Good evening,
This is Principal Suzanne Simpson with your weekly updates. I hope everyone has enjoyed the warm weather this weekend.
NC Loves the Bus Week: This week we want to take a moment to thank our awesome bus drivers for all that they do to get our students to and from school safely each day!
EAgle Time: Make sure you have selected your EAgle time locations for Tuesday, Thursday and Friday.
Academic Calendar for 2025-2026: The academic calendars for the 2025-2026 school year are now available for viewing and downloading here.
Winter Formal: We hope you will join in the fun of the Winter Formal this Saturday night. It will be in the small gym from 8-11. Pre-Sale Tickets are $15 or $20 at the door.
Big Man on Campus: BMOC will take place this Sunday at 3pm. Tickets are $6 at the door. You won’t want to miss this show!
Spring Sports Tryouts: Will begin on Tuesday. Make sure you have a current physical uploaded in DragonFly. For more information see below.
Registration for the 2025-2026 School Year: It is time to think about what classes you want to take next school year. In the coming weeks, Ms. Cushman and Dr. Lyons will be meeting with students to select their classes and alternates for next year. To begin planning, check out the registration guide.
Illness: As illness cases rise in our community, please remember to keep your child home if they are sick. This will stop the spread of illness to other students and teachers. Students need to be kept home if they have any of the following symptoms:
Fever of 100.4 or higher
Students should stay home until they have been fever free for 24 hours without any fever reducing medication (Tylenol, motrin, advil). Students should not be given any of these medications then sent to school. They may be highly contagious to others.
Vomiting and/or diarrhea within the last 24 hours.
Red, watery eyes with yellow discharge AND fever and/or eye pain.
Unexplained rash
If you have any questions, please reach out to Nurse Garrett at patricia_garrett@abss.k12.nc.us.
NC Senate Page Program: We are excited to announce the return of the Senate Page Program for the 2025 session! Current 10th, 11, and 12th grade students are eligible to apply. This program offers young men and women the opportunity to learn about and participate in the legislative process of our state.
Senate Pages are important to the operation of the General Assembly as they assist the members and staff of the Senate during the legislative session. Being selected as a senate page is a great experience and it looks fantastic on college applications. To learn more about the page program, the Senate Page website is a great resource for interested students and parents. A student who is currently in the tenth, eleventh, or twelfth grade may contact Senator Galey at amy.galey@ncleg.gov and CC Haley White at haley.white@ncleg.gov to request sponsorship if interested. Ms. White will then contact them with the official application for them to complete.
Naval Academy Summer Opportunities: The Naval Academy Summer Seminar and Summer STEM applications are now open. These programs offer opportunities for high school students to experience life at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD. The Summer Seminar is a one-week program designed for rising high school seniors who want to explore life at the U.S. Naval Academy. Participants will immerse themselves in the rigorous academics, athletics, and professional training that prepare the nation’s future leaders.
2025 Sessions:
May 31- June 5
June 7-12
June 14-19
Program Fee: $550
General Program Inquiries should be directed to: summerseminar@usna.edu
The Summer STEM Program offers rising 9th, 10th, and 11th graders a chance to engage in hands-on math and science activities with USNA faculty and midshipmen.
2025 Sessions:
June 2-7 for rising 9th graders (current 8th graders)
June 9-14 for rising 10th graders (current 9th graders)
June 16-20 for rising 11th graders (current 10th graders)
Program Fee: $750
General Program Inquiries should be directed to: summerstem@usna.edu
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.
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: Any student parking on campus should have a 24-25 parking permit. 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:
Tuesday:
JV Men’s Basketball vs. Southern at 4:30
Women’s Varsity Basketball vs. Southern at 6:00
Varsity Men’s Basketball vs. Southern at 7:30
Wednesday:
Outdoor Track & Field Tryouts @ 4:00
Baseball Tryouts @ 4:00
Softball Tryouts @ 4:00
Girls Soccer Tryouts at the Mebane Turf Fields @ 6:30 am
Boys Golf (Parent Meeting) @ 6:00
Mens Tennis TBD
Thursday:
Friday:
JV Men’s Basketball @ Orange at 4:30
Women’s Varsity Basketball @ Orange at 6:00
Varsity Men’s Basketball @ Orange at 7:30
A look ahead:
February 11 - All County Band Auditions
February 15 - Winter Formal Dance
February 16 - Big Man On Campus
February 17 - Spring Workkeys Window Opens
February 28 - Teacher Workday
March 3 - National School Social Worker Week
March 11 - ACT for all 11th graders
March 24 - NC Check- In Window #1
March 28 - Teacher Workday
April 3 - National School Librarian Day
As always, thank you for your continued support. Please reach out if you have any questions or concerns.