Over the past few weeks, misinformation has been circulated regarding our school lunch policy and our community deserves the facts. Firstly, no student has received a partial lunch during the 2019-20 school year. No member of the 9-R team has employed shaming tactics toward students. And, the District maintains compliance with National School Lunch and National School Breakfast program federal guidelines.
In 2015, the district faced a critical issue as it ended the school year with over $18,000 in meal charge debt. Because school district Food & Nutrition Services departments are an independent enterprise, they are intended to be self-supporting. When a deficit occurs, the District needs to use general funds to offset losses, funds that should be designated for classrooms. It has been 9-R’s focus to minimize impacts on educational funding to maximize programs and educational resources for our students.
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It's time for the Knotting Family Reunion and newlywed Christine Franklin is eager to show off her husband Freddie to the family she hasn’t seen in years. The joyful reunion quickly turns sour though when Aunt Gretchen, Cousin Rachel, and Cousin Stefan are all murdered.

The members of the Knotting Family are dropping like flies, and Christine seems to be next in line to become a victim! To make matters worse, a terrible storm has trapped all of the guests inside. It’s up to Freddie to catch the murderer and save his blushing bride. After all, he is a detective — well, a mall security guard turned wannabe detective, anyway. Who is trying to wipe out the Knotting family?

Our production is student lead! Teacher Mike Jordan and Technical Director Ms. Sam make a great team. Mr. Jordan is the Acting Director and teaches the kids stage presence, blocking, projecting, light effects, soundboard, and a wide range of other skills. There are 28 actors in this years play. Ms. Sam is in charge of Tech teaching the students, set design, building, painting, props management, costume design, stage makeup, and set changes. There are 15 students in the Tech Club. The Escalante Middle School students are taught how to be self-driven and function as a team. There are 15 students working on Tech which leads to more than 40 kids working on the production of this year's play. Drama Club students will perform 6 shows in 3 days at the beginning of March. Three shows will be presented to each grade level during the school day and then the play will be presented at three evening productions for friends and family. Students will be running the entire production from soundboard to stage managers. It is a true testament to the students' and teachers' perseverance to offer a production of this caliber. Please join us on March 10th,11th, or 12th in the Escalante Cafetorium. Doors open at 6:30 PM and the show starts at 7:00 PM. Can’t wait to see you there!
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It's that time of year again where many students and family members are coming down with various illnesses. In the schools, we have diagnosed cases of influenza, strep throat, as well as common colds. A rule of thumb is to keep kids home from school with fevers greater than 100 degrees, and students should be fever free for 24 hours without the use of medications. Please do not send kids to school that are vomiting or have diarrhea until symptom free for 24 hours. For coughs and colds, students that are coughing consistently, and pose a risk of infecting others, should remain home until coughing subsides.
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Eagle Wrestling co-hosting Durango Wrestling Invite on Saturday, Feb. 8th at MMS. Can you help? SEE BELOW FOR INFORMATION ON THE INVITE LABELED COPY OF HOSPITALITY LETTER

Eagle Wrestling is open to all 6th, 7th, and 8th-grade students currently enrolled at Escalante Middle School. Practice begins Tuesday, January 21 after school 3:30 - 5:30 PM for the first two weeks, then will be communicated to athletes after that. Introductory, intermediate, and advanced skills welcome! Bring practice clothes and wrestling shoes. Wrestlers practice and compete at similar weight and we strive to build better athletes and character. If you are interested at any level, we want you to be a part of this team! Text Coach Lopez at 970-946-3362 for information.

All athletes must complete and submit a sports packet, including a sports physical, prior to competing. See the packet below.
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Eagle Girls Basketball is open to all 7th and 8th-grade girls interested in playing basketball. The first practice is Tuesday, December 10 at 3:30 PM (See below). Refer to this announcement for changes and updates as they become available. The game schedule is attached below.

Athletes need to come with the completed physical form (see below), athletic clothing, and clean athletic shoes.

Eagle Girls Basketball starts Tuesday, December 10

Week 1 Schedule:
Tuesday, 12/10: 330 - 6:00 PM
Wednesday, 12/11: 330 - 6:00 PM
Thursday, 12/12: 330 - 6:00 PM
Friday, 12/13: 330 - 5:00 PM

Please contact Coach Duce with any questions or concerns. educe@durangoschools.org or call 247-9490 Ext. 2822

Coach Fitzpatrick at DHS has generously given us access to discounts for athletic wear in the high school team store. (See the link below).
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Dear Parents,

We have been seeing some concerning patterns among our secondary students and I wanted to bring to your attention some of our findings. Over the past few weeks, there has been an increase in reports of students sharing inappropriate pictures of themselves with friends.
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Parents/guardians who drop students off or pick them up at Escalante Middle School are asked to NOT use the driveway to the parking lot, but instead, enter the PURPLE CURB PARENT CIRCLE. In an effort to keep children safe at all times, please do not use the parking lot or bus lanes for pick-up or drop-off purposes. We have seen many near misses when our bus drivers are attempting to navigate around additional vehicles obstructing the bus lanes as they continue through and exit our parking lot. It is extremely dangerous for students to cross the parking lot. More so, other cars dropping students off along the curb in the parking lot are obstructing bus lanes. For the safety of all and efficient transportation protocols, please use the purple parent circle to drop students off or pick them up at Escalante. Thank you for your help in this matter.
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The Durango School District 9-R Board of
Education is now accepting applications from persons
residing in Director District A who are interested in
serving on the Board of Education from the date of
appointment until the 2021 regular biennial school
election.
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Each month, colleagues nominate colleagues who deserve an extra round of applause for their amazing work in and around the district. The following are the winners from December:
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Durango School District 9-R is proud to provide our students with a comprehensive educational system that promotes student success, academic achievement and personal growth in appropriate and safe learning environments. Our hard-working students, dedicated teachers and supportive staff have helped to keep our graduation rates and other student success measures above state and national averages.
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