Aspen High School
Student and Family Weekly Update
April 16th
Para la versión en español, haga clic en este correo electrónico. Haga clic en la palabra "Traducir" (arriba a la derecha) y seleccione Español o el lenguaje de su preferencia en el menú.
Dear Students & Families,
I want to wish our Jewish Community a Happy Passover or Chag Pesach Sameach. In addition, I want to wish our Christian Community a peaceful Good Friday and a Happy Easter. I also hope that everyone gets out to enjoy the final weekend on Aspen and Snowmass mountains; and, a big thank you to everyone at Skico who works so hard to ensure our mountains are the best in the West. Thank you for giving discounted passes to educators; thank you for giving us community stickers; and thank you for hosting our students on Ski Day and providing lift tickets and rentals to those who need it. I am so grateful to live and work in this incredible community.
State Testing
State Assessments: Thank you for participating in these important state assessments. There will not be regular classes on April 21st. PSAT/SAT testing is entirely digital.
Important Test Day information.
SAT (11th grade) - April 21st and Make-Up day is April 24th. The School Day SAT is one assessment that can be used to satisfy the state of Colorado testing requirement for graduation. Therefore, we expect all 11th graders to take the SAT.
PSAT (9th and 10th grades) -April 21st and Make-Up day is April 24th. We strongly encourage all students to take the PSAT in grades 9 and 10 for practice prior to taking the SAT in 11th grade.
AHS Earth Day Clean Up
Attention Students!!!
Let's make our campus shine! Join us for a trash clean-up to celebrate Earth Day.
Date: Tuesday, April 22nd
Time: 7:45 am
Meeting Location: Commons
You will receive 1 service hour, however, you must arrive on time and sign in at 7:45am.
Counted Out, a film by Vicki Abeles
Aspen School District is taking part in Counted Out’s worldwide movement to re-imagine math.
Screening will take place at Aspen School District Theater, located in the Elementary School on 4/29/25 from 5:30-8. Parking is available at the middle school parking lot.
Counted Out shows what’s at risk if we keep the status quo. Do we want an America in which most of us don’t see ourselves “math people”? Where math proficiency goes down as students grow up? Or do we want a country where everyone can understand the math that undergirds our society—and can help shape it?
Watch the Counted Out trailer and learn more at countedoutfilm.com.
For more information please contact:
Megan Noonan, mnoonan@aspenk12.net
AHS Math Teacher & ASD Math Content Lead
Virtual Parent Coffee
Join us Friday, April 25th for the next Virtual Parent Coffee with Sarah Strassburger.
The meeting will be recorded, and posted to our website, for those who cannot join.
Aspen High School Parent Group
As Teacher Appreciation Week approaches, it reminds us how fortunate we are to have such incredible teachers and staff inspiring, supporting, and shaping our children daily. They are truly the heartbeat of our school community — and now it's time to show them just how much they mean to us!
Here's how you can help celebrate them:
Donate Online: Click here to donate.
Donate by Cash or Check: Drop off your donation at any of the three school offices in an envelope labeled "Teacher Appreciation."
Donate a Gift Card: If you'd like to donate a gift card (please keep each card to a maximum of $50), drop it off at any school office labeled "Teacher Appreciation."
Kindly make all donations by Monday, April 28.
Feel free to reach out if you have any questions about monetary donations, gift cards, or food truck sponsorships! CLICK HERE for more information!
Thank you for your support and generosity!
Red Envelope: AHS Graduation Tradition!
What is a Red Envelope?
● It’s an opportunity for parents, relatives, friends, teachers, coaches, clergy, and anyone special to honor their graduates by writing a note of congratulations. They will be collected in a large red envelope here at the high school, every graduate has one. The envelopes/cards you send do NOT have to be red. Cards will be kept confidential prior to and distributed during the last senior event.
Why participate?
● This is an incredibly powerful and personal way to recognize and touch the life of a young person
during an important milestone in their lives.
How to mail in your cards/notes:
● Please send cards and notes to: (Your Senior’s Full Name) to Aspen High School Red Envelope Tribute: 235 High School Road; Aspen, CO 81611 - mail by May 19th.
● If sending multiple envelopes for one student in a larger envelope, please write the student’s name on ALL cards and letters
● You may also drop letters off in the front office of Aspen High School. Deadline is May 23rd.
The Do’s & Don’ts of Red Envelope:
● Send ONLY greeting cards, note cards or letters 8.5 x 11 or smaller
● NO PACKAGES
● Do NOT send anything of monetary value – we will not be responsible for any gift cards, checks or cash.
● All cards and letters should be flat so that they may fit into the Red Envelope.
When is the deadline?
● Friday, May 19th - in the mail. Friday, May 23rd - for drop offs.
● Anything later is not guaranteed to make it into the Red Envelope.
Safe2Tell Update
Please use Safe2Tell to anonymously report any concerns! These reports go directly to law enforcement and school administration. Please be sure to say on the report so that the intake operator can ask more questions; there is no way for any of this information to be traced back to you!
Mountain Pearl Student Writing Contest
MOUNTAIN PEARL magazine invites students from all local schools (Aspen to Glenwood Springs) to participate in our 7th annual Student Writing Contest. Students, faculty, and parents — please share your favorite written work from this school year. Our jury scores each submission by grade level — blind of school, student, and teacher names — using a metric that values originality, clarity, word choice, detail, and voice. Four high school winners will receive $100 cash prizes. Winners are announced and published in MP's Autumn Back to School edition. All participants whose work meets grade-level criteria will receive a gift certificate for a gelato at Paradise Bakery in Aspen. Gift cards will be delivered to your campus before the last day of school.
Deadline to enter contest: Friday, May 8, 2025
Here is a link for learning more and entering the contest:
TACAW: The Arts Campus At Willits
TACAW Summer Programs
The Bailey Shaw Internship program honors the legacy of Bailey Shaw, a valued local community member and one of TACAW’s first summer interns.
This is a fantastic opportunity for young adults, 16+, to gain hands-on experience in the arts, event production, and youth programming.
Applications are due 4/21. Please use this Summer Internship link to apply!
TACAW's summer camps are also open for registration! Young artists can create animated films, develop puppet shows, or perform in a play about middle school challenges. Teens can write songs with local artists. With camps for ages 6-16 and bilingual instruction offered in all sessions, a summer of creative possibilities awaits. Scholarships are available and applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis.
Spots for both camps and internships are limited, so be sure to sign up soon!
The Aspen Institute & Aspen Community Programs
The Aspen Institute offers its Virtual Teen Socrates Seminar each year to teens between the ages of 15-17 from across the globe. The four-day virtual seminar is dedicated to enhancing leadership, problem solving, and critical thinking skills for high school students in a setting conducive to thought and fellowship.
Moderated in the Aspen Institute Socratic style by expert moderator Allyson Breyfogle, students read selections by such authors as Plato, Aristotle, Seneca, Mary Oliver, and Martin Luther King, Jr., among others.
A past high school participant wrote, “This experience has inspired me to take action to be a positive, generous force in my community."
Schedule
Monday, May 12
Session I: 6:00-8:00 pm ET (4:00-6:00 pm MT)
Tuesday, May 13
Session II: 6:00-8:00 pm ET (4:00-6:00 pm MT)
Wednesday, May 14
Session III: 6:00-8:00 pm ET (4:00-6:00 pm MT)
Thursday, May 15
Session IV: 6:00-8:00 pm ET (4:00-6:00 pm MT)
Fee: $50, includes all sessions and readings. Scholarships are available. Click here to REGISTER
All sessions will take place on Zoom. Registered students will need to commit to attending all four days of the seminar. For more information, please contact Katie Carlsen.
Best Buddies Friendship Walk
Sunday, June 1st
Check-in: 12:00 PM
Opening Ceremonies: 1:00 PM
Walk: 1:15 PM
Celebrate Until: 3:00 PM
Location: Downtown Basalt, CO 81621
The Best Buddies Friendship Walk is the leading event in the country supporting inclusion for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD).
Join more than 50,000 participants at 80 events across the globe to support the Best Buddies programs in schools, workplaces, and communities. You’ll be making the world more welcoming to people with IDD — one friendship, one job, and one life-changing connection at a time.
AZYEP Summer Camp Registration is Open!
AZYEP will host 3 camps for different age levels with various radio themes:
* Kids Corner | June 23rd - 26th | Grades 1-4: In this fun, hands-on workshop, elementary students will learn about radio through field trips, art projects, storytelling, music activities, and more. Each day will have a different theme: 'On the Farm,' 'Artist for a Day,' 'Outdoor Adventure,' and 'Local Music.' Students will participate in a live radio show on KDNK!
* Barely Experts | July 14th - 17th | Grades 5-7: Middle school students are invited to create a 'Barely Experts' podcast! Students will try new activities around Carbondale, including but not limited to performing arts, creative hobbies, vinyl sampling, craft making, and more. They will then create a series of short podcast episodes about their experiences trying each new activity.
* Environmental Podcasting | August 4-6 | Grades 8-12: Join AZYEP and the Sopris Sun for a 4-day crash course in radio podcasting and written storytelling, focusing on local environmental issues. Stories will be published in the Sopris Sun and/or aired on KDNK radio. Students will go on a variety of field trips to learn about local environmental organizations and issues, including water, farming, trails, and stewardship.
Register Here | Partial Scholarships available | Contact megan@azyep.org
UCLA Writing Project
Summer Camp 2025
Writing workshops for students, grades 5-12
Scholarships available!
Sarah Strassburger
Principal, Aspen High School
School Phone #: (970) 315-3516
Email: sstrassburger@aspenk12.net
Website: https://ahs.aspenk12.net/en-US
Location: 235 High School Road, Aspen, CO, USA
Aspen School District Main Phone #: (970) 925-3760
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AspenHighSchool