for the 2024-2025 school year before registering for camp and that you will need to create an account with our partner My AfterSchool Program as part of the registration process.

A flyer with additional details can be viewed by clicking here. For camp-specific questions, please email Becky Georges and for registration or payment information, please contact Beth Geurin.

MES GO Team Voting Opens Next Week!

Online voting for new members for next year's GO Team will open on Tuesday, April 16th and ends on Thursday, April 25th. Households will receive unique voting links via text, email, and/or US postal service ahead of the voting period. For more information about the GO Team election process, please click here.

Also, please save the date for the final MES GO Team meeting for the 2023-2024 school year, which will take place on Monday, May 6th at 5pm. This meeting will be held virtually as well as livestreamed on the MES YouTube page for those who would like to watch. Recordings from past meetings can also be viewed on the YouTube page at any time. Please note that this meeting has been rescheduled from the original April meeting date.

The agendas for these meetings, as well as past meeting materials and the protocol for signing up to speak during the public comment period can be found on the MES GO Team webpage.

Earth Week at MES is Coming Soon!

This year, Earth Week will be celebrated from April 20-26 and we can't wait! Our SWAG team (that's Sustainability, Wellness, and Garden!) has been hard at work preparing a week of STEAM activities to celebrate the amazing Earth that we all share. Please mark your calendars for these fun events, with more details to come soon:

• Saturday, April 20th at 10am - Guided Nature Walk in Hebert Taylor Park! All MES families are invited to participate in an "Underfoot Walk" to explore the mosses, lichen, fungi, and molds. There is so much to see and learn, right in our wonderful neighborhood! Please RSVP to Jackie Townley to help with planning.
• Tuesday, April 23rd - Walk to School Day! Make a plan to travel to school on Tuesday in the most Earth-friendly way possible - on foot (bikes, scooters, and rollerskates also welcome, of course!)
• Thursday, April 25th - Solar Beads with Georgia Power! During the day on Thursday, all of our MES students will have the opportunity to make their own solar bead bracelets, courtesy of Georgia Power. Please be on the look out for a volunteer sign up to assist with this activity.

And of course, tons of great classroom STEAM activities and time spent in our bountiful school garden area!

Updated APS Visitor & Sign In System Goes Fully Live April 8th, 2024

At MES and across APS, the safety of our students and staff is of utmost importance. To improve school security at MES (and across the district), APS has installed a new visitor sign-in system to provide for a safer school entry for any visitors to our schools system-wide. Please remember to bring in your state issued ID when visiting Morningside. Our upgraded system will screen each visitor’s information against the sex offender registry and other custom databases. This new visitor management system will provide an electronic check-in with a visitor’s state issued ID. Thank you for your cooperation as we fully transition to our new sign in system. 

Summer School Open to All MES Students, June 3 – June 28

APS recently announced that registration for Power Up Summer, the APS summer school program, is now open! The Power Up Summer program for the Midtown Cluster elementary schools, including Morningside, will be at SPARK Elementary School from June 3rd – June 28th. The program will run from 7:45am to 2:45pm - a full school day program. Power Up Summer is open to all students, with APS sending special invites through the US Mail to students whose participation this summer is strongly recommended. Please note that registration for Power Up Summer closes this Friday, April 12th.

Additional details about Power Up Summer can be found on the APS website. If you would like more information, K-2 families can contact Dr. Sinclair and 3-5 families can contact Mr. Baron. 

Morning Carpool Drop Off Reminder!

Thank you to our carpool families who arrive early and create a space for our staff to enter the parking garage located underneath the main school building! Many of our MES staff members arrive between 7 and 7:15am and we very much appreciate the mindfulness of our carpool families in leaving the garage drive open.

As a reminder, please remember that even if you are running late, there is no drop off allowed on East Rock Springs Road as it is extremely unsafe.

You can find the carpool route on the MES website Transportation page. Please note that there should be no "cut through turns" in the middle of the Barclay Median. Please drive to the end of Barclay and make the turn around there to avoid creating unnecessary traffic back ups and dangerous merging situations. Thank you!

MES Principal Blog

Posts on Principal Sofiano's Principal's Blog highlight the latest happenings at Morningside, including an inside view of the work of our amazing students and wonderful staff. Reminders about blog posts will continue to be sent through the Infinite Campus Parent Portal straight to your phones and email inboxes, but you can also bookmark the Principal's Blog and check it out at any time! If you are not getting blog notices on your email or phone, contact Charlette Jackson in the front office to update your information.

Join the Howard Middle School PTO Executive Board!

At Howard, the process for selecting PTO members is unique. Instead of directly voting for specific positions, members vote for candidates for the Executive Board. The Executive Board then internally decides on the allocation of positions among its members. And unlike elementary school where you are there for up to six years, you are only in middle school for THREE years so we'd love to have our rising 6th grade parents join the board!

You can find more information about the Howard Middle School on their webpage. Please email alisonmassa@gmail.com with any questions.

SAVE THE DATE: Rising Rams Fun on the Field is on Friday, April 26th!

On Friday, April 26th, Howard Middle School will host their spring Fun on the Field event from 5:00 - 7:00pm. This event is open to all 5th graders and their families and is a great opportunity for our Rising Rams to come to Howard, play on the field, and meet their future classmates from other elementary schools in the Midtown Cluster. The Howard PTO and Booster Club are hard at work planning fun activities for the kids, so pencil this one in on your calendar now!

Please note that while an official Evite for this event will be sent out closer to the date, families can pre-order dinner from Sweet Auburn BBQ now in order to have food at the event. You can view the menu here and place your order here if you choose. Families can also bring their own food and picnic at the event if they prefer.

APS Adult Education Classes Available for FREE

Discover APS's free Adult Education Program, where we support individuals in navigating the official Georgia High School Equivalency (HSE) Program, formerly known as the GED Testing Program. From selecting a high school equivalency pathway to test preparation, class enrollment, and short-term training opportunities, APS is dedicated to guiding adults through every step.

Additionally, our program extends beyond HSE with English as a Second Language and citizenship classes held at multiple Atlanta/Fulton County locations.



To learn more and enroll, click HERE and share the information with those who can benefit.

Stay Up to Date with the APS Midtown Cluster

Click HERE for resources directly related to our cluster.

Stay Up to Date with the 2023-2024 APS Calendar 

Click HERE to view the district calendar and start planning for all the breaks.

Click HERE to view the Atlanta BOE 2024 Calendar.

Thank you to our 2023-2024 Diamond Dolphin, Dolphin, and Platinum-level sponsors for supporting our school!

For more information about Dolphin Donors, please click HERE.