A Message From the Principal
The conclusion of 3rd
quarter represents for many students, the “home stretch.” Seniors in particular view these remaining
days with mixed emotions, from joyful glee and giddiness to complete anxiousness. It is the realization, as their class motto
states, “Life brings us tears, smiles, and memories—the tears dry, the smiles
fade, but the memories last forever.”
As I seem to say every year to parents, help your student keep his or
her focus all the way to the end.
Academic clubs and teams are
entering their final months of competition.
Clubs that compete on an academic level include SkillsUSA, BPA, FFA, and
FCLA. All of these vocational clubs
apply lessons learned in the classroom at regional, state, and national competitions. Watch for results in the local papers. The science club is preparing for their fourth
robotics competition and past lessons have formed new strategies for
success. BPA is gearing up to take 30
plus students to nationals in Reno and have a number of fund raisers planned to
cover expenses. We would like to thank
the community for your ongoing and generous support of our many academic and
non-academic activities for students. On
a final note, vocational departments will host their annual Spring Exhibit May 8-9,
2008 in the high school gym.
Again, as we begin the final
quarter of school, I would ask parents to remain aware of grades on a weekly
basis, especially for seniors. If you have computer access, please email
teachers and use the PASS system to check grades. Tutorial assistance is
available every Monday-Thursday from 3:30 to 6:00 p.m. in the computer lab for
any student needing extra help with homework.
With “Spring Fever” around the corner, please stay in touch if you have
concerns or questions.
Sincerely
Daniel T. Farr, Principal
Building Projects – Summer 2008
Sidney High School will again be in the process of
making several improvements to facilities this summer and the following is a
brief summary of potential projects:
1. The District
is moving forward with plans to build a new library off of the 200 wing. This project will eventually encompass
remodeling of the entire 200 wing, guidance suite, and the 600 wing. Other major projects being considered include
upgrading and resurfacing of the primary parking lots. As the projects receive funding, we will do
our best to keep you informed, especially with upgrades to parking lots which
would result in a closure to through traffic.
Again, we would ask all to be mindful of barriers and all construction
zone notices.
2. Projects
currently underway include the installation of 16 interior cameras to
complement the existing exterior cameras.
Exterior cameras have already allowed school officials to resolve and
clarify situations involving everything from moving violations to suspect
vandalism.
As a
side note, we would ask patrons who utilize the track for walking to use side
gates and to observe all posted rules.
Persons that climb over the fence continue to weaken and damage the
fences. Again, please use open access
gates. SHS will make every attempt to
provide access during the summer.
Funding
for all of the projects is made possible through excess oil and gas monies and
results in no new local property taxes for homeowners.
Parent-Teacher
Conferences
Date:
Wednesday, March 26 and Thursday, March 27, 2008
Time:
4 to 7:00 PM each day
Parent-Teacher
Conferences continued:
It is not possible for every teacher to visit with
every parent of every child in their classes.
Consequently, teachers prioritize and extend invitations based on
academic need first. Teachers also
extend invitations to share successes and accomplishments in many cases,
too. If you as a parent received an
invitation to conferences but have a conflict, please contact the school and we
can attempt to reschedule for another time.
If you are not scheduled for conferences, please call and we will have
your student’s teachers make arrangements to meet with you. More importantly, anytime you have concerns
about your student’s performance in school, please call and we will be happy to
schedule a meeting for you to visit with teachers.
Rocky
Mountain Rape Escape Prevent Program
The
lead trainer (left), Mr. Peter Iacavazzi, demonstrating prevention techniques
to students.
Around the world at least 1 woman in 3 has been
beaten, coerced into sex or otherwise abused in her lifetime. Most often the
abuser is a member of her own family (John Hopkins School of Public Health
2000). It is
the statistics, the abuse that is most often directed at women, that warrants bringing
this program back to Sidney each year.
The lead trainer, Mr. Peter Iacavazzi, is a highly accomplished
self-defense instructor who trains at the Ultimate Martial Arts Academy in
certified to teach all three levels of
the Rape Escape Program and has been involved with this program and the Women’s
Self-Defense Institute for several years.
The program this year was expanded to
include female students from Fairview, Savage and Lambert. Students from the surrounding schools were
introduced to level I training and Sidney students in grades 7-12 were provided
with a review of level I and advanced training.
In all, approximately 343 young women participated in the program this
year.
Any form of assault is life changing and
the purpose of bringing the program back this year was to help each female
student learn the movements necessary to defend herself in a violent life
threatening encounter.
The cost of the program was $4500 for
three days and I need to recognize and thank those individuals and businesses
who helped sponsor most of the program costs this year. Our sponsors are:
Footers,
Kentucky Fried Chicken,
Mondak American Petroleum Institute,
Ms. Kathy Pemberton,
Richland Motor Inn,
Richland Pump and Supply, and
Our private, anonymous donor.
On behalf of our students,
THANK YOU!
Montana Conservation Corps
Youth Engaged in Service (YES) Crews
Recruiting/Hiring
What are you doing this summer?
The
Montana Conservation Corps (MCC) YES Crew is currently seeking adventurous,
hard working youth, ages 14-16. Montana
YES is serving Sidney this summer!
MCC
YES looks like they have one week of completing trail work at Theodore
Roosevelt National Park, one week potentially at Brush Lake State Park
installing a boardwalk, possibly planting trees in Sidney and helping with a
baseball park in Fairview. We will definitely be seeking out additional
day projects in the community of Sidney (fairgrounds, city parks, etc.)
One
five week session will be offered this summer from June 2- July 3, 2008. Crew members will have the opportunity to get
their hands dirty working trails and camping in and around the area. Outdoor service projects, environmental
education, and our emphasis on community development will ensure a gratifying
summer full of valuable skills, work experience, and individual growth. MCC is a wonderful program where you will
never know the difference between work and play. Although these are volunteer positions, each
YES crew member will receive a service award of $250 at the end of their
session. Also, check with your school
about independent study credit.
For
more information and an application, please contact Tauzha at the Eastern
Wildlands office or visit www.mtcorps.org
(Information is also available in the high school office)
address:
2501 ½ Arnold Lane Billings
MT 59102
phone:
406.651.1311
email:
tauzha@mtcorps.org
COLLEGE PREP PROGRAM
You
should be aware that completion of the College Preparatory Program is required
for admission to all campuses of the Montana University System. These campuses include Montana State
University Bozeman, University of Montana (Missoula), Montana State
University
Billings, Montana State University Northern (Havre), University of MT/Western Montana
College (Dillon), and Montana Tech of the Univ. of MT (Butte).
The
College Preparatory Program required is as follows:
1.
English (4
units). Shall include the study of the
English language, literature and writing, with emphasis on and frequent practice
in writing expository prose during all four years.
2.
Mathematics (3
units). Shall include algebra I,
geometry and algebra II or their equivalents.
(One unit is highly recommended in the senior year. Algebra and geometry taken prior to the ninth
grade will be accepted.)
3.
Science (2
units). Shall include year-long
laboratory courses in two fields of college preparatory science such as
biology, chemistry or physics. (Physical
science does not meet the college prep. requirements for laboratory
science.) College bound students must
take a science class their junior or senior year.
4.
Social Studies (3
units). Shall include one year of U.S.
history, one year of global studies (world history, geography, etc.) and one
year of social studies elective (government strongly recommended).
5.
Other College
Preparatory (2 units). May be a foreign
language (highly recommended that you take two years of the same language),
computer science, vocational education, visual and performing arts (with a
theory or history component). Any
language other than English is acceptable.
Vo-ed courses should be clearly related to college courses.
In
addition to the College Preparatory requirements, entering college freshmen
will also be required to:
1. Obtain
a composite score of at least 20 on the enhanced A.C.T. assessment test or a
1440 on the S.A.T. (northern and western only).
2 Obtain
a composite score of at least 22 on the enhanced A.C.T. assessment test or 1540
on the S.A.T. (Scholastic Aptitude Test), or;
3. Obtain a grade point average (GPA) of
at least
2.5, or;
4. Rank in the upper half of your school’s
graduating class.
5. Beginning
with the incoming class of 2007
and
until 2010.
a. Math
score of 18-21 on the A.C.T. or 440-510 on the S.A.T.; or
b. Four
years of math and three years of science, or
c. AP
Math score of a 3 or above on Calculus or Statistics.
6. A.C.T. added a new test, A.C.T. Writing
Test in February 2005. Students may be
required to take this or the S.A.T. Writing Test. The
writing proficiency standard beginning in the fall of 2009 will include:
a. Score
a 7 on the Writing Sub score or an 18 on the combined English/Writing section
of the optional writing test of the A.C.T.
b. Score
a 7 on the essay or 440 on the writing section of S.A.T.
c. Score
a 3.5 on the Montana University System writing assessment
d. Score
a 3 or above on the AP English Language or English Literature examination.
7. Four-year universities in Montana are
requiring the Writing test on the A.C.T.
Montana University System Admission Requirements
In
2003, the Montana Board of Regents approved new admission requirements. High school graduates must meet at least one
of the following requirements in order to be admitted to a 4-year campus:
Achieve at least the minimum score on a
standardized test (ACT or SAT)
- 20 for UM-Western and
MSU-Northern
- 22 for the other
4-year campuses (UM-Missoula, MT Tech of UM, MSU-Bozeman, MSU-Billings)
Minimum
SAT Total Score
- 1440 UM-Western and
MSU-Northern
- 1540 for the other
4-year campuses (UM-Missoula, MT Tech of UM, MSU-Bozeman, MSU-Billings)
OR have at least a cumulative 2.5 GPA
Parents and students are advised to work
closely with counselors when considering post-high school plans.
News from the Guidance Department
Seniors: February
through May are busy months as far as scholarships are concerned. By the middle of March, most local
scholarships should be available in the guidance office or on Mrs. Gilbertson’s
web page on the high school web site under scholarship calendar. Most scholarships can now be done on-line and
students can use their computer to fill them out as opposed to a typewriter.
Seniors need to check the scholarship calendar for which scholarships they can
apply for and keep track of the deadlines when they are due. Scholarship deadlines are also placed on the
announcements each week as a reminder and are posted on the internet on Mrs.
Gilbertson’s web page. There are a few
typewriters available for student use in the guidance area. Remind your seniors to keep on top of things.
FAFSA news.
If you applied for financial aid, you should have received a SAR
(Student Aid Report) from FAFSA by the end of March. The SAR will be printed on yellow paper and
should be 3-4 pages if you applied for financial aid by mail. If you applied on
line, your SAR should be available within 3-4 days of imputing your FAFSA
information. Make sure you check your
junk mail for your SAR as it could go to there.
Go over the information on the SAR to make sure the information is
correct. If everything is correct, do
nothing. If you need to make
corrections, you must send it in again to the address listed on the SAR or
access your FAFSA on the web and then you will receive another corrected SAR. (Online FAFSA corrections are quicker to
achieve results.) The colleges that were listed on your FAFSA will also receive
your information.
know your intentions. If
you plan on attending that college, you need to let them know whether or not
you are going to accept all or part of their financial aid package. Do not sit on this letter. Return it to the college as soon as you
can. If you receive a letter from a
college you have decided not to attend then it would a nice gesture to let them
know you will not be attending their college.
Parents
of seniors: Remember that graduation is on the line for
all seniors. They tend to get a bit of
“spring fever” and forget their studies when the weather gets nice. If you have questions or concerns for any
particular class, please feel free to call that teacher or Mrs. Gilbertson for
an updated grade check on your son or daughter or access their grades on the
high school web page.
Grades
8 though 11 have pre-registered for their classes next year and will receive a
schedule sometime in late April or early May.
The Guidance department held orientation meetings for all four classes
before they selected their 2008-2009 classes.
If you have any questions concerning their class selection, feel free to
contact either Mr. Barnhart or Mrs. Gilbertson at 433-2330.
SPRING EXHIBIT 2008
The 57th Annual Sidney High School Spring Exhibit will
be held Thursday, May 8 from 6-9 pm and
continues Friday, May 9 from 8 am-8:30 pm in the high school gym.
This year’s exhibit will include displays from Sidney
and possibly other area schools. Student
projects will feature work from the adult education, technology education,
family & consumer sciences, vocational agriculture, fine arts, computers
and business department. There is no
admission charge and you could be the lucky winner of one of the many door
prizes. The SkillsUSA drawing will be
held at 8:00 pm Friday evening.
|
SCHOOL
ELECTIONS Tuesday,
May 6th, 2008 Polls
will be open from noon to 8 p.m. in the Sidney High School gym. |
Dear Parent or Guardian,
AR BookFinder is an
exciting new online tool from Renaissance Learning™ that will help you find
appropriate Accelerated Reader™ books for your child to read. You can search
two different ways for book titles that match your child's interests and
reading level. Choose a method and follow the steps below:
Do an open
search to create your own list.
1. Go to AR
BookFinder at this web address: www.arbookfind.com
2. Click the Quick Search tab and typed the author’s
name, a topic, or a book title.
Click the Advanced Search tab for expanded search
options. Your search will provide
details about each book.
3. Click the Add to AR Book Bag icon next to each
book you are interested in to add the title to your virtual book bag. Click the Remove from AR Book Bag icon to remove it.
4. Click AR Book Bag to see a list of your
selections.
5. Click Print to view the list in an Adobe
Reader window. Then, click the printer
icon to print your book bag list to take to your library or bookstore.
Or use a keycode to view my Teacher
Lists.
1. Search a list of book titles that I’ve
recommended for my students at this web address: www.arbookfind.com
2. Type in this keycode: XU542284
3. Click the Teacher Lists tab to see my specific book title recommendations.
4. Click the desired list in the Name column to
see my book recommendations.
5. Follow steps 3-5 from the above method.
Have
Fun Searching!
Lynn
Donvan,
SHS
Librarian
To
ease your search for book titles at the library, clip this easy reference and
tuck it into your wallet.
AR
BookFinder Web Address: www.arbookfind.com
Keycode: XU542284
Activity Eligibility Policy-Reminder
The purpose of this reminder is to inform parents
and students again about the activity policy prior to the end our current
school year and before starting of the 2008-2009 school year. In
order to participate each quarter in any MHSA activity or recognized ASB
organization/club, a student must be passing in at least four subjects, achieve a quarterly and cumulative GPA of
1.5 or higher, and meet other requirements of the sponsoring
department. Responsibility for knowing
eligibility status each quarter rests with the student and his or her
parents. In accordance with MHSA rules
and interpretations, summer school credits and correspondence credits will not
be used to compute the quarter GPA.
Lastly, incomplete grades will be used in the calculation of the quarterly
GPA in cases of injury, illness, or attendance at authorized school functions
based on the final posting of quarter grades.
GPA eligibility determinations will be based on the quarter preceding
each new quarter of desired participation.
2008-2009 eligibility determinations will be based on GPAs achieved 4th
quarter and second semester of the 2007-2008 school year in accordance with
MHSA rules and this policy.
As a note to this policy as it currently
exists, consideration is currently being given to drafting an allowance that
would allow a student to participate provided the student’s GPA for the
semester or for the previous nine weeks grading period exceeds a 1.5 average
even though the cumulative GPA is less than 1.5. Additionally, the student’s nine week grades
must all be passing with no failing grades.
Students requesting an allowance would be placed on a conditional
academic eligibility plan for the quarter of requested participation and the
student would have to satisfy all MHSA eligibility rules.
ACADEMIC MISCONDUCT
In
a 2003 article by Kelley Taylor, a corporate attorney and free lance writer, he
addresses the importance of having policies that clearly define academic
misconduct—cheating, plagiarism, and other forms of inappropriate academic
behavior - specifically, policies that help students avoid problems and at the
same time punish appropriately.
Unfortunately, problems of academic
misconduct abound at all levels. In a
recent study by the Josephson Institute of Ethics (2006), of the 36,122 high
school students responding to the survey, “More than one in four of the
students surveyed admit that within the past year they stole from a store,
sixty percent cheated on a test, and one in three used the Internet to
plagiarize an assignment” (.http://charactercounts.org).
Sidney High School is not exempt
from incidences of academic misconduct.
Consequently, information was sought from students and teachers
regarding existing policy. The following
is a summary of what students and staff reported (a complete copy of the
results are available in the principal’s office).
Academic Misconduct Policy: What does the data suggest and support?
Question
I: At present, existing policy allows the teacher to make
decisions regarding student punishment first when dealing with academic
misconduct. Should teachers continue to
have discretion or the ability to make classroom decisions first when working
with student academic misconduct situations?
Summary Question I. With respect to discretion, the ability of
the classroom teacher to make initial decision regarding in-class situations,
66.94 percent of students and 83.72 percent of staff reported that “DISCRETION”
should reside with the classroom teacher.
Question
II: If you disagree with the present policy, should all first
offense, academic misconduct situations be treated as a MAJOR OFFENSE in the
handbook (academic misconduct as a minor offense would be removed from the
handbook for 2008-2009)?
Summary
Question II. When asked if all academic misconduct
situations should be treated as major offenses, 71.69 percent of students and
69.44 percent of staff responded “NO,” indicating that situations should
continue to be treated under both sections of the policy (Minor and Major), and
if tied to question one, using the discretion of the teacher.
Question
III: Should all first
offense, academic misconduct situations receive the maximum punishment under
LEVEL III, MAJOR OFFENSES? The maximum penalty
applied would result in: a mandatory
conference with all parties, a 3 day suspension and a 2% grade reduction for
each day (maximum of 5% grade reduction), loss of XL card privileges and the
ability to apply in the subsequent semester, a zero being assigned to all work
completed dishonestly, and a counting of all suspension days towards the 10 day
policy.
Summary
Question III. When asked if all first
offenses should receive the maximum consequence, 74.80 percent of students and
75.00 percent of staff responded “NO,” indicating that first offense situations
should not receive the maximum consequence.
Question
IV: Should the existing policy as presented above be kept as
is for all students?
Summary
Question IV. When asked if existing policy should be kept
as is, 55.80 percent of students responded “NO”, indicating that present policy
should not be kept as is. In contrast,
72.50 percent of staff indicated that present policy should be kept as is.
In
looking at the results, staff at Sidney High School will be considering guidelines
that establish sanctions associated with what constitutes a “Minor” and “Major”
offense. The following is an overview of the direction being sought by SHS
staff.
First
time “Minor Academic Offenses” would include, but would not be limited to
cheating and/or plagiarism on daily assignments, quizzes, or laboratory learning
processes (i.e., CTE courses, weekly science labs). All minor offenses would be reported to the
office and the student would receive a zero on the assignment. The teacher, at their discretion, may require
the student to complete the assignment as a means of evaluating the student’s
present level of understanding. Parents
will be notified by the teacher. Second
time “Minor Academic Offenses” by a student would be treated as a “Major
Offense”, level III of the Progressive Discipline policy as found
in the current student handbook.
First
time “Major Academic Offenses” would include, but would not be limited to
cheating and/or plagiarism on major classroom tests, writing projects, or major
laboratory learning processes (i.e., CTE courses, extended science
labs/projects). All major offenses would
be reported to the office and first time offenses would be subject to any level
of disciplinary action as denoted in the Progressive
Discipline policy as found in the current student handbook. Generally, first time major offenses will be
dealt with at level III.
We
welcome and encourage input from parents concerning the guidelines being
considered. Input and comments can by
emailed to dfarr@sidneyps.com or feel
free to schedule a time come in and present your ideas. Final guidelines will be presented in the
first addition of the EAGLE Quarterly at the start of the 2008-09 school year.
Required Immunizations
for College
As we approach the end of the school year many seniors
will be preparing to leave for college in the fall. The following is meant to give you some
information regarding immunizations your college student may need for
college.
· All colleges require 2 MMR’s (Measles, Mumps and
Rubella), Hepatitis B (3 doses in series) and a current Tetanus. We strongly recommend the new TDAP because
Montana had the nation’s highest rate of whooping cough cases (pertussis). The
TDaP is a vaccine for both Tetanus and Whooping cough (pertussis). As long as your child has not had a tetanus
shot in the past 2 years they would be eligible to receive this vaccine.
· We also offer the Hepatitis A. This is very contagious and can be found in
eating food or drinking water containing HAV.
This is a 2 part vaccine series over 6 months.
· The Meningococcal vaccine is highly recommended and in
some states required by entering freshman college students. Meningococcal disease is a serious illness
caused by bacteria. It is the leading
cause of bacterial meningitis in children 2-18 years old in the United
States. College freshmen who live in
dormitories have an increased risk of getting meningococcal disease.
Please
check with your physician or Richland County Health about your student’s
current immunization status before they attempt to leave for college.
SENIOR
EVENTS—THE CLASS OF 2008
Dear parents of SHS Seniors,
The following will provide
you with a list of important dates for all senior activities:
Senior class motto:
Life brings us tears, smiles,
and memories—the tears dry, the smiles fade, but the memories last forever.
Class Flower: Baby Calla Lily
Class Colors: Maroon, Silver and Black
Cap and Gown: Black with Maroon Stoles
Parent Organizational meeting/ Senior
Luncheon: Monday, March 10 at 5:30 p.m. in the SHS cafeteria. This meeting is for all parents interested in
helping. If your senior is on the
Senior Council, we need your help at this organizational meeting.