Good afternoon,
This is Principal Suzanne Simpson, with your weekly updates.
Attendance Matters: Please help to make sure that your student is at school and on time in order to do their best each day. This year we have a goal of 92% overall attendance. Below is our current attendance rate for each class. Congratulations to the sophomore class for leading the way with the highest attendance rate. On Monday, we begin our first attendance incentive. Any student who is not absent or tardy in the next two weeks will be entered into a drawing to win one of several gift cards.
Freshman: 89.7%
Sophomores: 90.9%
Juniors: 90.4%
Seniors: 90.8%
Overall: 90.4%
Student Grades: There are 3 weeks left in the first 9 weeks. Please take a moment to check your child’s grades online. The first quarter grading period will count 40% of your child’s final grade in the course. If you have any questions or concerns please reach out to your child’s teacher.
Homecoming: Homecoming week is October 14th-18th. We have lots of fun activities planned for the week. We hope you participate in one or all of the events!
Monday: Adam Sandler Day
Tuesday: Family Photo Day
Wednesday: BBQ Dads vs. Soccer Moms Day
Thursday: Rhyme without a Reason Day
Friday: Green & Gold Day
PowderPuff:
Tuesday @ 6:30. For more information please seen Ms. Edwards in the Dance room.
Join us Wednesday night on Clay Street at 7:00 for the HoCo Parade.
Football Game and Queen/King Crowning:
Join us Friday night at 7:00 as we take on Person County High School. At halftime we will crown the Homecoming Queen and King.
The 2024 Homecoming Dance is Saturday, October 19th. Tickets are $15 ONLINE HERE or $20 at the door.
Governor’s School: NC Governor’s School is the oldest statewide summer for gifted and talented high school students in the nation. The program is open to rising seniors or juniors for performing/visual arts. Informational Sessions will be held Monday October 14th at Cummings High School.
Photo/Video Release: We love to celebrate student successes and all of the awesome things happening on campus. Due to new state legislation, in order for your student's picture to be used on the school’s website or social media accounts, you must opt-in to the photo release on the PowerSchool Parent Portal. This includes being in the yearbook. The form is automatically set to opt-out of this photo release so you have to go in and change this to opt-in. Please utilize the PowerSchool Parent Portal to complete this step as soon as possible so we have up-to-date, accurate information on your preferences for your student. I have included the directions below on how to complete the forms. If you need help, please reach out to Ms. Copeland at kristin_sykescopeland@abss.k12.nc.us.
How to locate them:
Log into the PowerSchool Parent Portal
Click “forms”
Complete all the listed form
Senior Information: It is never too early to purchase your cap and gown. Use this link to go ahead and secure your cap and gown for the lowest price of the year. If you missed the Senior Parent Informational Night, click here to review the presentation. As the year progresses, we will add important information here on the school website.
Underclassmen Pictures: These have been rescheduled for November 6th. We will reshare the picture day schedule closer to the picture date.
Senior Makeup Pictures: Will take place on October 24th. Seniors this is your chance to get your picture taken for the yearbook if you haven’t already done so.
Bus Lot: The bus lot should only be used by our buses. It is not a place to pick up or drop off students.
Student Parking: At this time any student parking on campus should have a 24-25 parking permit. We will be checking the parking lots this week. Here is the link to purchase a parking pass. Students who park on campus without a pass are subject to having their car towed at the owner’s expense. As a reminder, Students may not go to the parking lots during the school day without permission from an administrator. Student parking is a matter of privilege, not a right; failure to comply with parking policies may result in revocation of parking privileges.
Chromebook Insurance: This year, we are offering families the opportunity to purchase optional insurance for $25 for their student(s) chromebook. This premium is good for one instance of unintentional breakage. It is highly recommended that you purchase the insurance. For more details, including a list of part replacement costs, click here for the Mobile Learning Handbook. You may use this link to purchase the optional insurance.
Student Name Update: Does your child have a name that they go by that is different from what is listed in PowerSchool? For example: student's name is Samantha but they go by Sami or student's name is John but they go by Jack. If so, you must complete this form. Until this form is complete and has been approved, all staff at school are required to call them by the name listed in PowerSchool.
PowerSchool Parent Portal: In order to stay up to date about your child’s grades and attendance, it is very important that you download the Powerschool Parent Portal App. HERE is all the information you need to download the app and set up its features. Please let us know if we can help you.
Canvas Observer: Parents can sign up as an observer in Canvas. Observers can link their Canvas account to their student's account so they can see assignment due dates, announcements, and other course content. Observers can view the course content but cannot participate in the course.
How to Sign Up to Become a Canvas Observer
Upcoming Events:
Monday:
Women’s Golf @ Mill Creek at 4:00
Women’s Tennis vs. Southern at 4:30
Tuesday:
JV & Varsity Volleyball vs. Southern at 5:00
Men’s Soccer @ Graham at 6:00
Wednesday:
PSAT for students who opted in
Women’s Golf at 1:00- County Match
Women’s Tennis vs. Orange at 4:30
Men’s Soccer vs. Western Alamance at 6:00
Thursday:
JV Football vs. Rockingham at 6:30
JV & Varsity Volleyball @ Orange at 5:00
Friday:
Varsity Football @ Cedar Ridge at 7:00
A look ahead:
October 9 - PSAT for students who opted in
October 14-18 - Homecoming Week
October 15 - PreACT for all 10th graders
October 15 - ASVAB for any 11th/12th graders who are interested
October 16 - Homecoming Parade
October 18- Homecoming
October 19- Homecoming Dance
October 21-25 - NC Check-Ins for all EOC classes
October 24- Makeup Pictures (Seniors ONLY)
October 25 - End of 1st quarter
October 28 - Teacher Workday
As always, thank you for your continued support. Please reach out if you have any questions or concerns.