MVES Weekly News

Ms. Westbrook's Weekly Newsletter

September 4, 2025

To keep up with the latest news and photos of your favorite Jr. Trojans, follow us on Twitter!

To receive school-wide text alerts for special events, text @hc-mves to 81010.

mves.hallco.org

SUBMIT A SAFETY TIP

To send an anonymous tip of a text or photo please send text to 678-865-6282.

To submit an anonymous tip over a phone line call 770-503-3232, or call your school principal.

For immediate threats please call 911 or complete the form below.

https://schoolsafety.hallco.org/submit-a-tip/

TO VIEW THE DISTRICT'S SAFETY WEBSITE: https://schoolsafety.hallco.org/

Dear Parents,

I hope your families enjoyed the Labor Day weekend! We are looking forward to our first K-5th grade "Families" time tomorrow.

Throughout the school year, we practice safety drills for fire, weather and lockdown scenarios. On Wednesday morning, we practiced our first school lockdown drill for the 2025-26 school year. Our students have also practiced the required two fire drills for the first month of school.

Our first week of lunch visitors is going well, and field trips will begin soon. Please remember to plan ahead if you would like to join your child for lunch or another special event.

If you would like to volunteer or attend a field trip this year, please complete this application along with the linked volunteer modules. Volunteers must apply for the new school year even if approved last year (Keyword for modules will not be available until the 9th) . https://campus.hallco.org/campus/checkMate/volunteerSignUp.jsp?appName=hall

On Thursday, September 11, we will wear red, white and blue in honor of Patriot Day.

On Friday, September 12, all parents will receive fall MAP Family Reports from their child's August assessment. Your child's grade level will share more about ELA and Math expectations during Curriculum Night on September 11.

Parent conferences will be scheduled during the year for all famlies. The next administration of the MAP Growth assessment will be in December. We look forward to celebrating our students' growth. You can support your child's growth at home by making sure you have daily time for reading and math practice along with time for any optional homework that is provided by the teacher.

Along with recognizing two Jr. Trojans for Student of the Day each school day, we will also be recognizing students for reading and character education each month with our Readers of the Month and Students of the Month. Congrats to our August Readers of the Month (pictured below)!

We are looking forward to seeing our families at Curriculum Night next Thursday, September 11. Parents can choose to attend the 5:45 or 6:30 session. Students who have a parent/guardian attend a curriculum night session will receive a free ice cream!

September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month! Next week, our students will be collecting coins for the Rally Foundation. Next Friday, September 12, we will be wearing gold or yellow to support "Gold Out the Brickyard." Thank you for your support!

Go Trojans!

Jennifer Westbrook

Principal

Click here to view the 25-26 HCSD Calendar

Click here to view the 25-26 MVES Handbook

Wear School Spirit Colors on Fridays

MVES Parent Connection Calendar

Important Dates to Remember:

September 5
- MVES K-5th grade "Families"
- Club TOME applications due
September 8-12
- Book Fair
- Unicorns vs. Dragons
September 9 - Volunteer applications open
September 11 - K-5th Grade Curriculum Night (5:45 and 6:30 sessions)
- Wear Red, White and Blue in honor of Patriot Day
September 12 -
- K-5th MAP Reports go home
- 3rd-5th Grade Progress Reports
- Go Gold for Childhood Cancer Awareness (see info below)
September 17 - Fall Picture Day
September 19 - NHHS Homecoming

Click here for this month's breakfast and lunch menu

Due to increased costs, purchasing milk for lunch from home will be $.75. Students should have money available in their MyPaymentsPlus account to purchase.

Congrats to our August Readers of the Month!

Congrats to our August Staff Members of the Month,

Mrs. Bethany Nix and Mrs. Marisa Chester!

Thanks to our partners at Sullivan and Schlieman Wealth Management for sponsoring this monthly recognition for our team!

MVES SCHOOL FAMILIES ARE BACK!

From our counselor, Mrs. Nix:

At MVES, we are working hard to help all of our students feel connected to each other and also to the adults in the building. For the past 11 years at Mt. Vernon, we have had groups of K-5 students assigned to staff members in what we call “Families.” These groups allow students to build relationships with different adults as well as students in other classes and grade levels. We will be having our first Families meeting for the 2025-26 school year on Friday, September 5th.

Attention Parents of 4th and 5th Graders:

2025 EOG Milestone score reports are now available. Please click here for directions on how to view your child's score report. Please contact chase.armour@hallco.org with questions.

HCSD Vaccine Updates: The last day to attend school without a current 3231 is 9/5/25. Students may not be in school on 9/8/25 without a current 3231.

Saturday Vaccine Event scheduled for 9/6/25. Click here for more info: Link

Hall County Schools Bus App for Parents

Reminder from HCSD Transportation Dept: Nonresident students including HB251, Magnet and Tuition students, are not allowed to ride the bus to or from school unless it is a school day field trip experience. Nonresident families are required to provide transportation (car rider or MVES approved afternoon day care). Please contact the MVES front office with questions.

Car Rider Reminders

For morning drop-off, please have your student gather belongings, water bottle, etc. so he/she is prepared to exit the car quickly with all belongings READY when your car arrives at the sidewalk for drop-off.
Please remain in your car when unloading AND loading students. If you need to buckle students into car seats, please pull into the spaces next to the hill after you exit the loading area.
Please have students load/unload from the PASSENGER SIDE if possible. This saves time and is safer than having students cross between cars.
Please pull up as far as possible in the car rider line. The unloading/loading area is the entire length of the sidewalk.
A current car rider tag is required for pick up in the car rider line.
Our campus (including the car rider line) is a drug free/tobacco free campus.
It is unsafe for children to hang out of car windows or stand up through the sun roof while in line.

Save the Date for your 2025-26 Calendars:

October 2 - Watch DOGS (Dads of Great Students) Night
October 3 - PTO Pumpkin Picnic
November 20 - 4th & 5th Grade Museum Night
February 26 - K & 3rd Grade Museum Night
March 12 - 1st & 2nd Grade Museum Night
March 16 - Harlem Wizards at NHHS

Frequently Asked Questions about Birthdays:

If you would like your child's class to celebrate his/her birthday at school, please communicate in advance with the teacher. Buying the class ice cream or sending in store-bought birthday treats (ex. cupcakes, donuts) can be planned ahead with the teacher. The teacher will distribute the treats at the appropriate time. We are unable to distribute invitations at school.

VISITORS & VOLUNTEERS:

Hall County Schools and MVES encourage family involvement in our schools. Parents will be invited to participate in special school and PTO events during and after school.
School visitors must have ID and be listed on the student's Infinite Campus approved contacts.
Visitors should not take/post pictures of other students.
A schedule for lunch visits will be available after Labor Day. Visitor seating will be scheduled on a limited basis due to space.
- no outside food will be permitted in the MVES cafeteria
- only 2 guests per student (unable to bring siblings from another grade)
- must have ID and be listed on IC approved contacts
- sit with their student at visitor tables
School and field trip volunteers must complete the HCSD application with volunteer modules through Checkmate (available beginning September 9, 2025). The application will be available online and at the front office between 8:30-1:00 and 3:00-3:30. Due to district guidelines, volunteer applications and modules will be required each school year.
Following the first day of school, students arriving by car should come through the car rider line off Odum Smallwood Road. The front and front lower parking lots should only be used by buses and staff during arrival and dismissal times.
If you need to check out your child from school (we ask that you limit check-outs as much as possible), please notify the child's teacher and the front office staff in advance from a parent/guardian email address and call 770-983-1759 to confirm:
- missy.odom@hallco.org

AND

- marisa.chester@hallco.org

LUNCH VISITOR SCHEDULE (see *visitor guidelines above) - September 2 - October 10

*Volunteer applications are not required for lunch visitors.

Please review the available slots below, and click on the button to sign up.

Here is the link to the lunch visitor schedule for September 2 - October 10.

MVES is excited to welcome our parents/guardians for lunch with your students! ALL lunch visitors will be required to have a reservation due to very limited seating. Visitors are limited to signing up for only 1 time during the dates below. A new sign-up will be shared for the next dates following Fall Break.

For the safety of students, please note the following:

· For your child’s lunch visit, 1 or 2 adults (must have ID and be on student IC contact list) may join the same reservation (no school-age siblings; younger children should be in lap or stroller to help with limited seating).

· Siblings from other grade levels cannot be combined into the same reservation, but a parent can sign up 1 time during these dates for each child.

· Outside food will not be allowed to be brought into the MVES cafeteria (HCSD guideline).

· Lunch visitors will eat in the visitor seating area located outside the office, across from the learning commons.

· Lunch visitors will meet their child in the hall as his/her class goes to lunch and sign-out in the office after the lunch period ends (student will rejoin his/her class at the end of the lunch time).

· Visitors may purchase lunch in the cafeteria for $5.10 each (cash or check).

· Lunch visitors may have lunch with your child only. Other students cannot join your lunch visit.

Exact lunch times for each homeroom class may be viewed HERE.

Please contact our front office with questions. We look forward to seeing you at MVES!

We appreciate our 2025-26 MVES Partners in Education!

1st Response Roofing

American Family Homes

Anchor Real Estate Advisors

BCI

BGW Dental Group

Big Peach Running Co - Braselton

Causey Orthodontics