Next move: H-F Chess Team competes this week at IHSA State!

Congratulations — and good luck — to our H-F Chess Team! The team is heading to Peoria this week to compete at the IHSA State Tournament on Feb. 11 & 12. Representing H-F are: seniors Sam Starkenburg & Christian Tate; sophomores Elijah Burr, Cameron Cage & Xavier White; and freshmen Matthew Brison, Lyndon Proby, Eric Nickerson & Everett Van Til.The team is coached by Mrs. White, Math & CTE teacher. Go, Vikings!

To honor Black History Month this February, the H-F Library has created a resource guide for students and staff. Here you will find booklists, links for further exploration, videos and more! There are also a number of great books on display that celebrate African American authors, characters and stories, including some recommendations by members of the Friends of the Library club. Check out the Black History Month page by clicking here...

Special Education support session offered online Feb. 16

Children with disabilities — including those with mental illness — have experienced worsening symptoms during the pandemic. Join The Arc of Illinois at noon on Wednesday, Feb. 16, to hear from Teri Latter, State Program Director of the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill (NAMI) Illinois, to learn about family-to-family support and education for families with a child living with a mental illness, including tips for finding a mental health professional, navigating the mental health system in Illinois, knowing your insurance coverage, the warning signs of mental illness in adolescents and more.

Register in advance for this free Zoom webinar at:

https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_ws598deKRA2FHaAqPsAT6Q

Looking ahead to spring: Athletic tryouts starting soon

The spring sports season will begin soon! The following sports are included in the spring season:

• Badminton (begins Feb. 28)
• Baseball (begins Feb. 28)
• Boys' Gymnastics (begins Feb. 14)
• Boys' Lacrosse (begins Feb. 28)
• Boys' Tennis (begins Feb. 28)
• Boys' Track & Field (began Jan. 17)
• Boys' Volleyball (begins March 7)
• Boys' Water Polo (begins Feb. 28)
• Girls' Soccer (begins Feb. 28)
• Girls' Track & Field (began Jan. 17)
• Girls' Water Polo (begins Feb. 28)
• Softball (begins Feb. 28)

To participate on the start day, students must register on the 8to18 Dashboard (click here), and they must have a physical exam on file with the Athletic Dept. (The physical exam/vaccine report required for incoming freshmen can be used to participate in athletics.) Questions? Contact the Athletic Dept. at 708-335-5004, [email protected].

Your Feedback is Needed!

5Essentials Survey Now Open

H-F Parents & Guardians: Please take a few minutes to complete the Illinois 5Essentials Survey by Friday, March 11. This annual survey will help us understand your student's experiences this year and will help guide improvements at our school. Please know that your identity and survey responses will be kept completely confidential and will never be connected to you or your student. Thank you!

Click here to begin the survey...

Join our Social Workers for Wellness Wednesdays in G5

Wellness Wednesday discussions will return in person this February! Students are invited to attend Wednesdays during 4th Period in South Building Room G5; they may sign up for one session each month. The schedule for February is:

• Feb. 9: Unmotivated & Overwhelmed
• Feb. 16: Healthy Relationships
• Feb. 23: Managing the Uncomfortable

To sign up for a session, please click here...

Questions? Contact Mrs. White at 708-335-5554 or [email protected].

Welcome, Class of 2026!

Incoming Freshman Registration Meeting: Tomorrow!

Parents and guardians of Class of 2026 students (current 8th Graders) are invited to join H-F for an online Incoming Freshman Registration Meeting at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 10. Panelists for this meeting will be:

• Jim Schmidt: Guidance Department Chair
• Cynthia Knox: Special Education Department Chair
• Jennifer Rudan: MTSS Coordinator
• Dr. Jennifer Hester: Director of Curriculum, Instruction & Professional Development

Click here for the Zoom meeting link...

Passcode: 046541

COVID FLOW CHARTS

The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) recently adopted new COVID guidelines from the CDC (click here). There are now different stipulations around quarantines and exclusions from school. Please consult the updated flow charts below when needed. Questions? Please contact Jodi Bryant, Director of Human Resources & Public Relations, at 708-335-5550.

Additional COVID Links & News

• D233 COVID Family Reporting Form — To report positive cases or close contacts.

• SHIELD Testing Registration Form — Testing is held Tuesdays from 7:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. at the H-F Pool. Return completed form to the Nurse's Office or [email protected].

• D233 COVID Dashboard — To track case counts and metrics from our community.

11 Vikings headed to IHSA Speech Sectionals

The H-F Speech team competed last Saturday at the IHSA Regional Tournament at Eisenhower H.S. H-F advanced all of our entries to IHSA Sectionals, claiming a 3rd Place team victory, plus three tournament champions! Special congratulations to Aaron McIntyre & Josh Bridges, who not only earned the title of champion, but also earned straight 1s in the final found. Moving on to Thornton this weekend are:

• Halena Laven & Stella Hoyt — Regional Champions: Dramatic Duet Acting
• Aaron McIntyre — Regional Champion: Prose Reading & 2nd Place: Extemporaneous Speaking
• Josh Bridges — Regional Champion: Radio Speaking
• Tinbit Dogisso — 2nd Place: Informative Speaking
• Diamond Carrington — 2nd Place: Oratorical Declamation & 4th Place: Original Comedy
• Devin Kenebrew & Emma Steiner — 3rd Place: Humorous Duet Acting
• Layla LaNier — 3rd Place: Humorous Interpretation & 4th Place: Poetry Reading
• Jazmin Rhodes — 3rd Place: Original Oratory
• Stella Hoyt — 4th Place: Dramatic Interpretation
• Emma Steiner — 4th Place: Impromptu Speaking
• Caroline Bivens — 4th Place: Special Occasion Speaking

12 Viking Student-Athletes Recognized for Academic Excellence

Congratulations to our 12 Field Hockey student-athletes, who have been named to the 2021 National Field Hockey Coaches Association's High School Academic Squad! These students have achieved a minimum cumulative, unweighted GPA of 3.5 out of 4.0 — or the equivalent — through the first quarter of the school year. Individuals marked as Scholars of Distinction have achieved a minimum cumulative, unweighted GPA of 3.9 out of 4.0 for the first quarter. Congratulations to: Phoebe Bosch; Kendall Brown; Brooklyn Edwards; Alyssa Freeman; Naomi Fry (Scholar of Distinction); Charlotte Holly; Isabella Ivancevic; Jada Marsh (Scholar of Distinction); Lola Pohrte (Scholar of Distinction); Lily Sahagun; Amelia Wachtel; and Faye Wettstein (Scholar of Distinction). The team was coached by Mrs. Gaham, H-F Social Science & PE/Health/De secretary.

Student published in Teen Ink

Congratulations to senior Samantha Sextonson, whose fiction piece, "Cosmic Family," was published in Teen Ink and selected as Editor's Choice! Click here to enjoy her writing...

Culinary program presents at ISBE

On Feb. 17, two teachers — Mrs. Clark, CTE, and Mr. Thomas, CTE Department Chair — and two students — Gabrielle Nelson & Mysheeke Glover — will represent H-F and our culinary program at the ISBE Executive Board Meeting in Chicago!

H-F Mock Trial finds success again in-person

The H-F Mock Trial team competed in its first in-person competition in two years last weekend at the Trials at the Trail Invitational, held at Bloom Trail H.S. Our varsity team — Red Team — finished in 3rd Place, and our JV team — White Team — tied for 4th Place.



Congratulations to the Red Team —

Ife Adeyinka, Alex Ekstrom, Naomi Fry, Fatima Hernandez, Keziah Hillard, Layla Kedjour, Kristin Taylor, Makayla Taylor and Marlon Williams — and to the White Team: Caitlyn Aytch, Destini Brown, Theo Holloway, Maya McNeil, Kendall Pace, Undra Pillows, Kavi Richmond, Marlee Trojan & Max Zeman. The teams are sponsored by Ms. Day, Social Science teacher.

Girls' Gymnastics

Congratulations to the following student-athletes who competed at the IHSA Regionals on Monday, Feb. 7, at Oswego H.S.:

• Alyssa Brigham — All-Around
• Lesley Dean — Beam
• Tanylah Gillen — Floor

The team is coached by Mrs. May, English teacher.

Boys' Wrestling

Congratulations to the following student-athletes who will travel to Granite City to compete at IHSA Sectionals this Friday:

• Deion Johnson — Regional Champion
• Jaydon Robinson — Regional Champion
• Vincent Robinson — Regional Champion
• Haku Watson-Castro — Regional Champion
• Jermaine Butler — 2nd Place
• Justin Thomas — 2nd Place
• Romeo Williams — 3rd Place

The team is coached by Mr. Sokoloski, Math teacher.

Note: Only home games & playoffs are shown below. For complete athletic schedules, click here...

Did you know that H-F sends out dedicated emails prior to every regular District 233 Board of Education meeting? Update your "H-F FYI" subscription by clicking here and add "District 233 Board of Education Regular Monthly Meeting Preview" to your list of requested messages from our school. Thank you!