SPHS 1st
Quarter Newsletter
2013-14
School Year
Administrative and Front Office Support Staff
Chad Harnisch
Principal
608-643-5620
chad.harnisch@saukprairieschools.org
|
Marcia Colby
Administrative
Assistant to Principal
608-643-5904
FAX: 608-643-5419
marcia.colby@saukprairieschools.org
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Shari Diehl
Receptionist
608-643-5900
FAX: 608-643-5419
shari.diehl@saukprairieschools.org
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Shane Been
Assistant Principal
608-643-5911
shane.been@saukprairieschools.org
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Rita Henn
Administrative
Assistant to A.P.
608-643-5997
rita.henn@saukprairieschools.org
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Aaron Braund
Athletic Director
608-643-5906
aaron.braund@saukprairieschools.org
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Laurie Genthe
Assistant
Principal/Counselor
608-643-5912
laurie.genthe@saukprairieschools.org
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Joleen Lins
Attendance
608-643-5902
joleen.lins@saukprairieschools.org
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Julie Lamberty
Administrative
Assistant to A.D.
608-643-5903
julia.lamberty@saukprairieschools.org
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Martha Allan
School Nurse
608-643-5628
martha.allan@saukprairieschools.org
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Katy Carter
Police Liaison Officer
608-643-5913
katy.carter@saukprairieschools.org
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Shar Staadt-Scherschel
School Psychologist
608-643-5909
shar.staadt@saukprairieschools.org |
MESSAGE FROM THE PRINCIPAL:
Hello, as many of you already know, I am Chad Harnisch and I am the new
principal of SPHS. I can’t tell you how excited I am for the opportunity to
work in a school with such talented students and staff. I am confident that we
are on the cusp of moving from being a really good school to a great school.
That is mainly a result of the hard work of our faculty, our students, and in
many cases by you, their parents, over the last five decades. I have seven
years experience in secondary leadership, fifteen years working in Wisconsin
high schools, and twenty years of working with youth; I am confident I can bring
a few new ideas to our school, working with the staff already here, and by
engaging your children in their learning, we will create a high school that is
the envy of the state!!
One of the things I
believe has to happen as we journey towards that model is an increased
transparency in how we do business. To that end, we will be producing a
newsletter, at least once per quarter, to send to parents and guardians in an
attempt to keep you all better informed about the activities at SPHS. We will
try hard to have this newsletter be of value to you, both in communicating
simple information, but also to give you a preview about some of the things we
are thinking about doing differently as a school.
Additionally, I maintain
a SPHS Facebook page (www.facebook.com/SaukPrairieHighSchool), a Twitter feed (@principal_sphs) and a blog (www.sphseaglesview.blogspot.com). Daily, I use each of these venues to publish
information about what is happening in our school, to share links to things I
am reading and thinking about with regard to the future of education, and to
share my own thoughts about our school, our faculty, and our students. I
encourage you to check out one or more of these social media options to
increase your awareness of the work being done at SPHS.
Thanks for listening and
for entrusting in me the awesome responsibility of leading this high school. I
promise we won’t let you down and that we will provide the best possible
learning experience for every child you send to us. If at anytime you have
concerns you need addressed or successes you want to share, don’t hesitate to
contact me at the high school.
ARP
- ACADEMIC RESOURCE PERIOD
ARP is an opportunity for all students at SPHS to have a common
resource period (study hall) where every teacher in the building is available
to them. ARP was implemented at SPHS in the 2012-13 school year. ARP was
successfully used by some students, but many more did not use it to its full
potential. In an attempt to rectify this, we began the fall with a much
different look to ARP. We assigned everyone to an academic study hall,
eliminated much of the movement around the building in an attempt to create a
quieter, more professional atmosphere, and to limit access to distractions like
music players and electronic devices.
Over the last five weeks, after listening to feedback from staff,
students, and parents, we have had a committee working on a second revision to
ARP. The most common student complaints heard were: 1. “quietly
listening to music helps me focus on my work” and 2. “I need to be able to get
help from more than 1 teacher.” The most frequent staff issue was: “I
need to be able to have access to those students who are struggling in my class
and require them to see me.”
So we are implementing the changes below beginning October 7,
2014; we will continue to review how ARP is working for students and staff, and
we will be responsive and make any changes that make sense and allow us to
continue to meet the goals of ARP. We encourage you to share your opinion on
how ARP is working with your student’s ARP teacher or with Mr. Harnisch
ARP Study Hall
All students, 9-12th, will be assigned to a required ARP Study
Hall, grouped by grade level.
Expectations of students
- Come
prepared to work silently
- Get
any passes needed for travel during the 10-minute passing period prior to
ARP.
- Get
permission of teacher to use any personal electronic device. (Device can
only be used for academic use, or for non-disruptive personal music
listening.)
Expectations of Staff
- Maintain
a quiet, professional environment.
- Allow
group work at your discretion for legitimate academic reasons
- Allow
use of electronic devices for academic use, that is not disruptive to
other students. (Personal music listening may be considered as long as it
is not disruptive.)
- Students
may only travel with a pass from a teacher. It is the student’s
responsibility to bring a pass to ARP. Students may use up to two passes
during ARP, moving to the second option only on the mid-period passing
bell.
- Because
of extended passing time immediately before ARP, there is no need for a
student to travel for ANY reason other than a pre-arranged pass.
- Weekly
check-in with every student, with academic monitoring.
- Interact
with kids. This period is designed to focus on the immediate needs of
students.
Required Resource
- Purpose
= Giving teachers autonomy and authority to see those students in need of
immediate, course-specific assistance
- Any
teacher can assign any student to a "required resource"
- May
be for specific “Current” course specific concerns or to address
earning credit from a previously failed course.
- Required
resource is for teachers to have additional time working with any
student who is missing work, struggling in class, failing the class
- Any
student failing to attend a "required resource" will
automatically sacrifice all privileges to travel during ARP except for a
“required resource”, for a period of two weeks.
ACT SUITE of TESTS - OCTOBER 16th, 2013
We recently shared that in preparation for the full, statewide implementation of the ACT Suite of assessments in 2014-15, Sauk Prairie High School would run a trial of the EXPLORE, PLAN, and ACT this fall. The most common question we received back was, “Is this ACT one my junior can use as an official score to report to colleges?” Unfortunately, that answer is no. We are using a practice test because the ACT administration is rigidly controlled and can only be given at a certified testing site on specific testing days. We are partnering with Kaplan, a test prep provider, to use an expired version of the ACT. The score we get back from Kaplan will be a good estimate of how your junior would do if they took the assessment soon, but it is not official.
Below is a rough draft of the schedule for each class on the day of testing. Please note that the day is an optional attendance day for seniors. We have worked with a number of post-secondary options to plan a menu of choices for seniors. All seniors will be getting an email in their school account with a Google Form to sign up for the options of their choice.
Freshmen
8:00 - 11:35 AM Explore - with ARP
teacher
11:40 - 12:25 PM Lunch
12:30 - 1:00 PM School Satisfaction
Survey
1:05 - 1:50 PM Assembly - Words of
Wisdom and Raffle - in south gym
1:55 pm Early Dismissal - PLC Day
Sophomores
8:00 - 11:35 AM Plan - with ARP teacher
11:40 - 12:25 PM Lunch
12:30 - 1:00 PM School Satisfaction
Survey
1:05 - 1:50 PM Assembly - Words of
Wisdom and Raffle - in south gym
1:55 PM Early Dismissal - PLC Day
Juniors
8:00 - 11:35 AM ACT - with ARP teacher
11:40 - 12:25 PM Lunch
12:30 - 1:00 PM School Satisfaction
Survey
1:05 - 1:50 PM Assembly - Words of
Wisdom and Raffle - in south gym
1:55 PM Early Dismissal - PLC Day
Seniors (Optional
attendance day)
8:35 - 11:35 AM College and Career Fair
11:40 - 12:25 PM Lunch
12:30 - 1:00 PM School Crisis
1:05 - 1:50 PM Assembly - Words of Wisdom and Raffle - in south
gym
1:55 PM Early Dismissal - PLC Day
ATTENDANCE REMINDERS:
Parents should call 643-5902 (24 hour line) by 9:00 a.m. on the day of the absence to report the absence and the reason for the absence. Requests to excuse an absence without stating the reason for the absence may be considered unexcused.
Please note: Decisions about excused or unexcused are made by the school attendance officer, not by parents or guardians.
COUNSELING DEPARTMENT
Stacy Chrisler
Counseling Secretary
608-643-5910
Fax:608-643-5419
stacy.chrisler@saukprairieschools.org
|
Tonya Lassanske
Counseling Department Chair
Last Names N-Z
608-643-5998
tonya.lassanske@saukprairieschools.org
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Owen Murphy
Counselor
Last Names A-H
608-643-5649
owen.murphy@saukprairieschools.org
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Laurie Genthe
Counselor / AP
Last Names I-M
608-643-5912
laurie.genthe@saukprairieschools.org
|
COLLEGE APPLICATION PROCESS
TRANSCRIPTS
- An official transcript
of the complete high school record (beginning with grade 9) is required as a
part of the application process for both the UW System and the Wisconsin
Technical College System.
Transcript requests will now be submitted online through a new service
called Parchment. This service will allow students and graduates the
ability to send transcripts electronically 24/7/365 eliminating the need to
contact the counseling office or to wait for school hours. Transcripts
will also arrive faster and the chance of them being misfiled will be greatly
reduced. Cost for this service will be $2.55 for each electronic
transcript and $4.25 for each transcript if they need to be mailed.
Transcripts can be requested at www.parchment.com
If an applicant completed any course work through a college or
university while enrolled in high school, contact the college or university to
request that an official transcript be sent directly to each UW System campus
to which the individual is applying.
UW SYSTEM / PRIVATE COLLEGE ADMISSIONS - Applications for
admission are processed by UW System campuses beginning September 15 for the
following fall semester. New freshman applicants should meet priority or
deadline dates to ensure full consideration for admission. All new freshman
applicants are required to submit a nonrefundable $44 application fee with each
application for admission. All applications can be done online at www.apply.wisc.edu
TEST SCORES
- The UW System requires
new freshman applicants to submit the results of the ACT or SAT. We recommend
that high school students complete the ACT or SAT in the spring of their junior
year and have the results sent to the appropriate UW System campus(es).Both the
SAT and ACT include a Writing Test; however, the ACT Writing Test is optional
while the SAT Writing Test is a part of the SAT assessment and is not optional.
UW-Madison is the only UW System campus that requires the ACT with the Writing
Test and/or the SAT. Test scores can be requested for the ACT at www.actstudent.org or the SAT at www.sat.collegeboard.org
MADISON COLLEGE ADMISSIONS
- Application dates at
Madison College are variable depending on the program. Some high demand
programs close admissions the third Monday in October. Check the availability
and admission requirements for the program or certificate you are interested in
to make sure that the program or certificate is accepting applications and that
you are qualified to apply. High-demand programs may have a wait list. To apply
for program admission or for additional program information please visit the
Madison College website at www.madisoncollege.edu
COMPASS TESTING
- The Compass is an
admissions/placement test that is required prior to application for many
Madison College programs. To access the compass testing schedule please visit
the Madison College website http://madisoncollege.edu/compass-information
ACT 2013-2014 TEST DATES
Test Date Registration Deadline
(Late Fee Required)
October 26, 2013 September 27, 2013 September
28–October 11, 2013
December 14, 2013
November 8, 2013 November 9–22, 2013
February 8, 2014*
January 10,
2014
January 11–24, 2014
April 12, 2014
March 7, 2014
March
8–21, 2014
June 14, 2014
May 9, 2014
May 10–23, 2014
JUNIOR/SENIOR PARENT
NIGHT - This yearly post-secondary planning workshop for parents of
juniors/seniors was held on Monday September 16th. If you were unable to attend,
please check out the resource link from our web-page and feel free to call us
with questions. http://www.saukpr.k12.wi.us/high/resources.cfm
PSAT - The Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test/National Merit Scholastic
Qualifying Test (PSAT/MNSQT) will be offered at Sauk Prairie High School on
Wednesday, October 16th, 2013. Juniors generally take this test
as a practice test for college entrance exams and to qualify for National Merit
Scholarships. Students should consider taking this test if they are in
the top 10% of their class, test well, are planning to take the SAT (most
Midwestern colleges and the UW System prefer the ACT for admission), or are
taking advanced course work in the core academic areas.
Parents often ask if their son or daughter would benefit from
taking this test. A couple of reasons why a student would take the test
would be to qualify for a National Merit Scholarship or as a preparation for
the SAT test, which is a college entrance exam. Very few students
at Sauk Prairie take the SAT college entrance exam; the majority elect to take
the ACT test.
National Merit Scholarship recognition is another reason to take
the PSAT/NMSQT. Students who are awarded the scholarship must qualify at
or close to the 99th percentile of college-bound students. Students
who qualify for the scholarship typically are avid readers and good writers who
take advanced math classes and have scored very highly on previous standardized
tests.
Cost for taking the test is $15 (Check payable to: Sauk Prairie
High School). Registration will be limited to 35 students on a
first-come, first-served basis. Registration will begin toward the end of
September. If you have any questions about the test, feel free to
contact the counseling department at 643-5910.
WKCE - WKCE tests are Tuesday, November 12th and Wednesday, November 13th. Only Sophomores need to attend the mornings of those two days. All students will attend in the afternoons. We will send out more information in a few weeks.
YOUTH OPTIONS
- The Youth Options
program allows all public high school juniors and seniors who meet certain
requirements to take postsecondary courses at institutions of higher education.
Students may take classes that are beyond the scope and sequence offered
at the high school. The program opens the door to greater learning
opportunities for students who are considering a technical career, wishing to
begin college early or wanting to prepare to enter the workforce immediately
after high school graduation. The application deadline for the Spring semester
is October 1st. Please see Mr. Murphy in the counseling office if you
would like more information.
CAREER INFORMATION
- Please visit the
following website for information on accessing Career Cruising and other
important career information: http://www.saukpr.k12.wi.us/high/career.cfm
SCHOLARSHIPS - Many scholarship applications are
already available. Please see our
website for more information.
PLEASE VISIT THE COUNSELING DEPARTMENT WEBSITE
AT:
http://www.saukpr.k12.wi.us/high/counseling.cfm
WINTER SPORTS -
Are you interested in participating in a winter sport?
Monday, November 4th, the Sauk Prairie High School Athletic Department will be holding a MANDATORY ONE NIGHT registration sign-up for anyone interested in participating in winter sports (this meeting is for students and parents). Beginning at 6:30 we will be collecting forms and payments in the high school commons; individual team meetings will follow.
Required forms can be found on our website to fill out ahead of time; and will also be available registration night. If your student has necessary paperwork turned into the athletic office for a fall 2013 sport; the following forms can be carried over to a winter sport if you do not have any updates.
- Medical history/consent for emergency treatment
- WIAA physical form
- Athletic Code/WIAA eligibility
- Payments and concussion agreement forms must be completed for each season.
- Fees are as follows:
- Basketball, girls/boys- $70
- Wrestling- $70
- Hockey- girls $400, boys $450
- Swimming- $70
- Gymnastics- $70
- Dance- TBD
If you have any questions, please contact Julie in the athletic office at :
E: julia.lamberty@saukprairieschools.org
P: 643-5903