September 18, 2023

Please mark your calendars for Fall Parent-Teacher Conferences.

Our fall Parent Teacher Conferences will take place Thursday, October 5, from 4:00-7:00 PM. We will again plan on conferences that are scheduled. You will be able to meet digitally via Google Meet or in-person in our classrooms/spaces. More information will be shared the week prior to and week of conferences.

Our conferences are meant to offer time for brief conversations regarding your student's progress. If you require a more lengthy discussion regarding your student or are unable to meet within the time and space available, please email or call the teacher and arrange a mutual time to meet.

The success of our students depends on a strong partnership between our school, families, and community. Every day is an opportunity to connect. Never hesitate to reach out.

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Make it it a great day, make it a better tomorrow, and Go Sabers,

Mr. Vuolo

Homecoming Dance ticket sales are live! See the 2023 FHS Homecoming website for full details regarding ticket requirements and to find the link to purchase tickets.

It is with tremendous Saber Pride that we share senior Shamit Surana is one of 16,000 students across the country named as a National Merit Semifinalist.

From National Merit:

“NMSC is excited to announce the names of more than 16,000 Semifinalists in the 2024 National Merit® Scholarship Program. These academically talented high school seniors have an opportunity to continue in the competition for some 7,140 National Merit Scholarships worth nearly $28 million that will be offered next spring. About 95 percent of the Semifinalists are expected to attain Finalist standing, and about half of the Finalists will win a National Merit Scholarship, earning the Merit Scholar® title. The release is made available here to provide information about the National Merit Scholarship Program.

To compete for National Merit Scholarships, Semifinalists must advance to the Finalist level of the competition by fulfilling several additional requirements. A Semifinalist can become a Finalist and compete for a Merit Scholarship award in only one program year.”

We are very proud of Shamit and wish him luck on the next steps in the process!

The AP exam ordering process is slightly different this school year and involves two important steps. All AP students should have received the two-page electronic handout found here in their AP courses. Please read this document carefully for details, including the exam schedule on the second page. All AP Students should also join the FHS AP Students Google Classroom with the code given to them from teachers or found on the handout. A brief informational video can also be found here regarding the My AP site and exam ordering procedures.

Note that there are 2 required steps to ordering before a student's exam order can be processed:

STEP 1. Students must login to their My AP account (myap.collegeboard.org), join the appropriate course section with the join code given to them by their AP teacher(s), and MUST opt-in to ordering each exam, if they wish to do so, in My AP for each class by September 27.

STEP 2. Exam fees will then be added to the student's online FHS student fee account on RevTrak/PowerSchool by October 2 (same system used to pay school fees) and must be paid online (preferable) or in FHS/Student Services Office by October 12.

This year, each AP exam costs $101 (AP Seminar and AP Research are $149). Fee waivers are available for students who receive free/reduced lunch - see details on handout and in video. Students who may need accommodations on AP exams per an IEP or 504 Plan should see Mrs. Oost in Student Services this fall. Please see Mrs. Oost or Mrs. Bednar in Student Services if you have questions at any time. We wish you the best in your AP classes this year!

Important Reminder!!!!!

Parents of Sophomores and Juniors-

WEDNESDAY, 9/20 IS THE DEADLINE TO SIGN UP FOR THE PSAT/NMSQT

Pre-SAT / National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test

Franklin HIgh School sophomores and juniors will have the opportunity to take the PSAT/NMSQT test on Tuesday, October 17th beginning at 7:15am at Franklin High School. The cost for this optional test is $18. Space is limited and will be filled on a first come first serve basis. This year’s test is digital/online (only format offered from PSAT).

What is the PSAT (Pre-SAT) / NMSQT (National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test)?

An online test that:

• Assesses academic skill levels and college and career readiness

• Prepares students for college admissions testing

• Provides access to college planning resources

• Allows Juniors to enter the National Merit Scholarship Program

• Connects students with colleges and universities

• Offers suggestions for improvement of academic skills on college admissions tests

Students may sign up for this optional test by filling out the form that was sent to their FHS email on September 12th. Registration will not be considered complete until the form is filled out and the $18 fee is turned in to the Student Services office. The required fee can be cash or check made payable to Franklin High School and turned in no later than September 20th. .

Please check out the PSAT/NMSQT website or contact your child’s school counselor for additional information about the test.

All Juniors will be taking the ACT exam on March 12th, 2024. The state required ACT exam provides an excellent opportunity for all Juniors to demonstrate their college and career ready skills, as this exam is reportable to colleges. It is our school goal, that upon graduation, all Franklin High School students are prepared for their post-secondary goals.

In addition to daily learning through their classes, students also have:

• Access to an online program, Methodize, to help them to prepare for this exam

• Opportunity to sign up for an additional ACT prep course at your expense

Methodize, available through Xello, allows any and all Juniors to engage in subject specific practice. The program will highlight areas of strength and allow for dedicated practice toward growth areas. The program provides standard specific practice and lessons. Methodize also allows each student to engage in two full practice exams.Methodize consists of 20 units. If students complete about a unit a week, they will complete the preparatory material well in advance of the ACT test.

In addition to engaging in ACT preparation through Methodize, all students can engage in full ACT practice exams by simply using their chromebook. By opening the “apps” tab, students can access the TestNav software and will find ACT practice exams available for their use. The practice exams in TestNav can be taken “timed” or “untimed.” Untimed exams can allow students to examine and become familiar with the test.

We are also extremely excited to share that this year we will again have in-person ACT Prep courses right at Franklin High School. For these continued opportunities, we have teamed with Wisconsin Test Prep. With the support of our Franklin Education Foundation, ACT Prep waivers/scholarships are available for students who are eligible for reduced or free lunch & students with acute financial need. If you qualify, please complete this form and submit it to Student Services two weeks prior to the start of your prep class (or sooner!). By requesting a fee waiver, you give authorization for FHS Administration to access information verifying your eligibility for a waiver. This information, along with this waiver request, are confidential. If approved, the waiver will cover the entire prep course. Please note that, once a student’s online form is submitted and payment for the class is received, they are registered for the class. If a waiver/scholarship is approved, payment will be made on your student’s behalf. If you plan to sign up, please make sure to complete the online registration form at Wisconsin Test Prep. Cost: $175.00 All classes are held at Franklin High School and space is limited, so please sign up early!

Join the Saber Pride! FHS has immediate openings for part-time special education assistants. If you are interested in working at FHS, please see and share the following link: tinyurl.com/franklinEA #BetterCommunity #SaberPride

Skip the line and save on tickets! Purchase your Gold Pass today and use the keychain card to get into all home athletics events during the 2023-2024 school year (except WIAA playoff events). Stop and purchase your keychain card in the main office, weekdays from 8am-3pm. Student Gold Passes are $40. Adult Gold Passes are $55. Family Gold Passes (includes 4 passes) are $120. Cash, card, or apple pay accepted in the office.

Sophomores with a 3.5 unweighted cumulative grade point will be invited to apply for membership in the Franklin High School National Honor Society at the end of the first semester. Interested students must submit their resume, 2 teacher evaluations, 1 community member evaluation, and document 20 hours of community service (forms will be provided).

*It is encouraged to begin documenting your service hours as soon as possible.

Juniors interested in the National Honor Society must satisfy the same criteria and should contact Mr. Decker directly for application materials.

More information (including the Community Service Verification Form), guidelines for service hours, and answers to frequently asked questions can be found on the Franklin High School website under Activities & Athletics.

Student photo make up days are scheduled for October 18th and 19th during school lunch hours. If you haven't gotten your photo taken, we will need you to participate on the 18th and 19th to get a student ID.

Those planning to attend the Franklin Football game versus Oak Creek this Thursday, 9/21, please get tickets today. THERE WILL BE NO TICKET SALES AT THE GAME and they will SELL OUT. Please use this link and purchase those as soon as you can so we can represent! Share this with friends and family.

Now that we are into the school year and regular busing routines are being established, we want to share details with families on what to expect regarding busing moving forward.

• If any changes are needed to your child’s busing or you are looking to add busing for a child that currently does not ride the bus, those requests must be made through this Bus Route Change/Addition Request Form.

• In regards to requests, please first review the Administrative Rules for FPS School Board Policy #3720 - Student Transportation. These rules are written in an effort to keep structure and safety for all of our students and we follow these rules when reviewing requests.

• In partnership with GO Riteway, we do our best to establish bus stops following these administrative rules and requests for a stop immediately in front of a home may not be honored due to a variety of factors.

• We are not able to honor requests to bus a student from one school to another for extracurricular activities.

If you have any concerns with your child’s transportation, please continue to contact Heidi Engel, FPS Auxiliary Services Coordinator (414-525-7634). She is working with GO Riteway to respond to family needs.

As we enter the 2023-24 school year, we want to remind you of the attendance planning we have been working on and will continue to work on into this school year. This year, we worked across the district to better streamline our attendance codes. Our goal is to increase our communication with families around attendance. Recently, we created a district level task force to explore our current practices for communication and partnered with our office staff to make reporting of absences more consistent across all of our buildings while still following Board policy and state law.

One area that is important for parents/guardians to recognize is that it is the district’s responsibility (per state law) to notify parents when their child exceeds 10 days of excused absence. Commonly, these letters/notices from the district are perceived negatively or that a child or family may be “in trouble”, but please know that is not the case! We recognize that health needs, travel, emergencies, and other obligations will contribute to a family’s need to excuse their child from school on occasion. The notice from school that your child has exceeded 10 days of excused absence is a measure we follow to make sure families are informed of these absences. In most cases, this is a start of an ongoing partnership and conversation around making sure children are in school, every day, whenever possible. We know that regular attendance is a predictor of success for children during their school career.

This year, after 10 days of excused absence for any reason, parents/guardians can expect to receive a notification that your child has been out of school for 10 days. This notice will contain details about what will happen if excessive absences continue. We will share more details about what this looks like as we approach the start of the school year and what the family’s responsibility is in terms of a child’s attendance in school. We will continue to also notify families when a student has been unexcused for all or part of 5 days, as this is considered “Habitual Truancy.” Look for more information as we return to school.

Below are links to some helpful student resources!

Hotsheet (scholarship info)

Community Academic & Career Planning Opportunities

Upcoming College Rep Visits

Community Resources for Families

Job Board

College Rep visits are beginning on 9/25. Please be sure to follow this link for more information!

With all of the many activities and events happening at FHS, it is suggested that you become familiar with our website. Here are some ways you can find high school information.

Please be sure to read the newest District Newsletter. You can access all the issues here.

All past FHS Newsletters are stored on our website here

Email: susan.alton@franklin.k12.wi.us
Website: https://www.franklin.k12.wi.us/franklin-high-school
Location: 8222 S 51st St, Franklin, WI 53132, USA
Phone: 414-423-4640
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FranklinHighSchoolSabers
Twitter: @franklinsabers