Weekly Update

You may not know what you want to do after high school or you may know exactly what you want to do, but we all know that attending school every day gets you closer to achieving your goals. Attending school daily keeps you accountable and practicing skills you will need once you leave high school such as communicating, advocating, and problem-solving, not to mention all the academic material you pick up during your four years at LHS. So Raiders, be here so you can "get there" whatever that "there" may be.

Be sure to check out the Student Spotlight section this month! Our very own Kody Clarke is featured!

Effective communication is critical to the success of St. Mary’s County Public Schools (SMCPS). This will be crucial not only for emergencies but for our ability to communicate with families in general. Online Emergency Information Update Forms are now available through the student’s Home Access Center (HAC). Once logged in, directions to access the online form can be found HERE. A video with instructions is available HERE. It is vital that all information is updated in eSchool. The deadline for the online submission of Emergency Information Update forms is October 31st, 2024. Please click here for the Blank Emergency Form. If you have any questions, please contact The Department of Student Services at 301-475-5511 ext.32150.

LHS Homecoming will be the week of October 14-18. Please review the information below.

Homecoming shirts will be delivered to class sponsors during Homecoming week.

SCHEDULE

• October 02 (Wed) - 16 (Wed): Ticket Sales at 25.00
• October 07-11: Class Meetings during A Lunch in the Stadium. Announcement will be made at the end of 5th.
• 10/07: Freshmen - A Lunch
• 10/08: Sophomores - A Lunch
• 10/09: PSAT Day (No Class Meetings)
• 10/10: Juniors - A Lunch
• 10/11: Seniors - A Lunch
• October 8 - November 8: Harvest Food Drive - donations go to class sponsors; Mr. Byrnes (F19) will collect for the freshmen class due to his location within the LHS main building. Totals are tallied on 10/16 for Spirit Stick points.
• October 14-18: SPIRIT Week (Theme is Celebrate!)
• October 18: Pep Rally (11:35 to 12:45PM). Senior Class Picture is during 5th period.
• October 18: Homecoming Football Game
• October 19: Homecoming Dance - Dance: 7 to 10 PM

HOMECOMING DANCE TICKET INFORMATION

General Information

• Homecoming tickets will go on sale from October 2 through October 16, 2024.

• Tickets are $25.00 each.

• Tickets will be purchased on a first come first serve basis.

• There are 1300 tickets available and approximately 2200 students - you should purchase your tickets early to ensure that you can attend the dance

• TICKETS CANNOT BE TRANSFERRED AFTER PURCHASE

Guest Tickets

• LHS students buying Guest Tickets should wait until the Dance Guest Form paperwork is completed to buy their ticket

• The LHS student will get a promo code for their guest with a completed guest form.

• LHS students must turn in a completed guest form to the LHS financial assistant, Ms. Mushrush, to receive a promo code.

• LHS students should not buy a Guest Ticket for another LHS student. In other words, all Guest Tickets should be non-LHS students.

LHS is seeking 3 senior students to represent for county level selection.

We also need 1 junior student to serve on the county Selection committee.

All interested juniors and seniors should click HERE for more information.

The Leonardtown High School Class of 1994 collected and donated funds to the LHS Class of 2028 to help them start their high school career as a class.

Congratulations to LHS seniors Alyssa Black (first runner up - left) and Azariah Rivers (second runner up - right) in the SMC Fair Queen of Tolerance contest.

Hispanic Heritage Month is celebrated in the US from September 15th to October 15th.

Mrs. Salazar’s classes and the Spanish Honors Society members are making food truck tissue boxes to commemorate this celebration. These food trucks will be gifted to staff members to display in their classrooms or offices to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month. Each food truck/ tissue box will celebrate a Hispanic country. They will highlight their food, culture, and Hispanic Americans' contributions to the US. Distribution will be completed by the Spanish Honors Society more details to follow.

Last Saturday, our Boys Cross Country team Won the Bull Run Invitational!

Our Marching Band has picked up where they left off last year! If you get a chance, come out and see the best band in town! Here are a few highlights from the season so far:

• First place finish at Great Mills, Huntingtown, Patuxent, and Chopticon
• Received caption awards for Best Visual, Best Music, and Best Effect
• 76.9 is highest score to date for this season

Boys and Girls Soccer are still undefeated!

Order a Yearbook

If you are interested in purchasing a yearbook, please visit the Jostens site.

Class of 2025 Senior Portraits

Legacy Studios will be here on the dates below for senior portraits in the auditorium. Please note that these are the last opportunities for senior portraits.

Monday, October 14

Tuesday, October 15

Seniors MUST sign up for an appointment by clicking HERE. Information about different portrait sessions available can be found on the Legacy site. Please note that Legacy does provide the tux, drape, and cap and gown for portraits. Seniors, if you wish to be included in the senior section of the yearbook, you must have your picture taken by Legacy in a tux or drape with a blue background and no props. Portraits that do not meet this requirement will not be included in the senior section of the yearbook.

If you have any questions regarding portraits or sittings, please contact Legacy at 716-512-6336 or customercare@legacystudios.com or yearbook adviser Heather Page at hmpage@smcps.org.

Please note that appointments for future sessions will not open up until the appointments for the current session are booked OR until after the session takes place. For example, October dates will not open until September dates are booked or until after the September portrait sessions have taken place.

We are aware that prices are high for senior portraits, but Legacy’s prices are comparable to other companies in the area that can handle the size of our school. Please consider the cost of portraits when considering which senior portrait sitting to book. Legacy’s price list is linked here.

Fall Sports Team Pictures

Athletes who were photographed have the chance to purchase team and/or individual pictures. Please visit the Legacy website and use code 4572E25. Please note that pictures will not be posted until about two weeks following the picture date to allow for editing and uploading. We appreciate your patience!

Pictures Needed!

We are in need of pictures for the yearbook! Please click here to see specific requests. Please submit your pictures to Photo Share, which links directly to our yearbook account or send them to Mrs. Page. We appreciate your help! Be sure to include the names and the grades of the people in your pictures!

Interested in joining the Wellness Club? Keep an eye out for information about meeting days, times, and room number! The Wellness Club will include activities like yoga and walking and provide helpful nutrition information. More information to be released soon!

MTSS stands for Multi-tiered Systems of Support which promotes school improvement through engaging, research based academic and behavioral strategies/practices. LHS is a Tier I and II school. We are focused on positive behavior and community engagement. Our acronym to teach and exhibit positive behaviors is STRONG.

Please fill out the parent survey below help us improve MTSS at LHS. Make sure to include your child's name and ID # so they can receive STRONG Bucks.

In order to assist current students with attaining CCR status, we are going to allow student to take (if they are exempt via the awarding of a transfer credit) or retake (if they failed to achieve a PL of 3 or 4) the Algebra 1 and/or ELA10 MCAP. If a student needs to test/re-test, they should reach out to their school counselor to sign up. This should be done by November 8.

Need new Raider apparel??? Check out our new school store at www.leonardtownspiritwear.com

Pick your clothing, choose a design, and it will be shipped directly to your house. Check weekly for new sale items!

Need help finding out where to go for lunch? Click the button above to see open classrooms and club offerings for each day of the week.

Use this document to plan where you will go for lunch each day!

24-25 Weekly Tutoring Schedule

Monday - World Languages/PE/CTE

Tuesday - English

Wednesday - Science

Thursday - Math/Visual Arts/Theatre

Friday - Social Studies/Music

Need to study during lunch? Sign up for the media center for A Or B lunch By clicking on this link. Save it to your computer to sign up each day for a scholarly opportunity to get work done. You can always visit https://elibrary.smcps.org for resources.

We welcome you to incorporate physical activity into your day and join us in the gym for lunch. Completion of this form is a requirement for gym entry. Students are permitted to sign up for only one lunch block (either A or B). Students are expected to enter the gym through the side door adjacent to the girls locker room and be in the gym before the 10 minute bell. Students unlawfully tardy will be redirected to the cafeteria. Students are expected to remain in the gym, omit food or drink and have tennis shoes to be on the gym surface. Click the button below to sign up for the gym.

Parents who are dropping students off at school in the morning should use the parking lot lane closest to the building. Please do not park in in a space and wait to drop your student off. Unfortunately, parking is very limited for both students and staff. Utilizing extra parking spaces for this purpose can create an issue where there is nowhere for staff or student drivers to park. Additionally, please do not drive down the middle parking lot lane in order to drop a student at school. We appreciate your help!

ACCEPTABLE USE POLICY 24-25

Students will need permission to use Google's Additional Services. Please click on the links below.

The AUP is linked here as well as the information Specific to Google.

Technology related questions? Need tech help? Click the button below for more information.

Students, please make sure your laptop is charged each day. Bring your charger to school in case your battery runs out.

Need to purchase a laptop charger?

You can do one of two things:

1. Go the the Media Center in your School. They can assess you a fine so that you can pay using My School Bucks.
2. Go directly to the DELL store. You can purchase directly from their website and have it shipped to your home.

Ensure one of these links are being used:

www.dell.com/mpp/smcps (click Shop Recommended Solutions to get to the discounted power cords)

www.dell.com/mpp/smcps-chargers (leads directly to the purchasing portal)

More helpful links for technology can be found at the bottom of the newsletter!

Parents, if your student is new to LHS and you still do not have access to Schoology, please contact Ms. Smith (krsmith@smcps.org).

As you know, SMCPS has been focusing on reinforcing the school cell phone policy, which requires that all cell phones be turned off and kept out of sight during the school day. This means no cell phones or Bluetooth headphones/earbuds are permitted to be used (they cannot be visible) in classrooms or in the hallways/bathrooms between classes.

We want to make sure students and parents/guardians have a clear understanding of cell phone expectations.

1. At the start of 1st period, all cell phones are required to be turned off and stored away, out of sight. This includes Bluetooth headphones/earbuds.

2. Cell phones & headphones will need to remain turned off and stored away, out of sight, until the start of lunch. This includes between classes, in hallways, and bathrooms.

3. During lunch, students will be permitted to use their cell phones in accordance with the SMCPS student handbook.

4. At the end of lunch and the start of 7th period, all cell phones are required to be turned off and stored away, out of sight. This includes Bluetooth headphones/earbuds.

5. Cell phones & headphones will need to remain turned off and stored away, out of sight until the 2:45 (the dismissal bell). This includes between classes, in hallways, and bathrooms.

Watch the video message (below) from Dr. Scott Smith, Superintendent of Schools.

Due to safety concerns and the demands on the main office, we do not accept food deliveries of any kind. Thank you for your cooperation and understanding.

• Here Comes the bus
• Bus Routes
• Bus Stop change-request form
• Transportation Forms

Bus passes should only be requested when students have a change in physical address or when there is an emergency situation and a student needs to ride a different bus or get off at a different stop. Bus passes will not be granted for students simply wanting to go visit with a friend.

Need to obtain a bus pass?

Visit this site to submit a request electronically, or parents can write a note or send an email to Ms. Revis at btrevis@smcps.org. All relevant information must be included in the written request.

Bus Information includes: Student name, address, parent phone number, existing bus stop to be used, bus #, date, medical concerns, destination address, destination phone # and reason for the pass.

Website: https://schools.smcps.org/lhs/
Location: 23995 Point Lookout Rd, Leonardtown, MD 20650, USA
Phone: 301-475-0200
Twitter: @LHS_SMCPS