Hello Panthers,

I hope this month's newsletter finds you in good health and good spirits. This is a difficult time for everyone with schools closed, shelter-at-home, social distancing, and many other new terms that are now in our daily vocabulary. Many of us are feeling disconnected; my hope is that this month's newsletter will be a source of information and resources that can help us to stay connected until we are able to return to school.

Please know that all of the teachers and staff at Benicia High School are missing our students tremendously. We are working hard to continue the school year online so that students receive the education they deserve and the essential skills/concepts they need to progress. School activities, athletics, and events are all on hold, as we are not able to gather in large groups together.

PowerSchool continues to be the best resource for information about grades for assignments and classes. All teachers are using Google Classrooms to provide assignments, resources, and instruction. You can reach out to teachers with questions or to request assistance. Teachers are providing virtual "Office Hours" throughout the week and many are offering Zoom meetings to connect with students or provide instruction.

We will not be having Final exams at the end of the semester as we normally would, June 3rd-5th. Due to the disruption to instruction, we will instead use those last days of the school year to complete instruction and each teacher will provide information specific to their class. In addition, 11th grade students will not take standardized tests this year (state exams such as SBAC). SAT and ACT exams have been cancelled at this time and plan to return in the Fall.

For our Seniors - We are thinking of you! We are actively looking into several options for providing a Senior Prom or similar special event at a later date, after graduation. We are also proceeding with plans for an alternative format for graduation for the Class of 2020 Commencement. We will communicate this out as plans are made. At this time, things continue to change weekly or daily at the state and local level, so we want to be sure to plan accordingly. We ask for your patience while this happens. We know this has not been the end of your Senior year that you planned or hoped for, and we are so sorry. We hope to provide an opportunity to come together as a class and have a celebration when we are allowed to hold gatherings again.

For all students and families, please reach out via email to your Counselors, Administrators, Teachers and other staff if you need any help or have any questions. We are here for you. If you are not sure who to contact, you can email BHSInfo@beniciaunified.org and we will have the proper person contact you within one school day. We will continue to provide updates on our BHS Twitter and Facebook accounts, email communications to students and parents to provide new information, and will update this newsletter as needed. Please also use the BUSD and BHS websites for information.

As we continue with distance learning for the remainder of the school year and shelter-at-home for this extended period of time, please be sure to include positivity, creativity, and mindfulness in your day. Bring art into your life with music, painting, film, comedy, or other form that best speaks to you. Find reasons to laugh and be sure to get exercise. Take breaks during school work to take care of yourself. Reach out to friends and have virtual gatherings to watch a movie, play a game, or share celebrations.

We miss you and look forward to when we can all return to BHS together.

Go Panthers!

Brianna Kleinschmidt, Principal

At-a-Glance Changes:

• AP is now providing free online learning resources. This includes AP review lessons provided by AP teachers from around the country. These are available live at scheduled times and available by video to access after the live session.
• AP exams will now be taken on your own device - a computer, tablet, or smartphone. You also have the option to write your exam response by hand and submit a photo. We recommend that you use a personal computer or BUSD Chromebook that has been assigned to you this year.
• AP exams have changed and will be 45-minute online free-response exams, with one or two free response questions. No multiple-choice.
• Students taking Spanish or French world language and culture exams will complete two spoken tasks.
• AP exam content will focus on what most schools were able to complete by early March.
• AP exams will be secure, with College Board using a variety of digital security tools and plagiarism detection software.
• AP Art Classes that require portfolio submission (Art and Design: 2D, Art and Design: 3D, and Art and Design: Drawing) - the submission deadlines have been extended to May 26.
• AP Capstone Classes (Research and Seminar) - Digital Portfolio deadlines have been extended to May 26.
• AP Computer Science Principles - Digital Portfolio deadline extended to May 26.

AP exams will be given May 11 - May 22nd (view full testing schedule here).

Please continue to communicate with your teachers and work through Google Classroom or other platforms provided to complete your course and prepare for the AP exam.

The California State University (CSU) system also provided updated information for 11th grade students planning to apply for admission in the future.

For incoming college freshmen:

• CSU will assess and initially place students in first-year English/Math based on multiple measures: high school and college courses completed, GPA's, and test scores (SBAC, ACT, SAT) that students have completed so far.
• CSU will NOT facilitate a systemwide Early Start Program in summer 2020; individual campuses may offer virtual summer transitional programs.
• CSU requests that high schools provide transcripts by July 15, 2020, but has additional plans in place should that not be possible.

• CSU “recommends” all students enroll in a yearlong, senior-year English course and a mathematics/quantitative reasoning course.
• CSU is still determining the appropriate path forward for eligibility criteria for Fall 2021 applicants regarding the indefinite suspension of the ACT/SAT examinations.

District programs, activities, and practices shall be free from unlawful discrimination, including discrimination against an individual or group based on race, color, ancestry, nationality, national origin, immigration status, ethnic group identification, ethnicity, age, religion, marital status, pregnancy, false pregnancy, termination of pregnancy, or related recovery, parental status, physical or mental disability, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, or genetic information; a perception of one or more of such characteristics; or association with a person or group with one or more of these actual or perceived characteristics.