Dear Families and Students,

The first half of the 2018-19 school year has come to a close. I hope everyone feels a sense of accomplishment and is looking forward to the new year ahead.

As OSHS looks ahead to 2019, we are proud to announce a new Nano Science and Technology course coming to our campus starting in January! This course will be taught by Dr. Bozkurt, a new member to the OSHS team. The details, including how to sign up for the course, can be found below.

We are proud to recognize our Orca Mathletes from both Math Counts and the FGCU Math Invitational. Both teams placed at their recent competitions, way to go Orcas!

On Tuesday, December 18th, we hosted our traditional Alumni dinner. It was great to see how much they accomplished in their life and at their colleges. We are proud of each one of them and it is always great to see our Orca Alumni in our campus again!

If your child is curious about the field of aviation, read the flyer in this week's newsletter to learn all about an upcoming opportunity for OSS students. Students will be able to get oriented in all aspects of aviation, it's a great opportunity for our students!

We would like to extend our sincerest gratitude to our OSS PVO Team for the delicious holiday breakfast and everyone who contributed to our annual gift card campaign. It is because of you that we are able to show our hardworking staff how much we appreciate them!

On Thursday, January 10th, the Middle and High Schools will highlight the best of our school Science Fair projects at the Lynx Lane campus. We are in need of judges to come and score student science fair projects. If you are interested, please sign up using the link below. There are 3 different time slots to choose from, please consider coming to view and score the best of the best OSS Middle/High projects. We look forward to showcasing the science skills of our OSS Middle High students!

Don't forget that the high school campus will be closed for Winter Break beginning Friday, December 21st and will reopen Monday, January 7, 2019.

We wish you, and your families happy holiday season and a prosperous new year! I will see you all on Monday, January 7th, 2019!

Respectfully,

Abdulaziz Yalcin, M.Ed

Principal

Orlando Science Schools-Middle/High

Orlando Science Middle High would like to thank EVERYONE who donated to the Annual Holiday Breakfast and Gift Card Drive. Both Events were a huge success and we would not be able to show our staff just how much we appreciate them without your support. Have a safe and wonderful holiday!

Dear Parents and Guardians,

It is that time of year that we will need help for our OSS School Wide Science Fair to be held on January 10th 2019. Below are the time slots where we will need assistance judging projects. Please note we are only able to accept ADDitions approved volunteers. If you are interested in volunteering and your ADDitions Account is ACTIVE, please follow the steps found below:

1. Select a "Time Slot" found below.

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/30e0949a9aa23a6f94-201820198

2. Register with the ADDitions Opportunity using the following link.

https://ocps.samaritan.com/recruiter/index.php?recruiterID=503&class=OppDetails&oppGuid={CC1060AD-741E-401D-81FA-140B68E08018}&t=2018-2019-Science-Fair-Volunteers

International club organized a holiday Ugly Sweater dress down day! Thank you to our OSHS families who participated in the fun! Orca Pride!

On Saturday, December 1st, the Mu Alpha Theta Honor Society hosted the School-wide MathCounts for our middle schoolers. This was a very fun and engaging event where some of our smartest middle school students went face to face in a mathematical match-up.

The top four placements are Omer D. (7th grade), Aaditya N. (7th grade), Jaithra N. (7th grade), and Michelle L. (7th grade).

Congratulations to all of our winners and participants!

Last Friday, December 14th, our middle and high school mathletes participated in the annual invitational math competition hosted by Florida Gulf Coast University. They performed very well and received many top placements in the divisions of Algebra 1, Geometry, Algebra 2, and Calculus. Our Geometry and Algebra 2 teams both received 1st place, and 1st place individuals in the Algebra 1, Geometry, and Algebra 2 divisions were all won by students from our school. We are very proud of our mathletes!

Orlando Science High School is proud to announce we are planning to launch an cutting edge new course during the second semester of this school year! It will be offered as an elective before school every day. Here are some details:

Course: Nano-science and Technology

Instructor: Dr. Ibrahim Bozkurt

Grade Levels Offered: 9-12

Time: 7:00am-7:45am Monday-Friday

Prerequisite: Currently enrolled or taken Pre-Calculus

Class Limit: 25 students

Instructor: Dr. Ibrahim Bozkurt (Dr. IB)

He studied in earned his PhD in Rutgers University/ Princeton University School of Engineering, NJ and earned his PhD in Materials Science and Engineering. Dr. IB is highly knowledgeable with various research analysis instruments including Raman Spectroscopy, Photoluminescence, SEM, AFM, EDX, Optical Microscope, XRD and XPS. Developed strong communication skills from extensive teaching and work experience. Acquired to work independently or collaboratively within a team environment. Finalizing research projects with many publications in prestigious journals such as Nature Materials, ACS Nano, and OSA. Managed to accrue nearly 2 years of work experience as a transportation manager in which he accomplished valuable professional skills such as facilities engineering, cost/schedule management and customer satisfaction. Recently, he worked really hard to bring the first Atomic Force Microscope (AFM) to Orlando Science High, the first high school in the US that has such cutting-edge technology.

Course Overview: Nano-science and Technology is an introductory high school level course that covers key concepts and studies of atomic, molecular and supra-molecular scales of matters. Nano-science is not physics, chemistry, engineering or biology, it is all of them. The nano-meter scale matters and their correlations with each other is the basic study of nano-science and technology. The fabrication and application of these nano-materials will be another key topic to learn. The course will introduce the students to nano-world and allow them to have higher order thinking skills.

Course Equipment: After long and tough negotiations with the nanotech companies, one of them was finally eager to partly donate the AFM (Atomic Force Microscope) device to our school. For those of you who are not familiar with AFM, the device will analysis matters at nanoscale (1 nm: 10^-9 meters, A strand of hair - about 80,000 to 100,000 nanometers wide). See the diagram below. We are proud to announce that our school will be the first high school in the USA that will teach this kind of cutting-edge technology device at the high school level.

Textbook and Materials: Fundamental of Nano-science and Technology advanced lecture notes from Rutgers University, Materials Science and Engineering Department-MSE.

Course to appear on your transcript as an 8th period course:

9400130 ADV APPS SCI VISUAL

Advanced Applications in Scientific Visualization/Level 3

Please fill out the following survey using the button below if you would like to commit to taking the class. We will let you know about your placement.

AFM is a type of scanning probe microscopy (SPM), with demonstrated resolution on the order of fractions of a nanometer, more than 1000 times better than the optical diffraction limit. The information is gathered by "feeling" or "touching" the surface with a mechanical probe. Piezoelectric elements that facilitate tiny but accurate and precise movements on (electronic) command enable precise scanning.

The AFM has been applied to problems in a wide range of disciplines of the natural sciences, including solid-state physics, semiconductor science and technology, molecular engineering, polymer chemistry and physics, surface chemistry, molecular biology, cell biology, and medicine.

Applications in the field of solid state physics include (a) the identification of atoms at a surface, (b) the evaluation of interactions between a specific atom and its neighboring atoms, and (c) the study of changes in physical properties arising from changes in an atomic arrangement through atomic manipulation.

In molecular biology, AFM can be used to study the structure and mechanical properties of protein complexes and assemblies. For example, AFM has been used to image microtubules and measure their stiffness.

In cellular biology, AFM can be used to attempt to distinguish cancer cells and normal cells based on a hardness of cells, and to evaluate interactions between a specific cell and its neighboring cells in a competitive culture system. AFM can also be used to indent cells, to study how they regulate the stiffness or shape of the cell membrane or wall.

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atomic_force_microscopy

Attention OSS 6th-12th graders: The Florida Aviation Network is excited to introduce students to Aviation. This is an amazing line up with drones, simulators, 3 different airports and lots of enthusiastic Aviation professionals who want to share their passion.

The classes are open to all youth (not just Boy Scouts) in 6th through 12th grade. On the last class it'll be Family and Friends day. If any of the faculty in the High School or Middle School are interested they are welcome to attend. We are only inviting OSS, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts and Civil Air Patrol.

Please use the Eventbrite link to Sign Up for classes that fit your interests.

Use the password: AVIATIONMB2018.

Class 1: https://aviation-orientation-merit-badge-class1.eventbrite.com

Class 2: https://aviation-orientation-class2.eventbrite.com

Class 3: https://aviation-orientation-class3.eventbrite.com

Class 4: https://aviation-orientation-class4.eventbrite.com

Each class has a separate event page. Students can sign up for 1 class or all 4. I highly recommend Classes 2 and 3 for aspiring Pilots and Aerospace Engineers. We do ask that each child has 1 adult attend with them. For class 4 students can bring their family.

For further inquires, contact Ms. Steiner: altasteiner@gmail.com

Attention OSHS current 10th and 11th grade students: We are pleased to share with you an opportunity for Florida State University's Young Scholars Program (YSP). It is a six-week residential science and mathematics summer program for Florida high school students with significant potential for careers in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. The program was developed in 1983 and is currently administered by the Office of Science Teaching Activities in the College of Arts and Sciences at Florida State University. For more details, please visit the Program Information page.

Eligibility:
The program is designed for students who have completed the eleventh grade in a Florida public or private high school. A few exceptionally qualified and mature tenth graders have been selected in past years, though this is quite rare.

To be considered for acceptance, applicants must:

• Maintain at least a 3.0 GPA (unweighted)
  
• Have received a score in the 90th percentile or better in math on a nationally standardized exam (i.e., SAT, PSAT, ACT, or PLAN) before the application deadline
  
• Be enrolled in or have completed Pre-Calculus
  
• Be able to commit for the entire six weeks of the program (no exceptions will be made for travel to other summer internship opportunities, sports camps, Mu Alpha Theta, etc.)
  
• Maintain a permanent residence in the state of Florida
  

Important Program Dates 2019:
January 1: Applications available online
February 15: Application deadline (must be postmarked by this day)
May 15: Admissions decisions finalized (on or before this day)
October 15: Summative evaluations available to students (on or before this day)

Click the application link below to apply on or after 1/1/2019. Good luck!

9th-12th graders please use the form below to register for the FSA and EOC Saturday Leadership Academy. Note that ALL 8th graders will participate in the FSA Saturday Studies at the Lynx Campus. More details about 8th grade SFSA aturday Studies will be provided after the Winter Break.

9th-12th graders please use the form below to register for the AP Saturday Studies.

Dear OSS 8th Grade Families,

OSHS offers a variety of high school special programs to its students. Each student will find the most exciting and academically challenging programs for themselves. The programs offer students unique opportunities for in-depth experiences and study in specific areas of interest. Each special program emphasizes a specialized theme and sets high expectations for all students to improve their academic achievements and prepare them for the 21st-century careers. In addition, Orlando Science Special Programs offer students hands-on activities and real-world problem-solving approaches. While all the students are encouraged to apply, they must have a strong interest in specialty areas of the chosen program. Students also need to meet and retain the eligibility requirements of the selected program(s). The details and the course progression of each program are available in the Orlando Science Curriculum Guide. Please ensure that you have read about the programs before submitting this application form. The link for the program guide and the application are below.

• Friday, January 18th 2019 by 11:59 p.m.

Application Deadline

• Tuesday, January 29th 2019

Application results will be announced

Students in 6-8th grades at OSS (Lynx and Tech campuses), middle school basketball tryouts are coming up! We will be offering a co-ed basketball team for the 2018-2019 season.

Students who wish to try out must have a completed sports physical packet. The sports packets are new this year and must be signed off by: 1. parent/guardian 2. your Dr. 3. the AD (Mrs. Mulligan) and 4. Admin prior to tryouts.

Packets are now available at the Lynx and Technology Buildings(B2 and B3) as well as below.

Tryouts will be held tentatively January 8th and 9th at the Lynx campus. Students are responsible for transportation to Lynx campus and attending BOTH days of tryouts.

Please note- OSS will not offer transportation at any point during the season for practices and/or games.

For any questions, email Mrs. Mulligan.

This scholarship program helps support promising high school seniors who intend to pursue a career in an approved engineering, computer science, mathematics or physics program and who live in communities where Northrop Grumman Mission Systems has a major presence. That includes Florida's Orange County! OSHS Seniors check out the link below to learn more about NG's $8,000 scholarship opportunity.

FAFSA is the Federal Student Aid program. Every single college applicant needs to complete FAFSA regardless of their income. This application is free and completed through only one website. Do not pay to anyone or any website for completion of FAFSA. This should take no more than 45 minutes to complete if you have everything ready to go. FAFSA is time sensitive. The funds are distributed as first come first serve.

State of Florida has its own scholarship program called Bright Futures and it is managed through OSFA (Office of Student Financial Assistance). When you complete the application, you are also being evaluated for other scholarships through State of Florida. It is a very short application and should not take more than 15 minutes. Most important thing to know is that, you only complete the form and your transcript and SAT/ACT scores will be submitted automatically through OSS and the State of Florida University System. You are not required to satisfy all the application requirements until the end of the school year to apply to this scholarship. On the other hand, being qualified currently does not guarantee that you will receive this scholarship. If your end of year GPA falls under the requirement, then you will not be receiving the scholarship. Here are the current requirements:

Senior yearbook ads are now available!

Purchase an advertisement for your senior today. Include pictures and a short message for your student before they graduate. After payment is made be sure to email your pictures and your message to Ms. Lizarazo to make sure the correct information is placed in the yearbook.

Full page ad:

https://www.schoolpay.com/pay/for/FULL-PAGE-Senior-Yearbook--Advertisement-/IdDLy

1/2 page ad:

https://www.schoolpay.com/pay/for/HALF-PAGE-Senior-Yearbook--Advertisement-/IdDLx

Due date is March 29, 2019

The Orlando Science High School on Technology Drive opened its doors to a newly renovated campus in August 2018. One of the great features of the High School campus is the brand new Media Center. It serves as a space where all students can read, research and study. Please consider making a donation directly to the Media Center to help Mrs. Singleton stock the shelves and create a welcoming environment for our students. As always the Amazon Wishlist link below contains the most current requests from our staff and students.

Our School System has recently updated our accounts on LinkedIn would love for you to join our network! Please see below for links to the official LinkedIn Company Pages for each of our campuses and feel free to share with current families and alumni.

• Orlando Science Schools (K-12): https://www.linkedin.com/company/orlando-science-schools/
  
• Osceola Science Charter School (K-8): https://www.linkedin.com/company/osceola-science-charter-school/
  
• Seminole Science Charter School (K-8): https://www.linkedin.com/company/seminole-science-charter-school/

This is an easy way to help raise money for Orlando Science Schools. Use the link below when shopping from Amazon. AmazonSmile donates 0.5% of the price of your eligible AmazonSmile purchases to Orlando Science Schools via Discovery Education Services, Inc. whenever you shop on AmazonSmile.

Office Depot provides the school with 5% back in credits for FREE supplies when you make a purchase of qualifying school supplies. Simply provide the school ID at checkout.

OSES School Code: 70228302

OSS School Code: 70218341

Hello OSS Families! Please remember that BOX TOPS are a wonderful FREE way to raise funds for our school. Each Box Top is worth $.10 and they really add up. Please make sure to continuously send these in so that I can mail them before their expiration dates. The monies received go to supporting our academic and sport teams, the PLTW (Project Lead the Way) along with many other OSS programs and classroom needs. If you would like to learn more about the Box Tops program go to www.btfe.com. Please register or login today. Make sure that you designate Orlando Science Schools as your school support.

To see a complete list of products go to: https://www.boxtops4education.com/earn/participating-products

Also, it is very important to check those expiration dates. We do not receive any credit for expired Box Tops.

Thank you so much for your support of Orlando Science Middle High School. For questions or thoughts please email me at jmallonee@cfl.rr.com.

Happy Clipping!

Denise Mallonee

Dear Orlando Science Lynx Lane and Technology High School Families,

It is time to join the Parent Volunteer Organization (PVO). Membership is $25 per family for returning families and $30 for new families, your membership dues go directly back into the school to provide items and supplies for our teachers. We are also asking that PVO members work with specific committees (School Improvement, Fundraising, Volunteer Work, Teacher Appreciation, Events, Etc.) Please utilize the SCHOOL PAY link below to pay your dues.

If you have questions, comments, or requests, you may email OSS.PVO@orlandoscience.org . A formal PVO committee, including president and vice-president, will be announced at the end of the first quarter of the 2018-2019 School Year. PVO will hold bi-monthly meetings that will inform parents of progress, agendas, and upcoming events.

Thank you for all of your help and support as we look forward to a great year.

If you are an ADDitions approved volunteer, OSHS can use your help! We are looking for parents or responsible adults over the age of 18 to help during lunch times (approximately 11am-1pm) and during car line before and after school. Please contact Ms. Foley to schedule the exact time slots. All volunteers must complete the ADDitions application is here: https://ocps.samaritan.com/custom/503/ beforehand. Thank you for all you do to help make OSHS great!

Orcas interested in dressing down for their birthday MUST submit a "Dress Down Day" form(found below) to Mrs. Foley at least two business days prior to the requested dress down date.

Technology Drive High School Orcas Families please make sure to review the Dress Code with your students. Dress Code may be found on page 29 in the OSS Handbook HS 2018-2019 below.

Families whose Free/Reduced lunch applications have expired, please take a moment and fill out the OCPS Free/Reduced Meal Application today! It must be completed each year to qualify for this federally funded program. To fill out the application click the link below.

Email: info@orlandoscience.org
Website: http://orlandoscience.org/highschool/
Location: 2600 Technology Drive, Orlando, FL, USA
Phone: (407)299-6595
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/orlandoscience/
Twitter: @OrlandoSciMH