Dear South Burlington High School Community,
Let me be, probably one of the last, to wish you a Happy New Year! Since returning to school in January, our students and staff have been busy with Culminating Activity Period (CAP) week, the conclusion of Semester 1, the start of our course registration process, and the excitement of the winter sports season.
I am thrilled to share that South Burlington High School will host this year’s FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) State Championship in partnership with FIRSTinVT. This event marks the largest FTC State Competition since returning to in-person learning after COVID-19. Twenty-four teams from across Vermont will compete for a chance to advance to the New England District Championships in Springfield, MA, and the FIRST Championships in Houston, TX. This event is open to the public and will feature many prominent Vermont decision-makers. We welcome everyone to join us for this exciting culmination of the teams' seasons on February 8th.
February, as many of you know, is Black History Month. At SBHS, the Student Justice Union (SJU) is dedicated to educating our community about African American history and addressing both current and past racism. This year, the SJU has created an extensive collection of resources for the community to explore and learn from, which will be presented in Advisories next week. Additionally, the SJU, in collaboration with Nikki St. Mary, our Career Development Coordinator, has organized a panel of BIPOC alumni to speak with 12th graders in our World Affairs classes on February 20th. We are also honored to welcome Dr. Jolivette Anderson-Douoning, a professor at St. Michael’s College, who will address the student body on February 18th.
Tonight, I will travel to Montpelier with our Director of School Counseling, Meghan Sweet, to celebrate the achievements of two remarkable students who have been recognized as Vermont Presidential Scholars. This statewide program honors student excellence in citizenship, academics, arts, and leadership. Congratulations to Esabella Amoah and Julia Todd (pictured above), both South Burlington High School seniors, for their outstanding accomplishments in and outside the classroom. We are incredibly proud of them.
Finally, earlier this month, the South Burlington School District board adopted a budget of $71,507,854, which will be voted on March 4th. Our SBHS team collaborated with district leadership to create a budget that balances fiscal responsibility with the resources our students and staff depend on. Unfortunately, many factors affecting school funding are determined at the state level and beyond our control. While this budget includes reductions in resources and personnel that will impact our students’ experience, we encourage the community to learn about the proposed budget and make their voices heard by voting on Town Meeting Day.
Thank you for your continued support of SBHS and our students.
With gratitude,
John Craig
Acting Principal, South Burlington High School
Just as we begin semester 2, so begins registration for the 25-26 school year. As you go through this process, please be thoughtful about what classes you plan to take, use the resources we have provided and talk with the supportive adults in your life to help. Your course selections in the next month will drive what classes we offer and when. Please know that every SBHS student will be meeting with their school counselor during the month of February to review course requests and make any needed edits.
Here is some helpful info about the process, what has happened to date and deadlines coming up:
- 1/22 - 1/24: School counselors presented in 10th Grade Social Studies classes
- 1/21: Advisory: Presentation to 11th grade students about course registration
- 1/17: Advisory presentation to all 9th grade students about course registration
- 1/24: Department Open House (all students had an opportunity to ask questions on courses offered for 2025-2026)
- 1/26-2/2: PowerSchool student portal open for course registration
- 2/3- 2/7 Grade 11 individual school counselor meetings
- 2/10- 2/14 Grade 10 individual school counselor meetings
- 2/17- 2/21 Grade 9 individual school counselor meetings
Here are copies of the course listing for each grade level:
Grade 11 Course Form 25-26.xlsx - Side 1.pdf
Grade 12 Course Form 25-26.xlsx - Side 1.pdf
Grade 10 Course Form 25-26 - Side 1.pdf
Linked here and live on our SBHS website is the 2025-2026 Programs of Study.
Below are the needed steps for students when you will log into PowerSchool and request your courses:
- Log in to your Power school portal from the SBHS webpage (from the “P” quick link or link under “Students”). You can not complete this on your phone app. Remember that your Powerschool log in is the same as the login you use to get into your SBHS laptop
- Click on -> Course registrations
- Choose your class(es) in each department (max of 8 credits)
- Hit the “Submit” button at the bottom of the screen to save your requests
Independent Living Class Update
The Fall Semester of Independent Living wrapped up with a sewing unit where students learned to use a sewing machine, sew by hand, repair, and launder clothing. Students completed two projects: rice packs for the SBHS Health Office, used by school nurses to support students throughout the day, and drain bags for UVM Medical Center’s Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery department, benefiting breast cancer and reconstruction patients. These projects were made possible through generous donations from Tony and Betsey Cannizaro and Carolyn Chambers, who provided supplies like a sewing machine, fabric, and more.
Field Trip to NWS Burlington
On Friday, 1/17, our Statistics class visited NWS Burlington to learn how statistics are used to predict the weather. Pete Banacos, Science Operations Officer, gave an engaging presentation on forecasting, including its role in providing life-saving information during natural disasters. He connected the concepts students are studying—data distributions, linear regression, modeling, and bias—to real-world applications. Students asked thoughtful questions about topics like the impact of California wildfires on our weather, the balance between art and science in forecasting, and the NWS’s role in flight schedules—and, of course, snow days!
As we begin playing games this weekend, we would like to remind you of the following message from the Vermont's Principals Association: VPA Sportsmanship Video
South Burlington High School
Assistant Principal: Meg Hughart
AssistantPrincipal: Maryellen Schaefer
9th Grade Dean: Denise Weaver
Director of Student Activities: Mike Jabour
Director of School Counseling: Meghan Sweet
Website: https://sbhs.sbschools.net/o/sbhs
Attendance Phone Line: (802) 652-7002
School Counseling Phone Line: (802) 652-7586
Athletics & Activities Phone Line: (802) 652-7578
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sbhsvt/
