Hilltop Herald - Parent Edition
Be Respectful ~ Be Responsible ~ Be Resilient
Volume 1 ~ Issue 9 ~ September 12, 2022
Wonderful Falcon Families,
"Tragedy should be utilized as a source of strength. No matter what sort of difficulties, how painful experience is, if we lose our hope, that's our real disaster." ~Dalai Lama XIV~
We are about ready to wrap up Quarter 1 and I know that we are all looking forward to our much-needed fall break. But before we do, I want to take time to remember and honor the 21st anniversary of 911. Yesterday was Patriot Day in remembrance of September 11, 2001. It is fitting that our first day for Superhero Spirit Week is to celebrate real superheroes like our first responders who were crucial throughout the aftermath of 911. For those of us who witnessed this world-changing event in 2001, the indelible images of the airplanes flying into the towers and subsequently watched them collapse still ring fresh after 21 years. Then to hear that the same act had occurred at the Pentagon and another plane was headed west to enact its planned vengeance, it was incredulous to all of us. The bravery of Todd Beamer and other passengers on United Flight 93 reminded me the brain's capacity to think and strategize even in the face of imminent death. The San Diego connection is that the terrorists lived and trained here in San Diego before carrying out their suicide mission. Many of us remember exactly where we were on that day. I just woke up and my husband was getting ready to go work. My daughter was 2 1/2 years old and my son was just born four months before. He had turned on the TV and I saw this plane fly, in what appeared to be in slow motion, toward the Twin Towers and just before it struck the South Tower. I sat on the edge of the bed and watched in disbelief. And while we in the west watched these events unfold from the comfort of our homes, I can’t imagine the continued long-lasting impact of 911 on New Yorkers. I am thankful for the brave men and women of our first responders who went in there to save citizens in spite of knowing that they may not come alive. To our Falcon First Responders, thank you for putting yourselves on the line daily to protect us from harm. If you are part of our Falcon family and you have moved here from New York and you have experienced 911 firsthand, we continue to pray for you and send positive thoughts your way. Thank you for being examples of resilience and growth mindset.
Students, many of you were not born yet and you may not know the significance of why it is called Patriot Day. In this day of division in our county, 9.11.01 brought our nation together like no other day in history. We were united. The real heroes, firefighters, policemen, first responders, doctors, nurses, the passengers of United Flight 93 gave up their lives to rescue people from the burning towers and the Pentagon as well as thwart the pilots Flight 93 to prevent another attack. Husbands, wives, partners, sons, daughters, mothers and fathers of the victims were heroes also. On Monday, you will have an opportunity to hold conversation with your teacher and classmates about the significance of this day. Parents, please take time to share your memory of 911 with your children.
Superhero Spirit Week is This Week!
Students, I can not wait to see you in spirit gear. I will be participating every day and will be taking lots of pictures with you if you are in gear.
Monday - Real Heroes
Tuesday - Heroes vs. Villains
Wednesday - Sports Heroes
Thursday - DC vs. Marvel
Friday - Falcon Heroes
Increasing Tardies
We have been observing an increase in the number of tardies at the start of the school day as well as in between periods. Students with multiple tardies during the week will be getting detention after school on Fridays. Parents, please help us by regularly checking up on your child's attendance in Campus Portal. If you are seeing tardies in between periods, I am asking that you have a conversation with your child about these. Thank you so much for your support on this critical area of schooling.
Celebrating September Babies
Happy Birthday to all our September babies. We will celebrate you after school on Wednesday, September 14.
Falcon Flight Fall Enhancement Program
Falcon Flight is offering a week-long program between September 10-23. Read Falcon Flight Section below. You must have signed up for Falcon Flight.
Return Date for Quarter 2 is October 4
At the end of this week, we will go on Fall Break for two weeks. All students will return on October 4, 2011, which is a full day (Schedule A).
SUHSD Magkaisa Conference is October 15, 2022
The 20th Magkaisa Conference will occur on Saturday, October 15, 2022. Please read the information below. I hope all our Filipino students as well as other will attend.
Please make sure that you read the newsletter in its entirety to ensure that you are in the KNOW of what is happening at HTM.
Sincerely,
Ms. Finley
Falcon Flight students, there will be field trips for you during the first week of Fall Break. In order to participate you must be signed up in the Falcon Flight. It is first come, first served.
If you want your child to participate in extra-curricular activities such as athletics, tutoring, drama, strings and other programs, follow the instructions below. This includes the fall enhancement program. We need you to sign up TODAY!!
Click HERE to sign up. Once a staff member enrolls your student into the program, you will receive an email stating that they are now part of the program.
NOTE: SUHSD mandates that all students participating in extracurricular activities such as are offered in the Falcon Flight will be required to test weekly. Here are two ways in which you may test:
- Participate in the SDSU-NIH Weekly Testing Program. Click HERE to sign up for the testing program. The results will go directly to the district and will be provided to all schools.
- Provide a weekly test results provided by your healthcare provider or other verified healthcare organization such as 211.org or pharmacies that provide free testing. Submit test results by 5:00pm Tuesday each week.
- You may use a store-bought home test kit but you will have to submit test by 5:00pm Tuesday each week. You must take a picture of the results with your full name written on the test kit and the date you took the test.
Students, if you test positive for COVID, click HERE to determine which scenario fits your situation. Once you have identified the correct scenario for you, please follow all safety protocols that go with the scenario.
For classwork, you will be placed on independent study. Please contact the attendance office to report the absence or email our assistant principal secretary, Ms. Garcia at patricia.garcia2@sweetwaterschools.org. It is important that once Ms. Garcia sends you the independent study form, you sign it immediately.
At this time, teachers are NOT required to host a virtual synchronous session during her in-person instruction. This is being negotiated with the teachers union right now.
Weekly COVID testing is mandatory for all athletes and extracurricular activities. If you have not done so already, please sign up with SDSU-NIH Testing program [Click HERE] or you will have to provide test results from your healthcare provider or other verified health organizations.
Easter Finley, Principal
Email: easter.finley@sweetwaterschools.org
Website: htm.sweetwaterschools.org
Location: 44 East J Street, Chula Vista, CA, USA
Phone: 619.498.2700
Twitter: @erfinleysd