We welcome longer days, increased sunshine and warmer weather, but don't be fooled cold and flu season is not fully behind us. We apologize for the lack of The Howl last week as a norovirus swept through the Ploeger family. It has also been hitting our students and staff hard with an increase in students getting ill at school. Please remember to use proper handwashing techniques as this virus is no joke and we hope we can prevent it coming to your home. Due to missing The Howl last week there is A LOT in this week's edition. Sit back, relax and read carefully!

Make sure to read all the way to the end to check out the amazing things happening in our Classroom and Student Spotlights! We have students heading to State and International Competitions, students thriving in classrooms with hands on labs and experiences, Beauty and the Beast is soaring in their opening weekend. Check it out this week's Howl:

• Upcoming Events
• Parent Partnership Meeting
• Daily Announcements
• April Celebrations Recognitions and Awareness
• Supporting Students Learning
• Beauty and the Beast!
  
• Skills USA Fundraiser- Coasters
• Pre-Apprenticeship Training Program
• Senior Celebration- Save the Date
• Lost and Found
• Fall Sports Meetings
• Call for Teen Artists
• College Information Night
• Important Prom Dates
• Classroom and Student Spotlights
• In Case you Missed It!

• April 21st- Parent Partnership Meeting 6:00-7:00pm off the commons at West.

• April 26th- Guest forms for SP West's Prom available in the Front office
  

• May 7th at 1:30pm- Guest forms for SP West's Prom due to the box in the front office (hard deadline- no exceptions)

• May 9th (8:00am)- May 15th (4:00pm- hard deadline)- Prom tickets for sale (juniors and seniors) on GoFan

• May 15th- Senior Celebration Night

• May 18th- Junior Prom (open to juniors and seniors)

• June 7th- Graduation at 5:00pm at Alliant Energy Center (no tickets necessary)

Join us for a Parent Partnership Meeting on Tuesday, 4/23 at 6:00pm off the commons at West as we finalize plans for Staff Appreciation Week coming up soon! ALL are welcome.

Have you ever walked by the screens while in the building at West and thought, I want to make sure my student knows about that? Here are our student announcements so that parents/caregivers can have the same information to remind and encourage student involvement.

Hmong culture is alive and thriving today. Check out this video of Hmong culture today celebrating tradition, heritage and legacy with new generations.

Listen to this beautiful Spoken Word as a young scholar describes the complications of keeping their culture alive while conforming to life in the United States.

Be kind. Tear down the wall of stigma. Check out this video taking a look at what it looks like to truly accept our Autistic community members. See each human as they truly are, and make space for that human to be themselves.

Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM) is an international annual campaign to raise awareness about sexual violence and to educate and mobilize individuals & communities to prevent it and to support survivors. Spend 1 minute watching this video to ground ourselves in the importance and necessity of Sexual Assault Awareness month as well as focus on consent. Take a moment this week to talk to your student about consent.

During the Month of the Military Child, we honor the support and sacrifice of our children for their patriotism, dedication and enduring support. We honor our students at SP West and throughout our SPASD community, this month and all year long.

As we dive into 4th quarter we are focused on ending the year strong! We have strong momentum right now as a community as we work together to leverage our Three-Sided Approach to students learning from bell-to-bell.

We continue to focus on our SP West Goals for the year:

1. Professional Learning Teams collaborate to develop engaging lessons and meaningful assessments for a block setting and reflect/adjust based on feedback from students/peers
   
2. Students, staff and parents/caregivers will have a sense of belonging in the SP West community through consistent communication, collaboration and common expectations.
3. Every staff member will actively work toward creating an equitable SP West community.

During these last 100 days our Goal 1 is focused on closures. Ending the class well and providing students an opportunity for reflection and planning for the next class period. This is a part of our "root cause" work, diving into high quality instruction for ALL students from bell to bell.

Students shared their perspective on our work around closures:

• “Closures help us process the information from class and know where we are going next time”

• “An example of a teacher that does strong closures is at the end of class she reviews what we have done today, has us reflect on our essential question and monitor our progress so we know what we need to do next”

• “I haven’t noticed it too much with the closures. It is a good thing that you are aware of and being conscious of and making sure that it is in our brain and have half a day before we are in that class and making sure to close it out before the next class so that we can be ready for that material.”

• “I’ve noticed a lot more closure recently, especially in classes that go over slideshows every day–particularly when slides are used. “I’ve noticed that a lot of teachers, once you come inside there is an agenda for the whole day. Usually at the end of the agenda, they have about 10 minutes dedicated to helping students finish their homework in class.”

• “Sometimes it’s harder in classes when they aren’t doing closures it is more difficult to prioritize or organize or feel prepared for tests/quizzes”

• “Do them”

Our action steps around Goal 2 is our focus on SP30 reset and ensuring our bathrooms are open and safe for all students to use. Here's what students had to say about our work around SP30 and bathrooms:

• “Definitely seen my teachers going around to every Chromebook and making sure kids are signing up for FlexiSched”
• “More people being in the class and less in the hallways. There have actually been examples of classrooms that are filled that are normally open”
• “I have seen more students in the win times or sp30- that I have been in”
• “I’m going now”
• Summary of next steps:
• Bathroom closures are problematic, need to reopen ASAP
• Understand dens being closed but want them reopened- benefit from their use
• Understand SP30 no passes- how do we still support if students need to go and Timbers being open

Bathroom repairs are underway and plans are being made for their reopening. This reopening will include an expectation that the vandalism has stopped and we are going to care for our building as intended. No one wants the bathrooms closed. These new signs will be going up outside the bathrooms as a constant reminder of the expectations and consequences for both vaping and vandalism.

Student Senate is meeting weekly to partner with our Admin team, staff and community to help create the SP West we talk about in our Equity Vision: "The Sun Prairie West High School is an intentional school community where students, staff and families feel seen, valued and heard. We work to: understand our own story and the story of others, identify and eliminate barriers; problem solve solutions; build relationships; actively listen to and lift the voices of our students, in order to create equitable opportunities and outcomes. Our community supports and empowers high expectations for all students and all staff so that all students are college, career and community ready. " Students are participating in interviews for staff for next year, giving feedback our current steps we are taking as a community, and helping shape our SP100 plan.

Did you make it to see Beauty and the Beast this weekend? If not, or if you did, buy your tickets for next week! It is nothing short of a SPECTACULAR performance. Check out the trailer for the show HERE. Buy your tickets TODAY before they SELL OUT.

SkillsUSA is bringing back the coaster fundraiser April 23-26. 25% profits from the sales will go directly to the Sunshine Place in Sun Prairie.

During our Pre-Apprenticeship Bootcamp, you can earn construction credentials before you begin your trade apprenticeship. During the program you will explore the trades in the construction industry, learn construction terminology, practice using tools safely, and receive OSHA-10, first aid/CPR/AED, fall protection and flagging certifications. Students will have opportunity to earn $1,000 for successfully completing the program.

The SUMMER PROGRAM will be held Tuesday – Wednesday, from 10 AM – 3 PM, and Thursday – Friday, from 8:00 AM – 3:00 PM, starting June 18 and ending on August 16.

We are holding a MANDATORY orientation on Tuesday, April 23 from 6:30 PM – 7 :30 PM at the Zoom. Both parents and students should attend the orientation.

During orientation you can expect:

• Program Overview & requirements

• Class Schedule

• Class Expectations

• Meet the instructors and staff

• Virtual Tour of the McKenzie Regional Workforce Center

• Schedule your interview to be accepted in the program

Register for the Zoom orientation here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZ0td-GgpjwjG9QKLABJaz6PE8cmfdGnL8PO#/registration

Senior Wolves and Senior Parents/Caregivers: Please SAVE THE DATE for our Senior Celebration on Wednesday, May 15th from 6:00pm-8:00pm at our SP West Performing Art Center. We will be celebrating the Class of 2024 through: Academic Awards, Local Scholarship Announcements, Department Awards with refreshments provided by our ProStart students. All seniors and their parent/caregivers are invited. Personalized invitations for those who will be individually recognized that evening will be coming via email no later than May 1st. Excited to see you there!

With the warmer weather upon us we are looking to reset our lost and found. There are many treasures there right now. Please have your student stop by and claim their missing items before we donate them on May 1st. Many more items not shown including: water bottles, air pods, jewelry. Stop by the front office and describe the missing item and we will see if we have it!

Its hard to believe that fall sports will be here before we know it! Fall sports have kick off meetings between now and the end of the school year. Are you interested in a fall sport? Reach out to Ms. Beaver and Ms. Ripp in the Athletic Office for more information.

Hello Future Madison College Students!

Mark your calendars! The Madison College Accepted Days event is happening on April 15th from 9am-2pm at West High School (exact location to be determined). Stay tuned for more details as the event nears.

Accepted Days is an annual event where Madison College advisors will help you register for Fall classes. Advisors will be meeting with 10 students every hour.

What can you do RIGHT NOW?

Sign up! Click on this link to reserve your spot.

Last week we held College Information Night. Topics covered included:

• Academic and Career Planning

• Accessing Post Secondary Information

• Navigating the College Application Process

• Preparation opportunities for students

• How to Pay for College

• Annual TO DO LISTS

If you missed it you can view it on our website or HERE

The SP West 2024 Prom will be held on Saturday, May 18th and is open to all SP West Junior and Seniors. SP West Juniors and Seniors may bring 1 guest from another school ONLY IF guest permission form is completed and approved.

Important Timeline

• Guest forms available in the Front Office: April 26th
• Guest forms due to the wooden box in the Front Office: Tuesday, May 7th- 1:30pm-- HARD DEADLINE
• Tickets on sale: May 9th at 8:00am (GoFan app)
• Tickets sales end: May 15th at 4:00pm- HARD DEADLINE

Look for more prom information to come soon!

SPW BSU recently hosted a paint night…it was an evening of fellowship, food painting and fundraising. Look at all of those masterpieces!

Aviation students completed a paper airplane experimental design activity.

Multilingual students are busy planning a Multilingual Family night, which we will host here at SPWHS in early May. Students are creating how-to tutorials in their home languages to share with new students/families, planning building tours for the incoming freshmen, selecting bilingual children’s books to read to the littles, and sharing their own experiences immigrating to the United States. Families with Multilingual Learners should look out for an invitation coming home with their student and being sent via email soon!

AP Biology students working on a roly poly animal behavior lab.

AP Biology students doing gel electrophoresis with new equipment bought with SPEF grant money.

Chemistry students collaboratively created posters about 5 different types of chemical reactions

Chemistry students practiced predicting products while observing single and double replacement reactions.

Last week we welcomed in Madison College, including Wolfie, to celebrate our students who are attending Madison College in the fall and make sure they are all ready to go. Check out these great pictures on our two wolf day with Wolfie and Timber!

Please congratulate Janavi, Jenika, Sanjay, and Siddhi, as they did phenomenal jobs competing in their first HOSA State Competition. 3/4 of our SPW HOSA competitors qualified for the international competition in Dallas, Texas this June! Thanks Mr. Watkins, for sharing!

Sanjay Jagadeesh - 2nd in state for Medical Mathematics

Janavi & Jenika Patel - 3rd in state for Public Health Presentation

Siddhi Rajkondawar - Competed in Epidemiology

The Root 2 Rise High School Program places disenfranchised and disengaged students in their neighborhood elementary or middle schools under the direct supervision of the classroom teacher to serve as academic tutors & behavioral mentors for younger students. Tutor-Mentors sign a rigorous contract holding them to a high standard. They receive training in tutoring and mentoring both prior to being placed in the classroom and throughout the semester. They also receive academic tutoring, employability skills training, and financial literacy instruction. Upon successful completion, they receive academic credit and a stipend for their committed work.

In its second year, Sun Prairie West’s R2R scholars are finding lots of success at Meadowview Elementary School. Way to go!

We had 5 teams compete at the Regional FFA Career Development Contest and are excited to announce that 3 of our teams are state bound!

• Floriculture - placed 2nd place out of 25 teams and 94 individuals.
• Maecie Ledden - 2nd place individual!
• Andy Knorr - 4th place individual!
• Wil Hyland-Bock
• Kendra Stacy

• Veterinary Science - placed 4th place out of 23 teams and 81 individuals.
• Sejal Rose Sundaram - 5th place individual!
• Jada Danielson - 13th place individual!
• Alex DeZiel
• Matthew Gratz

• Milk Quality and Products - placed 7th out of 25 teams and 93 individuals.
• Gavin Bruere - 10th place individual!
• Oscar Ray
• Eli Ly
• Josh Swanson

The state contest is held at UW-Madison on April 25th. Please wish them luck!

Students in the SET Marketing Academy are flexing their English and Business skills through event planning at the Prairie Athletic Club. They have been creating marketing materials and working through a lot of professional communications with their clients to get this event planned. It’s been a great authentic learning experience for them!

On 4/13/24, the Beauty and the Beast cast welcomed over 100 future thespians to the theatre for Kids’ Camp. on 4/14/24, through a combined effort with Jill Hansen and her Prostart students, we welcomed over 80 people for a Disney-style Breakfast with the Cast

If you don't already, please follow SP West on Facebook!

STATEMENT OF NONDISCRIMINATION

No student may be unlawfully discriminated against in any school programs, activities or in facilities usage because of the student’s sex (gender identity, gender expressions, and non-conformity to gender role stereotypes), color, religion, profession, or demonstration of belief or non-belief, race, national origin (including limited English proficiency), ancestry, creed, pregnancy, marital or parental status, homelessness status, sexual orientation, age, or physical, mental, emotional or learning disability. Harassment is a form of discrimination and shall not be tolerated in the District. It is the responsibility of administrators, staff members and all students to ensure that student discrimination or harassment does not occur.

(SPASD District Policy JB)

If a student or parent/guardian would prefer to have this information translated into Spanish, please contact us at 608-834-6620. Si un estudiante, padre ó guardian prefiere tener esta información traducida en Español, por favor contactenos en el 608-834-6620.

If a student or parent/guardian would prefer to have this information translated into Hmong, please contact us at 608-834-6630. Yog tus me nyuam lub xiv los yog niam thiab txiv/tus neeg muaj cai saib xyuas tus me nyuam xav tau qhov ntawv ntawm no ua lus Hmoob, thov hais rau peb paub rau ntawm 608-834-6630.

Information from previous Howls that's too important to miss!

This spring there have been measles cases in several states. Measles is a very contagious virus. It spreads easily and quickly when people cough and sneeze. If you haven’t had the measles vaccine, just being in a room with someone who has measles can make you sick.

Measles can be a serious disease that can lead to hospitalization and even death. It can be prevented by the MMR (measles, mumps, and rubella) vaccine.

• The vaccine is safe and effective. The best protection against measles is measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine.

• Most people are vaccinated as young children because two doses are required to go to school. One dose is usually given at 12-15 months of age, and a second dose is given before the start of kindergarten at 4-6 years of age.

• Most people who get measles are unvaccinated. When the measles finds a group of unvaccinated people, it can spread very quickly.

Check your immunization records

You can check your child’s immunization record on the Wisconsin Immunization Registry or with your healthcare provider.

If our school records do not show that your child has received two doses of the MMR vaccine you will receive additional communication from the school.

Get Vaccinated

• If you have health insurance: reach out to your healthcare provider to make an appointment.

• If you don’t have health insurance or if your child is on BadgerCare: You can make an appointment with Public Health on their website or by calling (608) 266-4821.

Watch for Measles Symptoms

Measles symptoms begin with a fever, cough, runny nose, and watery eyes, followed by a rash that usually spreads from the head to the rest of the body. If you or your child has these symptoms, call your healthcare provider. Do not go to a clinic, urgent care, or emergency room without calling first.

For more information on measles, please visit https://www.cdc.gov/measles/

Do you have the Infinite Campus app on your phone? If not, please download it today! See the directions below on how to access Parent Portal.

Why is Parent Portal important?

• Get real time updates on grades
• Get real time updates on attendance
• Set notifications to keep you up to date on your students progress

Infinite campus is our Number 1 communication tool with parents/caregivers. Have it right at your finger tips!

1. Go to the Sun Prairie Area School District web page

2. Click on Infinite Campus

3. Click on Campus Parent

4. Enter your Username and Password (if you’ve already logged in to Campus Parent Portal

previously/have a username and password)

5. Click on New User? (if you have not set up your Infinite Campus Parent Portal

6. I need to obtain my Activation Key: Please email: enroll@sunprarieschools.org

7. Once you’ve received your Activation Key, copy and paste it directly into the Activation Key

area. You will be prompted to move forward with setting up your Campus Portal Account.

1. Search your app store for Campus Parent
2. Enter your Username and Password (if you’ve already logged in to Campus Parent Portal
3. previously/have a username and password)
4. Click on New User? (if you have not set up your Infinite Campus Parent Porta
5. I need to obtain my Activation Key: Please email: enroll@sunprarieschools.or
6. Once you’ve received your Activation Key, copy and paste it directly into the Activation Key area.
7. You will be prompted to move forward with setting up your Campus Portal Account

A few important parking reminders and expectations as we continue to have situations that are unsafe for students.

• When dropping off students ONLY use the RED Student Drop Off Zone. We are seeing many parents/caregivers dropping students off in the YELLO Bus Loading Zone, Student Parking and Visitor Staff Lots. This creates situations in which there are moving cars where others are trying to park, blocked parking spots and student being nearly hit by cars when trying to walk through designated areas.
• Do NOT pull into light blue designated accessible parking, or block these spots, for any length of time if you do not have a government issued tag/license plate. We have students that require the use of these spots and on a regular basis are having their access limited due to others blocking or being in the locations.
• The DARK BLUE service road behind the building is for Emergency Use only. Prepare for these gates to begin being closed as we have seen an increase in individuals using this back road at the end of the day in an attempt to avoid traffic. Unfortunately this creates unsafe circumstances and a student was nearly hit last week.
• The gray circle near the end of the staff parking and service road is designated for specialized transportation pickup only. The only pick up that should take place in this location is specialized buses and parent/caregivers working with their student's IEP team.
• Finally, students a reminder to park in your student designated parking spot in the GREEN LOT.

We are working to have an increased presence in these locations with our School Resource Officer and Administration to enforce these important safety measures, warnings and tickets may be issued for infractions.

We know that drop-off, pick-up and parking can be difficult and busy times at a comprehensive High School. Please ensure that you are planning ahead with appropriate time. If we all work together the system will work and keep everyone safe.