March 2025

A Note from Ms. Palmer, KJHS Principal

Dear Kingsley families,

Spring is almost here and, with that, comes change and transition, not just in nature, but at Kingsley as well. In a few short months, we'll be saying good bye to the KJHS Class of 2025 and hello to the KJHS Class of 2028. We have seen tremendous academic and personal growth in our KJHS students during this school year and we appreciate all you do to help support KJHS.

Ms. Palmer

KJHS Updates

IAR Testing

Annual IAR testing is place at KJHS on March 11-13. Please make every effort to have your student at school on these days with a charged Chromebook. Students who are absent on those dates will be scheduled for make up testing.

February Discipline Referrals

We are so excited to share that discipline referrals for February 2025 were down 43.7% as compared to February 2024. Thank you for all you do to help support KJHS in maintaining high standards for both behavior and academics!

Attendance Message via Talking Points

KJHS is working hard to improve student attendance rates. One of our efforts is a weekly message to stakeholders about attendance. This message is being sent out by Mrs. Schwarz (counselor) via Talking Points and is not directed at anyone in particular. If you get the message on a day your student is absent, please be aware that it is simply just an all school message and is not being sent to you because your student is absent. That is simply a coincidence.

DP Dough Dine to Donate: March 12

The KJHS PTO is sponsoring a dine to donate at DP Dough on Wednesday, March 12, from 5:00 - 10:00 pm.

KJHS Promise Council

Did you know that KJHS has its own dedicated Promise Council organization? The Kingsley Promise Council is dedicated to removing barriers to learning such as:

Meeting the physical needs of students when they stand in the way of academic achievement
Helping schools help kids - one child at a time
Providing adult mentors for students
Increasing opportunities for parental engagement

Get involved! We need your help to build a list of caring adults for the basic needs as they occur at Kingsley; examples include bus passes for transportation, food and grocery gift cards, hygiene products, gently worn clothing and household items.

If you would like more information or to add your name to the Shout-Out list, please contact co-chairs Susan Wright or Katie Ruder at promisecouncil.kjhs@gmail.com. You can also access the KJHS Promise Council Amazon Wishlist here.

Yearbook Orders

2024-25 yearbooks are on sale now through April 7. Yearbooks are $35 and be ordered directly from Varsity's Yearbook Order Center. Kingsley's school code is 26314.

25-26 School Year Online Registration

Online Registration in Infinite Campus for the 25-26 school year is opening on March 31st. The process is the same as last year and information is available on the Registration Page.

5 Essentials Survey

Thanks to all of you who completed the KJHS 5Essentials Parent Survey! We reached 27% in less than a week - well done!

K Cart Wishlist

The KJHS K Cart is a key component in the KJHS PBIS reward system. Operated by 8th grade BELT students, the K Cart provides the opportunity for students to use K Cash (earned by exhibiting appropriate behavior in the classroom) to purchase items such as fidgets, bracelets, candy, soda, etc. The K Cart operates 10 weeks a semester and costs approximately $1500-$2000/semester to operate. The KJHS PTO supports the K Cart with a generous $1000/semester donation and the remainder of the funds come from monetary and product donations. If you would like to donate to the K Cart, please visit their Amazon wish list or drop off cash/check at the KJHS Main Office. The K Cart began second semester operations on February 7 .

PTO Updates

The KJHS PTO is looking for a volunteer to serve as treasurer for the 25-26 school year. If you are interested, please reach out to the PTO Board at kjhspto@gmail.com.

The KJHS PTO has 2 remaining meetings for the 24-25 school year: March 10, and May 12. Meetings begin at 6:30 and are held in the KJHS IMC or can be attended online via Google Meet.

KJHS PTO No Hassle Fundraiser: The KJHS PTO is asking for donations to help them support the KJHS students and staff throughout the year. Want to donate? Here's are the options...

Donations of cash or check (made out to KJHS PTO) can be submitted in the following ways:

dropped off in a sealed and labeled envelope at the school office
dropped off in the secured drop box located by the main entrance doors
mailed to KJHS PTO at 303 Kingsley Street, Normal, IL 61761

On-line donations can be made using PayPal to KJHSpto@gmail.com.

Please make sure to mark the donation as “For Friends and Family” so that a service fee is not deducted from your donation.

PBIS Updates

PBIS PRIDE theme for February was Respect. Through a lesson and discussions in advisory, students and staff discussed how the language and words we use impact other people and what we can do to treat everyone respectfully. March's PRIDE theme is Integrity and we will be discussing how to be your best self at all times.

KJHS Info

Attendance Matters

Attendance is key to academic success. Students who miss two days a month (that's once every other week) this year will miss...

20 days of school

30 hours of math

60 hours of reading and writing

Over one year of school by graduation

Want some more information or helpful hints in increasing your student's attendance? Start with these helpful strategies.

KJHS Social Media

Just a couple of updates re KJHS social media...

We are now actively posting to our Kingsley Junior High School Facebook page. Thank you for your patience as we worked through some of the changes with Meta taking over Facebook.
Postings on our social media are dependent on coaches and teachers sending information to Ms. Palmer. If you feel an activity is being left out, please reach to the coach or teacher and encourage them to send Ms. Palmer information/updates to post.

Social Probation

Attendance at extracurricular events is a privilege, not a right, and students who cannot maintain appropriate behavior during the school day forfeit the privilege of attending after school events at KJHS. As such, students who earn an out of school suspension or an in school suspension during the second quarter of the 24-25 school year will be placed on social probation for the remainder of the quarter and cannot attend any extracurricular events unless they are a participant in the event itself. Social probation may also be issued to students who earn lunch detentions for the same offense on multiple occasions. Issuance of social probation will be communicated to both the student and the family by the issuing administrator.

AP Assignments

Assistant Principal Dennis Larson (larsond@unit5.org; 557-4858) is the primary administrator for students in 6th and 7th grade while Associate Principal Sylvester Davis (davissy@unit5.org; 557-4962) is the primary administrator for students in 8th grade. If you have a concern about a behavior issue with your student, please contact your student's AP.

Guidance Counselors

Mrs. Kimberly Johnson (johnsonk@unit5.org; 557-4869) is the guidance counselor for students with last names starting with A-K; Mrs. Breanna Schwarz (shwarb@unit5.org; 557-4869) is the guidance counselor for student with the last names starting with L-Z. Please contact your student's guidance counselor is you have concerns about any social or mental health issues.

Navigating Student Conflicts

Given the fact that we have over 700 students in our KJHS community, conflicts are bound to occur. If your student is experiencing an issue with another student and needs adult assistance to help work things out, please encourage them to complete the "What's Up Kingsley?" form. This will alert the adults in the building to the issue and we will direct the students involved to the KJHS resource best suited to the conflict. If your student is struggling to express the issue, please notify their AP and they follow up with your student.

Who Do I Contact at KJHS?

Knowing who to contact at KJHS about certain issues can be challenging. We hope this mini-guide helps as to who to contact first when you are needing assistance.

Absences (partial or full day): KJHS Attendance line (309-557-4456)
Classroom level issues (grades, behavior, etc.): Your student's teacher(s)
General questions about KJHS: KJHS Main Office line (309 - 557-4407)
Student information/registration updates: KJHS Guidance office (557-4899)
Sports related questions: Mrs. Menken (557-4862 or menkenk@unit5.org) or Mr. Davis (557 - 4962 or davissy@unit5.org)
Student behavior issues: Student's AP
- - - - 6th & 7th Grade: Mr. Larson (557-4858 or larsond@unit5.org)
        8th Grade: Mr. Davis (557 - 4962 or davissy@unit5.org)
Student emotional or social issues: Student's Guidance Counselor
- - - - Last Name A-K: Mrs. Kimberly Johnson (johnsonk@unit5.org)
        Last Name L-Z: Mrs. Breanna Schwarz (schwarb@unit5.org)
Student schedules: KJHS Guidance office (557-4899)
Student support services: KJHS Guidance office (557-4899)
Issues with KJHS staff member: Ms Elisa Palmer (palmere@unit5.org; 557-4574)
Curriculum questions: Ms Elisa Palmer (palmere@unit5.org; 557-4574)

Athletics & Clubs

24-25 Athletics

Kingsley Clubs and Activities

Incoming students & families often ask "how can my child get involved & participate in the Kingsley community?" Great question!

Off of the main page of the Kingsley website, there will be an extracurricular activities page once updates are completed. For students, we post club information in the daily announcements & on "What's Kickin' at Kingsley?" bulletin boards throughout the school. Here is a list of our current clubs:

Animal Club Flobinet Choir Not In Our School

Board Game Club GSA Percussion Club

Byte by Byte Club Jazz Band Pokemon Club

Chess Club Kingsley Bible Club Rubix Cube Club

Drama Club Kingsley News Speech/Debate Team

D&D/MTG Club Kingsley Stream Team Spirit Club

FCCLA Kingsley Student Council Tech Club

Fellowship of Student Athletes (FCA) Knitting/Crochet Club Yearbook

KJHS Book Club eSports Club Songwriting Club

Stream Team is Bringing KJHS Home Games to Your Home!

Want to enjoy KJHS home games from the comfort of your own home? Check out our Kingsley Activities You Tube page for live streams of all home events and enjoy how our student led Stream Team broadcasts each and every game!

Unit 5 Junior Athletics Instagram Account

Unit 5 Junior High Athletics now has its own Instagram account. You can follow all the Unit 5 Junior High Athletics action by following them at u5jhathletics.

Athletic Eligibility

In order to be eligible for participation in IESA athletic events, student athletes must maintain a grade of 1.1 or higher in all classes. Eligibility checks are done on the Friday of each week and, if ineligible, a student athlete cannot participate in any athletic contests from the Monday following the eligibility check through the follow Sunday. If a student athlete is ineligible, their coach will communicate that to them and a letter will be sent to their family.

Dates to Note

March

11 - 13: IAR Testing
24 - 28: Spring Break (No School)
31: Unit 5 Online Registration Opens

April

17: Early Release Day (11:45 student dismissal)
18: School Improvement Day (No student attendance)

Stay Up to Date!

24-25 Unit 5 Calendar

Be sure to mark school holidays, teacher institute days, and early release days on your calendar!

Daily Announcements are shown each lunch period daily & posted on the main page of the KJHS website.

Stay Connected

To stay connected to our Kingsley community, follow us on Facebook, Instagram, &/or Twitter.

You can also visit our school website for additional information. Please be patient as changes are being made to the website to ensure the most updated information is provided.

At any time you can also reach out by email to palmere@unit5.org

Unit 5 Info

Talking Points

McLean County Unit 5 has implemented a computer program called Talking Points that allows staff to communicate with families by text using their work computers. Occasionally, cell phones will label the messages as "spam". If you get a message like this, it is a legitimate message from a KJ staff member.

Unit 5 Podcast

Want to know more about Unit 5? Check out our new podcast, Inside Unit 5!

This monthly podcast is dedicated to highlighting information and news for Unit 5’s parents, students, educators, and community members.

Unit 5 Strategic Plan

Unit 5 has a new strategic plan, which will guide the district's decision making and priorities over the next five years. Unit 5 is committed to integrity, belonging, engagement, teamwork, and excellence and has the following areas of focus:

Inspiring a Culture of Learning
Creating Foundations for the Future
Building and Strengthening Our Community

Want to know more? Check out the Unit 5 2024-2029 Strategic Plan.

#KingsleyCARES

Student Council is putting on a dance from 3:45 - 5:30 in the KJHS cafeteria. The theme is "Winter Glow" and tickets are on sale now. Attendance is limited to 250 students and students with a 2nd quarter ISS or OSS will not be allowed to attend the event.

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