Despite the mini heat wave we experienced this week, students are ending the week much like they began- all smiles! We have gone through a full four day cycle and things are moving along smoothly as we begin the 2023-2024 school year!

Enjoy some pictures and updates from our first week of school!

Information is being mailed home today on Open House 2023. Save the date on Wednesday, September 13th from 6:30-8:00 p.m. Parents will be free to walk their Titan's schedule, meet the teachers and learn about all the great things we will be doing at Thomas this year. This year we are excited to have a few food trucks in the bus loop if you want to grab a bite to eat!

I have heard that our new hall pass system was a topic of conversation at some Webster dinner tables this week. I have also heard some questions from a few families about why we are using this system and does it violate a student's privacy.

For decades, schools have utilized wood items, plastic items, ceramic pots- just about any item you can imagine to use as a hallway pass and manage hallway traffic. Over the last few years with the explosion and accessibility of social media, we have been at a huge disadvantage to students who want to abuse hallway privileges. Think about it- students have a $800 computer in their pocket to coordinate meeting friends in the hallway and we are managing that process with driftwood. It doesn't work well with 1,300 students.

E- HallPass is being used to cut down on excessive hallway traffic and interactions. It is basically a timer that lets the adults in the building know who should be in the hall, how long they have been on a pass and how often students are missing class time. Here are some facts about the program:

-Downloading the E- HallPass app is not required and students can access a needed pass through their Chromebook.

-Students do not need to leave the classroom with their computer or phone any longer. When they activate a pass, They appear on a school wide listing that all adults can see.

-Classroom teachers can set up their room to have an autopass where students start and stop their pass to locations designated by the teacher (for example- bathroom, locker, drinking fountain). Doing this eliminates classroom disruptions.

-This program was thoroughly vetted under Edlaw 2d protecting student and staff data.

This program doesn’t monitor vaping, cyber bullying, self harm, social distancing or have monitoring features for student's social media accounts. Although we do as a district have programs to filter concerning behavior on our network.

If you have any questions, please feel free to give me a call at 670-8001 or send me an email: glenn_widor@webstercsd.org

Freshmen:

Today Freshmen received your permission slip for their upcoming Leaders in Service Experience. Please return permission slips to the Counseling Center by September 12, 2023. Students who do not have a signed permission slip will not be permitted to attend the service project and will be expected to follow their normal schedule.

Mark your calendars!! Join us for a good ol' fashioned kickball game under the lights on the turf in our new nBaseball Stadium on Monday, September 18th from 7:30-8:30pm. Our 100 strong Link Crew will be there to cheer all our freshmen on and keep the fun going in the 2023-2024 school year. These games are designed for all students to have fun and not be ultra competitive!!

More reminders and details in future newsletters!!

Attention dice rollers, cave strollers, castle patrollers, and spell scrollers: Titans and Dragons, the Webster Thomas Dungeons and Dragons club, is back for another year of adventure. Join us at our informational meeting in the South Cafe on Monday, September 11th, after school. Please see Mr. Phares in room 130 or Mrs. Nielander in room 316 for more information.

Bonjour! Are you tired of staring at your phone and looking for more face to face socialization? Do you want to make a new friend!? Do you like croissants, macarons baguettes and fromage? Do you like the French language and culture? French club could be the club for you! Join us for our first informational meeting on THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 21st after school in room 230. We will also vote for our officers at this time. Email or find Madame Hafer for questions. Hope to see you there! A bientot!

Do you want to make a positive impact on the school and community of Webster this year? What better way to bring positivity than through volunteering and service projects. You might find that bringing joy to the lives of others can bring just as much joy to yourself. If this interests you, come join Key Club using the google classroom code shown below. We will be having an informational meeting on Monday September 11th after school in room 405

Calling all future diplomats, world leaders, and anyone who loves to argue: Join Model United Nations! Our first meeting will be Tuesday September 12 after school in room 210. Questions? See an officer or MIss Yang in 210.

The Webster Show Choir will hold auditions for the ‘23-‘24 school year after school today in the Thomas auditorium and Monday, Sept. 11th in the Schroeder auditorium. Any student may audition at either school, but transportation will not be provided. Please wear comfortable shoes and clothes you can dance in - we will teach you the rest. Hope to see you there!

The Titan Garage Auto Club is open to any and all students who have taken Consumer Auto and want to spend some more time under the hood. The club is an informal time of hanging out, wrenching on the Titan Turbo Dodge, or working on your own project. The auto lab is open from 3:15-4:15 every Tuesday after school. Come join us!!

Auditions for the Fall Drama, The 39 Steps, will be held next week on Monday and Tuesday after school in Room 111. Join the cast or crew of this hilarious tale of international espionage and intrigue. See Mr. Stoetzel for details or to pick up materials in advance.

Driver Ed Registration is open until Thursday, September 14.

We have a few openings at Thomas and Schroeder.

Class information can be found at:

https://registration.xenegrade.com/webstercsd/search.cfm?

Students must have either their permit or license at the time of registration.

Thomas classes begin Monday, September 18 and ends November 20.

Schroeder classes begin Tuesday, September 19 and ends November 17.

The cost is $620.

The last date to change schedules for half year courses is Monday, 9/11. The last date to change schedules for full year courses is Thursday, 9/14.

Attention Juniors: The PSAT is a practice SAT exam for high school juniors. This exam prepares students for the SAT exam in the spring and is the qualifier for a National Merit Scholarship. Students taking the exam will receive their scores in December and can use that data to focus their preparation for the spring administration. Thomas is offering juniors the opportunity to take this exam on Saturday, October 14th in our classrooms.

The PSAT and SAT are going digital this school year. That means that students need to come to the exam prepared with a fully charged chromebook. This also means that all students must register by Thursday, September 21st.

The cost of the exam is $18.00 paid by check only and made out to WTHS PSAT. The registration form is available below and in the counseling center. If you are attending our open house on September 13th, you may stop by the counseling center and pay at that time.

Please call the counseling center with any questions. 670-0811.

PSAT Registration Form

Senior Parent Night - Save the date - September 27th @ 6:00pm in the n. cafe. School counselors are going into English classrooms the week of September 18th and walk seniors through the college application process. On the evening of September 27th we will walk you through the same process so you are able to assist your student with this college process.

Junior Parent Night - Save the date - October 3rd @ 6:00pm in the n. cafe. This night is packed with information for you to help your 11th grader navigate junior year. Some of the topics being covered that night include, career/college exploration, activities resume and the college process.

Monday, October 2 at 6:30 p.m.

Are your students just beginning the college search process? We're here to help! Please invite the families at your school to join us for our Fall College Fair at the Golisano Training Center, right here on the Nazareth University campus. Meet with counselors from select Northeastern colleges and universities to learn about the application process, financial aid, and more.

As a bonus, students who are interested in Nazareth University are invited to join us for a tour of campus at 5:30 p.m. No registration is required for the college fair, but we ask that families please register for the campus tour.

• Date: Monday, October 2, 2023

• Time: 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.

• Location: Golisano Training Center

• Registration Link: ttps://apply.naz.edu/register/?id=1e80db97-0ec7-42ba-a5e9-48dbc20bb2cb

Registration portal for the 2023-2024 ACE Mentorship program is now open!

The Rochester section classes will start at the end of September/early October. We are encouraging students to sign up at their earliest convenience as spots may be limited this year. Students can register here (be sure to select NY Upstate Rochester as the affiliate): https://app.acementor.org/registration/student.

ACE Mentorship is designed to mentor high school students (grades 9-12) and increase their interest and knowledge in architecture, construction, engineering, and trades. We are currently offering two separate programs, the Playhouse program and the Community Parks one.

The Playhouse program is the program ACE has usually done in the past. It covers the general aspects of all the careers in Architecture, Construction and Engineering but with a heavy concentration on building design and construction. The students in this session will ultimately design and build a playhouse as well as designing and presenting on a 1,500 square foot house based on their playhouse design. This program will be on Thursdays.

The Community Park session is a newer program that we introduced a couple years ago. It will mainly cover careers in Civil Engineering, Planning and Landscape Architecture. The students will design and present a new park and will design and build site furniture. This program will be on Tuesdays.

After completing the application, students will be asked to request their team. Students should specify if they prefer to be in the Community Parks program or the Playhouse program. They should also indicate in the same field, their shoe size (indicate men, women, or kid size) and shirt size (shirts will be unisex shirts). (Example: Community Parks, Shoe: 6.5 kids, Shirt: M).

Admissions Information Summary

Excelsior Scholarship

2024 SUNY Viewbook (booklets also available in the Counseling Center)

SUNY Fee Waiver

Webster CSD residents are invited to attend TWO community forums which will highlight the proposed Building Our Future capital improvement project. The $85 million project focuses on providing a safe educational environment for all students with zero tax impact for district residents. Forums will be held on:

• Thursday, September 21, Webster Schroeder High School library, 6:30-7:30 p.m., 875 Ridge Road, (this forum will also be live streamed)

• Thursday, September 28, 6:30-7:30 p.m., Webster Thomas High School library, 800 Five Mile Line Road

Community members will have the opportunity to learn more – and ask questions – about Building Our Future, including planned upgrades at all 11 schools. As a reminder, Webster CSD’s Building Our Future capital project vote will take place Wednesday, October 11, 6:00 a.m. - 9:00 p.m. in the Webster Schroeder High School gym, 875 Ridge Road, Webster.

Girls XC

The girls beat the heat and the competition, dominating the same three schools. Senior Natalia S took individual honors in the race, as the Titans packed seven girls in the top 10

Boys XC

The Titan cross country team opened their season with wins over Churchville-Chili, Brockport, and Webster Schroeder last night at Webster Park. Senior Jerry L won individually, as Thomas put five guys in the top 10.

Girls Tennis

The girls Tennis team lost 5-1 vs Victor.. Abby R and Destinee L picked up the win in first doubles. The team will take on Hilton today ( Friday).

Boys Soccer

The Boys Soccer team opened the season with a 1-0 win against Webster Schroeder. Rocco had the lone goal for the Titans and Patrick Klehr recorded the shutout.
Wednesday evening the team traveled to Penfield and lost 2-0. The game ended early due to lightning.

Girls Soccer

The Girl's Soccer Team opened the season with a 3-1 win at Penfield Tuesday evening. Catherine R. converted a PK to give the Titans a 1-0 lead heading into the half. Sophie E. scored 2 second half goals. The second was a 24 yard blast into the top far post corner. JJ B. had a great night in goal for the Titans only allowing one goal on the night.

The Titans won again Thursday evening with another 3-1 performance. Catherine R had the hat trick for the Titans, scoring all three in the first half. JJ B again allowed only one goal. The Titans are 2-0 on the season.

Field Hockey

The Titans beat Hilton in their first game of the season 2-1. Frankie R. and Olivia B had the titan goals and in goal Maddie S allowed only one through the course of the game.

Girls Golf

The Lakers Girls Golf team lost to Mercy on August 30th and 31st. Beat Penfield on August 31st. And lost to Victor in a shortened match due to rain Thursday night. The Lakers are 1-3 on the season.

Girls Volleyball

The Titans traveled to Brighton Tuesday evening. They won 3-0 (25-14,26-24, 25-13) Chole S had 3 aces, 3 kills, 4 blocks, and 8 digs.

Jolie O has1 ace 2 kills 13 assists and 1 dig. Riley O had 3 aces 5 kills , Sarah G had 3 aces 3 kills and 4 digs in the win.

Boys Volleyball

Lakers Boys Volleyball beat Spencerport Saturday in 5 sets : Cal L 25 kills on 32 attacks; Joey P 11 kills, 6 aces; Jacob G 8 kills, 5 blocks; Bodey G and Nick A combined for 55 assists and 15 digs

Webster again showed why they consistently receive sportsmanship awards, by making an honor call on the first match point that would have ended the contest. Instead of taking a win on a missed official decision, the players reversed the call in Spencerport’s favor. Webster followed up the next point with a match winning kill to truly earn the victory. .

Football

Thomas traveled to Eastridge last Friday night. They came away with a 26-9 win. Defensive Stand out was Sophomore LB -MJ W with 5 solo tackles 2 assists, 3 tackles for a loss, and 1 sack. Tyler E had a 48 yard pick six to end the game.

Levi K was 4 for 7 with 82 yards passing and a passing TD to Mason M and a rushing TD. Joe F was 3 for 6 for 46 yards passing and had a passing TD to Sean M.