The Principal Bolt

Issue 2: Week of October 14, 2024

A Message From Principal White

Hello Thunder Families,

I hope everyone enjoyed their fall break! I would like to begin by saying, THANK YOU to all our teachers, students, and families for an awesome first quarter. Can you believe that we are now less than 40 school days away from the end of the semester. I am sure that Quarter 2 will fly by as fast as Quarter 1. I am looking forward to another successful and safe quarter!

As a friendly reminder, quarter grades are available in Student/ParentVUE for viewing.

It is almost Tukee Super Food Drive time and we will need the help of our entire DV community. Last year MTP took the trophy from us by collecting the most food. This year we want the trophy back. Please help support our community by donating canned food. Information about the food being collected will soon be coming. The crowning of either DV or MTP will take place during half-time of the Tukee Bowl on November 7th at MTP. Thank you in advance for your help and support to collect food for our local food banks.

Please continue reading the newsletter for important updates and events. Things you will find below include

2025-2026 enrollment, registration, and course selection information
PSAT Testing
Senior Cap and Gown Ordering
Recognitions
Homecoming information
And much more

Do not hesitate to call the front office if you have any questions or need assistance, 480-706-7900. Let's continue to work together in our commitment to "Excellence Through Performance".

Go Thunder!

Sincerely,

Principal White

DV Leadership Team

Principal White - snielsen@tempeunion.org
Assistant Principal Snyder (Academics) - tjsnyder@tempeunion.org
Assistant Principal Walther (Activities) - jwalther@tempeunion.org
Assistant Principal Padmanabhan (Athletics) -bpadmanabhan@tempeunion.org

PSAT Testing: Tuesday, October 22, 2024

The PSAT is on Tuesday October 22, 2024. The PSAT test is for all Juniors and any Freshmen and Sophomore who signed up.

What are the benefits of taking the PSAT? Junior students will have the opportunity to qualify for the National Merit Scholarship Program based on their score while receiving valuable practice to prepare for other college readiness exams such as SAT and ACT. Freshmen and sophomores get valuable practice and exposure to college readiness tests.

Testing will take place in the morning and buses will run at the beginning of the day for junior students and any freshmen and sophomores taking the test and again 4 hours later for any students not testing. Students will be dismissed at the normal time at the end of the day and Wednesday, October 23, 2024 will remain an Early Release Day.

Testing Schedule and Bell Schedules

PSAT Information including FAQ's, Guide for Families, Bus and Bell Schedules

Preparation for Spring Assessments

Our efforts continue to focus on preparing our students for several state testing sessions. The majority of students will participate in ACT, ACT Aspire, AZELLA, and AZSci in the spring. These assessments are important for our school as it provides students and staff with data on how prepared students are for college and their careers. These assessment results also factor into our school’s "A" letter grade.

Students are able to work on ACT prep materials which are mostly focused on Reading. The best way to be successful on the ACT is to practice! This includes practicing outside of school hours. ACT offers free resources and information on their website.

National Merit Semifinalists in the 2025 National Merit Scholarship Program

Congratulations to our 2025 National Merit Semifinalists.

Over 1.3 million juniors in about 21,000 high schools entered the 2025 National Merit Program by taking the 2023 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT). Officials of the National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC) announced the names of approximately 16,000 Semifinalists in the 70th annual National Merit Scholarship Program. To be considered for a Merit Scholarship award, Semifinalists must fulfill several requirements to advance to the Finalist level of the competition.

These seniors are amongst the brightest in the country who have scored in the top percent on the PSAT in the areas of reading, writing, language, and math. These academically talented high school seniors have an opportunity to continue in the competition for some National Merit Scholarships worth more than $28 million that will be offered in the spring. About 95 percent of the Semifinalists are expected to attain Finalist standing, and about half of the Finalists will win a National Merit Scholarship, earning the Merit Scholar title.

Desert Vista High School is proud to recognize the following students as 2025 National Merit Scholarship Semifinalists!

Vaishnavi Bharat Ratna
Ramsey Rida
Nila Sathyan
Helen Tran

The Thunder Counseling Department

2025-2026 Registration Information

Registration for the 2025-2026 school year will be happening this semester! The links below contain all the information to understand the process. Please share the incoming freshman information with the families that you know who don't have students at DV but may need the below information.

2025-2026 Current DV Students Grades 9-11 Registration Information Letter to Parents

2025-2026 Registration Flyer

2025/2026 Incoming Freshman Registration

2025/2026 Open House Showcase Night for incoming freshman

All registration information:

October 15 - 21: Orientation for current 9th-11th graders

Freshmen Request Form

Sophomore Request Form

Junior Request Form

Senior Request Form

0-8 Hour

PRESENTATION

Presenting to students:

Counselors will meet with individual students based off the schedule below to verify classes, and lock in your student’s schedule for the 25-26 school year.

Junior English Classes: Registration for current 11th graders: October 23 - October 31, 2024
World History Classes: Registration for current 10th graders: November 4 - November 8, 2024
Integrated Science Classes: Registration for current 9th graders: November 12 -November 26, 2024

Senior Graduation Information

On Wednesday, October 23rd during Advisory, Jostens will be presenting information to seniors about caps, gowns, announcements, etc.

Jostens will be at lunch on Friday, October 25th for students to complete their ordering of graduation items.

Attendance and Tardies

Attendance questions, concerns and/or help can be directed to Ms. OBryan at

eobryan@tempeunion.org

Off Campus Passes and/or Early Student Pick Up

The off campus phone line is answered from 7:30am-3:00pm. If you plan on calling your student out or picking your student up early, please do so before 3:00pm.

When requesting an off campus pass for your student or requesting to pick your student up early from school, the office needs at least an hours notice to process the call and get the pass out to the student.

Our first period student tardies are on the rise. We are in need of assistance in getting students to school by 8:30am giving a 5 min window to get to the classroom on time for class. Essential information and class instruction begins directly when the bell rings so we want to make sure that all students are in their classrooms on time and ready to learn.

Calling to excuse absences is vital and helps our front office staff out. Doing so within 24 hours is essential to their work.

Attendance

Absences add up. District policy allows for students to miss a total of 11 absences per semester. A benchmark to stay on track is to follow the practice of not more than 6 absent days during quarter 1 and 5 absent days during quarter 2. Equaling 11 total absences per semester.

Attendance questions, concerns and/or help can be directed to Ms. OBryan at eobryan@tempeunion.org

"The Triple P – Positive Parenting Program

"The Triple P – Positive Parenting Program is a proven, evidence-based approach, backed by 35+ years of research. It offers simple, practical strategies for building strong relationships, managing children’s behavior, and preventing problems. Used in 30+ countries, Triple P works across cultures and family types. Check the attached image for this semester’s meeting schedule!"