Mena School District

4,000 face masks for students and staff will be distributed for the 20/21 school year that begins on August 24th. Each student, age 10 & above, will receive face masks for use on campus. These face masks will become the responsibility of the student. The Centers for Disease Control has info on how to wear & care for masks. Just follow the link. https://www.cdc.gov/…/prevent…/diy-cloth-face-coverings.html

What a nice surprise from the Union Bank of Mena! Our staff has been working a huge amount of hours in preparation for the first day of school on Monday. We so appreciate your support. Pizza was delivered to all campuses for lunch today.

4,000 face masks arrived at Mena Public Schools on Friday. They will be distributed to students and staff for the 20/21 school year that begins on August 24th. Each student, age 10 & above, will receive face masks for use on campus. These face masks will become the responsibility of the student. The Centers for Disease Control has info on how to wear & care for masks. Just follow the link. https://www.cdc.gov/…/prevent…/diy-cloth-face-coverings.html

If you missed the Chromebook pickup on Wednesday and Thursday, there will be stations set up before the bell Monday morning. You need to will visit all three stations before the bell rings. Station #1 -- Chromebook Pickup will be in the library with Mrs. Ashcraft. Station #2 -- Schedules and Information packets will be at the Bearcat head with Mrs. Jackson. Station #3 -- Parking Permits will be at the front of the math hall with Mrs. Warner.

The Sr. High Bearcats will scrimmage Mansfield Friday night at Bob Carver Bearcat Stadium beginning at 7pm... GO BEARCATS!!!

ATTENTION PARENTS! Please daily check your students for symptoms of Covid 1) Do they have a cough? 2) Any difficulty Breathing? 3) Sore throat? 4) A Loss of taste or smell? 5) Had contact with a positive Covid-19 person in the last 14 days? 6) A fever? If any of these are a yes, please keep your child home, notify the school and monitor your child. They should be fever free for 48 hours before returning to school.

Please remember that traditional students can pick up schedules & blended students can pick up Chromebooks on Friday 8/21 from 8:30am-11:30am & 1:00pm-3:00pm at the Middle School Bus Loop..GO BEARCATS!!!!

Attention All Mena High School Students Please have your parent or guardian fill out the on-line lunch application, do not fill it out yourself. Your parent/guardian should be listed as the applicant, not the student. It does affect the status of your meal application. If you have already submitted an on-line application, DO NOT resubmit or do another application. If you have any questions regarding your application, please have your parent call Sherry Newman at our Administration Office.

Mena Public Schools—Ticket Sales for 2020-21 The Mena Public School District has announced plans for sales of tickets for athletic events for the 2020-21 school year. Due to Covid-19, the Governor and Arkansas Department of Health has put a limit on the number of people who can attend indoor and outdoor activities. These restrictions are not the desire of anyone in the district. However, for the health and safety of our players, coaches and fans, we MUST adhere to the guidelines set by the ADH and Governor. We are fortunate, at this time, to be able to continue with our sporting events. Mena Public Schools will adhere to the Indoor and Outdoor venue guidelines set forth by the Arkansas Department of Health. Anyone over 10 years of age must wear a face covering at all times. Single-household family groups can sit together but must be 6-feet apart from other groups or individuals. Seating areas will be marked such that every other row is unoccupied. Anyone found not to be in compliance with the regulations set forth by the ADH will be asked by an administrator or security officer to comply. Refusal to follow directives will result in removal from the premises. Due to the new guidelines, MPS will no longer allow FREE ADMISSION passes other than those issued by the Arkansas Athletics Association. Ticket Prices: Per game admission is $5.00 per person. Football Games: -Bearcat Stadium Capacity-680 Football Players, Band, and Cheer will be issued a certain number of redeemable tickets first. Then there will be a limited number of tickets available to the general public (no more than 2 tickets per person) that can be picked up at the Central Office the day of the event from (8:00am to 3:45pm). Volleyball Games (7th-12th grade):--UBC Capacity-240 Volleyball players will be issued a certain number of redeemable tickets first. Then there will be a limited number of tickets available to the general public (no more than 2 tickets per person) that can be picked up at the Central Office the day of the event from (8:00am to 3:45pm). Football and Volleyball Visitors: a limited number of tickets will be provided for the visiting team at the beginning of each week. State officials are not allowing band and cheer to attend away games. (The same will happen when the Bearcats/Ladycats go on the road—we will get the ticket information out ASAP for these events.) Unfortunately, during this time, tailgating before athletic events is NOT ALLOWED. Attendees will NOT be allowed on the track, field, or court at any time before, during or after the event. Immediately after the event, fans need to exit the facility. During multi-game nights, parents are encouraged to exit the facility when their child’s game is over to allow room for other parents/family the opportunity to watch their child’s game. Hopefully, we can complete our seasons as scheduled and YOU can help by supporting our efforts. GO LADYCATS and BEARCATS! tagTag

Mena Middle School & Holly Harshman Elementary Open House Videos are now available for you to watch. Just click on the link below to get started. Mena High Schools video will be added as soon as it is available. LDE has sent their videos to the individual students on SeeSaw & they will not be available online. https://docs.google.com/…/2PACX-1vRxBBzTmS50mV_Kz9ceNv…/pub…

LDE Drop Off & Pick Up Times and Procedures We will accept K-2 car rider students starting at 7:20am each morning. The K-2 Drop off/pick up will be the same route as last year. K-2 car rider pick up will be split into 2 groups. The first group will begin picking up at 2:45pm. The 2nd group will begin picking up at 3:05pm. Teachers have notified families about times and other drop off and pick up information via internet and mail. The Pre-K drop off/pick up needs to turn on Gann street then turn left on Missouri then left on North Reine street then right on Bolton. When Pre-K is leaving they need to turn LEFT on North Reine. This will help with traffic congestion and make traffic run more smoothly for everyone.

Mena Golf will be playing at the Degray Lake State Park Golf Course against teams from around the area on Thursday at 4:00pm. The Mena Sr. Ladycats will host Van Buren in a benefit game at 5:30pm Thursday in the Union Bank Center.

Joe Bunch & James Davis walk you through bus safety policies for the start of the 20/21 school year. The first day of school is Monday, August 24th. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1sNMmvbQBiZu3Ru1mYSlLPeLNrIJCoY4K/view?usp=sharing

The Mena School Board conducted their August meeting on Tuesday Evening in the Mena High School Library. The meeting began with the approval of the minutes from the July meeting & a brief Superintendents Report. In new business the board approved the 2019/2020 inventory list. Assistant Superintendent Lee Smith spoke on changes in the District Policies Manual. A majority of the changes revolved around recently released changes in Title IX requirements. The changes were accepted. Administrators from LDE, HHE, MMS, MHS & PCVA then spoke on changes in the handbook as well as the reentry plan at each campus. All were minor & mostly related to Covid 19. The changes & re-entry plans were unanimously approved. Little to no changes have been made to the extracurricular/athletic handbook, coaches handbook & athletic administration guidebook. The few changes had to do with Covid policies & all were approved. Mr. Shane Torix then presented point of contact information to the board. He updated them on Covid policies & the reporting procedure. No action was required. Mr. Danny Minton then gave an update on projects around the district of which Included the installation of new equipment in the kitchen at HHE, a walk in cooler at MMS, new track fencing at Bearcat Stadium and painting of faded red awnings at the high school. Minton also happily reported that the district has passed all inspections leading up to the school year. The board approved a year end transfer of $362,767.22 to the building fund. These funds were designated for projects in 19- 20. These funds will be transferred back as those projects are completed. Personnel was the final item on the agenda. The board accepted the retirement of Tammy Taylor & the resignation of Terry Dino Cabello as well as Julie Gordon. The board also approved the hiring of Heather Catlett for MHS History & Kristi Cogburn for MHS/MMS Choir. The next meeting of the Mena School Board will be held on Tuesday, September 22nd

The Mena Bearcats & Ladycats competed at the Waldron Country Club earlier today. They will play again on Thursday at Degray. https://www.menaschools.org/o/athletics/athletics…

BLENDED STUDENTS! Chrome Book check out will be on Wednesday, August 19th. Here is the schedule for the following grade levels: 3rd grade- 8:30-9:30 4th grade- 10:00-11:00 5th grade- 1:00-2:00

Changes have been made to the Jr. High & Sr. High volleyball schedules.. Click the link https://www.menaschools.org/o/athletics/athletics

A message from Mr. David Maxwell!

MMS Blended Students Next Steps Make sure you have completed the Blended Application. Complete the School Registration for new and returning students. Call the MMS office if you need a “snap code” Complete the Online Meal Application, this helps the school receive funding regardless of those that qualify. Watch our Virtual Open House to get information about MMS. Come by Mena Middle School Bus Loop: (Wednesday or Friday 8:00- 11:30, 1:00-3:00) sign the Parent/Student Compact for Blended Learning** sign the Mena Public Schools Chromebook Acceptable Use agreement** Sign the Parent Acknowledgement and Permission sheet.** sign or pick up any grade specific paperwork. Receive the checked out Chromebook for the student. Monday, August 24th login to Google classroom and start working. Students check your email and classroom daily. ** IF you can print and sign these documents early, it will speed up the process.** Schedules Available! Student Schedules are available online in HAC. For a printed copy of the Schedule, drive by the Middle School Bus Loop on Wednesday, August 19th from 8:00 to 10:00 to pick one up.

Student Schedules are available online in HAC. For a printed copy of the Schedule, drive by the Middle School Bus Loop on Wednesday, August 19th from 8:00 to 10:00 to pick one up.