Website: https://phs.piedmont.k12.ca.us/
Location: 800 Magnolia Ave, Piedmont, CA 94611
Phone: (510) 594-2626 | Instagram: @piedmonthigh
Parent Newsletter: Archives
2024-25 School Profile | Bell Schedule (Regular)
Road to Graduation | Yearbook Info
College & Career Newsletter | Athletic Newsletter
Principal: Dr. Yoshihara
Assistant Principal: Mr. Marik
SAT ordering is now live! Please go to the school store and place your order.
PHS/MHS will host an in-person SAT administration on Monday March 17th, 2025. This will be a digital exam and students will need to use their school issued chromebooks. This exam administration will be for rising 11th and 12th graders.
Cost of the exam is $70. If you have any questions, please reach out to Mr. Marik.
Mark your calendars! Our annual Career Day is set for Friday, February 28, 2025, and we need your help to make it a success.
We're looking for parents, alumni, and community members who are willing to spend a morning sharing their work experiences with our high school students as a presenter. Whether you're in tech, healthcare, the trades, arts, business, or any other field – if you're passionate about what you do, consider sharing that passion with curious students!
What does it mean to be a presenter at Career Day?
- The overall time commitment is approximately 1-2 hours of preparation in advance, and then 2 hours on the day of the event (Friday, Feb 28)
- On the day of the event, after a brief orientation, presenters will give two back-to-back 25-minute presentations to two separate groups of students during the Academy period (approximately 10:15 - 11:15).
- Presentations typically include information about the presenter's education/training, high level overview of their career path, what a typical day includes, and opportunity for student Q&A.
- Presenters will be provided with guidance and tools to create their presentations.
Interested in participating? Please complete our brief Google Form no later than January 10, 2025.
As we aim to represent a wide range of careers and industries, we may not be able to accommodate all volunteers this year. However, we deeply appreciate every response and will confirm speaking opportunities with selected presenters.
You'll hear much more about plans, including some new activities related to Career Day in the coming weeks.
Thank you for helping our students explore their future possibilities!
Computer Science Education Week (CS Ed Week December 9th-13th) is a vital opportunity to celebrate the importance of computer science in shaping the future and empowering students with essential skills for the digital age. At Piedmont and Millennium high schools, every student engages in computer science by taking at least one semester of CS, ensuring a foundation in this critical field.
This year, our focus is on exploring artificial intelligence (AI) in many classes, with both teachers and students participating in meaningful discussions and hands-on activities that highlight AI’s impact on various subjects and everyday life. By celebrating CS Ed Week, we are fostering innovation, creativity, and an understanding of how technology drives change. We have also received an award for female diversity in AP CS from the College Board. In 2023.
More information on CS Ed Week 2024 and for Hour of Code activities for all ages and interests, go to: https://www.csedweek.org
This event has now been confirmed for December 17. We will start promptly at 6:30 pm in the Alan Harvey Theater with the screening. The film is approximately 90 minutes. We will open with a few words from the Director/Executive Producer, Vicki Abeles.
This will be a community-wide event hosted by PHS (with generous support from PEF and our parent clubs) open to all. "Counted Out investigates the biggest crises of our time—political polarization, racial and economic inequity, a global pandemic, and climate change—through an unexpected lens: math."
We know math is everywhere. We do a great job with literacy. We want to do just as well with numeracy. Math is a language. This is the film. Math proficiency should not go down as students grow up.
We will be one of the first to host a screening of the film, and we plan to do a panel discussion afterwards with the director and others in the greater Bay Area. The audience will be given the opportunity to ask questions during this time as well. Vicki Abeles directed Race to Nowhere and Beyond Measure, reaching millions of viewers by focusing on social impact.
This event is FREE to our community and we ask that you please RSVP below. Thank you.
Join us at the Alan Harvey Theater this December for two exciting performances showcasing the talent of PHS instrumental music students!
Tuesday, December 10th at 7:00 p.m.
The evening kicks off with a combined Winter Concert featuring the PMS & PHS Orchestras. Under the direction of second-year music teacher Trevor Meseroll, the PHS Orchestra will perform works by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov and Camille Saint-Saëns, an Appalachian piece, and Reflection from Disney’s Mulan.
Thursday, December 12th at 7:00 p.m.
The spotlight shifts to the PHS Symphonic Band and PHS Jazz Band, who will present an exciting lineup of music. The program will include jazz standards by John Coltrane and Sammy Nestico, as well as a compilation of songs from popular musicals. In addition, selected small student combos will also perform during the concert.
Admission:
To help offset concert expenses, we suggest a $5.00 donation for adults at the door. Students attend for free. We hope to see you there to support our talented students and enjoy an evening of great music!
Interesting in being a crossing guard? Perhaps you are retired or have a job that allows you flexibility? Piedmont loves our crossing guards (shout out to Valerie), and we know the community could use more.
You only work on school days and training is provided. Crossing guards earn $20/hr. If you work borth the morning shift (1 hour) and afternoon shift (1 hour), you get an extra hour ($60 total).
For more information, please reach out to Art at (650) 922-8374, text "kidssafe" to 22100, or visit this link.
Our library has a new printer for student use! Thanks Jana for all the behind-the-scenes work to make this happen.
PHS purchased a new printer for student's emergency print needs. It prints back-to-back and in black and white by default. If students wish to print in color, they need to let the library staff know how many pages and for what purpose before they can print in color. Be kind to our new printer. Use it sparingly and with care, but know this is for our students.
The district welcomes a new BCBA (Board Certified Behavior Analyst), Ms. Ebony Walker. She is a local (from Oakland) and has been in the field for over five years. She is an animal lover, outgoing, ambitious, friendly, and can be dramatic. She also has a heart full of gold.
Her office will in the 20's building across from the counseling office. If you see her, please give her a Highlander welcome.
We have had some students ask about getting a second lunch at our Student Center. The short answer is "yes", but it is nuanced.
Students can get a second lunch but if there is a line out the door for hot dogs, staff and volunteers may say, "No seconds on hot dogs until everyone has their first, but you can buy a pizza". Generally, we want to make sure everyone can have their first choice on their first meal--we know this doesn't always happen. Students can almost always buy a salad or sandwich as the second meal, even if they are coming through the line the first time, as we have extra of those.
And of course, students can have as much fruits and veggies as they want. The salad bar is full service and usually includes a prepared salad, so a that a student can get a first choice in the line and then get a full salad at the salad bar.
For brunch, because the time frame for that is so much shorter, we are not able to accommodate second servings. You can still load up on fruit though and take a milk each day. Want an extra milk? Sure, we offer those for $0.50.
Our nutrition services director, Gitara Spinks, is very open to ideas and ways to improve the food experience of our students. She has tried new meal options, and we are always looking at ways to get students through the line quickly with food that is filling and tastes good too.
Interested in knowing more about the district's new Independent Study program? Contact your school counselor to learn more!
Independent Study is:
- A voluntary, full-time program for high school students.
- Credits are earned through the completion of online courses monitored by a designated teacher.
- Courses are UC and NCAA approved.
- An option for students who can work independently and thrive with online courses.
The Piedmont Education Foundation (PEF) has launched an exciting participation challenge as part of this year’s Giving Campaign! Our goal is to raise $4 million, and this year, every family’s participation counts toward something special. If we reach 75% participation from Piedmont Unified School District families, the entire town will celebrate with a community-wide pajama day!
Watch the Giving Meter in the center of town to track our progress. Imagine our entire community in PJs, celebrating our united support for our schools.
PEF encourages everyone to contribute, no matter the amount. Let’s come together to make a positive impact and show our commitment to education.
Stay Updated:
Follow the “Pop Up Participation” Giving Meter’s progress in the heart of town, and let’s reach our goal together!
Make a Difference Today:
For more information or to donate, please visit www.piedmontedfoundation.org/donate.
Students will soon need to either have an ASB sticker or purchase tickets in advance to enter winter sports. Families/students were able to purchase an ASB membership since the start of the school year, although the systems to support this were not in place. As such, any student, with a valid ID was able to enter fall home games.
We are finalizing the procedures now to check for those that have purchased ASB membership. Students who have proof of this, vis-a-vis a sticker provided by the school, will be allowed into all home games. Other student may purchase single day tickets or purchase an ASB sticker that will allow them into home games for the rest of the school year.
A reminder to all that counselors and the Wellness Center are here for any students.
You can drop in, make an appointment, refer yourself to Wellness Center or come in and just take a short break.
We know as finals approach, busy holidays are coming up, and many are working through grief from the loss of our young community members, this is a stressful and anxious time.
Take care of yourself and one another!
Finals:
One more week and then finals week! Tips and ideas to be ready:
- Review Schoology and asks questions earlier than later about assignments
- Retakes? If a teacher is offering retakes, please make sure you are aware of the last day for any retakes.
- Teachers will go over what finals will look like next week.
- Please be sure that you know what you will be tested on for the final and where to find study materials.
- Form a study group!
- The library is open for the full day Wednesdays and Fridays. Stay on campus to have some quiet study time.
- And get some sleep and eat well before your finals!
We are here for you!
This week's student is Nicholas (Nick) Tam. We start off by having staff share some thoughts on Nick.
Nick has so many great qualities. He is one of the most diligent and dedicated students in class. I've only known him since the beginning of the semester, but he has made quite a big impression. He approaches all of his classwork like someone who is honing a craft; he's good at it and is driven by a need to get to the next level. He often finishes assignments early but they are never incomplete; instead of rushing through English to start on his homework for other classes, Nick regularly asks for a follow ups and for me to check on his writing to see what he can improve. He asks questions, stays curious, and brings positive energy to class every day. I'm jealous! He gives me a fist bump every day and always wants to know what we are doing for the period, and he's always up for a challenge. After basketball practice, he showed up to my room one night while I was with the debate club. I thought he had forgotten something in the room, but he just wanted to say hi and tell me how much he likes the class. He's such a nice kid!
And from Nick himself:
- So far this year, what has been your most memorable experience? I conquered my fear of roller coasters by going on VelociCoaster at Universal in Florida. Now I love roller coasters.
- If you were to describe PHS to someone who is thinking about coming, what would you say to them? I would tell them that PHS has great teachers and staff along with a great community of people.
- If you were in charge at PHS, what is one action you might take to make it better? I would add more courses that teach real life skills such as cooking, public speaking and more classes related to business.
- If you could share one sentence with your parents/guardians, what would you say? "Thank you for guiding me for all of my life and being the people I can always count on no matter what."
- What is your favorite word? Basketball
- What is your favorite song? I don't really have a favorite song but my favorite type of music genre is hip hop.
- What is your favorite food? Salmon
- Can you share a photo of something from your summer and why it is special to you? My family and I have been going to Hawaii for the past few summers. We have been trying to hit a different island each time. This picture is from Kauai. It's special to me because I'm able to create amazing memories with my family. It's also fun to experience the breathtaking scenery of Hawaii and to swim in its clear blue water.
Thanks to all those that participated in the Highlander Trivia question last week. The competition was fierce and I was surprised that a few people got the correct answer.
The question last week was: According to the official program for Highlander Football, which team did we play on November 4, 1949?
We had a number of great guesses although the first correct answer came from Ines R. Ines, please come by the main office and claim your prize.