Greenwich High School comprises five houses: Bella, Cantor, Clark, Folsom, and Sheldon. Each house is led by a House Administrator who works with a team of school counselors, teachers, and support professionals to guide students through their high school experience. The house system enables faculty, students, and parents to work together as a smaller community within GHS to create a supportive and successful educational experience for your child. Answers to FAQs about house placement and course selection are on page 5 of the GHS Planning Guide.

Incoming students are placed in houses randomly to ensure that each house reflects the rich diversity of the GHS student body. There is one exception to this rule: if your family will have more than one sibling attending GHS in the upcoming academic year, or has had a sibling graduate from GHS, your incoming student will automatically be placed in the same house as his/her older sibling(s). Parents who prefer that we assign their incoming student to a different house from his/her sibling have already notified our Vice Principal of this request. This gives us the time we need to balance students within each house.

The 8th-grade counselors will collaborate with 8th-grade teams to guide your child through GHS course planning and 9th-grade course selection during January, February, and March. The 2023-2024 GHS Course of Study Guide (pending BOE approval) will help you with choices and questions. Please learn more about our two special programs for 9th graders - Innovation Lab and AVID, which require an application and interview process. As we move through this process, students and families will be provided with detailed information and support for course selection. Don't hesitate to contact the 8th-grade counselor at your middle school for immediate questions. We are always happy to help!

Tuesday, February 7, 2023, 9:30 am-11:30 am GHS Elective Assembly for 8th Graders

8th-grade students will attend an assembly in the GHS Performing Arts Center for our traditional in-person orientation to the wide variety of elective programs available at GHS.

Tuesday, February 21, 2023, 6:30 pm Curriculum Orientation to GHS English, Social Studies, Math, Science, and World Language Programs for Parents

Please join us in the GHS Performing Arts Center, where optional student-led tours will be offered, starting at 5:30 pm. Principal Mr. Ralph Mayo will welcome you to GHS and introduce our Program Administrators, who will provide information about our five core academic programs. A translator will be available to answer questions in Spanish.

Thursday, March 2, 2023, at 6:30 pm Orientation to the GHS Special Education Program

Students and parents are welcome to join this VIRTUAL event. Further details will be emailed to parents by Ms. Leah Zilich, GHS Special Education Program Coordinator.

http://meet.google.com/xwe-uepk-gsv

Thursday, March 31, 2023, Course Request Deadline

All course requests for 9th-grade courses at GHS must be entered in Aspen and finalized by school counselors by this deadline. Students and parents will view these requests in their Aspen accounts and discuss course recommendations and elective choices with their 8th-grade teachers and 8th-grade counselors throughout February and March. All questions and concerns must be resolved by this deadline.

Tuesday, April 25, 2023, at 6:30 pm House Orientation for Parents

House assignments will be announced to all incoming 9th graders in mid-April. You will meet your child’s House Administrator, school counselor, and mental health support staff at the orientation meeting. Further details will be emailed by a member of your house team.

I welcome you to the vibrant community of Greenwich High School learners! We look forward to working with you to create a smooth transition to high school for your child.

Sincerely,

Michele T. Iannello

Program Coordinator for School Counseling