Dear Parents:

 Five years ago, we created the first ultimate team at Kealing Middle School.  We have grown from a team of 10 players to a full roster with two teams.  This year, we changed the league from last year's format and will have two separate teams that will play 1 game on Saturdays.  The first team will be primarily comprised of 8th and some 7th graders.  The second team will be primarily composed of 7th and 6th graders. For the first time, Kealing will be adding 6th graders to play other 6th and 7th graders in the league.  We hope to continue to grow and strengthen our program.  Hopefully by now, you know that your son or daughter is interested in participating on the team.  For some of you, this is the first time your student will play this sport. For others, you and your son or daughter are already quite familiar with the game. Ultimate at Kealing is very relaxed.  

For those of you who are not familiar with Ultimate Frisbee, it is a team field sport (like soccer) played with a Frisbee.  The object of the game is to advance the Frisbee into your own end zone by throwing it.  Players may not run with the disc and it is a non-contact sport.  Unlike most team sports, the players are responsible for officiating the game themselves through a code of conduct called ``the spirit of the game.''  This last bit is one of the things that make the sport so unique and amazing because players have to learn to resolve conflicts in a respectful manner.  During the process, players often also learn about themselves.  Our middle school team will be comprised of both male and female players.  We will practice at Kealing after school during the spring.  We will play five to six Austin area middle school teams. 

We are also looking to organize a parent booster club to help with some of the organization. Please fill out the player/parent survey, so we can get an e-mail list together to help notify you of upcoming events.   We will have several small jobs for as many parents as are interested and would really like to have 4 or 5 parents willing to get the rest of the parents organized.  As the spring progresses and your player helps make decisions about the team, your help will be greatly appreciated as the need arises.  Please get in touch with me, Jenna Martin at jmartin3@austinisd.org if you are able to assist us.

We love the sport of ultimate and the lessons that it teaches kids.  This year we are fortunate to have two coaches, Jenna Martin and Cara Crouch, both Social Studies teachers at Kealing. We have both played ultimate at varying levels and are involved in the greater Austin ultimate community.   We are not being paid to coach this team, but we are delighted to have the opportunity. Cara will be in charge of the Thursday practices and Jenna will be in charge of Saturday games.   We hope that your son or daughter will get as much joy out of the sport as we do.   

 If you have any questions or concerns or would like to help us, Jenna Martin can be reached by email at jmartin3@austinisd.org or on her classroom phone 841-1178.   

All the best,

 Jenna Martin and Cara Crouch