8th Grade Promotion Details for Families

As we live in two worlds, delivering content and engaging with our 8th graders this year while preparing them for the high school transition, we wanted to be proactive and share some details about June.

Providing support for four 8th grade promotion ceremonies between Sherman Oaks, CSI, Monroe, and Rolling Hills, CUSD has assigned Wednesday, June 11th at 11:00 am as our promotion ceremony date and time.

While this is a special event for all, we do our best to create balance and grounding for everyone.  Some students are undoubtedly excited to be celebrated, while others are apprehensive to walk across our stage.  Some students are eager to leave the comforts of RHMS, others worry about the gravity of high school.

Having experienced promotion ceremonies as an administrator and as a parent, I believe it is important to remember that 8th graders are "closer" to elementary school than college.  They may benefit from an additional hug or two, just as we as parents and guardians may at this time =)

Families, as we start to determine details of our promotion, we want to share with you the following:

You may wish to mark your calendars:

• 8th grade BBQ after school from 2:15 to 3:45 on Wednesday, June 4th
  • The 8th Grade BBQ is still set for Wednesday, June 4th immediately after school. Campus will be cleared of 6th and 7th graders as we serve a BBQ to our 8th graders, play music, take photos in a photo booth, encourage yearbook signings, play volleyball, and the like.  This will be open to those 8th graders who are eligible as we take into account behaviors, attendance, and grades.
• 8th grade promotion from 11:00 to noon on Wednesday, June 11
  • As coordinating an event of this magnitude, with just under 300 students and what we expect will be 1000 guests is complex, we will have two to three days of promotion practice. Students need to be present our last week of school on Monday and Tuesday.
  • Students are to arrive on time daily, particularly the final two days of school as we tweak last minute details.
  • There are no limits to the numbers of guests students may have attend. We ask that everyone is mindful of parking and seating and that during our 8th grade ceremony, we also have 600 students in their classrooms.  We are balancing a lot and are eager to see the coordination and cooperation of so many.
  • The front gates, adjacent to the office, are the only gates we will initially open for guests. They open between 10:15 and 10:30 am.  The exact time will be shared as the date draws nearer.  Our ceremony starts promptly at 11:00 am. It is expected to last 45 minutes.
  • Names are read in an alphabetical order by an array of staff members who have volunteered to do so.
  • Our promotees will then proceed towards the gym, where families may meet.  Excusal of all 8th graders is at that time and through the double gates adjacent to the gym.
  • We ask that audience members are mindful of umbrellas and noisemakers and other items that may be distractions.  We want every child to feel valued.
  • Dress for the event, as we'll share with our 8th graders, is to be appropriate for an event of this nature, anything from business casual to semi-formal.
  • Should younger siblings at RHMS wish to attend, we will need you to contact Ms. Ray at meray [at] campbellusd.org by Wednesday, June 4th, so that we may properly excuse them.

So that our students are aware of details, Mrs. Marty and I have already visited all 8th grade classrooms prior to Spring Break to share expectations and answer any questions students may have had leading into May and June.  Our 8th graders are aware of grade, attendance, and behavioral expectations.  Should we have concerns about your child specifically, we will contact you in the coming weeks.