Sehome High School - Mariner Memo
Week of April 27 - May 1
Message from the Principal
I hope this finds you and your family healthy and safe. When the school closure was first announced, we thought that we would be going back to school today. I sure miss seeing our students and staff! That will not change. However, I am thankful for the work of our staff to create a new learning environment for students remotely. Our teachers have worked tirelessly to provide learning opportunities, give feedback to students, and to create meaningful ways for students to connect with their teachers and with each other.
Our morning announcements started the Monday after school got out and have continued every day! I want to give a huge shoutout to Thomas Kanenaga, Mike Couto, Kim Kirk, James Gill, Mark Frazey, Taiming Yuenjames, and Finn Kurtz for all of their work on the morning announcements! It has been a really great way to stay connected and provide some routine to our days!
Meghan Lever, our Intervention and Prevention Specialist, is running our social media. She is creating daily challenges on Instagram for students, staff, and our Sehome community to participate in. It has been fun to see lots of people connecting in this way. This week, we reached our 1000th follower! If you have not done so already, please follow up on Instagram @sehomehs. You can also click the link below.
Our ASB is in the process of planning a virtual prom type event. We are excited to see what they come up with for this event. It is looking like it will be on May 8th. More information will be coming out in the next few weeks.
I am working with Sehome senior representatives and our district team to come up with a variety of ways to celebrate the class of 2020! One of the ways we will celebrate is through a graduation ceremony. We do not have much information about what that will look like, but no matter what, it will certainly be unique. We want to meaningfully celebrate this class and continue to collect ideas on what that can be.
On Friday, Dr. Baker provided some additional information to think about as we are working to determine what grading will look like for second semester. It provides great context and framing for this difficult decision during unprecedented times. We are not rushing to a decision on grading. We have been thoughtfully engaged in conversation and researching what other districts around the state are doing. We want to make the right decision that does not harm any of our students. If you have any thoughts on grading, please reach out to Dr. Baker or me. We would love to hear your thoughts.
We are on hold with locker cleanout until the stay at home order lifts. We will give more information about this once guidelines relax some.
We know that this situation has been hard on so many. If you are struggling, please reach out. You can complete this form or contact a school counselor or administrator (contact information below). We are here to help and want to connect with you!
Thank you all for your encouragement and support throughout this time. Many of you have emailed teachers and our staff expressing your gratitude. We appreciate each of those messages. I feel so honored and humbled to lead this incredible group of staff and students.
Please do not hesitate to reach out with any questions or concerns.
Sonia Bell, Principal
Student Zoom Technology Help
New Zoom Student Technology Help Meetings
Zoom Student Technology Help meetings will be held weekly on Wednesdays from 4:00 to 5:00 pm!
If you are a student who needs technology support, please fill out this survey!
Sehome Challenge
It has been really fun to see students, staff, and families participating in the challenges. Keep it up!
SEHOME ATHLETICS
6th Straight WIAA Scholastic Cup Champs
Sehome captured its sixth-consecutive 2A Scholastic Cup with 865 points, winning by a narrow margin of only 26 points. The Mariners picked up a majority of its athletic points during the first event of the year, winning the boys’ WIAA State Cross Country Championships while finishing third on the girls’ side. Sehome also finished with three Academic State Championships during the fall and winter seasons in boys’ wrestling, dance/drill and gymnastics.
Congratulations to all of our student athletes and coaches. This is an award that represents our entire Sehome community.
Multi-Language Message Line
Sehome Points of Contact
Sonia Bell, Principal: sonia.bell@bellinghamschools.org
Mike Couto, Assistant Principal: A - K mike.couto@bellinghamschools.org
Bethany Barrett, Assistant Principal: L - Z bethany.barrett@bellinghamschools.org
Kimberly Kirk, Dean of Students: Kimberly.kirk@bellinghamschools.org
Jeff Smith, Counselor 9th Grade: Jeffrey.Smith@bellinghamschools.org
Amy Hjelt, Counselor A - G: amy.hjelt@bellinghamschools.org
Hana Schutz, Counselor H - M: hana.schutz@bellinghamschools.org
John Vandermolen, Counselor N - Z: john.vandermolen@bellinghamschools.org