Wildcat Growl
October 25, 2019
Future Ready Wildcats
De Soto High School staff and students endeavor to model the following core values:
INTEGRITY, INQUIRY, COMMUNICATION, PERSEVERANCE, and REFLECTION.
Principal's Message
Wildcat Students and Parents,
Thursday, October 24th was a busy day at DHS. Sophomore and freshmen students took the Pre-ACT in the morning, then attended 3rd and 4th block classes in the afternoon. Approximately half of the junior class attended the annual field trip to the national World War I Museum and Memorial in Kansas City. Over 90 juniors attended a college visit to either Emporia State, Kansas University, Pitt State, or Missouri Western. Most of the senior class explored future opportunities through a job shadow or individually planned college visit; however, 40+ participated in a community service activity. These students were assigned to help out at Starside Elementary School, Lexington Trails Middle School, Growing Futures Early Education Center, or the Downs Syndrome Guild of Greater Kansas City. We are thankful to our staff for assisting us in providing these opportunities for our students – and thankful to our students for representing DHS well.
We’d like to recognize Coach Justin Hoffman for being named United Kansas Conference (UKC) Tennis Coach of the Year. The Girls' Tennis Team won the conference championship this year, and Justin was honored with the recognition. Great job, Girls' Tennis!
Congratulations to our Girls' Cross Country Team who also won the UKC Championship meet. Coach Jack Sachse was also recognized as the Girls' Cross Country Coach of the Year. The Boys' Cross Country Team placed second in the UKC meet, and Carson Sturdy placed 1st – earning him a UKC Conference Championship. Way to go, Cross Country!
CLASS Awards: Each quarter teachers select students to recognize as demonstrating the De Soto High School core value of perseverance. Students were recognized at a ceremony on Wednesday, October 23rd. The quarter 1 CLASS Award winners included: Olivia Baker, Luis Escobar, Ricardo Cabral, Anthony Hueser, Evan Carter, Deira Rionda, Libby Smith, Sara Murphy, Dylan Clark, Katelyn Ostronic, Sheridan Frick, Dakota Timberlake, Waverly Altis, Edith Marquez Flores, Magali Alvarez, Zach Switzer, Dallas Williams, Shianne Childers, Ariana Carlos, William Fisher, Rees Hill, Olivia Baker, Joanna Gouge, Sydney Ames, Bryce Englehart, Rylan Marincovich, AnnaMarie Neubauer, Kennedy Ebberts, Taylor Krehbiel, Lauren Cook, Evan Rhodelander, Egan Putman, Kylee Graham, Lilyan Rodriguez, Jesus Alvarez, Cole Osterholm, Emily Vick, Russell Coy, Christian Nelson, Andrew Dority, Mimi Martinez, Braden Dumolien, Mackenzie Carson, Sydney M Bonnstetter, Priscilla Albarran, Jordan Rowse, Zander Barkemeyer, Jackie Flores, Fabian Dorado, Brent Smith, Garen Poovey, Lejay Rainey, Garrison Riley, Devin Combs, Ariana Carlos, Cole Towner, Alex C Boresow, Robert Johnson, Jose Bañuelos, Jordan Rowse, Mackenzie Carson, Maria Palomino, and Keith Juenger. Congrats!
Semester final exams are scheduled to begin Monday, December 16th, and end Thursday, December 19th. Winter Break begins on December 20th. For the purpose of consistency, clarity, and the importance of finals, if students have to leave town prior to and/or during finals week, they will need to work with the teacher to make up the final within two weeks of their return (not before).
Kind Regards,
Sam Ruff
Teachers of the Month Drew Proctor and Solitaire Ware
Homework Request Information
When your student is absent from school, please encourage your student to reach out to teachers requesting assignments missed due to the absence. Certainly parents can also reach out to teachers, but part of becoming an independent learner is communication, being organized and advocating for yourself. If your student is experiencing a longer term absence (a week or more), our counselors are available to assist in this process.
Study Tables
Study Tables:
De Soto High School is providing time and space for students to collaborate and study after school. Study Tables will take place in the Student Union Monday through Thursday from 3:00 pm until 4:00 pm. Students will have the opportunity to give and receive academic assistance from classmates. this supervised time is intended to support students in pursuit of academic success.
Message from Student Services
College Credit Deadlines Approaching:
Students who are enrolled in DHS Classes that count toward college credit, need to be aware of the upcoming deadlines. Please visit the College Credit/Dual Enrollment page for more information
For more information on each of these programs and how to enroll please click here.
KSU Engineering Nights:
K-State Engineering is offering free events in the Kansas City area for high school students who are interested in the engineering field. For more information and to register for the event please visit: http://engg.k-state.edu/engineering-night
- Thursday, November 7th: Kiewit, Lenexa, KS
- Tuesday, November 12th: Stoney Creek Hotel and Conference Center, Independence, MO
Scholarship Information:
Looking for money to help pay for college? Check out the DHS Student Services Scholarship page! Throughout the year scholarships will be posted that are available to seniors. There is also a “Scholarship Search Tips” that can help aid the search process. Click here to go to the page.
College Visits:
If your student will be going on a college visit, students must fill out a College Visit Form. Forms are available in Student Services or online by clicking here. Students are to take the form with them on the day of the visit and bring it back signed by an admissions representative.
AP Exam Registration
AP Exam Registration Information Coming Soon!
College Board has made some changes in regards to exam registration. In the past, students registered in the spring. Starting with this school year, AP exam registration will take place during the month of October. Students will need to fill out an AP exam registration form, that will be available after October 1 and pay the $94 per exam fee to DHS no later than November 1st.. All AP teachers will be given the registration form to distribute to their AP students. For more information, contact, Mrs. Johns at cjohns@usd232.org.
FAFSA Application is Open!
FAFSA Application Opening October 1st!
The FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) opens October 1st. This is the form that current senior students and parents fill out for federal aid for college. Federal Aid comes in the form of Grants, Loans, and Scholarships.
If you are looking for assistance with the FAFSA, JCCC is offering an event. They are offering an opportunity for students to get FREE help with their FAFSA! The event is going to be Tuesday, November 5th, 2019 from 6:30-8:30 pm. This event is open to the public and will be held on the JCCC campus, in the Regnier Center. More event information including RSVP and a map can be found online: www.jccc.edu/freefafsa.
ACT Registration Deadline:
- The registration for the October 26th ACT is Friday, September 20th. To register for the ACT, students need to go to www.actstudent.org. DHS is a test center for this date.
- Seniors: Please keep in mind that the October and December ACT’s are the last test dates that KU and KSU will use for their university scholarships that they award.
- Additional test dates this year are: December 14th, February 8th, April 4th, June 13th, and July 18th.
High School Leadership Conference at OSU
HSLC is a three-day adventure into leadership exclusively for high school juniors from across the United States. The purpose of HSLC is to equip, empower, and inspire high school students with valuable leadership skills that will benefit them in their daily lives and help them impact their schools. Students will leave the conference embodying characteristics that will help them become productive, efficient leaders. Please watch this video: https://vimeo.com/317874613
The conference will be held on February 14-16, 2020, at the University of Oklahoma in Norman, Oklahoma. HSLC 2020 applications open NOVEMBER 5TH, 2019, and can be accessed at hslc.ou.edu. Students do not need to be involved in Student Council and/or leadership. This conference is for ALL students in organizations, clubs, and activities.
The High School Leadership Conference provides full and partial tuition waivers for students in need, so they are able to attend the conference.
Note: Students do not have to be interested in attending the University of Oklahoma. The university is simply our hosting site, and all students are encouraged to apply.