The Weekly Penguin
November 17, 2024
...and warm again. Sort of.
Hi all,
We have turned off the chilled air to our campus and are only utilized air cycled in from the outside until further notice. It's going to still yo-yo a bit with some warm afternoons, but we should be good going into December. I'm also rescheduling the afternoon Boba with the Principal as it coincides with the next UHS Site Council meeting, see the upcoming events below. Happy Sunday!
Upcoming events:
Tuesday, November 19: UHS Student of the Month breakfast - RUHS auditorium lobby, 8:00am
Tuesday, November 19: UHSPA November meeting - RUHS library, 6:00pm
November 22-23: Sweeney Todd: The Musical - RUHS auditorium, 6:00pm each night
November 28-29: Thanksgiving break - SCHOOL CLOSED
Wednesday, December 4: Boba with the Principal - Ni Hao Tea: 4726 E. Broadway Blvd, 4:15pm
Thursday, December 5: Dance winter showcase - RUHS auditorium, 7:00pm
Tuesday, December 10: UHS Site Council meeting - RUHS library, 3:30pm
Wednesday, December 11: RUHS choir & orchestra concert - RUHS auditorium, 6:30pm
Thursday, December 12: Giant Steps jazz concert - RHUS auditorium, 6:00pm
Tuesday, December 17: UHS Student of the Month breakfast - RUHS auditorium lobby, 8:00am
Tuesday, December 17: UHSPA December meeting - RUHS library, 6:00pm
Tuesday, December 17: Winter band concert - RUHS auditorium, 7:00pm
Table of contents - NEW INFORMATION
AP exams and registration - FEES POSTING SOON
Athletics - fall sports wrap up, winter sports begin!
CCCC (College, Career, and Counseling Center) update
Korean exchange students - need more families!
Thanksgiving holiday share
Winter guard/drumline - fees and participation
Table of contents - CONTINUING INFORMATION
RUHS club list
Tutoring is here!
UHSFAA - student microgrants
UHSPA info
Yearbook info
AP exams and registration - FEES POSTING SOON
AP exam registration has passed. AP exam fees will be posted by December and are due by May 1. We will notify everyone once exam fees are posted.
Review the following document (UHS AP Exams 2025_Payment & Cancellation Details (valid 11.02.24 - 03.01.25)) for information on how to register late for exams and/or cancel exams. Late Registration and Exam Cancellations must be done my March 1 at 9:59pm.
Athletics - fall sports wrap up, winter sports begin!
Get your season pass for $30 in the finance office. This ticket allows you to get into all home game event excepting post-season competition/play. All proceeds generated from purchasing this pass stay at the school.
See below for direct links to each sport offered for the Fall season at Rincon/University High School, and below that for the lineup of winter sports beginning this week! Congratulations to all our fall sports, you did a great job! Next week we'll have some spotlights for individuals and teams competing in the post-season.
Winter sports lineup:
CCCC (College, Career, and Counseling Center) update
12TH GRADE:
Financial Aid Apps Info Night
Monday 11/25 at 6:00pm on Zoom
For all current 12th Grade Students & Parents/Families
The FAFSA officially opens on December 1st. Join to learn about how the FAFSA works and how to successfully complete it (including changes that have been made in the last year). All students should complete the FAFSA. We will also share some resources on the CSS Profile which is often required for students who are applying out of state. It's important that both students & parents attend this info session if possible!
Meeting ID: 851 8416 7337 - https://tusd1.zoom.us/j/85184167337?pwd=QDGXKlbQm6rsKP487tuwzWfNbwJsWe.1&from=addon
Passcode: 425309
11TH GRADE:
-Join the UHS Counseling team for our quarterly College-Ready Seminars focusing on how juniors can prepare for applying to college. Each quarter we will focus on a different topic to assist juniors & families in their college planning by breaking down the process and helping you work smarter, not harder! We highly encourage all junior students and families to attend each quarter so they are best prepared for next year.
[Q1] College Admissions Testing – September 24 (rescheduled from 9/10) – Every junior parent/guardian and student was emailed links & more info on 9/30, so check your email if you missed this!
[Q2] Building Your College List – November 19 – see attachment for the zoom link!
[Q3] Financing College – February 4
[Q4] Planning & Preparing for the College Application Process – April 15
---All seminars take place on Zoom starting at 6:00 pm. See attachment for more info; zoom links have been updated! We look forward to seeing you there!
Mr. Encinas visited all of the APUSH classes two weeks ago for a lesson on managing stress and well-being, and Ms. Palos, Ms. Villagio, and Mr. Flores visited AP English Language classes last week for a lesson on future planning and research. We enjoy getting to work with you on all these aspects of your high school experience, and we encourage you to set up an appointment with your counselor for more in-depth conversations!
9TH & 10TH GRADE:
Make an appointment to meet your counselor – they are excited to work with you during the first half of your high school career!
Summer STEM Program in China Info Session
Monday 11/18 at 12:45pm (lunch) in the CCCC
For current 10th & 11th Grade Students
Come learn about a summer opportunity to do STEM research and cultural exchange in China with staff and professors at Westlake University. A previous UHS participant will be present to share their experiences!
KEYS Summer Internship Program Info Session
Tuesday 11/19 at 12:45pm (lunch) in the CCCC
For current 10th & 11th Grade Students
Come learn about this STEM internship program at the University of Arizona where students get to participate in laboratory research.
ALL STUDENTS:
Online Health and PE classes have now started. If you would like to be enrolled, please contact Mr. Encinas at Maximiliano.Encinas2@tusd1.org. To be eligible for online Health, you must have taken or be currently enrolled in AP Macro/Microeconomics, or you must have already taken Honors Economics. Please contact Mr. Encinas with any questions.
Peer tutors! If you want to be a volunteer peer tutor, look for the QR code around the U-building to sign up, or email Ms. Brownstone (Kathryn.brownstone@tusd1.org). If you are interested in receiving free peer tutoring, look for the list of tutors in the CCCC or ask your counselor!
Korean exchange students - need more families!
The Asian Pacific American & Refugee Student Services department is hosting exchange students from South Korea for the second year running, and University High School has been invited to participate this year. We will be hosting 10 students for 3 weeks from January 17, 2025 to February 8, 2025, and we are looking for 10 host families to house these students. Please contact Mr. Ranjel directly if you are interested in this amazing opportunity, I am personally very excited to be host to the wonderful students.
We are still in need of 1 more family to host these students. I will reply in email on Monday to any new requests received. Thank you all!
Thanksgiving holiday share
It's time for the Family Resource Centers annual Thanksgiving Holiday Share. TUSD families are invited to receive a thanksgiving food box (turkey and side dishes) to prepare a full meal.
When: Saturday, Nov. 23, | 8:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.
Where: Palo Verde High School Main Parking Lot | 1302 S. Avenida Vega
One free food box per TUSD family, while supplies last.
For more information, please contact Jeff Sawyer at 520-609-7943.
Winter guard/drumline - fees and participation
Rosters are being made for winter colorguard and winter drumline! There will be a change for all band/colorguard students moving forward, starting with this winter's participants in the extracurricular competition component of each organization: all students will have the participation fee option added to their as soon as rosters are received in the finance office. All students wishing to participate in the extracurricular competition component of their team must have their fee paid BEFORE rehearsing or performing. This will go into effect also for the coming school year with marching band participation/competition. We are re-vamping the method of loading fees into InTouch for an easier experience, and we will be in constant communication when they are ready to be accessed. Thank you for your support as we work to ensure all fees are collected and thus as much financial support as possible is granted to our amazing programming.
RUHS club list
Here is the latest 24-25 RUHS club list. Find a club that fits you and join the community!
Tutoring is here!
UHS offers tutoring in a variety of subjects, and the schedule has now been finalized. Please see the UHS tutoring schedule on Canva for the full listing of available and regular tutoring sessions. You may also speak with any of your teachers at any time to arrange a time to work with them directly if they are not included on this list. You may go to any teacher of any subject for tutoring or help, it doesn't have to be your teacher! You can also follow the QR code below to see the flyer.
UHSFAA - student microgrants
The UHS Foundation and Alumni Association (UHSFAA) seeks to support UHS students, particularly those who are first generation college bound and who are focused on building opportunities for themselves. Through this, the UHSFAA student microgrant is offered for application. Microgrants are awarded to students in need of anything that furthers their educational development. Grants of up to $500 per student per year are available at the discretion of the UHSFAA board of directors and UHS principal, and are based on available funds. Microgrant awards are through application, and can be given for many different kinds of needs: classroom needs including costs associated with internet access, textbooks or personal academic supplies, summer programs, professional education and internship needs, such as travel and public transportation costs, lunch costs, supplies or clothing needs, immunizations, and more. Requests for funding should be for proposals that can be 100% covered by the grant; requests to partially fund larger projects will not be considered. Please provide at least ten days lead time before the funds are needed so the UHSFAA can have adequate time to consider your application.
UHSPA update
We are starting to settle into our roles with UHSPA. Be on the lookout for our November UHSPA Newsletter with information on events and efforts between now and the end of the year! Direct delivery to your email inbox! If you are not signed up to receive our newsletters, click the "Subscribe" link at the bottom of this update :)
Make sure to join us for our monthly meeting on November 19th at 6PM in the RUHS Library. Future meetings will be on the 3rd Tuesday of each month. Please park in the north parking lot off 5th street. Come up the stairs and the door will be unlocked. Turn left inside the doors. The library will be on the left.
- We still have a need for Junior and Senior parents to serve as general members on our board. This is a low time commitment. You will get a couple of emails a month on things like grant requests and will need to review and vote.
- We will be hosting our monthly Grad Night planning meeting after the UHSPA general meeting on 11/19. We will start our active planning. I will be communicating with the planning committee soon. If you would like to join the group, please email UHSPAor show up on 11/19!
Our UHS families have been amazingly supportive of our classroom supply drive. The Wishlist will stay open to reflect current classroom requests. Teachers/ staff please send needed supply requests to UHSPA by email. Anyone shopping on Amazon and wanting to send an item of appreciation to the school can check out our Amazon Wishlist to support our most recent classroom needs.
** Sign Up for Remind- text [student grad year code] to 81010 -- ([student grad year code]: @uhspa2025, @uhspa2026, @uhspa2027, or @uhspa2028) ** Subscribe for communications from UHSPA ** Contact us by email**
Yearbook update
Yearbook Purchasing
The yearbook is discounted to our cost ($65) for a limited time. To make sure to get the lowest price, please purchase your yearbook soon. To purchase, visit the Lifetouch website and our school code is 15096125.
Seniors
What is a senior ad? A senior ad is your very own page in the yearbook to create a tribute for your senior student! See the photo for an example of a senior ad.
Senior ads are a terrific way to show how proud you are of your graduating student and support the Yearbook class. Because we sell the yearbook for cost, this is our fundraiser for supporting yearbook equipment and software. Below is a step-by-step guide on how to purchase a senior ad (tribute). You do not need to complete the tribute page the same day as purchase. When you purchase, you set up an account and you can go back to it later. The page will be due late January.