News and Updates 9-30-19

9-30-19

Dear Seahawk Families:

Volunteers Needed for Hearing & Vision Screenings

This is an URGENT CALL for additional volunteers to help with the hearing & vision screening THIS WEEK on Wednesday and Thursday, Oct. 2nd and 3rd.   Ten (10) volunteers, each class period, are needed to conduct the Annual Hearing & Vision Screening. Based on the response so far, we need the following help: We need AT LEAST 6 more volunteers FOR EACH CLASS PERIOD ON THURSDAY. We need AT LEAST 2 more volunteers FOR THE LAST CLASS ON WEDNESDAY. No experience necessary. Please call Mary La Valley @ 703-715-4612 and leave a message - or - email her: melavalley@fcps.edu AS SOON AS POSSIBLE!!!

 

Financial Aid and Paying for College No need to wait to learn about Financial Aid and Paying for College until your senior year, but certainly if you are a senior, this is an important event to attend. Parents AND students are encouraged to attend. Every senior eligible to apply for the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) should do so. This is the first step in financial aid for college! FAFSA opens for the 2020-21 school year on October 1st. While the March 1st deadline used to be an industry standard, college and universities have increasingly moved their FAFSA preferred deadline closer to the college application deadline- some are as early as December! This year, our Financial Aid presenters are combining efforts joining SLHS and HHS. No need to register, simply come equipped with your questions. The details on the two options are listed below:

FINANCIAL AID 101 / PAYING FOR COLLEGE NIGHT 2019

- Presented by Jack Zeeger, Financial Aid Manager of the NOVA Loudoun campus.

  • Wednesday, October 2nd at 6:30pm @
  • South Lakes High School Auditorium

OR

- Monica Gomez, NOVA Pathway Counselor for HHS and SLHS will present in Spanish

  • Wednesday, October 2nd at 6:30pm @
  • Herndon High School Lecture Hall - in SPANISH

Topics will include: What is financial aid? financial need? cost of attendance (COA)? expected family contribution (EFC)? What are the types and sources of financial aid? What is FAFSA and how do I apply? How do we prepare NOW for college costs. I hope to see many of you there! We will have handouts for SENIORS that include the list of FCPS based free FAFSA completion workshops as well as a list of the documents students & parents will need. Additional information can be found at https://collegeaccessfairfax.org/ (copy & paste into your browser). Some great scholarships will also be listed on their site as well for both two and four year colleges. The site for senior parents and students to create their FSA ID for the FAFSA is https://fsaid.ed.gov (copy and paste into browser). Contact Jennifer Campbell at jrcampbell@fcps.edu with any questions.

 

FCPS to Host Annual Mental Health and Wellness Conference

Registration will soon open for FCPS' 6th Annual Mental Health and Wellness Conference. The event will be held at Fairfax HS on Saturday, October 5, from 8 a.m.-4 p.m. This year’s conference is being sponsored by Inova. The morning session will focus on social and emotional learning, with a keynote address from Dr. Marc Brackett, of the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence. Attendees are encouraged to stay for Inova’s Act on Addiction Summit, which will be held from 12:30 p.m.-4 p.m. For more information, please visit the Mental Health and Wellness Conference webpage.

 

PSAT Testing – Oct. 16th for 10th & 11th graders

10th and 11th grade students will be taking the PSAT/NMSQT on Wednesday, October 16. They received PSAT student guides in their English classes on September 24 or 25. These guides include information about the test, test taking advice and tips, a free practice test, and information for 11th grade students about the National Merit Scholarship Program. If your student misplaced their copy, these resources are also available online. Student guide: https://collegereadiness.collegeboard.org/pdf/psat-nmsqt-student-guide.pdf Practice test #1: https://cdn.kastatic.org/KA-share/sat/psat-nmsqt-practice-test-1.pdf Practice test #2: https://cdn.kastatic.org/KA-share/sat/psat-nmsqt-practice-test-2.pdf

 

FCPSOn @ PTSA in October

The implementation of FCPSOn is going well. Our tech team of Mr. Dobbs, Ms. Bousman-Stanczak and Ms. Kramer has done a great job distributing devices and problem-solving issues as they arise. At the next PTSA meeting (10/9 @ 7:00PM) the presentation will be focused on FCPSOn applications. Please mark your calendars! We do ask that you with your student to get in the habit of fully charging their laptop overnight.

 

Fundraising – Support SLHS

Fall is here – LAST DAY TO ORDER: Support South Lakes High School’s Dutch Mill Bulbs fundraiser by ordering guaranteed-to-bloom bulbs shipped directly to your home! Sale runs September 11-30, with delivery in October just in time for planting. Tulips, daffodils, tiger lilies, hyacinths and more! Visit link below and note on form that your group is South Lakes High School. https://groups.dutchmillbulbs.com/shop/?affiliates=southlakes

 

Real Assistive Technology for Everyone Conference - October 19th  

FCPS will host its 2019 Real Assistive Technology for Everyone (RATE) Conference at Carson MS, on Saturday, October 19, from 8:30 a.m.- 1 p.m. The RATE Conference is an educational technology conference focusing on the use of assistive technology to support all students, especially those with special needs. This year's keynote speaker is Fadel, an FCPS post-secondary student. He will share how assistive technology has impacted his life and school experiences.

More information and registration will soon be available on the conference webpage

 

SLHS Attendance Tips

Last year Virginia incorporated attendance into school accreditation standards. Students who miss more than 10% of the school year for almost any reason (excused or unexcused) are considered chronically absence. Schools are rated on an attendance standard based on the number of students who are chronically absent. To learn more about this please visit https://www.fcps.edu/attendance .

We are pleased that our Leadership class is promoting the importance of both overall attendance and arriving to school on time. The Sophomore class won the first-class competition to see which grade level has the greatest percentage of students getting to first block on time! Keep up the great work!

Attendance Line: We have an attendance line 703-715-4545 at South Lakes where absences should be reported. When you call the line it will give you options to leave a message for each grade level office (9th=1, 10th=2, 11th =3, 12th =4, the special education office (dial 5) or to leave a message in Spanish dial 6. If you know your extension, dial # to bypass the directions.

Parents have 72 hours to report an excuse for absences.

Checkouts: If a student needs to checkout during the school day the easiest method is for the student to bring a note to their subschool in the morning an get a pink checkout pass. This is what they show their teacher to get dismissed from class. The student then reports to their subschool to sign-out before they leave. If they are returning the same day (e.g. 10:00AM dentist appointment, returns at 11:15), they will report back to the same office to have their attendance updated and receive an excused pass back to class. Parents and students should arrange where they will be meeting (main office or stadium side).

You may call the attendance line if you know you are checking your child out during the day. Please call at least 90 minutes ahead of time. Our AA’s monitor messages throughout the day but are not necessarily sitting at their desk at all times. If you get a last-minute appointment and show up to the school, it will take several minutes to notify their teacher and have your child complete the checkout process. Please plan accordingly.

If your child calls you saying they feel ill and want to be picked up direct them to get a pass from their teacher to the clinic. Students who leave school without completing the checkout process will be marked unexcused.

Visiting South Lakes

All visitors must bring a government issued ID with them to check into the building for meetings, interviews or volunteering. This is a FCPS regulations for all county schools. Please assist us with making your check-in process run smoothly by having you ID with you.

 

Mark Your Calendars

Oct. 14th – Student holiday; teacher workday

Oct. 16th – PSAT day, early closing for students

Oct. 21 – 26th – Homecoming Week

Oct. 29th - Make-up underclassman pictures

Nov. 4th & 5th - Student holidays

Nov. 25th – Ethics Day for Seniors

Nov. 27th – 29th – Thanksgiving Break

 

Stay Connected:

Websites:

https://southlakeshs.fcps.edu/ (school site)

https://southlakesathletics.org/ (athletics)

http://www.southlakesband.org/ (band boosters – parent group)

https://southlakeschorus.org/ (chorus boosters – parent group)

 

Twitter:

@southlakeshs (general)

@SeahawkSports (athletic)

And lots more to follow for boosters, sports team, activities ….. Search SLHS, Seahawks SouthLakes

 

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