Paly Community Update
Friday, August 19, 2022
Dear Viking Families!
Last night’s Back-To-School-Night was truly an amazing experience for all of us here at Paly. It was absolutely wonderful to see the return of our parent community after not being able to be on campus for the past couple of years. I had several conversations with many parents last night who shared with me their gratitude for the amazing and thoughtful teachers they heard from over the course of the evening.
I would also like to thank the two organizations that make a significant contribution and impact to our ability to provide excellent opportunities for our students. Thank you to PiE and to our PTSA members for supporting Paly in a variety of ways. And most importantly, I would like to thank all of our families who contribute to both of these organizations. Because of all of you, we are able to continue the great tradition of providing our Paly students with excellent educational opportunities combined with a supportive culture and climate.
Your presence last night was the final step in our process of reopening Paly. I hope that those of you that attended our event last night also found the return to campus exciting and hopeful for many great things to come this year. I look forward to seeing all of you at our upcoming events throughout this school year.
With gratitude,
Brent Kline, Principal
Paly vs Gunn Football Game--September 9
In the spirit of One Palo Alto we invite the Gunn and Paly communities to our upcoming football game on 9/9, taking place at Gunn HS at 7:00 p.m. While Gunn and Paly compete with each other in multiple sports, football games offer a larger venue that can accommodate more people. We look forward to “packing the house” with Gunn and Paly current students, alumni and parents and filling the stadium with your energetic and supportive school spirit and Palo Alto pride. To avoid long lines we suggest that you purchase tickets ahead of time at the LINK here.
Paly's Online Back to School Packet for 2022-2023
We would like to share with you again the message and link from our PTSA about the Back to School Packet:
Paly families - welcome back! Paly's online BTS packet is live! Please find important dates, welcome messages, donation requests, purchasing ASB cards and yearbooks, and all the info about your favorite organizations and boosters at Paly below. Your contributions to the PTSA, community and Booster groups are invaluable to making this an outstanding year for all our students.
https://palyptsa.paloaltopta.org/back-to-school-packet-2022-2023-school-year/
questions? Please contact palyptsaexec@gmail.com.
Monday, August 22, 2022 - Staff Professional Development Day - No Students
Please remember that Monday, August 22nd we will be closed for Staff Professional Development Day
Seeking AVID Volunteer Tutors
- Desire to be a role model and mentor for students
- Desire to work with groups of students, supporting them through academic conversations and problem-solving related to their academic curriculum.
- Expertise of subject matter is not required or expected.
- Time: Period 3 (1:00-2:30) Tuesday/Thursday, Period 5 (9:00-10:35) Wednesday/Friday. Consistent time commitment 1 hour or 1 period a week is desired.
If you are interested in helping out, please contact Crystal Laguna (claguna@pausd.org) and/or Michelle Steingart (msteingart@pausd.org).
College Board Testing
SAT School Based for Students with Accommodations:
11th and 12th grade students with disabilities may register for the SAT September through April. We do not administer the SAT to students with disabilities in the months of May-August. Please plan accordingly.
Junior Families Only:
The PSAT/NMSQT is Wednesday, October 12, 2022. If your student has a 504 or IEP, please complete the 22.23 PSAT/NMSQT Accommodations Request Survey that was sent to you via email. If your student has a 504 or IEP and you did not receive the survey, contact your Guidance Counselor or Case Manager for the survey link.
Senior Families ONLY:
The SAT will be offered for a FEE at PALY on October 27th. Unlike the PSAT, the SAT will not be financed by the school or school partners. Students will be required to pay a non-refundable $60 exam fee. Seniors will be sent a sign-up Form via Schoology on Friday, August 19th.
Updates from Guidance
Advisory
Welcome to a new school year! It feels like our students settled into the new routine fairly quickly. It was great to see them energized and happy to be back.
Students had the chance to briefly meet their new TA or connect with the current one on the first day of school. The first official Advisory was today. The 9th and 12th-grade students were first up with important information to cover.
9th Grade
First week of school check-ins topped the agenda. We always want to make sure questions are answered and students are directed to the proper place for any additional help needed. Our Teacher Advisors are the first point of contact for students. They are knowledgeable and always ready to help. Many of the questions students have are the same, so we have compiled a useful FAQ document for their use. To see that document, look HERE.
12th Grade
It’s really here - college application and post-Paly planning season! This first Advisory has a newly created lesson that offers a wealth of information. After reviewing the lesson slides together (click HERE to access the slidedeck), students could “choose their own adventure” and explore all the links and information embedded in the slides that are of interest to them. There are really too many videos and references to see all at once so make sure you keep this link on hand to return to many times. It’s a must-see for parents as well!
Parent Nights
Each year our School Counselors and College Career Center Counselors host parent nights. Please “Save the Dates” for the parent night events listed below. More information and specifics about each event will be posted on paly.net and sent in an email prior to the event.
Parent nights will be hosted in person this year in the PAC.
- Sept 7th, 6:30-8:00pm - Senior Parent Night
- Sept 14th, 6:30-8:00pm - Frosh/Soph Parent Night (new this year - a combined event for 9th & 10th grade parents)
- Sept 28th - 6:30-8:00pm - Junior Parent Night
2nd Semester
- Jan 18th - 6:30-8:00pm - Frosh/Soph Parent Night
- Mar 15th - 6:30-8:00pm - Junior Parent/TA/College Advisor Night
College and Career Center
Appointments with College Advisors
We offer appointments with seniors during PRIME, students’ prep periods, and after school. College Advisors cannot excuse students from class to meet with us. However, students may request permission to miss class to meet with a College Advisor; after doing so, students send their teacher the following URL to complete a form--if they agree: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSebZ8Y_NKo_HiTppTireyCcZplDHFifQu8QpR88pth4X6LGZA/viewform Students should not request to miss a day with a scheduled quiz/test unless they discuss an alternate plan with their teacher prior to missing class.
To request a first appointment, seniors must first complete and submit the Post HS Planning survey in Naviance. Seniors may sign up for a 60-minute advising appointment with their assigned College Advisor, using Calendly:
If your last name begins with the letters A - K, your Advisor is Ms. Cernobori: https://calendly.com/scernobori
If your last name begins with the letters L - Z, your Advisor is Ms. Cochrane: https://calendly.com/jcochrane
College Pathways & AVID students, your Advisor is Ms. Laguna https://calendly.com/claguna/
First appointments are for students, only. Parents are welcome to participate in repeat appointments. College Advisors are also available before school (M/T/TH), brunch, and lunch for students of all grade levels to drop-in with questions.
College Rep Visits for Juniors and Seniors
College reps will schedule 40-minute visits to Paly during school block periods. Seniors must obtain prior permission from their teacher to miss class to attend. Students must register in Naviance to attend rep visits and email their teacher a URL to complete a Google form; please look under "Students: Attend College Representative Visits at Paly" on www.paly.net/college for more details. Students need to register well in advance and no later than 24-hours before the visit.
Note: some of the entries in the Naviance College Visit list and the calendar (typically those scheduled before 9 am and after the last school bell or on weekends) are "off campus" info sessions or interview opportunities. These events usually require separate registration--not through Naviance. Expand the visit entry in Naviance (or the calendar on paly.net/college) to display the college's external registration link. The URL to join the visit will *not* be in Naviance; you'll receive it directly from the college, after registering for the event.
The full list of all visits currently scheduled is in Naviance; login to Naviance and from the Home screen scroll to the “What’s New” section. Or, you can check the calendar on www.paly.net/college.
Parents are not permitted to attend college representative visits.
Work Experience
Work Permits:
Work permits must be renewed within 5 days at the start of each school year, so start the re-submission process now by completing this B1-1 document again. Then, email the completed form to rkaci@pausd.org (do not include your social security #). Thanks for your cooperation as this keeps your job site in compliance & informs PAUSD of who is actively working. More info can be found here.
Job Opportunities:
Many of our local vendors are actively hiring - review this virtual Bulletin Board for Job Opportunities for current positions, and a job fair will be held this fall - details to follow. Further inquiries may be sent directly to the Work Experience Teacher Rachael Kaci: rkaci@pausd.org
Athletic Information
Please do your best to purchase tickets ahead of time online as there will be no cash sales at the gate.
First Home Football Game is against Leland on Friday, 9/02. JV play at 4:30pm and Varsity at 7:00pm.
First Home Volleyball Game is against Westmont on Friday, 8/26. Freshmen play at 4:00pm, JV at 5:30pm, and Varsity at 6:45pm.