September 29, 2024

Hello Unity Reed Lions!

This past week was a wonderful celebration of our vibrant community spirit! A heartfelt thank you to all the families, staff, and students who came together for our Hispanic Heritage Night and Senior Parent Breakfast. Your participation made these events truly special.

A huge congratulations to our Marching Band for their fantastic achievement, earning 2nd place at the 2024 Emerald Classic Invitational at Riverbend High School this past Saturday. 🎉🎉

Let’s also give a big round of applause to our cheer team for their impressive performance at their first competition of the year at the Stone Bridge High School Spirit Bowl. We wish them the best of luck as they continue their competition season. 👏👏

Reminder: there is NO SCHOOL this Thursday, October 3rd for students and staff.

Also, keep an eye out for our very first edition of 🦁 "The PRIDE" Newsletter for this 2024-25 School year! This upcoming edition is packed with amazing highlights of our students, staff, and all the fantastic activities that took place this August and September.

Please see below for important information regarding: No-Cost Mental Health Telehealth Services for PWCS Students, After-School tutoring supports📚, Homecoming Eligibility Policy, how to purchase your Graduation Cap & Gown (Class of 2025) , PSAT Day, upcoming College Fairs and more!

• October 1: Volleyball Home Game vs. Park View, 6:00pm (JV); 7:00pm (Varsity)

• October 3: NO SCHOOL, Holiday
  

• October 4: Football Home Game vs. Battlefield HS, 7:00pm

• October 8: Cheer Competition at Woodbridge HS, 6:00pm

• October 9: PSAT Day (Grades 9-11); Asynchronous Day for Grade 12, College Fair at Hylton HS

• October 14: NO SCHOOL for students; Staff Workday

• October 17: College Fair at Osbourn Park HS

• October 18: Homecoming Game

• October 19: Homecoming Dance, IBMA College Fair at Gar-Field HS

Mental health telehealth services are available to PWCS students at NO COST to families through Hazel Health, a well-established telehealth provider. This initiative provides access to mental health care, ensuring students receive the support they need without delay – regardless of their ability to pay or insurance status.

Hazel Health services are:

• Confidential and private
• Through locally licensed therapists
• Available to all K-12 PWCS students
• Offered in 19 languages

Therapists can help students with:

• Anxiety, depression, and stress
• Mood and behavior changes
• Grief and loss
• Social skills, bullying, and peer relationships

All students are invited to take advantage of after-school academic support every Tuesday and Thursday. Whether you need extra help in a specific subject or just a quiet place to work on assignments, our dedicated teachers and peer tutors are here to assist you. Bus transportation is also provided on these days at 4:30 PM. Students can ride if they are staying after school for academic support, activities or athletics.

Additionally, all students have access to FREE one-on-one, chat-based online Academic Tutoring available 24/7 in all core subject areas in English and Spanish through VARSITY TUTORS. Students can access this tutoring platform through the Clever App on their student laptops 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Participation in extra-curricular activities and events is a privilege. To participate in school dances, students must be in good standing. This means consistently attending all classes and adhering to all URHS rules and expectations during the school day.

Attendance and Discipline Requirements:

• Students with excessive unexcused absences may not be permitted to attend or participate in extra-curricular activities.
• Students must have fewer than 3 ALL DAY UNEXCUSED ABSENCES between now (September 23) and October 18th to purchase a ticket or attend our Homecoming Dance.
• Reminder, absent notes must be turned in within 5 school days of the absence. Please be sure to turn any attendance notes in to the main office or through ParentVUE at your earliest convenience.
• Students who have committed significant disciplinary infractions resulting in suspension are not permitted to purchase a dance ticket.

Homecoming Dance Information: Students should be on the lookout for more information regarding our Homecoming Dance on Saturday, October 19th. This will include details on outside guest forms, permission slips, and ticket sales. Please contact your grade-level administrator with any questions regarding the number of absences to date.

**Looking ahead: Please note this policy will also be in place for Prom. Students MUST HAVE FEWER THAN 8 ALL-DAY UNEXCUSED ABSENCES to be eligible to attend Prom in May**

On Wednesday, October 9th, WSHS students in grades 9, 10, and 11 will participate in the Preliminary SAT (PSAT). The Preliminary SAT, also known as the PSAT/NMSQT® (National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test), is a practice version of the SAT exam. Earning a high score on the PSAT in your junior year could qualify you to receive a National Merit Scholarship. Approximately $180 million dollars in merit scholarships are awarded to students each year.

• All PSATs will be taken on a PWCS device, as the test is only available in digital format. Please ensure students arrive on test day with their school-issued devices fully charged to include the charger. A digital readiness check will be performed the week prior to testing in your student's WIN 6 class on September 26th to verify all testing applications are functioning seamlessly.

• Allow approximately three weeks after the PSAT for score reports to be shared with students. Score reports house valuable information that provides an explanation of scoring, displays your student's areas of strength, recommend courses that may be appropriate for your students, and much more.

• October 9th will be an important but busy day at Unity Reed High School. We thank you in advance parents/guardians for the support around students being here on time and ready to test.

We are thrilled to share that this past weekend’s Senior Breakfast was a tremendous success! We had an amazing turnout, with seniors and their families enjoying a morning filled with valuable opportunities and information.

Our event featured vendors from various organizations, offering insights into scholarships and job opportunities available after graduation. It was a fantastic chance for our seniors to network and gather resources for their future endeavors.

For those who couldn’t attend, we’ve included the presentation from the breakfast. Be sure to check it out by viewing the attachments below!

To stay informed about upcoming events specifically for the senior class, please frequently visit the Class of 2025 page and the school website. We have many more exciting events and opportunities planned, and we don’t want you to miss out!

PWCS is hosting a series of college fairs across the county this October. I highly encourage all families to attend at least one of these events with your students to explore the various post-secondary opportunities available after graduation. At these fairs, you can learn about:

• Military College Pathways
• Financial Aid & Scholarships
• Overview of the Common Application sections and necessary steps

Upcoming college fairs will be held at the following locations:

• PWCS College Fairs
• October 9th at Hylton HS from 6:00 - 8:00 PM
• October 17th at Osbourn Park HS from 6:00 - 8:00 PM
• IB Mid-Atlantic Region College Fair (focus on students in our IB Programs)
• October 19th at Gar-Field HS from 12:30 - 3:00 PM

According to the Virginia Department of Education, "All students in tested grade levels and courses are expected to participate in Virginia's assessment program, unless specifically exempted by state or federal law or by Board of Education regulations." On December 10, 2015, the Every Student Succeeds Act of 2015 (ESSA) was signed into law. Section 1112(e)(2) of ESSA states that parents of students in Title I schools have a right to know about state or division policies regarding student participation in any assessments mandated by ESSA, including any policy, procedure, or parental right to opt students out of such assessments. The Commonwealth of Virginia does not currently have an Opt Out policy for SOL assessments. However, Section 22.1-253.13:3.C of the Code of Virginia states that, “The Board of Education shall not include in its calculation of the passage rate of a Standards of Learning assessment for the purposes of state accountability any student whose parent has decided to not have his child take such Standards of Learning assessment, unless such exclusions would result in the school's not meeting any required state or federal participation rate.” Prince William County Public Schools regulations state that, if a parent or guardian decides to not have a student take a state or local assessment, then the person making the request should be informed about the academic consequences that decision could have on the student.

If you would like to receive more information about this topic, please contact the office.

Report your child’s absences: Parents should notify the school before, or at the start of, the school day when their child will be absent. Parents must send written or electronic communication citing the reason(s) for the absence to the school no more than five school days following the date of the absence.To report an absence at Unity Reed HS, please call the school at 703-365-2900, submit the note via ParentVUE or have your student submit a written note to the main office. For early dismissals, please call the main office at 703-365-2900.

How sick is too sick for school? For information about when your child should go to school or when they should stay home due to illness, visit the When to Keep Students home webpage. If you have additional questions, please contact our school nurse, Nurse Lawton, at lawtonst@pwcs.edu.

Planning a prearranged absence? We understand that some absences are unavoidable, however we encourage parents and guardians to schedule appointments and trips on scheduled days off for students throughout the school year. View the 2024-25 school calendar website to view days off for students.

We appreciated our families understanding that attending school every day helps our students build a solid foundation for their future in school and in life. Please contact our Attendance Officer, Ms. Gilliam at 571-598-3216 or gilliadb@pwcs.edu; or our School Social Worker, Mr. Jahanian at 571-598-3232 or jahanir@pwcs.edu; if your family or child are in need of resources to have a successful school year.

Unity Reed HS Students are eligible to purchase season passes or annual passes for discounted prices. Season passes are $20 and Annual passes are $50. These passes will get you into ALL HOME GAMES for either the season (if purchasing the season pass) or for the entire year (if purchasing the annual pass). The pass is not eligible for tournaments or post-season events. STUDENT ID WILL BE REQUIRED AT THE GATE IF PURCHASING A STUDENT PASS!

• Weekly LIONS’ ROAR: This will include the latest updates with pertinent information for the upcoming week and will be emailed to students and families every Sunday. This information will also be posted on our school website.

• URHS website: This will be updated more frequently so that we can share the most up to date information with you. In fact, click here to view our school website.

• School Status: This is our messaging system, and it allows staff to send text messages, emails, or make phone calls to families. When an email comes to your inbox with this system, the sender will be listed as School Status or Teacher name. A text message will include the staff member’s full name in the message but will be a random number. This system allows the recipient to respond directly to a message.

• The PRIDE Newsletter: This is a monthly newsletter where we celebrate and highlight the incredible accomplishments of our students, staff, and community at Unity Reed High School. Each month, we will showcase achievements, events, and milestones that make our school proud. Stay tuned for inspiring stories, academic successes, athletic triumphs, and much more. All this information will also be available on our school website for easy access and sharing.

I encourage you to continue to stay in touch with important updates by visiting our website. We are here to support you. Please reach out throughout the school year with any questions, concerns, or to share general feedback, and thank you for being part of our school community, as our STRENGTH is IN UNITY!

Sincerely,

Milagros Polanco
Principal, Unity Reed High School