Palmer High January
Principal's Post
Welcome to 2020
The new year is always accompanied by new year's resolutions. This usually comes in the form of increasing activities and improving our diets. As a health teacher, I tried to impress on my students to not focus on a fad diet, but a lifestyle change that is more permanent and develops into a good habit.
For the principal's post, I often look for sources of inspiration to share. I found a nugget on our Palmer High Facebook page at the start of the new year that I would like to share. This story was written and shared by Holly Sager Holman: I was on a slow jog behind Palmer High School on the track this afternoon. Three young people came to throw the football around while I was out there. As I was running near to where they were on the field, one of them yelled out to me "you're a trooper!" Buoyed by this comment, I stepped up my pace a bit, and felt myself smiling! They left a bit before I was finished, and little did that young man know what an impact he had on my day! He could have seen me and just thought a pleasant thought (wow, look at that old lady running!) or maybe said "hi" if I spoke to him first (which I did not) or even just said "hi" - but no - he offered a word of encouragement to a stranger! That young man has left quite an impression on me. My New Year's Resolution is to be more like him, offering encouraging or uplifting words to people!
Now that is a great example of a new year's resolution that is worthy of pursuit. All too often we hear about everything wrong in our society. I feel blessed in this role because we get to experience just the opposite in our interactions with students. People helping people and performing random acts of kindness. That is something we all use more of.
Happy New Year!
A Message to Senior Parents
I refer to this as senioritis:)
As our seniors enter the final stretch of their high school career I want to encourage you to check in with your kiddo to make sure they've checked all the boxes required for graduation. The biggest concern may be passing all of their current classes. I encourage you to monitor their academic progress on ParentVUE.
If your student is at risk for not obtaining the credits towards graduation you will be receiving a letter from our guidance department outlining the credit required and concerns specific to your students. If you receive this letter please lean on us for feedback about your student's progress and keep an open line of communication.
To stay on top of deadlines there is a senior to-do list courtesy of Mrs. Grover.
Senior To-Do List ~
Cap & Gown should be ordered by now, if not, they must be ordered online at www.jostens.com
Diploma Names must be submitted on PHS Website by Jan. 24th. See Mrs. Grover if you have questions or call at 746-8427
Senior Slideshow pictures need to be submitted to seniorslides2020@gmail.com (Send 2 pictures, a current or senior photo, and a baby photo.) Due Mar. 17th.
A Senior Timeline is also available on the PHS Website for reference.
Activities for the Month of January
January is a very busy month full of activities as students return from the winter break. The action begins with the Government Peak Recreational Area Nordic Ski Invite that features 8 teams from across the state on January 10 and 11th.
The 23rd annual Palmer Elks Showdown featuring the Chugiak Mustangs, Juneau Bears, Eagle River Wolverines, Valdez Buccaneers, and the Palmer Moose. The tournament will run January 16-18th, The tournament schedule can be found on Palmer High School Website.
January is also a busy month for the Moose Hockey team as they host 7 games starting with Juneau on the 16th.
The annual anime Yuki Festival will bookend this month’s activities on the 25th. Full schedules and game times can be found on arbiterlive http://arbiterlive.com/Teams?entityId=17452.
Palmer High Staff Highlight
Mr. Bonn- A Foundation of Palmer's Positive Atmosphere
Dave Bonn's role at Palmer High School is the safety coordinator officer. His daily duty is working in concert with the administrative team handing discipline and all things related to school safety. He is a model for this role for the school district in this capacity, but there is so much more that Mr. Bonn does for Palmer High School.
Students filled out surveys on the staff just before we left for the Holiday break. There was such a consistent theme that the students used to describe Mr. Bonn. Welcoming, friendly, positive, funny, caring, he makes every student feel valued and cared for. The consistency was as if they sat in a room and discussed it and wrote the same thing. It was a testament to his character and what he means to the students and staff of Palmer High. We are grateful for all he does for Palmer High. Thank you, Mr. Bonn, for making Palmer High a positive and safe school.
Learn more about Palmer High on our Facebook page
Email: paul.reid@matsuk12.us
Website: https://www.matsuk12.us/phs
Location: 1170 W Bogard Rd, Palmer, AK, USA
Phone: (907)746-8400