Thank you to the parents who attended our Parent Awareness Symposium (PAwS) event last month and to Home & School for providing the refreshments. The feedback from the event was positive: “ the speaker’s presentations were well done and powerful, it helped understand our teens a bit more, we enjoyed the diverse background of the speakers, and we felt your commitment to ally with parents regarding the growing concerns our teens face, showing the school’s commitment to every students well-being.” One parent was especially glad to get to see and touch a Juul to know what to look for when USBs are charging at home. We hope more parents will attend this event next year!
Our November Technology Lunch-and-Learn taught about the latest challenges parents face helping teens navigate the digital world. Mrs. Haddad gave the inside scoop from both an alumnus and younger teacher perspective. Also, Mr. Krause announced that all freshman parents will receive a free test pilot of the app called BARK to help monitor your teen’s online activity. Thanks to the parents that joined us for this round table discussion!
By request, we also hosted our first Guy Talk sessions this month hosted by a representative from the Men’s Wearhouse. Our young men were taught about dressing for success and interviewing skills. Students also received free garment bags, 40% off coupons and students who volunteered to answer questions earned CFA gift cards and those who were models for demonstrating the importance of dressing in a proper size suit earned a free tie.
Our focus in December is to continue to process college application paperwork for our seniors, build spring schedules, and print report cards to be mailed home on December 21st.
Spring schedules will be available to students in homeroom when they return from Christmas break. We will update GPAs and print transcripts in mid-January. Per our updated ranking policy in the school hand-book, only juniors and seniors in the top ten percent will have a rank printed on their transcript; no other ranks will be given out as we are a non-ranking school outside of the Texas mandated top ten percent rule. Mid-year transcripts will be sent to colleges by request mid-January. Transcript requests should be sent to Mrs. Valdez through Naviance.
Underclassmen will receive their transcripts and PSAT or PreACT scores along with re-registration information at the grade level counseling meetings. All meetings are held from 6-7 pm in the Cafe. Mark your calendars now to attend this important event:
Juniors, January 24th Sophomores, February 19th Freshmen, March 19th
Seniors – remember Mrs. Wulf needs your Dual Credit Forms and Mrs. Clayton needs your Internship Forms by December 17th!
Although this time of year can be stressful for students as they prepare for mid-term exams, taking a comprehensive test is an important experience to build confidence for when students will take exams in college. Most teachers give some sort of review, so we encourage the students to start working on those early and breaking their studying down into small chunks over a longer period of time rather than cramming the night before. Even though it may be tough to do, getting a good night’s sleep, drinking plenty of water, and eating healthy is an important step toward performing well during exam week. Parents can help by being a positive force in helping their teens set healthy boundaries with their time to devote to studying in a quiet place at home. Getting at least 30 minutes of exercise outside is a huge benefit to the brain even if it’s just a walk around the block. It will help with stress, mood and focus.
Fortunately, from our school wide student stress survey, the majority of our students feel their stress level is manageable and their most popular ways of handling stress are through hobbies, talking to friends, and through exercise. We hope that once the midterms are over everyone will have ample time for fun and relaxation over the holiday break. If you need help or have any questions please reach out to us before the school closes on December 21st as we will not be checking emails over the break.
We certainly count you as one of our Christmas blessings!
Your MKCHS Counseling Team
Mrs. Wulf, Mrs. Clayton & Mrs. Valdez