Hi all,
Just because I'm in a cooking mood, I'm digging that although abrupt, the change to actual fall weather is upon us...finally. Reminder that because of the older infrastructure of the school, we have turned the chillers off but have not turned the heaters on, which means we are circulating outside air only. This weather type generally won't stop through the rest of the semester so please bring a sweater or jacket for the mornings and you'll likely be comfortable throughout the day as the afternoon can still warm up a bit.
But the big news: University High School has again earned an A grade from the Arizona Department of Education. Congratulations to the entire student body, our faculty and staff, our families, and our community for their continued support of our school. Our students are what make our school amazing, and we cannot wait to continue making UHS the best school in Arizona. For the full list of schools and their grades you can visit the Arizona Department of Education website. We earned every point possible in proficiency, graduation rate, graduation improvement rate, the College and Career Readiness Index, and nearly every point in growth...with a few extra credit points thrown in for good measure.
Reminder there is no school tomorrow Monday, November 11 in observance of Veteran's Day. We return Tuesday, November 12 with a full sequential schedule, periods 1-6 with no conference period.
Thank you to the parents who came out to our first Coffee with the Principal this week, it was great chatting with you! See below for the next meeting in the afternoon over a boba tea, all are welcome!
Upcoming events:
Monday, November 11: Veteran's Day - SCHOOL CLOSED
Tuesday, November 12: Sequential schedule period 1-6 starting at 8:00am, NO CONFERNCE PERIOD
Tuesday, November 12: UHS Site Council meeting - RUHS library, 3:30pm
Tuesday, November 12: Ranger Band Spectacular - RUHS auditorium, 7:00pm
Tuesday, November 19 - UHS Student of the Month breakfast - RUHS auditorium lobby, 8:00am
November 22-23: Sweeney Todd: The Musical - RUHS auditorium, 6:00pm each night
November 28-29: Thanksgiving break - SCHOOL CLOSED
Thursday, December 5: Dance winter showcase - RUHS auditorium, 7:00pm
Tuesday, December 10: Boba with the Principal - Ni Hao Tea: 4726 E. Broadway Blvd, 3:30pm
Wednesday, December 11: RUHS choir & orchestra concert - RUHS auditorium, 6:30pm
Thursday, December 12: Giant Steps jazz concert - RHUS auditorium, 6:00pm
Tuesday, December 17: UHS Student of the Month breakfast - RUHS auditorium lobby, 8:00am
Tuesday, December 17: Winter band concert - RUHS auditorium, 7:00pm
Korean exchange students - need more families!
The Asian Pacific American & Refugee Student Services department is hosting exchange students from South Korea for the second year running, and University High School has been invited to participate this year. We will be hosting 10 students for 3 weeks from January 17, 2025 to February 8, 2025, and we are looking for 10 host families to house these students. The department has prepared some detailed information as well as a registration document if you are interested. Please contact Mr. Ranjel by email directly if you are interested in this amazing opportunity, I am personally very excited to be host to the wonderful students.
We are still in need of 4 more families to host these students. I will reply in email on Monday to any new requests received. Thank you all!
UHSPA update
We are starting to settle into our roles with UHSPA. Be on the lookout for our November UHSPA Newsletter with information on events and efforts between now and the end of the year! Direct delivery to your email inbox! If you are not signed up to receive our newsletters, click the "Subscribe" link at the bottom of this update :)
Make sure to join us for our monthly meeting on November 19th at 6PM in the RUHS Library. Future meetings will be on the 3rd Tuesday of each month. Please park in the north parking lot off 5th street. Come up the stairs and the door will be unlocked. Turn left inside the doors. The library will be on the left.
- We still have a need for Junior and Senior parents to serve as general members on our board. This is a low time commitment. You will get a couple of emails a month on things like grant requests and will need to review and vote.
- We will be hosting our monthly Grad Night planning meeting after the UHSPA general meeting on 11/19. We will start our active planning. I will be communicating with the planning committee soon. If you would like to join the group, please email UHSPA or show up on 11/19!
Our UHS families have been amazingly supportive of our classroom supply drive. The Wishlist will stay open to reflect current classroom requests. Teachers/ staff please send needed supply requests to UHSPA by email. Anyone shopping on Amazon and wanting to send an item of appreciation to the school can check out our Amazon Wishlist to support our most recent classroom needs.
** Sign Up for Remind- text [student grad year code] to 81010 -- ([student grad year code]: @uhspa2025, @uhspa2026, @uhspa2027, or @uhspa2028) ** Subscribe for communications from UHSPA ** Contact us by email **
Winter guard/drumline - fees and participation
Rosters are being made for winter colorguard and winter drumline! There will be a change for all band/colorguard students moving forward, starting with this winter's participants in the extracurricular competition component of each organization: all students will have the participation fee option added to their as soon as rosters are received in the finance office. All students wishing to participate in the extracurricular competition component of their team must have their fee paid BEFORE rehearsing or performing. This will go into effect also for the coming school year with marching band participation/competition. We are re-vamping the method of loading fees into InTouch for an easier experience, and we will be in constant communication when they are ready to be accessed. Thank you for your support as we work to ensure all fees are collected and thus as much financial support as possible is granted to our amazing programming.
Yearbook update
Yearbook Purchasing
The yearbook is discounted to our cost ($65) for a limited time. To make sure to get the lowest price, please purchase your yearbook soon. To purchase, visit the Lifetouch website and our school code is 15096125.
Seniors
What is a senior ad? A senior ad is your very own page in the yearbook to create a tribute for your senior student! See the photo for an example of a seniro ad.
Senior ads are a terrific way to show how proud you are of your graduating student and support the Yearbook class. Because we sell the yearbook for cost, this is our fundraiser for supporting yearbook equipment and software. Below is a step-by-step guide on how to purchase a senior ad (tribute). You do not need to complete the tribute page the same day as purchase. When you purchase, you set up an account and you can go back to it later. The page will be due late January.
Athletics - fall sports wrap up
Get your season pass for $30 in the finance office. This ticket allows you to get into all home game event excepting post-season competition/play. All proceeds generated from purchasing this pass stay at the school.
See below for direct links to each sport offered for the Fall season at Rincon/University High School.
UHSFAA - student microgrants
The UHS Foundation and Alumni Association (UHSFAA) seeks to support UHS students, particularly those who are first generation college bound and who are focused on building opportunities for themselves. Through this, the UHSFAA student microgrant is offered for application. Microgrants are awarded to students in need of anything that furthers their educational development. Grants of up to $500 per student per year are available at the discretion of the UHSFAA board of directors and UHS principal, and are based on available funds. Microgrant awards are through application, and can be given for many different kinds of needs: classroom needs including costs associated with internet access, textbooks or personal academic supplies, summer programs, professional education and internship needs, such as travel and public transportation costs, lunch costs, supplies or clothing needs, immunizations, and more. Requests for funding should be for proposals that can be 100% covered by the grant; requests to partially fund larger projects will not be considered. Please provide at least ten days lead time before the funds are needed so the UHSFAA can have adequate time to consider your application.