Special schedules for final weeks

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prin...@sethigh.org

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Jun 2, 2023, 2:26:17 PM6/2/23
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Dear Students, Parents, and Guardians,

  • Non-senior ROK (Reflection of Knowledge) (Tue, 6/6)
  • SET Olympics (Tue, 6/6)
  • Mesa class info session for 10th graders (Today, end of 3rd period)
  • Tuesday's modified schedule
  • Final Passion Time (Wed, 6/7)
  • Signing up for next year's classes starts on Monday (6/5)
  • Finals and half days (6/14 and 6/15)
  • Graduation and optional final day of school at Spreckels Organ Pavilion
  • Spring Soiree Final Tally
  • 12th grade Parent and Student event idea

Non-senior ROK (Reflection of Knowledge) and SET Olympics (Tue, 6/6)

The staff met yesterday to figure out how we could honor the final commitments that we made to present and past students (I'll explain!) given the limited amount of time left in the school year and the loss of the final "fun" day of school on Friday due to scheduling conflicts for graduation at our graduation venue.  In order of importance, we wanted to preserve:

  • Instructional time (critical this close to the end of the year)
  • Reflections of Knowledge which are an important final reflection by students on their academic and social/emotional progress towards goals
  • SET Olympics which was originally scheduled for Flex Time on Wednesday
  • Passion Time that has been in short supply for some of our students due to state testing and other priorities

We found a way to balance all of these needs while hopefully minimizing the stress on the students.

On Tuesday, we will have a special schedule where students still attend normal classes in the morning, but then move into advisory to do what we are calling "stress-lite" ROKs.  Then we will move to the field to have our first annual SET Olympics as prescribed by last year's seniors in the first ever amendment to the SET High Constitution.  We adopted a constitution last year with the idea that each graduating class gets to make one amendment to the constitution to leave a lasting mark on SET.  Last year's seniors wished that we had more fun and camaraderie on campus and saw grade level fun competitions as a way of fostering this.  We have elements of this with the SET Reset events (Musical Chairs, Dunk Competition, Dodgeball Competition, Lego Competition) but we want to have one larger, culminating event, the SET Olympics, that really captures the essence of what the class of 2022 was looking for.

Stress-lite ROKs for 9th through 11th graders (does not apply to 12th grade)

Normally the ROK is a culminating presentation that the students work on for a couple of weeks.  It would encompass deep reflection about our SETUP goals, meaningful experiences, academic growth, and future planning.  The presentation would be rehearsed and efficient and the students would dress in professional clothing to really sell the content.  With the "Stress-lite" version, we still want the students to reflect on all of the key areas, and the students will still be presenting, but having fancy slides, a prepared presentation, and professional dress are all optional.  It is important for our students to really think about how they have grown this year, and we especially want them to focus on the SETUP goals (Social Responsibility, Effective Leadership, Tenacity and Grit, Uncertainty as Opportunity, and Passion, Purpose, Performance) because if they're not thinking about these areas now, setting goals, and really reflecting on their progress, they won't magically just acquire the SETUP traits that we so value at SET.

Some students will stress about this and still come with fully polished presentations because they find it easier to be prepared and professional.  Some will be able to tweak their presentations from last year with minimal effort.  To make things easier for future years, I recommend that students at least jot their thoughts down in a Google Slides presentation so that they're not starting from scratch when they do this again next year.

The presentations will happen in advisory and each should be roughly 5 minutes long.  The teachers will make sure that the room is a safe place for students to share freely in a judgement-free space.  I will not share a Google Slide template because then we'll wind up with 250 presentations that all look exactly the same, but students have seen examples of Senior ROKs presented in various venues over the past couple of months, so the content and the format should be familiar to them.  If we have any students who have somehow not seen a Senior ROK, any staff member can help them understand the expectations.  The rubric that we use for seniors is here.  You should ignore the dress requirement this year because we will want you to be able to easily participate in the SET Olympics later that day.

SET Olympics

Once all of the advisories have finished their ROKs, we will be moving to the field for the 1st annual SET Olympics.  Details about the olympic events will trickle out today and Monday as we plan the event, but I can tease that tug-of-war is definitely one of them.  Start bulking up! 

Mesa class info session for 10th graders (Today, end of 3rd period)

We'll be meeting with the 10th graders today to emphasize the most critical parts of the information that is contained in this presentation on how to take Mesa classes.  For those of you who are new or who are 9th and 10th graders this year, college classes can be taken at Mesa College starting in the summer after 10th grade is completed.  We're having the discussion with 10th graders now because they need to know what their college class options will be for next year.  Feel free to look through the presentation.  There are a lot of Frequently Asked Questions at the end of the presentation so it should cover everything that you need to know.  Do let us know if you have questions that are not covered in the presentation so that we can add that question to the FAQ.

Tuesday's modified schedule

Tuesday's ROK and Olympics Schedule:

8:30 - 9:00 Period 1

9:05 - 9:35 Period 2

9:40 - 10:10 Period 3

10:15 - 10:45 Period 4

10:50 - 11:20 Period 5

11:20 - 11:50 Lunch

12:00 - 2:00 ROK Presentations

2:00 - 3:30 SET Olympics

Final Passion Time (Wed, 6/7)

I love that we have had so many students and teachers asking for (demanding!) more Passion Time.  We will certainly find a way to make sure that Passion Time becomes a sacred part of our schedule now that students are so invested in it.

Signing up for next year's classes starts on Monday (6/5)

We have the master schedule for the Fall Semester finalized and we will have our 11th graders start signing up for classes on Monday.  10th graders will sign up on Wednesday, and 9th graders on Friday.

It will not be obvious to you, but there have been some major changes to the schedule to fix some of the ongoing challenges that we have had.  We will now have more flexibility with our 9th grade Algebra options to allow for easy switching between classes based on math ability.  This will allow us to better target the math needs of our 9th graders.  Also, we now have the ability to mix up the 9th grade classes for periods 3 through 5 and not have the students stay in the same cohorts for the entire year.  This will only impact next year's 9th graders, but know that this kind of change has an indirect benefit for the entire school.

Another change is that we have packed the 12th grade classes into 2nd and 3rd periods and made sure that there are a lot of electives available during those periods.  To improve the Senior experience we are mandating that all Seniors have a class during 2nd and 3rd period to make sure that they are all on campus at the same time.  One of the challenges that we have had the last couple of years is that once students start taking Mesa classes, they become disconnected from our community.  Even though they were still coming to school at some point in the day, they were not overlapping with their friends who may have had classes in different periods.  I know that mandates sound bad, but trust me that this will make all of you enjoy your Senior year more.  As with the change to the 9th grade schedule, this change will also have indirect benefits that percolate throughout the school.

Look for the master schedule in the View Options link on the Core Competency dashboard under Scheduled Courses.  We are in the process of moving the schedule into Core so check back a little later in the day.  I don't want to wait to send this email because I need to make sure that it gets out as early as possible.  I'll send out a chat to students when the Master Schedule is ready to be looked at.

Graduation and optional final day of school at Spreckels Organ Pavilion

Our last day of school is actually graduation day for our Seniors.  The graduation ceremony will start at 9:00 AM.  That last day of school is optional for students, but we do encourage the whole school to come cheer on our seniors.  Graduation is in Balboa Park at the Spreckels Organ Pavilion.  All staff will be attending the graduation, so there will not be anyone on campus.   If you want to come to school that day, go directly to Balboa Park and enjoy the graduation ceremony!  Otherwise, enjoy the early summer vacation.  The graduation will be finished by 12:00 PM in case parents are thinking of doing a drop-off.

 

Spring Soiree Final Tally

From the SET PA:

The Spring Soiree raised over $25,000!  Every penny raised will fund teacher grant requests and wish lists and will deeply enrich learning opportunities for every SET student. 

29 parents have taken SETPA's short survey about next year’s event.  So far a casual, parents only event on a weeknight is in the lead!  Take a minute to complete the survey by Wednesday June 7th so SETPA knows the kind of event you would like to attend and whether you can help with the planning.

Please support the businesses who generously donated for the Soiree:

    • Auction and Raffle Items 

    • Activities

    • Barber Shop and Hair Salons 

    • Entertainment 

    • Dining 

    • Physical Fitness and Wellbeing 

    • Pets 

    • Sports 

    • Travel 

    • Wine, Whiskey and Tequila Pull 

    • Cash Donations: 

 

12th Grade Parent and Student Event Idea

From Amber Henry (12th grade parent):

I would like to pass on the word to families that I found a fun and inexpensive way to celebrate 2023 Graduation. I'd like to invite any families interested...  For a 2-hr Boat Cruise in San Diego Bay for $20/ticket.

If you select tickets for Friday June 16th at 3:00 pm ... We can fill the boat up with graduating Seniors and friends.

Purchase tickets at:

https://www.groupon.com/deals/gl-hornblower-san-diego-9?deal_option=35b83e29-387b-4b49-b3ea-422955d32f0d

Please let me know if you decide to join us!

-Amber Henry 

amhde...@yahoo.com

 

Thanks everyone.

Dr. McCurdy

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