Summit High School

Dear SHS Families,

Thank you for a great start to the school year.

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We look forward to welcoming all parents/guardians on Wednesday, September 25th for our Back to School Night.

This newsletter contains information about upcoming happening at SHS and supports that are available for students and families. Please review it and share this information with your student.

It's a great day to be a Hilltopper!

Stacy Grimaldi

Principal

This year’s Back to School Night will take place on Wednesday, September 25th. I encourage every parent and guardian to attend this important event. It is an evening designed for you to meet your student’s teachers and learn about the courses and other high school programs. The partnership between faculty and parents is an integral component in the success of our students. Please arrive early, as parking for this event is very challenging.

Click here to view a blank schedule form for your students to complete with their classes, room locations, and teacher names. You can also obtain this information from Genesis. Please bring the completed schedule with you to make the start of the evening much smoother. Do not rely on accessing your Genesis account while in the building since cell service in the building is spotty.

Please be reminded of some information about Summit High School’s Back to School Night:

• Activity showcase will take place all evening in the cafeteria starting at 6:30pm.

• Classrooms visits according to students’ schedules will begin at 7:00pm.

• Library will be open.

• School Counselors and Child Study Team Case Managers will be available in the gallery outside of the auditorium.

• All Physical Education and Health classes will meet in the main gym.

This upcoming week is Spirit Week. Please encourage your student to participate! The themes for each day are:

Monday: PJ Day

Tuesday: Jersey Day

Wednesday: Anything but a Backpack Day

Thursday: Class Colors Day

Friday: Tie Dye Day

Our first pep rally of the year will take place on Thursday, September 26th. We will follow a special bell schedule that day (please see below).

Come out and support our athletes during Hilltopper Weekend! Below is a schedule of events for the weekend.

Thursday, September 26th

Girls Volleyball

4:00pm: JV plays Rahway, SHS Main Gym

5:15pm: Varsity plays Rahway, SHS Main Gym

Boys Soccer

4:15pm: Freshmen play West Essex, Memorial Field/Park

6:30pm: Varsity play Roselle Park, SHS Upper Turf

Girls Tennis

9:00am: Varsity Union County Tournament, Location TBD

Friday, September 27th

Field Hockey

4:00pm: Freshmen play Bernards, Bernards HS Lower Varsity Grass Field

Girls Volleyball

4:00pm: Freshmen play Plainfield, SHS Main Gym

Girls Soccer

6:30pm: Varsity plays David Brearley HS, SHS Upper Turf

Saturday, September 28th

Sailing

8:00am: BBYRA Fall Invitational, Toms River Yacht Club

Cross Country

9:00am: JV and Varsity at Bowdoin Invite, Wappingers Falls, NY

Girls Volleyball

9:00am: Varsity Tournament at Rahway Recreation Center

Field Hockey

9:30am: Varsity plays ALJ High School, SHS Upper Turf

11:00am: JV plays ALJ High School, SHS Upper Turf

Soccer

10:00am: Freshmen play West Essex, Memorial Field/Park

Gymnastics

10:30am: JV and Varsity at Hillsborough HS Gymnastics Raider Invitational, Hillsborough HS

Football

1:00pm: Varsity plays Cranford, Tatlock Park

Cheerleading

1:00pm: JV and Varsity cheer at Football Game

Starting at 7:30am each morning, there will be three entrances to the building open for students. They are the entrances along Kent Place Blvd., the main office entrance, and the entrance by the gymnasium. Prior to 7:30am, all students must enter the building using the main office entrance.

When dropping off your student in the morning along the driveway, please pull up all the way before stopping to let your student out of the vehicle. If you drop your student off on Kent Place Blvd., please drop off only on the school side of the street. For the safety of all students and drivers, please do not make K-turns or turn around in driveways along Kent Place Blvd.

See the video below for some more information about how to make drop off safer for everyone. Thank you to Rachel Rydzewski and Rachel Zucker for creating this video.

Attendance matters in high school. Therefore, it is imperative that students arrive to school on time. Students must be in their first timeslot class by 7:45am. Any student who arrives after that time will be marked late.

Please be sure to drop off your student with enough time so they can get to class on time.

Did you know that you can view your student's check-ins on Genesis?

Students scan into the bathrooms, library, help centers, counseling office, and nurse's office when they visit these locations during the school day. You can view these check-ins in Genesis. Log into your Genesis account, and click check-ins on the left side of the screen. Please discuss with your student any excessive time out of class.

You can also view how many times your student did not have their ID badge with them in school. Please help ensure that your student has their ID badge with them each morning.

The Summit High School PTO has supported a multitude of programs and events throughout the last school year. The PTO contributed over $40,000 to programs and capital improvements to enrich our high school community.

The following are some of the highlights:

• PTO Scholarships for graduating seniors
• Student Travel Assistance for the language trips
• Hospitality appreciation events for teachers and staff
• Teacher Wish List items for classroom needs, special projects and speakers
• Beautification of our school’s gardens and grounds
• Programs and flowers for graduation

Please help us continue to support our students and staff by becoming a member of the SHS PTO. Join the PTO by clicking on the “Become a Member” button on the PTO website, summitshspto.com. Thank you in advance for your support!

Senior Portraits: Yearbook selection due no later than 10/31/24.

If you haven't taken a photo with Wallburg Studios yet, contact them at 908.277.2078 or peterwallburg@gmail.com to arrange an appointment for your senior.

If you have taken photos with them, once you receive your proofs via email, click the link to select your photo for the yearbook.

If you prefer to use another photographer, please send a head-and-shoulders photo (jpg format) to creinholt@summit.k12.nj.us no later than 10/31/24.

Students with study hall during a morning period can arrive late to school when their study hall period occurs during the first timeslot in the morning. Parent/guardian permission is required and should be done in the Genesis portal. The permission form can be found under "Forms" in Genesis and is listed as Study Hall Late Arrival - All Students.

Please note that students who have permission to arrive late for study hall must arrive in their study hall by 8:30am.

Sometimes students request schedule changes. All requests to drop and/or add new courses require administrative approval. Included below is a timeline and scheduling window that includes the parameters to drop/add classes and change levels. Requests for a teacher change within a given subject area will not be approved unless the student has had a previous course failure with that particular teacher. All course changes are based upon availability.

Appointments must be made in advance to see teachers, counselors, administrators, and other staff. Please be prepared to announce your name and purpose in order to be granted access into the building.

When a visitor arrives at the school, they will be asked to provide identification, such as a driver's license or state-issued ID card. If the visitor does not have any means of identification on them, they will be asked to input their first name, last name, and date of birth into our visitor management system. The identification is then scanned into the system, and the visitor's information is checked against a database to ensure they are not on any prohibited lists. Once the visitor's information has been verified, a temporary badge will be printed and provided to them by the school security officer or school secretary. This badge must be worn at all times while the visitor is on school grounds and will be collected upon their departure. All visitors to the building must be escorted by a staff member at all time.

In the event an emergency visit is necessary, please call the school’s main office ahead of your arrival so we are prepared to accommodate your needs.

Drop-off items (lunch, instrument, Chromebook, etc.) may be dropped off in the bin outside the main entrance vestibule. We will not inform students when items have been dropped off for them.

Our academic help centers are available each period of the day. Please encourage your student to visit the academic help centers during their study hall period.

Construction continued this past week on the interiors of the chorus room, the drama room, and the library. The work on the outside of the library has also progressed with the stone and brickwork installation and roof installation.

Monday, September 23rd

B Day

Spirit Week: PJ Day

SMPA Meeting, 7pm, Orchestra Room

Tuesday, September 24th

C Day - Advisory Schedule

Period 3 Late Arrival Study Hall/Unassigned Students Must Arrive by 8:15am

Spirit Week: Jersey Day

Schedule

Period 3: 7:45am - 8:35am

Period 4: 8:39am - 9:29am

Advisory: 9:33am - 10:13am

Period 1: 10:17am - 11:07am

Lunch: 11:07am - 12:07pm

Period 8: 12:11pm - 1:01pm

Period 5: 1:05pm - 1:55pm

Period 6: 1:59pm - 2:49pm

Wednesday, September 25th

D Day

Spirit Week: Anything but a Backpack Day

Back to School Night, 6:30pm

Thursday, September 26th

A Day - Pep Rally Schedule

Period 1 Late Arrival Study Hall/Unassigned Students Must Arrive by 8:15am

Spirit Week: Class Color Day

Schedule

Period 1: 7:45am - 8:33am

Period 2: 8:37am - 9:25am

Period 7: 9:29am - 10:17am

Period 3: 10:21am - 11:09am

Lunch: 11:09am - 12:05pm

Period 6: 12:05pm - 12:53pm

Period 8: 12:57pm - 1:45pm

Pep Rally: 1:45pm - 2:49pm

Friday, September 27th

B Day

Spirit Week: Tie Dye Day

PTO General Meeting, 8:30am, Auditorium

• Thursday, October 3rd - No School. Rosh Hashanah
• Monday, October 14th - Single Session Day
• Monday, October 21st - Share the Keys, 7:30pm, Virtual
• Thursday, October 31st - Deadline for Senior Portrait Selection for Yearbook
• Monday, November 4th - Last Day of 1st Marking Period