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Family Newsletter for Monona Grove High School
~ February 2018
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A Message From Dr. Brost
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Dear Parents:
As second semester gets under way, it is a long stretch for students until Spring Break. Encourage your students to get enough rest, exercise, and fresh air to stay healthy during this stretch. Graduation becomes a reality for seniors as they not only are in their last semester of classes, but participate in their last co-curricular events such as a ballgame, concert, or Prom.
Counselors will be in classrooms on February 1 and 2 to explain the registration process for the 2018 - 2019 school year. Please watch for a course selection sheet to be brought home as your student fills it out with classes to be entered electronically on February 7 and 8. We ask that you sign the bottom of this sheet to indicate that you have reviewed the course selections and approve. The Course Handbook can be found on the left-hand side of the high school web page. See links to these items in the Student Services section of this newsletter. We cannot emphasize the importance of thoughtful course selection enough. Students will not be allowed to change their course selections unless they are missing a required class or there are extenuating circumstances.
We strongly encourage students to challenge themselves when selecting courses. Admissions personnel at colleges place a high priority on the rigor of high school course work. Technical colleges, such as Madison College, report that students who do not prepare themselves well in high school often have to take remedial courses. They encourage students to prepare themselves the same way they would if planning to attend a 4-year college. This means taking 4 years of math and science and doing well in all high school classes. Students should take advantage of Fine Arts courses and explore classes related to their career interests.
In recent years, law enforcement has updated crisis responses in situations where there is an active shooter involved. In addition to the traditional "lockdown" procedure, options for barricading and evacuating have been added. Staff are being trained on these new procedures this year and students will likely receive some training next year. A number of businesses, churches, universities, and other public entities are implementing these new emergency procedures as well. Several models are being utilized by law enforcement; all with the same basic options. The one that our school district is using is called "ALICE." This will now become part of our emergency procedures along with fire and severe weather plans.
The ACT exam will be given on February 27 and the WorkKeys on February 28. The ACT WorkKeys is designed to measure readiness for skills needed in the workplace. You will receive more detailed information in an e-mail from me as the dates get closer. Freshmen and sophomores will take the ACT Aspire exam in April.
Seven students were recognized at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Youth Recognition Breakfast held at Edgewood High School on January 14. Congratulations to Gabre Moon, Chloe Rembisz, Lydia Miller, Yordanos Mussie, Daryan Johnson, and Sanaa Semia. They were honored for their academic achievements as Outstanding Young Person Awardees. Special congratulations to Marcus Wallace Jr. who was one of only four students to receive the Betty Franklin-Hammonds Memorial Scholarship.
We look forward to a great second semester.
Paul Brost, Ph.D.
Principal
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Student Calendars
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Click
here to view the 2017-18 school calendar.
Click
here to view the 2018-19 school calendar.
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Menus
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Students may leave the school campus for lunch, but each student is expected to be back to school in time for their next class. If students stay at school for lunch, they may bring their own lunch or purchase lunch in the cafeteria.
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Parent Educator Forum Meeting
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All parents/guardians of MGHS students are welcome to attend the Parent Educator Forum meeting on
Monday, February 19
at
6:3
0 pm in the IMC.
This is a great opportunity to meet with Dr. Brost in a small group setting, hear what's going on at the high school level and discuss issues! Parents interested in what is discussed can email Lisa Stangler at
[email protected] to get notes from our most recent meeting. We'd love to see new faces!
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Homework Help
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The Overtime Program is a program for students who need a place to do homework after school and for students who need extra time to complete an assignment or get extra help in a class. Some students may be assigned to Overtime by their teachers if there is a need.
Overtime takes place on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 3:30-4:30 in the IMC. Please encourage your student to take advantage of the Overtime Program if they need additional help with an assignment or in one of their classes.
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Student Services Department News
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Course Registration Timeline for 2018-2019
Important dates for freshmen, sophomores, juniors, and their families:
Links for reference:
Course Registration Sheets:
Advanced Placement (AP) Exams
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Students currently enrolled in AP courses should begin conversations with AP teachers about the exams offered in May.
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AP exams are an important, yet optional, part of AP courses. Scoring well on an AP exam might earn students college credit (individual college decision).
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2018 exams are: May 7 - May 18
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The "Bulletin for AP Students and Parents" as well as an instruction sheet were given to students the week of January 8. Please ask your student if you have not yet seen these important informational pieces.
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Registration for AP Exams begins on February 6 and ends on February 23. No late registrations are allowed.
ACT and WorkKeys
All MGHS juniors will take the ACT on Tuesday, February 27 and the WorkKeys on Wednesday, February 28. The ACT includes reading, math, English, science and writing. It is designed to assess a student's readiness for college, provide information to build rigorous high school course plans and identify career areas that align with their interests. Students may utilize the following resources to familiarize themselves with the test and for practice information:
The WorkKeys includes applied math, graphic literacy, and workplace documents. It helps students understand how they can improve their career readiness skills and employers may also use this information to determine whether individuals are qualified for positions. Participation in both tests is mandatory for all juniors; please schedule non-school related appointments outside of these days.
ACT Test Prep for Juniors
A ZAPS ACT Test-Prep Seminar is being offered at MGHS on Saturday, February 10 from 9am-3:00pm. Register at http://www.doorwaytocollege.com/
or call
877-927-8378
. There are a limited number of scholarships available for students who have demonstrated financial need; please see Ms. Burke in Student Services.
Youth Apprenticeships Available
Any junior or senior interested in a Youth Apprenticeship for the 2018-2019 school year should see Ms. Macias in Student Services. Monona Grove offers apprenticeship programs in the following areas:
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Veterinary Assistant*
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Construction
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Finance/Accounting/Banking/Insurance
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Health Sciences: Nursing
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Health Sciences: Pharmacy Technician*
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Hospitality
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Marketing
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Information Technology (IT)
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Manufacturing
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BioTechnology
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Automotive Tech
* = only for seniors
SENIOR NEWS
Scholarship Information
Scholarship information can be found on the MG website in the student services tab under "Post-Secondary Planning". It's up to the students to check this regularly for updates. Most colleges/universities also offer their own annual scholarship opportunities to incoming freshmen. Students are highly encouraged to explore these by contacting their future school(s) of choice or by visiting school websites.
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Early Learning Fair
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 On Monday, February 5, 2018, the Monona Grove School District will hold its annual Early Learning Fair and Together 4 Kids Registration at Nichols School (MG District Office) in Monona. This event is a free service to families of pre-school children. Parents will have the opportunity to meet with a professional to share information about their child's development and to register for the 2018-2019 T4K program. Registration information will be sent to families in mid December. Parents will need to schedule an appointment upon receipt of registration materials. If you have any new neighbors with young children aged birth to 4½, please have them call Gina in the Early Education Office at 839-2113. |
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From the Athletic Department
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Spring Sports Registration
The pre-season athlete meeting for parents and students will be held on Monday, February 26 at Monona Grove High School. The meeting will start in the auditorium at 6:00 pm.
This meeting is designed to inform both parents and student athletes of the expectations Monona Grove High School holds for their athletes.
Spring Sport Practice Start Dates are as follows:
- Baseball - March 19
- Boys Golf - March 26
- Girls Soccer - March 19
- Softball - March 12
- Boys Tennis - March 26
- Boys & Girls Track & Field - March 5
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| Fine Arts and Athletics Touch Screen |
Next time you are in the building, check out the Athletics and Fine Arts touch screen. It is located in the Main Entrance hallway near the Commons. Search for students and activities dating back to 1955. Take a trip down memory lane!
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| Parent Teacher Conferences |
Parent-Teacher Conferences will be held
March 14 and March 22 from 4:00-8:00 p.m.
Parents may reserve conference slots with individual teachers using Sign Up Genius, an on-line reservation tool. When reserving slots with teachers, parents will be prompted to create a free account, which only requires a valid email address and password, or to sign into a previously-created account.
You may drop in and sign up for available slots in person on these dates. However, only spots that have not been reserved by on-line appointments will be available.
An Infinite Campus message will be sent in early March to let parents know when they can begin reserving time slots for conferences.
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Infinite Campus Information
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Is your Infinite Campus Information Up to Date?
Do you have a
c
hange of infor
mation such as a new doctor, a new e-mail address or phone number? It is very important that all of your information is up to date on Infinite Campus. Please log into your Parent Portal and enter the new information.
Infinite Campus Mobile App
Parents may access Infinite Campus on their mobile de
vices. The mobile app information can be found at the bottom of the parent portal window
. The District ID is GJGZMY.
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| Chromebook Care |
Check
this out for the tips on
caring
for your Chromebook!!
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| MLK Outstanding Young Persons |
The following students were recognized as 2018 MLK Outstanding Young Person Award recipients at the MLK Youth Recognition Breakfast on January 14th:
9th- Gabre Moon (not picture) and Chloe Rembisz
10th- Lydia Miller and Yordanos Mussie
11th- Daryan Johnson and Sanaa Semia
The following 12th grade students completed the Betty Franklin-Hammonds Scholarship application:
Sakiya Henderson, Esly Martinez, and Marcus Wallace Jr. Marcus Wallace Jr. was honored as a scholarship recipient.
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| Chili Lunch and Pops Concert |
The annual Chili Luncheon and Pops Concert is quickly approaching! It's Sunday, February 11th and starts at 11:30 with Lunch and Jazz and the Pops Band Concert starts at 2pm. This event features music performed by the Glacial Drumlin 8th grade band and ALL high school band members. Click
HERE for the promotional flyer.
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| MGSD String Festival |
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On Monday, March 12, the Monona Grove orchestra program will present its annual District Wide String Festival Concert. The program begins at 7:00 p.m. and will feature more than 500 string students in grades 4-12 playing as individual ensembles and as one mass orchestra.
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| Future Freshmen Night |
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Future Freshmen Night was held on Monday, January 22nd at the high school. It began with an Activities Fair, which included student reps from a majority of the different clubs and sports available at the high school. Students, parents, and guardians then packed the auditorium for a presentation covering high school expectations, courses, the Jump Start summer program, and the S.O.A.R. and Top 10 Habits for a Successful MG Student presented by the Student Services Super Heros, ending with MG t-shirts being launched into the crowd.
Students, parents, and guardians had the opportunity to attend four different break-out sessions to learn more about the different electives at the high school, and ask questions of the elective teachers, before the 8th grade students registered on Thursday, January 25th.
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| What are Pocket Points? |
Monona Grove High School has joined over 250 college and High School campuses around the country and joined Pocket Points. Pocket Points is an app for your smart phone that helps students gain points towards incentives and coupons, just for staying off of their devices during school.
The program is free, voluntary, and only allows students to gain points from
7:45 to 3:15
,
Monday
through
Friday
, while they are in the actual high school building. For every twenty minutes that a phone is locked, the student will receive 1 point. The points are redeemable for incentives from teachers in the building, as well as the school store.
Incentives include 2 for 1 movie tickets and free popcorn with a purchase at the concession stand. Points can also be redeemed at local businesses. If you own a local business and are interested in having coupons available for MGHS students, please contact Mr. Roth at the High School.
If a High School student does not have a smartphone, but wants to take part in the school incentives, they can contact Mr. Roth to set up the program.
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