It's hard to believe that 2024 is coming to a close. It feels like just yesterday we were welcoming back our students under the bright, sunny August skies. Now, as we embrace the shorter, colder December days, we prepare for the exciting journey ahead.

With the Holiday break soon upon us, we'll dive straight into preparing for first-semester final exams in mid-January. Reflecting on 2024, I'm incredibly proud of all that our students, staff, and community have achieved. From impressive State and National rankings to numerous other accolades, we've had so much to celebrate. These achievements are a testament to our community's dedication and passion.

Looking ahead, I'm thrilled about everything the New Year will bring. Our main goal remains to ensure learning for every member of our school community. While the indicators show we're on the right track, we're committed to planning for the future and making necessary adjustments.

The best is yet to come in 2025! Wishing you and your family a safe, relaxing, and joyous Holiday Season and Happy New Year!

This program is going on now. Our After-School Academic Support Program is designed to assist students in becoming successful. The focus of the program will be placed on the core subject areas: English, Math, Science, and Social Studies. This program will assist students to make-up missing work, study for tests/quizzes, improve understanding of concepts, and in general stay focused on their classes. The program is offered two days a week (Tuesday and Thursday) from 2:30 - 3:15 p.m. in the Troy High Media Center through June. Please see the secretary Mrs. Brennan in the Main Office for a form to fill out.

Again this year, we are asking for your cooperation with deliveries to and communication with students.

· If you have an item or written message for your student, please drop it off at the Security desk located outside of the Main Office.

· Since guests are not permitted in school, we do not allow siblings, friends, or relatives to visit during the school day or make deliveries to students. All items must be dropped off at the Security desk.

· We cannot allow fast food or take out lunch deliveries from parents, relatives, or friends.

· Early dismissal phone calls should be made as early as possible to provide the greatest amount of time possible for us to call students to the Attendance desk to pick up their early dismissal passes.

· Finally, if you have a THS graduate in your household, please advise him/her to make arrangements to visit his/her former teachers and school before or after regular school hours. We restrict alumni visits during the regular work day unless special arrangements have been secured in writing by the host teacher.

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Counseling Office News

Seniors, Paperwork, and Holidays

Seniors applying to college are reminded to pay attention to their deadlines! Remember college application paperwork including Parchment transcripts, letters of recommendation, and counselor letters/school reports, fee waivers, Early Decision agreements, etc. are processed on school days only. Requests will NOT be processed at all over break. Plan ahead to meet all of your school request deadlines well before December 15; this includes giving teachers and counselors at least two weeks’ notice (school days only) for writing letters of recommendation and completing school reports if required by the college. Contact your counselor if you have questions.

Mid-year transcripts: Seniors receiving mid-year or “7th semester” transcript requests from ANY college admissions office must make a transcript request in Parchment and click “Hold for Grades.” Those transcripts will be sent out as soon as they become available second semester (usually the beginning of February). Counselors will upload mid-year transcripts for students that applied through Common App when available.

Financial Aid Information

For all senior students seeking financial assistance for college, the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) must be completed. FAFSA opens December 1, 2024. The FAFSA is used to determine eligibility for federal, state, and many local grant, scholarship, and financial aid loans. Apply online, at https://studentaid.gov for free.

Information from Troy’s Financial Aid Night featuring Dr. Carrie Gilchrist from Oakland University is available at www.oakland.edu/financialevents along with other helpful FAFSA resources. An informational financial aid night will be held specifically for Troy High School families on January 7th at 6pm. The link to the Troy High Financial Aid night will be shared via Schoology.

Testing Info

For juniors and seniors looking for SAT and PSAT scores from previously taken tests, students must log in to their College Board accounts. If you are having trouble retrieving your scores, please contact College Board directly. See www.sat.org and www.act.org for information, test dates, registration, and free practice tests. SAT practice tests are also available at www.khanacademy.org

Beware of Financial Aid Scams

Frequently, various mailings are sent to seniors and their families from "for profit" firms that offer to give students an inside track to college financial aid sources, for a fee. Should a family receive any such information, they are advised to check with a school counselor as to the credibility of the sender. Many of the same scholarships and grants can be found by visiting www.michigan.gov/mde. For information about scholarship scams, contact the Federal Trade Commission at P.O. Box 996, Washington, DC 20580, or on the web at www.ftc.gov.

2025 Standardized Testing Update

All juniors are currently scheduled to take the SAT in April 2025 at Troy High School free of charge and may register for any additional tests if they choose at www.sat.org or www.act.org

OSTC Career Night

*Attention Sophomore and Junior students only!

For any students interested in exploring OSTC programs, the 2025 Career Night is January 16th, 4:30-7:30pm. Students will explore programs such as Automotive Technology, Computer Programming, Health Sciences, Construction Technology, Culinary Arts/Hospitality, Criminal Justice and more. The Career Night will be held at OSTC SE Campus located at 5055 Delemere Ave., Royal Oak. Please contact Mr. Ali-Ahmed or visit OSTConline.com for more information.

AP Exam Policy and Reminders

AP Registration - Online AP exam registration resumes Monday, January 27th, 2025, and ends Monday, March 3rd, at 11:59 p.m.

The cost for exams are as follows:

· Regular Registration: Second semester courses = $105

· Late Registration: Year-long courses are considered late at this time, per College Board, and will cost an additional $40 per exam.

All payments must be paid by credit card through Total Registration at TotalRegistration.net/AP/233603

Troy High School will NOT accept any registrations beyond March 3rd.

Due Scholarship Name

12/1 - Visionary Scholarship

12/6 - 2024-25 MHSAA-Farm Bureau Insurance Scholar - Athlete Award

12/10 - Distinguished Young Women of Michigan

12/11 - Coolidge Scholarship

12/15 - Clemson University - Lyceum Scholars Program

12/31- AIAA Lockheed Martin Marillyn Hewson Scholarship

12/31-“No Sweat” Scholarship

1/2 - WashU - Danforth Scholars Program

1/3 - GE- Reagan Foundation Scholarship Program

1/8 - Lloyd F. Hutt Scholarship

1/9 - Jackie Robinson Foundation Scholarship

1/10 - DECA Student Scholarship Program

1/15 - CMU - Leader Advancement Scholarship

1/15 - Asian & Pacific Islander American (APIA) Scholars

1/15 - National Washington Crossing Foundation Scholarship

1/31 - Princeton Prize in Race Relations

2/1 - SME Education Foundation Scholarship

2/7 - University of Michigan Club of Greater Detroit (multiple scholarships)

2/10 - MEA Scholarship (Michigan Education Association)

2/26 - Scholars Helping Collars Scholarship - P.L. A. Y.

3/15 - Troy Community Lions Club Scholarship

3/15 - Horatio Alger Association Scholarships

3/31 - OCC - Chancellor’s Scholarships Honor Academic Excellence

4/23 - Troy Education Association Building Scholarship

Thank you for the support shown to our Troy Colt Marching Band during marching season! We already miss “Dream On,” but many opportunities to delight in the sounds of the bands are coming during concert season.

Support Now

Before the year ends, we welcome your donations to support the bands. We are on a mission to provide every student with the opportunity to participate fully in our upcoming trips, performances, and competitions - regardless of their financial circumstances. With your generosity, we can help cover costs for students who need assistance, purchase new instruments, maintain our equipment, and ensure our uniforms reflect the pride we have in our band. Every donation, big or small, helps us keep the music going and allows all our students to shine. Thank you for supporting the next generation of musicians!

How to Give:

Direct Donations - You can use our general donations link for your tax deductible contributions: https://my.cheddarup.com/c/troy-colt-bands-donations/items?cart

You Are Invited

Please join our award-winning bands for their upcoming events:

Drumline at the City of Troy Tree Lighting - Following tradition, the Troy High School Drumline will usher in Santa at Troy City Hall during the annual tree lighting ceremony on Friday, December 2, at 6:45 p.m., at the south entrance of City Hall. The event will also include the Athens High Concert and Treble Choirs, hot cocoa and Timbits from Tim Hortons Troy. There's no better way to get you in the holiday spirit.

“Hearts Aglow” - Make plans to join us for an inspiring evening full of seasonal selections on Wednesday, December 11, at 7 p.m. The Troy High Bands will kick off the holidays with their annual Winter Concert, featuring performances from the Campus, Cadet, Concert, and Symphonic Bands, as well as the Jazz Ensemble.

Save the Dates

● New Member Informational Meeting - Jan. 23, 7 p.m., THS Auditorium

● Festival Concert - Feb. 27, 7 p.m., *** New Location: Oakland University,

---Varner Hall, 371 Varner Dr., Rochester ***

For Your Viewing Pleasure

Find photos and videos of all of the marching band’s performances on the www.troycoltbands.org website, or check out TCMB on social media - on Facebook @troycoltbands, on Instagram @troycoltbands, and on X (formerly Twitter) @officialtcbands.

The Troy High Orchestras are looking forward to our December Concert, featuring all four Orchestras and the Troy Country Fiddlers. All Orchestras will perform a variety of music, including music celebrating some of the holidays celebrated in December. Join us on December 18 at 7:00pm in the Troy High School Auditorium. There is no ticket charge, but we will be holding concessions, a bake sale and selling poinsettias. Poinsettias will be available for purchase – preorder and a limited number available at the concert.

We are also looking forward to our annual Gala Concert on February 1, 2025. The concert will begin at 6:30pm in the Troy High Auditorium and will feature all of our Orchestras, Fiddlers and guest Soloists. Please plan ahead so you can join in the music, entertainment, raffles, and afterglow! Tickets for Gala will go on sale closer to the event.

We have around eighty events registered to participate at MSBOA District Solo and Ensemble on February 1st at Rochester High School. Any event earning a first division rating will be eligible for State Solo and Ensemble.

We are very proud of our students that have demonstrated our Troy High Character Values of Resilience, Responsibility, Empathy, and Kindness and have won a Character Strong Award.

Here is the list of students:

Rhys Cole

Iris Daly

Ethan Harkenrider

Aaliyah Morton

Manjiri Nagarsenkar

Akshara Palanisamy

Lucinda Rosati

Sarbani Sengupta

Sandi Senjar

Varisha Singh

Kellen Teeri

Samantha Trapp

Kevin Zeneli

DECEMBER:

Wed., Dec. 4.............Madrigal Singers to BBUM Church to sing for seniors 12-2:30 p.m.

Thurs., Dec. 5...........Madrigal Singers to 1st Pres of Troy Church to sing for seniors 12-2:30 p.m.

Fri., Dec. 6................White Christmas theater performance at 7 p.m. in Auditorium

Sat., Dec. 7...............White Christmas theater performance at 7 p.m. in Auditorium

Sun., Dec. 8..............White Christmas theater performance at 2 p.m. in Auditorium

Wed., Dec. 11...........PTO Meeting in the Stable at 7 p.m.

Wed., Dec. 11...........Band Winter Concert at 7 p.m.

Fri., Dec. 13..............White Christmas theater performance at 7 p.m. in Auditorium

Sat., Dec. 14............White Christmas theater performance at 7 p.m. in Auditorium

Sun., Dec. 15............White Christmas theater performance at 2 p.m. in Auditorium

Wed., Dec. 18...........Orchestra Concert at 7 p.m. in the THS Auditorium

Mon, Dec. 23 - Fri., Jan. 3rd ..Winter Break

JANUARY:

Mon., Jan. 6............School Resumes

Wed., Jan. 8............PTO Meeting in the Stable at 7 p.m.

Mon., Jan. 20..........No School - Martin Luther King Day

Wed., Jan. 22..........Half Day - Mid Term Exams

Thurs., Jan. 23........Half Day - Mid Term Exams

Fri., Jan. 24.............Half Day - Mid Term Exams / End of Quarter