
Mrs. Dawn Hubbard has been in education for 22 years, currently teaching geography on 7 Black. She enjoys spending time with her family and going to all of her kids activities, for example, swim meets and baseball games. She also loves doing anything outdoors . . . fishing, walking, etc, as well as playing board games and cards. Some of her favorite foods are seafood and pizza, and she loves 100 Grand Bars, Twix, and M&Ms. One reason why she loves teaching is that she loves all the different personalities of her students because they are never the same, making every day a new adventure. Thanks Mrs. Hubbard for all that you do for HMS and our students. It is truly appreciated.


Mrs. Courtney Sellers, our HMS Art teacher, has been teaching for 9 years. In her spare time she loves spending time with her little gals, her dogs, and her husband. They love hiking and riding bikes. Food is tough for her, but an oat milk latte is the way to her heart. What she enjoys most about teaching is seeing the joy on students' faces when they create a masterpiece they didn't know they were capable of. Secondly, getting to connect and know who each of her students are. Mrs. Sellers goes above and beyond to support her students. Thanks for all that you do!


Mrs. Sue Thiems, an assistant in Mrs. Holcmann’s room has been working in education for over 20 years. In her free time, she enjoys reading, bike riding, walking, and working out. Some of her favorite “go tos” are Diet Dr. Pepper and Peanut M&Ms. One thing you may not know about Mrs. Sue Thiems is that she has tandem jumped out of an airplane! Wow! What she enjoys most about teaching is the look on the students face when they finally get something that was really had for them. Mrs. Thiems will be retiring at the end of this semester. We sure are going to miss her! Thanks for everything!


Congratulations to students that earned the Super Six Award for Team 6 Black in Nov/Dec!

Congratulations to our 6 Red Rock Award Winners:
Lilly Andrews (ELA), Brooke Inlow (Science), Curtis Turpin (VIP), Andrew Bohn (Soc Stud.). Missing: Natalie Chalfant (Math) & Phoebe Rogier (VIP)


The HMS Holiday Door Decorating Contest is underway!!! Here are a few of our wonderful 8th Graders hard at work!!!





HMS Parents,
I want to make you aware of a free opportunity offered by HSHS Athletes Advantage Sports Medicine. On Dec. 17 and 18, our Athletic Trainer, Erin Hoepfner, will be at HMS to offer baseline ImPact Concussion Testing during PE. Highland High School currently tests all of their athletes that are involved in a contact sport. We now have the opportunity to offer ImPact testing to our HMS students if you are interested.
This is program is free and completely optional. In order to participate, you must fill out and return the Release of Information form as well as the Medical Consent form. I will attach all paperwork as well as a letter and flyer from our Athletic Trainer explaining the program. We will also distribute the permission forms in PE to bring home.
If you are interested in having your child participate in this program, please fill out all paperwork and have your child turn permission releases into their PE teacher by Tuesday, Dec. 15. For students who are absent, we will provide another opportunity for testing after the new year. If you have any questions, please contact Erin Hoepfner at erin.hoepfner@hshs.org or our Athletic Director, Matt Herndon, at mherndon@highlandcusd5.org.
Please click on the following link for more information on ImPact testing as well as access to permission forms:
https://5il.co/noe7
https://5il.co/noe6
https://5il.co/noe8

See Attached Flyer:


A big thanks to Ms. Claire Geiger's classroom at HHS for creating our new Highland Bulldogs sign in our Gym/Pen hallway. Thanks to Mark for getting it put up! We absolutely love it!


Take a look at our HMS Staff Superlatives!!! Students and staff participated in the voting for each superlative award.
Congratulations to Mrs. Ham, Mrs. Taylor, Mrs. Sellers, Mrs. Scholl, Mrs. Geiger, Mrs. Coziar, Ms. Abbott, Mr. Frey, Mrs. Cummings, Miss Schrage, Ms. Braundmeier, and Mrs. Nave!


Team 8 Red Hour of Code


Team 8 Red's December service project - students are donating items needed by the Highland Food Pantry. These young ladies decorated the display case to highlight the project. We are hoping to get 100 items and reward the kiddos with prepackaged donuts the day before break.


7 Black Language Arts students worked hard to escape from Madame Safronie today by participating in an escape room based on “The Gift of the Magi.”





Mrs. Bernal's 7th Grade Science classes will be experimenting with frogs today and tomorrow!!!




Happy December birthday to these Team 8 Red folks! We know we are missing some kiddos in this picture...so we want to wish them all a very HAPPY BIRTHDAY!


Mary Jakel, an assistant in one of our SPED classrooms, has been working with students for over 20 years. In her spare time she enjoys spending time with her families and friends. Her favorite food is ice cream and she is a grandma of seven! What she enjoys most about working with students is making a difference in each kid's life and the impact she has had on them everyday. Thanks so much Mrs. Jakel, for the dedication and love you show your students. We are truly blessed to have you at HMS


Lindsay Felchner, our school psychologist, has been working with students at HMS for 4 years now. In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with her family and friends, especially her new nephew! She also loves being outside enjoying the wonderful fall weather! Ms. Felchner loves BBQ pulled pork and (pink) Starbursts! One thing you may not know about Ms. Felchner is that her grandma is one of the most important people in her life! She talks to her everyday and she has been like a second mom to her throughout her whole life. The best thing about working at HMS is working with and helping students from all different grade levels. She loves seeing students overcome challenges, accomplish their goals, develop confidence, and persevere even when the days are tough! Thanks so much Ms. Felchner for all that you do to help our kids succeed.


Chris Frey ,“supreme overlord” and “master” of 6 Red Social Studies, as his students call him, has been teaching for 6 years. In his spare time he enjoys playing sports, watching movies, and playing games with his kids and friends. Mr. Frey’s favorite food is Sushi and his favorite candy is Whatchamacallit. Something you may not know about Mr. Frey is that he is a pretty decent Skater. What he enjoys most about teaching is, “the money, the fame, and tormenting the children with his sense of humor.” Ha! Ha! Thank you Mr. Frey for all of your hard work and dedication to making Social Studies fun and challenging!


Sharon Schmitz has been teaching for over 22 years at HMS, serving as our 8th grade science teacher on Team 8 Red. In her spare time she enjoys Teaching yoga, running, walking, biking, hiking, and swimming. She also enjoys spending time with her family, especially her five but soon-to-be six grandkids. Mrs. Schmitz loves being outdoors enjoying nature especially when sitting on her back patio in the morning drinking her morning coffee. Dots are her favorite candy but she also enjoys anything with dark chocolate. Something you may not know about Mrs. Schmitz is that she can sing! What she enjoys most about teaching is seeing her students have those ah ha moments being creative and solving problems with projects in her classroom. Thanks Mrs. Schmitz for all of your hard work.


7Black celebrated Mag 7 and November Birthdays this morning!


