Welcome to Troy High's 2024-2025 school year! I hope that you are as excited as I am to start this new school year. I have been a proud member of the Troy High community since the 2005/2006 school year. During that time I’ve seen Troy High be a shining example of public education at its very best. We have been working hard this summer so that we can be ready for the highly anticipated first day of school. The first newsletter of the year has always been filled with lots of important information, and this year is no different. I have included information on district annual notices and THS policies and procedures. Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns about any information contained in our September newsletter.

Each school year begins with a wide range of emotions. We are missing our recent graduating class of 2024, while at the same time eagerly greeting and meeting a whole new freshman class (2028). Last year's group of seniors made us extremely proud as they excelled in a wide variety of areas. They succeeded in high school and pushed through any and all challenges. They modeled what it truly means to push yourself to be the best version of oneself. The best way that I can describe their internal drive and push for excellence is “PURE COLT DETERMINATION”! They also embodied our four core character pillars; Resilience, Responsibility, Empathy, and Kindness. These character values plus their P.C.D. allowed us to have another record year as we received countless local, state, national, and international recognition in a variety of areas. Whether it's your first year at Troy High or your last year, I would like to welcome you to our best year yet!

I want to give our families something to ponder as we begin this school year. Sometimes it’s hard to see the day-to-day growth of your own child over the course of 180 school days, and the growth that happens over this four year period of time will truly be remarkable. It has been said that “We don’t grow when things are easy; we grow when we face challenges” (unknown). Let's work together to help your children continue to grow beyond what they initially thought was possible.

We have some changes coming this year to our website, newsletter and weekly communications but I will let you know as those changes happen. For planning purposes I wanted to let you know that I will communicate with you on a regular basis during the course of the school year. Monthly communications will come in the form of these newsletters, and then on a weekly basis via email. These emails are intended to give you the most recent and relevant information so that you can quickly read them and feel well informed on current events.

I wish you and your family a smooth transition from our slower, sunny, summer days to the shorter, quicker, and exciting days of the school year.

Sincerely,

Remo Roncone, Principal

Troy School District: DRESS CODE

The Troy School District expects that all students will dress in a way that is appropriate for the school day or for any school-sponsored event. Student dress choices should respect the District’s intent to sustain a community that is inclusive of a diverse range of identities. The primary responsibility for a student’s attire resides with the student and their parent(s) or guardian(s). The school district is responsible for seeing that student attire does not interfere with the health or safety of any student.

1. Basic Principle/Students Must Wear:

• A Shirt (with opaque fabric – not see-through material - in the front, back, and on the sides under the arms, as well as some form of shoulder strap) AND

• Bottoms (made of opaque material) including pants/jeans or the equivalent (i.e., skirt, sweatpants, leggings, dress, shorts) AND

• Shoes

*Courses that include attire as part of the curriculum (for example, professionalism, public speaking, and job readiness) may include assignment-specific dress but should not focus on covering bodies in a particular way or promoting culturally specific attire. Activity-specific or course-specific shoe requirements are permitted (i.e., athletic shoes for physical education or recess, closed-toe shoes for science, labs, industrial arts, etc.).

2. Students May Not Wear:

• Violent language or images

• Images or language depicting/suggesting drugs, alcohol, vaping or paraphernalia (or any illegal item or activity)

• Body armor, tactical gear, or facsimile

• Hate speech, profanity, pornography

• Any clothing that reveals visible undergarments (visible waistbands and visible straps are allowed)

• Swimsuits (except as required in class or athletic practice)

• Accessories that could be considered dangerous or could be used as a weapon (i.e., Handcuffs or other metal accessories that might be dangerous)

• Any item that obscures the face (except as a religious observance or as personal protective equipment [PPE, such as medical face masks]); hats, hooded sweatshirts, and other head coverings are permitted but must allow the student’s face to be visible to staff and not interfere with the line of sight of any student or staff

Attendance Policy Reminders

To excuse an absence, please call the Attendance Office at 248.823.2701 the day of the absence or the day following the absence. Remember, parents are to call within 24 hours of an absence.

Parents are also requested to call the Attendance Office to check students in and out of school. Please try to schedule student appointments after school hours. Troy High School has a closed campus policy, and students are not allowed to leave or arrive late without checking through the Attendance Office.

Students who are more than five minutes late to a class will be given an absence.

Close Campus Policy

Please be reminded that Troy High has a closed campus policy and students are not to leave during the school day without parent permission. Students who are excused to leave school must check out through the Attendance Office, and when they return, check back into the Attendance Office. Parents, please do not excuse your child to leave campus to go out to lunch.

Student ID Cards

Students are required to carry their picture ID cards during school and at all student activities. The ID cards are distributed at the August orientations. The ID card will be used for identification, to charge student extra lunch, and as a hall pass and library card.

Student Code of Conduct

The Rights & Responsibilities/Code of Student Conduct may be found on the district's website at www.troy.k12.mi.us. It is suggested that both parents and students review this document before the start of the school year. If you do not have access to the internet, please stop by the Troy High Main Office.

Testing Out

Students who believe that they can move faster than the pace of our advanced curriculum have the option of trying to “test out” of a class. While any student can attempt to test out, it is intended for those students who believe they already know the content of the class. Forms and test expectations for specific tests will be available some time in the spring. More details regarding testing out will be communicated in future Troy newsletters.

Early Exam Procedure

Students are expected to be present for their semester final exams. In the event that an emergency situation arises, parents should put in writing to THS principal, Remo Roncone, their request for an early test date. Only significantly compelling or unique situations will provide an early exam to any student without written permission provided by the principal.

Attention Seniors

Seniors should double check graduation status with their counselors particularly if graduation might be in jeopardy. All students are advised not to let up on studies and have their grades drop second semester. Colleges require eighth semester grades for those seniors who have been accepted, and a student's admission status can be jeopardized if his/her grades fall.

Senior Honors Convocation

Eligibility for participation in the Senior Honors Convocation will be determined by final grades reported at the end of the seventh semester. If you have any questions about your status, please see your guidance counselor.

Procedure for Deliveries & Communication with Students

During the School Day

Again this year, we are asking for your cooperation with deliveries to and communication with students.

· If you have an item or message for your student, please drop it off at the Security desk located outside of the Main Office.

· Since guests are not permitted in school, we do not allow siblings, friends, or relatives to visit during the school day or make deliveries to students. All items must be dropped off at the Security desk.

· We cannot allow fast food or take out lunch deliveries from parents, relatives, or friends.

· Absences and early dismissal phone calls should be made as early as possible to provide the greatest amount of time possible for us to call students to the Attendance office to pick up their early dismissal passes.

· Finally, if you have a THS graduate in your household, please advise him/her to make arrangements to visit his/her former teachers and school before or after regular school hours. We will be restricting alumni visits during the regular work day unless special arrangements have been secured in writing by the host teacher.

We appreciate your assistance with these procedures. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact the Main Office for clarification.

Morning Drop-Off Procedures

Please review these important safety procedures regarding drop-off procedures. Please drop-off your student(s) only at the designated drop-off areas. Please do not drop-off your student in a street. Our students’ safety is most important!

Parents use two drop-off loops heading into THS. Here are the specific procedures:

Drop-off #1 (North) Southbound Northfield Parkway traffic will turn right into the main school entrance and drop students off at the main office circle loop. Traffic exiting THS must turn left onto Northfield Parkway and go back toward Long Lake. We are expecting all southbound drop-offs to use this loop exclusively.

Drop-off #2 (South) Northbound Northfield Parkway traffic will turn left into the drop-off loop and drop students off at the south first-floor entry doors. Traffic exiting THS must turn right onto Northfield Parkway and go back toward Wattles. We are expecting all northbound drop-offs to use this loop exclusively.

Parents should NOT use the Long Lake entrance to THS as that entrance is to be used exclusively by student drivers parking in the student lots.

Please consult the site map below with directions and summary of instructions. Thanks for your assistance with the transportation plan on the THS campus.

The Troy Colt Marching Band is off for the 2024-2025 school year! The 177-member band recently returned from a week of Band Camp, where they worked on this year’s show “Dream On.” If you missed the Sneak Preview on August 16, mark your calendars to catch the pre-game festivities and half-time program, which include “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This),” “Dream On,” and “I Dreamed a Dream.” Along with the awesome music, prepare to be wowed by the 2024 Color Guard, at 21 members strong this year. Be sure to mark your calendars for the following dates to come and see this amazing production. Check updates on the Band website for start times at www.troycoltbands.org.

Stay up-to-date with the TC Bands on Facebook (@troycoltbands), Instagram (@troycoltbands), and X (@officialtcbands).

This summer, twenty four Troy High Colts attended the Global Leadership Summit in Berlin, Germany. The students, selected on leadership and outstanding character, travelled to the French Riviera, Switzerland and Berlin exploring the The Impact of Water on Society in attempt to better understand water’s influence on transportation, agriculture, energy, and more. Besides sightseeing in Monaco, taking a gondola ride up to the Swiss Alps, boat riding in Lake Lucern, seeing the Berlin Wall and Brandenburg Gate, the students went to a perfume factory and created their own perfume scent, visited a denim manufacturer learning about the blue jean production relating to water pollution and empowering behavioral change in fashion. These experiences strengthened teamwork and leadership skills that the students brought with them to the summit. Student leader Katrina Zak sums up her experience, “As someone who is terribly afraid of heights, on this trip I stood on the top of the Swiss Alps. As someone who gets anxious about speaking to a large crowd, I was the group member who pitched our prototype to close to 100 people. This trip taught me get uncomfortable, to do the things I was previously avoiding. It inspired me to continuously push myself as afterwards I was rewarded with truly breathtaking views and the satisfaction of presenting my group’s hard work. Teaching me that I am capable of so much more, if I just push myself those couple of extra steps forward.

Bringing their new knowledge and leadership with them they joined 1100 kids from around the world who were studying water’s impact in other European countries. During the summit, students were placed in teams and were charged with solving a global problem related to the theme of water; using design thinking, they ideate and create a prototype to solve their problem. After presenting a one-minute pitch to the judges of their prototype, a winning team is selected by a panel of judges. Shreyan Maini’s prototype “Condensa”and Tia Tonelli’s “Reef Rangers” placed in the top 10 out of 110 teams. Tia shared, “During the summit, I felt so inspired as a teammate. I learned how to work with other’s ideas and mesh all of them to create our final prototype. We brainstormed so many ideas, and as a group, didn’t reject any until the lightbulb went off with the perfect idea. I remember looking at my teammates as we presented in the finals, and we all had so much pride knowing that the work we did the last two days had paid off to get us to this point. It was one of the best experiences of my life.

At the summit, students also attended creative workshops and speaker sessions designed to inspire solutions for world issues surrounding water. They were lucky enough to hear from Gunter Pauli creator of Blue Economy, The Banofi Group, producer of plant based leather, Big Blue and You and plastic free cities, Constanca Santos Silva- Founder of Thirst Project Portugal, Stella Bowles -youngest recipient of the Order of Nova Scotia for her work in the LaHave River clean up and Molly Kawahata -Former White House Climate Advisor for President Obama.

Troy High student, Shreyan Maini auditioned and was selected out of 500 students to introduce Molly Kawahata for the closing session. According to Shreyan, “Introducing Molly was not only an honor, but also a goal; to preface a world renown speaker, and truly see what I hope to become was an experience I will never forget. Speaking in front of an audience that large was a dream and confirmed that I hope to influence just like Molly does.

We are all so proud of these Troy Colts who took on the challenge to become global leaders and represented Troy High so successfully.

Quotes from students on the trip:

From Nicole Gherase:

"You never realize how fast strangers can turn into such wonderful friends that will leave you with a lifetime of memories. It was truly a blessing to be able to be able to experience this trip with other Troy High Students."

From Isa Anderanin:

"What I learned on this trip is such a big impact for me as I am attending Eckerd College in Florida to study Marine Science. I learned firsthand that Europe has much more of a “blue mind” which allows them to feel connected to the water and to protect it for future generations. How lucky I am to bring this minds set back to the United States."

From Sydney Taylor:

"The GLSwas a one in a lifetime experience. I met so many people from across the globe. The trip opened my eyes to travel and also my own capabilities. I learned I can be a leader and come up with useful ideas. It was so fun to become so close with THS kids that I didn’t know before traveling."

From Jake Baker:

"My favorite part of the trip was visiting the Swiss Alps. The view from up there was unlike anything I had ever experienced before … It just made me think about how small our view is in our daily lives. If you get a chance to take this trip… do it … it will change your life!"