Welcome to Hillsborough and the Hillsborough Middle School!
We know that the transition to a new school and community presents a number of challenges for youngsters. Rest assured that we take special care to ease that transition for each of our new students and they will quickly feel at home.
One of the first steps in the process is to join me for a New HMS Family Orientation program on August 27th from 7:00-8:00 p.m. here in the HMS Library/Media Center. You and your children should attend together. It will be a chance to meet with me as I go over some of the general information about our school. We will take a brief tour and I can answer any questions you have.
Your child’s schedule will be worked out towards the end of August, and we will contact you with the team placement and homeroom assignment prior to the first day of school – September 5, 2019. You will also receive information that will enable you to set up a parent access account to our student information system known as Genesis. The parent portal will allow you to see your child’s schedule and grades as teachers post them over the course of the year.
To help you prepare your child for school, we have developed a checklist of suggested and recommended school supplies. You can access the supply list on the HMS website at http://www.hms.htps.us. It is not necessary to have specific supplies on day one.
If purchasing a book bag for your son or daughter, I encourage you to consider something small - a lightweight drawstring bag or pack that can assist in carrying just a notebook or two, a calculator, pens, etc. between classes. Anything larger becomes difficult to carry and store. Students will have access to a hall locker during the day and therefore do not need to carry everything all day long. The hall lockers come with a lock, although students will need to purchase a padlock for use during PE class when they must temporarily secure personal belongings in the locker rooms when changing for gym class.
All students in grades 5-12 are issued a personal Chromebook for use in school and at home. Newly registered students will receive this in homeroom on the first day of school. For more information about our Chromebook initiative please visit http://www.htps.us/1to1.
Shortly after registering your child you will receive an email notification with a password and introduction to our student information system known as Genesis, and you will automatically be enrolled in our district’s School Messenger email/phone alert system as well. The HMS website, School Messenger system, and Genesis Parent Portal for schedules/grades are all valuable tools for communication throughout the year regarding important notices, information, and to monitor your child’s academic progress. Please take a moment to visit our website that can provide more information about these systems and provide a general orientation to many aspects of the school.
There is a summer reading assignment for students. Information on that is also available on our website. We encourage new students to engage in the summer reading if possible, but teachers will understand if that is not completed as many new students may have only just recently enrolled. Finally, please mark your calendar now for our Back-To-School Night(s) at HMS:
7th Grade Back-to-School Night – September 12th at 6:30 pm
8th Grade Back-to-School Night – September 19th at 6:30 pm
We have a great school year planned. I look forward to meeting you soon.
Sincerely,
Joseph Trybulski, Ed.D.
Principal