Parent Update

Watertown High School

Parent Update 1.31.25

I hope this update finds you well as we move through the winter months. Students are busy engaging in challenging coursework and exploring new concepts across all disciplines. Beyond the classroom, our extracurricular programs are also thriving, with clubs and teams actively preparing for upcoming competitions and events.

Additionally, we are excited for our Annual Trivia Night, hosted at WHS this Saturday, February 1st. It is always a fantastic event and such a great reminder of the incredible support WHS receives from the greater Watertown community. Plus it’s fun to play trivia and (hopefully) win one of the many prizes! 🙂 Thanks to the many volunteers who work hard to make this event a huge success!

Hope to see you at Trivia Night and have a great weekend!

WUSD Referendum Information

The community will vote on a recurring operational referendum question for the Watertown Unified School District. If the question is approved by voters, the district will be able to exceed its state-imposed revenue limit by $7 million per year, starting with the 2025-26 school year. We invite the public to attend a series of upcoming presentations hosted by WUSD Superintendent Dr. Jarred Burke to discuss why the referendum is needed. The first presentation will take place next Wednesday, Feb. 5 at 10 a.m. at the Watertown Senior & Community Center, 514 S. First St. There is no need to pre-register, just attend!

Learn more about the referendum by visiting our website at: https://www.watertown.k12.wi.us/page/spring-referendum.

WUSD Strategic Plan Presentation

Educating all students around the WUSD Core Values is an essential element of having these guiding principles become how we operate. With this in mind, all WHS staff shared the WUSD Strategic Plan Core Values presentation with students during ELT on Friday, January 31st. We are grateful for the many voices that supported development of the new WUSD Mission, Vision, and greater Strategic Plan!

Attached is the presentation in English as well as Spanish. Families are encouraged to review the presentation and check in with their student as to how they can support this at WHS!

English

Spanish

Safe Driving at Pickup & Dropoff

A friendly reminder to all of our families as well as student drivers to practice safe driving habits, especially around the drop off and pick up times before as well as after school. Being especially safe around buses is imperative given the heavy amount of traffic. Thanks to everyone for their safe driving habits!

Social Media, Mental Health, and Our Teens

Check out this insightful 7-minute YouTube video, "Social Media, Mental Health, and Our Teens…" with Dr. Laura Saunders. Dr. Saunders dives into the impact of social media on teenagers’ mental health and provides practical tips for parents and educators to support healthy online habits. It’s a quick and helpful resource to spark conversations and build awareness around this important topic!

YRBS Survey

Watertown High School will be taking part in the Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) sponsored by the Department of Public Instruction in early February. The YRBS is designed to determine the prevalence of health behaviors now and over time, examine the co-occurrence of health behaviors, create usable data sets, and monitor progress through the use of objectives and indicators. All student responses to the survey are confidential and no information is provided in a personally identifiable way. If you would prefer your child not participate in the YRBS, please return this form to Student Services by Monday, February 3, 2025.

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Yearbook Orders

Deadline to Order Tuesday, April 8, 2025

The 2024-2025 yearbooks can be purchased online through the Herff-Jones website: http://bit.ly/2WFzrGD. The WHS order number is 3818 (if needed).

This year, the yearbook fee will be $50. This is the only way to purchase a yearbook for this school year. Please plan accordingly as no extra yearbooks will be ordered.

ACT Overview

ACT Prep Courses

WHS will be offering ACT prep courses in the areas of Science, English and Math on Saturdays mornings. Students can sign up for an individual course for a fee of $12 per course OR students can sign up for all 3 courses for $30. Students interested in participating should sign up with the Bookkeeper, Mrs. Klinger, in the Front Entrance Office. The date and time for each course are as follows:

3/8/25 - Math - 9 a.m. - 11 a.m.

Stacci Barganz, WUSD Advanced Learning Coordinator, will be offering a general test prep session for students on Tuesday, February 18 from 3:45 p.m. - 4:30 p.m. in the WHS Lecture Hall.

WHS Musical: Footloose

Advanced Ticket Sales

Advanced ticket sales begin on Monday, February 10 at 10 a.m.

Great Things Happening at WHS!

Mrs. Fuller's class made whoopie pies in Basic Foods! A great lab to introduce ingredient functions!!

Student in Mr. Pawl's Intro to Airbrushing Class decorated the commons area with their finished projects this week!

Important Upcoming Dates

No School - Staff Professional Development Day: Monday, February 10
Local Scholarship Deadline: Monday, March 3, 2025
End of Trimester 2: Thursday, March 6 (No early release)
No School - WHS Work Day: Friday, March 7
WHS Musical - Footloose: Friday, March 7 - Sunday, March 9
Start of Trimester 3: Monday, March 10
Junior State Wide ACT Test: Wednesday, March 12 (no school for grades 9, 10, & 12)
Career Fair: Wednesday, March 19
Spring Break: Monday, March 24 - Friday, March 28
Watertown Athletic Calendar