Delran High School Broadcast
September 17, 2020
DELRAN HIGH SCHOOL MISSION STATEMENT
Delran High School, an inclusive learning community, provides educational opportunities for intellectual development while valuing the importance of cultural diversity and tradition.
A Message from Mr. Finkle!
Well, I truly do not know what to write today. It's been 8 days since we opened up the doors of DHS to our students and I could not be any more pleased with the response and the students' excitement and adherence to the protocols that we have set down.
Has the year started out perfectly? Nope! And honestly, I beat myself up when processes and promises are not totally fulfilled; however, I then remind myself that we are still in the middle of a Global Pandemic. We are doing the best that we can to ensure that your children receive the best education possible. We all must also remember that even though we are back in school, we have certainly not returned to normal.
Canvas is a great tool for both the teachers and your children; however, there is also a learning curve for all! Please be patient as we learn the best way to utilize the tool to maximize content and skills and concurrently also to teach your child how to do so.
I know that there has been some confusion with Canvas; however, I hope to clarify how your child should use Canvas, especially on asynchronous days.
Student Expectations for Remote Days (especially Asynchronous Days)
Students in grades 6-12, when working on asynchronous days, should log in during their normally scheduled class periods if able for a consistent routine. Your child will have assigned work for each asynchronous day assigned by your child's teachers. Your child is expected to:
- Check Canvas Inbox daily
- Click on your Canvas Course Card for each course
- Read Announcements if posted
- Check Modules for student classwork and assignments
- Students will also have a To-Do list which they can check and X out items they have completed.
- The calendar shows the final due dates of assignments
On synchronous days your child will either be in person or if fully remote, logging in to Google Meet for live instruction.
All of your child's grades are in the Parent Portal. Canvas is only used for submissions and not all work will be graded in Canvas. The only record that "counts" is in the Parent Portal grade book.
As we are learning Canvas and starting content related academic assignments, please have your child reach out to his/her teacher via the Canvas Inbox if not sure about where or how to complete assignments.
We understand that asynchronous days are challenging for some students and our teachers are working tirelessly to simultaneously support students at home and students in front of them in a hybrid instructional model.
We appreciate your patience as we all get used to this new way of teaching and learning.
If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, please contact me at dfinkle@delranschools.org or (856) 461-6100 x3005.
DHS Calendar of Events
- 9/21 BOE Mtg., DHS, 7:30 pm
- 9/22 & 9/24 Senior Picture Make-ups
- 9/22 PTA Mtg, Virtual, 7 pm
- 9/26 Detention
- 9/28 ASVAB - Auxillary Gym - Delaware Students
- 9/29 ASVAB - Auxillary Gym - Rancocas Students
- 9/30 Delran Reads
- 10/1 SAT
- View Full Calendar
DHS HAPPENINGS
our new normal!
Free Internet for Two Months
On the heels of offering new, low-income Internet Essentials customers two months of free internet and raising the speed of that program’s service to 25/3 Mbps, Comcast announced additional steps to help ensure people stay connected to the internet as more schools suspend classes and companies encourage employees to work from home due to the Coronavirus.
Comcast is taking steps to implement the following new policies for the next 60 days, and other important initiatives:
- Xfinity WiFi Free For Everyone: Xfinity WiFi hotspots across the country will be available to anyone who needs them for free – including non-Xfinity Internet subscribers. For a map of Xfinity WiFi hotspots, visit www.xfinity.com/wifi. Once at a hotspot, consumers should select the “xfinitywifi” network name in the list of available hotspots, and then launch a browser.
- Pausing Our Data Plan: With so many people working and educating from home, we want our customers to access the internet without thinking about data plans. While the vast majority of our customers do not come close to using 1TB of data in a month, we are pausing our data plans for 60 days giving all customers Unlimited data for no additional charge.
- No Disconnects or Late Fees: We will not disconnect a customer’s internet service or assess late fees if they contact us and let us know that they can’t pay their bills during this period. Our care teams will be available to offer flexible payment options and can help find other solutions.
- Internet Essentials Free to New Customers: As announced yesterday, it’s even easier for low-income families who live in a Comcast service area to sign-up for Internet Essentials, the nation’s largest and most comprehensive broadband adoption program. New customers will receive 60 days of complimentary Internet Essentials service, which is normally available to all qualified low-income households for $9.95/month. Additionally, for all new and existing Internet Essentials customers, the speed of the program’s Internet service was increased to 25 Mbps downstream and 3 Mbps upstream. That increase will go into effect for no additional fee and it will become the new base speed for the program going forward.
- News, Information and Educational Content on X1 and Flex: For those with school-age students at home, we’ve created new educational collections for all grade levels in partnership with Common Sense Media. Just say “education” into your X1 or Flex voice remote. To help keep customers informed, we also have created a collection of the most current news and information on Coronavirus. Just say “Coronavirus” into your X1 or Flex voice remote.
- 24x7 Network Monitoring: Underpinning all of these efforts, Comcast’s technology and engineering teams will continue to work tirelessly to support our network operations. We engineer our network capacity to handle spikes and shifts in usage patterns, and continuously test, monitor and enhance our systems and network to ensure they are ready to support customer usage. Our engineers and technicians staff our network operations centers 24/7 to ensure network performance and reliability. We are monitoring network usage and watching the load on the network both nationally and locally, and to date it is performing well.
For more information and updates from Comcast related to Coronavirus, visit:
http://www.comcastcorporation.com/COVID-19/
Important Information:
Student Pictures
The schedule for pictures is as follows:
Senior picture make-ups are only September 22nd and September 24th. Students/parents must go to OurYear.com and use school code 268 to schedule their appointments. Regarding any issues or problems, please call the Lifetouch scheduling department at 1-800-687-9327.
October 27th and 29th Underclassman Make-Ups
Please click here for additional information and pricing. For those students on Remote Instruction, we will organize an evening event where your child can have his/her picture taken.
SAT Crash Course
STAFFS Prep is holding a SAT Crash Course on Monday, September 21st (Reading) and Wednesday, September 23rd (Math) from 6 to 9 PM. This course will give students the opportunity to learn all major strategies for the test. Spots are limited. The price to attend for one day is $95 and for both sessions is $175. To register, please visit, www.staffsprep.com/crashcourse. If you have any questions, you can reach out to STAFFS Prep directly at contact@staffsprep.com.
DELRAN READS & SUMMER ASSIGNMENTS
Community Service Packet for Juniors
Community Service Opportunities
This is a local service opportunity to earn hours. The DHS Administration is aware of the difficulty in finding service hours. We are flexible with the hour requirement this year, but it is critical that students demonstrate effort. This event provides a local outdoor opportunity to improve an important community watershed. Amico Island Delran Clean-Up
Please monitor the following website from the Burlington County Volunteer Center for other community events including Virtual Volunteering.
Student Parking Passes
Naviance
All students 10th -12th have an account.
Naviance is a web-based tool that allows your student to explore their values, personality, strengths and correlate them to career clusters. It directs them to colleges with suggested majors so that they can build a list of colleges to explore.
Seniors and Juniors can see upcoming college visitations and request to attend directly in Naviance.
All students should be building their personal activity resume.
Ask your student to share with you what they are doing in Naviance.
College Planning
Is your senior ready to send out college applications this fall? Click here to review what to do this summer to prepare for college admissions.
Students at all grade levels are encouraged to begin exploring colleges. Build colleges of interest in Naviance and plan campus visitations.
Scholarship Info
Throughout the school year scholarships are posted on the Guidance webpage, listed in Naviance, search engines are in Collegeboard.org, and Fast-web.com.
Click here for currently available scholarships.
DELRAN HIGH SCHOOL NITTY GRITTIES
PTA MESSAGE
PTA Membership, Communication, & Meeting
Welcome to the 2020-2021 school year!
The Middle School/High School PTA is excited for a new school year and to let you know about the changes we have implemented to keep you informed throughout the year.
Like everything else these days, the PTA has gone VIRTUAL! There are THREE areas that you will now be able to handle virtually for the PTA: Membership, Communication, and Meetings.
- Membership - To become a PTA Patron and purchase a membership, please go to our NEW Delran MS/HS Online Store. You will receive your membership card via email. The cost is only $8.00 per person, and that money goes directly back to the student body. For example, it helps support students with a hardship to purchase their senior yearbook or contribute to the cost of a band trip.
- Communication - We will be using MemberHub to communicate with our members. Please visit the Delran MS/HS Grade Level Sign-Up Page to register. You may enter more than one parent/guardian information to receive the email updates. It’s very important that you enter each of your students separately (if in different grades) to receive grade-level specific information. Include each student’s name, role as a student, and grade level/graduating class hub. Student email addresses are not required. PLEASE NOTE: If you signed up in the past, you must sign-up again to receive your child’s grade-specific information.
- Meetings - All of our PTA meetings moving forward will be held via Zoom. You can join to hear about upcoming events for the PTA and each grade. Our first PTA meeting will be on September 22, 2020 at 7:00 PM. The Zoom meeting information will be sent via email the day before the meeting. You do not need a Zoom account to join the meeting.
The PTA is dedicated to Delran students and families and will continue to provide support with safety in mind. Please keep in mind that in light of this year’s events, some of our activities and offerings may look a little different this year!
Be sure to check our website for updates and like our Facebook page to stay informed! For questions, feedback, or concerns please contact Delran.mshs.PTA@gmail.com or any of the PTA board members listed here.
Thank you and we look forward to a wonderful year!
Becky Whitmeyer
PTA President