BOLT REPORT
Together We LIGHT the Way
OCTOBER NEWSLETTER
What's in this issue?
2) October Calendar
3) Department Notes
- HPE
- World Languages
- Credit Through Testing Exam
4) Congratulations and Thank You
5) Lightridge Counseling
- 22-23 Book Club
- College Rep Visits
- HBCU Showcase
7) Testing
- PSAT
- AP
8) Bolt Clubs & Activities
- Multicultural celebration
- Yearbook
- miniTHON movie
- College applications
- Senior yearbook ad
- Senior makeup pictures
10) Lightridge Athletics
- Important Dates
- Athletic Boosters
12) Listen Up Lightridge!
- Step UP Loudoun Youth Competition
- Elevate Loudoun
- Loudoun Youth Advisory Council
- MSAAC
- Birthday Marquee
13) Lightridge PTSO
A Note from Dr. Hitchman...
Greetings BOLTS! It’s hard to believe we are currently at the midway point of the first marking period. I find it more amazing that we have already reached the beginning of October! Typically October has the 2nd most days of school during the school year. This year however October only has 17 days of school for our students and the last day of the marking period is Friday, October 28.
As we enter the month of October, the majority of our students are familiar with our routines, procedures, and policies. I am happy to report that the majority of our students are in class when the bell rings whether it is at the start of the day or in-between blocks. Students are also familiar with our lunch patterns and I ask parents and guardians to check their child’s school lunch accounts so they are not running a negative balance.
The month of October is also when students begin to learn new material in their classes and may need additional academic support. If your child begins to struggle, we always recommend reaching out to your child’s teachers. This year, LCPS is offering academic assistance through the site Tutor.com which students can access through Schoology. Tutor.com is available 24 hours and is operated through Princeton Review. Students can ask questions about assignments and the tutor responds in a chat room format. Students can also take advantage of our writing center which is available during every lunch block. Students who may need extra assistance in math or science can also visit the STEM Lab which is supervised by members of our science and math departments as well as a few honor society students. STEM Lab is available during every study hall block and students can create their own pass through eHallPass.
October is also when the majority of our fall sports complete their seasons and there are only two or three weeks left to catch our fall athletic teams in action. We will also be hosting two Principal Coffee & Chat sessions during the month; the first of which will be held virtually on Friday, October 14 at 8:15 am. The second Coffee & Chat session will be held in-person on Friday, October 28 at 9:35 am. Our October PTSO meeting will be held on Wednesday, October 19 and I would like to personally thank those of you who have already joined the PTSO and remind others it is not too late to join! Finally I would like to thank you for the support you have provided our students and staff during the first month of school and we look forward to continuing to partner with you during the remainder of the 22-23 school year. Thank you for taking the time to read our monthly newsletter and together, we light the way!
October Calendar
October
1 - Homecoming Dance
1 - SAT Test Date
4 - Partners in Safe Teen Driving, 7pm
5 - HOLIDAY NO SCHOOL
10 - HOLIDAY NO SCHOOL
12 - PSAT day for 9-11
13 - Summer 2023 Governor's School Interest Meeting during spark session
13 - FAFSA Workshop, 6:30pm at John Champe High School
19 - Unity Day - wear orange
19 - Fall Chorus Concert, 7pm
21 - College Funding Coach workshop for parents, 8:30am
24 - HOLIDAY NO SCHOOL
27 - Senior make up pictures
28 - Senior make up pictures
28 - End of Quarter 1 - 8 block make up work day
31 - Student Holiday
November
1 - Student Holiday
2 - Multicultural Fair during school day
2 - Coffee House Chorus Concert, 7pm
3 - Multicultural Fair during school day
4-6 - Fall Play - CLUE
5 - SAT at Lightridge HS
HPE
- The HPE Department will be hosting our first of three 90-minute Partners for Safe Teen Driving Presentation (required for all 10th graders who would like to obtain a Virginia Driver's License) on October 4th, 2022 in the Lightridge Auditorium at 7:00 pm. The 10th-grade student and one parent/guardian are required to attend. Please plan to arrive 5-10 minutes early and bring a cell phone or Chromebook for confirmation of attendance.
- If you have ordered a PE uniform and haven't received it yet due to a lack of inventory they are now back in stock. Please see any HPE teacher with your emailed receipt to pick it up.
World Languages
The World Languages Honor Societies are pleased to collaborate with The Pulsera Project that is a nonprofit organization that educates, empowers, and connects Central American artists with students in more than 3,000 U.S. schools through the sale of colorful handwoven bracelets, or "pulseras" in Spanish. The bracelets cost $7 each and will be available from Sept. 26 to Oct.10. Hope you can help us!
Credit through Testing Exam (CTT) information
Credit through Testing Exam (CTT) information
Please click on the link above for more information on how your child could potentially earn credits and a special Seal of Biliteracy on their diploma at graduation.
Who is eligible to take the CTT exam?
- Students who do not already have levels 1, 2, or 3 credits in the language of the exam on their transcript (from another country or from the U.S.).
- Students who wish to earn the Seal of Biliteracy and already have credit for levels 1, 2, and 3 in the language of the exam.
- For the November 2022 exams, students who are literate in the following languages: American Sign Language, Amharic, Arabic, Bengali, Chinese/Mandarin, Farsi, French, German, Gujarati, Hindi, Japanese, Kannada, Korean, Malayalam, Marathi, Nepali, Pashto, Punjabi, Russian, Spanish, Tagalog/Filipino, Tamil, Telugu, Turkish, Urdu, and Vietnamese.
- Students who are sufficiently proficient to write in the exam language.
- A student who does not possess this writing ability will likely have difficulty demonstrating the required writing proficiency to pass the exam.
- If the exam language is Spanish and the school offers a Spanish for Fluent Speakers course, this may be the best venue for the Spanish-speaking student to achieve higher levels of proficiency in his/her first language.
- One component of the exam is for the student to read and comprehend the instructions and writing prompts in the exam language. If the student has difficulty reading the exam language, he/she will likely be unable to understand the prompt well enough to write a cohesive response.
Students may register for the CTT on LARS, through the Student Opportunities portal in LCPSGO. A confirmation ticket will be sent to the student and the parent/guardian email on file.
Our Team:
Mrs. Campbell, Director of School Counseling
Ms. Schrader, last names A-Be
Ms. Holley, last names Bh-Dh
Mrs. Zawistowski, last names Di-Ha
Dr. Dietrich, last names He-Kun
Ms. Rose, last names Kur-M
Mrs. Dorman, last names N-Ra
Mrs. Perinis, last names Re-Sta
Ms. Wollenberg, last names Ste-Z
Ms. Scheivert, Career Center Assistant
National Merit Commended Students
- Deetya Adhikari
- Rayaan Ahmad
- Neha Amarnath
- Anish Devidreddy
- Asvin Gopinathan
- Aiden Hall
- Yashaswini Kanchi
- Christopher Kim
- Emmanuel Kodamanchilly
- Kristy Lau
- Sonika Modur
- Pranav Mondreti
- Adrian Motas
- Bhargava Potturu
- Ashley Powell
- Hemanth Saravanan
- Advay Seelam
- Keerthi Selvam
- Monet Shum
- Shrikar Sirobhushanam
THANK YOU
Fall means FIREPITS! And we would like to send out a great big THANK YOU to The Holloway Company and Outdoor Living Wholesale for our brand new firepit. Consider supporting these business partners for any of your outdoor needs
Stay tuned for the date of our first firepit smore party!
Please be sure to check out our weekly newsletter from Barrie Scheivert that focuses on all things college and career!
8th Annual HBCU Showcase
Tuesday October 18th, 6:30pm-9:00pm, Tuscarora HS, Leesburg, VA
Tuscarora HS will be hosting our 8th Annual Historically Black College and Universities Showcase. This evening is designed to expose our school community to the many options that are available at HBCUs. We want to expose and educate our school communities and encourage all students, regardless of ethnicity, to include these institutions during the college selection process. In addition to the HBCUs that will be in attendance, there will be a NCAA presentation, college test preparation, community scholarships, and on-site application review with college admissions counselors. We hope you make time to come out and get informed about these historic universities. We will be hosting this event “in-person” this year.
-’22 HBCU Showcase Committee
PSAT Day - Wednesday October 12 "B" Day
Seniors report for planned activities
Grades 9 - 11 report directly to PSAT testing location
- 9:30 Moment of Silence, Pledge, announcement to begin PSAT
- 9:35 - 1:35 Testing
- 1:40 - 2:10 6th Block - Lunch A & B
- 2:10 - 2:40 6th Block - Lunch C & D
- 2:45 - 3:13 5th Block
- 3:18 - 3:46 7th Block
- 3:50 - 4:18 8th Block
Lightridge Testing Office
Donna Draisey STC
Lightridge Testing Office
Donna Draisey STC
PSAT Testing
Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS) will be offering the PSAT 8/9 (Preliminary SAT) to students in grade 9 and the PSAT/NMSQT (National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test) to students in grades 10 and 11 this year. The test will be administered on Wednesday, October 12, 2022. Academies of Loudoun B day students will test at the Academies of Loudoun. This will be the only administration of this test for the 2022-2023 school year. Registration is not required and there is no cost for students.
New this year, students participating in the PSAT 8/9 test will complete a digital version of the test, requiring the use of their LCPS-managed device. The Desmos calculator is built into the digital test portion of the Math test in which it is permitted. All students taking the digital test must bring their fully-charged Chromebook on October 6th for the pre-administration session and on October 12th for the test.
Students participating in the PSAT/NMSQT will complete a paper version of the test and do not need a calculator, but may bring an approved model if desired.
Both the PSAT 8/9 and the PSAT/NMSQT measure mathematics, reading, and writing. The tests focus on reasoning skills, knowledge, and comprehension, serving as one indicator of college readiness. Additionally, students in grade 11 who take the PSAT/NMSQT are automatically eligible to compete for National Merit Scholarships.
Additional information on both the PSAT 8/9 and the PSAT/NMSQT can be found at the College Board PSAT website at https://www.collegeboard.org/ and also the LCPS Office of Assessment website.
Student guides can be downloaded here:
Digital PSAT 8/9 Student Guide 2022-2023
PSAT/NMSQT Student Guide 2022-2023
AP Testing
Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS) will offer Advanced Placement (AP) tests during the College Board's 2023 test administration window of May 1-12, 2023.
Students enrolled in LCPS and Loudoun residents who are home instructed and have a current Notice of Intent (NOI) on file with LCPS may register to test.
Registration for testing will occur through a student's AP course. The AP teacher will provide students with a join code which they must use to access an online portal (MyAP Classroom). The MyAP Classroom portal contains instructional resources, practice tests, and tools to manage test registration.
If a student is not enrolled in an AP course, but still wants to test, they should contact their school’s Testing Coordinator to register.
Students attending the Academies of Loudoun should read this important notice regarding test registration.
Students must have a current College Board account or must create one prior to using the join code. It is important that students retain their username and password, as well as use their correct Student ID during the account registration process.
Students must register for their AP test(s) by November 4, 2022 within the College Board's online portal (MyAP). Requests to register for an AP test after November 4, if accepted, may result in a $40 fee. Students who cancel a test after November 15, 2022 will incur a $40 cancellation fee. Students who register for a test but do not take the test will incur a $40 unused test fee. These fees will be charged even if LCPS is paying for the cost of the test and are required by the College Board.
LCPS will pay for the first four AP tests that each enrolled LCPS student attempts. The four tests are cumulative across the student's high school enrollment, beginning with the 2021-2022 school year. After the test limit has been reached, payment will be required for any additional tests.
For additional information regarding AP tests, please visit the College Board’s website or LCPS’ Office of Assessment Services website.
I will continue to do everything I can to create a stress-free testing atmosphere for all students and to communicate with students and parents regarding testing dates, times and locations. All communication to students comes through E-Hall Pass and their LCPS issued email account so encourage your student(s) to check both of these sources regularly.
Please do not hesitate to contact me via email if you have questions or concerns about any aspect of testing. You can also go to the Lightridge Testing Office website for the latest testing information.
A huge thank you to all staff, students, and parents who made this year’s homecoming week a success! An extra special thank you to our SCA sponsors Jennifer Schrader and Rhapsody Barbrow, and SCA student leaders, for all of their hard work, late nights, and dedication to Lightridge High School!
Students will begin their Blue / Yellow day club rotations during Spark Session on Tuesday October 4th. Students should sign-up for their club of choice in their Advisory class. Blue day clubs will meet every Tuesday and Yellow day clubs will meet every Wednesday during Spark Session. Visit our Activities page to see a complete list of club and organizational offerings.
Lightridge encourages all students to volunteer and participate in service opportunities in their communities. A running list of community service and volunteer opportunities is available to students on our Lightning Service page. These opportunities will be updated throughout the year. If you have volunteer opportunities you would like help with, please contact Jake Johnson (jake.johnson@lcps.org)
Yearbook
Yearbook Pre-Orders
Save $20 and pre-order your 2022-2023 yearbook now! Current price is 70.00 and will go up after October 10. Custom nameplates are also available. Orders can be completed through the new payment portal (https://lcps.schoolcashonline.com/Fee/Details/3856/371/False/True).
The Lightridge Mini-THON club will be hosting a free Family Movie Night event each month. Mini-THON is an organization that raises awareness and funds for pediatric cancer research and works to support families affected by the disease. Movies are on Friday evenings at 7pm in the Lightridge Auditorium, admission to the movie is free, and cash concessions are sold for $1. Our October movie will be held on Friday, October 21 at 7pm to watch Hotel Transylvania. Please follow us on Instagram @lightridgeminithon to keep up with our movie nights and other fun events!
Future Movie Night dates:
October 21 @7pm à Hotel Transylvania
November 11 @ 7pm à TBD
December 2 @7pm à TBD
Senior Yearbook Ads
Senior Ads
Seniors and/or parents of seniors can purchase ads to celebrate and commemorate the class of 2023 graduation for individuals, groups of friends, or groups on campus (clubs, sports, etc). Page space ranges from 1/16 to a full page. Upload photos and design your ad on www.yearbookordercenter.com and use school code 21626! The deadline for submission is Monday, October 24. More information can be found on the yearbook page: https://www.lcps.org/domain/32283
Senior Portrait Make Up day
Senior Portraits Make-Ups
The next senior portrait opportunities will be:
-Thursday, Oct 27 from 9am-3pm; Friday, Oct 28 from 8am-3pm; in Black Box Theatre room 1216
-and Monday, Nov 14 from 9am-3pm; in Fine Arts wing room 1202
by appointment only: https://pickatime.com/vosphoto/Lightridge2023
The attire for the school’s yearbook pose will be in the traditional tuxedos and drapes. We will provide the tuxedo and drapes. In addition to the yearbook session we also offer sessions that include casual/personality portraits and cap and gown portraits.
Appointments fill up fast so don’t wait. If you have any questions please email seniors@vosphoto.com.
Please consider following our Bolts
Twitter: @LightridgeHS_AD
Instagram: @Lightridgehs_athletics
As a friendly reminder, winter sports tryouts will be held November 7-9, 2022 and spring sports tryouts will be held February 20-22, 2023.
LOUDOUN YOUTH ADVISORY COUNCIL
YAC is a student-led organization of highly motivated teens who reside in Loudoun County. As a leadership development, community service, and civic engagement program, mentoring is provided by the Loudoun County Parks, Recreation, and Community Services (PRCS) Youth Initiative and teen services specialists.
YAC meets twice a month – on alternating Mondays – throughout the school year to work on special events and community service projects for their peers. Joining YAC is a great opportunity for high school students to meet other students who are passionate about serving the community and improving their leadership skills. The Loudoun Youth Advisory Council provides numerous opportunities for volunteer hours and leadership.
If you are interested, the application can be completed at: https://lfportal.loudoun.gov/Forms/YAC.
MSAAC Newsletter
Welcome Back Families!
We are excited to begin our school year with our first in-person meeting since the pandemic! Please save the date for the following General Body meetings, which will take place every third Wednesday from 7pm - 8:30pm unless otherwise posted:
September 21
October 19
November 16
January 18
February 15
March 15
April 19
May 17
See the link below to read more.......
Lightridge High School Parent-Teacher-Student Organization (LHS PTSO) a 501(c)(3) Organization, is made up of volunteers from the LHS community. Our goal is to provide support and service to the students, families, staff, and community of Lightridge High School; to promote a spirit of caring, good citizenship, and respect for others within the school and community; and to encourage family and community involvement in the education of all students.
What does the LHS PTSO do?
o Support LHS Staff
Fund faculty and staff initiatives and projects throughout the year that don't otherwise receive funding.
Show appreciation to faculty and staff through a snack shack, school breakfast, holiday treats, staff appreciation week activities, and more.
o Support LHS Students
Coordinate and support events for the students including treats, club, and activity support.
Fill student fundraising gaps where appropriate.
o Support LHS Parents
Provide a forum for parents through monthly meetings to collaborate with faculty and staff to ask questions, express concerns, share views, and give appreciation.
Host guest speakers.
Provide an opportunity to connect with other Lightridge parents.
How do we fund our programs?
Funds are raised through dues and fundraisers such as test prep partnerships, Amazon Smile, and grocery links. 100% of funds are returned to the students and staff through programs approved by the board via vote.
How do I get involved?
Become a member and/or volunteer! The PTSO is available to support all groups in the school, either with funds or with volunteers. Please join us so that we can provide funding and volunteer support to as many organizations throughout the school as we can reach. Join the PTSO today and help make a difference. The PTSO is open to any student, parent/guardian of a Lightridge student, or any member of the Lightridge staff.
HT Together in Education
Lightridge High School is participating in Harris Teeter's Together in Education program! Our account number is 6906 and you can link your VIC card to Lightridge by clicking here or tell your cashier during check-out that you want Lightridge’s account number linked to your Harris Teeter VIC card.
Lightridge High School
Email: christi.campbell@lcps.org
Website: https://www.lcps.org/lightridge
Location: 41025 Collaboration Drive Aldie, VA 20105
Phone: (571)367-4100
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LightridgeHighSchool/
Twitter: @LightridgeLCPS