The Hispanic Honor Society - La Esperanza Chapter, had their induction ceremony on December 7th. We inducted 54 students into the association. We were honored to have a special guest, retired Judge Jose Rodriguez, who spoke to our students and parents about his upbringing, experiences, and the importance of nourishing our Spanish language and heritage. The ceremony was dedicated to a special educator from our Grenadier family. Mr. Ramos has been teaching Algebra at the Ninth Grade Center for over 28 years. His dedication and rapport during his years teaching at our school has been a vital component to help our students succeed during their Colonial High School journey.

Ms. Sause is going over desirable traits in animal breeding by doing a game show, as well as introducing her students to the new intern.

Agriculture students were out at lunch this week helping students make butter for National Milk Day!

Thank you to the PTSA for supplying our testing coordinators with pencils bags for when we test! This will help ensure all rooms have supplies in one place and make things a little easier on them!

A big thank you to our PTSA for partnering with Ventura Elementary School and providing them with over 15 backpacks full of school supplies! PTSA was able to make 23 backpacks in total and will keep some spares in case other students are in need.

Valencia Dual Enrollment offers high school students the opportunity to take college classes for FREE while still enrolled at Colonial. 

* Applicants must have: 3.0+ unweighted GPA (9th-11th), 3.0+ weighted GPA (12th grade) and obtain college-ready test scores through PERT, SAT, and/or ACT. 

** SAT/ACT scores must be sent to Valencia through CollegeBoard or the ACT website. This takes several weeks, so send ASAP.

Test Score Requirements: valenciacollege.edu/students/assessments/dual-enrollment.php#pert

Valencia DE FAQs: valenciacollege.edu/admissions/dual-enrollment/faqs.php

If you have any questions about DE or PERT, please email Ms. McNair at alyssa.mcnair@ocps.net

More information about each of the highlighted scholarships can be found on the OCPS Scholarships page (https://bit.ly/ocps_scholarships). It can also be found on the right side of our OCPS HS Academic Page in the event that the bitly link is blocked (alt. link: https://www.ocps.net/departments/student_services/academics).

1. Coolidge Scholarship- for JUNIORS ONLY

a. Deadline: January 18, 2024

b. Award: Full-ride, four-year scholarship

c. https://coolidgescholars.org/

2. Florida JCI Senate Foundation Scholarship

a. Deadline: January 19, 2024

b. Amount: $1,000

c. https://fljcifoundation.usjcisenate.org/

3. Oakland Presbyterian Scholarship

a. Deadline: February 12, 2024

b. Award: up to $30,000

c. https://www.oaklandpres.org/scholarship

The overall growth rate for computer jobs through this decade is estimated at 11.5% (top bar in the chart) vs. 3.7% for jobs of all types in the US—a difference of 3.1X.

Grenadier footnote: The fastest growing computer job category, information security analysts, plan and carry out security measures to protect an organization’s computer networks and systems. They also install and use software, such as firewalls and data encryption programs, to protect sensitive information. Employment of information security analysts is projected to grow 31.2 percent, making this occupation the tenth fastest growing occupation among all 800 occupations tracked by the US Department of Labor.

Source: US Bureau of Labor Statistics 

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was the voice of a movement that would help Black Americans break down the barriers of segregation in the south and discrimination in jobs and housing everywhere. He marshalled support leading to the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. He was named by Time magazine as one of the Top 100 Most Influential People of the 20th Century. 

Dr. King left a lasting legacy which we remember this Monday, January 15th as we observe the Dr. MLK, Jr. federal holiday. When he was alive Dr. King never let setbacks nor adversity stop him from staying focused on his long-range goals. This was true up to the last day of his life. 

On April 3, 1968, the night before he was assassinated, he demonstrated for the final time how he'd reconciled death's possibility, but stayed true to his mission:

"I would like to live a long life. ... But I'm not concerned about that now," King told an audience at the Masonic Temple in Memphis, Tenn. "I just want to do God's will. ... I've seen the Promised Land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight that we as a people will get to the Promised Land. And I'm happy tonight; I'm not worried about anything. I'm not fearing any man."

The next day he died from a sniper's bullet while still in Memphis.

King's orations, writings and actions awakened America's conscience. For his efforts he won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964 at the young age of 35. Two decades later the nation honored him with Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Buildings and parks bear his name, and more than 100 postage stamps have shown his likeness. 

We close this week's Colonial Connection with several inspirational quotes from Dr. King which we believe do a good job of recounting his views on success. These may prove helpful to our Grenadiers while still in high school and beyond. 

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