GRIZZ-O-GRAM Parent Newsletter 541-482-8771 www.ashland.k12.or.us/AHS Volume 19, Number 4 ~ January 2011 Principal’s Message In my brief time at AHS, I have observed exceptional scholarship and students with remarkable talents. I have also seen drug and alcohol use rob students of their potential. Based on annual surveys of 125 Juniors, we know that AHS students use alcohol and marijuana at rates higher than the state average. According to the survey of fall athletes, use of alcohol and marijuana among athletes is down from this time last year. This is good news for the health of our students. We want to make sure that the trend continues. On February 1 st from 7:00-9:00PM an important event will occur in the AHS Library. Our Parent Academy will focus on drug and alcohol abuse prevention. I invite all parents, staff and students to attend this important discussion. We will learn from local law enforcement, a treatment specialist from Catherine Freer Wilderness Therapy Program, Dr. Jerome Beck of Portland, author of Pursuit of Ecstasy , Dr. Darryl Inaba, Director of Addictions Recovery Center in Medford and author of Uppers, Downers, All Arounders . It is my hope that our community will learn more about preventing substance use and begin collaborating on solutions. Special thanks to Pauline Black, Site Council Parent for organizing the panel. I appreciate the collaboration of our entire AHS community in meeting this challenge and improving the health All the Best, Michelle Zundel Parent Academy on Alcohol and Drugs Tuesday, February 1 7:00-9:00PM AHS Library Free Event
Transcript
GRIZZ-O-GRAMParent Newsletter
541-482-8771www.ashland.k12.or.us/AHS
Volume 19, Number 4 ~ January 2011
Principal’s Message In my brief time at AHS, I have observed exceptional scholarship and
students with remarkable talents. I have also seen drug and alcohol use rob students of their potential. Based on annual surveys of 125 Juniors, we know that AHS students use alcohol and marijuana at rates higher than the state average. According to the survey of fall athletes, use of alcohol and marijuana among athletes is down from this time last year. This is good news for the health of our students. We want to make sure that the trend continues.
On February 1st from 7:00-9:00PM an important event will occur in the
AHS Library. Our Parent Academy will focus on drug and alcohol abuse prevention. I invite all parents, staff and students to attend this important discussion. We will learn from local law enforcement, a treatment specialist from Catherine Freer Wilderness Therapy Program, Dr. Jerome Beck of Portland, author of Pursuit of Ecstasy, Dr. Darryl Inaba, Director of Addictions Recovery Center in Medford and author of Uppers, Downers, All Arounders. It is my hope that our community will learn more about preventing substance use and begin collaborating on solutions. Special thanks to Pauline Black, Site Council Parent for organizing the panel. I appreciate the collaboration of our entire AHS community in meeting this challenge and improving the health of our students.
All the Best,
Michelle Zundel
Parent Academy on Alcohol and Drugs Tuesday, February 1
7:00-9:00PM AHS Library
Free Event
Grizz-O-Gram January2011 page2
Calendar of Events
JANUARY Jan 21 9th Graders and new students Fresh Start Revisited 2:00‐4:00
in the Commons Jan 22 Home Boys Basketball Jan 22 SAT test date @ NMHS Jan 24 PowerSchool closes to parents/students at 4:00 PM Jan 25‐27 Semester One Final Exams Jan 28 No School – Inservice Day Jan 29 Home Boys Basketball Jan 31 Second Semester Begins FEBRUARY Feb 1 Mid‐year transcript requests are due to the counseling office Feb 1 Home Boys Basketball Feb 1 PowerSchool reopens to parents/students at 4:00 PM Feb 1 Parent Academy: Drugs and Alcohol 7‐9PM in AHS Library Feb 3 Mark Salzman Chautauqua event 7:30 PM in AHS Theatre Feb 4 Home Boys Wrestling Feb 5 Winter Formal 8‐11PM Britt Ballroom @ SOU Feb 5 Home Girls Basketball Feb 5 South Region Acting Competition @ NMHS Feb 7 Spring Athletes Parent Night 6:30PM in large gym Feb 8 Home Girls Basketball Feb 9 Booster Club Meeting 7PM in small gym classroom Feb 10 Virtual Enterprise Mini Trade Fair Feb 11 Mundo de Oportunidades @ RCC Feb 12 ACT test date @ AHS Feb 12 Ashland Emergency Food Bank Collection
(community service opportunity) Feb 14 Stringing Telegrams 8AM‐5PM Feb 15 AHS Preliminary "Poetry Out Loud" contest Feb 15 Home Girls Basketball Feb 17 Parent Meeting Grades 9 & 10 7‐8:30PM in IVC
(PSAT results & college advising) Feb 18 Junior Class Movie Night "Grease" 9‐11PM in AHS Gym Feb 19 Home Boys Basketball Feb 21 No School – President’s Day Feb 23 “Chicago” Preview Night in AHS Theatre Feb 24 AHS Final "Poetry Out Loud" contest Feb 24‐Mar 13 “Chicago” production in AHS Theatre Feb 28 Spring Sports Practices begin Feb 28‐Mar 1 Band Trip to Corvallis
Grizz-O-Gram January2011 page3
A big “Thank You” From the Foods Classes to Laura Winters
for her wonderful and informative nutrition presentation to Foods 1 and 2 classes.
We are grateful for Laura’s willingness to spend two days presenting in our classes!
AND
Another big “Thank You” to everyone at Shop-n-Kart for their on-going support, help, and fun-loving attitude. Our program would not be as successful
without them!
AHS Finals Schedule Semester 1
January 25 8:00‐9:15 Review and Study Session 9:30‐11:00 Exam Period 1 11:00‐12:00 Lunch 12:00‐1:30 Exam Period 3 1:30‐3:00 Review and Study Session January 26 8:00‐9:30 Exam Period 5 9:30‐10:00 Break 10:00‐11:30 Exam Period 6 11:30‐12:30 Lunch 12:30‐2:00 Exam Period 7 2:00‐4:00 Teacher Grading Time January 27 8:00‐9:15 Review and Study Session 9:30‐11:00 Exam Period 2 11:00‐12:00 Lunch 12:00‐1:30 Exam Period 4
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Winter Formal Update!
The date for Winter Formal has changed
to the 5th of February from 8 pm to 11pm. Also, waltz instruction has been added to
the first 30 minutes of the dance. We are still looking for chaperones to
make this a safe and successful night, If interested please e-mail Todd Hobein at
Stay warm and cozy in January and thanks for your support.
Grizz-O-Gram January2011 page5
Virtual Enterprise (VE) State of Jefferson Mini-Trade Fair Feb. 10 Everyone is invited to attend the 3
rd annual regional VE mini-trade fair in the upper commons. The sales floor will be open
from 1:30PM-2:15PM. Guests will receive virtual money that can be used to buy the products or services on display (again, virtual). Guests are also welcome to stay for the awards ceremony and exit presentation from 2:45 PM -3:30 PM. The VE mini-trade fair is a practice event for the much larger Bay Area trade fair in Oakland CA in March. Students have been working on their business plan and all phases of product development and business operations to prepare for the culminating events. Please come and see what this exciting business simulation is all about! For more information contact Karen Green at [email protected] or 541-482-8771, ext 203.
News from the Math Department
As we approach final exams, please support your math student by ensuring that they have the information necessary to make the experience as positive as possible. Here are some suggestions:
(1) Look at grades in power school with your student and talk about strengths and weaknesses
that you notice. Discuss possible remediation
strategies. If your student’s homework grade is low
for example, going back through the curriculum and practicing problem types is a good strategy for
review.
(2) Help your student organize their lesson notes
by unit of study. Reading over the notes,
highlighting important ideas, and reviewing processes is a good way to study for a math
assessment.
(3) Ask your student to share their math course description with you. This was handed out at the
beginning of the school year and should be in your
student’s math notebook. The course description includes information about how the semester exam
score will be weighted in the semester grade.
(4) Encourage your student to work on the review problems assigned by their teacher, when the
problems are assigned and not to wait until the last
minute. By spreading out the review process,
students have time to make connections between topics and strengthen their comprehension.
(5) The Student Tutor Center will be open during the review and study sessions (see final exam
schedule), and math teachers will be available for
help. If your student works on the review as soon as it is assigned, they will have opportunities for
clarification of concepts before the exam.
(6) Make sure that your student knows when the final exam is scheduled for their math class. The
three exam days are run on a bell schedule that is
different than the normal bell schedule.
(7) Emphasize healthy habits leading up to the
exams. Good nutrition and good sleep contribute to good performance!
Math classes are yearlong courses. Please help your student learn to take the final exam experience
seriously, but NOT to panic. The final exam is an opportunity for students to demonstrate how much they have learned. It is actually pretty exciting to look back on 18 weeks of work and realize how much mathematical
growth has occurred. The math teachers enjoy helping your student grow and we appreciate your support.
Grizz-O-Gram January2011 page6
Senior All Night Party News:
All parents of 2011 AHS Graduates
Come to the
Senior Parent Social
as our students graduate in less than 110 days…..
Sunday February 13, 2011
Louie’s on the Plaza
5:30-7:30 PM
Cheap and Cheerful Food and Drinks Hosted by Melinda Jensen
Mother of Cal Thomas
This party will allow parents to meet, network, and relax at a local eating establishment owned by a Senior parent.
A laptop computer will be given away to a lucky student--if their parent/guardian is in attendance. Please watch for more details.
The Senior All Night Party committee is busy moving ahead with plans and preparations for an amazing Event for all
Ashland High School 2011 graduates. The party begins immediately following the graduation ceremony on Friday, June 3,
2011. It is a chaperoned event hosted by the Senior parents and funded by generous donations by the community and parents.
To accomplish this goal,
We need ALL Class of 2011 parents (and many junior parents) to get involved and join in the fun!
Letters to Senior families will go out in several weeks. These letters include a brief overview of the Senior All Night Event, a
volunteer form, and a permission slip with ticket purchase information. (Scholarships are available.) Please return the forms as
soon as possible. Students who purchase their tickets prior to the Senior Assembly in Spring will be entered in a drawing for a prize. We need parent-volunteers to run activities, play games, serve food, enforce safety, distribute
prizes, and coordinate photography of the event.
Upcoming organizational meetings at 7PM in AHS Library:
Stephen Smith John Skinner Glenna Stiles Counselor, A-F & S-Z Counselor, G-R Counselor, Alternative Programs [email protected][email protected][email protected] Kim Neto Michelle Gordon Counseling Office # 541-482-2278 Aspire Coordinator Counseling Office Secretary/ Scholarships Main Office Fax # 541-482-2172 [email protected][email protected]
HIGH SCHOOL INFORMATION ON THE WEB
The Ashland High School Counseling office has put together a website containing information about life after high school. Included are pages on financial aid, scholarships, university admission, ACT, SAT, and much more. To access the website go to the Ashland School District website at www.ashland.k12.or.us at the top click on schools and then Ashland High School. Once at the high school's website click on departments, on the left hand side, then on academic counseling. This will bring you to a plethora of information.
Seniors
Senior that are NOT using the Common App to apply to colleges must come to the Counseling Office to request that midyear (7th semester) transcripts be sent to the colleges where they have applied. Please fill out the lavender form “Mid Year Report Request” and place in the basket on Mrs. Gordon’s desk.
FAFSA INFORMATION And INSTRUCTIONS
PIN numbers, My FSA, FAFSA4caster *1) As soon as possible, apply for two Federal PIN numbers, one for the student and one for a parent or guardian. Website for registration is http://www.pin.ed.gov/ PINWebApp/pinindex.jsp. You will receive an email telling you how to retrieve your PIN. Make sure you write down and keep handy the pass-phrase used for registration because you cannot be sent a reminder if you forget. The PIN is an identifier that serves as an electronic signature for a parent and student, both of whom are required to sign the FAFSA. If you are filling out theFAFSA4caster, as mentioned below, you will be sent a PIN if you haven’t already applied for one. *2) Go to website: https://studentaid.ed.gov - “Student Aid on the Web.” Then click in left hand box on the “MyFSA,” then “Set Up Your Account.” Once you have created your MyFSA Account, you can then complete your MyFSAProfile. Using the Profile, you can add and update important information about yourself at any time. Whenever you update your Profile, the information will automatically carry over to any of Student Aid on the Web’s other modules. After you fill out the info on your Profile, click on “Financial Aid and Scholarship Wizard,” to plan out, in 8 easy steps,your entire financial aid packages online! Notice they said “packages” — the wizard will help you find and calculate virtually everything you need for any and all schools you’re interested in. It will show you the deadlines for filing financial aid applications for the colleges you select, walk you through scholarship searches, help you estimate your expected family contribution and federal aid, and provide you a tool to interpret and analyze your financial aid award letters. *3) Use the FAFSA4caster at: http://www.fafsa4caster. ed.gov to transfer all of your FAFSA4caster data to FAFSA on the Web once you are ready to apply for aid on or after January 1, 2011. .
Grizz-O-Gram January2011 page8
CounselingNewsCont.
ASPIRE
January marks the start of FAFSA and Scholarship season, and ASPIRE is here to help. If your son or daughter qualifies for the Free and Reduced lunch program, they will be eligible for a Federal Pell Grant and possibly financial aid grants or subsidized loans. This will cover most of your costs for attending an Oregon Community College or an Oregon University for one school year. If you have questions or need help with filling out the FAFSA, please contact Kim Neto in the counseling office. Even if you think that you won’t qualify for a grant, filling out your FAFSA also helps you find out which Federal Loans you might be eligible for if you are looking to finance your child’s education as well as financial aid available through the college that your student will be attending. Does your student still not know what he/she is doing next year after graduation? In late winter and early spring ASPIRE starts working with students headed to community college and vocational programs. Have your son/daughter come by the counseling office and see Kim in the ASPIRE office to learn about the amazing programs available to Oregon students.
Students who are considering applying to Southern Oregon University should apply by February 15, 2011, to be eligible
for the Provost's Scholarship. There is no application for this scholarship. To be considered automatically for this scholarship you must complete your admission and FASFA application process by February 15
th. This is a renewable
$1,000 scholarship for residents of Jackson or Josephine counties who have a minimum GPA of 3.25 and demonstrate financial need. You can also find a list of all the Oregon University Scholarships and their application deadlines in the counseling office. OREGONSTUDENTASSISTANCECOMMISSION(OSAC)SCHOLARSHIPS
Come to the Counseling Office/Aspire Office or our website at www.ashland.k12.or.us (under academic counseling services) if you need additional information or have questions regarding the process.
Western Undergraduate Exchange
Through WUE students in western states may enroll in participating two-year and four-year public college programs at a reduced tuition level, up to 150% of the institution’s regular resident tuition. To learn of the wide array of programs
available go to www.wiche.edu/sep/wue.
Grizz-O-Gram January2011 page9
JUNIORS
PSAT SCORES
Juniors can come to the Counseling Office to meet with their counselors and receive their PSAT results.
For personalized feedback, practice and college planning based on your PSAT/NMSQT results go to
https://quickstart.collegeboard.com/posweb/login.jsp My College QuickStart™ Starting in January, student access codes for My College QuickStart will be e-mailed to students who
provided a valid e-mail address. (They are also printed on the paper score report.) Please note that
students will be able to view their PSAT/NMSQT results online once they receive this access code.
COLLEGE-BOUND JUNIORS INFORMATION MEETING
Parents of junior college-bound students will have a workshop presented by Steve Smith on Tuesday, March 8
from 7:00 - 8:30 pm in the IVC Center. He will cover information on selecting colleges, standardized testing,
financial aid, and scholarships. The meeting will describe the process of applying to private and public
colleges. Copies of the updated College Handbook will be available at this time. This parent meeting will be
followed-up by an afternoon workshop for juniors at 2:00 pm on Thursday, March 10th in the IVC Center. This workshop will cover how to select and apply to public and private colleges as well as scholarships and financial
aid.
CounselingNewsCont.
COLLEGE TESTING Dates & Fees
SAT Test Dates TEST DATE TEST DEADLINE ($47 Fee) LATE DEADLINE(extra $24) LOCATION March 12 SAT February 11 February 25 North Medford High School May 7 SAT /Subject Tests April 8 April 22 Grants Pass High School June 4 SAT /Subject Tests May 6 May 20 Grants Pass High School
Register online at www.collegeboard.com
ACT Test Dates
TEST DATE DEADLINE (Fee $33)* LATE DEADLINE (extra $21) LOCATION February 12 January 7 January 21 Ashland High School April 9 March 4 March 18 Ashland High School June 11 May 6 May 20 OIT Klamath Falls *Fee without writing sample is $33, fee with writing is $48 Register online at www.act.org
ACT has a website that will tell a student whether the colleges he/she is considering require the writing sample. Go to actstudent.org and click on the link "What colleges have decided about the writing test." You can then type in the name of a college and it will tell you if they require a writing test.
ACT fee is $32.00 ACT plus writing is $47.00. Late registration is an additional $20.00. Register online at www.act.org.
THE HIGH SCHOOL CODE FOR BOTH THE SAT AND ACT IS 380025
Grizz-O-Gram January2011 page10
Freshman/Sophomore
PSAT Scores
Sophomores will receive their PSAT results in their English classes during the first 2 weeks of
February. For personalized feedback, practice and college planning based on your PSAT/NMSQT results go to
Lindsey Crocker Ford Murawski-Brown Beth Cui Alexa Nienhaus
Isabel Enns Tallon Shults Angelica Florio Zeke Smith Erin Foley Elena Toppo Meg Fredericks Ellie von Radics Madison Gilpin Eilene Wasch Sierra Houk Lisa-Marie Werfel
Rachel Kaiser Noah Werthaiser-Kent Rocky La Pierre Uriel Wolfe-Blank
CONGRATULATIONS TO THE CAST OF
CHICAGO amusicalvaudevilleFebruary23—March13
PRINCIPAL CAST (in order of appearance)
MASTER OF CEREMONIES....................................................................... Ford Murawski-Brown
VELMA KELLY ......................................................................................................... Sophie Javna
