As we move into November, Perryville Middle is closing in on some significant occasions. Our sixth grade completed an outstanding week at NorthBay Environmental Camp in early October. All of our current students have now had the opportunity to participate in this wonderful learning experience. The lessons from NorthBay are still influencing our students and guiding their practices. Our renovation project is coming to closure. We recently secured eight more classrooms. The expectation is that by the end of November, we will move into our new library and the remaining classrooms. There will be some lingering grounds work and they put the final touches on our grounds and paving.

We experienced a significant loss this fall with the retirement of Rick Ceresini. Rick has served Perryville Middle and our community for 30 years. We wish Rick the best in his new ventures and continued success in all of his efforts. As a result of Rick’s retirement, Mr. Tim Magee has become our new challenge teacher and Mrs. Terri Ward is our new eighth grade science teacher. I would like to welcome Terri to the Perryville family and wish Tim continued success in his new role with our school.

We have a ‘Perryville Pledge’ this year to support and encourage positive growth and participation in our school. Students should be able to recite our pledge any time you ask them. The pledge is: Be Responsible, Be Safe, & Be Respectful. Our Positive Behavioral Intervention System (PBIS) team developed our pledge this summer and our entire staff has supported their efforts. Students are able to earn pledge points at anytime throughout the day if they embody and act with the pledge in mind. Every other Friday we have drawings where students can win prizes for their efforts.

The first marking period is coming to a close. Please continue to support students and encourage their positive participation in their classes. Students should be completing and turning in any and all work to make sure their grades reflect their effort. If you have not signed up for Grades To Go, please make sure you register in the office when you visit. This tool is an excellent way to maintain communication with your son or daughter and their teachers as well as monitoring their grades.

Please be on the lookout on our webpage for an administrator page. We are working to establish a link from our homepage to an administrative homepage. It is our intention to keep this current with information pertaining to Perryville Middle with the hope of also including podcasts for your convenience. I must admit, this is an intimidating thought for me, but one that I feel will ultimately benefit our students and our community. Please feel free to contact me at any time should you have questions, comments or concerns regarding Perryville Middle. You can reach me at 410-996-6010 or by email at rbuckley@ccps.org. Thank you for your continued support of our students, programs and initiatives.