The Weekly Penguin

I'll keep it short, we've got some things happening on campus starting on TUESDAY which are awesome. Check out the upcoming events below and read through any pertinent info you need below that.

One big thing: our Korean exchange students have arrived and are with our host families! Students please welcome them to our campus and feel free to share the UHS experience with them. Cheers!

One public service announcement for this round: there is a group of students who sit alongside the administration building at lunch, facing the flagpole. Nearly every day, trash is left by multiple students as they get up and walk away. We know our campus needs some work, and our custodial and grounds crews work very hard to keep things clean and safe. We must all do our part, at any chance we get. If this behavior continues, I will bring out cleaning equipment and have these students clean not only their area, but others around the campus as well. I have plenty of neon vests and garbage pickers, it'll get cleaned one way or another. Thank you all in advance for your partnership in keeping our campus (a.k.a. our home) clean.

Upcoming events:

Monday, January 20: Civil Rights Day - SCHOOL CLOSED FOR STUDENTS, STAFF

Tuesday, January 21: sequential schedule - refer to the UHS bell schedule for schedule #3, like Thursday/Friday w/ 8:00am start, NO CONFERENCE PERIOD

Tuesday, January 21: UHSPA meeting - RUHS library, 6:00pm

Thursday, January 23: TUSD Step Up EXPO - Tucson Convention Center, 4:00-8:00pm

January 24 - January 25: AMEA Regional auditions: band/choir/orchestra - Palo Verde High School

Tuesday, January 28: UHS Student of the Month breakfast - RUHS auditorium lobby, 8:00am

Tuesday, January 28: UHS Electives Fair - breezeway east of admin building, 2nd lunch

Wednesday, January 29: TUSD PLD - NO SCHOOL FOR STUDENTS

January 28 - January 30: All-State jazz festival - Mesa, AZ

January 30 - February 1: AMEA conference - Mesa, AZ

Tuesday, February 4: Junior College-Ready Seminar - see CCCC update below for details

Wednesday, February 5: UHS government debate and mock election - RUHS auditorium, 8:00-11:30am

Thursday, February 6: UHSFAA board meeting - RUHS library, 4:00pm

February 6 - February 7: Advanced drama showcase - RUHS little theater, times TBD

Saturday, February 8: UHS inaugural dance - location TBD, 7:00-11:00pm

Wednesday, February 12: grade-level meetings - during school day, more info to come!

Thursday, February 13: parent-teacher conferences - whole campus, by appointment, 4:30-6:30pm

Friday, February 14: half-day schedule - refer to the UHS bell schedule for schedule #5 times

Friday, February 14: Penguin Pathways - during school day, more info to come!

February 14 - February 15: AMEA Regional festival: band/choir/orchestra - Cholla High School

Tuesday, February 18: UHS Student of the Month breakfast - RUHS auditorium lobby, 8:00am

Tuesday, February 18: UHSPA meeting - RUHS library, 6:00pm

February 20 - February 21: Rodeo Break - SCHOOL CLOSED FOR STUDENTS, STAFF

Wednesday, February 26: spring orchestra concert - RUHS auditorium, time TBD

February 27 - February 28: Intermediate drama showcase - RUHS little theater, times TBD

Athletics updates

Campus cleanups

CCCC (College, Career, and Counseling Center) update

Yearbook Update

RUHS club list

UHSFAA - student microgrants

UHSPA fundraising drive

UHSPA update

UHS Perspective - published online!

UHS website calendar

Winter guard/drumline - fees and participation

MLK Classic - Monday, January 20th at McKale Center on the campus of the University of Arizona.

RUHS Girls Basketball will play Buena High School at 12 noon. University High senior Bella Alvarez will be singing America's national anthem, "The Star-Spangled Banner" pregame. Legendary and long-time RUHS boys basketball head coach Rich Utter shall be recognized as a recipient of the MLK Spirit of Excellence Award during halftime. UHS senior Teagan Hart will be taking photos courtside for the UHS yearbook. Rincon High senior Liam Clark will be taking photos courtside for the RHS yearbook. Pablo the Penguin will be present. UHS Assistant Principal Jason Miller will be the Public Address announcer for the game. 😉

RUHS Athletics T-Shirts for sale in the Bookstore!!

$15 for 1

$25 for 2

See below for direct links to each sport offered for the winter season at Rincon/University High School. Congratulations to all our fall sports, you did a great job! Next week I'll try again to have spotlights for individuals and teams who competed in the fall post-season.

Winter sports lineup:

Basketball - boys VAR

Basketball - boys JV

Basketball - boys FR/SO

Basketball - girls VAR

Basketball - girls JV

Soccer - boys VAR

Soccer - boys JV

Soccer - boys FR/SO

Soccer - girls VAR

Soccer - girls JV

Soccer - girls FR/SO

Wrestling - boys VAR

Wrestling - boys JV

Wrestling - boys FR/SO

Wrestling - girls VAR

** Campus Clean-up III: Saturday, February 15, 2025 - 10AM - 2PM. The focal point of this cleaning project is the East / Arcadia Parking Lot. Students and staff will be painting curb bumpers (existing black bumpers recoated with black paint; existing purple bumpers recoated with purple paint; existing white bumpers repainted with white paint). The pedestrian crosswalks will be freshly coated with yellow paint. The red fire lane curbs will be recoated with red paint. Weeding and pruning will be done as well.

*** Campus Clean-up IV: At a to-be-determined date in March, 2025. The focus will be on the western perimeter of campus, along Swan road and 5th Streets. Curb appeal is the emphasis.

Updates from the CCCC/Student Services Team:

Counselors will be visiting 9th grade Science, and 10th and 11th grade Social Studies classrooms on Thursday 1/23 and Friday 1/24 to hand out and discuss course selection forms for the 2025/2026 school year. This is a great opportunity for students to ask questions about course offerings and to begin the process of choosing their preferred classes for next year. All course selection forms will need to be signed by parent/guardians and turned into student’s math teachers by Friday, 1/31. We encourage students to discuss course selections with their families prior to making final decisions.

SENIORS:

If you still need to take the civics test, come by Monday or Tuesday conference period to the CCCC so you can take it! If you want to confirm whether this is already completed, please check your Course History in StudentVue and look at Test Requirements; make sure you switch Detail to on. The other requirement is CPR, which most students completed already. If you still need this, there will be an opportunity to get it done during Penguin Pathways on 2/14. You do NOT have to find and pay for CPR certification on your own. If you have obtained it through a job or JTED, please send your counselor proof of completion and we will update your transcript. Email your counselor (Villagio A-L, Encinas M-Z) if you have any questions.

JUNIORS:

-Join the UHS Counseling team for our quarterly College-Ready Seminars focusing on how juniors can prepare for applying to college. Each quarter we will focus on a different topic to assist juniors & families in their college planning by breaking down the process and helping you work smarter, not harder! We highly encourage all junior students and families to attend each quarter so they are best prepared for next year.

[Q1] College Admissions Testing – September 24 (rescheduled from 9/10) – Links & more info were sent out on 9/30, so check your email if you missed this!

[Q2] Building Your College List – November 19 – Links & more info were sent out on 12/13, so check your email if you missed this!

[Q3] Financing College – February 4

[Q4] Planning & Preparing for the College Application Process – April 15

---All seminars take place on Zoom starting at 6:00 pm. See attachment for more info; zoom links have been updated! We look forward to seeing you there!

FRESHMEN & SOPHOMORES:

Make an appointment to meet your counselor – they are excited to work with you during the first half of your high school career! Go to UHS Counseling, College, Career Center webpage and click on “Book Appointment.” Email your counselor if you don’t see any times available that work for you, or come by during drop-in hours during lunch or conference period.

ALL STUDENTS:

You're invited to the annual UHS Career Cafe!

The career cafe is an opportunity for students to learn about the college & career journeys of current professionals. This year the Career Cafe features an ALL UHS Alumni lineup! All speakers provide valuable insight on finding and/or arriving at your desired career, no matter what field you may be interested in. We encourage students to join even if they aren't interested in the career field or don't know what the job is. Come learn about the experiences of UHS grads who have been in your shoes! Cafe treats for all who attend 🙂

See list of speakers here.

Students! NOW is the time that many summer programs/research opportunities have applications open and deadlines are passing quickly! Check out our Free & Low Cost Summer Programs Database! You can also review the CCCC Website under "College & Career" -> "Student Opportunities & Summer Programs" for more ideas!

Peer tutors: If you want to be a volunteer peer tutor, look for the QR code around the U-building to sign up, or email Ms. Brownstone. Students – we really need more peer tutoring volunteers in Physics, Chemistry, and/or Geometry! Your fellow Penguins will be very grateful for your help, and this is an excellent way to give back to your community. We appreciate all of our current volunteers!

If you are interested in receiving free peer tutoring, look for the list of tutors in the CCCC or ask your counselor!

Online Health and PE classes have now started. If you would like to be enrolled, please contact Mr. Encinas by email. To be eligible for online Health, you must have taken or be currently enrolled in AP Macro/Microeconomics, or you must have already taken Honors Economics. Please contact Mr. Encinas with any questions. Seniors – if you still need these classes to graduate, you need to take care of this ASAP!

Max Encinas

11th-12th Grade School Counselor - Last names M-Z

University High School

520-232-5929

Book an appointment with me

The yearbook is price $75 for a limited time. The next price increase will happen on 2/28. Purchase your yearbook soon if you are hoping to purchase it at a lower price. Visit Lifetouch to purchase and our school code is 15096125.

Underclassmen

If you missed the Lifetouch portraits, Yearbook has finally received its backdrop for class pictures! The last day to take a portrait photo for the yearbook is January 21st during 6th period. Please do not miss this last opportunity to be represented in the yearbook.

Seniors

The last day to purchase a senior ad (tribute) was Friday, Jan. 17th. Please submit your creation by Jan. 24th! If you have any questions, contact the yearbook advisor, Patricia Wheeler by email.

Here is the latest 24-25 RUHS club list. Find a club that fits you and join the community!

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.

Dear UHS Families:
The University High School Parents Association (UHSPA) is conducting its annual request for financial support to fund its 2024-25 activities to support UHS, its students, teachers, and staff. Each year the UHSPA:

• Provides grants to UHS teachers for class projects and supplies
• Coordinates Grad Night
• Supports teachers and staff with a welcome breakfast, holiday gifts, and end of year appreciation
• Facilitates classroom supply drives
• Provides breakfast for Student of the Month celebrations
• Contributes to UHS Holiday Adopt-a-Family

Examples of recent grants to teachers include color guard flags, calculators for our Chemistry classrooms, greenhouse enhancements, and laminated world maps.

Donations are tax deductible (UHSPA EIN: 94-2848207)

To contribute, checks can be made out to “UHSPA” and mailed to:
PO Box 57076 Tucson, AZ 85732 -or-

Online donations can be made via Paypal.

If you need further information, please reach out to us by email or call 520-481-2810.

Thank you for your continued support!
Autumn Szlemko
President, UHSPA
520-481-2810

And like that, half our year is done. Spring semester has a lot of activities and events on campus and the Parents Association is ready to lend a helping hand. Emails will be going out in the next 2 weeks on Grad Night Tickets and support needed and we have launched our annual fundraising drive this week. 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 January 21st 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.

• Support UHSPA so we can continue to support our UHS Community. Click here to learn more about UHSPA activities and DONATE to our fundraising effort.
• 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 1/21. If you would like to join the group, please email or show up on 1/21. This will be the big meeting where we start assigning tasks and actions for this fantastic event.

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@uhs-pa.org. 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 **

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UHSPA

Email UHSPA
UHSPA Website

University High School Parents Association (UHSPA)

PO Box 57076
Tucson, AZ 85732

The UHS Perspective is the student-produced school publication that began as the school newspaper printed in hardcopy, and now is online! Please read through all the amazing work our students do! Thank you to Mr. Hilbert for sponsoring!

Check out the TUSD UHS website calendar, starting with December 2024. In our continued work to streamline our many different activities, we are entering everything into one source. We may also add events to social media as that develops. Please provide us feedback on our progress so we know what to tweak along the way.

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 immediately for winter guard and winter drumline, and remain the policy for the coming school year for marching band.

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.