Dear Jayhawks,

We have had a tremendous opening few weeks to the school year. Last week we hosted Back to School Night and parents had an opportunity to make connections with their child's teachers. Yesterday we hosted our first home football game of the year. Next week we look forward to Spirit Week, the Homecoming Carnival and Friday Night Lights!!!

This issue of the Jayhawk Blast is filled with a lot of important information including key dates, how to order Spirit Wear, how to purchase discounted POP bracelets for the Homecoming Carnival and much, much more. You can also see pictures of our students enjoying the new nacho bar in the cafeteria and our most recent NEST Day.

Please take the time to read through the entire issue and follow the links to learn about all of the details.

Our best to you and your families,

Mr. David Cohen & Dr. Joe Prisinzano, Co-Principals

JHS has two Assistant Principals. They are always available to our students and supporting their needs.

Mr. Brian Cummings has an office just outside of the cafeteria and can be reached at phone extension x3226.

Dr. Micheala Finlay has an office in the Social Studies across from room 244 and can be reached at phone extension x3224.

• 9/18- Districtwide Welcome & School Night (MS/HS Auditorium) 7:00-9:00pm
• 9/22- High School Pep Rally & Home Coming Carnival 2:15pm-6pm
• 9/23- Homecoming Carnival 10:00am- 6:00pm
• 9/25 - School Closed

• 10/3 - HS PTSA Mtg & Principal's Coffee Hour (HS Library) 10am

• 10/5 - HS World Language Honor Society Induction Ceremony (MS/HS Auditorium) 7:30pm

• 10/7 - SAT Exam 8:00am (Not in Jericho)

• 10/9 - School Closed

• 10/10- HS Blood Drive 8:00am-2:30pm

• 10/17- Class of 2024 Last Call Senior Portraits (Little Theater) 8:30am-3:30pm

• 10/18- Class of 2024 Last Call Senior Portraits (Little Theater) 8:30am-3:30pm

• 10/20- 2nd Annual Piano Showcase (MS/HS Auditorium) 7:00pm

• 10/28- ACT Exam 8:00am (Not in Jericho)

Please take a few minutes to carefully read through the information below:

We are really excited to bring the homecoming carnival back to Jericho!

The carnival, sponsored by Jericho High School Student Council, will take place on Friday, September 22 from 2:00 – 6:00 PM. (HS students can attend beginning at 3:30 after the pep rally). There will be rides, games, food, as well as Jericho sporting events (5 PM Boys JV Badminton and 5 PM Girls JV Tennis) capped off with a home varsity football game at 6 PM on the turf and under the lights! All are welcome.

For Friday, POP (Pay One Price) Bracelets and tickets for the rides, tickets for games, and food will be on sale on-site. A late bus for MS and HS Students ONLY will be available at 5:45 PM. Elementary students must be accompanied by a parent/guardian and ARE NOT PERMITTED to take the bus home. Elementary students are welcome to attend the carnival after school if a parent/guardian brings them. The MS and HS PTSA will be selling pizza and bubble tea after school (cash only) in addition to the food vendors. Cash is needed for the games and food.

Friday evening, during the Varsity Football game, the food vendor will remain open.

Saturday, the festivities will continue for all members of the community from 10 AM – 6 PM with a carnival, games, food and additional Jericho sporting events (10 AM Girls Varsity Swimming, 10 AM Girls Varsity Soccer, and 12 PM Boys Varsity Soccer). The Fire Department will also be visiting!

For Saturday only, pre-sale POP bracelets, for rides only, are available at a reduced rate. Please note, one POP bracelet is needed per person who will be using the rides. The bracelet is for Saturday only.

To access the link to purchase a POP Bracelet for Saturday, please CLICK HERE. Please note - there are no refunds. Pre-sale POP Bracelet will be available for pick up at the Carnival on Saturday at a separate specified table when you enter beginning at 9:30am and throughout the day.

At the fields on Saturday, bracelets and ride tickets can be purchased, as well as food, games, and our High School clubs will have booths set up with treats for sale and activities. Please note, cash will be needed for some items.

We are really excited to bring the carnival back to Jericho and hope to see you Homecoming Weekend!

We are excited to offer JHS students our full complement of clubs for the 2023-24 school year. Please follow the first link below for a list of clubs now being offered, the name of the advisor(s) and a description of each club. The second link below provides a schedule of when each of the clubs meet. Please email the advisor if you have any questions about the club. All of this information is also available on the JHS website.

Each of our teachers at the high school provides opportunities for students to receive extra help. Please use the link below to see the schedule.

Jericho High School offers a student mentor program to support our 9th graders and new admission students. The program enhances their connections at JHS by pairing them with an upperclassman. The program is by request. Below is a link for 9th graders and new students to sign up for the program.

We want to share this year’s updated parent technology packet. The document can be accessed by clicking on the icon below. The document provides parents with important information about Canvas, PowerSchool, Google Classroom, OTIS, device insurance, and more. We encourage all students and parents to bookmark the link to this document in order to easily access should any technology questions arise throughout the school year.

Jericho’s one-to-one device program continues this year with one slight change. We are asking all parents to digitally sign one device lending agreement per student being loaned a device prior to providing a school-issued device.

The form is located here: Device Lending Agreement 2023-24.

We would ask you to complete this form before the first day of school so all students can be provided a device on day one. If your child is not borrowing a device, we would ask that you still complete this form should he or she need to borrow a device during the course of the school year. If your child already has a district-issued device, we would ask you to sign off on this form should we have to swap or replace that device. Having a signed device lending agreement means we can provide a loaner or replacement device immediately. If you have any questions, please email our Director of Technology Dr. Fogarty at pfogarty@jerichoschools.org.

Additionally, device insurance is an important consideration for families. We are contracting with Worth Ave Group to offer families insurance on Jericho-owned devices this coming school year. Insurance for the year is a very reasonable $38, which covers cracked screens, accidental damage, and more. Parents will have until 9/30 to purchase this insurance for the year. Because we are now offering this option, families will be charged for damage to one-to-one devices through Cell Mechanic. When an uninsured device is sent in from a parent or guardian for repair, we will pass it along to Cell Mechanic, who will evaluate it and let us know the cost of repair. Parents will then be asked to cover that cost. In order to avoid any such costs, we encourage families to consider this new insurance option. Please click on the icon below to learn how to purchase insurance on Jericho-owned devices issued to students for one-to-one usage throughout their high school career.

Please note that the Canvas Calendar is the starting point for all instruction, assignments, student council information, etc. All students and parents should have a Canvas account. For help, please access the Jericho Parent Tech Overview document shared above in this newsletter.

Traffic on campus is typically very busy. As you plan for your child's travel to and from school this year, please know that one way to alleviate traffic issues is for students to utilize our bus service. Our buses are safe, fast and the easiest way for students to travel to and from school. If you will be dropping off or picking up your child from school, there are two access points; the HS attendance entrance via route 107 and the upper senior parking lot via route 106 (You may not use the front circle for drop-off).

Safety is our primary focus, particularly at dismissal. If you are picking up your child it is critical that you adhere to the following procedures:

• Car lanes are single file and drivers should never leave the line unless directed by a security agent
• When using the route 106 access, drivers must pull into available parking spaces in the upper lot and wait for their child
• Security agents are on site to assist drivers when pulling out of spaces and moving back into the single lane of cars. Please understand that the security agents are focused on ensuring a safe and efficient process so please be courteous and understanding of their role.

Please anticipate a potential wait when dropping off and picking up your child. We ask everyone to demonstrate patience and to provide extra time to account for traffic volume.

Thank you for your support.

As you know, student wellness has been such an important focus for us at JHS. The NEST program, is aimed at supporting students and the stress many of them face. This is accomplished by creating safe spaces for students to engage in restorative circle discussions while increasing their connections with peers and adults in the school. The vision statement for the program is "The Nest Period is a safe and supportive space for students to feel a deep connection with the members of our community and share voices for making positive change. "

During the past few weeks, students have engaged in NEST sessions in our English classes. Below are some pictures and a link to a video highlighting our students and teachers engaged in NEST activities including classroom connections and team building.

Making connections throughout the entire JHS community is one important step towards ensuring a healthy and supportive school community. We look forward to working with all of our students to make the NEST a place where each of their voices counts. Remember, every student has a home in the NEST

Dear Parents,

Welcome to the PTSA Connections Corner! Here you will find the latest PTSA news and information about upcoming events and happenings that the HS PTSA sponsors and/or supports. We are always available to answer any questions and look forward to a wonderful school year. We thank you in advance for your support.

Sincerely,

Your PTSA Co-Presidents

Marni Rubin

Sheree Weingarten

Membership

Please use the link below to become a member of the PTA this year.

SENIOR PARTY DONATIONS

Attention seniors and families. Please click here to view a flyer about donations to support this year's Senior Party to celebrate the Class of 2024 on June 5, 2024.

Order your JHS Spirit Wear for this Year!!!

Use the link below to learn more about how to order your spirit wear. Please note that the deadline to order is September 29th.

Information from SEPTA

SEPTA is an organization that supports all students in the District. Below is a link to some important flyers from SEPTA. Each flyer has English and Mandarin versions.

Please take a few minutes to read through the flyers. We encourage all families to become members of SEPTA.

Wellness Tips

Danielle Smith, High School Psychologist

Wendi Goldstein, High School Psychologist

Ray Velez, High School Social Worker

Back to School and Mental Health: Health Starts at Home

The return to school can be a stressful time and every child deserves to have a successful academic year. By equipping young people with mental health support, we are setting them up for a healthier and brighter future.

The Jericho School District’s partnership with Northwell Cohen’s Children's Medical Center allows us to work closely with the Northwell Team to determine the various mental health needs of our students.

Additionally, Northwell’s outreach education programs offer us an educational series for our community. Families are an important source of support and we encourage all parents, guardian and caregivers to take advantage of the various virtual educational workshops throughout the year.

Click here to explore Northwell’s educational workshops on various topics

College Rep Visits

Dear 11th and 12th Grade Students & Parents:

Each year, Jericho High School has the privilege of hosting college representatives from a number of institutions around the country. We will continue this tradition this year with a combination of in-person and virtual sessions. In an effort to minimize disruption to instruction and extracurricular commitments, all in-person meetings will take place at 8:15 AM, and virtual meetings have been scheduled for the evening at either 6:30, 7:00, or 7:30 PM. Please review the instructions (see link below) on how to view and sign up for college rep visits. Only Naviance student accounts are enabled to register.

Please note the following guidelines:

1) These meetings are intended for Jericho students only. Although parents understandably may have questions for the representatives, we kindly ask that you adhere to this protocol.

2) Students are representing our school and expected to be courteous, polite, and engaged, keeping in mind that these college representatives are often the first individuals to review our students’ applications.

3) In-person participants are expected to stay for the entire session, and virtual participants are expected to appear on camera for the entirety of each meeting.

Students must register for their desired meetings through Naviance, where they will find detailed information (including links, when applicable). Below is a link to google doc listing our next round of sessions. The entire listing can be found on Naviance.

*****Please note that Financial Aid Night has been moved to November 8, 2023.****

Online Newspaper

Visit Jericho High School’s award-winning online newspaper: The JerEcho!

For over 50 years, The JerEcho has reported on school, local, and national issues.

Currently, we report the news through a variety of articles, videos, and podcasts. We’re comprised of a dedicated coalition of editors, reporters, and photographers.

We hope you enjoy exploring our site.

-The JerEcho Team

Did you know that JHS is now offering an AgriScience/Business class? Led by teachers Samantha Sforza and Michael Goldin, students will learn the science and business of food this year. Students will have an opportunity to build a small farm in our courtyard, develop and harvest various plants, and utilize robotics to support their process. Today's classroom visit highlighted their work in preparing for a competition through Grow-NY.

JHS Kids (and Principal Cohen) Love the Nacho Bar

Special thanks to Deana and Aramark for adding a daily nacho bar in the HS Cafeteria. It is a huge hit as we can see from the pictures and the hilarious video!

Visit the Jericho High School Website!

Follow us on Twitter @DaveCohenJHS
https://twitter.com/DaveCohenJHS