September 15, 2024
Message from Ms. Polanco
Week of September 15, 2024
Hello Lions Students and Families! 🎉 Congratulations to our Lions football team on their fantastic victory against Mt. Vernon High School this past Thursday! Let’s keep the momentum going and show our support at this Friday’s game against Hylton High School. We hope to see you there, cheering loud and proud! 🏈
📸 Important Information for This Week is listed below to include: Picture Day for grades 9-11, our first Annual Hispanic Heritage Night: “Embracing our Roots”, Senior-Parent Breakfast and more!
As our STRENGTH is IN UNITY, I invite you to join our Principal’s Advisory Council and Parent Teacher Organization. This year, these groups are uniting to provide feedback on school-related topics and collaborate on events and fundraising ideas to enrich our school community. More details and sign-up information are listed below.
I look forward to your continued support and participation throughout the various events and activities hosted at Unity Reed HS this school year. 🌟 Go Lions! 🦁
Important Upcoming Dates
September 17: Driver's Ed Meeting 7:00PM
September 18: Lions Activity Booster Club Meeting, 6:00PM
September 19: Principal's Advisory Council Meeting, 6:00PM
September 20: Home football game vs. Hylton HS, 7:00PM
September 25: Save the Date! Hispanic Heritage Night "Embracing our Roots", 6:00PM
September 28: Save the Date! Senior Parent Breakfast, 9:00AM
October 9: PSAT Day (Grades 9-11); Asynchronous Day for Grade 12
October 18: Homecoming Game
October 19: Homecoming Dance
Bell Schedule for the Week
Lions' Student Season Pass
Unity Reed HS Students are eligible to purchase season passes or annual passes for discounted prices. Season passes are $20 and Annual passes are $50. These passes will get you into ALL HOME GAMES for either the season (if purchasing the season pass) or for the entire year (if purchasing the annual pass). The pass is not eligible for tournaments or post-season events. STUDENT ID WILL BE REQUIRED AT THE GATE IF PURCHASING A STUDENT PASS!
Driver's Ed Meeting
The first 90-minute parent and student driver education meeting will be held on Tuesday, September 17 at 7:00pm in the auditorium. This meeting is for this year's driver education students and their parent or guardian. Driver education students from last year who did not attend a meeting are also invited. Please use door 37 to enter the building. You and your guardian must be in the auditorium before 7:00pm, no one will be permitted to enter afterwards. Please plan to be early as it can take some time to find parking. We cannot allow entry after the meeting begins.
Lions' Activity Booster Club Meeting
The Booster Club will be meeting on Wednesday, September 18 at 6:00pm in room 1002. Please use door number 1. We will be discussing the success of the concession stand from early athletic events and future fundraisers. All are welcome to attend. If you would like to join the Booster Club and have a vote on matters, please attend and bring $20 for an individual membership or $30 for a 2 person household membership.
Hispanic Heritage Month: September 15 - October 15
Our Student Leadership Activities Council (SALC) has been working hard to plan inclusive events throughout the school year, and we are thrilled to invite you to our first annual Hispanic Heritage Night: “Embracing Our Roots”!
📅 Date: Next Wednesday, September 25th
🕕 Time: 6:00 - 8:00 PM
Join us in celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month (Sept. 15 - Oct. 15) with an evening of vibrant activities to include diverse foods, exciting games, and captivating performances showcasing the rich tapestry of Hispanic cultures.
ALL ARE WELCOME to this FREE event for our students and families. However, please note that capacity is limited. Students will receive a link via Canvas/Student Email this week to reserve tickets for themselves and their family members. The limit is 4 tickets per student.
We can’t wait to share this special night with you and celebrate together!
Principal's Advisory Council (PAC) & Parent Teacher Organization (PTO)
First meeting: September 19, 6:00PM in our Library
Unity Reed will be starting back a Principal's Advisory Council (PAC) and Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) and will meet as one group to meet at least 6 times this year from 6:00 - 7:00PM. Please join me for our first Principal's Advisory Council to provide feedback on school related topics, collaborate on school events and fundraising ideas to support and enrich our school community. Students, parents/guardians, staff and community stakeholders are welcome to join!
Our first meeting will be held in person on Thursday, September 19th, from 6:00 - 7:00pm in our Library. There are no fees associated with joining. The remaining meetings will be on November 14, December 19, February 20, April 10 and May (TBD). We look forward to collaborating with you!
Unity Reed Underclass Picture Days!
School Picture Day for Underclassmen will take place on Thursday, September 26th, & Friday, September 27th, 2024. All students will be photographed during their Language Arts classes. Images will be available to view and purchase approximately two weeks following our school's picture day.
Save time and Pre-order online here: https://vando.imagequix.com/g1001133863#login
Please note that there will be no printed forms sent via the school. All orders should be completed online. For questions about ordering please email underclass@vosphoto.com
Please direct all questions about your school's upcoming event to eventconfirm@vosphoto.com
Class of 2025 - Seniors!
Save the Date! Saturday, September 28, 2024, at 9:00 AM for our Class of 2025 Senior Parent Breakfast in our Cafeteria. Here, parents and seniors will learn about important senior class events, college, career and scholarship information, ordering caps and gowns for graduation day, and more. Enter through Door 1 – we hope to see you there! Please be sure to RSVP below.
School Library Controls for Parents
Prince William County Public Schools contracts with Follett School Solutions to manage our library resources. Parents/guardians can now designate the titles they wish to restrict access to for their student(s).
- If parents/guardians would like to restrict titles for more than one student, they need to restrict the items in each student's account.
- Parents /guardians can toggle between student accounts in the top right of the Additional User Account.
- The restriction will follow the student indefinitely until the primary parent/guardian removes the "Do Not Check Out" designation in the Additional User Type account.
- Restrictions will follow the student if they change schools in PWCS.
- Librarians, administrators, and other school staff do not have the ability to change the restrictions made by parents/guardians.
Attendance Matters!
Reporting Absences
Report your child’s absences: Parents should notify the school before, or at the start of, the school day when their child will be absent. Parents must send written or electronic communication citing the reason(s) for the absence to the school no more than five school days following the date of the absence.To report an absence at Unity Reed HS, please call the school at 703-365-2900, submit the note via ParentVUE or have your student submit a written note to the main office. For early dismissals, please call the main office at 703-365-2900.
How sick is too sick for school? For information about when your child should go to school or when they should stay home due to illness, visit the When to Keep Students home webpage. If you have additional questions, please contact our school nurse, Nurse Lawton, at lawtonst@pwcs.edu.
Planning a prearranged absence? We understand that some absences are unavoidable, however we encourage parents and guardians to schedule appointments and trips on scheduled days off for students throughout the school year. View the 2024-25 school calendar website to view days off for students.
We appreciated our families understanding that attending school every day helps our students build a solid foundation for their future in school and in life. Please contact our Attendance Officer, Ms. Gilliam at 571-598-3216 or gilliadb@pwcs.edu; or our School Social Worker, Mr. Jahanian at 571-598-3232 or jahanir@pwcs.edu; if your family or child are in need of resources to have a successful school year.
Stay Connected
How to stay connected with URHS!
Weekly LIONS’ ROAR: This will include the latest updates with pertinent information for the upcoming week and will be emailed to students and families every Sunday. This information will also be posted on our school website.
URHS website: This will be updated more frequently so that we can share the most up to date information with you. In fact, click here to view our school website.
School Status: This is our messaging system, and it allows staff to send text messages, emails, or make phone calls to families. When an email comes to your inbox with this system, the sender will be listed as School Status or Teacher name. A text message will include the staff member’s full name in the message but will be a random number. This system allows the recipient to respond directly to a message.
The PRIDE Newsletter: This is a monthly newsletter where we celebrate and highlight the incredible accomplishments of our students, staff, and community at Unity Reed High School. Each month, we will showcase achievements, events, and milestones that make our school proud. Stay tuned for inspiring stories, academic successes, athletic triumphs, and much more. All this information will also be available on our school website for easy access and sharing.
I encourage you to continue to stay in touch with important updates by visiting our website. We are here to support you. Please reach out throughout the school year with any questions, concerns, or to share general feedback, and thank you for being part of our school community, as our STRENGTH is IN UNITY!
Sincerely,
Milagros Polanco
Principal, Unity Reed High School