Poca Middle School

Hello Poca Middle families. Poca Middle School's doors open at 7:15 for student drop off and students will be tardy after 7:53; however, we will have an alternate schedule for the first day of school on Wednesday, August 24. There will be a delayed arrival time for all returning 7th & 8th graders. The buses will run their normal routes at normal times to pick up 6th graders and deliver them to school for WEB activities. The buses will run their same routes again 3 1/2 hours later to pick up 7th & 8th graders. School will end at the regular time for all students at 3:05. Again, on the first day of school, all 6th grade students will report to school at the normal start time. Doors will open to 6th graders at 7:15 and they should be in the building by 7:50 for their WEB activities to begin by 7:53. This Wednesday only, 7th & 8th graders will report 3 1/2 hours later than normal. This means 7th & 8th grade students may begin arriving at 10:45 and should be in the building by 11:20 for classes to begin at 11:23. If you have questions about this delayed start time, please call the main office at 304-755-7343. Thank you and we look forward to see your students on Wednesday!

Hello Poca Middle families! This is a reminder that open house will be tomorrow from 5:30-7:00. Also, we will gladly accept classroom donations such as disinfectant wipes, tissues, hand sanitizer, etc. OPEN HOUSE SCHEDULE Monday, August 22 5:30-6:15 -6th grade 6:15-7:00 - 7th & 8th grade Open House is a time for students to familiarize themselves with the school, meet their teachers, coaches, administrators & ask questions. Schedules will not be passed out until the first day of school. Please come during the assigned times to walk through the building, meet the staff & see why ‘Learning is Magical’ at Poca Middle. We look forward to seeing you!

Good evening Poca Middle families. Tomorrow is the last day of school for students. We will be operating on a 2 hour early dismissal schedule. Poca Middle students will be released at 1:05pm. The administration, teachers and staff would like to thank you for a GREAT year and we hope you have a WONDERFUL summer!

Hello Poca Middle 8th grade families. This is a reminder that Monday, May 23 is Step Up Day. All 8th graders will report directly to Poca High School tomorrow morning. Students will ride their regular bus to PHS. If you normally drop your student off in the mornings, you will drop them off at PHS by 8am. After 8th graders arrive, they will be directed where to go once inside. Please have your student take everything they need for the day with them to PHS. When Step Up Day concludes, buses will bring all 8th graders back to Poca Middle for the remainder of their day. Have a wonderful afternoon!

Hello Poca Middle families. Step up day for 8th grade students will take place on Monday, May 23. All 8th grade students will report directly to Poca High School this coming Monday by 8am. If your student rides the bus, they may take their regular bus to PHS & they will be directed where to go once they arrive that morning. If you drive your student to school, you will drop them to PHS no later than 8am. There will be a bus to pick them up from PHS and return them to Poca Middle around 10am, once step up day activities have concluded. Also, we will have a brief academic awards assembly on Wednesday, May 25 at 9am. Students with straight A's or that are a member of groups such as WEB, Student Council or All County participants will receive certificates. Grade level awards will be given out to several students as well. If your student will receive a grade level award, you will be contacted through Schoology so you know if you should attend the ceremony. Thank you!

Good evening Poca Middle families. This is a reminder that there is no school this coming Friday, April 15. There will also be no school for students on Friday, April 29. Finally, we would like to congratulate the Poca Middle School Band for receiving all Superior ratings at the WVSSAC Spring Festival for Performance Evaluation and Assessment on Monday.

Please plan to join us on March 22nd at 5:30pm for our second “Poca Parent Series” Presentation, Hidden in Plain Sight. Josh Murphy from Mission WV will discuss a mock bedroom designed to teach parents, teachers & any other adult in a child’s life how to identify red flags & warning signs of substance use. He will discuss many items that can be found the home, decoy or “stashable” objects that look normal but are far from it. Lynda Rumbaugh will also discuss testing information related to the WVGSA & STAR. She will highlight a variety of parent resources related to testing/student results, the importance of the summative/benchmark tests and how the data from both of these tests are used. We hope to see you in the PMS Library at 5:30pm, Tuesday, March 22!

Good evening Poca Middle Families: If someone will be checking your child out for the PHS basketball game tomorrow, they must be listed on his/her emergency card. If they are not on the emergency card, you must send a note in the morning. We will not except phone calls. This will not be an excused absence unless you send in their ticket stub with a parent note on the day of their return to school. Traffic will be an issue in front of the school around 10:30 as the PHS B-Ball Team bus will parade in front of the school. Please do not park along the curb as PES and PMS students will be outside to cheer-on our DOTS around 10:30 until the bus exits. Thank you!

Good evening Poca Middle School families. This is a reminder that this Friday, February 18 will be a 2 hour early dismissal. Please discuss early dismissal plans with your student prior to Friday if they are different than their normal dismissal plans. This week our 8th grade Youth & Government representatives will travel to Charleston to learn the operation of state government, strengthen their understanding of the three branches of government, better understand the Constitution, and learn the responsibilities of citizenship. Our 8th grade History Bowl team will compete against teams from around the state on Friday. We would like to wish our Math Field Day participants good luck as they compete against the other Putnam County middle schools tomorrow at Hurricane Middle. Congratulations to the students that will be participating in these opportunities this week! Finally, we would like to introduce our Poca Parent Series. The first speaker of the series will be for 8th grade parents only. Mr. Glass, Counselor from Poca High, will be at PMS on Tuesday, February 22 at 6pm to discuss high school scheduling, registration and personalized education plans or PEP's. This will be a great opportunity to learn and ask questions about your child's upcoming transition to high school! We hope you will plan to attend this meeting on February 22 at 6pm in the PMS Cafeteria.

Good evening Poca Middle School families. This is a reminder that this Friday, February 18th will be a 2 hour early dismissal. Please discuss early dismissal plans with your student prior to Friday if they are different than their normal dismissal plans. Also, we would like to wish our Math Field Day participants good luck as they compete against the other Putnam County middle schools tomorrow at Hurricane Middle. Thank you!

Good evening Poca Middle School families. Due to the delay today and potential for additional weather issues this week, report cards will now go home with your student on Monday, January 24 instead of this Friday as originally planned. This will provide teachers and administration additional time to ensure the accuracy of your student's 1st Semester grades. Also, our main phone line is still down. Frontier is working to make the necessary repairs, but in the meantime, you should be able to reach the main office by calling 304-755-4576. Thank you for your understanding!

The FBI Pittsburgh Division's Charleston, WV Resident Agency in partnership with the United States Attorney's Office of the Southern District of West Virginia, FBI Charleston WV Citizens Academy Alumni Association, and West Virginia Child and Human Trafficking Task Force are hosting a virtual presentation for parents, guardians, teachers, and community members to learn how to keep children safe online. The event will take place via Microsoft Teams on Thursday, December 2nd from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. The link to access this Microsoft Teams call can be found on the PMS and Putnam County Schools Facebook pages, Schoology and the PMS Webpage.

Good evening Poca Middle School families. This is a reminder that there is no school tomorrow, November 11, in observance of Veteran's Day. We would like to thank all of our military veteran's and their families, past and present, for the tremendous sacrifices they've made to secure the freedoms we have today!

Parents: Parent/Teacher Conferences will be held on Tuesday, November 9 from 5-7pm. If you would like to schedule a conference with your child’s team to discuss any concerns, please contact their team leader to be added to a time slot. Team Leaders: 6th—Stephen Reedy (sreedy@k12.wv.us) 7th—Teresa Forbis (tforbis@k12.wv.us) 8th—Louann Godbey (lrgodbey@k12.wv.us) You may also reach out through Schoology or call the school at 304-755-7343.

Good afternoon Poca Middle School families. It is with a heavy heart that I share with you that Mrs. Sherill Morris, a beloved teacher at Poca Middle, passed away yesterday afternoon. Mrs. Morris was a special education teacher at our school, going on six years. She was a wonderful teacher, colleague and friend who cared very deeply about the success and wellbeing of all of our students. To help support the students and staff, as we process this loss to our Poca Middle Family, we have arranged to have our Putnam County Schools Crisis Team and Counselors on hand tomorrow. Please do not hesitate to contact the school, should you need additional assistance navigating this loss with your child. Thank you!

Hello Poca Middle families! This is a reminder that you are not permitted to park in the Fire Lane at any time when you are on campus. If you pick your student up at the end of the day you must park your vehicle in a parking spot, and wait on your student in your vehicle. In accordance with State Fire Marshall code, the Fire Lane is for emergency vehicles only and you can be written a citation should you be found parked in or blocking the Fire Lane at any time. Also, please remember not to block or park in Handicap Parking spots unless you have an actual Handicap Parking permit; fines can be issued for this violation as well. We will have our quarterly Local School Improvement Council meeting in the school cafeteria on Tuesday, November 9 at 4:30pm. Please look for your student's 1st 9 weeks report card to come home on Tuesday, November 2. If you have any questions or concerns about your student's current progress, please reach out to their team leader or individual teacher through Schoology or call the school to schedule a time to discuss those concerns. Thank you and have a wonderful weekend!

Parents, We have several bus changes today. These changes are being announced at school and are posted to our school Facebook page for reference. Please understand that due to sub bus driver shortages, runs have been doubled up, which may delay drop off times for your student. If your student rides Bus #1306 toward Rock Branch, they will ride Bus # 1107. If your student rides Bus #1306 and are dropped toward Red House, they will ride Bus #204. If your student rides Bus #1409, they will ride Bus # 1101. And finally, if your student rides Bus # 1602, they will be delayed by about 10 minutes at the school and then ride Bus #2304. Thank you for your understanding and have a great day!

Good evening Poca Middle School families. This is a reminder that there is NO SCHOOL for students this coming Friday, October 22. This is one of our regularly scheduled Professional Learning and Faculty Senate Days for Staff. Thank you!

Good evening 7th grade families. This is reminder that all 7th grade students must have received the T-dap and meningococcal (MCV4) immunizations. If you have shot records to turn in to the school, this must be done first thing tomorrow morning. If we do not have shot records for your student, showing proof these two immunizations have been administered, or an appointment card from the health department or your physician, your student will not be permitted to remain at school. These absences will not be excused. You may call the Putnam County Health Department or your student's pediatrician to schedule these shots. Shot records may be turned in to the main office or faxed to 304-755-8930. If you have any questions, please contact the school nurse at 304-755-7343. Thank you!

Good evening Poca Middle families. We will begin offering our after school tutoring program to all Poca Middle students on Tuesday, September 7. Tutoring is offered on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday each week from 3:15-5:15 pm. Students that need extra help in any subject are encouraged to attend. They do not have to attend all three days in order to participate. Students that plan to stay will sign up each morning as they enter the building. They will receive a snack and bus transportation home is available if you are unable to pick your student up at 5:15. In order to stay after school for tutoring, your student must have the After School Tutoring permission form, found in the student handbook, filled out, signed and turned in to the school. If you have any questions, please contact the main office. Thank you!