Happy Mother's Day
Dear Atholton Families,
Happy Mother’s Day! I hope everyone has taken the opportunity to express their gratitude to all our mothers and the work they do day in and day out to support their families. I truly appreciate all our mothers do to support our school. THANK YOU! Given our unique circumstances, I hope you have found a way to honor our mothers and those that fill that role in our lives.
As you know, all Maryland Public Schools are closed for the remainder of the year. While we are all saddened by the fact that we will not return to Atholton this school year, it does not mean that we have stopped our Continuity of Learning Plan. We will continue with our check-ins and submission of work as normal. HCPSS is now working on a plan to allow both staff and students to retrieve items that may have been left in the building. Please stay tuned for more information on this retrieval plan.
We are inching closer and closer to an official announcement regarding our virtual graduation. I anticipate an announcement this week that will detail the specifics of the virtual graduation and our graduation date! Please stay tuned. An email blast went out last week for a final push to order caps and gowns as they will be needed for the virtual graduation. The deadline to place your order for cap and gown is Tuesday, May 12. You may place your order at www.balfour.com. We will be developing a distribution plan for caps and gowns once the shipment arrives. Additionally, I am thrilled to report that we will also distribute cords and stoles during this time as well. The graduation window is June 1 - June 9 so we still have a few weeks to prepare.
As the last day for seniors approaches (May 20), there are several activities being planned. This week is Senior Spirit Week. Each day is highlighted below. On May 19, the PTSA and school will be hosting a Senior Driveby Breakfast. The PTSA has a gift for our seniors and the senior class has a breakfast gift card. We will be distributing strict protocols later in the week along with a route for students / families to follow. Additionally, Howard County Police will be on site to help monitor and direct things. This will be a good practice for our cap and gown distribution. Our Senior Awards Slideshow and Athletics Awards will be posted on May 29 and we will include the Virtual Stars we had our seniors decorate as well. If they have not done that, please contact Ms. Meledick ASAP at Dana_Meledick@hcpss.org. Lastly, please work with our seniors to begin to assemble all of their school obligations -- textbooks, uniforms, chromebooks, etc. We will be clearing student obligations at the time of cap and gown distribution. Start hunting for those items now! All cords and stoles will be also be distributed at this time. It will more than likely be the week of May 25 that we distribute materials.
As a result of the closing of schools for the year, the prom, scheduled for June 6, has officially been canceled. We will be working to schedule another event either this summer or early next year that will allow our seniors to come together in-person to celebrate.
In keeping with honoring our senior spring athletes, this week we are honoring our baseball and softball senior athletes. Please be sure to view their highlight pages below.
Lastly, regarding the holiday on May 25 (Memorial Day), there will need to be an adjusted distance learning schedule for May 26-29. More information will be provided as the schedule is finalized.
Wishing you all a fantastic week. Stay healthy and safe!
Warmly,
Robert A. Motley
Principal
Atholton High School
Click Below for Boosters' Organization News
Email: Robert_Motley@hcpss.org
Website: www.ahs.hcpss.org
Location: 6520 Freetown Road, Columbia, MD, USA
Phone: (410) 313-7065