MCHS Newsletter
January, 2024
EMERGENCY SCHOOL CLOSINGS
Winter is here and with it comes cold, snow, and possible school cancellations. On inclement weather days, MCHS may choose to take an emergency day OR we may hold classes remotely through an eLearning day. The decision to have an eLearning day will be made if we have enough warning during the prior day so we can remind students to take home chromebooks and materials they will need for remote learning the following day. Otherwise we will have an emergency day with no school and we will make up the missed day at the end of the school year. This will be communicated to parents in several ways:
• An automated phone call will be made to all parent/guardian phone numbers listed in the parent portal. Please click More and then Family Information in your portal to check/update your phone numbers as needed.
• Radio stations will be notified and public service announcements will be made.
• Notifications will be posted on the MCHS homepage at www.mchs154.org and the MCHS Facebook page.
Parents: Please DO NOT rely on “pictures” of the websites through texts or other forms of media; verify announcements on the actual website yourself.
DRIVER EDUCATION - BEHIND-THE-WHEEL
Semester 2 registration has begun. Any sophomore who has not taken behind-the-wheel and wishes to do so should email Mr. Fecarotta their name and permit number (DL No.# F123-4567-8910) as soon as possible.
FOOD TRUCK PROJECT
On Thursday December 7th, Mrs. Wille's Foods 2 students participated in the 10th semi-annual Food Truck Project! The students spent several weeks coming up with a business plan and a signature dish for a food truck. They got to serve students and staff during lunch periods. The food trucks were done by Keatyn Velasquez, Leila Becovic, Kayla Bauman, Isaac Anthony, Gavin Barkman, Ryen Mirtl, Dylan Squires, Olivia Clausen, Bella Soriano, and Natalie Quirk, along with teacher aide and #1 assistant, Lilly Drolen.
HONORS BAND
Congratulations to senior Ava Kanaly for auditioning into the Illinois Music Educators Association District 7 Honors Band on November 4, 2023. She joined the top musicians in northern Illinois in a day-long festival that culminated in a performance along with the Honors Choir and Honors Orchestra.
STUDENTS GIVE TO COMMUNITY
In the spirit of giving and spreading joy during the holiday season, the MCHS Transition Program embarked on a heartwarming initiative by creating and delivering Christmas cards to the residents of Florence Nursing Home. Students came together to plan and consider ideas for how they could build and give back to the local community. Armed with colored markers, glitter, and a whole lot of festive spirit, participants poured their creativity into crafting beautiful Christmas cards. Each card was a unique piece of art, filled with warm wishes and messages of love for the seniors at Florence Nursing Home. This thoughtful gesture not only brightened the festive season for the seniors, but also exemplified the power of community outreach and the positive impact that students can have on the lives of others.
CAREER DAY
On December 6th, 8th graders from Marengo-Union schools traveled to MCHS and chose from the following workshops to learn more about careers: (Foods - Mrs. Willie, Health Occupations- Mrs. Palek, Music in High School and Beyond- Mr. Stellmach, Manufacturing and Welding- Mr. Rich, Art- Mrs. Lindahl, 3D Printing- Mrs. Martin, Animal Science- Mrs. Obert, Intro to Automotive Mechanics- Mr. Schirmer, Fun with Flowers- Mrs. Obert, Collision Repair- Mr. Long, Intro to Agriculture- Mrs. Obert, and Child Development- Ms. Chayer). It was also an opportunity for 8th graders to see if they were interested in these careers and ask about classes offered at MCHS that would provide further exploration into them. Special thanks to the teachers who were able to run workshops for the 8th graders.
FFA NEWS
Dairy Products (12/07/2023)
The following Marengo FFA students placed top 10:
1st place - Ryker Markus
6th place - Ryley Adamson
8th place - Traeh Donovan
Agronomy (12/07/2023)
9th place - Paige Glander placed in the top 10
AFS FIELDTRIP
The AFS Club visited Aurora's Christkindlmarket on Thursday, November 30th. We had an unseasonably warm and sunny day to enjoy the wide variety of goods and foods from the German and European market vendors.
READING CLUB CHRISTMAS PARTY
The Reading Club had their Christmas Party in the Media Center the evening of December 8th. Many of the members were able to attend. We had plenty of food, including pizza, chips, and a selection of desserts.
Reading Club members were given free books that had been weeded from the library’s collection, so they will have lots of books to read over Christmas break. We had a White Elephant gift exchange, and several students made ornaments at the craft table. Members also brought a few games to play, and we all had a great time.
STUDENT COUNCIL SPREADS HOLIDAY CHEER
Students purchased Candy Grams during lunch and Santa, Mrs. Claus, and the Elves made their deliveries!
STUDENT SERVICES NEWS
Accelerated Placement Program
The District provides an Accelerated Placement Program (APP). The APP advances the District’s goal of providing educational programs with opportunities for each student to develop to his or her maximum potential. The APP provides an educational setting with curriculum options usually reserved for students who are older or in higher grades than the student participating in the APP.
APP options include, but may not be limited to: (a) accelerating a student in a single subject; and (b) other grade-level acceleration. Participation in the APP is open to all students who demonstrate high ability and who may benefit from accelerated placement. It is not limited to students who have been identified as gifted and talented. The automatic enrollment, in the following school term, of a student into the next most rigorous level of advanced coursework offered by the high school if the student meets or exceeds State standards in English language arts, mathematics, or science on a State assessment administered under 105 ILCS 5/2-3.64a-5, as follows:
1. A student who meets or exceeds State standards in English language arts shall be automatically enrolled into the next most rigorous level of advanced coursework in English, social studies, humanities, or related subjects.
2. A student who meets or exceeds State standards in mathematics shall be automatically enrolled into the next most rigorous level of advanced coursework in mathematics.
3. A student who meets or exceeds State standards in science shall be automatically enrolled into the next most rigorous level of advanced coursework in science.
Schedule changes for 2nd semester
Student initiated schedule changes may only be made the first five days of the semester. The last day to initiate changes is January 12th.
Schedule changes can only be made for specific reasons:
· Drop a class to add a study hall (only one study hall per day)
· Drop study hall to add a class
· Level changes (ex: general to honors)
· Add late start/early release to schedule (must meet gpa requirement)
Reminder from the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) in regard to student information. According to Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) all military recruiters have equal access to student directory (name, address and telephone) information unless a parent/guardian and student submit a written statement requesting exclusion to the registrar. This information is regularly requested by recruiters for students in grades 11 and 12. All requests to be excluded (opt out) must be written and signed by all parties.
Senior students - Local scholarships are posted on the Student Services Web Site. Go to our school website then select the Student Services section or click here . Scholarships are continuously added so check back regularly. MCC Fall 2024 Scholarship application opens on December 28th, 2023. The final deadline to apply for MCC Scholarships is April 3, 2024. All high school graduates planning to enroll in Fall 2024 courses at MCC can complete this scholarship application at www.mchenry.edu/scholarships.
Sophomores & Juniors Only:
You can link your College Board account with Khan Academy to create a personalized test prep for the SAT. The how-to video is here.
The PSAT/NMSQT scores can:
· be a helpful tool to find out if you are on track for college & career readiness,
· provide an opportunity to be awarded a scholarship (when taken Junior year),
· gives an indicator of future SAT performance
· can connect with the official SAT practice on Khan Academy for personalized preparation
· discover what AP courses you may be academically ready to take
ATHLETIC NEWS
The 73rd edition of the EC Nichols Tournament, which ran from December 23rd though December 29th, was won by McHenry. EC Nichols was superintendent of Marengo Community High School from 1949 - 1970. We are very honored to be running the second longest running basketball tournament in state history.
MCHS will be hosting the FVC/KRC Boys Bowling Tournament Championship at Glo Bowl Fun Center on Friday, January 5th. Bowling begins at 9:00 a.m. Competing schools are Marengo, Plano, Huntley, Harvard, McHenry, Johnsburg, Burlington Central and Woodstock.
MCHS athletic website address: https://schools.snap.app/Marengo. Snap, formerly known as 8 to 18, is our athletic website and has all the information that you will need. The website has our current, most up to date schedules, rosters and contact information. There are other websites out there that have our schedules on them. However, some of those websites may not be accurate. Our official website has accurate information on it. Please refer to this website for any athletic information needed.
The First National Bank Challenge for Winter Sports will be held at Harvard High School on January 12th. The schedule is as follows: 5:00 Wrestling, 6:30 Girls Basketball, and 8:00 Boys Basketball. Please support our FNBO Challenge with Harvard HS. Thank you to our sponsors and Booster Club for making this event possible.
Postseason information for winter sports can be found on the IHSA website (https://www.ihsa.org/default.aspx). On this site you can find regional, sectional, super-sectional and state information. Boys bowling is the first winter sport to compete in the postseason as the regional tournament will be held on January 13th.
Key Upcoming Dates:
January 5th: FVC/KRC Boys Bowling Tournament
January 12th: FNBO Challenge at Harvard High School
January 13th: Boys Bowling Regionals
January 20th: Boys Bowling Sections
January 26/27th: Boys Bowling State Tournament
Our athletic director, Dwain Nance, can be reached at (815) 568 - 6511 ext. 1612 or nanced@mchs154.org.
BOYS BOWLING
Boys Bowling is off to a very good start. Our varsity team has earned trophies in three tournaments. Cody Stallings has come close to a perfect game - twice. Cody's season high is currently 279. Justin Fluger broke another school record. The new record for high series is now 774. Justin has also bowled close to perfect this year. Justin's season high is currently 290. Hunter Pankow's high game for the season, so far, is a 268. After missing two matches, Hunter is one of our top scorers this year. Lucas Frohling (268), Ryan Heuser (235), Daschle Mardock (221) and Caden Sauder (212) have all helped round out this team to be contenders for our conference and, hopefully, state bound!
Back row: Lucas Frohling, Daschle Mardock, Justin Fluger
Front row: Hunter Pankow, Cody Stallings, Caden Sauder
Not pictured: Ryan Heuser
Justin Fluger Breaks the High Series School Record