BHS January Newsletter

As we roll our calendars over to January 2025, we are nearing the end of the first semester with final exams on January 14th and 15th. The first day of the second semester is Thursday, January 16th.

Also in January, students in 9th, 10th, and 11th grade will complete the course registration process for the 2025-2026 school year. As in years past, scheduling resources will be emailed out and put on the school website. High school is an important time for students to explore their interests and options, and we are fortunate to offer a wide array of courses, each providing unique learning opportunities.

We look forward to finishing the first semester strong!

As always thank you for your support,

Amy Levonian, Principal

Jeff Gardon, Associate Principal

Reid Oldenburg, Associate Principal

Eric Sulik, Activities Director

As shared in the Superintendent’s recent message to families, students are not permitted to use cell phones in learning spaces such as classrooms, study halls, bathrooms, or locker rooms. At BHS, we have encountered a few incidents involving the improper use of cell phones. However, we are proud of the increased engagement and focus we’ve observed in our learning environments since implementing these expectations.

It is important to reiterate that cell phones are strictly prohibited in bathrooms and locker rooms. Any violation of this rule, particularly in these sensitive areas, may result in school disciplinary action and potential legal consequences.

Thank you for your continued support and partnership in helping us maintain a safe and focused environment for all students.

It's that time of the year! Below you will find details on our BHS Snow Day Procedures (Asynchronous).

Students in 7th-12th grades do NOT have any traditional snow days built in, therefore all inclement weather days will be asynchronous.

• Students need to login into their advisory google classroom for attendance purposes.

• Instructions for work will be listed in each of your learner’s Google Classrooms.

• If there are any technology issues, please follow-up on the next in-person day with a teacher, administrator, and/or counselor for any attendance concerns or asynchronous work assistance.

• Please note the table below showing how teachers have staggered office hours, each for an hour long, for students to log in to get support if needed from their classroom teacher.

• The links for individual teachers are located on the class Google Classrooms. The 7th-12th grades asynchronous schedule is as follows:

BHS 9th-12th Grades Inclement Weather Asynchronous Schedules

• 9:00-9:25 Advisory (Students must be present in advisory for attendance as attendance will be taken in advisory)
• 9:30-10:30 English
• 10:00-11:00 Math
• 10:30-11:30 Science
• 11:00-12:00 Social Studies
• 11:30-12:30 Business, Tech Ed
• 12:00-1:00 Art, Music
• 12:30-1:30 World Language, Special Education

Please see additional information HERE regarding weather related school closings for BASD.

With winter upon us, we want to remind all students to take extra precautions in the parking lot, both as drivers and pedestrians.

Please share these winter driving tips with your teen drivers, courtesy of Children's Hospital of Wisconsin:

• Clear all snow and ice off of the car before driving.
• Practice driving in different weather conditions with an adult.
• Allow extra time to get to school in the morning.
• Drive slow in poor weather conditions, and keep a safe distance from vehicles in front of you.
• Keep the fuel tank at least half-full to prevent fuel lines from freezing.
• Ensure the vehicle's tires have good traction. Winter tires are ideal.

Check out this winter blog for more winter driving tips, as well as these Teen Driving Resource Sheets.

As a reminder, every other Wednesday, all BASD schools will have a late start. We will have 2 late starts in the month of January: January 15th and January 29th. You can find the BHS Bell Schedule here. For the complete listing of all late start days, please see the BASD Family Calendar 2024-2025.

Semester 1 final exams are scheduled for January 14th and 15th. Wednesday, January 15th is a late start, and instead of having block schedule on Thursday following the late start, we are switching that to Tuesday to better accommodate our final exam schedule.

Students and guardians can view 2nd semester schedules at any time in Skyward. Be sure you are prepared to transition to your 2nd semester schedule on Thursday, January 16th!

Students and families participating in either the preACT or ACT are encouraged to visit BHS's website for practice tests, tips, and resources to support their preparation.

To further support student success, we will be emailing personalized testing summaries during the last week of January. These summaries will include a detailed comparison of students' 2023-24 and 2024-25 test results against key benchmarks. Be sure to watch for this document in your inbox!

At BHS, we are committed to supporting all students in achieving academic success. Beginning the first week of the second semester, freshmen, sophomores, and juniors who did not demonstrate proficiency on last spring’s PreACT or this fall’s Horizon assessment will receive targeted support twice a week during flex period. Students will receive additional information during the first week of the new semester in class assemblies.

Horizon Practice PreACT / ACT for Freshmen, Sophomores, and Juniors: Tuesday, February 11th

• Seniors will have asynchronous learning this day
• Click here for details on Horizon testing

ACT Test for Juniors: Tuesday, March 11th

• Freshmen, Sophomores, and Seniors will have asynchronous learning this day

PreACT Test for Freshmen and Sophomores: Tuesday, April 8th

• Juniors and Seniors will have asynchronous learning this day

Burlington Community Education is partnering with us to bring ZAPS ACT Test Prep to your student! Register at www.doorwaytocollege.org or call 877-927-8378

The BHS Auditorium was filled with beautiful music by our orchestra and band on December 3rd. It was a wonderful performance to get us in the holiday spirit. Should out to our Orchestra Director, Mrs. Casey Unger, and Band Director, Ms. Anna Wisniewski, for their tremendous efforts.

We want to extend our deepest gratitude to Women for Tomorrow and Burlington community members for their generous donations to help keep our Demon Closet stocked!

Your kindness and support make a world of difference to the individuals and families we serve. Thanks to your contribution, we can continue to provide essential items and help those in need within our school.

It’s organizations like yours that remind us of the power of compassion and the importance of coming together to support one another.

On December 6, the DRIVEN Student Leadership Team continued their cherished holiday tradition by spreading cheer at the Arbor View Assisted Living and Memory Care Center. Students decked the halls, made crafts, played bingo, led a sing-along, and connected with residents, making their day extra special.

But the holiday spirit didn’t stop there! Over 100 students braved the cold to support Love, Inc. in their annual bell ringing campaign. Their dedication raised an incredible $2,218—making it the biggest fundraising day of the year for Love, Inc.!

Both the directors of Arbor View and Love, Inc. expressed heartfelt gratitude for our student leaders' commitment to giving back and brightening the lives of others.

Click here to view more photos!

On Tuesday, Dec 10th, 18 BHS students in Educator's Rising shadowed elementary teachers throughout the Burlington Area School District. Educator's Rising is a Career Technical Student Organization for students interested in becoming educators.

During their job shadow, BHS students worked on schoolwork with students, read books to them, helped them complete projects, ran small group lessons, supervised recess duty, answered a multitude of questions at lunchtime and were able to learn some of the behind the scenes work that educators do. The future educators gained valuable experiences on how to deal with student behaviors and how to help young learners grow academically. They are excited for their next shadowing experience which will take place at Karcher Middle School in January!

Earlier in December, our amazing Key Club members came together to bake pies for Love INC, a local non-profit.

Let's keep spreading kindness and making our community stronger, one pie at a time!

Racine Literacy Council will be continuing to offer a FREE Family Literacy Program in January 2025, running on Tuesday nights from 5:30-7:30pm at Waller Elementary School in the Library.

The program will run from January 14 through May 20, 2025 (except for the week of Spring Break). Flyers are attached to this email. This program is for families with children ages 3-high school. And, families can join at ANY TIME (they just need to do a quick intake)!

To register:

262-632-9495

or email Karen Tills at

ktillis@racineliteracy.com

If you have a current 8th grader, bring them to our 8th Grade Open House on January 27th!

BASD Connect has been updated to include an addendum containing an expanded Google Workspace for Education Notice.

Community Connections is new to BASD, with the purpose to have a monthly meeting where anyone in the Community can come and learn about the Burlington Area School District.

We encourage families to attend any and all sessions that are of interest, with the next one coming up on January 22nd, focusing on special education and student services.

Please see the summaries below of our Winter Sports!

HOSA

We’re thrilled to announce that 34 of our HOSA members will compete at the Regional HOSA Competition from January 6-11! These dedicated students have been preparing tirelessly to showcase their knowledge and skills in the health science occupation events they’ve selected.

From medical terminology to forensic science practices and healthcare career displays, our students are ready to show off the skills they have been hard at work preparing for. Stay tuned for updates on their journey and wish them the best of luck as they take on this exciting challenge!

FFA

Our FFA fruit sale was a successful event for us. While our sales were down, our enthusiasm was not. We have also ordered all our plants, seeds, and containers for our spring greenhouse. Information about our greenhouse website and online ordering will be in a future newsletter. Lastly, thanks to everyone who cheered us on and wished us holiday greetings as we participated in the Burlington Christmas Parade.

FAFSA is Open!

College Goal FAFSA Completion Events

Funding for College/Financial Aid Night Presentation

Funding for College Flyer

Where to Locate Scholarships:

• Go to your college’s Financial Aid page to find specific scholarships that you can apply for through them
• Check out the Scholarship page on the BHS Website! The Common App for Local Scholarships will go out to all seniors in mid-January. Be sure to have 2 letters of recommendation to include in your BHS Common App. These can be from a teacher, coach, mentor, employer–someone who can vouch for your character.
• Get connected with 1 national database, such as, Going Merry, FastWeb, Scholarship America and fill out the profile with as much information about you to narrow the search of scholarships available to you!

During the month of January, counselors will offer a variety of Flex workshops to help with future course selections for the 2025-26 school year. We will be sending out an email soon to parents and families with some grade level guides to help make this process go smoothly. In the meantime, encourage your son/daughter to explore the course guide and familiarize themselves with both the courses they need and the electives they would like to take.

Mrs. Laura Stutzman (A-Go) - Laura Stutzman

Mr. Tim Kujawa (Gr-N) - Tim Kujawa

Mrs. Kristen Schiappacasse (O-Z) - Kristen Schiappacasse

Please feel free to reach out to your assigned counselor at any time.

Visit the BHS Helpful Links and Resources website for an abundance of resources including: college admissions organizer, college search guide, Senior College Admission checklist/timelines, and essay assistance.

BASD Foundation was founded in 2024 by dedicated community members who are passionate about supporting our schools. The Foundation creates an opportunity for individuals, families, or businesses to seamlessly offer monetary donations to the Burlington Area School District while reducing any additional responsibilities on district employees and benefitting the donor with a tax deduction. We are committed to serving both students and district staff, offering support allowing them to reach their full potential.

If you are in need of financial support to pay for student fees or would like to donate, please visit the BASD Foundation Website.