Rebel Review

South Families,

I send "The Rebel Review" every two weeks to keep you informed and to celebrate the great things our students and staff are doing. I would also encourage you to visit our school website anytime to view our latest updates. As always though, If you have any questions that you need answered directly, please feel free to call our main office for assistance (440-975-3648).

Sincerely,

Andy Suttell

Principal

Mark your calendar for these important events during the first few weeks of school:

February 14-15: Spring Musical, "Footloose"

February 17: Presidents' Day - No School

February 20: 3rd Quarter Parent-Teacher Conferences

February 24: Professional Development Day - No School for Students

March 5: Key Club Blood Drive

March 11: ACT Testing for Juniors

March 13: W-E "State of Schools" at the PAC

March 18: 3rd Quarter Ends

March 21: Professional Development Day - No School for Students

March 22 - March 30: Spring Break - No School

March 31: School Resumes

April 8: Spring OST Testing Begins

This week counselors we will begin to present information outlining core courses and electives available for the 2025-26 school year in order to begin the scheduling process. After that information has been given to students, you and your student will be able to go choose courses for the 2025-2026 scholastic year. Guidance counselors will then begin meeting with students individually to discuss and ensure that course selections are appropriate for each students requirements and needs. This is a process that will take us into March.

At South High School we are committed to expanding our offerings through customized learning and innovative programming for our students in order to provide options and pathways that will provide purpose for our students. As we begin the scheduling process, I wanted to make you aware of these options as you begin to work with your child to build their courses for the 2025-2026 School Year. Here are the exciting options that are available for next school year.

FLEX Classes

Classes where meeting time is flexible. We are currently running ten successful and innovative FLEX courses this year. We will be expanding those offerings next year. Class is held every day, but if students demonstrate mastery, each week, they can "FLEX" out, to work on deeper learning assignments in other areas of the building, work on things for other classes, etc. The goal is to build our students' agency, autonomy, and teach them to manage their own time and responsibilities. These are open to any student in grades 9-12 (based on course offerings)

Career Capstone Elective Courses (NEW FOR '25-26)

Semester career exploration courses open to 9th and 10th graders. These courses will be focused on one of four career "clusters," and allow students the time and place to explore how their interests and aptitudes could match up with potential careers. Students will work with their teachers to develop their learning plan for the course, culminating in a presentation where each student will demonstrate their learning. The course will lean heavily on the Portrait of a Graduate Competencies. These will be fun, engaging classes that will inspire kids to start thinking about careers earlier in their educational journey.

Cybersecurity Pathway (NEW FOR '25-26)

Cybersecurity is one of the fastest growing career fields today. The private sector is buzzing for workers with this skill set. We will be starting our Cybersecurity Pathway next year here at South.

WE Build (NEW FOR '25-26)

Each year, the Construction Trades program through Excel TECC sends EVERY SINGLE ONE of their graduates into full time employment immediately upon graduation. However, space is limited. There are dozens of other students in grades 11 and 12 who will be pursuing careers in the skilled trades who need access to this instruction now. WE Build is a partnership with the Homebuilders Association (HBA) where students will learn the basics of the skilled trades here at school during the day, with the goal of eventually being placed on a job site as a "pre-apprentice" - during the school day!

Internships (NEW FOR '25-26)

Our overarching goal is to produce future ready graduates. That means connecting with our local business community to ensure they have the workforce they need to thrive. To that end, we've partnered with dozens of local businesses to create opportunities for seniors to be released from the school day for internship opportunities in fields of interest (some paid, some unpaid).

**If you have questions about these exciting and innovative programs, please contact your child's counselor throughout the course registration process.

Guidance Department Information:

Mrs. Grant – Alison.grant@weschools.org, 440.975.3653 Serving students A-G

Mrs. Scripp – Lindsay.scripp@weschools.org 440.975.3624 Serving students H-O

Ms. Joyce – Virginia.joyce@weschools.org 440.975.3657 Serving students P-Z

If your student needs academic support, please reach out to guidance and Ms. Laura Albertone (National Honor Society) for tutoring help. Ms. Albertone can be reached at laura.albertone@weschools.org

Scheduling process information and timeline:

On February 10, students will be presented information outlining core courses and electives and the scheduling process. After that information has been given to students, you and your student will be able to go choose courses for the 2025-2026 scholastic year. Guidance counselors will then begin meeting with students individually to discuss and ensure that course selections are appropriate for each students requirements and needs. This is a process that will take us into March. Once guidance counselors have met with the students, the master schedule will be created and students will receive their actual schedules for next year. (Approximately Mid-May) It is important that our students are on a path that fits for their future plans. If you have questions throughout the process, please encourage your child to discuss their plans during individual counselor meetings. As always, you can reach out to your child's counselor anytime with questions.

CCP Intent Forms - Available Now

If your child is interested in College Credit Plus (CCP), please help them fill out the Letter of Intent to Participate. The form is available on Schoology/PowerSchool. The form is also linked through the CCP Checklist.

Senior Scholarship Opportunities - Available on Naviance

You may sign into Naviance through your Clever account and access the following scholarships. If you are unsure how to navigate Naviance scholarship information, guidance has created a tutorial here: Scholarships on Naviance.

Athletic Eligibility - Check your Schedules, Talk to your Counselors or Coaches

Please review your students’ schedules and make sure they are carrying at least five credits in order to be eligible to play/participate in athletics or school activities that require eligibility. Looking ahead. Fall sports and related activities, the student must be carrying and passing 5 credits

in the 4th quarter in order to participate in the Fall. Physical Education does not count toward athletic eligibility. If you have questions, please reach out to your student’s coaches or counselors at any time!

This is what is happening over the next couple of weeks in our counseling department:

2-10 Scheduling Presentations for students in grades 9-11 for the 2025-26 School Year

2-10 Scheduling Domains open for students to request courses

2-18 Scheduling Domains will close, Guidance Counselors will begin individual student meetings

If we can be helpful, please reach out to your guidance counselors. Happy Valentine's Day

Footloose celebrates the wisdom of listening to young people while guiding them with a warm heart and open mind. With the rockin’ rhythm of its Oscar and Tony-nominated Top 40 score, augmented with dynamic new songs! Tickets are on sale using this link: Footloose Tickets We would love to see great turnout to watch any of the 4 performances next weekend! Our students put on an incredible show!

Our teachers will be available for 3rd Quarter Conference Night on Thursday, February 20th from 4:30 to 7:30 pm. The format for this evening will be as an Open House. No Need to schedule a time, teachers will be available in their rooms between the conference hours.

Just a reminder, there is no school on Monday, February 17 in observance of Presidents Day

Please join us for the Willoughby South High School Athletic Booster Reverse Raffle on March 1st! The raffle will be held at St. Noel from 6-11pm. Our Athletic Booster do an incredible job supporting our Athletic Program, please consider joining them for this fantastic evening! We look forward to seeing all our Rebel supporters and families on March 1st! Ticket information can be found here: Athletic Booster Dinner Tickets. Please visit the Booster Website for more information.

Each year, our friends at Cardinal Credit Union present the Mad City Money Scholarship Competition. This event is a culmination of WE Schools' partnership with CCU to provide financial literacy instruction to our students. Teams of seniors can compete during the school day to try to win the "Game of Life." Teams will be given a career/job title, an income amount, and a family situation. Each team must live within their means while visiting tables such as "housing, insurance, transportation, food/clothing," etc. This is an incredible event for our seniors to earn some scholarship money! I encourage all to get involved!

Teams can register by scanning the QR code below. See Mr. Quinlan in room 106 if you have any questions. This year's Mad City Money event is happening on March 19th, and begins at 9:00 AM. Students will be excused from class for this event.

On Tuesday March 11, 2025, The Ohio Department of Education & Workforce is paying for juniors to take the ACT Test at South High School during the school day.

What are the benefits of taking the ACT Test

• Free: Students and their families pay nothing for this administration of the test.
• Local: Testing occurs during the school day, at the student’s school.
• Useful: The ACT test—which includes multiple-choice tests in English, mathematics, reading, and science—measures what students have learned in high school. Student test results can be used for admission to many colleges and universities. Test results help students determine their academic readiness for college and provide career guidance based on information they provide to ACT.

How do students prepare for the ACT test?

• ACT, offers the following preparation resource: act.org/info-for-examinees: This preparation resource includes test-taking strategies, tips for each content area, and a complete practice test.
• ACT Practice Tests are also available on your student's Edmentum Portal which can be accessed through their Clever Account.

Join on us on February 25 for a mental health awareness presentation for W-E Families!

I want to continue to tell you how hard the staff at South High School works and shows care for our students. Please consider using our Staff Shout-Out Form anytime you want to recognize the good work of any staff member at South. Nothing is more meaningful to an educator than to hear that they are making an impact with their students and community.

As we enter the Second Semester of the school year, Senior events and planning for the culmination of the school year becomes a main focus. In my newsletters moving forward, I will provide a section on information for your planning for the end of the year. This week, I want to provide the important dates of some senior events that are currently on our calendar:

March 6 Cap and Gown Pick-up During Lunch Periods

March 21 Senior Letter Sent Out - Will have detailed information on all Senior Events

March 31 Prom Tickets go on sale

April 25 Prom

May 15/16 Senior Exams

May 19 Senior Breakfast

May 27 Graduation at Palace Theatre

I wanted to begin to get Senior Parents some initial Graduation information as you begin to plan for this celebration. Our Graduation is set for Tuesday, May 27 at 6:30pm. The location for the ceremony is at the beautiful Playhouse Square: Connor Palace at 1615 Euclid Avenue. Each Senior will receive 6 tickets to the graduation ceremony. Once those tickets have been determined, there may be an opportunity for 2 additional tickets. More specific information will be coming as we get into the Spring,, but I wanted to give you this information for planning purposes. As always, please call me with questions as you have them.

Cirino Photography, our official commencement photographer will be taking photos before, during and after the ceremony.

The images taken will all be available online within approximately 5 business days and will be active for 30 days. Please click on the link below and then hit SUBSCRIBE

https://my.photoday.com/gallery/willoughby-south-commencem

Or you may also Text the code CPSOUTH25 to 90738 and receive gallery communications via text message. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Cirino Photography at 440 953-8200

We have extended the deadline to Spring Break as senior picture submissions are still being accepted. If you have not turned in your senior picture for the yearbook, there is still plenty of time! Please see the information below for submission details.

Senior Picture Directions and Requirements:

• Portraits must be from chest or waist and up. No full body .
• The main focus should be on the student, not the background,. If the students is leaning on a tree, brick wall, or any other objects, the focus must mainly be on the student's face

• No hands, hoods, or hats covering the student's face .

• No props, animals, or other faces in the picture.

• Students must take the picture in school appropriate clothing.

• All files must be submitted as .JPEGs

• Files must be titled "Full Last Name + Full First Name + 23"

• Original digital copy is preferable, but the higher resolution the result the better.

• Please do not submit screenshots, selfies, or any picture from social media.

• The picture must be emailed to south.yearbook@weschools.org

**Failure to submit an acceptable picture will result in using the picture that was taken on school picture day or being listed as "not pictured."

Scholarship opportunities are added to Naviance as they become available. Seniors, please continue to frequently check Naviance for these new postings (Scholarships on Naviance) You may sign into Naviance through your Clever account and access the following scholarships: (Please note - there have been additional scholarships added since my previous newsletter)

• Firefighter Community Credit Union: Ignite My Future
• Mary Virginia Merrick Scholarship: Christ Child of the Western Reserve
• Ohio Association of Public Employees
• KIL Memorial Fund Senior Athlete Scholarship
• Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans, Inc.
• Pinchak Memorial Scholarship 2024
• The Ross and Carmella DeJohn Memorial Scholarship
• Lake County Retired Teachers Association Scholarship
• Association of Specialists in Aging 2025 Scholarship
• Tom & Bea Horwatt Scholarship 2025
• Frank & Wendy Platzar Legacy Scholarship
• Fields of Learning
• Mark Sturdevant “19” Scholarship (Cleveland State University)
• Jewish Family Service Association of Cleveland (4 scholarships)
• Janice Southworth Memorial Scholarship
• Willoughby South High School Athletic Boosters (South)
• Lake County Fair: Arthur F. Warren Memorial Youth Scholarship
• Willoughby Baseball League: Dick Nicholl Memorial Scholarship
• E.B. Miller Memorial Scholarship
• Student View Scholarship Program
• Andrew Karode Scholarship for Nerds (South)
• Tri-County Scholarship (Lake Erie College)
• The Americans of Italian Heritage Scholarship
• 2025 Rita Matteo Memorial Scholarship
• Willoughby-Eastlake Teachers Association: Richard Mele Memorial Scholarship
• Artemis Awards & Apparel: A Moment of Excellence Scholarship
• Society of Professional Journalists: Philip Porter Scholarship
• Berlin Family Scholarship
• Royalview PTO Scholarship
• The Nancy Theiling Thuma Memorial Scholarship
• Gerry Gallagher Memorial Scholarship
• GFWC/Ohio Federation of Women’s Clubs Scholarships
• The Grand Lodge of Free & Accepted Masons of Ohio
• USBC Lake-Geauga Scholarship
• 2024-2025 Willoughby South Alumni Scholarship
• ABB Engineering Scholarship
• Frank Jason Feola, Ph.D. Legacy Scholarship
• Balanced Man Scholarship (University of Cincinnati)

Enjoy some pictures and information of some of the great things happening at South over the last two weeks.

Each week, our teachers nominate students who are consistently positive in their approach to school both academically and behaviorally. At the end of each month, each nominated student will have a chance to earn Student of the Month.

The following students have earned Rebel Student of the Week during the past 2 weeks. Congratulations!

Our Students of the Month winners receive a pizza from Pizza Booyah during their lunch period to share with friends! Congratulations to 9th Grade Brody Ayala, 10th Grade TJ Jackson, 11th Grade Addison Oreh, and 12th Grade Lily Reed for being our January 2025 Students of the Month!

Congratulations to South Baseball Seniors Aiden NcNamara and James Miller! During a ceremony on February 6, Aiden signed his National Letter of Intent to attend Otterbein University on a full athletic scholarship. and James signed his National Letter of Intent to attend Slippery Rock University on a full athletic scholarship. We could not be more proud of Aiden and James for their tremendous accomplishments. They are both great representatives of Willoughby South! Congratulations! We wish nothing but the best on your next athletic journey.

Enjoy some more pictures from the last few weeks including South Athletics Senior Moments, Winter Formal, and our South Experience Night.

Rebels Express, the South High Spirit Shop, would like to welcome everyone back to school!

Our store is now open for business online.

You can place an online order and pickup in the main office from 7-3. We can also send your order home with your student. The online website is : https://rebelexpress.square.site/

Please follow us on social media to stay updated on new items, special promotions and store hours.

Instagram: @rebels_express

X (Twitter) : @RebsSchoolStore

Facebook : Rebels Express Spirit Shop

With the cold weather months approaching, it's important that everyone is aware of the district's calamity day policy. Please see the Willoughby-Eastlake Letter for info about how and why the decision to close school is made, and how you will be notified.

Willoughby South High School has 3 phenomenal Booster Organizations that support the students!

• Our BAND BOOSTERS support our Rebel music and band programs
• Our REBEL FAMILIES support our Rebel academic programs and provide scholarships
• Our ATHLETIC BOOSTERS support our Rebel athletics teams

Please support these fine organizations! They volunteer their time to give back to our kids in so many ways!

Cardinal Credit Union provides South Students with a free checking account. They put the first $20 into an account for you. An ongoing bonus is that they add a dollar to the account for every dollar you earn throughout your entire high school experience. Cardinal also wants to reward you for you’re A’s at our Kiosk during lunchtime at South HS! IF you have one of their FREE CARDINAL ACCOUNTS, Cardinal will give you a $1 for every A. Just see us at our Kiosk at lunch with any documentation from your student records and your High School Mascot Debit Card so we have your account number, and Cardinal will add the bucks to your account!!!!

IF you do not yet have an account, see us at our Kiosk and we’ll help you get started!

It is time to start preparing for Graduation! See the attached flyer for all of the information you need to order your Cap & Gown, Graduation announcements, Senior Ring and other items. At our Senior Class Meeting in the First Semester, seniors were provided with an ordering packet. If you did not receive the packet, please stop by the office to pick one up.

Senior Flier Information

Sophomores - It is time to order your Class Ring! Your ring is a symbol that you are a part of South HS and your graduating class. It is also a reminder of all of the great moments and accomplishments you will have while you are here. See the attached flyer for all of the information you need to design and order your Ring.

Class Ring Information

The Argus, South's annual year, is busy planning the 2025 yearbook edition. Please see the Argus Update 2025 for information about our yearbook, school pictures and senior photo information. If you have any questions related to the yearbook, please email them to our Yearbook Advisor, Ms. McChesney at south.yearbook@weschools.org.

Bussing Information: The radius for school transportation widens from Middle School to High School. Transportation information is now available in PowerSchool Parent Portal. Please call Transportation Department at (440) 975-3736 if you have any transportation questions.

Food Services Flyer

Please see the following for information about our Food Services - Food Services Flyer

School Fees, Lunch Accounts & Free/Reduced Lunch Application: Manage student meal accounts & Apply for free and reduced meals at https://www.weschools.org/PayForIt.aspx

Open Positions at W-E Schools

Check out the Employment page to find opportunities for joining the Willoughby-Eastlake team: https://www.weschools.org/AssistantSuperintendent.aspx

The Willoughby-Eastlake City Schools and the Cleveland Food Bank will provide monthly produce for any family in the community. The markets are open from 10 a.m. until 12 p.m. Service will not begin prior to 10 a.m. See the posting below for upcoming dates and location.

In partnership with the Educational Service Center of the Western Reserve, our district is excited to offer a limited number of "Drive to Succeed" scholarships, thanks to a grant from the Ohio Traffic Safety Office (OTSO). These scholarships provide free driver training scholarships to low-income high school students.

If your child meets the income requirements and has a temporary permit, they may be eligible for a scholarship. Please note that only 20 spots are available for the year. To learn more or to apply, please contact your child's guidance counselor. We encourage eligible families to apply!