| INFO YOU NEED TO KNOW VISION At Elko Middle School, we are committed to soaring from good to great by cultivating a culture of educational excellence, innovation, and community engagement. Our vision is to empower ever student to reach their full potential—academically, socially, and personally. We will measure our success by:
MISSION Elko Middle School is committed to fostering a growth mindset by providing a high-quality education and data-driven instruction within a safe and inclusive environment. |
THE THEME FOR 2025-2026 | MISSION imPOSSIBLE |
ACADEMICS | Important Update: Pushing Through to Thanksgiving Break & The Importance of Diagnostic Assessments Eagles, The Thanksgiving break is fast approaching! We know that our students—and perhaps our staff—are starting to feel the natural fatigue that comes with this time of year. While we encourage students to get plenty of rest, we must all work together to push through these final weeks leading up to the holiday. The Critical Importance of Diagnostic Assessments We recently administered diagnostic assessments in Math. Unfortunately, we are finding that many students are not taking these assessments seriously and are rushing through them. These assessments are not graded and are not designed to be a reflection of a student's effort in a class. Instead, they are an essential tool used by teachers to gauge performance within a specific time frame to help drive instructional practices for the entire class. The Data Must Be Accurate: If students are not truly giving their best effort, the resulting data is inaccurate. Inaccurate data leads to instructional strategies that do not properly address your student's actual learning needs. Partnership for Success: Supporting Spring Assessments As we continue to prepare students for the significant spring state assessments, it is imperative that we have your support in reiterating the importance of these diagnostic tools. Please talk to your student about the value of doing their very best on all assessments, even the ones that are not for a grade. Our continued partnership will ensure we have the most precise, high-quality data to tailor instruction and give every student the best chance for academic growth and success. Thank you for your understanding and continued support as we work toward our shared mission! |
SCHOOL OPERATIONS ATTENDANCE UPDATES | ID Badges Please ensure that your students are wearing their ID badges every day. Students now need to scan their ID badges when they arrive to school late and when they have an early dismissal. Transportation/Bus Information If your student’s bus is running late in the morning, please call the Transportation Office at 804-261-9401. You can also download the Parent Portal Bus App to track the bus: https://www.henricoschools.us/page/parent-portal-bus-app Contacts/Pick-up Lists: Please make sure your student’s pick-up list is up to date by updating the Contacts listed in PowerSchool. You can do this by logging in to your Parent Portal account. Anyone coming to pick up a student for early dismissal MUST be listed in PowerSchool. If someone is not listed in PowerSchool, we will not be able to call the student down. EARLY DISMISSAL: The cut off time for early dismissals is 2:30 pm. REMINDER: Attendance flyer -English Attendance flyer- Spanish |
INTRAMURAL BASKETBALL | Elko is excited to announce that we are launching an Intramural Basketball League during the school day to reward students who demonstrate quality work ethic and proper behavior in the classroom. Games will be played on Monday and Friday mornings during Advisory. Please see below for important information regarding the league: Students will have the opportunity to fill out an interest form during their Advisory classes from November 17 – November 19. On the 19th, we will pull data to ensure that interested students have met the requirements for participation: No failing grades across all classes No suspensions from school Once the students identified as eligible to participate are determined, we will conduct a random lottery to select the 28 students who will participate. Any student who meets the requirements but is not selected will be added to a wait list in case selected students drop off. There will be 3 separate intramural seasons in marking period 2, marking period 3, and marking period 4. If your child is not selected for the first season, please encourage them to keep up their grades and demonstrate quality behavior so they are eligible for future marking periods. If your child is selected to participate, you will receive communication that includes the schedule for the intramural season. All games will be conducted during the school day. If you have any questions, please contact Mr. Murray at mjmurray1@henrico.k12.va.us. |
TECHNOLOGY | No technology updates at this time. |
STUDENT PICTURES | NEW Code Lookup Tool is now available. Simply scan the QR code and follow the directions to access your child's picture ordering gallery. No need to contact Customer Service for an access code! Student last name and Student ID number will be required for data security. Click here to view the Quick Lookup Flyer from Strawbridge. |
DEPARTMENT UPDATES
| NEW INFO Honor Roll and Perfect Attendance celebration will happen on Wednesday, November 19th during lunch. Henrico Christmas mother is now accepting applications for help with Christmas present for school aged or younger children in your house. For more information, please contact Dr. Swingen at jkswingen@henrico.k12.va.us or contact Henrico Christmas Mother directly at applications@henricochristmasmother.org or 804.236.9741. The Counseling Team 6th Grade-Ms. Fish stfish@henrico.k12.va.us 7th Grade - Counselor Rawls glrawls@henrico.k12.va.us 8th Grade - Jennifer Bolding-jbolding@henrico.k12.va.us EL and last names A-B - Dr. Swingen: jkswingen@henrico.k12.va.us |
SPECIALITY CENTER INFORMATION | Click here to visit the HCPS Specialty Center website. |
EVENTS | None at this time. |
COMMUNITY OPPORTUNITIES/ ELKO/SANDSTON COMMUNITY OPPORTUNITIES | |
FOOD DRIVE | Click here to view information about the Community In School Food Drive |
HENRICO CRISIS FUND | Henrico Crisis fund is officially back open! Families will have support up to $2,000 for eviction prevention through the Crisis Fund and it is available until funds run out. Please refer to the linked document for criteria and submission requirements. |
VOLUNTEER PROCESS
| If you would like to become a volunteer, please click here to complete the online volunteer/mentor application via the link below. |
UPCOMING CALENDAR EVENTS | November 26-28: School Closed-Thanks Giving Holiday December 22-31: Schools Closed-Winter Break January 1-2: Schools Closed-Winter Break |
ELKO ATHLETICS ELKO ATHLETICS DIRECTOR- Kendra Amis-
| Elko Athletics Week 11/17/25-11/21/25 at glance. |
RESOURCES SPOTLIGHT: ELKO & HCPS TOOLS FOR SUCCESS | |
ELKO ADMINISTRATIVE TEAM | Tyrus T. Lyles, Ed.D.-Principal-ttlyles@henrico.k12.va.us Taleesa Meeks- Associate Principal- tjmeeks@henrico.k12.va.us Corey Calder- Associate Principal- ctcalder@henrico.k12.va.us Akeela Tyson- Assistant Principal- altyson@henrico.k12.va.us Brandon Hardy- Assistant Principal- bahardy@henrico.k12.va.us Jennifer Jenkins-Administrative Aide- jrjenkin@henrico.k12.va.us Torre Siler-Administrative Aide- tsiler@hennco.k12.va.us Abby Thomas- Administrative Aide- arthomas@henrico.k12.va.us Frenchie Travis- Ad-ministrative Aide- fmtravis@henrico.k12.va.us Jocelyn Woodson- Administrative Aide-jrwoodson1@henrico.k12.va.us |
The Nest News-14th Edition- November 17-21, 2025
November 16, 2025
