Husky Highlights Newsletter
August 2021
Principal's Message
Welcome to the 2021-2022 school year. I am Principal Pamela Croft. This is my 36th year in education. I was appointed principal of Tuscarora High School in 2009 as I prepared to open the school in 2010 and I am proud to begin year 13 as principal of this wonderful school!
We hope you are enjoying a restful and rejuvenating summer. The Tuscarora team has been working diligently over the summer and continues to work hard in preparation for the new school year. The school is sparkling, teachers and staff have been engaging in professional learning to continuously improve our support of students' learning and wellbeing, and our coaches have been energizing students in their fall sports.
As you prepare to return to school for the 2021-2022 school year, please note that teachers will be informing families and students of any specific school supplies and materials during Student Orientation, Back-To-School Night, or the first day of school. A schedule of these events will be listed in the newsletter.
In this newsletter, you will get important information to help you experience success and get connected at Tuscarora High School. Please also note the information about the tailgate event on September 2nd. We are committed to meeting the academic, social, and emotional needs of our students with safety in mind. Please do not hesitate to reach out to me or any of my staff for assistance.
Pamela Croft
Principal
Mr. Nekeya Ailsworth - Assistant Principal
Dr. Fredericka Harris - Assistant Principal
Ms. Suyi Chuang - Assistant Principal
Straight From School Counseling
Welcome back Huskies!!
We have a new school counselor this year. Mrs. Zellner has transferred to another school and Ms. Angela Barley will be taking over for her. Ms. Barley who has been a school counselor for 22 years with LCPS. Ms. Barley is coming to us from Legacy Elementary School. More about Ms. Barley in the School Counseling Newsletter which will be sent out before school begins.
Here are a few upcoming calendar events:
August 4th- School Counselors return
August 16th- Student Schedules are “live” in StudentVue
August 16th- Virtual Schedule Conflict Days for 9th and 12th graders from 2:00p.m - 4:00 p.m
August 17th- Virtual Schedule Conflict Days for 10th and 11th graders from 10:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m
Each School Counselor will set up their “Bookings” appointment calendar after they return. Once again, please make sure to check out the School Counseling Newsletter in the weeks to come. Announcements and updates will be shared via Naviance and via ConnectEd calls.
We are excited to introduce our new School Social Worker, Ms. Omega Smith. Mrs. Goodwyn, our former School Social Worker, has transferred to Broad Run H.S. We’d like to thank Mrs. Goodwyn for all of her support.
From Our School Psychologist
Hard to believe that summer is almost over, and we will be heading back to school in person!
For those who do not know me, my name is Ben Fernandez and I am the school psychologist here at Tuscarora. I have been practicing as a school psychologist for 25 years, with 20 years in LCPS. I will be starting my 3rd year here with the Huskies and I am looking forward to working with our Sources of Strength group again. Below you will find some information for the start of the school year.
Upcoming events
August 24, 2021 THS Back to School Night
- Sources of Strength and Unified Mental Health Team Table – please stop by! Would like to meet you and answer any questions you have about what we do.
Tips for Transitioning back to school
Below you will find a QR code you can scan with your phone’s camera to take you to some resources that I thought would help you transition your student back to school. You also may use this link as well.
An important thing for all of us to keep in mind is that returning to school will be a transition from last year. It will be important for us to keep our standards high but also be flexible as students get used to being a “student” again.
Another consideration is helping your student get back into a healthy sleep pattern. Encourage your student to go to bed at a reasonable time and practice getting up for school. Having a set sleep routine that minimizes the use of devices can be very helpful when it comes to being rested and ready for the school day.
If you have any questions please feel free to email me at benjamin.fernandez@lcps.org
Athletic Announcements!
Welcome back Husky Nation!
Fall Sports are beginning and registration is open for the entire year in Athletics. Please visit www.huskyathletics.info to access the online registration.
*ALERT* The physical form has changed and must be competed on the new form: 2021 VHSL Physical Form
Our social media sites are @TuscaroraHusky on twitter and TuscaroraHusky on Instagram. We encourage you to follow those to receive immediate updates when they occur.
If you have other questions please email Athletic Director Tony Tallent; tony.tallent@lcps.org or Assistant Athletic Director William Moses; william.moses@lcps.org
Below is the coach contact information for the upcoming year:
Tuscarora Tailgate
Parents, students, families, and fans, please join us on September 2, 2021 at 4:00PM for the Tuscarora Tailgate. There will be food and and great fun as we connect again as a Tuscarora Community. The event will take place on Fortune Field, Tuscarora High School's football field.
The event precedes the Tuscarora vs. Rockridge football game that begins at 6:00PM. A ticket to the game ($7 per ticket) is required to participate in the tailgate. Tickets will be available on Ticket Spicket.
Mark Your Calendars
Student Schedules LIVE on StudentVue, Grades 9-12
- August 16, 2021 All student schedules will be live on StudentVue
Virtual Schedule Conflict Days
- August 16, 2021 (2:00PM - 4:00PM) 9th and 12th grade students can connect with their school counselors to resolve any student schedule conflicts.
- August 17, 2021 (10:00AM - 1:00PM) 10th and 11th grade students can connect with their school counselors to resolve any student schedule conflicts.
Back to School Food Distribution
- August 20, 2021 (11:00AM - 12:00PM) Food and school supply distributions
- August 24, 2021 (9:15AM - 11:30AM) Students will have an opportunity to tour the building, follow their schedule, and meet their teachers.
9th Grade Device Refresh
- August 24, 2021 (12:30PM - 3:00PM) 9th grade students will be able to drop by the school to swap their devices for the technology refresh.
Back to School Night, Grades 9-12
- August 24, 2021 (4:00PM - 7:00PM) Parents, guardians, and students will have an opportunity to follow the student's schedule and meet their teachers.
First Day of School
- August 26, 2021 (9:15AM - 4:03PM)
Tuscarora Tailgate
- September 2, 2021 (4:00PM - 6:00PM) Football game to follow
Student Holidays
- September 3, 2021
- September 6, 2021
Important Attendance Information!
I am Stacy Beltran, Tuscarora's Attendance Secretary. As we prepare to start the 2021-2022 school year, I would like to share important information with you.
Here are 5 “Must-Knows” for students and parents/guardians about Attendance for this upcoming school year.
I look forward to seeing you all (on-time) on the first day of school.
Updates From Our PTSO President, Heather Gonzalez
Hello Husky Families!!!
Hope you had a fun and relaxing summer! The PTSO is quite excited to have our students and staff back in the building this Fall! Follow us on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date on THS happenings. We do our best to share information about sports, clubs and special activities at THS. Our social media information can be found on PTBOARD: https://thsptso.ptboard.com/home.
Each year our PTSO offers scholarships to our Seniors and as well as Grants to our THS Staff along with teacher appreciation week event and student test prep. Membership is our main fundraiser each year. For more information or to join the PTSO, visit our membership page:
https://thsptso.ptboard.com/formvw?store=2471&form=1
Our PTBoard school code is 6NSUGA
Interested in joining our PTSO Board? We’d love to have you! Email me at THSPTSOLeesburg@gmail.com.
Feel free to reach out with any questions!
Wishing everyone a wonderful school year!
Best,
Heather Gonzalez
President, THS PTSO
Important Yearbook Information!
2022 Yearbooks will be on sale starting August 15th. Don’t miss out on the early bird pricing of $65. Early bird pricing ends on September 17th, so act soon!
Visit: www.yearbookordercenter.com and enter our code 13699.
We will be at Back to School Night on August 24th. We will also have with us the past two years' yearbooks with us that evening for anyone is interested in picking up a copy.
ATTENTION Senior Class of 2022!
You will have another opportunity for make up photos on September 7, 8, and 9th. You will receive an email later this month to schedule your make up appointment.
Technology Tips: Student Logins, Device Refresh, & More
The following technology tips may be useful as you begin this new school year.
Student Password Reset:
Student passwords are reset to LCPS-MMDDYY (where MM = two-digit birth month, DD = two-digit birth date, and YY = two-digit birth year). Students will be required to change their password to a more secure password.
Strong Password Requirements:
Please keep these things in mind when resetting your password:
Minimum of eight (8) positions
At least one lower case letter
At least one upper case letter
At least one number
At least one special character (example: !@#$%^&*)
Cannot be any part of their name
Cannot be any part of their student id number
Ninth Grade Device Refresh (Swap):
The county has instituted a new device refresh program starting this year. All students entering Kindergarten, 3rd, 6th and 9th grades will either receive a new device (Kindergarten) or swap their current device for a new device (3rd, 6th & 9th graders). The device swap for 9th grade at THS will take place Tuesday, 24 August from 12:30pm – 3:00pm, in the main hallway. There will be other opportunities for the freshman device refresh if students cannot make it during this timeframe ( i.e. first-week advisory, study hall). We have almost 400 incoming freshman this year, please be patient.
Chromebook Care & Reminders
Chromebooks require regular updates. Before school begins, please dig out your Chromebook, charge it up, login and ensure it (Chrome OS) is up-to-date. Here are the steps to update Chrome OS, if you need them:
Check for updates yourself
- Turn on your Chromebook.
- Connect your Chromebook to Wi-Fi.
- At the bottom right, select the time.
- Select Settings.
- At the bottom of the left panel, select About Chrome OS.
- Under "Google Chrome OS," you'll find which version of the Chrome operating system your Chromebook uses.
- Select Check for updates.
- If your Chromebook finds a software update, it will start to download automatically.
Note: If your Chromebook uses your phone's internet connection or its own mobile data, you'll get an alert about how much mobile data it needs to update. You can then stop or continue with the update.
New to LCPS?
Welcome to Tuscarora High School! Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS) provides a device to each student to use while they are enrolled in LCPS. Students new to LCPS are assigned a device and charger and are responsible for the use and care of the device. New students can collect their Chromebook from the local DES (Digital Experience Specialists) at the DDI – Depot, 132G in the library.
Please be sure to check out options 2, 3 & 4 of https://sites.google.com/lcps.org/tuscarorastudentsite/home, especially the ‘Student Device Usage Agreement’.
Technology Support
The local Digital Experience Specialists are located in 132G, which is an office in the library. If you are experiencing an issue with your Chromebook (cursor is moving on its own, etc.) please obtain an e-hallpass from your teacher to ‘Tech Support’ and come to 132G to sign-in. We have loaners for any devices that must be sent out for repair. Unfortunately, we do not have daily loaners if you leave your Chromebook at home. Please remember to charge your Chromebook overnight and bring it to school every day.
News from the English Learners Department
Welcome Back, Huskies!!
The EL department would like to welcome two new teachers to our department: Daniela Domestici and Maggie Mulloy!!
We are planning a Back to School school supply and food distribution for our families on August 20th from 11:00AM to 12:00PM. Thank you in advance to Loudoun Hunger Relief for their generosity!!
The EL department is looking forward to working in person with our new and returning students and families!! We are working diligently to plan a number of events to support students and families throughout this school year. We look forward to seeing you soon!
Social Science News!
TUSCARORA HIGH SCHOOL
Website: lcps.org/Tuscarora
Location: 801 North King Street, Leesburg, VA, USA
Phone: (571)252-1900
Twitter: @TuscaroraHS