Dear parents and guardians,
Happy Sunday Patriots! Thank you for your quick response on Friday when our water was cut off for the last two hours of school. Your cadets and cadre did an excellent job adjusting and ensuring that the bathrooms were managed for emergencies only. Great job Team Up parents/guardians picking up your cadets on such short notice. I appreciate everyone’s patience and calmness while we navigated that emergency. The water has been restored for tomorrow; however, we are on a three-day boiling water protocol. The district will deliver pallets of water sometime tomorrow. Just in case, send your cadet with water because they will not be able to use the water fountains.
8th grade promotion – Normally at this time of the year we have fewer than ten cadets at risk of not promoting to high school. This year is an exception! We have over 50 eighth graders who are not on track to promote to high school because they are failing one or more core courses for the year. Most of these cadets are failing not because the work is hard, but because they are choosing to simply not do the work. Please stay on top of your 8th grader! Mr. Dillinger, our counselor, has been making calls to you to let you know your options. One of those is summer school. We will be hosting summer school at JSMAL. If you have any questions about specific classes, please reach out to your cadet’s teacher.
Jackets – Starting on May 1, cadet jackets will no longer be worn in the halls, common areas and formation. No Jackets starting May 1st. While we are certainly sympathetic to some of the colder classrooms, cadets can wear the uniform jacket at the teacher’s discretion. We ask that they are removed at all other times. While jackets are intended for wear in cold or cooler weather, many cadets wear them for other reasons: hide their phones, food and snacks, prohibited items and more popularly, to avoid tucking in their shirt. Thank you for your understanding and support.
Summer Camp - As we are near the end of the school year, we are also in the beginning stages of planning for the summer. Our summer camp program is scheduled to run from June 8 through July 17, operating Monday through Friday from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM. It is a free summer program. I am attaching two flyers: one for rising 6th, 7th and 8th graders and one for our rising 9th graders. Link to register: https://cisjax.org/summer-camp-application/
2026 Summer Camp Flyer Middle.pdf
Bus Registration
Bus registration for the 2026-2027 school year is open. Remember registration is required for any student riding the bus in the 2026-2027 school year, including students in self-contained ESE programs.
Yearbook –They are in and absolutely beautiful! They are full of great pictures of our cadets and all the events that happen throughout the school year. YES, they have a hard cover. We will not be issuing out the yearbooks until the last week of school. There are still yearbooks available and we will sell them on a first-come, first-served basis. You can bring cash or money order to the front office. Cost is $45. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to Ms. McNally atortong@duvalschools.org.
State Testing Schedule:
ELA – Week of May 5-8
Math – Week of May 12-14
Science/Bio/Civics and Alg – May 19-21
Calendar Events this week:
Mon, Apr 20 –Baseball and Softball vs Westside Middle at home, 5:30pm.
Tues, Apr 21– Track at home vs Oceanway and Darnell Cookman, 5pm.
Wed, Apr 22– 6th7th grade field trip to Seaworld. Bball and Sball at JWJ at 5:30pm.
Thurs, Apr 23– Track at Mandarin, 5:00pm.
Fri, Apr 24– 8thgrade Military Ball –Tickets still available, see palominon@duvalschools.org
Coming soon:
Fri, Apr 24– 8thgrade Military Ball
Wed, Apr 29– 4thquarter progress reports.
Fri, May 1– 8thgrade trip to Islands of Adventure/Universal Studios.
Thurs, May 21– Memorial Day Ceremony at 1000.
Fri, May 22– 8thgrade promotion/award ceremony at 0900.
Mon, May 25– Schools closed for Memorial Day.
Tues, May 26- Sports Awards for 6th and 7th graders at 2:00pm.
Thurs, May 28– Last day of school, dismissal at 12:25pm.
Tamara Roper
Proud Principal
JSMAL