We are beginning to look towards the end of the year, and graduation. For our seniors that means making sure that all of the requirements for graduating and receiving a diploma are complete. Passing the essential skills requirement in reading, writing and math means either passing the state tests in these areas or successfully completing work samples. The other major requirement is having 24 credits and meeting the requirements there as well i.e. 4 credits of language arts, 3 math, 3 science etc. It's a great time to review transcripts which should be coming home with semester grades this week. For the remainder of our students it will be time to select courses for next year soon. We will be forecasting for next years classes, in March and April. Those seeking the Honors Diploma will need to pay close attention to the requirements and their course selections. It's a very busy time of year from now until the end of the year, but it's also an exciting time with the fun of graduation just around the corner.

We are starting the second semester on Tuesday January 26th. For seniors, the count down towards graduation begins. We will work with all seniors to help them complete all of the many requirements that are required by both the State and the District. the biggest deterrent to being able to graduate has always been attendance at school. Seniors who do not attend regularly, for any reason, put themselves at risk of not graduating. Please make sure that your senior student has regular attendance.

The end of the first semester is Friday January 22nd. There is no school on Monday January 25th. That is a grade day for teachers. The new semester starts on Tuesday January 26th. Students received their second semester schedules last week on Wednesday and Thursday. If they did not pick it up, they can come to the office this week and get their copy. The Winter Formal dance is Saturday January 23rd at 7 PM. It will be at the World Forestry Center which is up next to the Portland Zoo. The dance ends at 10 PM.

The end of the first semester is two weeks away. Please make sure that your student is aware of this end date and that they are working at passing all of their classes with the highest grades possible. Making good progress towards graduation is critical. We are looking at the possibility of making the ASVAB test optional starting next year. This test is given by the military and is a good tool for gauging student interest for college and career preparation. Students will still have an opportunity to take it if they would like, however it would not be mandatory as in the past. Another announcement regarding testing has to do with state academic testing. Parents were sent an opt-out form that they will need to complete if they would like their 11th grade student not to take state testing this spring. State testing in science, math and English language arts is mandatory for 11th grade students unless parents opt-out their student. Forms Requesting an opt-out are due by February.

After the long break, school esumes tomorrow morning. it's snowing pretty good right now so it would be best to keep an eye on the weather and TV station reports. It is just three weeks until the end of the first semester now. Semester grades are the ones that will go on to transcripts and be permanent. We will be handing out second semester student schedules in a few weeks. Welcome back to the second half of the 2016 school year.

Progress report grades will be mailed home this week. This marks the 12-week point in the semester. This semester ends on January 22nd. At that point, all grades are final. Please make sure that your son/daughter are working hard on their academics in the next 6-weeks. Along with the progress report 11th grade parents will receive information about state testing for this year. One of the things districts are required to do is mail home information about how parents may opt-out their child from state testing. While we hope that your student will test in science, English language arts and math the fact is that there are other ways of demonstrating competency in these areas. There are due dates for returning these forms, please be aware of those dates. The next two weeks will fly by now that we are in to the Holiday season. Enjoy the time, the school activities and the season!

School resumes this week after a long Thanksgiving break. We have a grade Dy on Friday December 4th. This is will mark the 12-week point in this first semester. Students will not be in school on December 4th. The National Honor Society induction will be coming up in December. This will be a morning event held in the gymnasium. Students and parents will be notified of who is being inducted prior to the event so all may attend. We are working on possibly altering our bell schedule starting next fall. The reason for a possible change is to be able to allocate some time during the school day for students to be able to access any teacher for roughly 30 minutes twice a week. This is so that students can take re-tests, or get additional help from teachers. There will be more to. One on this after the first of the year. Winter sports contests start this week.