Principal Update - BHS Families

• Upcoming Events
• Operation Christmas Wishes - Help Needed for Tuesday!
• 2025/26 Group Scheduling Meetings
• Upcoming Lunch and Learn (Political Science/Law) - Rescheduled for Wednesday, 12/4 During Advisory
• Upcoming "Breaking the Silence" Presentation - 12/4 (during Advisory) and Evening Presentation (for community members)
• 2nd Quarter Progress Report Grades - Visible in StudentConnect/ParentConnect on 12/12
• Class of 2027 (Current Sophomores) Scheduling Options Parent Meeting - December 10th
• 1st FAFSA Night at BHS - December 12th
• National Honor Society's Senior Survivor Charity Applications
• Message from the BHS PTO
• Senior Specific Information - *Includes November Senior Communication from Mrs. Richards
• Opportunities to Meet with BHS Administration
• BHS Counseling Department - *November Counseling Newsletter Included
• Upcoming College Visits - 2 Schools Coming to BHS This Week!
• Brighton Area Schools Student Wellness Information
• Weekly Wellness Lesson
• Big Bang Boom BCPA Show
• Previous Resources - Links Included

Wednesday, December 4th - 2025/26 Student Scheduling Meetings (with Social Studies Classes)

Wednesday, December 4th - "Breaking the Silence" Presentation for All Juniors During Advisory (More Information Below)

Wednesday, December 4th - Lunch and Learn (Political Science/Law) in Collab Lab During Advisory

Friday, December 6th - 2nd Quarter Progress Reports (Grades Visible to Parents on 12/12)

Tuesday, December 10th - Class of 2027 (Current Sophomores) Scheduling Options Parent Meeting from 6 - 7 pm in BHS STEAM Center (More Information Below)

Tuesday, December 10th - Holiday Band Concert at 7 pm in BCPA

Wednesday, December 11th - Curriculum Videos Shown to All Students During Advisory

Thursday, December 12th - 2nd Quarter Progress Reports Visible to Parents and Students (Via ParentConnect/StudentConnect)

Thursday, December 12th - FAFSA Night in BHS Media Center at 6 pm

Friday, December 13th - ASVAB Testing (Must Sign Up) in BHS Media Center During 1st and 2nd Hours

Friday, December 13th - Operation Christmas Wishes Gift Delivery to Perry ELC

Friday, December 13th - BHS Choir Concert at 7 pm in BCPA

Sunday, December 15th - Senior Survivor Charity Applications Due (More Information Below)

BHS Leadership has already started their shopping for the Operation Christmas Wishes Fundraiser, with the goal of supporting more underprivileged children than ever before. This year, BHS Leadership will be supporting Perry Early Learning Center in Ypsilanti, and has a goal of $18,500 in order to be able to support all of the students on their list. As usual, we could use your help with donations that support events like a bake sale, hot cocoa sales, candy gram sales, and more.

Donations to Operation Christmas Wishes:

Donate Here!

The Wrapping Committee Needs Tape:

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C094FABA62AA3FFC43-53211651-operation

Candy Supplies for the Candy Gram Committee:

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0A48A5AA2AA0FCC25-53226292-candy#/

Hot Cocoa Committee Supplies:

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0E44AAAF23A4FCC34-53222397-hotcocoa#/

On Wednesday, December 4th, current 9th through 11th graders will be taking part in group scheduling meetings for the 2025/26 school year. These meetings will take place during your student(s) social studies class. The meeting will be conducted by their grade-level counselor and grade-level principal. Students will receive their course selection sheet for next year at this point in time. Other important dates as it relates to next year's scheduling include:

• Wednesday, December 11th - Curriculum Videos During Advisory
• Tuesday, December 17th - Signing Day for Students (sign-offs on core classes and ability to visit elective options)
• Wednesday, December 18th - Students Turn in Course Selection Sheets to English Teachers
• Monday, January 6th through Friday, February 28th - One On One Individual Scheduling Meetings with Students and their Grade-Level Counselor

We are excited to announce that our next Lunch and Learn will be on Wednesday, December 4th during Advisory! The following information has been shared with our students:

• Report to the Collab Lab this week immediately following 4th hour
• They will be presenting material from 11 am - 11:55 am, then students will be released to go to C Lunch
• We will have light snacks and refreshments available
• Students do NOT need a pass to attend these.
• When you arrive, you will need to scan a QR Code for attendance, so you are not marked unexcused absent from Advisory.
• You may not come late or leave early to attend a different lunch.

This week's Lunch and Learn presenter will be:

Abby Cooper, Lawyer

Law Partner at Cooper & Riesterer, PLC

Date = Wednesday, 12/4/24

Topic = Political Science/Law

We hope that you can encourage your student(s) to take advantage of these opportunities to talk to professionals from various careers!

On Wednesday, December 4th during Advisory, our 11th Grade students will be attending a grade-level presentation by keynote speaker Anthony Grupido. Through speaking his "Magic of Hope,” keynote speaker and magician Anthony Grupido delivers over 200 presentations a year on Substance Use, Mental Health, Resiliency, and Suicide Prevention.

In addition to this presentation for our Juniors, Amber Reineck House has partnered with community organizations UNITE to Face Addiction Michigan (UFAM), Pathways to Hope, Livingston County Community Alliance (LCCA) and local chapters of youth-led prevention groups, “Be the Change” to host a community speaking tour on Mental Wellness and Substance Use. They are inviting parents and community members to attend an evening performance with Anthony Grupido and additional speakers. This is a great opportunity for you and your student to hear the same message and begin having conversations about these important and difficult topics. Livingston County’s Evening event will be held on Wednesday, December 4, 2024 at 2|42 Community Church in Brighton from 5:30-7:30 pm in the Student Auditorium. The evening event is free for attendees, but advance registration is required. More information can be found here.

The 2nd Quarter Progress Report checkpoint is coming up THIS FRIDAY, December 6th. While the 2nd Quarter doesn't end until January 24th, the 2nd Quarter Progress Report grades are an excellent indication of how things are going and which classes may need more attention than others. We are encouraging students to do whatever they can if any catching up is needed prior to the start of Winter Break at the end of the month. These 2nd Quarter Progress Report grades will be visible to parents in ParentConnect and students in StudentConnect starting on Thursday, December 12th.

On Tuesday, December 10th from 6 - 7 pm in the BHS STEAM Center, there will be an optional meeting for parents of students that are currently Sophomores. As we begin conversations around class selection for NEXT YEAR, there will be options available to them that they may want to take advantage of as early as next year, and need to be able to plan accordingly. Some of these options that will be discussed, in addition to standard scheduling decisions include:

• Career and Technical Education (CTE) options both at BHS and other county schools
• Advanced Placement course offerings
• DEEP Program
• Dual enrollment options
• Livingston County Early College programs

As you may know, the 2025-26 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is NOW OPEN. Our goal is to make the college application and financial aid process as easy for you as possible. With this in mind, we will be hosting a few different FAFSA and financial aid nights/workshops to assist you in actually filling out the appropriate paperwork and also let you know what options are available out there.

The first of these nights will be on Thursday, December 12th at 6 pm in the BHS Media Center. We hope to see you there if there is anything we can do to help you with your FAFSA Application!

The National Honor Society's Senior Survivor Committee is looking for charities to be the beneficiary of this year's Senior Survivor Fundraiser. If you know of any charities that may want to apply, please feel free to forward the flyer with them. All interested applicants must also fill out the Google Form to submit their interest in being selected as this year's charity.

Important information for any interested charities:

• Applications are due by December 15th, 2024.
• Charities will be evaluated by Brighton Area Schools Administration in a timely manner.
• All charities will be asked to submit a short, two-minute video highlighting their charity.
• Charities need to email their video, or a link to their video, to nhs@brightonk12.com
• Videos will be due by January 5th.
• National Honor Society Members will view videos and participate in blind voting.

Next PTO Meeting: January 14th @ 7:30 am in Main Office Conference Room

Please see the message below from the BHS PTO:

We will be celebrating our BHS Staff this December with a Holiday Gift Card Giveaway and Woot Woot Treat Train. If you would like to help make this effort a success, please see the signup.

We have provided some slots for local businesses. You can drop these gift cards to the main office, attn: PTO.

We have also made an Amazon wish list for easy shipping directly to us.

https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/26Z8Q0HF7DYG1?ref_=wl_share

We typically give gift cards ranging from $5-$25, in order to get enough for everyone.

Please have all items turned in by Friday 12/13.

Thank you for donating!

Your BHS PTO

Here are some important dates included below that you may want to put on your calendar now and your student may want to participate in.

Thursday, December 12th - FAFSA Night @ 6 pm in BHS Media Center

Wednesday, February 5th - Junior vs. Senior Volleyball Game in the BHS Fieldhouse @ 7:30 pm

Wednesday, March 5th - Senior Class Council 3 on 3 Basketball Tournament

Tuesday, April 22nd - Staff vs. Student Basketball Game

Friday, April 25th - BHS Lip Dub

Monday, May 19th to Friday, May 23rd - National Honor Society's Senior Survivor Week

Tuesday, May 27th - Seniors' Last Full Day

Wednesday, May 28th to Friday, May 30th - Senior Exams

Thursday, May 29th - Senior Sunset in the BHS Stadium starting @ 8 pm

Friday, May 30th - Cap and Gown Pick Up starting @ 8 am

Friday, May 30th - Senior Walk at BHS starting @ 9:45 am (family and friends encouraged to attend)

Friday, May 30th - Senior Picnic in the BHS Stadium following the Senior Walk @ approx. 10:30 am

Friday, May 30th - Senior Elementary Walk (more information to come) @ approx. 11:30 am

Wednesday, June 4th - Summa Cum Laude Breakfast (invite only) in the BHS Cafeteria @ 8 am (parents invited)

Wednesday, June 4th - MANDATORY Graduation Practice in the BHS Fieldhouse @ 10 am

Friday, June 6th - Brighton High School Commencement Ceremony in the BHS Stadium @ 7 pm (rain date is Saturday, June 7th @ 7pm)

Saturday, June 7th - Senior All-Night Party at BHS from 10 pm - 4 am

Hi Seniors!

I hope you all had a very successful 1st Quarter and you're feeling a little more comfortable with college applications. Many of you submitted them by November 1st, and we're excited to see your hard work pay off as you start hearing back from College Admissions in the next few months!

The beginning of this bulletin is updated with information that is coming up, but I've also included repeat information at the bottom so that it's all in one place for you. Families can refer to Mr. Evans weekly communications as well, so there is some overlap of information. We are trying to be as proactive as possible to help you have a successful year. We are here for you!

BHS Bulldog Senior Bulletin - November Update

- Mrs. Richards

In addition to this, each year the Senior Class Council produces an information sheet that is a one-stop shop for all things Senior year. View this year's Senior Class Council Information Sheet here. We would encourage you to have your student follow the social media accounts listed and also join the Remind App listed at the bottom of the page based on their last name to receive updates over the course of the year.

A few items that you still have the option to complete include:

Senior Class Video Submissions - see slides 15-17 of Senior Meeting Presentation

• Click on this link to submit images & video

Baby Picture Submissions - see slides 18-19 of Senior Meeting Presentation

• Click on this link to submit baby pictures

Please see the following message from the Chair of the Senior All Night Party Committee:

ALL PARENTS!!! It's that time of year where we start recruiting parents that want to be a part of the planning committee for the Senior All Night Party (SANP). We have a few openings due to last year's members' kids graduating.

What has made the party so successful is having underclassmen parents be a part of the planning - so just because you don't have a Senior does not mean you cannot help. WE NEED underclassmen committee members to ease some of the burden on Senior parents and to help with consistency year to year.

If you are interested in being on the planning committee, please either reach out to me (Michelle Letendre) via messenger or email at michelleletendre@gmail.com

NOTE - this is only recruiting people that want to be a part of the planning - not volunteer just the night of. That request will come out after Spring Break.

Hello Senior Families,

Financial Aid season is right around the corner! This means it's time to get ready to complete the 25-26 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) as it is NOW OPEN. Regardless of what the plan for after high school is, we encourage every Senior family to fill out the FAFSA. This email includes many financial aid resources for your convenience.

Here's what you can start doing NOW in terms of financial aid:

• Each Senior and a parent should aim to create their FSA IDs prior to December 1st. (They take time to verify)

• Use this tool or this resource to find out which parent(s) needs to be part of the FAFSA process.

• Attend a financial aid webinar or watch this recorded webinar.

• Learn about the Community College Guarantee and Michigan Achievement Scholarship. Informational webinars can be found here.

• Look into scholarships offered at the schools you are applying to. Local scholarships are updated here throughout the year. National scholarships can be found at websites such as Going Merry, Fastweb, CollegeBoard Big Futures, and many more.

• Review Federal Student Aid video resources

• Reach out if you have questions. I am here to help students and families with anything college-related, including financial aid! (farinac@brightonk12.com)
  

Why should I fill out the FAFSA?

• Everybody is eligible for some amount of financial aid. You won't know what you qualify for unless you fill out the FAFSA.

• It is the only way to qualify for the Community College Guarantee, and is necessary to be considered for the Michigan Achievement Scholarship.

• You are planning to attend college OR a career training program after high school.

• It allows schools to consider you for more scholarships, grants, and other aid.

• It's FREE and you do NOT have to accept any of the aid that is offered to you.

Please feel free to reach out if you have any questions!

Best,

Clarice Farina

Brighton High School

College Adviser - Advise MI

Tuesdays, Wednesdays, & every other Monday

Click here to schedule a meeting with me

View the BHS college/career planning calendar here

If you need to meet with your student's Grade Level Principal for any reason, please don't hesitate to reach out. If your student has a 504 and returned to BHS this fall, you should have received an additional communication offering you the opportunity to have your student's support plan continue as written, or the chance to meet to address any necessary changes. If your student has a 504 and is a Freshman, you have received an additional communication asking you to set up a time to meet to discuss the plan in greater detail, in order to help facilitate a smooth transition to a new environment this year. To contact your student's Grade Level Principal, please see the information below:

Mr. Matt Evans (10th grade)

Phone: (810) 299 - 4101

Email: evansm@brightonk12.com

Schedule an Appointment Directly

Mrs. Tracie Richards (12th grade)

Phone: (810) 299 - 4114

Email: richardst@brightonk12.com

Schedule an Appointment Directly

Mr. Nate Grabowski (11th grade)

Phone: (810) 299 - 4103

Email: grabown@brightonk12.com

Schedule an Appointment Directly

Mrs. Jennifer Napuli (9th grade)

Phone: (810) 299 - 4112

Email: napulij@brightonk12.com

Schedule an Appointment Directly

The November Edition of the BHS Counseling Newsletter can be found here.

As a reminder, if you would like to meet with your student's counselor for any reason, you can reach the Counseling Office at (810) 299-4150. You can also schedule an appointment with their counselor using the following links below:

9th Grader: Mrs. Petit - https://bit.ly/MrsPetit

10th Grader: Mrs. Caverly - https://bit.ly/MrsCaverly

11th Grader: Mr. Miner - https://bit.ly/MrMiner

12th Grader: Mrs. Grossfeld - https://bit.ly/MrsGrossfeld

In the next few weeks, we have a few different college representatives who will be visiting BHS to share more information with students about their school. Students can see which schools will be at BHS and when by accessing the Sign-Up Genius here and signing up. Upcoming visits include:

• Grand Valley State University - Tuesday, 12/3 During 3rd Hour
• Schoolcraft Community College - Friday, 12/6 Outside the Cafeteria During All Lunches

As a part of the BAS Strategic Plan, we are always trying to find ways to maximize and support student growth. One of many ways we do this is through the Brighton Area Schools App. This app can be downloaded for free on iTunes and Google Play. It is loaded with resources for students and parents. In addition, consider using the "Your Best, Your Growth, Your Future" part of the app to submit a goal and receive 1:1 support and feedback to help you achieve it! The app will also allow you to receive notifications on what is happening throughout BAS and be updated on future events and information.

As a district, we are increasing our efforts to support the mental health and wellness of our students, families, and the community by focusing on relationships, student wellness, and increasing a mindset for learning and growth. Additional resources and information can be found on our BAS Wellness & Mental Health website.

Each week, we will be sharing out a weekly tip/resource with our families. This week's tip:

"Courage & Honor"

What: An all-ages Rock adventure, Big Bang Boom is the ultimate music experience for kids and adults!

Date: Wednesday, January 15, 2025

Time: 6:00 pm

Location: Brighton Center for the Performing Arts

7878 Brighton Rd, Brighton, MI 48116

Tickets: ($10 - child, $20 - adult) available at www.brightonperformingarts.com/events

Contact: (810) 299-4130

Details: The ultimate rock experience for kids and adults! Ideal for pre-K to 3rd grade, their cool music is loved by parents and educators alike. With performances at KindieFest, Kidzapalooza, HangOut Fest, and countless library and school shows, Big Bang Boom is a trusted name in family entertainment. Don’t miss their Emmy Award-winning “Read to Succeed” track! Bring the excitement to your little ones for a rocking, educational adventure.

• ASVAB Opportunity - Friday, December 13th at 7:30 am in BHS Media Center (Sign-Up via QR Code)
• 2024/25 Brighton High School Tutoring List
• BHS National Honor Society Tutoring
• Order a Yearbook
• Student Scholarship Directory
• BHS Career and College Event Calendar
• Upcoming College Fairs
• Fentanyl Fathers Presentation to BHS Seniors
• McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Act Information
• County-Wide Mental Health Network Resources
• County-Wide Mental Health Network Newsletter
• Tall Cop Says Stop November Newsletter

Matt Evans, Lead Principal, Grade Level Principal Class of 2027

Website: https://www.brightonk12.com/Domain/465
Location: Brighton High School, Brighton Road, Brighton, MI, USA
Phone: (810)299-4100
Twitter: @BrightonHS