SHS Newsletter
November 2022
ADMINISTRATION'S MESSAGE
Hello SHS Families,
In this season of Thanksgiving there is much to honor and show our gratitude towards; several are highlighted in this newsletter. It was wonderful to see so many of you at our parent-teacher conferences and Fall events. We are looking forward to our final Homecoming activities this week and we are proud to see so much Wildcat pride throughout spirit week!
Next week students do not have school on election day (Tuesday, November 8th). Our teachers will spend the day in professional development activities.
Veterans Day is Friday, November 11th. School will be in session and we will be honoring veterans in classes throughout the day. We want to extend our gratitude to all veterans in our community - your service is greatly appreciated!
Finally, we would like to remind you that first quarter report cards will be distributed by email on November 17th.
Happy Fall,
Ms. Apanovitch, Principal
Mr. Dobi, Assistant Principal
Mrs. Insero, Assistant Principal
A few reminders:
- Free Application Day for UConn and CCSU is November 15.
- Seniors!! Please make sure you are checking Naviance daily. New scholarship opportunities are being posted daily.
- The FAFSA is now open for you to complete.
- Transcript Requests: please note that the School Counseling Department requires two weeks of processing for all transcript requests.
- December 1st Night Program: Grades 6-12 College Future Planning Night 6-8 pm via Zoom
As always please reach out to us with any questions.
Respectfully,
The SHS School Counseling Department
Gina Garfield 6-12 Team Leader
Victoria Deming
Kristina Kochanek
Robert St. Amand
FREE MEALS UPDATE
At the start of the school year, we notified families that the State of Connecticut had provided funds to allow SPS to provide free breakfast and lunch to all students for the beginning of the year. We expect the funds available to provide these meals will run out at the end of November. We will provide the exact date when it is determined.
If you have not been notified this year that your child qualifies for free or reduced price meals and you believe you might qualify, please complete the application here and email it to Jamie Berry, jberry@suffield.org or mail it to Central Office, 350 Mountain Road, Suffield, CT 06078.
Meal payment options for families can be found by clicking here.
Bill Hoff
Business manager
SHS PICK UP & DROP OFF PROCEDURES
SHS Parents and Guardians,
The Suffield High School administration continues to review and update our arrival and dismissal procedures to ensure the safety of our students, families, and faculty. Most recently, it has come to our attention that we are still experiencing recurring issues involving student drop-off in the morning, as well as, pick-up in the afternoon.
During the morning drop-off, it has been noted that parents are continuing to leave their children in the bus drop-off area along Sheldon Street. We are requesting that all parents and guardians utilize the proper parent drop off location at the main entrance of the school. This entrance is directly adjacent to the main parking lot, flagpole, main office, and Commons. We are asking for the separation of student and bus drop off as it creates a safety issue for students, buses, and cars, who are all trying to safely navigate the area. No parents/guardians should use the bus drop off area from 7:00 - 7:30 AM.
In the afternoon, we’ve noticed increasing numbers of cars lining up parallel to the school in the morning drop-off zone along the main entrance of the school. Instead of doing this, we are respectfully requesting that parents/guardians park in the parking lot and wait for their children to come to them. To exit the school campus, please use the same traffic pattern outlined in the attachment (around the back of the school, turn right into the front of the school where buses pick up, and exit onto Sheldon Street at the bus entrance). Please do not leave the school campus via the exit closest to the VFW - this is clearly marked “do not exit.” due to poor visibility of oncoming traffic..
Please see the traffic diagram above to ensure drop off in the appropriate locations.
Thanks in advance,
Suffield High School Administration
HOMECOMING DANCE
WINTER SPORTS
Registration is open for SHS Winter Sports. We will keep it open until Sunday 11/20. So get them in sooner rather than later. All registrations need to be cleared with the nurse to ensure you are medically cleared. The sooner you register, the better/easier it is for her to clear you and if there are any issues, we can figure them out.
Sports Offered:
Boys & Girls Basketball
Boys Swimming
Boys & Girls Indoor Track
Boys & Girls Ice Hockey
Co-Ed Wrestling
Cheerleading
Online registration through the FinalForms is now the only way to register for high school athletics. To register on FinalForms, please create an account and complete all necessary documents no later than one week prior to the beginning of your season. To access registration forms and/or create an account please follow the directions in the Suffield Parent Playbook.
If you have any FinalForms support questions, contact them at support@finalforms.com or click here for Common Parent Questions.
In addition, a current physical must be on file in the Nurse's office (blue state physical form). Physicals should be valid through the entire season for which you are registering. All of this must be completed at least one week prior to the start of your season.
No athlete will be allowed to participate until the online registration has been completed and a current physical is on file with the nurse.
Todd P. Zenczak, CAA
Director of Athletics & Student Activities
Suffield Public Schools
Office: (860) 668-3810 ext. 4120
Cell: (860) 578-6854
SCHOOL PHOTO RETAKE DAY - NOV. 17
School photo retake day is scheduled for Thursday, November 17, 2022. To have your photo retaken, students must bring their original package. The photo package forms from Grynn & Barrett were distributed to all students in Wildcat Advisory. To order online:
- Visit www.grynnandbarrett.com
- Select "Order Portraits"
- Enter code: 4E5V8Z6W and click "login"
- Prepay for your pictures
- If you pay online, there is no need to submit anything to the school.
AGRISCIENCE UPDATE
23 Students and 3 teachers attended the 95th National FFA convention in Indianapolis October 25th - October 29th. Ms. Wagner’s Agricultural Mechanics team consisting of Matthew Tini ‘23, Henry Butler ‘22, Grace Sheldon ‘22, and Logan Sopelak ‘22 took home silver. Individually, Matthew earned gold.
Oliver Kelsey ‘22, coached by Mrs. Oliver, competed in the extemporaneous speaking contest and earned the bronze.
This is the first time in Suffield's history that we have had state winning teams compete at the national level, and we couldn’t be more proud. The time commitment and dedication of both the students and faculty is a direct reflection of these accomplishments.
Recently the Community outreach committee and Mrs. LaFlamme’s advanced floral class produced “Pumpkins for Purpose” with profits going to the Red Cross. We hope to be able to donate $500.00 later this month.
Upcoming Events:
Annual Make & Take wreath making - Nov 28, 2022 6:30 pm-8:30 pm
Annual Holiday Sale - Nov 29 - Dec 2, 2022 8:00 am - 6:00 pm
Holiday Sale & Suffield Farmers Market - Dec 3, 2022 9:00 am - 1:00 pm
CTE HAPPENINGS
It has been a busy fall in the Career and Technical Education Department. We have welcomed two new teachers; Mr. Lombella and Mr. Alexander. They have jumped in and have been great additions to our growing department!
Wildcat Playschool has begun! Students are getting to know their “buddy”. We have 13 children who come on Wednesday and Thursday to allow students in Child Development to practice planning and implementing developmentally appropriate lessons for 2-4 year old children.
FBLA members attended the state conference on November 1st, and are excited to begin preparing for the Spring competitions.
Manufacturing students attended the Aerospace workforce fair in Hartford on November 2nd. The amount of companies in Connecticut working in the Aerospace field is astonishing to see.
Foods classes are learning how to operate the equipment in the newly remodeled kitchen. Check out more details in Mrs. Haefner's What's Cooking Update.
Students in Internship class are currently working at United Gear, CPTV, and with Suffield Police and Suffield Youth Services.
FALL PLAY
LIBRARY MEDIA CENTER UPDATE
This month the library is seeing a ton of action with lots of class visits. Students are coming in to hone their research skills, work on the difference between indoor and outdoor exposure in Photography, create exciting videos and PSAs for Film and Video, create and record podcasts for their Yoga and UCONN ECE English classes, and sharpen their digital citizenship skills with Mrs. Casinghino. And of course, our awesome reading tradition continues with lots of book checkouts! Speaking of books, almost all of our new Fall books have come in and they offer something for everyone, from fantasy to realistic fiction to self-improvement and everything in between! Stop by or browse our online catalog to see what’s new!
The new Teen Library Club is running after school every other week on Wednesdays. Our next meeting is on November 9th. This club is open to any and all students interested in helping out in the library (creating engaging displays, learning about librarianship, generating and running engaging programming and activities, etc.) It’s a great place to make new friends or hang out with old ones and work with Mrs. Casinghino! Reach out to her with any questions.
In addition, this month will see the return of our popular Friday Makerspace Workshops. We will start with a Perler/Fuse bead project on November 11th and move on to a Button Maker workshop on November 18th. You can find more information about Makerspace Workshops and how to sign up on the Student Warehouse.
Keep on reading Wildcats!!!
BLACK STUDENT UNION
On 10/26/2022, members of the Black Student Union and their advisors attended the Men of Color in Leadership Conference at Berlin High School, where discussions with panels of Black leaders from Connecticut included personal excellence, perseverance, and education as a stepping stone to success. Attending BSU members included Basheer Wehelie, Nathanael Kynard, Victor Jordan, Donovan Koukal-Kollie, Marcus Gibbs, Ethan Khouri, Jonathan Martin, Thomas Antwi-Mensah, and Tryell Khouri. Co-Advisors Keely Lee, SHS School Social Worker and Shamar Kynard, Building Substitute Teacher.
CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONS
Congratulations to the Boys Cross Country team for finishing as runners up in the Class SS state meet!
Additionally, congratulations to Griffin Mandirola ('24) for becoming the Class SS individual State Champion!
Way to go boys!
Spanish Honor Society members celebrate Dia de los Muertos
On November 1st, a Mexican holiday called Día de los Muertos (“Day of the Dead”) is celebrated to honor loved ones who have passed on by inviting them back into their homes. During the Day of the Dead, family and friends leave food or other offerings on their loved one's grave or in a home “ofrenda” or altar. These altars are decorated with flowers and personal mementos. To Mexican culture, death is considered moving onto the next leg of your journey and is looked upon as a happy celebration.
The Spanish Honor Society shared this holiday in Mexico by hosting a few tables during lunch. Here, they invited students to create paper flowers, color skulls, and write messages to their loved ones. The World Language Honor Society aims to bring other cultures into the school climate where we can foster individuality and recognize the incredible traditions of other countries.
By Samantha Wysocki ('24) and Vincent Nguyen ('23)
Mrs. Tinnirella talks with students as they make paper flowers to celebrate Dia de los Muertos.
World Language teachers Dr. Katie Thorner, Miss Natale Dolnack and Mrs. Laura Tinnirella pose in front of a decorated display case for Día de los Muertos.
YEARBOOK PHOTOS
Information regarding senior photos for the yearbook may be found on the Class of 2023 Google Classroom. The photo submission portal is now open. Senior photos are due by December 1st, 2022. To submit photos, click here and use access code: wildcat.
If you have any photos throughout the school year that you'd like included in the yearbook, please share them with our yearbook staff by uploading them here.
If you have any questions about the yearbook, please email Mr. Alexander: balexander@suffield.org.
SPS COMMUNICATION
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1060 Sheldon Street
West Suffield, CT 06093
Phone: 860-668-3810
Fax: 860-668-3037