Hilhi Happenings

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Dear Hilhi Families,

Happy Homecoming week! This is a great week to celebrate our community and show our Spartan Spirit! There are details below about our spirit days, parade, game and dance. I encourage all to join the celebration!

After school tutoring is up and running in the Library each Tuesday and Thursday until 5:00. Snacks and staff to support various subjects are available each of those days and students can sign up to ride a bus home (this takes about a week to set up, so please plan ahead). We are halfway through the first quarter, and teachers will be sharing grade updates with parents this week. Parents are also encouraged log into ParentVue to see student grades at any time.

On October 24th, we are offering a virtual Principal Coffee Chat, in English from 6:00-6:45 and Spanish from 7:00-8:00. This is a chance to hear updates from the school and ask general questions. This month I will share information on creating the 2025-26 school calendar and provide a way for families to give input into when the school year will begin.

As a reminder, there is no school on Friday 10/11 for statewide teacher inservice, but we'll be here Saturday night for the Homecoming Dance.

Go Sparts!

Cary Meier

Principal

The Homecoming Parade is on Thursday, October 10th from 6-6:45pm. The parade starts at Lincoln Street Elementary, goes up Jackson to 2nd, past Bagley Park to Grant and ends at Hare Field. Come and support our Spartans in this treasured tradition (there will be lots of candy!).

In an ongoing effort to ensure our high school sporting events are a safe, secure, and positive experience for all involved, we invite you to review our guidance for HSD ticketed events for the 2024-2025 school year.

Bag Restrictions

• No bags or purses allowed (clear bags where all contents are readily visible are acceptable) - applies to adults and students alike

• Bags belonging to student athletes in uniforms are acceptable

• Medically necessary items and baby bags are acceptable (subject to inspection)

Prohibited Items

• Bicycles

• Skateboards

• Scooters

• Pets (except service animals)

• Fireworks

• Weapons

• Other potentially dangerous objects

• Alcohol, tobacco, drugs

• Outside beverages, with the exception of empty water bottles (subject to inspection)

• Outside food

• There will be no storage available inside the venue for prohibited items; however, there will be places to lock bikes, skateboards, and scooters outside the venue.

Required Items

• School identification for students in grades 7-12

  • Student ID Card or StudentVUE are acceptable

  • **NOTE** ASB stickers do not allow free entry to playoff games

Student Attendees

• Only high school students currently enrolled at one of the schools competing in the event are allowed to attend

• Students who attend Hillsboro Online Academy or Oak Street Campus can attend events where their home high school is competing.

• Elementary and middle school students must be accompanied by an adult (18+, not a current student)

Appropriate and respectful behavior is expected at all times during these events. If anyone is exhibiting unsafe or overly disruptive behavior, they will be subject to removal.

We truly appreciate your understanding and cooperation as we work to keep the focus on exhibiting positive school spirit and celebrating the hard work and dedication of our students.

Thank you for helping us ensure a safe and positive experience for everyone at our high school sporting events. Go Sparts!

“Once Upon a Time” Homecoming 2024 is on Saturday, October 12th from 8-11pm in the Commons. Guest passes are available now in front of the Activities Office and are due on Wednesday, October 9th.

Aleja Graham Ubaldo Paz

Support & Wellness Counselor
"Hilhi is a representation of the community I live in. I love what I do and this is my way of giving back to the community"

Ben Her

Trio UBMS Educational Advisor
"Be a resource for students like the staff was for me when I was here."

Benjamin Noyes

Choir and Mariachi Director

"Nothing matches the energy of this school in the state of Oregon"

Carl Almquist

School Counselor - Boys Lacrosse Head Coach

"I got asked to be the Head Coach for our lacrosse team in 2016, ever since then, I knew that I wanted to be fully involved at Hilhi again. I wanted to improve our lacrosse program and I began finding myself enjoy working as an educator with the rest of the school. This is my home!"

Cary VanSchepen Meier

Principal

"I love this community!"

Dakota Spencer

Social Studies Teacher

"This is my second home!"

Jonathan Lopez-Arana

Dean of Students - Football Coach

"I love the community, the students, the work environment. I have so many challenging memories that occurred during high school and I remember all the amazing people that helped me through those."

Matt Peterson

Math Teacher - Wrestling Coach

"Hilhi has an amazing diverse population with a lot of heart. Plus the best campus and wrestling room in the entire state."

Mikayla Webb Mick

Library & Media Specialist - Track & Field Coach

"Coaching, I want to be where my athletes are!"

Sarah Cole

Activities Director & Leadership Teacher

"My dream job was to be an Activities Director and Hilhi happened to have the job post when I was looking to make a change. I never actually planned to teach at the high school I attended...but as it turns out, I'm right where I'm supposed to be!"

STARTING OCTOBER 1ST

In an effort to support all students with their academic needs, Hillsboro High School supplies after-school tutoring for all students on Tuesdays & Thursdays from 3:45 - 5pm. During this time, they will receive help from a variety of staff and teachers on campus who specialize in many different areas. A snack and activity bus are provided. For activity bus services, please fill out the listed form 2 weeks in advance. [Activity Bus Form]

HHS 9th Grade Level Team meets weekly to focus primarily on attendance and students’ individual barriers to improve their attendance to school and their classes. We follow the guidelines and research from the Chicago University to support our students to stay On Track for their High School Graduation from the beginning in grade 9. Here is an interesting article on this topic: Why does attendance matter in High School?

If your student will be absent due to illness, a medical appointment, or any other reason, please call Mrs. Nuria Pence our attendance secretary or leave a message in our attendance line 503.844.1990.

Our 9th Grade Level Team is here to serve you and your students. If you have any questions or need support, please feel free to reach out to us!

• MariaEugenia Olivar, 9th grade Administrator | olivarm@hsd.k12.or.us

• Anita Siller, School Counselor | sillera@hsd.k12.or.us

• Alejandra Lopez Sanchez, Graduation Coach | lopezsaa@hsd.k12.or.us

• Nuria Pence, Attendance Secretary | pencen@hsd.k12.or.us

October 12th 9AM-1 PM

Developmental Disabilities Resource Fair

October 15th 6:00-7:30 PM

Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month with HSD

The Hillsboro School District has a new tool to help students learn about various post graduation options. Xello is replacing Naviance as the platform students will use to create an education plan to help them meet their individual goals. Xello also provides families with more information and tools to support their students to meet these goals. Please click on the letter below to find out more about Xello.

English

Español

Please update or change your email address in ParentVue in order to receive an invitation to create their Xello family account.

XELLO AND COLLEGE APPLICATIONS

Class of 2025 will now be using Xello to link your common app/request transcripts for your college applications.

You will find Xello in your HSD MyApps You will sign into Xello using Microsoft Azure Single Sign-On.

Xello has provided the following resources to help you understand how to link your account and start your college application (these are also in the students Class of 2025 Google Classroom):

• Student Guide for Linking Common App and Xello (article)

• Linking your Common App to Xello (video)

• How to request counselor forms/teacher evaluations (article)

• Requesting documents - Xello and Common App (Video)

• Requesting transcripts for non-common app schools (article)

Any questions or if you need help with the college process and/or Xello, see Mr. Kasper in the College and Career Center or email him at kaspert@hsd.k12.or.us

Looking for scholarships for education after high school. There are many scholarship search engines that can be helpful. (www.Fastweb.com, www.Scholarships.com, www.scholarshipsamerica.com)

The College and Career Center keeps a database of scholarships that we know about; check out the 2024-25 HHS Scholarship List (linked here) to see many national, regional, and local scholarship opportunities. This list is updated weekly. This link is also in the class of 2025 Google Classroom.

Check on a consistent basis see scholarships that are currently open and scholarships that will open throughout the school year

Attending college in the next few years? Do you need help understating your option when it comes to paying for and attending college? Join the experts from ECMC’s The College Place Oregon, the Oregon Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators and colleges actress Oregon as we explaining the financial aid process

Paying for College - FAFSA/ORSAA Information Night (English/Spanish - Online) 6:00 PM

Want to learn more about colleges and universities?

The National College Fair is coming to Portland in October. Hundreds of colleges/universities will be represented and have information about their school.

All schools in Oregon and hundreds from outside of the state will be represented. Sunday October 27 & Monday October 28 at the Oregon Convention Center

Sign Up for this free event here

There will be many college and university presentations this fall at Hilhi throughout the school day. Dates will be published once they are confirmed. You will receive a pass on the day of the presentation to attend. Please sign up for any that you are interested in attending. Use this link to sign up. Google form sign up is also available in the Class of 2025 Google Classroom.

Currently Scheduled (More to be added when confirmed):

10/1 - Oregon State University

10/2 - Portland Community College

10/3 - Portland State University

10/4 - University of Oregon

10/14 - Linfield University

10/18 - Pacific University

10/21 - George Fox University

10/24 - Western Oregon University

11/12 - Portland Community College

11/21 - Oregon Institute of Technology

October

• Tuesday, October 1 - After school tutoring begins - Tuesday & Thursday until 5:00 in the Library
• Thursday, October 10 - Homecoming Parade & Football game
• Friday, October 11 - No School, Statewide Inservice
• Saturday, October 12 - Homecoming Dance, 8:00-11:00 pm at Hilhi
• Tuesday, October 15 - Optional PSAT testing for 11th graders
• Thursday, October 24 - Virtual Principal Chat 6:00-6:45 in English, 7:00-8:00 in Spanish
• Thursday, October 31 - Last day of Quarter 1

November

• Friday, November 1 - No School, Grading Day
• Tuesday, November 5 - Spanish Family Tech Support Night 6:00-7:30 in the Library
• Thursday, November 7 - English Family Tech Support Night 6:00-7:30 in the Library
• Monday, November 11 - No School, Veterans Day
• Monday, November 18 - Winter Sports begin
• Thursday, November 21 - Virtual Principal Chat 6:00-6:45 in English, 7:00-8:00 in Spanish
• Monday-Friday, November 25-29 - No School, Conferences & Thanksgiving holiday

December

• Tuesday, December 10 - PreACT testing for all 10th graders
• Thursday, December 19 - Virtual Principal Chat 6:00-6:45 in English, 7:00-8:00 in Spanish
• Monday, December 23-Friday, January 3, 2025 - Winter Break

Full calendar available on our website.

Student Clothing Update:

We need your help! If a student’s clothing does not align with HSD’s Standards of Student Conduct (English, Spanish), the student will be asked to change their clothes.

For your reference, students may not wear anything advertising controlled or illegal substances.

• Students are not allowed to wear clothing advertising cannibus dispensaries (ex: "Cookies"), cannibus brands, marijuana leaves or paraphernalia.
• Clothing with the Playboy brand name or bunny logo are not allowed.
• Students may not wear clothing advertising brands of alcohol (for example Coors, Budweiser, etc).

• Students are not allowed to wear clothing depicting weapons. This would include the brand SDL as they have a gun depicted in their logo design.

• Students must wear shirts with straps to school.

Please refer to HSD’s Student Code of Conduct (English, Spanish) for more information. Specifically, “Students cannot wear violent language or images, images or language depicting drugs or alcohol (or any illegal item or activity), paraphernalia, or use of the same, or hate speech, profanity, pornography” (pg. 28).

Parents can now report full day absences via ParentVue. We are working on ways to enter partial day absences, but that is not yet available. With full day absence reporting, you can easily let us know when your child is absent for a full day.

Directions for Parents | English

Directions for Parents | Spanish

9th grade - Anita Siller - sillera@hsd.k12.or.us

10th grade - Carl Almquist - almquisc@hsd.k12.or.us

11th grade - Ralph Medina - medinar@hsd.k12.or.us

12th grade - Stephanie Anderson - andersos@hsd.k12.or.us

College & Career Specialist - Tim Kasper - kaspert@hsd.k12.or.us

Support & Wellness - Aleja GrahamUbadoPaz - grahamua@hsd.k12.or.us

New Students, CCPs & Volunteering - Marla Lyle - lylem@hsd.k12.or.us