AMS Weekly Bulletin for April 27 - May 1

Posted Date: 04/24/26 (05:39 PM)

April is Arab American History Month

May is Jewish American Heritage Month, and
Asian-American & Pacific Islander Heritage Month
May is Mental Health Awareness Month

PRINCIPAL'S MESSAGE

Good evening AMS families,

I hope this school bulletin finds you and your family well.

We had an amazing turnout at this year’s Open House on Wednesday! Thank you to all the families who were able to attend, and to our teachers for their hard work in preparing for the event.

We’ve just completed our first week of state testing. I want to thank all of our students for giving their best effort on the English Language Arts assessments. If your child missed any portion of the assessments, they will have an opportunity to complete them this coming week.

This week’s state testing is for 8th grade students only. Students will be taking the Science (CAST) assessment during their science classes.

Third quarter report cards are now available on Aeries and will be mailed home on Monday, so please keep an eye on your mailbox. There are 29 school days remaining. If your child is struggling in one or more classes, there is still time to make improvements.

Have a great weekend, and as always… Go Cobras!

Mr. Mapes

AMS School Calendar for 04/27 – 05/01

Release Times this Week

Monday, April 27 — School Ends at 3:30 pm

Tuesday, April 28 — School Ends at 3:30 pm

Wednesday, April 29 — School Ends at 2:20 pm

Thursday, April 30 — School Ends at 3:05 pm

Friday, May 1 — School Ends at 2:20 pm

Date(s)	Events & Happenings
April 27 - May 1	SBAC State Testing - CAST Science State Assessment for 8th Grader Only
April 30	Doughnuts & Popcorn w/ the Principal ( 8:30 am & 6:00 pm) AMS School Site Council Meeting (4:00 pm to 5:15 pm)
May 1	AMS Bands Cazadero Field Trip
May 4 - 8	SBAC State Testing - Math State Assessment for ALL Grades
May 7	AMS Spring Play in the AMS PAC (6:30 pm)
May 8 & 9	AMS Spring Play in the AMS PAC (7:00 pm)
May 10	Mother’s Day 2026
May 14	AMS Spring Play in the AMS PAC (4:00 pm)
May 15 & 16	AMS Spring Play in the AMS PAC (7:00 pm
May 25	Memorial Day - NO SCHOOL

IMPORTANT DATES - Click to view the 2025-26 event calendar

Help us to improve by taking the California Schools Parent Survey

This confidential parent/guardian survey gathers your feedback on our school’s climate, learning environment, and student supports. Your input helps us measure progress and plan future improvements for student academic success and overall well-being.

If you have already completed the survey, thank you! If not, please click the link below to begin. You can select your preferred language from the pull-down menu on the Welcome screen. This survey is specific to Albany Middle School . If you have children at other Albany Unified schools, you will receive separate links for those sites. Please click on the link below:

Albany Middle School

Selling & Buying of Items by Students

Students are not permitted to sell items to other students or purchase items from other students on campus at any time. This includes, but is not limited to, candy, soda, chips, and any caffeinated products such as energy drinks or caffeine tablets. Monetary transactions between students are not allowed at Albany Middle School.

NO Energy Drinks at AMS

Students are bringing Energy Drinks like Red Bull, Monster, Rockstar, and Celsius to school that contain high levels of caffeine. They are not allowed at Albany Middle School and will be confiscated.

8th Grade Updates - End of Year Activities

8th Grade Promotion Dance - Friday, May 29th from 8:00 pm to 10:00 pm in the AMS Gym - Free Event for 8th grade students only
8th Grade Promotion Ceremony - Thursday, June 4th @ 5:00 pm on Cougar Field - each family will receive 4 tickets and will be able to request more tickets in mid-May
8th Grade Field Trip to Six Flags - Friday, June 5th - ALL Day

AMS After School Homework & Math Support Program - ALL Students are Welcome to Attend! Students can come with friends, snacks are provided, and students do not have to stay for the full hour. We highly recommend this opportunity for our students!

Mondays: 3:30 pm to 4:30 pm

Math Support - room 102

All Grades

Homework Support - Annex Computer Lab

All Grades

Tuesdays: 3:30 pm to 4:30 pm

Homework Support - Annex Computer Lab & Room 101

All Grades

Thursdays: 3:05 pm to 4:05 pm

Homework Support - room 216 6th grade only

Math Support - room 217

6th grade only

Math Support - room 102

Homework Support - Room 101

PTA CORNER

Teacher & Staff Appreciation Week is just around the corner, and we are excited to celebrate the AMS staff! This is our last staff appreciation event of the year, and it’s a big one! Help us shower the staff with love the week of May 4th with three events:

Tue, May 5th - Snack Extravaganza
Fri, May 8th - Catered lunch in the AMS garden
Fri, May 8th - Gift card drawing

Thanks to your generous donations this year, the PTA will cover the cost of the catered lunch, but we need your help with set-up and clean-up of both events, along with gift card and food/beverage donations for the snack day. Sign up HERE.

If you aren’t able to donate food, gift cards, or your time, please consider a monetary donation to help fill in any holes. Donate via Paypal HERE and don’t forget to write “Staff Appreciation” in the notes. We appreciate your support!

Serve on the AMS PTA Board! We are still looking for a Vice President for next year. Reach out to Catherine at president@ams-pta.org if interested or if you want to suggest someone!

AMS ATHLETICS

ALL Spring Sports are fully in their seasons - Track & Field, Ultimate Frisbee, Wrestling, Softball, Baseball, and Boys Volleyball are practicing and representing AMS in competitions - Go Cobras!

AUSD NEWS

To view upcoming events, please click on the link to view our new Announcements Page on the AUSD website! This page will allow you quick access to all announcements, without extending the length of school newsletters or risking not seeing some announcements when the email is clipped.