Hello, Smallville!

I hope this week treated you well and that you have something fun planned for the weekend.

On campus, we tackled our first STAAR exam of the season, and I couldn’t be prouder of our students and staff. Testing days can be long, but our Cougars and staff showed up with their usual upbeat attitude and positive energy, it truly makes a difference.

This week, we also celebrated our phenomenal Assistant Principals and our Librarian during their appreciation week. I truly couldn’t do this work without my team. Mr. Hendricks, Mrs. Zamarripa, and Mr. Poehl embody excellence in everything they do. Their leadership, commitment, and dedication help us stay aligned with our campus goals and foster the strong, student-centered culture we’re so proud of.

And a huge thank you to Mrs. Sylvia, our incredibly creative and passionate Librarian. From applying for grants to bring us the book vending machine to launching our Battle of the Books team, she’s always thinking outside the box to help our Cougars grow as readers and thinkers.

As always, I’m beyond grateful to call Small my home. It’s an honor to walk into a school filled with warmth, care, and a staff that goes above and beyond to make sure every Cougar is seen, supported, and loved.

Wishing you all a beautiful weekend!

Stay present, Cougars,
Bedford

We’re buzzing with excitement over here! 🎉 Our annual end-of-year FUNdraiser is shaping up to be better than ever, and we want YOU to be a part of it! Mark your calendars for May 9th, 2025, after school—this is the event of the year, and your students won’t want to miss it!

How can you get involved?

🎁 Donate a raffle item! 🎁

Just like last year, instead of giving out prizes at each booth, we’re going all in with a RAFFLE! The kids will have a chance to win some super cool prizes (no more junky toys that end up in the trash 😅). It’s simple—just donate something off our Amazon wishlist and have it shipped directly to Small. Easy, breezy, and your donation will make a huge impact on making this event unforgettable!

The kids are telling me there are some items they wish they could win that are not on Amazon. If you would be willing to grab one (or more) of these items and donate it to the school that would kick this event to the next level!

• Pink Palm Puff Hoodie

• Life Size Cut out of Libran James

• Any of the items on our Amazon Wishlist

• Ifly gift Card or gift card to any of the fun to do things in Austin for Pre-teens\teens

You get the idea, the more items we have to raffle the more kids can win!

Stay tuned for more info on donations, sponsorships, volunteering, and ticket sales—coming your way soon!

If you have something else to donate you know the kids will LOVE—or have a connection to someone who might be willing to set up an activity at Splashfest, please reach out to Jennifer.newell@austinisd.org. Let’s make this the best Splashfest ever! 💦🎉

Lost or damaged charger? Here are three links where you can get a new charger for your Chromebook:

WALMART - https://bit.ly/walmartcharger ($12.99)

AMAZON - https://amzn.to/3XvCcYn ($8.99)

OFFICE DEPOT - https://bit.ly/officedepotcharger ($34.49)

ALL STUDENTS MUST HAVE A CHARGER FOR STAAR TESTING IN APRIL!

Clint Small Middle School Band & Orchestra

Instrument Discovery Day 2025
April 17 at Small MS

 Contact

Sign up times are for students who selected band or orchestra on their choice sheet.  If you are awaiting on a transfer, please wait until the transfer has been approved to sign up.  Don't worry they'll  be plenty of spots available.

Please review the available slots below by day and time and click on the button to sign up. Please only sign up for one day/time. Thank you!

Sign up link:   https://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090544AAAE2CA6FA7-52324178-small#/

Parents of 6th graders,

This is a reminder to make sure you start early to get an appointment at your doctor’s office for immunizations for the 7th grade school year (SY ’25-’26). The vaccines you will need are T-dap and meningococcal. These are required by Texas State law for students to be up to date with their immunizations coming into 7th grade. Once your student has received these vaccines, please submit the immunization record either via email or paper copy to the school nurse at Small Middle school. Thank you!

Immunization Requirements Quick Reference: 2025-2026 School Year Seventh Grade

• 3 doses of DPT, DTaP, DT, Td, Tdap with one dose given on/after the 4th birthday.

• 1 dose of Tdap is required within the last 5 years. (Td acceptable if pertussis is contraindicated)

• 3 doses of Polio with one on/after 4th birthday

• 2 doses of MMR with first dose on/after the 1st birthday

• 2 doses of Hepatitis A

• 3 doses of Hepatitis B*

• 2 doses of Varicella on/after 1st birthday (if the child has NOT had chickenpox)

• 1 dose of Meningococcal (MCV4 or MenACWY) on / after the 11th birthday**

You also have the right to be exempt from vaccines with the proof of an affidavit to be turned in every 2 years to the school nurse.  

Vaccination records can be turned in at the front office or emailed or faxed to the school nurse.     

Erin Clifford, BSN, RN (she/her)
School Nurse
Small Middle School 
phone: (512) 414-1543
Fax: (512) 841-6745
erin.clifford@austinisd.org

PTA Meeting & Bingo/Loteria Night 4/16

Next Wednesday, April 16 is our meeting to elect our slate of nominees for 25-26 officers.  Once we've adjourned the meeting we'll move on to the fun part- Loteria!  A pizza dinner will be provided for all in attendance so PLEASE rsvp here so we can get a headcount!

Meeting 5:30pm

Loteria 6:00pm

Spirit Night at The Hive

Get ready for dinner and a movie at The Hive!  We are buzzing about our next Spirit Night on Thursday, April 17 (no school the next day!) that will include a costume contest and showing of Wicked.  Don't miss this fun night defying gravity while supporting CSMS PTA!  

Save the Date

We have two events happening in May to wrap up the year!

• 5/13 Parent Education Talk- Managing Difficult Feelings: Practical Insights from Inside Out presented by Dr. Mandy Menzer

• 5/15 Final PTA Meeting- let's celebrate the end of a great year!

🐾Hello, Small families!

✈️Here is your invite to TRAVEL TO I T A L Y  and G R E E C E (With the Island of Crete!) or to 🇯🇵🏯J A P A N with our Small MS International "Global Cougars Fly" program in Summer 2026! 

 🖥️🌸ONLINE SPRING INFO MEETING April 9th @ 6:30 pm.

 ✍️SIGN UP FOR  M E E T I N G  O N L I N E  LINK: https://shorturl.at/Mfcwk

🐾 CURRENT, FUTURE, or FORMER Cougars and their families are ALL invited. 

***CLICK for FLYER--> https://tinyurl.com/273cwaal

🎥🍿Curious about our tours? Watch the linked videos below and see how much our students, parents, and siblings enjoy our amazing tours -all with first-rate curated itineraries and one all-inclusive cost!

* JAPAN 2023 https://tinyurl.com/2yftmwuu

* GALAPAGOS 2024 https://tinyurl.com/23f3qm4m

*THAILAND 2024 https://tinyurl.com/2a63odv8

*ITALY & FRANCE Spring Break 2025 https://tinyurl.com/29dsrj8n

* AUSTRALIA - Coming Up! June 2025

* GREECE & ITALY - June 2026 - YOUR CHANCE to join us!

* JAPAN - July 2026 - YOUR CHANCE to join us!

QUESTIONS? Email mariel.early@austinisd.org or chat with me @ 512-841-6700 Ext. 70774 after 2:30 pm.

🐾Go Global Cougars!

Mrs. Early is Small's longtime ESL Teacher, a language teaching specialist, a multiculturalism advocate, a world traveler herself, and a firm believer that travel opens our eyes to the world like few things in life and makes our children mindful of other people's cultures, values, and differences.

ENROLLMENT is NOW OPEN! Enroll with $95 to reserve your spot!

**Enroll by Sept. 22nd for $200 off.

*Repeat travelers, as usual, add an extra $100 off.

🇬🇷🇮🇹 GREECE & ITALY WEBSITE & ENROLLMENT: https://www.eftours.com/tour-website/2817051TA

🇯🇵 JAPAN WEBSITE & ENROLLMENT: https://www.eftours.com/tour-website/2805919DV

• Affordable bi-weekly or monthly plans. 

• Want to save up and pay in lump sums as you go? You can choose to do that too. 

• Free personal fundraising page for your student!

• Earn $1,000 EF scholarship!

These two itineraries were picked with a lot of thought put into them. Students (and adults!) will get to see so many iconic places on tour, including a great number of World Heritage Sites. The hands-on experiences chosen are great as well, the landmarks we'll visit, and the sights you'll see are all world-class: From the Island of Capri "faraglione" to the Acropolis, to swimming on Heraklion beaches in Crete, to stepping on Kyoto's most amazing temple - a national treasure itself, to visiting technology museums in Tokyo and Japanese gardens in Osaka, walking in the steps of Gladiators in the Colosseum and Roman Forum, or learning about how Pompeii got buried in ashes with Mount Vesuvius in the background, or stepping into Delphi and learning about oracles in Greece, it's going to be amazing!

Reach out any time with any and all questions, or to schedule a chat!

Mariel Early 

mariel.early@austinisd.org 

512-841-6700 Ext. 70774 / Conference: 2:30-4:00 pm

This section is for anything outside of Small that you might be interested in.

Please join us on Sunday, April 13th for a chance to meet and mingle AGS Parent Mingle

Please join us on Sunday, April 13th for a chance to meet and mingle with other AHS Academy for Global Studies parents and guardians!  

St. John Studios

705 W. St. John's Ave 78752

4:30-6:30 PM

Light bites and refreshments will be provided.

This free event is for parents and guardians (no students)

Please reach out to AGS Parent Board Member 

Heather Chasen by email for any questions

Heather@chasen.net