Hózhó Academy Newsletter

For the week of August 15th - 19th, 2022

Weekly Update

Dear Families,

I hope everyone is settling nicely into the new school year! Please see below for a special introduction and staff highlight.

Mid-School Soccer: Mid-school soccer starts this week. A message to families will be sent out on Monday.

Required Fall Sports Meeting: This meeting is required for parents and students in cross country, volleyball, and football. It is this Tuesday, August 16th at 5:45 PM in the gym.

Freshman Promotion: On September 9th, we will hold our 9th grade/freshman promotion. Freshmen will parade to the school and be honored with a special morning assembly at 8:30 AM.

Arrival: Students may arrive between 7:45 and 8:30 am and we will have the morning assembly in the gym at 8:30 am.

After School Pickup: Thank you for your patience and cooperation. Please remember access to the elementary parking lot will be restricted once our dismissal staff are in place. You may park at the junior high and walk to the elementary school for pick up or visiting the office.

Uniforms: Junior high and high school (Upper School) students may opt for a black or gray polo shirt. All other uniform options will remain the same. Please make an appointment at Sportsworld (505) 863-8819 to try on sizes. Uniform compliance will be strictly enforced. Students must be in full uniform to attend classes. If you need financial assistance with purchasing uniforms, please come by the front office. If you have a rental uniform from last year that still fits, keep it. If it no longer fits, please return it to the school’s front office. Shoes are part of the uniform. Students must be in athletic closed-toe shoes and ready for PE every day. Sandals and boots, etc. are too dangerous for PE.

School Supplies: If you did not purchase your child's planner yet, we are asking each family to buy a binder with folders and a planner for $10 for each of their students in all grades. Please send payment in with your child to school. Lower school may turn it into their teacher and upper school turn it into the front office.

After school clubs and fitness: We will continue to offer free afterschool options. Families will need to register for all options, including fitness (click here). No student may stay after school in a program without being registered. We will offer after school fitness beginning August 1. Other clubs will start at various times in the year. Reminder: All students must be picked up from after school activities between 4:45 and 5 pm. Tardy pickups will result in students losing the privilege to participate in after school activities.

Attendance is critical: We are expecting students to attend every day. I know there has been some flexibility during the pandemic, but beginning August 1, students must attend every day unless administration has made an arrangement, in very limited circumstances, for remote learning. For junior high and high school students, we are also strictly enforcing prompt attendance to class. Any tardy to class will be addressed. Please note that attendance can impact enrollment. If students miss 10 days in a row, they are considered disenrolled.

Detention and Saturday school: We are setting high expectations for student behavior. We want to encourage behaviors that will promote success in school and after graduation. If a student makes a poor choice, we will address the behaviors as usual but in some cases of repeated infractions, particularly in the upper school, we will implement detention at lunchtime and afterschool and a Saturday school option.

Meals: All meals are free to students. Breakfast and lunch will be provided daily.

Transportation: We have a few limited options for transportation with Gallup Express. Any current student who used transportation in the past will be added to the transportation roster from last year. Any new student requiring transportation should contact Gallup Express at (505) 722-0777.

Please refer to our online handbook for information regarding parties and outside food and more details on many other policies and procedures.

If you have questions, please reach out to our front office at (505) 722-8922.

Important Dates

August 16th - Mandatory Fall Sports Meeting 5:45 PM @ the Gym

September 9th - Freshman Promotion 8:30 AM

September 26th - Back to School/Curriculum Night

Sports Practice Schedules

Volleyball: Mid-School: Alternating (M/W/F 3:30 - 5:00 pm) and (T/TH 4:30- 6:00 pm)

High School: Alternating (M/W/F 4:30 - 6:00 pm) and (T/TH 3:30 - 5:00 pm)

Football: 3:45 - 5:30 M-F

Cross Country: 3:45 - 5:00 M-F

Meet Our New Bunny

The gardening class now has a pet bunny! We hope this will give students more incentive to come to the garden as well as:

Teach students responsibilities of caring for a pet
Build connections with life and nature
Decrease anxiety

Rabbits are beneficial to the garden because they are great composters. The manure from rabbits doesn't need to sit and compost before being used in the garden, and seeds can be planted directly into the manure.

We ask that if anyone has an allergy or concern please contact the school nurse, Mr. Balok, at cbalok@hozhoacademy.org. Thank you!

Meet the Hózhó Staff

We are pleased to welcome Dr. Helen Freeh who serves as our 9th-grade literature teacher. She “loves stories and helping young people learn to understand symbolism and meaning in literature so that they can better understand the story of their own life”. When she’s not working, she can be found spending time outdoors with her husband, three children, and their golden retriever puppy. Describing herself as an introverted social listener, Dr. Freeh also loves DIY projects and her favorite book is JRR Tolkien’s, The Lord of the Rings.

When asked about her educational philosophy, Dr. Freeh shared the following: “I follow a Socratic method of teaching in which I ask a lot of leading and guiding questions for students. I always start at the literal level of literature and make sure students literally understand what’s happening and then help them move into the greater significance of meaning and connection of characters and stories to the student’s own world.”

Dr. Freeh earned her Bachelor of Arts in Politics and a Master of American Studies from the University of Dallas. She earned her Doctorate in English Literature from Baylor University and wrote her dissertation on J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings and The Silmarillion.