HSD News Round-Up

November 16, 2023

Students Qualify for North County Honor Band, Earning County-Wide Recognition

Out of approximately 150 student musicians across Clark County selected to participate in the 9th annual North County Honor Band this year, 29 will represent Hockinson High School. Congratulations to Logan Armstrong, Andrew Armstrong, Sarah Boehi, Emma Boehi, Levi Brown, Blake Bruning, Adalee Carey, Carter Castle, Cami Christiensen, Jayden Corey, Ryan Horsley, Nicholas Jones, Thilo Kluth, Cadyn Lanier, Makoa Lewis, Faih Lutz, Charlotte Lyon, Gavin Matheson, Mica McIntosh, Olivia Muller, Toben Oliver, Lela Pierce, Cole Raley, Kieran Schoening, Jack Smith, William Starke, Kilee Tadema, Abigail Troxel, and Isabella Tucker!

North County Honor Band performance is on February 3rd at 6pm, hosted at Hockinson High School. The concert is free and open to the public. "North County Honor Band is a truly collaborative effort between band directors of some of our smaller middle and high schools in Clark County to expose some of our exceptional musicians to a high-quality musical experience,” said Corey McEnry, band director at Hockinson High School.

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Facilities Planning Committee to Look at Present, Future HSD Facility Needs

Student enrollment, especially at the elementary level, has increased in the HSD. School leaders, together with the Hockinson community, must determine how to best accommodate our growing school population as well as find solutions to a number of other maintenance and capacity questions. This is where the Facilities Planning Committee (FPC) comes in. The purpose of the FPC is to:

Inform committee members of facility updates, projects, and needs.
Collaborate on solutions to short- and long-term facilities needs.
Guide a district-wide maintenance plan and short- and long-term facilities plan.
Communicate with the larger community on the above topics.

This year’s committee is picking up where last year’s Long-Range Facilities Planning Committee left off, but with more members. The FPC currently consists of 5 community members, a School Board representative, Operations Director, and Superintendent. Meetings are facilitated by 2 representatives from the ESD 112’s Construction Services Group.

The committee’s first meeting of the 2023-24 school year was held on October 25. The agenda included introductions, a review of the 2021-24 HSD Strategic Plan, facilities assessment, and state funding models. At its November 29 meeting, the committee will look over a recent demographer’s report and facility condition analyses of HHES and HHS.

It takes a lot of work to provide the HSD’s 1,965 students with safe, high-quality schools that facilitate high levels of teaching and learning, but the FPC won’t tackle it alone. Parents and community members can expect to receive periodic reports from the FPC as well as invitations to participate in surveys relating to maintenance priorities and facility planning.

A Look Back at the HHES Halloween Carnival

The Hockinson Halloween Carnival has been an annual Hockinson tradition for over 70 years! Students and community members enjoyed an evening of games, festivities, and an opportunity to break out their Halloween costumes a few days early. Thank you PWT volunteers for making this event possible. Below are some photos from this spooktacular event.

HSD family wears Halloween costumes and smiles.

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Family Fun

This year's carnival featured a photo booth, cupcake walk, food trucks, and face painting. We loved seeing our HSD families spend time with each other.

HSD student hands Halloween candy out to child.

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Trick-or-Treat

A Trick-or-Treat circuit was made possible by all who donations to the HHES Candy Monster.

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Halloween Spirit

Our students truly know how to celebrate the spirit of the season. Check out this Taylor Swift ensemble!

HSD Honors Local Veterans

Hockinson Schools honored our community's veterans last week. Hockinson Heights Elementary hosted an art- and music-based assembly as a tribute to our veterans, many of whom are our HSD family members. Hockinson Middle School’s assembly featured performances by the HMS band, a guest speaker, student speakers, and a slideshow honoring veterans in our community. Hockinson High School hosted a veterans panel, during which guest veterans shared their experiences and answered student questions. Students at all three schools wrote thank-you cards that were mailed to veterans as another way to engage with our community.

Patriotic student artwork placed around a sign reading, "We Love Our Veterans."

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Community Support

Thank you to all that attended our Veterans Day assemblies and performances. Students and staff were proud to honor past and present service members.

Handwritten thank-you note from an HHES student to a local veteran.

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Thank You, Veterans!

"Dear veterans, Thank you for your service," wrote Odin, an HHES student.

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Veteran Panel

HHS students met local veterans and learned about their experiences in the armed services through a Q & A session.

Picture of HHS Boys & Girls XC Team at State Meet in Pasco, WA

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HMS & HHS Fall Sports Wrap Up, Winter Sports Start Up

As we say goodbye to the sun and warmer temperatures of fall, we also bid a fond farewell to a very successful fall sports season. Our middle and high school student-athletes posted an array of accomplishments that are best conveyed by-the-numbers:

217 HHS students participated in 7 Fall Sports
74 HMS students participated in 3 Fall Sports
Athletes in 4 HHS sports represented HHS at state competitions: Girls Soccer, Girls Swimming, Boys and Girls Cross Country, and Boys Golf. Congratulations to swimmers Paige Dangleis (4th-50 m Freestyle and 3rd-100 Freestyle) Georgina Romero (7th-100m breaststroke), Girls Soccer for finishing in the Top 8 in State, and the Girls and Boys XC Teams, which finished 12th and 16th at State, respectively. Boys Golfers Branden Corry, Grant Gumringer, and Ethan Wall will compete in the State Golf Tournament next spring.
4 HHS teams earned Distinguished Scholar status (3-3.49 collective GPA): Girls Soccer, Girls Swim, Boys XC, & Boys Golf. 67 HHS student-athletes earned Scholar-Athlete status (3.5 or higher GPA).

23 HHS athletes qualified for All-League (1st Team, 2nd Team, and Honorable Mention). Click here to view all GSHL 2A honorees.
2 Hockinson sports teams finished as League Champs: HMS Boys XC and HHS Girls XC.

Also, we can't put a number on this, but we want to offer a big Thank You to Fall Cheer for its faithful and spirited support of our sports teams. Of course, we could not offer these opportunities to our student-athletes without our community's levy support...so thank you too, Hockinson!

While Girls Basketball and Wrestling have been underway for a few weeks at HMS, Winter Sports (Boys & Girls Basketball, Boys & Girls Wrestling, and Boys Swimming) started this past Monday at HHS. HMS Boys Basketball begins after winter break. Check out the link in “Upcoming Events” below to view sports-specific schedules.

Photo of HHES student, Meredith Fogg, standing in front of brick wall

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Get to Know HHES Student Meredith Fogg

We are aiming to include a feature on a Hockinson student in every HSD Round-Up this year. This month, we have the honor of introducing you to Meredith Fogg, a 5th grader at HHES who participates in our elementary band program.

Fun Fact: Meredith has a younger sister, Evelyn, who also attends HHES. More from Meredith:

What are your favorite subjects in school right now?
I like independent reading and STEM. I like to build things. This year, we did the marshmallow and spaghetti challenge and built tall towers.
What do you look forward to most at school?
I look forward to seeing my friends every day.
What is your favorite after-school activity?
I like horseback riding. I am in the 5th Grade Band and play the trumpet.
What has been your favorite school activity this far?
I liked dissecting the salmon in class. I am looking forward to launching my hot air balloon and the visit from the fire truck at the end of 5th grade.
Have you thought about any plans for the future?
I'd love to be on a football team. When I grow up, I want to be a professional jockey.

HHES Principal Meredith Gannon had this to say about Meredith: “Meredith sets an amazing example for her classmates at HHES. She is hard-working, focused on her studies, and she has a wonderful sense of humor."

Way to go, Meredith! We look forward to profiling another HSD student in our next Round-Up.

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HSD Families: Spring SBA Scores will be Arriving Soon

It’s that time of year again! The HSD has received its Spring 2023 Smarter Balanced Assessment (SBA) test results and families can expect to receive their student’s individual test report after Thanksgiving Break. An electronic version of this report will be emailed to families and a print copy will be sent home with students. Families will be notified by text and email when these reports are sent out.

Again this year, Hockinson’s students surpassed Washington state average test scores. However, our results were mixed. Compared to Spring 2022, HHS scores increased while HMS and HHES scores dropped in English and dipped slightly in Math. We are committed to improving these scores in Spring 2024 because we are committed to the success of our students. After all, these test results reflect the level to which learners have mastered skills needed for future success in postsecondary education and next-generation careers.

We are looking to modify our testing schedules (shorter testing windows over more days) for Spring 2024 to reduce test fatigue. While HHS will administer ELA tests in late April, all three schools will be in testing mode for nearly all of May. Be on the lookout for more specifics on these schedules in your school’s upcoming school newsletters.

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News Bites

PWT is at it again! Our amazing People Working Together volunteers will be organizing two fun events for Hockinson families: Binglow on Friday, Nov. 17 from 6-8 pm and Donuts with Santa on Saturday, Dec. 2 from 9-11 am. Both events will be held at HMS.
... and so are the AAA Boosters! The Boosters will be hosting their annual Holiday Bazaar on Saturday, Nov. 18 at Hockinson High School. It features 125 vendors, a Hockinson spirit wear pop-up shop, coffee drinks, concessions, and more. This event is a holiday tradition and an important fundraiser for HHS athletic programs.
Congratulations to Melissa Peterson, HHS Head Cross Country Coach. Melissa was named the GSHL 2A Coach of the Year for both Girls and Boys Cross Country!