
KHS Update
04/17/2025

Principal's Message
We made it!!!!
I hope you all have a restful and peaceful April Break. When we return the sprint to the end of the year is on!
A big shout out to our teachers and staff the helped us conduct a very successful administration of the NEWA and SAT this past week. Shout out to the students who took it seriously as well.
Final Exams for the 9-11th grades will be on June 12th, 13th, 16th and 17th. The schedule is outlined below.
Finally, Check out the Press Herald article below highlighting Mr. Battagliese and his ask for a $5,000 grant from the Education Foundation of the Kennebunks and Arundel to support bringing the introduction of polymerase chain reaction and gel electrophoresis equipment into our biology classes at KHS. We're so very thankful of their support! "Super cool stuff" indeed!
Peace,
Scott Tombleson (He/Him/His - What is this?)
Principal - Kennebunk High School
Senior Project Information
The Senior Project aims to give eligible seniors the chance to engage in a community-benefiting activity for 40 hours over two weeks, from May 19 - June 1, instead of attending regular high school classes. Seniors are encouraged to choose a project that aligns with their interests and creates a positive impact. Participation in the Senior Project is optional. Students who choose not to participate are required to attend their regularly scheduled classes during this time, and all standard school rules remain in effect.
Who is eligible?
Students who meet the following criteria are eligible to participate:
- Must be a senior.
- Must be passing all their current classes for the year.
- Must have completed all community service hours.
- Must have acceptable attendance (deemed by an administrator) in all classes at the end of third quarter. (March 28).
- Must not have had any major discipline referrals in the 3rd or 4th quarters.
- Must meet all deadlines pertaining to Senior Project.
Check out the website below for more information!
SENIOR OBLIGATIONS
It is coming to that time of year when we will begin to compile a list of what seniors have overdue to the school. Now is the time to return any items that belong to KHS.
*******Seniors must have ALL obligations settled in order to receive their cap and gown.*******
Dear Families,
This is a friendly reminder that if you have not purchased a yearbook yet, there are only 50 left and after that there will not be any extra copies available.
Please contact the Yearbook Advisor, Stephanie Griffin, sgriffin@rsu21.net if you would like to secure a yearbook with payment of $70 cash or check (made payable to Kennebunk High School w/yearbook in the memo). Once payment is received, a yearbook will be purchased for you .
KHS Honor Society Tutoring
The KHS National Honor Society is pleased to announce they are offering tutoring every morning in the Library. On M/T/Th/F, tutoring will happen from 7:15 to 7:40, and on late start Wednesdays, we will offer tutoring from 8:15 to 8:50. The tutors are NHS students and capable of providing help in all subjects.
NEWS FROM THE COUNSELING DEPARTMENT
Junior Transcript Review Day with UMaine Orono on May 13
The University of Maine Admission staff is excited to offer a Junior Transcript Review Day at KHS in the counseling office on Tuesday, May 13th.
Any students considering attending a 4 year institution after graduation from high school or more specifically attending UMaine, are strongly encouraged to attend.
The UMaine representative will provide constructive feedback on each student's academic performance thus far this year. The representative will also provide an indication of admissibility and potential merit scholarship eligibility at UMaine.
Students will have the opportunity to discuss their future plans and the UMaine rep may provide feedback as well as recommendations on the student's senior course schedule.
This is a great time for students to ask questions about the college application process and receive feedback on their academic performance.
If interested, students should schedule a 10 minute appointment with the UMaine rep through the following link: https://calendar.app.google/EBuij8Caxjn6ST1j7
Should you take the SAT if you plan to attend community college?
While you don't have to take the SAT because community colleges generally do not require SATs you may want to, if you think you plan to transfer to a four year school in the future. Check out the the rational at https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Yth0-Ty4T6RQ7lSV6b_0N-Rh2XfyqlAXJNzqoj-bjcI/edit?usp=sharing
Interested in Cosmetology, Barbering, Esthetics, and/or Make-up?
Consider attending Empire Beauty School's Open House in Somersworth, NH on April 30, 10am to 2pm or 5pm to 7pm. You'll have an opportunity to take a tour, meet students and instructors, learn about financial aid and scholarship opportunities, grab a swag bag and win prizes. RSVP by emailing ahoy@empirebeautyschools.com.
SENIORS! Maine Legislative Memorial Scholarship Fund is now open
The Maine Legislature annually recognizes students currently pursuing or planning to pursue education at a two- or four-year degree-granting Maine college or technical school. Have you already started your higher education journey? This scholarship can still be for you! High school, current college, and graduate students are all eligible to apply.
One high school or college student from each county will be awarded a $1,000 scholarship to the Maine school of their choice. Full details and the application form are available online.
Don't wait! Deadline for applications is May 1, 2025. Apply Now
Attention Seniors! Are you eligible for a STEM Certificate?
The KHS STEM Scholar Program provides high school students the opportunity to earn a STEM Certificate upon graduation, should students successfully complete four years of CP level or higher level math and science courses and STEM electives chosen according to the certification requirements-please review the following STEM Scholar Certificate requirements.
For those of you that this applies to, please fill out the STEM Scholar Certificate application by May 2, 2025.
Summer Course Registration at Maine's Community Colleges is OPEN!
Please click here for summer enrollment and course registration.
Scholarships, Scholarships, Scholarships!
If you are headed off to a university, community college, or trade school next year, the scholarship process can be daunting. There are scholarships for all types of programs and since we have more than a week off coming up, it would be a great time to apply!
- Scholarship Search Engines
- Business Insider: Best Scholarship Websites (lists the ones that have apps)
- Local Scholarships Booklet for the class of 2025- the deadline is April 29, 2025
Attention Juniors and their families - I'm Almost a Senior, Now What????
See the the school counselors' presentation to the junior class about planning for their future after high school. Being prepared and proactive will really payoff! Students please remember to schedule a JUNIOR MEETING with your counselor to discuss your post-secondary plans.
Check out the presentation in this link, I'm Almost a Senior, Now What?
Understanding and Comparing College Financial Aid Offers
Once again the Finance Authority of Maine is to the rescue helping you to make sense of the information you are receiving from colleges regarding your financial award packages. Please join the FAME Webinar Understanding and Comparing Financial Aid Offers next week on Thursday, April 3rd at 6pm.
In addition, please remember that FAME offers families one-on-one sessions via zoom to talk about the aid they are seeing and how to pay the bill. Feel free to schedule a meeting with Jessica Whittier - Online scheduling.
Why You Should STILL submit the FAFSA
Why you should still submit the FAFSA even if you have a full scholarship and won’t be paying for college.
KHS Local Scholarship Booklet for Seniors - Apply by April 29
On Thursday, March 20, there was senior A meeting during advisory to discuss the application process for the local scholarships. The booklet was distributed via email to all students. Applications will be due electronically through the Google Classroom by April 29 (the day after you return to school from spring break). Please read the scholarship descriptions carefully to make sure you fit the criteria before you apply. Some applications require more work than others and should not be saved to do at the last minute. The application deadline is firm, so please plan accordingly if you are scheduled to be away during the vacation break.
The Booklet and the directions on how to apply may be viewed at https://docs.google.com/document/d/1sHEFcQQ1QxxWbsIHfm0FDMybDA6RYX3zU0Xm7W2ukhM/edit?tab=t.0
KHS Appreciation Committee Update
Okay, KHS Community, Teacher Appreciation Week is May 5th so let’s shine! It will be here before we know it!
(SPOILER ALERT FOR TEACHERS - SCROLL RIGHT BY!)
Here’s the plan for a fun-filled week to celebrate our amazing educators:
Sunday evening of May 4th: A group of creative parents and students will use their chalk art talents to create a welcoming message for the teachers. No artistic talent requited! Join us.
Monday, May 5th: We’ll treat the KHS Community to lunch plus raffle off three filled piñatas!
Wednesday, May 7th: We’ll present teachers with Wish List items for their Teacher Lounges at their staff meeting. (Huge Shoutout to Appliance Advantage in Kennebunk for their support.)
Friday, May 9th: We’ll end the week on a sweet note with cookies for teachers to enjoy at the end of the day.
PLUS! Each grade and a few clubs are planning to show appreciation! (Mentioning this because our plan compliments what the students are planning, but we are separate.)
We understand there will be several ways to support the teachers during teacher appreciation week but three ways you can help our committee:
- Venmo (@KHSAppreciation) , or drop a check off at the KHS office made out to KHS Appreciation Committee
- Volunteer via Sign-Up Genius to help with events or to make a contribution https://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090D4FA9A9292-56255916-teacher
- Donate items through our Amazon Wish List: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/2BKZX8HZHA58J/ref=nav_wishlist_lists_1
Thank you for helping us make Teacher Appreciation Week special!
Class of 2027 Updates
Want to stay in the loop?
Follow the Class of 2027 Facebook Page (link)
Check the school newsletter for periodic updates
Better yet—join us!
For more information, contact Susan Thombs at sthombs@rsu21.net.
News and Announcements
Summer Boost 2025
When: July 7 - July 31, 2025, Monday - Thursday, 8 a.m. - 12 p.m.
Where: Kennebunk Elementary School
Summer Boost (K-8)
This opportunity is a free learning experience for students identified by RSU 21 and is taught by certified staff, with a focus on Literacy and Math.
Summer Credit Recovery (9-12)
This opportunity is a free learning experience for students who need to recover credit(s) and is taught and guided by RSU21 certified staff.
Snacks will be provided to every student. Transportation will be provided upon request.
Fiscal Year 2026 Budget
Budget season is in full swing, so make sure you are up to date on the latest proceedings and information!
Community News
Absence Reporting Form
April Break
Friday, April 18 through Friday April 25
Memorial Day Observed
Monday, May 26
Graduation
Sunday, June 8
Last day of school | HALF DAY for students
Wednesday, June 18
Helpful Links
Community Resources
Maine Crisis Hotline
Call or Text 988 or 1-888-568-1112
General Assistance Support
Tabetha Barden
207-604-1394
Wendy Lank
207-985-4201 ext. 113
Alison Kenneway
207-967-4401
Laura Dolce
207-967-0857
Right to an Interpreter
English:
You have the right to an interpreter at no cost to you. If you would like to request an interpreter's assistance to communicate with our schools and teachers, all you need to do is ask. We will make sure interpretation services are arranged in advance of your meeting.
Burmese:
သင့်အတွက် အခကြေးငွေ မယူဘဲ စကားပြန်လုပ်ပိုင်ခွင့်ရှိသည်။ ကျွန်ုပ်တို့၏ကျောင်းများ၊ ဆရာများနှင့် ဆက်သွယ်ရန်အတွက် စကားပြန်တစ်ဦး၏အကူအညီကို သင်တောင်းဆိုလိုပါက၊ သင်လုပ်ဆောင်ရန်သာ လိုအပ်ပါသည်။ သင့်အစည်းအဝေးမတိုင်မီ ဘာသာပြန်ခြင်းဝန်ဆောင်မှုများကို သေချာစီစဉ်ပေးပါမည်။
Chinese:
您有权免费获得口译员服务。如果您想请求口译员协助与我们的学校和老师沟通,您只需提出请求即可。我们将确保在您的会议之前安排口译服务。
Gujarati:
તમને કોઈ પણ ખર્ચ વિના દુભાષિયાનો અધિકાર છે. જો તમે અમારી શાળાઓ અને શિક્ષકો સાથે વાતચીત કરવા માટે દુભાષિયાની સહાયની વિનંતી કરવા માંગતા હો, તો તમારે ફક્ત પૂછવાનું છે. અમે ખાતરી કરીશું કે તમારી મીટિંગ પહેલા અર્થઘટન સેવાઓ ગોઠવવામાં આવી છે.
Japanese:
あなたには無料で通訳を雇う権利があります。学校や教師とのコミュニケーションのために通訳のサポートをリクエストしたい場合は、リクエストするだけです。会議の前に通訳サービスを手配いたします。
Portuguese:
Você tem direito a um intérprete sem nenhum custo para você. Se desejar solicitar a assistência de um intérprete para se comunicar com nossas escolas e professores, basta solicitar. Garantiremos que os serviços de interpretação sejam organizados antes da sua reunião.
Russian:
Вы имеете право на бесплатного переводчика. Если вы хотите попросить помощи переводчика для общения с нашими школами и учителями, все, что вам нужно сделать, это попросить. Мы позаботимся о том, чтобы услуги устного перевода были организованы перед вашей встречей.
Spanish:
Tiene derecho a un intérprete sin costo alguno para usted. Si desea solicitar la asistencia de un intérprete para comunicarse con nuestras escuelas y maestros, todo lo que necesita hacer es preguntar. Nos aseguraremos de que los servicios de interpretación se organicen antes de su reunión.
Ukrainian:
Ви маєте право на безкоштовний перекладач. Якщо ви хочете попросити допомоги перекладача для спілкування з нашими школами та вчителями, все, що вам потрібно зробити, це попросити. Ми подбаємо про те, щоб послуги усного перекладу були організовані заздалегідь до вашої зустрічі.
Vietnamese:
Bạn có quyền có một thông dịch viên miễn phí. Nếu bạn muốn yêu cầu sự trợ giúp của thông dịch viên để giao tiếp với trường học và giáo viên của chúng tôi, tất cả những gì bạn cần làm là yêu cầu. Chúng tôi sẽ đảm bảo sắp xếp dịch vụ phiên dịch trước cuộc gặp của bạn.
89 Fletcher Street
Kennebunk, ME 04043
207-985-1110