FHS HOOF PRINTS
Stampeding Toward Excellence!
About Florence High School
Email: selder@florenceisd.net
Website: https://www.florenceisd.net/83427_2
Location: 401 FM 970, Florence, TX, USA
Phone: 254-793-2495
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Florence-ISD-276348685879446
Principal's Notes
Welcome to our fourth edition of the FHS HOOF PRINTS. In this edition, you will find information about athletic events, academics at FHS, and other topics of interest. We will post this bi-weekly newsletter on Facebook, our high school website, and there is an option for you to subscribe to it through email. We hope you find the communication informative and interesting.
As we continue to move through the 2020 - 2021 school year, I remain hopeful that our mitigation strategies related to COVID - 19 will remain effective in limiting the impact of the pandemic on our school. As a reminder, the holidays are a traditional time of gathering and celebration, but they also are a potential opportunity for disease infection and spread. Please remain mindful and careful during these times so that we can continue to limit the impact of COVID-19 in Florence ISD.
During the last two weeks, we have administered benchmark tests for our students in STAAR tested areas to help identify present levels of academic achievement and the potential need for additional support. So far, the scores look promising and we hope to continue that trend. Please continue to reinforce to your students the importance of academic work and continue to partner with your child’s teachers to remind them about maintaining a priority on academics as we move toward the end of the first semester. Additionally, attendance plays a critical role in a child’s academic success. Please ensure that your child completes assignments during absences through the Canvas LMS to avoid falling behind, losing academic credit, and putting themselves in graduation jeopardy. Our teachers and staff are more than willing to help, but the commitment to communication and academic success must be universal with the goal of creating student success and continuing the “Stampede Toward Excellence!”
Enjoy this FHS HOOF PRINTS and continue to look for them every other week.
Regards,
Steve Elder
Assistant Principal's Corner - Sliding into the Holiday Season!!!
Thanksgiving Break is rapidly approaching and everyone is extremely grateful and ready for a short break. Our students and faculty have all been working very hard since late August and have certainly earned some time with family and friends. We hope everyone is able to enjoy good food, great family time, and a little fun during the next week.
Some of our students still find it necessary to continue as remote learners and we are thrilled to be able to meet the needs of our students and families. Remote students must always be diligent about accessing Canvas every day for every class. In order to assure that students are getting a quality education and to be counted present for attendance, each student must complete an assignment or make some form of contact with each teacher on a daily basis.
Many of our students have been involved in various extracurricular activities that have kept them away from school on numerous occasions. We encourage students to get involved in a variety of activities, but these activities occasionally make it very difficult to get everything done. Students that are involved in extracurricular activities must remember to access assignments for each class while they are away from school. This is the beauty of an online curriculum!
I would like to encourage students to make use of the slower pace while they are out of school next week to log onto our Learning Management System - Canvas - to get caught up in all of their coursework or to get ahead by working on some of the big projects that always come due toward the end of the semester. Canvas is available to everyone 24 hours a day, every day - even when we are out of school.
Have fun next week and enjoy your time with family and friends.
From the Counselor's Desk...
Florence High School will be offering the PSAT on Tuesday, January 26th starting at 8 am. It will conclude by 11:45.
All Sophomores and AP/Dual Credit Juniors will be taking the exam.
If you are unsure if your name is on the list, please contact the Counselor, Mr. Tinsley. His email address is jtinsley@florenceisd.net His office number is 254-793-2495 ext. 5308.
FHS Students earn Industry Certification
History - Learning about the past for a brighter future!!!
Learning about our government!!!
It's a group effort!!!
Learning about the world's geography!!!
EVERY WEDNESDAY AT FHS IS COLLEGE DAY! BE SURE TO SPORT YOUR FAVORITE COLLEGE'S GEAR EACH WEDNESDAY!
Dress Code Review
• All students are to wear clean and appropriate clothing to school and to school sponsored events.
• Clothing must be modest, worn with proper undergarments.
• Students shall not wear any item that is distracting, disruptive, gang-related, drug related (includes alcohol and tobacco products), or suggestive (wording, and/or symbols, implied or otherwise). The following are not permissible:
• Visible undergarments or lingerie (or swim suit tops visible as lingerie),
• See-through or revealing clothes of any type, Florence Independent School District Student Handbook Page 52 of 100
• Short shorts or wind shorts with biker pants,
• Sleepwear/loungewear (or any facsimile thereof),
• Excessively revealing tight fitting garments (leggings, “jeggings,” yoga pants may be worn under shorts, a skirt, a dress, or tunic no shorter than one inch below the student’s fingertips),
• Oversized garments that sag below the waistline or reveal undergarments, even if the shirt is not tucked in, • Tube tops, body suits, halter tops, racer backs, and strapless tops,
• Straps hanging down when designed to be over-the-shoulder,
• Hats, caps, or other headgear including hoods (worn in building),
• Dog collars, wallet chains, or any style of chain hooked to garments,
• “Spiked” accessories, • Opaque or designer contact lenses or sunglasses,
• Distracting hair or hair color (such as but not limited to designs shaved into hair, Mohawks),
• Body art/tattoos, unless discreet/not offensive or covered,
• Coloration on hands, face, and feet without a reason, such as theater production,
• Trench coats, overcoats, or dusters (worn in building),
• Flip-flops on Elementary Campus (unless secondary footwear is brought for physical education (PE) and recess activities),
• Ornamented body piercings (including clear), except earrings for girls (Covering the ornamented piercings with band aides does not make them acceptable.),
• Pants having holes three inches or more above the mid-point of the knee, or
• Ear discs.
Not Permissible for Girls
• Shorts, skirts, slits in skirts and dresses shorter than one inch below the student’s fingertips, regardless of whether leggings, “jeggings” or spandex are worn,
• Visible facial or body piercing jewelry, except for earrings,
• Makeup in grades prekindergarten through 5,
• Exposed cleavage, or
• Shoulder straps less than one-inch wide (such as spaghetti straps).
Not Permissible for Boys
• Footwear not applicable for daily activity such as running/jumping (or bare feet),
• Facial hair and sideburns longer than the bottom of the earlobe,
• Earrings, facial jewelry, or visible body piercing jewelry,
• Nail polish or makeup,
• Hair longer than the bottom of a T-shirt collar,
• Hair falling over the eyebrows,
• Hair hiding the ears,
• Hair pinned up, pulled behind the ears, or tied in a ponytail, or
• Sleeveless shirts that expose the underarms.
If the principal determines that a student’s grooming or clothing violates the school’s dress code, the student will be given an opportunity to correct the problem at school. If not corrected, the student may be assigned to in-school suspension for the remainder of the day, until the problem Florence Independent School District Student Handbook Page 53 of 100 is corrected, or until a parent or designee brings an acceptable change of clothing to the school. Repeated offenses may result in more serious disciplinary action in accordance with the Student Code of Conduct.
ATTENDANCE MATTERS!
The vast majority of our students with excessive absences fail to pass their classes. Students need to be engaged in class or online in Canvas every day.
Our state funding is based on the percentage of students at school at 9:30 a.m. every day. Higher attendance rate = more money for resources for your student.
When a student ages 6–18 incurs unexcused absences for three or more days or parts of days within a four-week period, the law requires the school to send notice to the parent.
The notice will:
• Remind the parent of his or her duty to monitor the student’s attendance and require the student to attend school;
• Request a conference between school administrators and the parent; and
• Inform the parent that the district will initiate truancy prevention measures, including a behavior improvement plan, school-based community service, referrals to counseling or other social services, or other appropriate measures.
The truancy prevention facilitators for the district are the campus principals. If you have questions about your student and the effect of his or her absences from school, please contact the campus principal.
A court of law may impose penalties against the parent if a school-aged student is deliberately not attending school. A complaint against the parent may be filed in court if the student is absent without excuse from school on ten or more days or parts of days within a six-month period in the same school year.
If a student ages 12–18 incurs unexcused absences on ten or more days or parts of days within a six-month period in the same school year, the district, in most circumstances, will refer the student to truancy court.
HOW TO CHECK YOUR STUDENT’S GRADES AND ATTENDANCE:
Florence High School utilizes Ascender Parent Portal as a way to keep you up to date with your child’s most current grades and attendance. This system also allows you to access progress reports and report cards as well as see your child’s schedule and immunization record. You can create an Ascender Parent Portal account by clicking the following link. https://ascportal.esc13.net/ParentPortal/login?distid=246902
If you are new to Ascender Parent Portal here are a few helpful hints:
1. The email address that you set your account up with must match the email address we have on file for you.
2. You will need to obtain a Portal ID# in order to link your child(s) grade to your account. You can obtain this Portal ID# from our Registrar by emailing a request to rlewis@florenceisd.net
3. Your User Name and Password CANNOT be retrieved by FISD.
Who Should I Contact About...
Attendance – including absences, doctor’s notes, students needing to leave school early: Our Piems Clerk Rebecca Lewis, rlewis@florenceisd.net 254/793-2495, ext. 5336
General School Information – Our Secretary Lori Crow lcrow@florenceisd.net 254/793-2495, ext. 5380
Immunizations, illnesses, medications – Emma Gonzalez egonzalez@florenceisd.net 254/793-2495, ext, 5339
Registration, Transcripts – Our Registrar Rebecca Lewis, rlewis@florenceisd.net 254/793-2495, ext. 5336
Student Emotional Support, College Readiness, Student Schedules – Our Counselor John Tinsley jtinsley@florenceisd.net 254/793-2495, ext. 5308
Athletic Program – Our Athletic Director Drew Bridges dbridges@florenceisd.net 254/293-2495, ext. 5304
Band Program – Our Band Director Thomas Pena tpena@florenceisd.net 254/793-2495, ext. 5361
Ideas for School Improvement, Student Discipline – Our Principal Steve Elder selder@florenceisd.net 254/793-2495, ext. 5302 or Our Assistant Principal Rosi Tuck rtuck@florenceisd.net 254/793-2495, ext, 5342