• February 28, 2024 Freshman LION KING permission slips DUE!
  

• March 1 & 2, 2024 Spring Musical Mama Mia!
  
• March 11-15, 2024 No School Spring Break
• March 19, 2024 Freshman Experience-The Lion King 7:00pm

  (need to meet expectations and permission slip to attend)

• March 21, 2024 Parent Teacher Conferences 12:00pm-7:00pm No School
• March 22, 2024 No School Teacher work day
• March 26, 2024 Career/Job Fair at Central High School 4-6pm
  
• April 2, 2024 PEP Fundraiser: Cane's Chicken (129/Maple St) 12-8pm
  
• April 9, 2024 ACT for Juniors report by 7:40am
  
• April 9, 2024 No School for Freshman, Sophomores and Seniors only
  

Activities. Performing Arts and Athletic Schedules

24-25 OPS Calendar (NEW)

Juniors will take the ACT on Tuesday, April 9. Only 11th grade/third year students will attend school that day.

Assessment has been a key topic in Eagle Time recently:

• Juniors have been busy creating their MyACT accounts in preparation for testing.
• Sophomores have learned that now is the time to start having conversations with their families about when to take their first Saturday ACT. A good target for most students is December or February of their junior year, though some students choose to start earlier.

Students’ scores tend to improve when they retest, and better scores lead to additional opportunities and choices for students after high school. More information is available at https://www.act.org/.

All Central students have access to high quality ACT prep software. It may be accessed at http://onlineprep.act.org.

Username: OPS email address

Password: OPS student number

External Community Resources

Looking for extra supports for your family? Wish you knew about community resources in our greater Omaha area? Ms. Hill looks to compile known community resources in her Padlet, that is available for your access. Check it out and see if there is a community resource that looks to serve you and your family! New resources include supports for tax preparation, diaper days, legal supports, and more.

Know about resources that aren't listed? Send them in, Ms. Hill would be happy to add them. 2023-2024 Community Resources (padlet.org)

The NEST

The NEST is a basic necessities closet, housed on campus to help students access resources they may need for supporting their best version at school. If your student needs access to visiting the NEST for school supplies, toiletries, clothing, etc., please have them connect to their assigned Counselor, or Ms. Hill, School Social Worker.

The NEST is currently accepting donations for belts, gently used/new winter boots, and sweatpants/leggings/joggers (all sizes, and genders). Please reach out to Ms. Hill today about connecting for a donation drop off! Cash donations are also tax deductible and welcomed for supporting our students' ongoing needs.

External Screening Inventory Requests

Dear parents/ guardians of CHS students. As you look to support your student, we know that you connect to external providers that sometimes wish to survey teachers for their observations and feedback. If you are working with an external physician that wishes to have this completed, please reach out first to School Social Worker, Dawnna Hill at 531-299-5637 or dawnna.hill@ops.org. The SSW helps to have you sign a Release of Information that allows for the observations and feedback to be provided directly back to the Physician. And, the SSW will help to have the teachers complete the inventories in the timeline needed for your student's next appointment. Please don't hesitate to reach out if you need support with this coordination.

MAT K-12 Ride FREE

Did you know, your student can ride to and from school for FREE through the Metro Area Transit bus or ORBT? You can download the app or look online for the trip planner to get routes and information from destination A to destination B. Bus Times - MyRide OMA (ometro.com) Allow this to be your primary or backup form of transportation for school. You can even practice the route on a weekend or a day off, to make sure that they understand how it all works. Keep that student ID handy, in case the bus driver asks for school verification. Need a student ID? Have your student ask their Eagle Time Advisement teacher about requesting a new or reprinted ID.

Juniors in multiple Pathways participated in mock interview/audition experiences this week, led by Central’s Pathways partners. Students were able to practice real-world skills in a supportive environment and receive feedback from community experts.

• Environmental Studies with Union Pacific and UNO
• Global Health with UNMC
• Political Science
• Entertainment and Sports Marketing with the Field Club of Omaha
• Journalism with KIOS-FM
• Fine and Applied Arts with Joslyn Art Museum
• Instrumental Music with the Omaha Symphony
• Music Technology with UNO
• Theatrical Arts with partners from The Rose, Omaha Performing Arts, and the Omaha Community Playhouse
• Vocal Music Opera Omaha

This is a great opportunity for students to enhance their college and career readiness. Additional Pathways will have their interviews in coming weeks.

The Omaha Public Schools is proud to offer many advanced academic offerings for students in each our high schools. Dual Enrollment, IB and Advanced Placement Exams provide students the opportunity to earn college credit or college placement while they are in high school. Students who graduate with college credits are often able to save significant amounts of time and money when they enter college.

The following classes are eligible for dual enrollment with UNO this semester:

• AP Calculus BC 2

• AP Chemistry 2

• AP Comparative Government

• AP US Government

• AP English Literature

• IB Environmental Systems in Societies

• AP German

• AP US History

• Honors Differential Equations

• Honors Creative Writing

• Honors Intro to World Religions

• Principles of Education and Training

Students apply at applydual@unomaha. The application and parent approval are due by February 23.

If you have questions, ask your student, the teacher of the class or Dual Enrollment Coordinator, Mrs. Angie Meyer email angela.meyer@ops.org

Juniors--optional ACT Test prep class starts February 26.

Class meets for 5 weeks on Mondays from 3:15-5:15 PM.

Future Business Leaders of America attended the Peru State Business Competition on February 7, 2024. Sienna Masking 10th grader, placed 4th in the competition.

FBLA will be attending the State Leadership Conference later this spring.

Each month, DECA students are involved in a club social, a school outreach or competition and a community outreach project. We have had the opportunity to raise over $1,400 for Project Pink'd, over 100 bags have been created for our community's homeless, and we hosted Ahman Green to present on the importance of talking about mental health in sports/activities. In addition, we raised funds for Muddy Paws and awareness for the diversity here at Omaha Central. Our students have participated in a leadership conference in Omaha and a conference in Austin, TX. We have had two competitions and will be competing with 33 students at State in Lincoln next month. Overall, this has been a fun year of competition and fun!

Students in in Architecture 3-4 classes are working on creating an online electronic project portfolio for their Modern House Project . They will be sent to our pathways partner Ally Poyner Maccheitto Architecture to be evaluated. Students will get feedback and will present their portfolio to the Architects in late February and early March.

This month 2349G Robotics team attended the Inaugural UNL Cornhusker Competition hosted by the UNLVEXU team. This opportunity is supported by the University and the College of Engineering. The event was hosted on the University of Nebraska-Lincoln campus at Kiewit Hall , the new engineering facility. This was the first event held in this new building. The event was run simultaneous with many informative sessions about UNL and college life as an engineer. Students have also been working hard to qualify for the last remaining spots in the state tournament which will be held at Omaha North next month.

New season of eSports kicked off this month. We are working to repeat our run of 7 teams in National PlayVs Playoffs from last semester. This Season we are fielding the following teams: 1 Splatoon (Teams of 4), 4 Super Smash Brothers (Teams of 3), 2 Rocket League (Teams of 3), 2 Mario Kart (Team of 4), 2 League of Legends (Teams of 5), and 2 OverWatch 2 (Team of 5)

Seniors,

Did you know the Central High School Foundation will award $215,000 in scholarships this year to graduating Eagles? The Central High School Foundation is excited to announce 77 scholarship opportunities to The Class of 2024! Scholarship applications were distributed this fall, by the CHS Counseling Department to all seniors.

The Central High School Foundation also awards each year a Female and Male Student of the Year Scholarship. These winners are each awarded $2,500! You can fill out the Student of the Year Application online by clicking on this link: https://chsfomaha.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Student_of_the_Year_Application_fillable_2024.pdf Please print the completed application and mail it to the Foundation office address noted on the application or email to foundation@chsfomaha.org .

**Do you have a teacher who deserves to be named Teacher of the Year? Fill out the Teacher of the Year Application online by clicking this link: https://chsfomaha.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Teacher_nomination_form_fillable_2024.pdf Please print the completed application and mail it to the Foundation office address noted on the application or email to foundation@chsfomaha.org . **

Go Eagles!

Seniors and parents can create their username and password, called the FSA ID (Federal Student Aid ID) at www.studentaid.gov

Help for students and families to complete the FAFSA form will be available from EducationQuest and College Counselor Angie Meyer. EducationQuest will be at Central on March 7 and 28. See your counselor or Mrs. Meyer with questions.

Forty-four Central High students went on a college visit to Southeast Community College in Milford. It was a day packed with hands-on activities in auto technology, collision, welding and more.

Central High School's Freshman Academy students are in for an extraordinary opportunity! On March 19th at 7:30 pm, they have the chance to experience the enchanting world of Broadway as they attend the spectacular musical, The Lion King, at the Orpheum.

To ensure that every freshman can partake in this magical event, it's crucial to meet the following expectations: zero suspensions or CHS detention after school, zero unexcused absences in Eagle Time, no more than 5 tardies to classes, no more than 2 cumulative unexcused absences, and all green permission slips must be turned in by February 28th.

Many students have already turned in their forms! Please check with your student about their Green Permission Slips and send these forms back to school as soon as possible.

Thank you to our Central High School Foundation and Omaha Performing Arts and other donors for the incredibly generous gift! We could not have offered this opportunity without our wonderful Omaha Community support. This will be an unforgettable highlight of our freshmen's school year!

We invite all parents to sign up to be a member of PEP which is Central's parent organization. Central High School prides itself on having a very supportive group of parent volunteers, and we always welcome more! Your membership dollars are our principal source of income and allows us to support the Central community. Additionally, if you plan to volunteer in any capacity at Central High, you must be a member of PEP so that you are covered under our personal liability umbrella.
Thank you for helping support Central! We encourage everyone to SIGN UP HERE for a PEP membership for only $15.

Our next PEP meeting is on March 18, 2024 at 7:00pm in the Central High School Library.

Merchandise can be purchased at http://omaha-central-hs-pep.square.site

Please contact us at omahacentralhspep@gmail.com if you have any questions.

• Sign Up for Parent Teacher Conference volunteers and donations CLICK HERE
  

• April 2, 2024 PEP Fundraiser: Cane's Chicken (129/Maple St) 12-8pm

• Baker’s rewards, Caseys rewards, TAGG.TODAY can benefit PEP! We will be sending instructions in March regarding each of these in a separate email to help encourage everyone to join.

• Hy-Vee is discontinuing their TAGG benefits as of February 29, 2024.

• Next PEP meeting: Tour of CHS March 18th, you wont want to miss it!!!

Central High School and the Omaha Public Schools offer academic support outside of the school day to our students. Students are welcome to take advantage of the following supports:

• This is an open-door program available to all students. No reservation is required to receive tutoring: "No sign up; just show up!". It is staffed by Central teachers in the core subjects and funded by the Central High School Foundation.

• Tutoring is available in the library from 3:15 to 4:15 on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays.
• The program also funds essay help on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday mornings in rooms 229 and 235.
  

• Through online tutoring with Paper, students in grades 3-12 have access to:

  • 1:1 live chat tutoring sessions with experts
    • Support in 200 subjects
    • Available in English, Spanish, French and Mandarin
  • Expert review of written work (essays, creative writing, poetry, lab reports)
  • Hundreds of resources and activities for families support students at home
  • Interactive shows and activities to expand learning beyond the classroom
  • Students can access online tutoring seven days a week via the Clever dashboard on their iPad until 11 p.m.

• Our district works proactively to make the best decision possible when winter weather or emergencies require us to adjust our regular learning routines.

  Our toolkit of alternatives includes the following options:

  • Remote Learning Day
  • School Closure (no remote learning, schools are closed and district offices remain open)
  • District Closure (no remote learning, schools and district offices are closed)
  • Late Start (two-hour delay)
  • Early Release (two-hour early dismissal)
    
    

  On a Remote Learning Day, teachers will contact students through email, Seesaw, Teams or Canvas with independent learning activities by 8:30 a.m. Teachers will have virtual office hours from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. if students and families have questions or wish to visit with the teacher about their academic progress. Attendance will not be taken on Inclement Weather Remote Learning Days.

  Whenever possible, our district will announce changes to a daily routine the night before. However, we know weather conditions and other emergencies can develop rapidly and a decision the morning of a school day may be necessary. When that happens, we will communicate as early as possible in the morning.

  We will follow our communication routines. If weather, power outages or other circumstances force a change to our normal day, we will communicate directly with all staff and families. That communication will be through email, text message and phone call. Families should ensure their contact information is current in Infinite Campus. We will also share the information on our website and through local media.

Completing this form online or on paper can give you access to many student and family opportunities. See the links below.