Meridian Junior High School

MJHS Rock, Paper, Scissors Tournament 🎉✋✊✌️

This week, our Student Council hosted a school-wide Rock, Paper, Scissors tournament for students and staff. On Thursday, challengers faced off throughout the day, with the top 8 advancing to Friday morning’s finals.

👏 Congratulations to Kaitlyn A., our MJHS Rock, Paper, Scissors Champion!

A big thank you to our Student Council members and Mrs. Hoefle for organizing such a fun activity for our school community!

Welcome back from the Health Services Team!

Contact information and important forms may be found here on the district webpage: https://www.meridian223.org/page/health-services

Dear Families,

Our Transportation Department has been hard at work preparing for the upcoming school year by running routes and gathering necessary information. If you have registered your student and submitted a transportation request form, you should have received a call from your assigned bus driver.

If you have not received a call, please reach out to the Transportation Department at 815-645-2230 ext. 7011 or 7013, and we will get back to you as soon as possible.

Thank you for your patience and cooperation as we work to ensure a smooth start to the school year.

Please see the link for MJHS open house information.

https://bit.ly/45g9wXx

Parents and Guardians, as you are preparing for the upcoming school year, please take note of the health requirements for these grade levels! You can contact Kayla Richolson, Director of Health Services, at kricholson@mail.meridian223.org with any questions. Forms may be accessed here: https://www.meridian223.org/documents/departments/health-services/health-forms/285024

Office Public Summer Hours: 🏫 District Office Public Summer Hours 📅 May 30–August 8 | Monday–Thursday | 8:00 AM – 2:00 PM ❌ Closed June 19 & July 4 🔁 Normal hours resume August 13 📍 Building Summer Office Hours Highland Elementary School May 27–June 2: Mon–Thurs | 8:00 AM – 2:00 PM June 3–July 29: By appointment only Monroe Center Elementary School May 27–June 5: Mon–Thurs | 8:00 AM – 2:00 PM June 9–July 31: By appointment only Meridian Jr. High School June: Mon–Thurs | 8:00 AM – 2:00 PM July: By appointment only Stillman Valley High School May 30–August 8: Mon–Thurs | 8:00 AM – 2:00 PM 📅 View the 2025–2026 District Calendar: 🔗 www.meridian223.org/page/district-calendars 💬 For our Spanish-speaking families needing help with registration: Para nuestras familias de habla hispana que necesitan ayuda con el proceso de inscripción para el año escolar 2025-2026, por favor comuníquense con: Margarita Alvarez 📧 malvarez@mail.meridian223.org 📞 815-645-2230 ext. 4304 | 📱 779-537-4294 📌 Please call to schedule an appointment. 📌 Por favor llamar para hacer una cita. 🚌 Reminder: All students must be registered by June 13 to ensure transportation can be properly coordinated. 📆 Es importante que los estudiantes estén registrados antes del 13 de junio para poder coordinar adecuadamente las rutas de transporte.

🎉 Congratulations to the MJHS 8th Grade Class of 2029! 🎓 We are so proud of each of you and can’t wait to watch you soar in high school and beyond. Your hard work, resilience, and growth this year have been inspiring! A special thank you to Mrs. Jen Speakes, Mrs. Tara Jepsen, and Mrs. Margarita Alvarez for their incredible organization and planning. Your efforts made last night’s promotion ceremony truly unforgettable. ❤️

Meridian CUSD #223 is seeking a Choir Teacher (grades 6-12) for the 25-26 School Year. Please visit us at www.meridian223.org to apply.

Rounding out our Staff Appreciation Week, we would like to thank our principals and administration! Your support, guidance, and vision allows our students and staff to thrive - Thank you!

Continuing our Staff Appreciation Week . . . it's time to thank our School Counselors and Health Services Department! The extra support that these caring professionals provide to our students is crucial to their success and well-being. Thank you, today and always!

Meridian CUSD #223 is seeking the following positions for the FY26 school year. Please view posting and apply online at meridian223.org.

Join the fun for our annual Meridian Wellness 5K! Open to the entire Meridian 223 community. #MeridianWellness Sign up link: https://forms.gle/m9fgK4G5QbUB8unB6

📣 MJHS Summer School is here!🌞📚 Join us June 9th–June 20th from 8:00 AM to 11:00 AM for a fun and focused summer learning experience! Current 5th, 6th, and 7th grade students will participate in reading, writing, and math instruction, along with exciting enrichment courses to keep minds active and curious. ✏️📖➕ 🚌Transportation is available — just let us know you need it! Don’t miss out — a great way to stay sharp, have fun, and connect with friends this summer! ☀️ Click here to register by Friday, May 9th: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSf2YwEGVskyEqOXscDb3T2I5WGEd81Z4lPP9MBesTUqVkUEvQ/viewform?usp=dialog

Congratulations to the MJHS Wrestling Team on a Fantastic Season! Our team had an incredible year—taking 1st place at Regionals, sending 9 wrestlers to Sectionals, and having 2 qualify for State! A huge shoutout to 8th graders Tyler Bell and Bradley Bankes, who both placed 4th at State this weekend! Congrats to these young men on their impressive accomplishments this season! We also want to recognize the MJHS students who qualified for state wrestling tournaments through their clubs—we can’t wait to hear how they did this weekend! Way to go, MJHS wrestlers—we’re proud of all of you! #WeAreMCUSD223

Dear MJHS Families, After numerous calls, emails, and efforts to adjust Monday’s game schedule to allow families to support the high school girls' basketball team, we were unable to find an alternative date that worked for both Polo and us. However, Polo has agreed to move our game times up by an hour to help accommodate everyone. Here is the updated schedule for Monday's 6th-8th grade girls' basketball games: -Games will now begin at 3:00 PM. -7th and 8th grade games will still be played at MJHS. The 7th grade game will start at 3 PM, with 8th grade immediately following. -6th grade will depart from school at 2:00 PM to travel to Polo and play at 3 PM at Centennial Elementary School. Parents should park in the south parking lot and enter through Door 2 (not the main entrance). We understand this isn’t a perfect solution, but it is the best option available. We appreciate your flexibility and support. Please reach out to Mrs. Jepsen if you have any questions.

Highland is excited to meet our next year's kindergarteners! We are hosting a Kinder Kick-Off on March 18 and March 20th! Please see the attachment for more information.

Meridian CUSD 223 is hosting a preschool screening for children ages 3-5 years old who live within the Meridian district. Children must be 3 years old by the screening date. Please call Highland Elementary at 815-645-2230 to schedule. There are a few appointments left!

We are excited to see all of our incoming 6th grade students tomorrow night! Please bring your student's Chromebook in order to select electives for the 2025-2026 school year. The elective presentation will be in the large gym. See you tomorrow night!

We are excited to see all of our incoming 6th grade students tomorrow night! Please bring your student's Chromebook in order to select electives for the 2025-2026 school year.