Greetings SPHS Caregivers, Families, and Friends!

We are now well into the second semester and the time is flying by.

We are fortunate to have so many wonderful options for students throughout their high school careers. With the opening of two comprehensive high schools (East and West), and one alternative high school (Prairie Phoenix Academy), these opportunities have increased which provides our students early exposure to a variety of courses. Students and families should have spent much of January going over the scheduling materials and course guide for the 2022 – 2023 school year. If your student has an IEP, the special education teacher will help to ensure students are signed up for the classes to assist with a student’s academic needs. For additional assistance, students can work with their counselor and homeroom teacher.

It is extremely important for students and families to work together to make course decisions that are comfortable and align with students’ future goals and plans. Please make sure your student has their class choices completed along with alternative choices in Xello by February 3, 2022. After students have selected their courses, we will build next year’s master schedule for both schools. In creating these master schedules, it will be difficult for students to make changes to their classes.

Family/Teacher conferences will be held at the end of this month. On February 24, conferences will be held from 4 – 8 pm and on February 25, conferences will be held from 7:30 – 11:30 am. Similar to October’s Family/Teacher conferences, there will be in-person and virtual options for caregivers and families. More information about conferences will be sent out closer to the date. If you have questions about the conferences, you are welcome to contact the school.

On Tuesday, March 8, we will be administering state-required ACT testing to all of our SPHS Juniors. With ACT testing only a month away, I want to share important information. This day, only Juniors will report to SPHS while Sophomores and Seniors will continue with asynchronous learning. If your student was approved for accommodations, specific details on what that looks like will be provided to you via email closer to the time of the start of the ACT testing window.

During the month of February, we are celebrating Black History Month with numerous events and opportunities for all students and families. Please look at our website to see all of the opportunities in which you and your students can participate.

As we continue to progress through the year, we are excited about the changes and opportunities we are creating for our students. As always, please let any of the administrative team know of any questions or concerns you have. We look forward to a fantastic second half of the year.

Warm Regards,

Renee Coleman

Principal

Seniors have received a Scholarship 101 Presentation through an email from Xello. This information was also reviewed with them twice this year in their advisory classes. We encourage all seniors to check out the link above to get started on earning free money for college. Highlights include; Types of scholarships, how to get started on the search, local scholarship information, free scholarship search tools and links, and helpful hints. Also, we post many local and regional scholarships on our scholarship webpage. Keep in mind that due dates are approaching quickly so it's a good idea to be checking this website weekly. Please reach out to your counselor if you have questions. Happy scholarship hunting!

Mark your calendars! State-mandated ACT testing for Juniors (11th graders) will be Tuesday, March 8th! Testing will take place at SPHS and will be in an online format similar to last year. Expect more detailed communication to be sent out in early February. Have a great start to semester two!

Bus Driver Recognition Week

February 14-18, 2022 is School Bus Driver Recognition Week in the State of Wisconsin. Be sure to thank your child’s bus driver for all they do to get your child to and from school safely every day!

Families with Rural Stops

If your child will not be riding the bus and the bus stops at your driveway with no other students assigned to that stop, please notify Kobussen at 825-8700, option 1, no later than 6:30 a.m. This avoids driving to locations if there are no students to pick up.

Please make sure your child is visible to the driver when waiting for the bus.

Bus Pick-up Times

Please remind your child to be ready and waiting at the bus stop at least 5 minutes prior to the scheduled pick-up time. This ensures your child doesn’t miss the bus if the route is running slightly ahead of schedule. Any time within 5 minutes is considered “on time.”

Please remember you need to have your bus tag with you in order to ride the bus to/from school. You can take a picture of your tag with your phone and show it to the bus driver or stop in the main office to see Mrs. Yunen if you need a new tag. Thank you

Wearing A Mask On School Buses

Masks remain a simple but powerful tool to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. We want to remind parents that students (and drivers) must wear a mask on school buses, regardless of their vaccination status.

Thank you for helping to keep all students safe while riding the bus!

Waiting for the Bus

As cold and snowy weather is upon us, here are a few reminders when students are waiting for

the bus in the morning. Students should:

● be waiting at the bus stop at least 5 minutes before the scheduled arrival time.

● be dressed appropriately for waiting in cold weather. This includes jackets, hats,

gloves/mittens, and scarves.

● stay out of the road and others’ yards. Wait on the sidewalk or close to the curb if there

aren’t sidewalks.

● wait to cross the road until the driver signals and the bus comes to a complete stop

before attempting to board.

No Eating On The Bus

Please remember there is absolutely no eating allowed on district buses. Students may have

life-threatening food allergies that could be affected by others eating on the bus. If your child

does not get a chance to eat breakfast at home, please make sure he/she knows to wait until

they arrive at school. If your child is given a snack or treat at the end of the day, we ask that they

eat it before leaving school or wait until they get home.

If you have any questions or concerns about this information, or school bus safety, please

contact Kobussen at 825-8700, ext 5509.

There are 4 opportunities each year for students to participate in fun and challenging math contests, through the Madison Area Mathematics League(MAML). This series of meets are hosted by the Madison high schools and always occurs on a Wednesday after school. The contests are open to any student who has an interest and are filled using the first-come-first-served policy. Sample contests, sign-up information, and permission forms can be found in the Math League Google Classroom (join code: ls7swir). All announcements will be posted through Google Classroom.

This year’s competition dates are Oct. 27, Dec. 1, Feb. 9, and Mar. 16. The first two dates will be “virtual at home school”. That is, we will submit online but participate together from our own high school. Watch Google Classroom for details as the competition nears. Please feel free to contact Ms. Bethany Konz at bakonz@sunprairieschools.org with any questions.