Raider Nation Newsletter

Week of January 4, 2021

Happy New Year!

Dear Atholton Families,

I hope this newsletter finds you rested and well-prepared to take on the new year. Let’s hope that this year is the beginning of us returning to some sense of normalcy. As many of us start this new year with resolutions, I want to start with a wish that our students will be back in the building before Spring Break! Let’s keep our fingers crossed!

As we all know, the pandemic has brought hard times on many in our community. I was so thrilled when members of the Principal’s Advisory Committee reached out to me to discuss ways in which they could help those in need. As a result, Atholton is partnering with the Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday Commission to participate in their second annual Howard County Food Drive. Here is where you come in -- starting tomorrow January 4, bins will be placed in the vestibule of the school for community members to drop off canned food items. This food drive will take place from January 4 - January 13. You may drop off items between the hours of 8 a.m. and 3 p.m. Please see the flyer below. We hope to be able to provide the MLK Holiday Commission with a busload of food supplies to help families in Howard County. We are in the process of setting up an Amazon Wishlist and will send out that information very soon. In the meantime, please take a few minutes to drop off much needed canned food items at school to help those in our community.

A reminder that we are in the midst of the registration process for next school year. This Wednesday evening, January 6 is our Scheduling Night. This is an opportunity for parents and students to learn about programs of study at Atholton High School. Learn about electives and get information on honors and GT level courses and map out courses for the upcoming school year. Our teachers will be on hand to discuss course selections for next year and answer any questions you may have. Information may be found on our website at www.ahs.hcpss.org. Please see the importation information (including due dates) below.

Lastly, there were some changes made to the school calendar for the last week of this month. Please make note of these changes:

January 25 -- Regular School Day (Full Day Schedule)

January 26 — Full Day schedule. PSAT administration at AHS for Juniors ONLY (must have already registered)

January 27 — Follow the regular asynchronous schedule

January 28 — Early Dismissal Schedule

January 29 -- NO SCHOOL for Students. Teacher Work Day

Once again, Happy New Year, and have a wonderful week!

Robert A. Motley

Principal

Scheduling & Registration Process

Course registration for students grades 8 - 11 will open Monday, December 21, 2020, for the 2021-2022 academic year. Students and their parents/guardians may review their teachers’ course recommendations, select their electives, and submit if necessary a Course Placement Review form through HCPSS Connect (Synergy) via the student log-in. All course requests and alternates must be submitted by Friday, January 15, 2021.

Each student must select 7 courses and 4 alternates. Alternate courses are just as important as the 7 other courses. The first alternate will be used as an 8th course in the event we stay in the 4x4 Model. It can also be used as a replacement for a course that was not able to fit in the students’ schedule. HCPSS is scheduled to return to a 7-period day next school year. Please add appropriate alternate courses in priority order and without duplicates.

All Course Placement Review (CPR) submissions will go through a review process. The Course Placement Review request must be submitted electronically through HCPSS Connect (Synergy) via the parent login. Requests received by January 15, 2021, will be given consideration prior to finalizing courses, and requests received after this date will be accommodated if space is available.

Dates to Remember

January 6, 2021, 6:30pm – Scheduling Night (more details to follow)

January 7, 2021, 7:00pm – ARL Career Academy Virtual Information Session

January 15, 2021 – Deadline for making course requests

January 6–February 17, 2021- High School counselors will schedule virtual course registration appointments with all students. Students will be notified of the appointment date/time via Office 365 Email and Canvas. It is critical that each student attend their appointment to ensure that course selections are complete and their progress towards graduation.

Helpful Links

FlexTime Presentation

HCPSS Scheduling Video

AHS Electives Video

Course Request Entry Instructions

Course Placement Review Instructions

HCPSS Connect Guides

SENIORS -- GRADUATION REQUIREMENT

Parents....please help us in assuring that our seniors complete this VERY important graduation requirement:

One of the requirements to graduate is the World of Workpiece (resume and mock interview). As you may remember, seniors completed the resume through their English 11 classes last year. They were not able to complete the mock interview as it was supposed to take place last March. Instead of an interview this year, ALL SENIORS will need to complete a post-secondary statement.