News and events Oct. 4, 2024

October 4, 2024

Oct 17-18: No School- Fall Break/MEA Break

Oct 22: Lifetouch School Picture Retakes (Grades 9-11)

Oct 24: Parent-Teacher Conference Night

Nov 5: No School- Professional Development Day

Nov 22: Last Day of Trimester 1

Nov 25-26: No School- Grading & Professional Development Days

Nov 27-29: No School- Thanksgiving Break

Dec 2: First Day of Trimester 2

CRHS will have a Late Start Monday this Monday morning (Oct. 7)

Below are some important details about Late Start Monday mornings at CRHS:

• Buses and transportation run normally on Late Start mornings. However, students who drive or get a ride do not have to be at school until their classes begin at 8:30am.
• Please allow extra time if arriving after 8:10am as traffic is often heavy due to CRMS arrival around the same time.
• Students who arrive early may complete homework, study, or socialize before school in supervised locations until class starts at 8:30am.
• After 7:40am, students may only enter through Door 1.
• Additional Late Start Monday mornings include 10/21, 10/28, & 11/11.

We wanted to share some reminders about our Activities attendance & general expectations. These changes are in effect for all activities including football, basketball, volleyball, performing arts, etc.

Ordering Tickets

• Save time and avoid long lines and purchase your tickets online by clicking here.

• Only students from CRHS and the opponent's school will be allowed into the game. Students may not bring guests from other schools.

• CRHS students must enter through the student gate on the East end of the stadium and have a student ID ready to show at entry.

• Elementary and middle school students must have an adult with them and are expected to sit with their adult throughout the event.
  

• Entry closes at the end of halftime, meaning no spectators will be allowed entry after the start of the second half. Please share this information with those attending so they can plan accordingly.

• Elementary and middle school students must have an adult with them entering any CRHS event and are expected to sit with their adult throughout the event.

• No bags, backpacks, or outside food/beverages are allowed into events. If you bring one of these items you will be asked to finish or throw them away prior to entering the event. There will not be a place to securely store bags- please leave backpacks and valuables at home or in your vehicle. CRHS is not responsible for any items left in or around the stadium/school. Exceptions to the "no carry in rule" may exist for persons with disabling conditions. Persons requiring an accommodation should inform school administration supervising the event of their request.
  

• Students are expected to be supporting their classmates during events from the stands and not wandering in or around the event (e.g. behind bleachers, Fieldhouse, Mezzanine, etc). Of course students are allowed to purchase snacks from the concession stands but are expected to return to the stands immediately afterwards.
  

• Students must have a scheduled ride, or exit the grounds, at the conclusion of the event.

LifeTouch school pictures for 9th-11th grade students have been taken and below is information about school pictures ordering and retakes.

Ordering:

• School pictures can be ordered by logging on mylifetouch.com and using the CRHS picture code EVTHGNK9M.
  
• If you’d like a hard copy of the Lifetouch order form, they are available at the CRHS Check-In Desk from 7:00am-3:30pm.

• CRHS school picture retakes with Lifetouch Photography (used for Student IDs and school pictures) will be on Tuesday, October 22nd.
  
• Lifetouch school pictures are taken for all students (grades 9-11) and are used for CRHS Student IDs as well as yearbook photos. Seniors are not taking LifeTouch photos.
  
• CRHS students attending PSEO or STEP may also come in to have their picture taken on these days but must check in at the CRHS Check-In Desk.
  

The Coon Rapids Fall Dance Team is hosting its annual performance show on Saturday, October 12th at 11am. This year's theme is "All Pink Everything" in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness month. Part of the proceeds and any donations will go to Hope Chest.

The CRHS Dance Team is looking for a handful of volunteers to help with admission tickets, concessions, security, decor, and clean up! Please reach out to cardettesboosters@outlook.com if you're able to help out.

Attention students and families! CRHS once again offering our after school tutoring and studying space called Quiet Study Time (QST)! Here's some information about QST program:

• QST is a great opportunity for students looking for a quiet place to complete school work or needing a little extra help to study for quizzes/tests or catch up on assignments.

• QST runs Monday-Thursday 2:30-5:00pm in the CRHS Library (2nd Floor).

• Students do not need to stay the entire time at QST. The Activity Bus is only available on Monday and Wednesday at 5:00pm for students who need it (note- there is no Activity Bus available Tuesday, Thursday, or Friday). If students have a ride or can walk home, they can leave QST anytime once they have completed their work.

• Students can get help in a variety of subject areas, but please check the QST schedule linked here for the subject areas that are supported that day.

Our goal is to help our students do their best by offering a productive place to work or get help from staff- and we hope our students take advantage of this great opportunity! See you at QST!

Students--Buy your 2024-25 yearbook NOW at the lowest price of the year. Check out ordering details below:

• This year's book is on sale at Jostens.com but hurry as the "Back-to-School" deal expires at midnight on Sunday!
• Payment plans available through Jostens.
• Email Ms. Berg with any questions.

Attention Senior Parents- Senior year is an important milestone in many student's lives and it’s important to find creative ways to commemorate your student’s senior year, celebrate all of their hard work and accomplishments throughout their school career, and let them know that you love and are proud of them. A fun and easy way to do this is to place a Recognition Ad, or an “Ad for Grads”, in the 2024-2025 Yearbook. This is something that your student can look back on for years to come. It is very simple to create an “Ad for Grad.” Just follow the details below:

• Visit www.jostensadservice.com to begin creating your ad today using your favorite photos of your student and a personal message.
• Choose any photos you like: a baby photo, a grade school photo, or just a photo of your student that you love--you can even take a picture of the photo you want to use and upload that image from your phone.
  
• Photos may be in color or black and white, and you pick the fonts and background.
• Ads are available in two different sizes, 1/4 page for $60 or 1/8 page for $40.
• The Ads for Grads deadline is February 1, 2025.

If you have any questions or need tips on how to upload the pictures you want to use, please email Kari Berg at karilee.berg@ahschools.us or check out this sheet from Jostens with FAQs.

Click on the button below to check out the CRHS Activities running this week. We'd love to see you come out and support Cardinal Nation!

🍽 Join the New Elite ProStart Culinary & Management Competition Teams of Anoka Hennepin! 🍽

Passionate about cooking or dream of leading a restaurant? Now's your chance to shine! The ProStart Competition Teams are looking for talented, driven individuals to represent our school in the prestigious culinary and management challenges.

• 🔥 Culinary Team: Showcase your cooking skills, creativity, and teamwork as you prepare gourmet dishes under pressure.
• 💼 Management Team: Lead, plan, and strategize to create winning restaurant concepts that impress industry professionals.

Why Join?

• Network with industry leaders and Chefs

• Compete for scholarships

• Gain real-world experience

• Build your resume

• Check out this video to learn more about the ProStart Culinary & Management Club Here

Spots are limited—apply today! Let's cook up something amazing together! Ask your Culinary Teacher for details!

Homecoming Dance Chaperones- Saturday, October 6 Put your dancing shoes on and help us keep our Homecoming Dance safe and fun! The dance will start at 7 and conclude at 10pm. Feel free to sign up for one or more shifts and make a night of it :)

Academic Lettering Ceremony- Tuesday, October 8 (DAYTIME OPPORTUNITY)Help celebrate some stellar achievements at our Academic Lettering Ceremony on Tuesday, October 8. Volunteers are needed at 8:15 am to help line up students and keep them on task prior to the ceremony.

Volunteers are such an incredible asset to the students here at CRHS. Let’s make sure your impact is recorded and recognized. By filling out your volunteer application you are doing your part to keep our students safe while enriching their lives through extracurricular activities. You can access this year’s volunteer application here:

CRHS Volunteer Application and Criminal Record History Release Form or email your Volunteer Services Coordinator, Danielle Callahan at danielle.callahan@ahschools.us (or call (763) 506-7130)

The CRHS Swim and Dive team is hosting a fundraiser at Chick-fil-a in Coon Rapids on Oct. 8 from 5-8pm. When you stop in, mention Swim and Dive!

A number of factors converged in early 2024 that led to the need to reduce district expenditures by $26 million. Anoka-Hennepin acted quickly in the spring to plan a two-phased budget reduction and realignment process.

• Phase 1: $5.1 million in central administration and services were reduced for the 2024-25 budget in an effort to mitigate the impact of additional cuts for the 2025-26 budget.
• Phase 2: The district is currently determining a solution to address a $21 million budget reduction gap. Community meetings were held Sept. 25 - Oct. 10 in combination with a feedback process on two recommendations. A final decision is expected in November.

Factors impacting the district budget: The elimination of federal pandemic relief funds, higher than budgeted employee contract settlements, the impact of inflation on transportation and other operations, limited new revenue from state and federal sources and new requirements without funding support have developed a need to reduce expenditures by $26 million by the 2025-26 school year.

Proposed solutions: Anoka-Hennepin Schools have followed School Board direction to provide a reduction plan that cuts away from the classroom, particularly for the district’s youngest learners. The draft budget solution recommendations impact central services before schools with 53 percent of the reductions taking place at the district office/central services area, and 47 percent impact at the school level. The board is also studying a plan that would make additional central services and administrative cuts but spare reductions in schools allowing community members to decide on that impact through a levy referendum election in the fall of 2025.

Two options have been proposed for School Board consideration:

• Option 1: $21 million total reduction.
• Option 2: Make additional central services/administrative reductions and authorize an operating referendum election in the fall of 2025.

Looking ahead: Following robust community feedback for an initial draft plan, draft proposals are expected to be shared at the Monday, Oct. 29 school board meeting and eventually adopted at the Monday, November 25 school board meeting. This timeline is required ahead of key planning decisions on student registration and staffing decisions prior to the 2025-26 school year.

Provide feedback: School Board expectations provide for a process that encourages robust community and staff input prior to approval of the final recommendation.

Community meetings were held Sept. 25-Oct. 10.