#RoyalFam Newsletter

Mark Your Calendar

9/18 - State of the School 5-6pm in HHS Auditorium

9/19 - Principal Tea 7:30-8:30am in HHS College and Career Center

9/19 - Digital Learning Day (Scholars access learning online)

9/28 - Homecoming Dance

10/3 - Rosh Hashanah - No School

10/4 - Conferences - No School

10/17 & 10/18 - MEA - No School

10/24 - Digital Learning Day (Scholars access learning online)

School Calendars

District Calendar

Cold season is just around the corner, and we could use your Kleenex tissue donations! Please send your donations to school with your scholar, and they can drop them off at the Main Office. Or, you may drop donations off with our greeter at Door A by the cafeteria. Thank you!

PSAT Registration Now Open! On Tuesday, October 22, juniors have the opportunity to take the PSAT/NMSQT (Preliminary SAT). This exam is a shorter version of the SAT and serves as the initial screening for the National Merit Scholarship Program, which identifies students who score in the top 1% nationally. Participation in the PSAT/NMSQT is optional and not required for graduation. There is no makeup test. Testers will need to make up any missed assignments. Testing will start at 8:40 am and end around 12:40 pm.

Your scholar will receive an email with a link to register. The link to register can also be accessed here. Your scholar must log into their Hopkins Google account to access the registration link.

For more information, practice tests, and preparation tips for the digital PSAT/NMSQT, visit the following links:

• Learn More

• Practice Test and Answer Explanations

• List of Prohibited Items for Test Day

• Please remember that all phones, smartwatches, and wearable technology must be turned off and stored away during the test to avoid disruptions.

For questions, email denise.nohlquist@hopkinsschools.org.

Have a 10th or 11th grader who needs to explore colleges or a 12th grader applying to college? Have them sign up to meet with the many college reps that are coming to HHS. They will get to meet the people who will actually be reading their college applications and get to know the campuses better. To sign up, have your scholar use MaiaLearning (under the events tab). If you want to see what schools are coming, you can view it here ​.

The application deadlines are already starting. If you want your student to begin exploring national and local scholarships, please have them log into MaiaLearning and click on the financial plan tab. Both types of scholarships can be found there.

Does your scholar qualify for free college tuition at any Minnesota Public college or university? Please learn more about the North Star Promise Scholarship by clicking on this link.

Please see the information poster below. Click this link to register.

Maya Sullivan organizes this event, which is in its third year. If you have scholars interested in attending an HBCU, we strongly encourage them to sign up via the Google Form linked below. There will be a fair, virtual admissions presentations, and a student panel: https://forms.gle/XK4SPG3iCYhEZ76J6

As scholars are embarking on the college application process, they may have identified that their GPA would be higher if we included their 9th-grade IB scores in the high school GPA calculation. If scholars wish for a supplementary letter to be sent explaining their GPA would be higher if we included their IB grades, please fill out this form to make that request from Dr. Kuhl. Please note, she will not send the letter if your grade point average is not higher when including your IB grades.

We would like to extend the invitation for parent chaperones for our Homecoming Dance. If you are interested in chaperoning the Homecoming dance on Saturday, September 28, from 7pm-10:15pm, please click the link below to fill out the interest form. You will get a separate email with information. We need chaperones to supervise specific areas, restock snacks and drinks, facilitate coat check for scholars, and supervise our quiet area.

https://forms.gle/zagt6zdDme7LixMZ8

DECA will be hosting its first meeting on September 18 at 3:30 in room W230. DECA is a competitive business club that prepares emerging leaders and entrepreneurs for careers in marketing, finance, hospitality and management in high schools and colleges around the globe. Come to this informational meeting to learn more and join. The meeting will be done by 4:00 pm. For more information contact Hopkins, DECA advisor Jesse Theirl or learn more at www.deca.org.

HHS Seniors–Did you know that you can still join the Royal chapter of the National Honor Society? You must meet the standards of NHS–scholarship, service, leadership, and character. You need a 3.67 or higher GPA, 30 or more hours of documented community service, and a recommendation from a teacher. Here is a link to the Application. Applications are due by September 16th. Please contact Jennifer Heimlich with any questions at jennifer.heimlich@hopkinsschools.org

A parking permit fee is $160 for the school year and is reduced by $40 at the start of each term.

Scholars with documented eligibility for educational benefits will receive a separate email containing discount code that can be used to purchase permits online. Discounted permits are $80 and reduced by $20 at the start of each term.

Both cash and credit card payments are accepted. Credit card payments are made using the link on the registration document below.

To receive a parking permit, scholar must meet the following requirements:

• Possess a valid driver's license

• Completed 2024-25 Parking Application Form

Parking permits can be picked up in the main office.

More details about parking passes and the registration form can be found here.

Picture Retake and Makeup Day

Picture retakes and makeup day for all scholars will be October 10 during lunches. This will be the last opportunity for seniors to have a Lifetouch picture taken if they are not submitting their own. Scholars who would like a retake should bring their original picture packet with them to retakes. Expect the pictures to be distributed during Royals Connect on or before September 26.

Senior Photos

If you would like to utilize Lifetouch on September 5 or their retake day in October for the senior portrait for the yearbook, they will provide a free picture on either of those days. If you have your own senior photo you would like to submit, please follow these instructions, which include an upload link.

Please note:

1.) Upload only one photo. Make sure you choose the photo you like that meets our requests and upload ONLY that photo. If you upload more than one photo, we will not reach out to you, we will choose a photo for you.

2.) Select a photo that is styled after a professional headshot. We will crop all photos so that faces are about the same size, which means any props, trees, cars, athletic equipment, instruments, or walls you may be peaking around will not be included in the photo.

Senior Yearbook Tribute

We are proud to continue the popular tradition of the senior yearbook tribute. Here's how it works:

1. Find an adorable photo of your graduate from a much younger age

2. Create a 40-50 word message honoring who they have become

3. Purchase and upload the yearbook tribute at Jostens before January 31

Yearbook Ordering Information

Order your yearbook as early as possible to take advantage of the lowest prices to help us gauge an accurate order by our deadline. Please email jeff.kocur@hopkinsschools.org if you have any questions or would like to coordinate a cash or check payment. Special offer: In addition to selling for the lowest price all year, if you order before September 20, you can choose four free icons (symbols to represent your interests and talents in school) when you also order personalization.

Spirit Week. Each day scholars are encouraged to dress according to the theme. The theme for each day will be shared in a future newsletter.

Movie Night. Monday, September 21, we will kick off Spirit Week with a movie on the Football Field. More details will follow.

Club Fair. The club fair will be held on September 25 during lunches. Clubs and activities are encouraged to table at this event and engage with new potential members.

Powderpuff. The annual Powderpuff football game will take place on Wednesday, September 25 after school. Each year we cheer for the junior and senior class at this event. In the last 2 years, the class of 2024 won. We look forward to celebrating the winners this year.

Pep Fest. Our pepfest will take place Friday, September 27 in the RAC. On this day we will run a Royals Connect schedule. Scholars should first report to their RC for attendance and then walk to the RAC with their class.

HOCO Game. The HOCO game will take place Friday, September 27, 7pm, at the HHS Football Stadium. Scholars who continue to not meet school expectations will not be permitted to attend.

HOCO Dance. The dance will take place in the HHS mall on September 28, 8-10:30pm. Tickets will go on sale next week. Scholars who continue to not meet school expectations will not be permitted to attend.

Please click the following link for the Student Council Monthly News for more details on all of the upcoming events: https://secure.smore.com/n/7mzbe

We are taking an incredible trip over spring break in 2026! We are doing a civil rights/HBCU tour to Georgia, Alabama, and Louisiana. We will be visiting famous sites like the Edmund Pettus bridge and the National Center for Civil and Human Rights, and we’ll tour the Whitney Plantation and Lafayette Cemetery. We will tour Spelman and Morehouse Colleges and more! I will host some information nights beginning in November, so stay tuned. Meanwhile, you can view the entire itinerary and see the price at www.explorica.com, enter tour ID Heimlich-8408 You can sign up to pay monthly payments too. Students, you can always stop by Ms. Heimlich’s room, W112, with any questions. Families, you can email me with any questions at jennifer.heimlich@hopkinsschools.org

We are taking an amazing trip over spring break in 2025 to Croatia, Slovenia, and Venice! You can watch a brief video overview by clicking on this link (here is the presentation).

Current Juniors who are taking AP Euro or AP World during the 24-25 school year and current Seniors who took AP Euro or AP World for the 23-24 school year as a Junior are eligible to register. (This is not available for incoming 9th graders at this time.) We currently have 25 students signed up and the trip is capped at 40.

If you have signed up and registered, there will be a meeting in the Fall (around Term 1 conferences, which is the first week of October) for everyone who is registered to begin discussing logistics and other items to be ready for the trip in the Spring of 2025!

Students and families, you can email me with any questions at michael.babinedinnen@hopkinsschools.org You can also check out our detailed tour itinerary at www.explorica.com, select Register for a Tour, and enter the tour ID: Babine-Dinnen-2359.

Free Lifeguard Certification Age 15-21

https://hopkins.ce.eleyo.com/course/13672/youth-fall-2024/lifeguard-certification%E2%80%941

Under Water Hockey

https://hopkins.ce.eleyo.com/course/13779/youth-fall-2024/under-water-hockey

Open Swim

https://hopkins.ce.eleyo.com/course/13618/youth-fall-2024/open-swim%E2%80%941

Open Gym

https://hopkins.ce.eleyo.com/course/13613/youth-fall-2024/open-gym%E2%80%941

Hopkins Public Schools invites parents, students, staff, and community members to join us for a thoughtful conversation about student safety and to explore what holistic safety means within our district. This event will be a welcoming space to share information, ask questions, and engage together as a community, ensuring that every student is supported in a safe and caring environment. Learn more

Hopkins Education Foundation (HEF) is excited to welcome students back to school! This is HEF's 30th year supporting Hopkins students and teachers. We started the school year by meeting new students and families at kindergarten nights, celebrating Hopkins schools at our Rock-n-Royal block party, and opening up a new season of classroom Spark Grants and Awesome Fund student club grants. We can’t wait to hear the great ideas students and teachers have for our schools, and how we can kickstart learning opportunities. Learn about all the ways Hopkins Education Foundation supports Hopkins students and how you can make a difference, at HopkinsEducationFoundation.org.

We're excited to announce the addition of the Information Center to the Hopkins High School website! This page provides up-to-date information for both scholars and families without having to dig through your inbox to find older newsletters. Bookmark this page to stay informed and connected with the latest happenings at HHS!

Email: crystal.ballard@hopkinsschools.org
Website: https://hopkinsschools.org/schools/secondary-schools/hopkins-high-school
Location: 2400 Royals Drive, Minnetonka, Minnesota 55305, USA
Phone: (952) 988-4500
Facebook: facebook.com/hopkinsroyals270/
Twitter: @HopkinsHigh270