School Info

WELCOME

"We Create Innovative Thinkers for a Dynamic World"

The William J. Johnston Middle School serves grade six, grade seven and grade eight students in the Colchester School District. Our student population is approximately five-hundred students with eighty faculty members and staff, dedicated to providing our students with a positive, engaging learning environment. Our WJJMS Handbook is below, and our Chromebook Handbook is available in our PowerSchool Portal for your convenience.

School Mascot 

The Puma  

School Colors

Royal Blue and White  

Core Values

Be Honest
Be Respectful
Be Responsible
Be Safe

Motto  

"Puma Pride!" and "Respect for All"   

HANDBOOKS

Student Handbook 
Our William J. Johnston Student Handbook is available for your reference inclusive of the dress code policy, cell phone policy, homework policy, etc.

Chromebook Handbook
The Chromebook Handbook is located in the PowerSchool Parent Portal. We are a 1:1 school and will provide each student with a Chromebook for use at school and at home (with parent permission). The policies, procedures, and information within this document apply to all Chromebooks used at William J. Johnston by students, staff, or guests.

CAREER EXPLORATION PROGRAM

Every few years generally in May or June, WJJMS holds its Career Day. Several people in a variety of careers with varying degrees of education and training come to speak about their works to our Grade eight students. Career Day is a great opportunity to give back to the community by inspiring our younger residents in hopes that they may choose a path that would suit their individual needs and interests, for their futures. Participants are invited for refreshments immediately following. If you'd like to inquire about Career Day, please call School Counseling at 860-537 -2313.

CONFERENCES

Each year, we hold Parent Conferences during the month of October and March on an as-needed basis. One of three letters are sent to families, a conference is needed, a meeting is already scheduled, or a conference is not needed at this time.

DIGITAL BACKPACK

Each Friday, the Digital Backpack page is published with links to upcoming school event information, announcements and/or community flyers. A School Messenger notification is sent to parents and guardians with a link to our Digital Backpack page. Select what you'd like to see more information about to stay current. We print the Digital Backpack for families who prefer to have hard-copies and hand them to the students to bring home. If you would like to sign up for this service, please call our office at 860-537-2313.

GRADE 5 FIELD TRIP TO WJJMS

Students who will transition to WJJMS from grade five have an opportunity to visit William J. Johnston in June during their regular school day. They will meet our Administration, all grade six Academic and Applied Academic teachers. The incoming grade six students travel to classrooms and view other common areas, guided by our William J. Johnston School Ambassadors and our School Counselors.

HOMEWORK PAGES

Team teachers post daily homework assignments that are displayed in the Puma Portal Google Classroom pages.

MEET & GREET NEW FAMILY BREAKFAST

Each September we hold a Meet & Greet for families new to Colchester. The Meet & Greet New Family Breakfast is a wonderful opportunity for parents, care-givers and their students to become acquainted with members of the school and town community. Representatives from the Parks & Recreation Department, Colchester Police and Fire Departments, Department of Children and Families, Youth Services Bureau, PTO along with our William J. Johnston Administrators and Faculty are all on-hand.

MEET THE TEAM

Each summer, a few days before school begins, our William J. Johnston Middle School Teams invite grade six, seven and eight students to come and visit their classrooms to become acquainted with the areas that they will frequent. Grade six students are assisted with lockers at that time.

OPEN HOUSE

Parents have an opportunity to meet with teachers to learn about their curricular plans for the school year. Open House generally falls within the first two weeks of the start of the school year. Parents and care-givers are invited to come and tour their student's classrooms. The PTO is generally on-hand to introduce themselves and share about their generous contributions to student learning.

PICTURE DAY

Picture Day usually takes place within the first few weeks of school. All William J. Johnston Middle School students are required to have their pictures taken regardless of whether or not they will be purchasing a picture package. Picture retakes are generally set for mid-October. A Class Group Photo is taken of the entire grade eight class and available for purchase as well.

PLACEMENT/PARENT INPUT (OPTIONAL)

Team Placement input online forms are made available to parents/care-givers in May. Our placement procedures are designed to match students to appropriate learning environments. Placement decisions are based on extensive knowledge of teacher style, classroom design, student needs, and information shared by parents and caregivers. We encourage parent feedback regarding any special consideration that should be made concerning placement or perceptions of the most appropriate learning environment.  

POWERSCHOOL PARENT PORTAL

Welcome to PowerSchool! The portal opens mid-August. You may access the PowerSchool Parent Portal from our school website's home-page at any time under Quick Links. PowerSchool helps our school access and maintain student, faculty and schedule information. PowerSchool is a database application that runs on a server, which is the center of your student's information system. PowerSchool uses the Internet to facilitate student information management and communication among school administrators, teachers and parents.

The PowerSchool Parent Portal is a tool that is integrated into the PowerSchool Student Information System (PSIS) that is specifically developed for parents and students. The PowerSchool Parent Portal gives parents access to information including attendance, grades, detailed assignment descriptions, school bulletins and their Student Forms which are there for you to update as necessary.

Everyone stays connected: Students stay on top of assignments, parents are able to participate more fully in their student's progress, and teachers can use their grade book to make decisions on what information they want to share with parents and students. See the PowerSchool page for the instructions to Create an Account with App directions. Our District Code is HPWB. If you need assistance, please feel free to call the school office at 860-537-2313.

POWERSCHOOL FORMS

Each summer we ask that parents and guardians update their Student Information forms. There are several forms to review and update (health information, emergency contacts, legal guardian, home language, student contact information, permissions, transportation, the parent/student handbook acknowledgement and the technology form). Please log into your PowerSchool Account and click on each form to ensure that we have the most up-to-date information. Call the office if you need assistance at 860-537-2313 and we will be happy to assist you.

PROGRAM OF STUDIES

Our William J. Johnston Middle School Program of Studies is available for your reference.

PUMA NEWSLETTER

We publish our William J. Johnston Puma Newsletter monthly, where you may read about current student activities and achievements, view notes from our Administration and Faculty and learn about future events and festivities within our school community. Our Puma Newsletter link is included in our weekly Digital Backpack. However, if you'd like a hard-copy, please call our office at 860-537-2313.