Blue Valley Northwest

Principal's Newsletter - December 13, 2024

Dear Husky Families,

As we wrap up the last full week of classes before finals begin, I wish everyone a restful weekend.

This is a reminder that finals begin on Wednesday with finals in hours 1 and 2 and I know our students have been working hard to finish the semester strong. You've got this! Remember to pace yourself, stay organized, and take care of your well-being.

Good luck to all students during finals week — I believe in each of you and your ability to finish the semester with passion, purpose, and pride!

Finally, please remember to nominate a December Husky Hero, a BVNW educator who has consistently gone above and beyond in fostering a positive and impactful learning experience for you or your student.

Sincerely,

Leah Vomhof

BVNW Principal

New Information:

End of Semester Information - Viewing Canvas Courses and Semester Grades

At the end of each semester, courses in Canvas will conclude and will no longer be visible on the Canvas app. However, a concluded course remains visible through the Canvas website by selecting ALL COURSES and then PAST ENROLLMENTS.

Please note: The dates are subject to change based upon calendar updates or technology needs.

How do I view my child’s report card?

Log in on ParentVue.
Select the student’s name
In the left navigation bar, choose Report Card

Each new semester, classroom teachers will publish their next semester’s Canvas course. As courses are published, students and families will again be able to see current courses on the Canvas app and Canvas website. For Canvas parent resources, visit www.bluevalleyk12.org/canvas.

Community Celebrations and Observances - to promote awareness and appreciation of our Blue Valley families.

National Poverty in America Awareness Month - raises awareness about the struggles millions of Americans face living in poverty. It encourages learning about the causes of poverty, supporting those in need, and working to create solutions that promote economic equality and opportunity.
World Braille Day - January 4 - a day to raise awareness and attention to accessibility for those with visual impairments and celebrate Braille's invention. This tactile writing system was invented in the 1800s by Louis Braille.
Lohri - January 13 - celebrated primarily by Sikhs and Hindus, the festival marks the end of the winter solstice and harvesting of winter crops. Some families will sing and dance around a bonfire, exchange gifts with friends and family, and tell tales of bravery.
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day - January 20 - a day that honors the life and legacy of the civil rights leader. Some families will participate in a day of service to their communities.
Lunar New Year - January 29 - celebrated by families of Chinese and other Asian heritages, some people celebrate with religious ceremonies honoring ancestors, giving and receiving red envelopes containing small amounts of money, lighting colorful lanterns, and eating traditional foods such as dumplings and sticky rice balls that symbolize family unity.

December Odd/Even/Traditional Calendar

January Odd/Even/Traditional Calendar

Important Dates:

Dec. 18-20 - Semester 1 Finals (schedule below)
Monday, January 6th - First Day of 2nd Semester (for students)
Monday, January 20th - No School, Martin Luther King Jr. Day
Saturday, February 15th - Sweetheart Dance

Attendance Information

Passes During Finals

No passes to leave class will be issued during Finals. Once you are in class you must stay in class until the block is over. Please plan accordingly.

Lost and found and items will be discarded on December 20th.

Please claim your items before this date!

Athletics/Activites:

Message From the AD

Congrats to the boys basketball team as they brought home some hardware from the Hays City Shootout Tournament! The girls team has lost two close game to very talented teams in Washburn Rural and Olathe North. They are back in action tonight in Columbia, Missouri vs Hickman High. Our C team and Freshman girls are 2-0 on the season! The boys wrestling team had a successful tournament in Spring Hill last Friday. The girls wrestling team also successful as they participated in the Spring Hill Invitational last Saturday. Swimmers Micah Churchill, John Christianson, Max Jacewitz, Bobby Guo, and Nomto Badmaev brought home 9 gold medals, collectively, on Tuesday vs BVSW.

The Husky Hoops Invitational continues tonight! BVNW plays at 6:35 in the main gym. ONLY BVNW STUDENT PASSES ARE ACCEPTED.

Boys wrestling will be at SMNW this Saturday in their Cougar Challenge tournament.

Follow @BVNW_Athletics for all athletics updates.

REMINDER: Per our EKL Rule, anytime varsity is competing a gate will be charged for the entire evening. For example, if C team plays at 4:00 and varsity plays at 7:00, there will be a gate. You will have to pay to get into the C team game. Again, this is an EKL Rule.

Message from the Activities Department

Beginning in January, we are going to recognize two activities students of the month. Watch for those celebrations in this newsletter and on social media. We have students doing amazing things in our activities programs, and we want to celebrate them!

Celebrations (We realize this is not a comprehensive list of everything going on around Husky Nation, but we’ll try to share some highlights each week!)

Congrats to Mike Arbucci for being selected as the ECKMEA Orchestra Teacher of the Year. He was recognized at Olathe West last Saturday.
Congratulations to Beth Richey-Sullivan and Hans Heruth on an incredible Broadway Diner concert this week! It was an incredible event at which our student musicians served a meal and performed simultaneously!
Our Investing Club has been busy! They are actively learning about good investing, eating donuts, and voting on where they will invest!
Many of our clubs are celebrating the end of first semester with winter parties!
Looking for a great place to see what’s happening around Northwest? Check out our school publications account @bvnwnews on Instagram and Twitter!

Upcoming Events: Click here to view all athletic/activity schedules

Once you click the link, you can select specific schedules under the “view schedules” tab on the right side of the screen.

Repeating Information (already shared):

Reminder to Nominate a Husky Hero!

The Husky Hero Award is designed to honor the exceptional contributions and dedication of our educators at Blue Valley Northwest High School. This recognition seeks to spotlight educators who consistently go above and beyond in fostering a positive and impactful learning environment.

The nomination form is open to nominate your “Husky Hero!” Here’s the link: https://forms.gle/zj1Gi9gft1GTELrb7.

Students and parents are invited to attend a CAPS Presentation and Tour. This is a series of one-hour evening presentations at the CAPS building, which is located on Blue Valley School District’s main campus. There will be information presented by CAPS Administrators and Instructors, a question and answer session and a tour.

Students who plan to enroll in a CAPS strand for the 25-26 school year are highly encouraged to attend an open house to confirm their interest before enrollment. Due to the district’s new schedule repair policy, please ensure your student is confident in their enrollment selection of CAPS.

The Center for Advanced Professional Studies is a profession-based, immersive program with a college credit-bearing curriculum designed to provide junior and senior level students the skills they need to succeed both in the competitive college environment and in the twenty-first century global workforce. For more information, please visit our website http://www.bvcaps.org.

Where: Center for Advanced Professional Studies (CAPS)

7501 W. 149th Terrace

Overland Park, KS 66223

913-239-5900

Last opportunity!

Wednesday, January 15, 2025

Time: 6:00 – 7:00 PM

NO REGISTRATION REQUIRED

College-Bound Seniors with January 1 application deadline:

All college document requests for counselors, including letters of recommendations and Common Application requests, for the January 1st college application deadline will need to be submitted to counselors by December 11, 2024, to be processed prior to winter break. Please be aware, staff will not be working over winter break, so any documents that are requested, will not be processed until our return in January.

Transcript requests (non-Common Application) through Xello can be submitted until 3:00 p.m. on December 20, 2024, for the January 1 deadline.

Important Travel Outside of the U.S. Information

This important message is for any family or staff that will travel out of the United States during the school year. Please click here to read the restrictions and recommendations for Out of the Country travel. Blue Valley resources such as Canvas, Classlink, and school email are not accessible out of the country unless you have a personal device with a VPN on it.

District Podcast - The Importance of School Attendance

In the latest Blue Valley Schools’ BV Unmuted podcast episode, Superintendent Dr. Tonya Merrigan is joined by Leah Vomhof (Blue Valley Northwest principal), Stacey Sperry (Prairie Star Elementary principal) and Dr. Cory Cox (Blue Valley North assistant principal) to discuss the importance of school attendance.

🎙️ To listen to the podcast episode, visit https://tinyurl.com/AttendanceBV.

School Picture Orders

If you would still like to order your student’s school pictures, use this link to both preview and order. You will need your student’s school ID number to preview or order.

Securly Parent Info—new location on BV website

The Securly Parent Information has a new home. It can now be found on the Technology Page. If you had created a bookmark in your files, please change it.

New URL: https://www.bluevalleyk12.org/Page/34492

Final Exams - Prearranged Absences

Final Exams will take place December 18-20. The detailed schedule has been previously posted and is listed below in the repeating information section. If your student anticipates being absent during this time period they will need to prearrange this through the Assistant Principal of Curriculum and Instruction Mr. Aman. Students need to schedule a meeting through the Student Services Office to get all the proper arrangements made. Any late finals must be scheduled in advance through Mr. Aman and be completed before January 17, 2025.

"Communication from the School Nurse and Athletic Trainer:

We have a new fax number for any and all medical records and documents. Please send these to our new fax number: (913) 239-3434

Calling all Holiday Bakers - Staff Appreciation needs your help!

The BVNW Parent Booster Club will be providing lunch for staff on Thursday, December 19th. This is our final Staff Appreciation event of the first semester. The meal will be catered but we are asking for donations of drinks and desserts for the event. We also need a small number of volunteers to help transform the Commons Area for the lunch. Interested in helping with this effort? Click here for more details.

*Spirit Wear – Our spirit wear shop is now open! You can check out the fun designs here. The shop will be open until December 5th. Place your order now!

*PBC Memberships - Join Today! The Parent Booster Club is the Parent organization at BVNW, similar to a PTA or a PTO from middle and elementary schools. Learn more about the amazing impact of the PBC, what membership means for you and how to join by going to our PBC Website.

“You must be the change that you wish to see in the world.” Mahatma Gandhi ~

Father's Club

Dads and father figures, you are needed in the Father's Club at BVNW. Join a group of dedicated fathers who provide helping hands when and where they are needed to support students, faculty, and staff at BVNW!

With hands on help from other BV chapters and the senior leadership of Father's Club, BVNW members threw snacks, candy, and hot dogs to students at last weeks football game to help kick off this year's efforts.

Please contact Johnny Johnson, Father's Club chair, at jlj.johnson@aol.com for more information on how you can be involved.

Securly Parent Info—new location on BV website

The Securly Parent Information has a new home. It can now be found on the Technology Page. If you had created a bookmark in your files, please change it.

New URL: https://www.bluevalleyk12.org/Page/34492

JCCC Career Ready Information

Is your 10th or 11th grade student interested in exploring possible career pathways or a dual degree with BVNW and JCCC? If so, you are encouraged to attend a community wide event to answer your questions prior to February enrollment for 25-26 school year. Want to know more?

See Blue Valley Career Ready programs website.

Fire Science January 27th at 6:00 pm at the Fire Training Center at 12401 Hemlock
Dual Degree on January 22th at 6:00 pm at the JCCC in the Nerman Museum
Industrial Arts (Welding, HVAC, Auto, Construction Management, Plumbing, Welding, Electronic Technology) on January 29th at 6:00 pm at the JCCC CTEC building
Cybersecurity and Culinary & Hospitality on January 30th at 6:00 pm at the JCCC in the Wylie Culinary building

The Femineer Program

The Femineer Program was created to empower K-12 female students to develop the skills and confidence needed to pursue majors and careers in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) fields. It has since expanded to include other under-represented individuals in these fields.

If you are interested in returning to the program, please fill out the application linked below, scan it and return it to the Femineer Program advisor Karen Stohlmann at khenderson@bluevalleyk12.org.

Femineer Program Application 25.docx