A Message from the Principal...
The month of May in a school brings many emotions. There is excitement of reaching the finish line of many goals set throughout the year. Some may be anxious about accomplishing everything that needs to get done. Experiences shared bring both happiness and sadness with the celebrations and goodbyes had as many move on to another stage of life or opportunity. Whatever the emotion, it's our experiences in life that shape us into our future selves. I encourage you to feel it, live it, and support one another. Trust that the future is truly whatever you make of it!
As we all finish up the 2020-21 school year, I want to share my gratitude to all of the students, families, and staff of West High School. My experiences as principal this year will have a forever impact on me. I have learned so much along the way, and will continue to do my best to support our wonderful and amazing school!
Congratulations to all of of 2021 graduates! I am so proud of you!! Best wishes in your journey ahead!!!
#WeAreWEST!
Sincerely,
-Ms. Rebecca Rieken
March Staff Members of the Month
Congratulations to our March Staff Members of the Month the West High Office Team!
This group of staff members are incredibly welcoming to all who enter our building. Students and staff speak so highly of this group and all the hard work they do. They do everything with a smile on their faces and look for the joy in daily tasks. They brighten up West High and truly deserve some recognition this year!
The next time you see Ms. Olson, Ms. Ramirez, Ms. Ngo, Ms. Denny, Ms. Angerman, Ms. Sands, Ms. Miller, Ms. Larson, Ms. Church, Ms. Carm, or Ms. Bernard, make sure to tell them congratulations and THANK YOU for all they do for West High!
We are proud to announce that West High School junior, Kenny Lam, has been recognized as a National Merit Finalist in the 2021 National Merit Scholarship Program. Kenny was selected for demonstrating distinguished performance and high potential for future academic accomplishment.
According to the National Merit Scholarship Corporation, more than 1.5 million juniors in approximately 21,000 high schools entered the 2021 National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the 2019 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®), which served as an initial screen of program entrants. The nationwide pool of Semifinalists, representing less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors, included the highest-scoring entrants in each state.
Finalists were selected from a pool of approximately 16,000 Semifinalists. National Merit Scholarship winners will be announced from this group of Finalists in four nationwide news releases beginning in April and concluding in July.
Every Finalist will compete for one of 2,500 National Merit® $2500 Scholarships that will be awarded on a state representational basis. Roughly 1,000 corporate-sponsored Merit Scholarship awards will be provided by close to 220 corporations and business organizations for Finalists who meet their specified criteria, such as children of the grantor’s employees or residents of communities where sponsor plants or offices are located. In addition, approximately 180 colleges and universities are expected to finance some 4,100 college-sponsored Merit Scholarship awards for Finalists who will attend the sponsor institution.
Scholarship recipients will join more than 353,000 other distinguished young people who have earned the Merit Scholar title.
NMSC, a not-for-profit organization that operates without government assistance, was established in 1955 specifically to conduct the annual National Merit Scholarship Program. Scholarships are underwritten by NMSC with its own funds and by approximately 400 business organizations and higher education institutions that share NMSC’s goals of honoring the nation’s scholastic champions and encouraging the pursuit of academic excellence.
For more information on the National Merit Scholarship Program visit https://www.nationalmerit.org/s/1758/start.aspx?gid=2&pgid=61.
Counselor's Corner
West High School is proud to share that a member of our West High counseling staff, Ms. Bernie Scolaro, was recently selected as a finalist for the ACAC (Iowa Association for College Admission Counselor) 2020 Counselor of the of the Year!
ACT-
Any student requesting more information about summer ACT opportunities, please contact Ms. Myers: myersa@live.siouxcityschools.com
2021-2022 Student Schedules-
During the summer, watch your student email account for more information regarding when 2021-2022 student schedules will be available.
Attention Seniors-
CAP & GOWN-
For all questions related to cap and gown ordering, please contact Ms. Angela Bernard, or visit with her in the freshman house office: bernara@live.siouxcityschools.com
PROM-
West High School will host prom this year on Saturday, May 15th at the Sioux City Convention Center. The theme will be "A Dance in the Clouds, A Night Full of Wonder".
-Grand March will also be held at the Sioux City Convention Center from 7:00pm-8:00pm, with student check-in beginning at 6:30pm. Grand March will be shared through Facebook Live via the WHS Facebook page.
-The dance will follow from 8:00pm-10:00pm. Mr. Patterson will be the DJ at this event.
AFTER PROM-
-Parents & Students, please contact Kat Pendleton for all questions related to After Prom:
SENIOR AWARDS NIGHT-
West High School will honor senior achievements on Wednesday, May 26th in the WHS Gym beginning at 7:00pm for seniors who have earned a cumulative 3.0 and above, or who are receiving a special award. They will receive an invitation in the mail to attend this event. To practice social distancing, each senior student invited will be given 6 guest tickets for this event, and those tickets will be included with the mailed invitation. Students will need to arrive early for check in beginning at 6:00pm. This event will be shared through Facebook Live via the WHS Facebook page.
LAST DAY FOR SENIORS-
Friday, May 21st.
SENIOR SEMESTER TEST SCHEDULE AND LAPTOP CHECK-IN PROCEDURES-
Wednesday, May 19 – B Day Testing 3rd & 4th (Regular Bell schedule)* & Laptop Check-In
Thursday, May 20 – A Day Testing 1st, 2nd, 3rd & 4th (Regular Bell schedule)* & Laptop Check-In
Friday, May 21 – B Day Testing 1st & 2nd (Regular Bell schedule)* & Laptop Check-In
Friday, May 21 – Test Make-Up 3rd & 4th (last day to make-up tests)* & Laptop Check-In
Friday, May 21 – All Senior Grades are due by 4:00pm
*Students will need to check-in their laptops as soon as they have finished with their final test.
- Students must remain in class during all testing periods; no early releases
- There will be no early testing, no exceptions
- Students need to schedule make-up times for missed tests the week of June 2– June 11.
SUGGESTIONS-
1. If you are corresponding with anyone using your district email account, start transitioning those conversations to a new email address (one of your own choosing). Your district email account will disappear following graduation.
2. If you have files saved in your Office 365 OneDrive that you would like to have after graduation, now is the time to start downloading those files to another storage area (Google Drive, flashdrive, Dropbox—you choose). Your Office 365 account will disappear as well.
3. If you have stickers/drawings/tape/whatever applied to your district laptop, now is the time to start removing and cleaning up your laptop.
4. If you have misplaced your charger, now would be a really good time to revisit your teachers and ask if they might have found one. I would also suggest looking under car seats, sofas, beds and behind the stack of last years’ shoes in your closet.
5. If you have an actual textbook checked out from a teacher, you will need to return that textbook to that teacher. If it is a Career Academy teacher, you will need to make arrangements to take the book to the Career Academy.
6. Library books and fees must be taken care of before you leave WHS. You can do that during homeroom, before and after school, and any time where testing is not going on. Fees can be processed in the main office.
GRADUATION PRACTICE-
All graduating seniors are asked to be present at the Tyson Events Center on Friday, May 28th at 10:00am to practice for graduation.
GRADUATION CEREMONY-
As scheduled, the West High School’s commencement ceremony will be held at the Tyson Events Center on Saturday, May 29 at 2:30 p.m. To make this event possible, we do have some added safety precautions built into our plans for this year. All guests, staff, and graduates will be required to wear a mask. To allow for social distancing, capacity is limited. Each student will be given four tickets to share with family and friends. Students must safeguard these tickets, as replacements will not be provided if tickets are lost or misplaced. Only graduates, staff involved in the ceremonies, and ticket holders will be permitted to enter the Tyson Events Center.
Seniors may pick up their four tickets for commencement from Mrs. Church, Counseling Secretary, in the Main Office on Monday, May 17. If additional tickets are needed, please leave your name with Mrs. Church and if tickets are still available closer to the event, students will be contacted.
To allow all family and friends an opportunity to participate in the celebration, we will live stream the ceremony. The link for the live stream will be available on the District website (siouxcityschools.org) as May 29 approaches.
End of the School Year Information
The last day of school for students is Tuesday, June 1st:
Students in grades 9, 10, 11:
Thursday, 5/27 – Testing 3rd and 4th blocks
Friday, 5/28 – Testing All Day
Tuesday, 6/1 – Testing 1st and 2nd blocks with computer check-in procedures and make-up work to follow.
Grades Due: June 1 at 4:00 PM.
Activities Update
The activities office wants to make sure everyone has the open gym and weight room schedule for the upcoming summer. We also want to note that there will be a student/family non-activity week from July 25th through August 1st. Since the students cannot have open gym or be at school facilities, this is a great opportunity for a vacation and get away to recharge. We look forward to any questions you have and working with all of you in the future!
Please congratulate the 2021-2022 Student Council and the new Officers!!
Valeria Alcala................ Maya Augustine
Patrick Baughman........ Sophia Becerra
Yesenia Cisneros.......... Holly Duax
Kiley Elgert.................... Kinsey Elgert
Iris Englehardt............... Audrey Enszer
Antonio Ferraro............. Abby Hammer
Ian Ivener-Hansen........ Jacy Jackson
Adela Juarez................. Lily Juhnke
Kenny Lam.................... Daisy Munoz
Rosie Narcia................. Bethzy Nicolas
Sumeyo Noor............... Amy Orellana
Alejandra Payes.......... Jadyn Perez
Zoey Riessen............... Anh Tran
Mahogany Vanpelt...... Eneyda Vazquez
Brooklyn Wauhob........ Alexis Winkel
Officers:
President: Holly Duaz
Vice President: Abby Hammer
Sargeant at Arms: Eneyda Vazquez
Secretary: Kenny Lam
Historian: Iris Engelhardt
Social Media: Maya Augustine
Summer School Information
When:
June 7-July 2nd, Monday-Friday, 8:15-12:35
*Lunch will be served from 12:15-12:35
Who:
-Students needing credit remediation or recovery in all content areas.
-School counselors and administration will be contacting students and families regarding requested attendance at summer school as the school year comes to an end.
What:
-Students will be given the opportunity to earn credit in failing or failed courses.
-Summer School will focus on all courses with failing grades.
Parent Connect
The West High administration team invites parents and guardians to connect with them so we can partner with you as we guide your students to success. We are available Monday through Friday from 7:00am to 5:00pm. Please call West High School to schedule an appointment, or email the grade level administrator directly:
West High School, 712-279-6772
12th grade, Rebecca Rieken, principal- riekenr@live.siouxcityschools.com
11th grade, Allan Pace, assistant principal- pacea@live.siouxcityschools.com
10th grade, Brant Bemus, assistant principal- bemusb@live.siouxcityschools.com
9th grade, Steven Green, assistant principal- greens@live.siouxcityschools.com
Common CANVAS Home Page
If a student is absent, or will be gone for an extended absence, it is our hope that this common design will assist student and families as they access the activities and assignments that were assigned when the student was not able to attend class. If a student falls behind, they can also search back through archived weeks to locate assignments that are past due.
Attention Students Learning Via Edgenuity
Any student learning remotely via an Edgenuity course must complete all tests before the end of the semester in order to receive credit for the course.
Virtual students need to make arrangements with Mr. Bemus to take their tests onsite. Night school hours are available for students who do not want to visit campus during normal school hours.
Night School hours are:
Tuesdays & Thursdays, 3:00-7:00
Wednesdays, 3:00-5:00
Night School is located in the WHS Media Center. For any questions related to Edgenuity courses, please contact Mr. Bemus: bemusb@live.siouxcityschools.com
West High Employment Opportunities
West High School is currently seeking interested and qualified staff for the following employment opportunities:
- Compass Academy Classroom Special Education Instructional Assistant
- Spanish Teacher
- English Language Arts Teacher- Drama Endorsement Preferred
For more information about these positions, please contact Ms. Rieken: riekenr@live.siouxcityschools.com
To apply, please visit:
Closed Campus
All SCCSD high schools operate closed campuses. This means that students are not allowed to leave campus unless they are scheduled out of the building, or unless they are attending an off-campus class.
Students are not allowed to bring outside food back into the building, and students are not allowed to have outside food delivered. Food that is delivered will be held until after school for pick up.
After School Tutoring, Night Shool, & Saturday School
After school tutoring, Night School, and Saturday School are all located in the WHS Media Center.
After school tutoring-
Tuesdays, Wednesdays, & Thursdays 3:00-5:00
Night school-
Tuesdays 3:00-7:00
Wednesday 3:00-5:00
Thursday 3:00-7:00
Saturday School will take place every Saturday from 9:00-12:00, there are two remaining dates for this school year:
Saturday, May 15
Saturday, May 22
West High School Food Pantry & Clothing Closet
The West High School Food Pantry & Clothing Closet is available to meet the needs the West side community. We can assist families with meals, clothing, toiletries, and some household goods. We are limiting building access at this time, but would be happy to prepare a pick-up order to meet your needs. Please call West High School with any requests, 712-279-6772, or email Mr. Van Buren: vanburm1@live.siouxcityschools.com
Health & Safety Reminders
Please keep students home and contact West High School if:
- student is experiencing symptoms related to COVID
- student is awaiting the results of a COVID test
- student has been exposed to someone in the home who has tested positive for COVID
- student has been in close contact (less than 6 feet for more than 15 minutes) with someone who has tested positive for COVID and they were not wearing a mask during that time
Masks are Required
All students, staff, and guests entering the building must be wearing a mask or face covering that covers both the mouth and nose at all times. If someone needs assistance with obtaining a mask, please communicate those needs with the school.
Administration will be contacting parents/guardians regarding any student who does not come to school prepared with a mask or shield. Students who repeatedly come to school without a mask or shield, or who do not comply with these expectations, may be sent home.
Community Resources
The District is committed to connecting our students and families to important community resources. View a comprehensive list of local services including information about food access, housing assistance, and mental and physical health resources. Learn more: https://www.siouxcityschools.org/community-resources-in-sioux-city/
Let's Talk
An engaged community makes our District stronger. That is why we have made it easy for you to connect with us whenever it is convenient for you. We encourage you to take advantage of Let’s Talk!, our 24/7 online submission site. Reach out with your ideas, questions, concerns, and praise. To make a submission, please visit http://www.siouxcityschools.org/lets-talk/.
Communication and Preparedness
Student and staff safety is of paramount importance in the Sioux City Community School District. For this reason, the District exercises a host of crisis prevention and planning tactics. Should an emergency occur, the school notifies you through our Blackboard phone system. In an emergency, the system calls every phone number associated with your child in order to reach you. The message will give you details about the emergency and provide directions on when/where to pick up your child if the normal school day is altered. Learn more about school safety.
Focus 2022 Strategic Plan
West High School
Principal: Rebecca Rieken
Website: https://www.siouxcityschools.org/west-high-school/
Location: 2001 Casselman Street, Sioux City, IA, USA
Phone: 712-279-6772
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SiouxCityWestHighSchool/
Twitter: @WHS_Activities
