February 8th Weekly Blog (Tuesday Edition)

 Black History Month - February is Black History Month. Since 1976, every U.S. president has officially designated the month of February as Black History Month. Other countries around the world, including Canada and the United Kingdom, also devote a month to celebrating Black history. Student members of our BSU (Black Student Union) have participated in and have more activities planned for the month in honor of Black History. Our BSU members recently posted quotes from Black leaders on our calendar in the main hallway as seen below in celebration of Black History.

Purpose Corner - This week I provide my final appeal to our students and families on the importance of a rigorous course schedule for stretching academic potential. Students will be finalizing their course schedules for next year in their Science classes on Wednesday, February 10th, and Thursday, February 11th. Here is a link to the transcript of this video.

Rigorous Course Schedule - Our data has been clear at West for the past several years in that approximately 90% of West students state they will go on to a two or four-year college for their post-high school education, yet, only 50% of students will make it past year one and that is why we push as a school to prepare our students better. A big part of preparing students to meet the challenges of the next level is course selection. With course scheduling coming up tomorrow and Thursday it is time for students to think about stretching their academic resumes. A stretch class is rigorous, possibly AP or Honors, a class that a college admissions counselor would find impressive, and/or a class that will help you reach your fullest potential as a student. You could also choose to take an additional class instead of a study hall. This is a goal class for you. Think about what content area you excel in and stretch in that area or try something new and challenging like one of our many elective classes in the areas of Business, Family & Consumer Science, Technology Education, Art, Music, World Languages, or Drama!! Now is the time to finalize your STRETCH class as part of your rigorous course schedule!!

ACT Information - The ACT test continues to be a piece of the puzzle when it comes to college admissions. Though some colleges have moved to put little or no emphasis on it, many colleges still have a minimum ACT score they require for admission. The State of Wisconsin mandates that all high school Juniors in the state take this test annually. The nice thing is that they fund this mandated test and also allow students to take the ACT again on a national test date immediately after the state test date. This year our Juniors will take the test on Tuesday, March 9th, 2021 here at West. On this same day, our 10th-grade students will be taking a practice ACT here at West. For students who are virtual, you must attend the ACT day in person at West High School as there is not an ACT virtual option. Social distancing and mitigation protocols are in place for this day. More specifics will be given to students prior to testing. These are great opportunities to practice the ACT for our students and are part of the puzzle for students when looking at being ready for post-high school!

ACT Prep - In normal years, West has offered ACT prep during the morning for interested students. We will not be doing that this year due to morning check-in procedures. In lieu of the ACT prep we are not offering, I want to encourage students and parents to access the many resources that exist. All students can use Method Test Prep as part of their Xello account that is used for College and Career planning during our Advisory time. The ACT website itself has a multitude of resources for students to study and practice for the ACT. Having a solid ACT score along with a rigorous course schedule are key parts for students having multiple options for their future pathway.

Schedule for the Week of February 22nd - The week of February 22nd is a four-day week with a half-day of school on Thursday, February 25th, and no school on Friday, February, 26th. The schedule is below:

National Merit Finalists - In my 13 years at West High School I do not recall ever having three National Merit Scholarship Finalists, but I am happy to say that this year We do!!! Approximately 1.6 million Juniors in about 22,000 high schools enter the National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®). The nationwide pool of finalists represents less than 1% percent of U.S. high school seniors. This is a major accomplishment, congrats to Travis Hytry, Ethan Ammerman, and Alec Boland as they moved on from being semi-finalists to finalists!!

Family Connect Conference Sign Up is here!! - We will be having one night of "Virtual" Family Connect conferences at West High School on Wednesday, February 17th, 2021. Conferences will start at 4:30 P.M. and go until 7:00 P.M. The format of the connection time will be 10-minute conferences with teachers leading the conference by asking these two questions:

1. What successes and challenges have your student shared with you about their performance in this class? 

2. What do I need to know about your student academically and/or personally in order for your student to have a successful learning experience in my class? 

Family Connect Sign Up Link (Click Here) 

 Lunch - Below is information that was sent to all families regarding school lunch for the remainder of the year:

Student & Family Support - This year is so very different from the effects of COVID on students and families in multiple ways. Please see the information below if you or anyone you know are in need of support:

COVID Process - Now that we are having to deal with isolation and quarantine processes that come along with living in the COVID era, I wanted to share a district  FAQ document that may help families understand that all the processes that West High School follow, come from our district and are not individually created by West. My role is to consistently follow these processes along with every other school in our district. 

School District COVID Dashboard - Our school district does have a COVID dashboard that is public for anyone to follow.

 

Please click here to access this link

Principal Advisory Committee - The Principal Advisory Council for 2020-2021 met with me virtually on Wednesday, January 20th. Please contact any one of the representatives (below) with feedback and/or questions about anything West related. Please access the meeting minutes linked here:

Angela Schaaf	angelamschaaf@gmail.com
Cheryl Jeffers	cherylmjeffers@gmail.com
David Clark	superdavefive@gmail.com
Deshondria Baggett	deshondriabaggett@gmail.com
Karen Anderson	kammom@att.net
Kathleen Phelan	Talldoc@wi.rr.com
Michelle Kuokkanen	mkuokkanen@yahoo.com
Carri Marlow	carrimarlow@yahoo.com
Mercedes Rawson	Rawson96@wi.rr.com
Patti Bloom	pbloom27@wi.rr.com
Rebecca Flaherty	Becflaherty@gmail.com
Susan Fogelstrom	beezerpup@gmail.com

Archived Announcements (Link) Please access this link to find all of the information in our daily announcements from previous weeks. 

GO WOLVERINES...WHOOP!!