Panther Pause
26 years of Pride at Colleyville Heritage High School
4.22.22
Hello and happy Friday Panther community! I have now officially been “on the job” for two weeks; during this time I’ve had many questions about the changes I am making. I want to reassure both students and parents that at this time there have not been any changes to the dress code, ID badge policy, door access/entry, or the breakfast and lunch services/schedule.
The vending machines have been put on a timer; they are turned on and available for the purchase of items before and after school. They are turned off during the instructional day - during this time students are expected to be in class and engaged in learning.
I realize that change can be difficult and cause uncertainty, but I assure you that I accepted the role of CHHS principal because I love education, working with students & staff, and partnering with parents and the community to provide increased opportunities and avenues for success for all of our Panthers.
If you have any questions or concerns as we finish out the school year please feel free to reach out to me. I am more than happy to meet with you, visit with you on the phone, or correspond via email.
With Panther PRIDE,
Julia
Highlights from GCISD:
Nutrition Survey
Greetings GCISD parents and students! The Grapevine-Colleyville ISD Nutrition Services team values your feedback and invites you to complete the 2022 survey if you have or currently participate in the school meals offered in the cafeteria!
Simply scan the QR code to complete the brief survey or click on the link below:
Reminder: Scholarship deadlines are approaching!
There are many scholarships available for our students. Many of these scholarships have deadlines that are quickly approaching. For a list of scholarships available for GCISD students, please visit this document.
Reminder: Lightspeed Relay Parent Portal
The purpose of the Lightspeed Relay Parent Portal is to partner with parents to raise good digital citizens. Each week, parents receive an email called the Relay Portal Weekly Report that comes out Sunday evening with information about their child's browsing activity. The weekly parent report contains:
the number of websites that a child browsed
the average number of pages a child visited each day during the week
the number of pages that a child visited daily
the top ten sites a child visited
When a parent logs into the Parent Portal Dashboard, it takes them to the landing page. This shows a summary of the most recent student internet activity. It includes sites, dates, and times. Parents can interact with the sites by clicking on them to see exactly what their child viewed. If you have more than one child in the District, you can easily toggle between them in a dropdown at the top of the screen.
Parents can also pause web browsing on their child's device. This will temporarily block website browsing when their child is not at school. Important: This only acts to disable browsing when the child is away from school.
Classlink Design Challenge
Welcome to the first ClassLink Digital Design Challenge! High school students are invited to submit works of art for the district ClassLink login page. While digital art is encouraged, students may submit high-quality photos of traditional 2D or 3D art. This year, the challenge is open to all GCISD 9th-12 Grade Students. The deadline for submission is 4/25.
STAAR Online
The Texas Education Agency (TEA) is transitioning all state assessments to be administered online by the 2022–2023 school year. To support this change, GCISD will be administering all state assessments online this Spring and is encouraging students to visit the practice tests site released by the TEA to prepare for online testing. For upcoming testing, students will be using district-issued personal devices.
The online practice tests familiarize students with the general tools, designated supports, and accessibility features that may appear in online tests. In the practice site, there are features that may be turned on and off for students with identified accommodations such as text-to-speech and spelling assistance. Organized by grade level and subject, all 2018, 2019, and 2021 STAAR released tests are also available on the online practice site. Please visit this link for instructions on how to access the practice site.
To view upcoming online STAAR testing windows and dates, please visit our website.
More specific information about student testing days will be coming soon. Please submit a help desk ticket if you are having trouble launching a test.
Join Our Team!
Highlights from counseling:
ARENA SCHEDULING: FRESHMEN
The Arena scheduling window for current freshmen opens on Wednesday, April 27, at 7:30 am and closes at midnight on Friday, April 29. Counselors will be available to help at 7:30 am in the lecture hall and learning commons, during all lunches in the lecture hall, and after school in the lecture hall and learning commons on Wednesday for any students who need assistance. Students can refer to their Arena Scheduling or Class of 2024 Canvas courses for instructions, which include detailed slideshows and videos.
Senior Awards
Our Senior Awards Ceremony to recognize academic achievements, awards and scholarships is finally back as an in-person event! The ceremony will be held in the CHHS auditorium on Wednesday, May 18th, at 6 PM. Please take a few minutes to complete the Senior Awards Survey by April 30th to be included in the ceremony.
Please carefully read each question in the survey and know that the information you enter in Section 2 will be what’s listed in the digital program and announced at the Senior Awards Ceremony.
*All students, regardless of post-high school plans should complete Section 1 of the survey.
*In Section 2, personal dollar amounts for scholarships will not be listed or announced. This information is collected only for the calculation of the total amount offered to the Class of 2022.
*Students completing Sections 1 and 2 will be emailed an invitation prior to the ceremony.
Senior Graduation Letters
It's time for senior graduation letters! This is when teachers and parents have the opportunity to provide letters of congratulations, support or encouragement for their students to read before the graduation ceremony. It can be anything from a handwritten note to a card to a typed letter; it should be small enough to fit in a 9x12 envelope.
The due date is Friday, May 20th. Please email them to christina.howard@gcisd.net or, if you would like to hand write letters, you can drop them off in the counseling office with Christina Howard.
This is a great chance to acknowledge your student's accomplishments and provide encouragement in his/her next steps. Thank you for your participation in this CHHS tradition!
Future Planning Hour
New Financial Aid Graduation Requirement
Beginning this year, all seniors must complete one of the following steps in order to comply with Texas Education Code (TEC), §28.0256 in order to graduate:
- Complete and submit a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA); or
- Complete and submit a Texas Application for State Financial Aid (TASFA); or
- Submit a signed opt-out form (English) (Spanish)
Review complete information about how to complete this requirement here in English and Spanish. ALL students are must comply to graduate.
Counselor Corner
Please see important information regarding arena scheduling, scholarship deadlines, and other updates in the April's Counseling Newsletter.
Please join Canvas:
SENIOR SPOTLIGHT - Daniella Rodriguez
This week's Project Graduation Senior Spotlight is Daniella Rodriguez. Daniella is in PALS and CHHS Volleyball. She is also in Redefining Beautiful, Baking Club, NHS, She’s the First & Spirit Sisters. She enjoys hanging with friends and family, listening to music, reading, going to the gym and watching movies! Her favorite quote is from Proverbs 4:23 : Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it. She is attending Grand Canyon University in Phoenix AZ!
Daniella thinks Project Graduation will be an awesome program for seniors to enjoy one last memory all together in a safe and fun way! She is so excited!
We are looking for students to help us promote CHHS Project Graduation! Being involved will also promote your sport, club or organization! If you are interested, we will coordinate with you to determine which date you will be featured as our Senior Spotlight Student. Only a certain number of applicants will be accepted so apply quickly to get a spot. Please fill out the following Google Form or contact Rhonda Byers if you are interested in being featured in the Senior Spotlight.
Panther Sports:
Panther Tennis
CHHS Panther Softball
NCAA Webinar for college bound athletes
Upcoming Dates to Remember:
Stock the Lounge!
CHHS Baseball Youth Night
CHHS Baseball is hosting youth night Friday April 22nd at 7:30pm at Panther Field. There will be free admission for youth players, raffles for prizes, the chance to run the bases and take a photo with the varsity team. Use the QR Code to pre-register and be included in the raffles.
CHHS Panther Theatre
CHHS Senior Prom 2022
Bringing a Non-CHHS Guest?
Prom dates that do not go to CHHS will need to fill out the proper paperwork. If you are bringing a non-CHHS student to prom, please:
Print and fill out this form to turn in to the front office to Mrs. Byers no later than 4pm on Friday, April 22nd.
Fill out this online form for our records no later than 4pm on Friday, April 22nd.
For more information about prom, please click here.
Support CHHS Tennis
Seat Time
Parents, we have two upcoming dates where students can earn double seat time hours. The hours will count towards the Spring semester. The final opportunity for students to earn seat time for the Spring semester will be the week of May 23rd.
The upcoming dates are May 7 and May 14.
Sessions are from 8:00 am to 12:00 pm.
Seat time will be held in the Panther Den. Students may enter the building through the main front entrance. The front doors will be unlocked between 7:45 am and 8:15 am.
In order to earn double hours, the student must attend the entire session (serve 4 hours, receive 8 hours credit). However, students who only serve for part of the time will still be awarded seat time hours for the time they are present.
For any questions regarding seat time, please reach out to your child's administrator.
Expectations for Seat Time:
Students should be working on coursework or reading.
Students will not be allowed to have food delivered.
Students will not be allowed to leave the Panther Den for any reason.
Snacks will be provided and there is a water fountain and 2 restrooms in the Panther Den.
Any food they want they need to bring with them. There are vending machines in the Panther Den.
If students leave the Panther Den without checking out, their entire time will be forfeited.
Spirit Shop End of 2022 Sale
Black attack shirts
Black attack will be selling Black attack shirts before the pep rally on Friday, April 29th for $5 dollars each. No year is printed on the shirts so they can be worn FOREVER!
Cash only, sizes med, large and XL are available in both colors!
CHHS Day at The Rangers Game
Join us for CHHS Day at the Rangers game and support CHHS Baseball. Tickets for the May 1st game against the defending World Series champion Atlanta Braves at 1:30pm https://fevo.me/chhs22
City of Grapevine volunteer opportunity
GCISD Athletic/Fine Arts Physical Day
CHHS 2022 Multicultural Fair
Colley Volley
Yearbook Distribution Day
The CHHS Yearbook Distribution Day is on Wednesday, May 18th during all lunches. All students that ordered a yearbook will need to bring their student ID to the yearbook table to get their yearbook.
NOT SURE IF YOUR PURCHASED A YEARBOOK?
If you are unsure if you purchased a yearbook, please go into your email account and type JOSTENS. If you purchased one, your receipt will appear. Please make sure that it has THIS school year on that receipt (June 2021-March 2022). If you did not buy one, the extra 50 yearbooks will be sold on a first come, first serve basis for $100 (all checks must be made out to CHHS Yearbook).
2022 SENIOR BACCALAUREATE
The CHHS Senior Baccalaureate will be Sunday, May 22 at 2 pm at 121 Community Church. Students are to arrive in their gowns (no caps) at 1pm. Doors will open for family seating at 1:30pm. This optional event is a nondenominational service to honor all CHHS graduating seniors and their families. The service will include words of inspiration, music, and a blessing.
Pictures are being collected for the service's slideshow. If you would like to be included, please email the following to chhsbaccalaureate2022@gmail.com by Monday, May 16th.
- senior's name
- one baby or toddler picture
- one senior picture
Semester Exams and Exemptions
Spring 2022 Semester Exam Schedules and Exemptions: Parents, please click here to access the CHHS Spring 2022 Semester Exam Schedule and Exemptions document.
- Seniors and Underclassmen will have separate semester exam schedules for the Spring Semester.
- Exams will start for Seniors on Thursday, May 19 and for Underclassmen on Monday, May 23.
- The exemption window opens on Monday, May 9 at 8:30 am and closes on Thursday, May 12 at 4:30 pm.
PARENT VOLUNTEER HOURS
Do you volunteer for your favorite CHHS program? Please submit your volunteer hours and encourage other volunteers to do the same. PTSA collects the number of volunteer hours so that GCISD can use them for applying for grants and other uses. This is only parent hours, not students’ Community Scholar hours (see CSAP program guidelines on the Counseling website about that). Submit your hours in 2 minutes at this link: Volunteer hours
Important Senior Dates - updated
Panther Football Summer Camps
CHHS Volleyball summer camp
CHHS Project Graduation Information:
CALLING ALL SENIORS & SENIOR PARENTS
It's time to register to attend Project Graduation, the Class of 2022's post-graduation all-night lock-in at PINSTACK filled with music, food, games, bowling, and PRIZES!!! Click HERE to register and fill out the Student and Parent Participation Contract.
Project Graduation is FREE for all CHHS SENIORS who register to attend the event by May 16th at 5pm. The earlier you register, the more prizes you can win!
The CHHS Project Graduation lock-in will be Thursday, May 26th, from 11:30pm to Friday, May 27th at 5am. All seniors must have a signed Student and Parent/Guardian Participation Contract on file! Visit the Project Graduation website for more information!
CHHS Project Graduation
Upcoming Fundraisers for the CHHS Community include:
Send Faculty and Staff a SONIC drink! Last chance to order is Monday, 5/2. Don’t miss out! Please place your order here.
Donate your garage sale worthy items to the Project Grad Spring Garage Sale.
Paw a friend, neighbor, or business in the GCISD area!
Join us for our Whataburger Spirit Night on 3-9-22 from 5pm to 8pm.
Project Graduation is a 501c3. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter!
CHHS Project Graduation
SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT: CHHS Project Graduation recognizes Steven Powell, Ameriprise Financial for his Silver Level Sponsorship. We are grateful for this support and look forward to hosting a fun, safe, & alcohol free lock-in for all CHHS Seniors on the night of graduation.
Project Graduation is a 501(c)3 non profit organization. For more information or to get involved, visit www.chpanthersprojectgrad.org.
SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT: CHHS Project Graduation recognizes @RasmussonTeamSupreme for their Silver Level Sponsorship. We are grateful for this support and look forward to hosting a fun, safe, & alcohol free lock-in for all CHHS Seniors on the night of graduation.
Project Graduation is a 501(c)3 non profit organization. For more information or to get involved, visit www.chpanthersprojectgrad.org.
Ongoing Important Information:
Student IDs are Required
Starting on Monday, March 21, we will be conducting student ID sweeps to make sure that all students on campus are displaying their current campus ID cards. Students are required to wear their IDs each day on their person, above the waist. This is an essential piece for us to keep our students and staff safe while on campus. Please discuss the importance of wearing campus IDs with your student.
If your student needs to order an ID because it’s been misplaced, please click here to submit an order for a new one. They will need to report to the bookroom outside of the Front Office to get a temporary ID first thing Monday morning. The IDs will be delivered to your student in class after spring break. Replacement IDs and door access badges each cost $5.
Calendar Updates
Due to GCISD’s recent closure on February 24 due to winter weather, beginning on March 7, ten (10) minutes will be added to the end of each school day to recover the necessary amount of instructional minutes. New release times for GCISD schools will be as follows:
Elementary - 3:05 p.m.
Middle - 3:35 p.m.
High - 4:10 p.m.
Just as a reminder, due to the previous closures due to weather and COVID-19, the following changes are still in effect:
Friday, March 11 will no longer be an early release day. Students will attend school for the full day.
Students will be in school on Friday, April 15 and Monday, April 18 which were originally planned for inclement weather days.
Wednesday, May 25 and Thursday, May 26 will no longer be early release days, except for high school students. All elementary and middle school students will attend school for the full day.
NOTE: These changes do not affect the instructional calendars for Collegiate Academy or iUniversity Prep.
Updated STAAR EOC Scores Are In!
Please follow these instructions to Access Your STAAR/EOC scores. The Texas Assessment Portal gives families to previous STAAR/EOC results, including the results from the most recent retest opportunity this past December. Reach out to your counselor and/or teacher with questions and/or concerns.
Watch Your 1s
We are excited to welcome back students for the spring semester of classes. As we begin this semester, we want to make you aware of a change you might notice in your student’s grades. We are implementing our ‘Watch Your 1s” gradebook system this semester. Below are the details about this change-
Watch Your 1s.
If you see a “0” in the gradebook, this grade stands, and no additional opportunities will be available for a student to complete and turn in this work.
If you see a “1” in the gradebook, this grade is still available for submission but has not been submitted by the student at this point.
If you see “NC” in the gradebook, this grade is not counted in the gradebook and is not needed for submission.
Our goal in implementing this policy is to improve communication between teachers, students, and parents. Implementing this change will reflect the most current student average in a class.
Thank you again for all you do to support the Panther community.
Support Project Graduation
Project Graduation is an all-night lock-in party designed to keep our seniors off the roads on graduation night and provide a safe, drug-free and alcohol-free celebration. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram.
The Project Graduation Committee is open to Parents from the Classes of 2022, 2023, 2024, and 2025 and needs the support of underclassmen parents in order to keep this CHHS tradition alive. Students may also volunteer to earn service hours. Volunteer on our website or contact chpanthersprojectgrad@gmail.com.
Support CHHS PTSA
Ordering school pictures
CHHS 21-22 Student Planners
We are 6-weeks into the school year and hope that your students are all reaching their academic and extracurricular goals! In case they could use a little help with organization and keeping track of all that their classes and extracurriculars require, we have a resource that could be very useful for them!
We have CHHS 21-22 Student Planners for $5 and they include the bell schedule, our nine-week planning calendars, monthly planning calendars, AND weekly planning calendars! Students can see Mrs. Byers in the front office to purchase one.
Support CHHS PTSA
Earn your Champion Cord for Graduation!
CHHS PREP Services ‘21-’22
Sign Up Today Class of 2022 Parents and Students
With Class of 22 Image included below, put the following text:
Class of 2022, 2023, 2024 & 2025 Students & Parents ~ WE NEED YOU! We want to keep CHHS Project Graduation going for years to come and we need your help to start planning for our 2022 Seniors! Our goal is to have parents and students from ALL grade levels on the committee! Most positions are a minimum time commitment. More than one person can help with each position so get a friend or two and sign up together. Please use one space per name and note in the comments if you would like to work as a team. Students can also volunteer to help with any positions and earn service hours! Students would be perfect to help with website, social media, contacting businesses and more!
Click THIS LINK to go to the Sign Up Genius and Volunteer Today!
The Roaring Red
CHHS PTSA 2021-2022 MEMBERSHIP
WELCOME BACK PANTHERS!!
IT IS TIME TO SIGN UP OR RENEW YOUR
CHHS PTSA 2021-2022 MEMBERSHIP
Sign-Up by going to Join | CHHS PTSA
Questions? Email Janeece Garlish at vpmembership@chhsptsa.org
Community Membership Campaign
Our GCISD Council of PTAs is kicking off our Community Membership Campaign for the 21-22 year!
Support our local PTAs by joining all 17 campuses with a Community Membership.
Details of the program are on our GCISD Council of PTAs Website. A direct link to join as a Council Community member is linked here.
COVID-19 Protocol Information
Please visit www.GCISD.net/COVID19 for lots of resources from the District pertaining to COVID-19. There you can find all of the following information, plus more:
Go Center
College Applications:
Seniors! College applications are open and the Go Center is available for appointments to assist you with your college process or answer any questions you might have. Click here to sign-up for an appointment! Or send an email to Candace McGowan. Please check your school email for follow-up communication.
Do you have general questions about what may be next after graduation? We are here to help you make a plan whether that is heading off to college, joining the military, or jumping into the workforce. Please come by so we can help you with your next steps!
Virtual College Visits:
Curious to how you can visit schools virtually and take advantage of their online opportunities? Check out this great resource that links you to each college's virtual experience page!
Scholarships:
Although many local scholarships are not open yet, we encourage you to begin checking the GCISD Scholarship website as this will be actively updated with new deadlines as soon as we receive them. If you have not obtained letters of recommendation, please request them now as most scholarships generally require a minimum of two letters.
Seniors also need to research scholarships that come directly from the colleges/universities to which they are applying.
Please reach out to the Go Center if you have any questions about scholarships!
GCISD College Visits:
This year we will be hosting college, military and job reps back in the Go Center! They will be hosted at the Go Center counter during lunches. The calendars, where you can see who is visiting each day, can be found on the Go Center website as pictured below.
Cafeteria Volunteers
The GCISD Nutrition Services Department is looking for volunteers! Come get to know the students while serving them a nutritious lunch in the school cafeteria. You can volunteer at your child's school or any school in the district. You must be registered as a volunteer in the district, or get signed up as a volunteer today so you can join the amazing kitchen staff serving the students. Please see the flyer for details and a link to sign up!
Cafeteria Menus
GCISD school cafeterias follow a calendar-cycle menu at breakfast and lunch. This menu begins on September 13th, 2021. During the first 4 weeks of school, all schools will follow a simplified lunch menu to allow all students to adjust to the new school year and to re-familiarize themselves with the cafeteria and their PIN number. The simplified menus can be viewed online using our menu system MealViewer. Printable copies of all menus can be downloaded here. If you have questions please contact child.nutrition@gcisd.net. GCISD Nutrition Services looks forward to serving your family in the upcoming school year!
VOLUNTEER BACKGROUND CHECK
House Bill 4545
Given the disruptions of the 2020-2021 school year, the 87th Texas Legislature passed House Bill 4545, signed on June 16, 2021, which provides additional learning opportunities for students who did not meet standards on the STAAR exam in the form of extra tutoring.
For Families of Students Who Did Not Perform Satisfactorily on STAAR Exams
If a student does not perform satisfactorily on a STAAR, STAAR End of Course (EOC), or STAAR Alt exam, in any STAAR assessed grade levels and subjects, the District will provide accelerated instruction.
For a student who does not perform satisfactorily on the math or reading assessment in grades 3, 5, or 8, the District will establish an Accelerated Learning Committee (ALC), which includes the student’s parent, to develop an educational plan for accelerated instruction to enable the student to perform at the appropriate grade level by the conclusion of the next school year. Accelerated instruction entails delivering supplemental instruction (i.e., tutoring) before or after school, or embedded in the school day and meeting HB 4545 requirements.
For Families of Students Who Did Not Take STAAR Exams for the 2020-2021 School Year
For students who were absent or otherwise unable to take the STAAR or STAAR EOC for the 2020-2021 school year, the district may administer an assessment to determine student grade level proficiency on the state standards, the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS). If the student earns a passing score, then the student can be exempted from the House Bill 4545 tutoring requirement.
GCISD will also provide more information to parents as we work with and gather additional insight from TEA to support our students with HB 4545 requirements.
Additional information on HB 4545 can be found at https://tea.texas.gov/about-tea/news-and-multimedia/correspondence/taa-letters/house-bill-4545-implementation-overview
Student Fees and Parking Permits
Please log into your parent portal to check all student and course fees. Some courses do have fees associated with them, along with the $5 student photo id that is charged each year. Parking permits are $100 for the full year and additional fees do apply for the painted parking spaces that are sold through StuCo. The information below will show you the steps to view and make payments online:
Log in to the Skyward Parent Portal using the desktop version only
Click on Fee Management on the left hand side of the list of activities. (Fees can be viewed here)
Click on Make a Payment
Select the fees you want to add to your cart, you can also add the fee for parking at this time.
Click Checkout, which will direct you to the RevTrak page for payment.
Log into RevTrak and complete your payment
The $5 online processing fee will be waived from August 3rd - 11th. Should you wish to pay these fees in person, this can be done once school is back in session or payment can be mailed to the school with attention: Ashley Chaney.
For any questions or concerns regarding fees, please contact the CHHS Bookkeeper, Ashley Chaney at 817-305-4746 or ashley.chaney@gcisd.net.
CHHS to GHS Shuttles - Transportation Safety Protocols
Students riding shuttle buses between CHHS and GHS will be assigned to a specific bus this year. Once a bus is assigned, students will ride the same bus each time they shuttle between campuses. In the event we have a positive test, all passengers on the bus will be notified.
Standard Response Protocols
The GCISD Director of Emergency Management and School Security, Allen Smith, has asked that we provide you with information regarding Standard Response Protocols.
GCISD partners with the I Love U Guys Foundation and uses the Standard Response Protocols (SRP) to respond to any situation or emergency that takes place at school or in the district.
Each campus will conduct drills throughout the school year. These drills are based on the Standard Response Protocols of Secure, Lockdown, Evacuate, Shelter, and Hold. GCISD developed one additional protocol known as Clear.
Completion of the drills is mandatory for each campus during the first two weeks of school, so that students and staff are prepared. Drills help us learn and know how to respond in the case of a real emergency at school. Our drills also help us to check certain equipment and responses. Our emergency management leaders on each campus will work with students and staff to complete our drills and document the results.
I have included the SRP Posters that are displayed in your student’s classrooms so that you can review with your student at home and discuss with them when they take part in the drills during the first two weeks. More information about Safety and Security in GCISD can be found at www.gcisd.net/our_district/safety_and_security. If you have any questions, Allen is very receptive to speaking with parents about our safety practices and may be reached at allen.smith@gcisd.net.
Panther Pause
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Colleyville-Heritage-High-School/520058474676460?fref=ts
Twitter: @CHPantherPride