
Falcon Flyer
Belong. Inspire. Grow.
Straight from the Hardt
Hello Ridgeline Families--
I know I already said this earlier in the month, but it’s worth stating again how smoothly our day-to-day operations have been going. Our students and teachers have been dialed in! Every day I spend time gathering information through observations and conversations. It may come as a surprise to some, but my most valuable and fulfilling work almost always takes place outside of the principals actual office. This is the time I get to talk with staff and students. Talking with the kids about a little bit of everything is always a kick! I was particularly impressed by the work of a 10th grade student named, Kiki. In her language arts class she was presenting a summary of her learning across various topics and skills from the semester. As I was listening, I could tell she was following the scoring criteria and her responses were very thoughtful and personalized, but pretty straight forward. Suddenly, she turns her summary analysis and reflection into this very elaborate and entertaining poem. She very creatively wove the individual concepts into these verses that flowed and rhymed, while delivering the information. I was impressed, and I could see she is they type of student who has no problem going beyond the standard and demonstrating her understanding at a very high level!
I the midst of preparations for finals, many of our students are involved in extracurricular activities during the week and on the weekends. Our competitive groups and individuals are enjoying great success and return on the time and effort they have put forth. I had to review our schedule and be reminded of groups such as cheer, robotics, dance, debate, our musicians competing in ensemble and solo events—all over the weekend! Then you have our basketball teams, wrestlers, and gymnasts staying very busy as well! We enjoyed celebrating our senior boys wrestling team on a great night as they defeated Lewis &Clark! We also celebrated the senior wrestling cheer squad members. One of those individuals is Lexi Thompson (pictured here with myself and Mr. Emmerson), who was also recognized last week by the WIAA for Athlete of the Week! AND, she and her teammate, Bree Tomany sang the national anthem that night. I feel really lacking in the “talent” department compared to some of our students! A shout-out to our boys C-team and the supportive students section who showed up Monday night! Also, we’ve been having a lot of fun with our co-ed Unified basketball team, who continues to impress! They are a joy to watch as the team joins our students with some special needs playing with their ‘buddies’ in games against other schools. If you want to see a lot of people smiling and cheering at a game where no one is angry at anyone—come out for a Unified sporting event of any kind!
Switching gears for a moment to something frustrating me… Dropping off and picking up students before and after school... First, If you consistently use the valet line as it was intended, I thank you from the bottom of my heart! The rest of this message may not apply to you. For those that park along curbs in prohibited areas, staff parking lots, etc… I’m wondering- “what’s the deal with that?” You can imagine, I have received plenty of feedback on how some feel our parking lot and lanes are ‘poorly designed’. “It takes me so long to pick up my child and it’s so annoying and the teenage drivers mixing in are just horrible”… Could we all do better? Probably. The design, space, and layout works perfectly, but is stretched to the max at a peak time such as student dismissal at 2:15. A couple of general tips that will help us all: Always CONTINUE TO PULL FORWARD. The multi-lane valet wraps clear around the front entrance past the main doors until it narrows before the round-about. A parking lot CHEAT- if you use the through lane through valet you can always count on cars not pulling forward and you can pull into an open spot, by-passing dozens of cars. Another great strategy is to enter campus at 2:25, the first 10 minutes are hectic, but after that, you can drive right on in. It’s OK if your student has to wait for 10 minutes, they’ll be fine. Inappropriate Cheats are using the staff and visitor parking lots to drop off and pick up. We have many people coming on campus for meetings and such, right after school, and they need those spots. Stopping and waiting in the “through lane” is also frowned upon. There’s several more directions and reminders that I will continue to share in the weeks ahead. I have this idea, but don’t know if I would get any takers?? I’m wondering if I could assemble a group of parent volunteers who would be willing to ‘work’ the parking lot a few days a week in the morning and afternoon to help us train/remind parents and students on proper parking lot etiquette? I’m considering a parent sign-up opportunity to feel it out. If this sounds like something you’d LOVE to do, you’re welcome to reach out to me in advance!
It is always a celebration of hard work and diligence as a semester comes to an end. In September it feels like you have so much time ahead of you to learn so many new things, when suddenly, January rolls around and you realize how quickly the time has come and it often feels like you need more time with the students. Many of our classes are year long and students and teacher will continue to learn and grow together through June. The transition into a new class with a new teacher for many elective classes provides an opportunity for something new in terms of content, the people, and the daily routine.
So as we wrap up semester 1 and prepare for semester 2, let’s continue to show up, work hard, and enjoy the quality time with your friends and teachers!
There’s always something new to enjoy or be aware of each week in the Falcon Flyer, please take a look and enjoy (like the cool trash cans our kids paint every year for the City of LL, or get some inspiration from the FIX-podcast club )!
Make it a great weekend! --Mr. Hardt
Student Services
Running Start: MANDATORY MEETING for NEW Running Start Students and Their Parents/Guardians
Last month, Mr. Spraggins and Ms. Plaster hosted Running Start/Dual Credit meetings for sophomores and juniors interested in the options available through the Community Colleges of Spokane (CCS) and Eastern Washington University (EWU). With the EWU, SCC, and SFCC Running Start applications soon opening, we turn our attention to registering interested new students for the program. RHS will host a MANDATORY MEETING on Wednesday, February 5, at 6:00 PM in the RHS Theater. If your student will be new to the Running Start program, please plan to attend this meeting with your student, as we will more deeply explore the program, its finer details, and the responsibilities associated with participation. Please Note: RHS requires applying students (and a parent/guardian) to review and sign a Participation Agreement before the CCR counselor will sign-off on the necessary counselor forms. If you have questions, please contact Mr. Spraggins (bspraggins@cvsd.org), Ms. Twining (ktwining@cvsd.org), or Ms. Plaster (kplaster@cvsd.org).
FAFSA NOW OPEN!
If you are the parent/guardian of a current senior who plans to enroll in college next year, this notice is for you! The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is NOW OPEN. The FAFSA is an online federal form that, once completed, will offer your student the opportunity to be considered for grants, work-study, scholarships, and student loans at the colleges and universities to which they've applied. For your information, here is an important link with information your student and you may wish to review ahead of filing the form.
Additionally, RHS hosts a local scholarship page we share with East Valley, West Valley, and Freeman school districts. We will update the scholarship page as scholarships become available throughout the winter/spring. I encourage your student to routinely check the page for scholarship opportunities that may benefit your student!
NewTech Prep Career Night
Attend NewTech Prep Career Night to gain early access to the 2025-26 NewTech application!
Still interested, but can't attend Career Night? Find the NewTech application link on their website starting February 1st. Apply as soon as possible for your best chance at earning a spot in your program of choice.
Course Request Selection for Next Year
2023-2024 SBA Results
We wanted to inform you that the SBA results for the 2023-24 school year, for current 9th, 11th, and 12th-grade students, will be sent home on Friday, January 31. We apologize for the delay in sharing these results, as CVSD received the printed scores later than usual due to printing issues with OSPI.
Please take a moment to review your student's results. If you have any questions, feel free to contact your student's counselor.
PRE-SEASON BASEBALL MEETING
Anyone interested in playing baseball this spring, there will be a pre-season meeting Friday, February 7th at 2:20 in Coach Maupin's room (B115).
If you have any questions stop by and see Coach Maupin (jmaupin@cvsd.org)
Softball Open Gym- join us!
Come one, come all and start your journey to Fastpitch softball BIG FUN!
Open gyms from 6:30-7:15am in the Fieldhouse. Hope to see you there!
PowderPuff Football registration opens Feb 3rd
The annual Powder Puff game will be held on March 4th. Sign up on Final Forms starting on Feb. 3. Girls sign up to play football and Boys sign up to Manlead! Winners earn Verde Loco point. This event will kick off our annual food drive.
Spring Sports Registration opens February 3rd
Spring Sports registration opens on Final forms as of February 3rd! Make sure to register and have a current physical on file.
Cinderella auditions coming soon
Cinderella auditions will be February 3 and 4th!
Information packets are available in the front office. Final Forms is open!
Everyone auditioning and applying for tech crew MUST have a completed Final Form before auditions.
You're invited to come to our last home Unified Game!
Come out to our last home Unified Basketball game on Friday, February 7th @4pm!
Ridgeline Dancers
Congratulations to your Ridgeline dancers on their successful weekend at the Rodgers dance competition. The Ridgeline dancers won first place in the Pom category and first place in the hip-hop category with the highest score across the board in the 3A competition. Be sure to catch their next competition February 22 at Shadle Park high school. Congrats dancers!
RHS Podcast Club
RHS PODCAST CLUB - THE FIX
The Podcast that Inspires
Season 5 Episode 2
AP Euro classes- Teske Awards
The AP Euro classes competed for the prestigious Teske Awards for excellence in creating pitches for Netflix series on the topic of the Industrial Revolution. Students did an amazing job intertwining historical information about the Industrial Revolution with creative idea for a Netflix series. The photos feature the winners in each category.
Speech & Debate Team
The Speech and Debate team has won a GSL tournament for the first time in program history.
The team won the Southside Invitational speech and debate tournament overall title, known as Sweepstakes, at Ferris High School on Jan. 10-11.
The team also had the most entries ever into the final rounds of a tournament. Public Forum Debate team quarterfinalists were Molly Milonas (10) and Mckayla Sweeney (11); semifinalists were Armani Bain (9) and Lindsey Carney (9); and taking 2nd place overall in Public Forum Debate was the team of Logan Crowley (10) and Grace Morgan (10). Sahil Modah (9) also had his best tournament to date, finishing in 2nd place in Lincoln-Douglas Debate. Morgan and Crowley were acknowledged as the first- and second-best speakers overall.
Elizabeth Hargrove (9) made it to the final round with Informational Speaking and taking first place in other speech events were Morgan in Informational Speaking and Crowley for Spoken Word Poetry.
The team concludes its regular season with the largest tournament of the year at the Thomas S. Foley Memorial Forensics Tournament at University High School on Feb. 6-8. The three-day tournament features four levels of debate competition and 16 various speech events.
Yearbooks on Sale NOW!
Have you purchased your Yearbook yet? Don't miss your chance to get yours today for $60! Can be purchased online or in the Business Office by February 4th!
State Board Accepting Applications For Next Student Representative
The State Board of Education is seeking a current high school sophomore to serve a two-year term as a Student Representative.
Seniors in Honor Society
Attention seniors in Honor Society, community service forms are due to Mrs. Grisafi no later than February 7th.
Falcon Artists
RHS Falcon Artists created designs and painted them onto garbage cans for the city of Liberty Lake! This garbage can’s theme is the Farmers Market. The artists were Brynlee Christensen and Madalynn McHenry (photo 1) and Izzy Pooley and Sydney Shumaker (photo 2). It takes a long time to paint a garbage can, but all four artists are very experienced and talented painters. Keep your eyes out to see this garbage can in Liberty Lake as well as other cans painted by more Falcon Artists
RHS Band Booster fundraiser- Feb 8th & 9th
Papa Murphy's Pizza Fundraiser
What’s better than pizza during the Superbowl? Support the Ridgeline Band Boosters while enjoying your favorite pie!
- 25% of all regularly priced items will be donated to the Ridgeline Band Boosters on February 8th & 9th.
- To ensure the band gets credit, simply mention "Ridgeline Band Boosters" when ordering in-store or use the code GIVE25 at checkout for online orders.
Grab some pizza and help support our band!
An essay and video contest for high school students in the western United States, Guam and Northern Mariana Islands. Contest rules and entry instructions available at: https://www.ca9.uscourts.gov/civicscontest
Entries accepted beginning January 8, 2025. Deadline for entries is March 7, 2025. Sponsored by the United States Courts for the Ninth Circuit.
Save the Date- Winter Formal
Falcons our Winter Formal is coming up on February 8th from 7-10pm. Tickets on sale $10 in the Business office! Guest dance forms available in the front office.
Live Stream announcing Winter Formal
Thank you so much to our Ridgeline reading community for the amazing book donations! We are so blessed by your kindness and generosity. Our book club is going to donate these books to readers in need at the teen shelter Crosswalk. If you still have books to get rid of, we will take them all year. Our next move is starting a “free library” where the Ridgeline community can leave or borrow books when the library isn’t open. Keep reading Falcons!
President's Day- No School
Poetry Slam...March 17th from 2:30-3:30pm
Poetry Slam will be taking place on March 17th from 2:30-3:30pm! Stay tuned for details!
Join our Poetry Club on Mondays after school in the library!
Upcoming Events in March
Future Falcon Family Night- March 11th
Mark your calendars for our Future Falcon Family Night!
March 11th: 5:30-7pm Students and Parents are welcome to attend. Tours will be provided. Teachers, counselors, coaches, club advisors and administrators will be available to answer your questions and ease concerns.
Band Boosters Hanging Basket Sale
Ridgeline Band Boosters Hanging Basket Sale
Support our band students by purchasing a beautiful hanging basket! These 12" plastic hanging baskets feature a colorful mix of geraniums, verbena, bacopa, and other flowers.
- Each basket is $36, with proceeds benefiting the band program.
- Order by March 15th
- Choose your preferred basket when you pick up your purchase!
Order online here:
https://ridgeline-band-boosters.square.site/flower-baskets-2025
Pickup Details:
- Date: May 3rd, from 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM at RHS
- Baskets will come in a variety of colors, so arrive early for the best selection!
- Pickup instructions will be emailed to you.
Don't miss out on this chance to support our students!
Class of 2025- Grad Night
Don't miss your chance to win FOUR tickets to a Men's Gonzaga Game! Raffle deadline January 31st
Signs are $25 and sales will close April 4, 2025. Signs will be distributed in early May.
Class of 2025 - Grad Night Ticket
Purchase your ticket today for Grad Night 2025! A safe, fun-filled opportunity to wrap up graduation and spend an evening with your classmates. Grad Night 2025 will be held at RHS and will feature casino games, a variety of fun activities and the opportunity to win great prizes. Don't miss out on this one-in-a-lifetime opportunity!! Once your registration has been received, a representative from the Grad Night Committee will follow-up via email to collect necessary waivers.
RHS Senior Grad Night- 2025
Important Information!!
Support the Ridgeline Class of 2025 Grad Night!
Let's send them out in style. Please click the link or scan the QR code on the flyer that will allow you to go to our Amazon wish list of prizes for their Senior Grad Night. Our goal is that every Senior leaves the Grad Night with a prize! Thanks so much in advance for your support!
AP Testing Dates 2025
Parents/Guardians of AP Students,
AP exam(s) will be held in May of 2025. As discussed in previous communication each AP test has an associated fee of $100. If your family is eligible for the Free/Reduced Lunch Program a reduced fee is applied. Fees have been added to your student(s) account. We are asking that AP exam fees are paid by February 3rd. Fees can be paid at the RHS business office or online using the following link. As communicated by AP teachers, testing decisions needed to be finalized on November 15th, 2024. If your student has changed their mind and would no longer wish to take the exam a refund of $60 will be issued. Testing changes must be made prior to March 15th, 2025 to be eligible for the partial refund. No refunds will be issued after March 15th.
Hey Falcons! Do you need a job? Check out our Jobs Board! It's updated regularly and there are some amazing opportunities!
There are flyers in the office to scan the QR code, too!
If you have any questions, please see Mrs. Demarest in E202 or email: kdemarest@cvsd.org
Business Office Hours
Business Office Open Hours:
7:15- 2:30pm
(Closed 12:30-1:30pm daily)