The Braves Bulletin
January 13-17, 2020
Important Notice Regarding Student Check-Out During Pride Time
UPCOMING EVENTS
In-School Staff vs. Student Basketball Game January 17 - Tickets are on sale January 13 - 16 for $1.00
SNOWCO Dance Tickets on Sale January 13 - 17, $10
MCAP Algebra 1 Make-Up Testing
JV Girls Basketball @ Courtland, 4:30 pm
Varsity Girls Basketball @ Courtland, 6:00 pm
Tuesday, Jan 14
MCAP Algebra 1 Make-Up Testing
Wednesday, Jan 15
MISA Testing
Government Testing Make-Up
JV Girls Basketball @ Patuxent, 5:00 pm
Girls Varsity BAsketball @ Patuxent, 6:30 p.m.
JV Boys Basketball vs. Patuxent @ Home, 5:00 pm
Varsity Boys Basketball vs. Patuxent @ Home, 6:30 pm
Thursday, Jan 16
MISA Testing
Government Testing Make-Up
Varsity Wrestling Duals vs. River Hill @ Home, 5:30 pm
Friday, Jan 17
Two Hour Early Dismissal Day, End of the 2nd Marking Period
MISA Testing Make-Up
Mental Health Awareness Activities During Pride Time
In-School Staff vs. Student Basketball Game, 7-8 pds.
JV Boys Basketball @ Leonardtown, 3:00 pm
JV Girls Basketball @ Leonardtown, 4:30 pm
Varsity Boys Basketball @ Leonardtown, 6:00 pm
Varsity Girls Basketball @ Leonardtown, 7:30 pm
Varsity Wrestling Tournament @ Kenwood, 3:00 pm
Varsity Wrestling Tournatment @ Kenwood 8:00 am
End of the 2nd Marking Period is January 17
Staff vs. Student Basketball Game on Early Dismissal Day
Model United Nationals Conference Opportunity
This year, the conference will be held at Leonardtown High School on Friday, January 31st and Saturday, February 1, 2020. MUN is an amazing opportunity for students of all ages to become more globally-aware and gain communication, problem-solving, and writing skills as they represent a foreign state and work from their perspective to solve the pressing issues facing our international community today.
Students can register here.
School Service Opportunity
Mental Health Awareness Day Activities at Chopticon January 17
College Fair, January 24
Dance January 25
Tech Expo January 16 - If you are interested in attending the Tech Center next year, you should attend the Tech Expo
Benefits Class of 2020 - The Senior Section has been updated in this newsletter - keep scrolling to find important information about graduation.
FamilyID is Open for Spring Sport Registrations
Theatre Troupe 3443 Best Ensemble & Best Costumes at State Theatre Festival
Chopticon Troupe 3443 earned Best Ensemble with the Best Costumes honors at the 2020 Maryland State Theatre Festival. From our Theatre Director Ms. Blewett: Congratulations on all of your hard work being recognized and praised by collegiate-levels professors and professional artists leading the performing industry in the DC area. Brava to those who accomplished college auditions and individual events, then got multiple callbacks. Bravo to our All-State Thespian.
Thank you to every student who attended and made Chopticon proud!
Ms. Blewett received many positive comments from college professors, other theatre directors and adjudicators about the creativity, sharpness, dedication to their craft and professionalism displayed by our student thespians. They recognized how passionate our students were about their work and were impressed with the mutual respect evident among our thespians. Congratulations Braves!!
Congratulations to our Tri-County Orchestra Students!
FBLA COMPETITORS SHINE AT REGIONAL COMPETITION
2nd Place Winners
Danielle Barber - Personal Finance
Alexander Hertzbach- Computer Problem Solving
Abigale Won – Organizational Leadership
3rd Place Winners
Ryan Baker – Journalism
Jessica Blackwell – Cyber Security
Jordan Edwards, Ryan Feldman, and Trent Williams – Sports and Entertainment Management
Sara Prettyman – Economics
James Tripp – Global Business
4th Place Winners
Anthony Cacko – Economics
Taryn Greenhow – Advertising
Angelena Holmes – Introduction to Business Procedures
5th Place Winners
Kyara Coto-Williams – Insurance and Risk Management
Steven Lawrence – Personal Finance
6th Place Winners
Odessa Baker – Introduction to Business Communication
Emilie Quade – Introduction to Business
7th Place
Alyssa Kramer – Introduction to Business Procedures
10th Place
Terrance Greenhow – Personal Finance
Seniors Share Post Graduation Plans
Elijah Tydings
Ian Snellen
Nathan Williams
Congratulations to Jacob VanDevander for earning the Aviation Badge at the FCTC. The badge is the final step before earning Pilot Certification through the FAA. The FCTC students will test next week through the FAA.
Seniors had an opportunity to attend a presentation on tips for completing the BECA common scholarship application.
AVPA Capstone Seniors
Danica D'Imperio, Amy Smith, Renee Neely, Nito Slack, Faith Bouch, Amanda David, Riley Dollins
All-County Theatre Festival Performance
AVPA and AP ART HISTORY annual art history scavenger hunt
Holiday Wrapping Benefits Soup Kitchen
"I wanted to thank you for letting me advocate the fundraiser for the soup kitchen at school, it went amazing. There were so many people willing to donate, lines of people waiting to get their gifts wrapped. I met so many kind people, truly heart-warming to see the holiday spirit and optimism within everyone who I encountered. The students at Chopticon who signed up for the fundraiser were so hard working and positive. They worked through the chaos, some even stayed past the time that was required and for that I truly respect them. I'm proud to say the volunteers from Chopticon upheld great respect to our school while volunteering. I believe in just the time that I was there, we raised at least $75. This fundraiser was a wonderful way to have the student volunteers connect with others within the community and help those in need while enjoying themselves."
Wrestling Patriot Classic held at Northern High School
Shout out to Greg Griffith 1st place at 170, Gary Gorman 2nd place at 195, Trey Kratko placed 5th at 120, and Hunter Messick placed 5th at 152
Basketball Action
Swimming
Our Cheerleaders taking a well deserved break for a team dinner.
Indoor Track at the Southern Maryland Track Classic
58 teams and 1400 athletes competed in the Indoor Track & Field Southern Maryland Track Classic last Saturday, January 4th, 2020
19 athletes from Chopticon competed in the invitational. The following athletes came in the top 6 of the meet in the following events:
Girls team:
Blair Fowler-6th in the 3200m run
Girls 4 x 800 run-3rd(medal winners)-Blair Fowler, Kaylen Goddard, Reilly Tack, & Mackenzie Mozzo
Boys team:
Dylan McMahan-2nd place in the 500m run (medal winners)
Zachary Wedding-4th place in 1600m run, 1st place in the 3200m run (medal winner)
Nathan Williams-5th place in shot put
Boys 4 x 800m relay-1st place (medal winners)-Zach Wedding, Jeff Wedding, Doug Hoover, Dylan McMahan
Boys 4 x 400 relay-5th place Zach Wedding, Jeff Wedding, Donald, Litteral, Clay Bowser
Next meet is at the PG Complex in the Montgomery Invitational on Saturday, 1/11/2020 at 9am.
Find more great photos of the track meets at www.photographybyotis.com
Photos courtesy of the Athletic Boosters Facebook Page
IMPORTANT DATES
Sponsors: Mrs. Rachael Sichko and Mrs. Kaitlin Spedden
SENIORS AND FAMILIES: Please continue to check your email on a regular basis for pertinent announcements and information. This is the primary form of communication from the school, sponsors, and officers to the students.
- SAVE THE DATE: Our next class fundraiser is on Wednesday, January 22nd, at Red Robin in California. From 5 – 8 pm, dine in or order takeout and show the (attached) flyer so that 20% of your purchase goes towards the senior class activities! This will be one of our last fundraisers before prom – so let’s make it count!
- Deadline approaching: If you would like a page in the yearbook dedicated to your senior, please follow the directions on the attachments for Jostens. The deadline is Friday, January 24th. If you have questions regarding the yearbook, please contact the yearbook advisers: Rebecca Hooven (rlhooven@smcps.org) and Colin Donnelly (cpdonnelly@smcps.org).
- Cap and gowns: If you have not yet ordered your senior’s cap and gown, or any other graduation regalia such as graduation announcements, please do so directly through the Jostens website. Directions for ordering can be found below. Please note that, while any additional items such as hoodies, bags, etc. will be direct mailed, the caps and gowns will be delivered later in the spring and will be given out to seniors during school.
- Prom and Graduation: We have received several questions regarding prom and graduation. Please know that, as soon as we have any definite information – such as the cost of prom tickets or how many graduation tickets each senior will receive – we will send out email updates. This will likely not happen until late March or early April, and those emails will be clearly marked. Please keep an eye out around that time for additional information. Below are the dates for prom and graduation.
o Prom: Saturday, May 16th
o Graduation: Thursday, May 28th
CAP AND GOWN ORDERING INSTRUCTIONS: Please follow these steps:
Go to jostens.com
- Type in Chopticon and choose it from the school drop-down menu
- Choose the graduation menu option
- The first thing to pop up is the Mascot package. If you'd like to see more options, scroll down to see more packages, or click "Browse all grad & cap/gown"
- If you would like to ONLY purchase the cap, gown, and tassel required for the graduation ceremony, scroll down and click "Browse all caps & gowns packages"
- The first option on this page should be the "cap & gown unit" -- this is what you need for graduation
- If there's anything else you'd like to add on, feel free!
Prom is scheduled for May 16, 2020, 8-11 p.m. at the Hollywood Firehouse
Graduation is May 28, 2020, at St. Mary's College of Maryland, 6:00 p.m. Ticket and other information will be sent out April 24, 2020. At this time, we cannot give a definitive answer on how many tickets each student will receive. Tickets are distributed based on seating capacity and the number of students who are graduating. Last year we were able to give four tickets for the main gym where the ceremony is held and two for the auxiliary gym where the ceremony is broadcast on a large screen. In addition, the ceremony is broadcast live via the web. Since we distribute the maximum amount of tickets, we cannot accept requests for additional tickets.
If a student is choosing to not participate in the ceremony, please notify the counselor and Lynne Molen - lpmolen@smcps.org.
Class rings may be ordered through www.Jostens.com
Students who wish to participate in the graduation ceremony will also need to pay a $20 fee to cover expenses associated with the graduation ceremony. This fee is to be paid to the school bank prior to the first graduation practice. This fee is in lieu of class dues.
Graduation practices for are tentatively scheduled for May 26 and May 27 from 8:30 a.m. until 2 p.m. Students who wish to participate in the graduation ceremony are required to attend both practices.
Thank you to our Athletic Boosters for sharing updates and photos!
MARK YOUR CALENDARS NOW -- SPRING TRY-OUT DATES
You must be pre-registered on FamilyID. Registration closes at 3 p.m. on February 28, 2020
FIRST DAY OF SPRING SPORTS TRYOUTS- 2020 (SY 2019-20)
2/29/2020
2020 - 2021 Sports Try-Out Dates
FIRST DAY OF FALL SPORTS TRYOUTS- 2020 (SY 2020-21) - 8/13/2020
FIRST DAY OF WINTER SPORTS TRYOUTS - 2020 (SY 2020-21) - 11/14/2020
FIRST DAY OF SPRING TRYOUTS- 2021 (SY 2020-21) - 3/1/2021
Sport Photos
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Text Messages for School System Announcements/Closings
Families -stay up to date on school system announcements and closings. For information on our SMS text messaging and how to opt-in -visit this link.
Maryland Report Card
**NEW** "Z" Marks
This change has been put in place for secondary schools so students and parents have a better snapshot of a student's current grade. A mark of "Z" is an opportunity for the student to turn in a missing assignment instead of getting a final grade of zero for that assignment. Teachers will also be able to post more information in the comments such as the last day the teacher will accept the missing assignment.
Reminder About Bringing Food in for Students
The office is not equipped to store food for students and students will not be called out of class to pick up food. If a student forgets his/her lunch, he/she may see Mrs. D'Ambrosio to get a lunch ticket. The student will be put on the debt list for the cost of the lunch.
School Attendance
MEMBEAM WEEKLY REQUIREMENT
As Membean has shown to increase student vocabulary through its individualized program, students at Chopticon will continue to utilize this resource for the school year. Each week students in all English classes will complete 45 minutes of online study and complete a 15 question quiz. Students will earn 15 process points per week based on their time spent studying, as well as their accuracy for their sessions. Each quiz will be worth 15 product points. Membean grades will not exceed 10% of the student's overall classroom grade.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT INFORMATION
Important dates and deadlines:
- Students must register through College Board for their online account no later than October 1st.
- Students must choose what AP exams they plan to take and make a $40 deposit no later than November 1st.
- Any students who register for an exam after November 15th must pay $80 (late fee + registration fee)
- If a student who has paid for an exam and decides not to take the exam after November 15th, they will get a refund minus $40 registration fee.
- If a student who has registered/paid for an exam as well as a late fee (after November 15th) and then decides not to take the exam, they will be reimbursed all but the $40 registration fee and $40 late fee ($80 total).
- Total test fees final due date: March 27, 2020. Students not paid in full will not be able to sit for the exam. Students may make payments between Nov 1-March 27 to alleviate expenses, but must be paid in full by March 27th.
Contact your AP teacher if you have any questions.
SMCPS GUIDE FOR PARENTS/GUARDIANS
DISCOUNTED MEMBERSHIP TO BJ'S WHOLESALE CLUB
SMCPS STUDENT CODE OF CONDUCT/HANDBOOK
GRADE LEVEL ADMINISTRATORS FOR 2019-20
10th Grade - Mrs. Vernetta Smith
11th Grade - Mr. Marc Pirner
12th Grade - Mrs. Shelly McDaniel
THE BLUE X MARKS THE STUDENT DROP-OFF AREA
Temporary Parking Pass
Temporary permits are limited to one day emergency situations only. Requests for multiple days may be denied due to availability of parking spaces for those days.
IMPORTANT NOTICE REGARDING STUDENT POSSESSION/USE OF E-CIGARETTES IN SCHOOL
Electronic cigarettes (Vapes, Juls, etc) and/or the use of e-cigarettes is not permitted in SMCPS schools. SMCPS has established the following consequences for students who have/use vapes in school:
1st Offense - In School Intervention (ISI)
2nd Offense - Suspension
Tardies to School or Class
- Sudents will get a warning for the first two unlawful tardies to school or class.
- On the third unlawful tardy, student will be assigned one day of lunch detention.
- Fourth unlawful tardy, two days of lunch detention.
- Fifth unlawful tardy, one day of ISI and loss of after school privileges. Loss of privilege means you may not participate in or attend any after school activities.
Every effort should be made to schedule appointments outside of the school day. The interruption of a student arriving late to class, whether lawful or unlawful, causes a break in instruction for the rest of the students in the classroom.