The Renton High School

Happy Friday, RedHawkS,

I hope this week's newsletter finds you well. After our first full week of trimester 2, grades from trimester 1 are now official and have been posted to students' transcripts. In addition, we have printed and mailed report cards so please be on the lookout for those. While there is still work to do, I am excited about the growth our students have demonstrated during first tri. 73 % of our students passed all classes, which is an improvement from how our students performed last year at the same time. Our partnership with you as our student's first teachers, along with providing additional learning opportunities and support through Scholar Saturday and Homework Help Center, we are able to support our students and see their needs more clearly.

As you know, winter break is quickly approaching, and while we recognize that we all need and deserve a break, we also know breaks from school can bring stress and anxiety for some. If we can support you and /or help get you connected with resources, please reach out. We are one big RedHawk family and we're here to help any way we can.

Please see the important information below and as always, we welcome and appreciate your feedback. Have wonderful, safe, and warm weekend!

Drew O'Connell

Proud Interim Principal

It's a wonderful day to be a RedHawk!

DECEMBER 20: WINTER SPORTS ASSEMBLY

DECEMBER 20 - JANUARY 3 - WINTER BREAK

JANUARY 11 & 25 - SCHOLAR SATURDAY (9 - Noon @ RHS)

JANUARY 17 - MATTER OF THE HEART

JANUARY 17 - MLK ASSEMBLY

JANUARY 30 - PARENT TEACHER CONFERENCES

I am excited to share that we have 487 students who have earned the distinction of being on the honor roll by earning a 3.2 GPA or higher in tri 1. We are committed to recognizing and celebrating the effort and achievement of our students and this is one way we are doing that. Each student will receive a certificate next week and we are proud to share that our scholars are showing up and doing the work to earn these kinds of distinctions. We appreciate you, our students first teachers, for your support in helping your scholar(s) achieve as well. Thank you!

Believe it or not, we are already starting to plan for the 2025/2026 school year. One of the first things our students will do is register for their classes next year. We are currently planning our process for registration, and more information and guidance will be coming soon.

With the start of the new trimester, we want to remind everyone in the RedHawk community that we have adopted a No Cell - Bell to Bell policy this year. This means we expect our scholars to keep their cell phone away during class in order to maximize engagement and learning. You can help us by talking to your scholar(s) about the importance of keeping phones away and to maintain focus on the learning activities in the classroom. In addition, here are some tips and resources to help manage screen time:

• iPhones: Use the built-in Screen Time feature to set app limits and downtime. Learn how here: Apple Screen Time Guide.
• Android Devices: Use Digital Wellbeing settings to set app timers and focus modes. Learn how here: Android Screen Time Guide.

In general, our staff provide reminders about our cell phone expectation, options to lock up or use a courtesy charging station, communicate with families if/when our students demonstrate challenges in meeting our expectation, and/or submit behavior referrals for ongoing issues. Thank you for your support.

RedHawkS athletics are soaring along! Please check out the Kingco Conference website for all athletic schedules and competitions for Winter Sports. We'd love to see you out there, cheering on our athletes!

Here are some upcoming competitions:

Friday 12/13/24

Boys Junior Varsity Basketball vs. Mount Si, 3:30 p.m. at Mount Si H.S.- Main Gym

Girls Junior Varsity Basketball vs. Newport, 5:00 p.m. at Mount Si H.S.-Main Gym

Girls Varsity Basketball vs. Newport, 6:30 p.m. at Mount Si H.S.-Main Gym

Boys Varsity Basketball vs. Mount Si, 8:00 p.m. at Mount Si H.S.-Main Gym

Saturday 12/14/24

2024 Larry Brown Tournament- Boys wrestling vs. Fife (and other schools), 8:00 a.m. at Fife H.S.-McCrossin Court- Main Gym

Monday 12/16/24

Girls Junior Varsity Basketball vs. Liberty, 5:40 p.m. at Renton High School- Main Gym

Girls Varsity Basketball vs. Liberty, 7:15 p.m. at Renton High School- Main Gym

Tuesday, 12/17/24

Boys C-Team Basketball vs. Bellevue, 4:00 p.m. at Renton High School- Main Gym

Boys Junior Varsity Basketball vs. Bellevue, 5:40 p.m. at Renton High School- Man Gym

Boys Varsity Basketball vs. Bellevue, 7:15 p.m. at Renton High School- Main Gym

Wednesday, 12/18/24

Girls Varsity Flag Football vs. Mount Si, 4:00 p.m. at Renton Memorial Stadium

Girls Varsity Flag Football vs. Cedarcrest, 5:00 p.m. at Renton Memorial Stadium

Thursday, 12/19/24

Boys Varsity Swim vs. Foster, 3:00 p.m. at Hazen High School- Pool

Girls Varsity Wrestling vs. Inglemoor, 6:00 p.m. at Renton High School- Main Gym

Boys Varsity Wrestling vs. Inglemoor, 6:00 p.m. at Renton High School- Main Gym

Girls Varsity Gymnastics vs. Inglemoor, 7:00 p.m. at Inglemoor High School- Main Gym

Girls Varsity Wrestling vs. Liberty, 7:15 p.m. at Renton High School- Main Gym

Boys Varsity Wrestling vs Liberty, 7:15 p.m. at Renton High School- Main Gym

Friday, 12/20/24

Girls Junior Varsity Basketball vs. Hazen, 3:30 p.m. at Liberty High School- Main Gym

Girls Varsity Basketball vs. Hazen, 6:30 p.m. at Liberty High School-Main Gym

To sign up for RedHawkS athletics, you must register through Final Forms. Please follow this link for information and guidance on registering for Winter sports. If you need assistance, please reach out to our Athletics Support Specialist, Ms. Cardenas by emailing andriana.cardenas@rentonschools.us.

GO REDHAWKS!!

As a diverse, multicultural, and international school, Renton High School wants to acknowledge as many cultural celebrations in our community as possible. If you would like us to recognize an upcoming cultural celebration, please contact Mr. Collie, our IB Coordinator.

December is Universal Human Rights Month

Las Posadas, from 16th-24th, is a Catholic festival celebrated in Mexico and some parts of the United States commemorating the journey that Joseph and Mary took from Nazareth to Bethlehem.

Renton School District has partnered with Providence Healthcare and Hazel Health to provide access to quality mental health care services for all students, at no cost to families. The partnership has already made a difference in its first year with more than 2,200 virtual therapy sessions completed!

At Renton High School. our amazing school counselors can initiate a video visit with a Hazel Health licensed therapist while your child is at-school. The personalized virtual therapy sessions with Hazel Health professionals are safe, private, and confidential, and are conducted through phone, text, and at kiosks at schools.

Families can also create a Hazel account for in-home virtual sessions for help with depression, stress, anxiety, bullying and more. Learn more and create your family account at https://my.hazel.co/rentonschools/info

Read more about this free service at our Hazel Health webpage.

Renton High School is home to the International Baccalaureate-- IB Diploma and IB Career Program (a program started this year). If your student is interested in meeting with Mr. Collie (IB Diploma) or Mr. Bento (IB Career), they can make an appointment to meet with them to learn more information about both programs. Please reach out if you have any questions. Please go to https://rentonhs.rentonschools.us/programs/ib for more information.

If you have a senior in the IB Career Program, they are currently working on their IB Reflective Project (RP). The Reflective Project is a research paper/project in which students identify an ethical dilemma in their Career-related Study/Career Path Classes.

Here are some upcoming Deadlines:

December 20 - Meeting 2 with RP Supervisor

January 31 - Final Project Due

February 28 - Final Meet (Viva Voce) with RP Supervisor

If you have any questions about the IB Career Program, please reach out to IB Career Coordinator, Mr. Bento Seniors in the Diploma Program as similarly working on their Extended Essays (EE), an independent research project in one of their IB fields of study of approximately 4000 words.

The timeline for the EE is:

November/December - Conduct research, write draft, aim for 800 words per week

December 20 - Submit draft to EE supervisor

January/February - Meet with EE supervisor to discuss draft, work on final version

February 14 - Final version of EE due to supervisor

February 28 - Final reflection meeting with EE supervisor

If you, or someone you know is in need of support over the upcoming winter break, please check the attached document. There are a variety of resources available for food support in and surrounding our area.

RHS offers after school academic assistance through our Homework Help Center. Homework Help Center runs from 2:03 to 3:30 in the library, on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Our staff will be here and ready to support your student(s) with their classwork, homework, to study, and to deepen or extend their learning. Please encourage your student(s) to come!

RedHawk Seniors and Families,

It’s time to submit your senior photos and quotes for the 2024-2025 yearbook!

Senior portraits and quotes will be accepted until January 17, 2025. Portraits MUST be submitted through our image upload link (see attachment for link and instructions). Our image upload site is designed to verify name, grade level, and contact information so that we may reach out to you, should there be an issue with your photo submission. PLEASE NOTE: If you do not submit an individual student photo for 2024-2025, your student ID photo will appear in the yearbook by default.

Daily, on time attendance in all classes is one of the most significant factors in your student’s educational success.

Please notify the attendance office via phone, email or written note if your student will be absent for any reason. Absences may be excused up to 48 hours following the absence. Here is the contact information:

Attendance Office Contact

Attendance Specialist: Heather Ralston - heather.ralston@rentonschools.us

Phone: 425.204.3410

Email: renton.attendance@rentonschools.us

For more information about attendance including BECCA law and truancy, please visit our Attendance Website.