This week, the application for students to participate in Brandon School District's Summit Virtual Academy Program for the 2023/2024 school year is available to families to complete. Remember, this application is required for all students to be accepted into the program, even current Summit Virtual student. These are due by the end of the day on March 24. Once applications are submitted, they will be reviewed by a committee and notice of acceptance into the online program will go out in April. Completion of the application does not guarantee acceptance into the program. Students must show that they can be successful in an online setting in order to help ensure the success of our students. If you have any questions, please contact the office. You can access the application here, and on our website.

Counseling departments at the secondary level are continuing to prepare for and begin the scheduling process for students for the upcoming 2023/2024 school year. If you have questions about your elective options or courses for next year, whether you plan to continue online with Summit Virtual Academy or return to in person schooling at Brandon Middle or High School, be sure to reach out to Mr. Belluomo in the coming weeks at rbelluomo@brandon.k12.mi.us.

Have a great weekend, and Go Blackhawks!

On March 14 and 15, Challenge Day will be coming to Brandon High School. This is an all day event intended to help students open up to others and make connections with those they may not otherwise make connections with, in order to understand we all have our challenges and the importance of keeping this in mind and treating others, even those we don't always see eye to eye with, with kindness, decency, and respect. This event is open to volunteers of both students and adults. The first 200 students (100 each day) and 40 adults (20 each day) will be chosen to participate in this eye opening event. If you are interested in participating as a student or as an adult, please contact me at mkoslowski@brandon.k12.mi.us and permission slip will be provided. For those who do participate, lunch will be provided on this day. If you would like additional information on this event, contact the office at 248-627-1820 or check out the website, challengeday.org.

As part of the state of Michigan and district's initiative to address the social and emotional needs of our students, as described in detail in the letter issued by the school district. This week, we will be exploring self-awareness, followed by self-management. If you choose to have your student(s) participate in this same program or with this specific lesson through the weekly, 20-30 minute long interactive lessons, or if you have questions, please contact the office at 248-627-1820.

Tenth grade students have the chance to visit OSTC to tour their facility and programming. If you missed this pre-arranged visit and are interested in seeing what OSTC has to offer to your student, reach out to Mr. Belluomo at rbelluomo@brandon.k12.mi.us in order to schedule a visit and get additional information. OSTC is available for our Summit Virtual students.

Just like this current school year, participation in Summit Virtual Academy is application based and for the entire school year. This application is now available to all current and future Brandon School District students in grades K-12 and MUST be completed for all students who wish to participate in Summit Virtual Academy for the upcoming school year. This includes current Summit Virtual Academy students. These applications are due on March 24, 2023. If you have any questions, contact the office at 248-627-1820.

Click here to access the application.

• March 01 - March 24: application window for Summit Virtual Academy for the 2023/2024 school year
• March 03 - March 05: The Addams Family play at BHS Performing Arts Center (7pm on Friday and Saturday, 2pm on Sunday)
• March 14 at 7pm: Incoming Freshmen Parent Information Night at BHS Performing Arts Center
• March 14 and March 15, during the school day at BHA: Challenge Day
• March 16 at 7pm: Band Concert at BHS Performing Arts Center
• March 17: Saint Patrick's Day
• March 21 at 7pm: Spring Choir Concert at BHS Performing Arts Center
• March 24 - April 02: Spring Break, No School

While Brandon School District closing will not effect your access to complete work on your online classes, it may be useful to know for extracurriculars and in the event that you have a zoom meeting with a Brandon staff member. Please be aware of the school closing guidelines followed by Brandon School District with student and staff safety in mind.

As we continue to progress through the year, here is what you can continue to expect:

• Expect your student to work for roughly 45-60 minutes per day, per course
• By now, you should have been reached out to by a counselor regarding your course progress. These will happen once a week. It is extremely important that you respond to communication. Please note that the student needs to respond and be in communication, not just the parent(s).
• Your main point of contact for content specific questions is your course instructor. If you need help doing so, don't hesitate to reach out to us at 248-627-1820.

Here you will find links to resources to help parents and students. Those of you who worked with Edmentum last year may have noticed some subtle changes to the system, as courses are now listed as being Apex courses. An overview of these changes and how to use the system as a parent can be found using the link to parent orientation presentations that is listed below.

Link for elementary overview: https://e.edmentum.com/eoa-getting-started-students-parents-caregivers/

Instructional Model overview for online learning (last page has links embedded to parent orientation presentations):

https://www.edmentum.com/resources/brochures/edoptions-academy-instructional-engagement-model-glance

Here you will find links to counselor contact information, information for students, etc. as the year progresses.

• Mr. Belluomo - rbelluomo@brandon.k12.mi.us