Keeping Up with Comm Arts
~ September 6, 2022 ~
Hello Comm Arts Family and Friends!
We had many fun memories last week at Comm Arts, and pictures can be found in this newsletter.
September is “National Attendance Awareness Month,” a national event recognizing the connection between school attendance and academic achievement. Every day matters when it comes to attendance. Students, if you must miss class, please bring in your doctor or parent notes.
This Wednesday, September 7th, is professional learning time for teachers. Teachers will not be available for tutoring that morning. Students must hang out in the Taft cafeteria or the Comm Arts building.
Northside approved an increase in the cost of AP exams recently. Exams are now $40/exam. If families are eligible for free and reduced meals, the price is $20/exam.
One of our campus student organizations, Helping Hands, is holding a clothing drive for Northside Threads from September 12th-23rd. They need gently used jeans of all sizes that meet the Northside dress code and brand new socks and underwear of all sizes. Please drop them off at C114, Mrs. Frias’ room. Thank you!
Upperclassmen Karaoke
Prep Rally
Animation in Action
Grades, Attendance, & Email
Students, please check your grades, attendance, and email regularly. If you notice a discrepancy in your attendance, please let your teacher know ASAP. Also, if you are absent, please check Schoology for information about what you are missing in class. Some work can be completed at home. This will help you from feeling behind. Parents, if you can partner with us and keep an eye on attendance and grades, it would be greatly appreciated.
Please note that student remote conferencing, contact tracing, and "COVID" absences are no longer available. Students who are out will need to bring a parent note to receive an excused absence. For more information, refer parents to the COVID-19 Information page: https://www.nisd.net/schools/health/covid.
Online tutoring support will launch Monday, September 12th. Tutors will be available for the core content as well as Spanish. Links are available in Schoology, HAC, and NISD Portal. More information is located at the bottom of the NISD page for students. Online tutoring will NOT count towards AR this year. All Attendance Recovery will need to be completed in person at Comm Arts.
Bark for Schools+
Keeping students safer on our school-provided devices and accounts is paramount to Northside ISD. In that regard, the District is implementing a new student safety monitoring application called Bark for Schools+. Bark will help provide the District with yet another important tool to leverage to protect our student’s online activity better both at school and at home. Bark will roll out on Tuesday, September 6th.
What is Bark for Schools+ and How Does it Work?
Installed as an extension of Gmail, Google Drive, and Google Chat, Bark for Schools+ is a content monitoring tool that leverages powerful artificial intelligence technology to help detect potentially dangerous or inappropriate situations that students may be facing both in and out of school, including:
Cyberbullying
Threats of violence
Predatory advances
Inappropriate language
Sexual content
Suicidal ideation
Alert Process
If potential digital concerns arise on school-issued accounts, Bark for Schools+ can send designated school representatives specialized alerts to ensure they can address the situation promptly. These alerts are important because they provide insight that could help us continue promoting the well-being and safety of the entire student body. Finally, it is important to understand that both NISD and Bark have a strong commitment to protecting student privacy. It is worth noting that this student safety application will only act as a resource to flag or identify if/when any of the above situations take place. The District will not utilize this tool to monitor communications other than what is flagged in the previously mentioned categories with the intention of student safety in mind.
For more information on the Bark for Schools+ software solution, please visit their website at: https://bark.us or visit nisd.net/safety to learn more.
Thank you for helping us to keep our students safer online and in real life.
Students Awarded with Academic Honors
Congratulations to the following students: Jala Askew, Sophia Boling, Sonny Charles, Brynn Dominguez, Kylie Douglas, Joaquin Esparza, Callan Flores, Manuel Flores, Isabella Garza, Irina Hernandez, Mikaela Johnson, Aika Meleus, Allyson Mendoza, Raul Najera, Nyla Pearson, Brandon Rodriguez, and Elias Zavala.
They were among 62,000 students from across the country to earn academic honors from the College Board’s National Recognition Programs! These National Recognition Programs grant underrepresented students with academic honors that can be included on college and
scholarship applications and connect students with universities across the country, helping them stand out during the admissions process. Colleges and scholarship programs use these honors to identify students from underrepresented groups through College Board’s Student Search Service. These students earned this recognition by excelling on their PSAT/NMSQT, PSAT 10, or AP Exams and in their classrooms.
Eligible students are invited to apply during their sophomore or junior year and are awarded at the beginning of the next school year.
Counselors' Corner
Senior Audits this Week
This week the counselors will meet individually with seniors to review credits for graduation. We will also provide students with their current Rank and GPA. Students will receive an Educational Planning Sheet to track course work and credits earned. Their Rank and GPA will appear on this sheet.
UTSA Parent Summit - Free for K-12 Families
The University of Texas at San Antonio invites you to join us on Saturday, September 24, 2022 for our annual Parent Summit for our region. The UTSA Familia extends beyond our students, faculty and staff. We seek to promote a sense of connectedness and belonging among members of the community and offer resources and support services to benefit parents/families, school counselors, and the local community. The goal of the Parent Summit is to provide parents with a forum that allows them to engage in conversations to discuss early academic success planning for their Kindergarten -12th grade students. The Parent Summit is a collaborative effort between higher education, K-12 education, business and community-based organizations. Parents and families with elementary, middle, and high school students can look forward to sessions on social media safety, college scholarships and financial aid, how to prepare for your next parent/teacher conference, the pathway from high school to college, transferring from a community college to a university and more. Sessions will be available in both English and Spanish. The event will conclude with lunch, a resource fair, and a drawing for HEB gift cards. Register Here
Club Rush
Film Club
Sponsor: Ms. Cleveland
Pride Club
Esports
Other Campus Clubs
Foregin Affairs - Mr. Polinard & Mr. Trevino
Student Council
Commie Lit Club
CAHS Olympics
Underclassmen Pictures
Senior Portraits
Seniors, if you haven't already done so, please call Prestige at (210) 691-1284 or visit our local Prestige website to set up your senior portrait session. Only pictures taken with Prestige will be in the yearbook. Please keep these things in mind:
- Make sure they have you as a Communications Arts student NOT Taft.
- Our yearbook pose is a cap and gown, NOT a tux and drape. Be sure that the cap and gown you are given is WHITE with a red and white tassel, and for those in NHS, our stole is blue, NOT white.
- Yearbook ONLY sessions are free, but we encourage you to choose a package with a variety of outfits and poses to reflect your personality and interests.
- Please consider purchasing a portrait package. A percentage of each sale is returned to our yearbook account to cover the cost of printing the portraits in the yearbook.
- Be sure to have your pictures taken by Nov. 15, so you can be included in the yearbook. The sooner, the better, so you have time to do retakes if you are unhappy with the first session pictures.
- Prestige will be on campus on Sept. 13 for those without transportation to their studio or for any yearbook pose retakes. The date is for yearbook pictures ONLY.
ComArts Gear Update
If you pre-ordered a ComArts t-shirt or hoodie, the order has been placed. The order will take about 2-3 weeks to get printed and delivered to ComArts. The items should arrive by the end of September. Once we receive the shipment, announcements will be made to come and pick up your new ComArts gear. If you have any questions, please email Mrs. Barton (jill.barton@nisd.net).
SkillsUSA - Join Today!
AP Exams
Helping Hands Club
Cross Country Schedule
Volleyball Schedule
Pre-Season Kick-Off for Esports
CAHS Calendar (August - October)
September 2022
Hispanic Heritage Month
2nd - Senior assembly, NHS New Member Orientation in the LGI
5th - Labor Day (schools/offices closed)
11-17th - National Arts in Education Week
11th - Patriot Day, National Grandparents Day
12th - Progress Reports
13th - Senior Pictures
18th-24th - Freedom to Read Week
21st - Early Release (1 pm)
29th-1st - National America's Heroes Week (recognitions at sports events)
October 2022
National Principals Month
National Crime Prevention Month
7th - AP payments due in full
10th - Columbus Day/ Indigenous Peoples' Day
12th- PSAT (9-11th grades)
14th - Homecoming
15th - National Boss’s Day
18th - Skills & Strategies Day
19th - Early Release (1 pm)
24-28th - Red Ribbon Week
27th - Picture Retakes (9-11th grades)
28th - Guarenteee Day - grades
TBD - FAFSA Night
31st - Halloween
November 2022
1st - Quill & Scroll Induction Ceremony
4th - Progress Reports grades due
6th - Daylights Savings Time Ends (turn clocks back 1 hour)
7th - Progress Reports available in HAC
8th - Student holiday/staff development/Election Day
11th - Veteran's Day
17th - Turkey Fest
21st-22nd - Student Holiday/Staff Development Day
23rd-25th - Thanksgiving Break (schools/offices closed)
'22-'23 United Yearbook
Senior parents
Electronics during Instruction Time
Students will have limited access to their devices this school year. Phones, more often than not, become personal distraction devices. Unless otherwise stated, students will not have access to other phones during instructional time. Student phones will need to be on silent and put away. Parents, if you need to communicate with your child, they can check their phones during the passing period and at lunch. If an emergency occurs and you need to reach your child during class time, please call the front office.
School Safety
In the next few weeks, students will watch the Active Threat video and discuss school safety procedures. If parents want to preview the video, it's available on the Northside Safet site.
As we continue to evaluate safety measures, deliveries will not be allowed this year. Additionally, any visitors to campus will need to apply and pass a background check. This does need to be completed every year. It will not roll over. Here is the link to the background check: https://www.nisd.net/community/volunteer-mentor
If you see something, please contact the NISD Safeline. The Safeline is anonymous and available 24 hours/7 days a week.
Phone number: 210-397-7233
Email: safe@nisd.net
Lost & Found
Important Information
Communications Arts High School
Mission: Our school promotes curiosity while providing rigorous academics in a supportive and collaborative environment.
Vision: Communications Arts H.S. students will be confident, capable, communicative leaders.
Email: cahs@nisd.net
Website: https://www.nisd.net/communicationsarts
Location: 11600 Culebra Road, San Antonio, TX 78253, USA
Phone: (210) 397-6043
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CommunicationsArtsHighSchool/
Twitter: @NISDComArts