FROM THE DESK OF: Adam Kurth, Principal

Happy Holidays to our AHS School Community!

We have much so be grateful for at AHS as we reach the holiday break and end of 2025. We have great students, families, staff, and school community and that all adds up to great opportunities and outcomes for our school. We close out the 2025 part of our school year with tremendous success in academics, athletics, arts, and activities so far this year.

We will continue efforts to get better every day in 2026.

We hope all of our families enjoy a safe and relaxing break.

Happy Holidays,

Adam Kurth, Principal

UPCOMING EVENTS

December 22 - January 2: No School - Winter Break

UPCOMING SCHOOL BOARD MEETINGS

December 18: Curriculum Committee Meeting, 6:45 am, District BoardroomJanuary 6: Policy Committee Meeting, 6:45 am, District BoardroomJanuary 8: Personnel & Legislation Committee Meeting, 6:45 am, District BoardroomJanuary 14: School Board Meeting, 6:30 pm, District BoardroomJanuary 20: Buildings / Grounds & Finance Committee Meeting, 6:45 am, District BoardroomJanuary 22: Curriculum Committee Meeting, 6:45 am, District Boardroom

2025-2026 Calendar

RED/BLUE Calendar

Bell Schedule

Important Dates

Dec 22 - Jan 2 - Christmas Break

Jan 19 - No School - Staff PD

Jan 21-23 - Semester Exams

Jan 21 - 8th Grade Orientation

Jan 26 - No School - Staff Records Day

Jan 27 - 2nd Semester Begins

Feb 20 - No School - Staff PD

March 30 - April 3 - Spring Break

April 18 - Prom

April 24 - No School - Staff PD

May 25 - Memorial Day - No school

June 6 - Graduation

June 10 - 12 - Final exams (grades 9-11)

June 12 - Last Day of School (grades 9-11)

IMPORTANT UPDATES AND INFORMATION

Attention Parents of Seniors: The 26-27 FAFSA is now open!

Here are some resources to get you started:

FAFSA answers on the Student Aid website: https://studentaid.gov/apply-for-aid/fafsa/filling-out/help
Federal Student Aid YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/@FederalStudentAid
Federal Student Aid Outreach Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@FSAOutreach
The Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction provides additional FAFSA resources: https://dpi.wi.gov/sspw/pupil-services/school-counseling/connections/fafsa

Class of 2030!

(for those paying attention, Doc Brown and Marty Mcfly traveled into the future to the year 2015...)

We look forward to hosting all future Warhawks for orientation on Wednesday, January 21st!

See the linked document for more information!

ARROWHEAD HIGH SCHOOL

SCHOOL BOARD

Hello, Arrowhead Community!

As 2025 draws to a close, it presents an occasion to extend sincere appreciation to the Arrowhead team of School Board members for their continued effort, dedication, and accountability in service to our students, staff, and community. As guardians and stewards of the public trust, these leaders consistently place the interests of our community’s youth first. Their oversight and contributions help shape the success of Arrowhead High School and the many academic, athletic and co-curricular opportunities available to our students.

AHS board members play a critical role in adopting a shared vision and goals for the district, establishing and monitoring policy, processes and performance, ensuring progress and accountability, and advocating for the students. It is contemplative and challenging work! This team is deserving of recognition for the time, care and responsibility they take on in service to our high school.

It is an honor to serve as Arrowhead’s President of the Board alongside such a dedicated group of leaders: Chris Farris, Vice President and Chair of Policy; Brandon Miller, Chair of Finance and Buildings & Grounds; Amy Hemmer and Lindsey Wood, Co-Chairs of Curriculum; Anne Angeli and Lynn Blazei, Co-Chairs of Personnel and Legislation; and Darrell Beneker and Chris Adsit, Committee Members.

Following three years of significant change and hard work across our school community, Arrowhead is on an exciting trajectory of success! Sincere thanks to the School Board for its continued collaboration with our dedicated staff - together, they are helping ensure an increasingly bright future for Arrowhead’s students.

Best wishes to all for a very Merry Christmas and a healthy, happy and successful 2026.

Kim Schubert

School Board President

CELEBRATIONS!

SUCCESSFUL STUDENT SENATE FOOD DRIVE

Student Senate would like to THANK EVERYONE who was able to contribute to the Annual Food Drive from November 10 - November 14!

We collected over 3000 food items along with $220. This was divided between the Hartland and North Lake Food Pantries.

The winning classroom was MRS. LINDMAIR with 634 items! Donuts were delivered to all of Mrs. Lindmair's classes the week after the drive.

Even though the following were not the TOP collectors, we want to also recognize the teachers and their students below for an AMAZING collection:

Mrs. Morgan - 489 items

Mr. Flesch - 421 items

Mr. Reichle - 415 items

Again, thank you to EVERYONE for helping our community have a better holiday season with your donations!

A special thank you to our custodial staff for saving boxes and allowing us the use of multiple carts the last two Fridays for bin drop off and bin/food pick up!

250 LIVES SAVED!!

Student Senate held their annual Winter Blood Drive on Friday, December 5th. Thank you to all who donated and helped make this another successful drive with 83 pints of blood donated; 73 pints of whole blood and 10 pints of double red blood were donated saving 250 lives! Thank you to all who donated blood and to those who helped with the set up and the running of the drive! Mark your calendar for the next Student Senate Blood Drive APRIL 10, 2026!

Congrats to our Students of the Month!!!

Students of the Month is a monthly recognition highlighting outstanding students who have captured the gratitude and appreciation of both teachers and administrators. Our goal is to celebrate the exceptional qualities and achievements of students who display dedication, leadership, academic excellence, and high-quality character within our school. Congratulations to these incredible students who represent the true quality of our AHS student body!

Students had the opportunity to visit Milwaukee Tool hearing a message that it takes a team to keep ahead of competitors. Teamwork is essential. Sales, Marketing, Design, Engineering and in the field customer feedback happens concurrently not, step by step. Great experience and opportunity for our students!

Arrowhead High School competed at the SkillsUSA District Competition hosted at Slinger High School, and we are proud to share some fantastic results! We brought 17 talented students to compete in a variety of contests, including Welding, Cabinetmaking, Woodworking Display, Team Engineering, Power Equipment, Automotive Maintenance & Light Repair, and Technical Drafting.

Not only did our students perform extremely well, but they also gained valuable real-world experience, strengthened their teamwork, and enjoyed a fun and engaging night of learning and competition.

Congratulations to our medalists:

Technical Drafting — Gold

• Harlan Danes

Woodworking Display — Gold

• Oliver Whelan

Woodworking Display — Silver

• Alex Kuphall

Cabinetmaking — Bronze

• Charlie Wallgren

Automotive Maintenance & Light Repair — Silver

• Evan Reinke

Power Equipment — Silver

• Gavin Monis

We are incredibly proud of all our students who represented Arrowhead with professionalism, skill, and pride. The competition provided a great opportunity for growth, collaboration, and celebrating the trades and technical excellence. Please see the attached photos from last nights competition!

Arrowhead's NHS Chapter Wins National Award

Arrowhead's NHS Chapter Wins National Award for Service! For its exemplary record of leadership, service and efforts to improve the school and community, the National Honor Society (NHS) awarded the Arrowhead High School NHS chapter the Service Award of Excellence.

NHS is supported by its parent organization, the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP), which also oversees the National Association of Student Councils. Highlighting student efforts in last year's AHS For Asheville effort, AHS exemplifies the defining NHS pillar of service. AHS students support all areas of service with their efforts in our community and beyond. "The NHS Chapter Pillar Awards celebrate chapters that truly embody what the National Honor Society stands for—students who don't just excel academically but actively strengthen their communities," said NASSP CEO Ronn Nozoe.

"The Arrowhead High School chapter demonstrates how powerful it can be when young leaders channel their talents toward meaningful service and positive change." The NHS Chapter Pillar Awards are prestigious recognitions to celebrate the outstanding achievements of NHS chapters across the country. In addition to basic requirements, the chapters must have demonstrated successful activities that exemplify one or all of the core values of NHS: scholarship, leadership, service and character.

AHS Boys Soccer has two All Americans! This is the first (2 in the same year) for Arrowhead Soccer ever! Quite an accomplishment for our boys soccer program!

Keaton Staus

Boys Soccer

1st team All State

2024, 2025

All Region

2024, 2025

All American

2024, 2025

Brody Newton

Boys Soccer

1st team All State

2025

All Region

2024, 2025

All American

2025

Cheers to the Mullett Ice Center for their 5th year hosting the Make A Wish event! The ice time is donated by the Mullett and DECA students help hand out the swag. The teamwork makes for a great experience for those who attend and all of the money goes to a great cause.

Make a Wish has raised $125,000 from the 5 years we have hosted this!

AHS Career and Employment Success

On December 11th, area business leaders gave their time to engage in mock interviews with our AHS Career and Employment Success students. This experience provided an authentic learning opportunity for our students to learn valuable, lifelong skills.

Many thanks to all of the area leaders for their wilingness to support our students!

Bank Five Nine: Amanda Drott and Megan Petit

Wisconsin Dance Theatre Conservatory: Jordan Curtin

Diversified Benefit Services: Mary Prescott

Liz Tobolt First Weber, Premier Partners: Scott Heyerdahl

Next Level Staffing Home Office: Shannon Bald and Jamie Krenz

Neon Mini: Amy Radtke

Birch & Banyan Coffee: Jessie Puzach

SBS Tax Accounting: Ruth Shibilski

Career Compass Department Spotlight: World Languages

Learning a world language is one of the most powerful ways students can prepare for success in school, college, and life. The study of a world language strengthens literacy, boosts performance on standardized tests, and enhances critical thinking, memory, and problem-solving skills. Colleges highly value sustained language study—many selective institutions prefer four years in the same language—because it demonstrates initiative, academic rigor, and cultural competence. Just as importantly, learning another language helps students become empathetic, adaptable global citizens who can communicate and collaborate across cultures.

World language proficiency is also a major asset in career and life readiness. In today’s global economy, employers seek team members who can confidently work with diverse colleagues, clients, and communities. Bilingualism enhances communication skills, leadership abilities, and adaptability—highly prized “soft skills” across industries. From healthcare and education to business, intelligence, STEM, and international relations, language abilities facilitate communication leading to higher levels of trust and connection. Whether students are planning for college or entering the workforce, multilingualism gives them a meaningful competitive advantage.

According to the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages’ 2019 report Making Languages Our Business, labor market data shows just how valuable these skills have become. A survey of 1200 US employers revealed that 9 out of 10 U.S. employers rely on employees who speak languages other than English, and 56% expect this need to increase in the next five years. Being multilingual can differentiate a job applicant and often leads to more opportunities, greater job security, and a higher salary potential. According to the Wharton School of Business, bilingual employees earn between 5-20% more than their monolingual colleagues. With demand rising across both global and domestic markets, students who pursue world language study today are preparing themselves for a future full of possibilities.

At Arrowhead, our world language students practice the language they are learning in class in many ways outside the classroom. For example, students participate in language and cultural events through our clubs and honor societies, they volunteer using the language at local organizations serving our community members, they learn about how they can use languages in careers through guest speakers, and plan and lead language and cultural activities for their fellow students. Additionally, many of our students earn up to 16 free retroactive university credits when they attend UW universities and continue their language studies for at least one semester in college! For more information about language study at Arrowhead, click here.

Upcoming Events & Opportunities

World Language has several Clubs & Honor Societies – Chinese, French, German, and Spanish Clubs & Honor Societies available for student involvement--monthly activities announced in class!
International Language and Cultural Opportunities:
- China Trip 2026
- Germany, Austria and Switzerland Trip 2026

World Language Students in Action:

Bilingual professionals visit Arrowhead to share career possibilities

Students receive awards for performance on the National German Exam

PARENT GROUPS

Arrowhead Scholarship Fund (ASF) and Parent Teacher Organization (PTO)

AHS PTO

The PTO's next meeting is on Monday, January 12th at 6:30pm in the library room at North Campus. We have some exciting things planned in the next few months and would love some additional help getting them going. If you can't make the meeting but you are still available to help, reach out to us at hello@arrowheadpto.com.

The next PTO Dine Out is Wednesday, January 14th at Kim's Pizza in Stone Bank and Kim will donate a portion of all sales, dine-in or carry-out.

Grad Grams are available in the school offices and online for purchase. It isn't too early to start to think about your favorite graduates!

RaiseRight is available to join all year long and purchases of gift cards help support the PTO!

FACEBOOK

INSTAGRAM

WEBSITE

Please consider dinning out to help the AHS PTO and their work supporting our students and staff!!! Great to support local!

IF YOU EVER BUY GIFT CARDS!!! DO IT HERE!

Support the AHS PTO at no cost to you via Raise Right. You can purchase gift cards (physical and digital) where the retailers and restaurants send a portion directly to the AHS PTO. If you download the App on your mobile device, you can have the gift cards delivered directly to the app within minutes of purchase. The link to sign up is https://www.raiseright.com/enroll/TJ18CTSKL7AM.

Arrowhead Scholarship Fund

Senior Parents!!!

In 2025, AHS Seniors were awarded 106 scholarships valued at $112,500 from the Arrowhead Scholarship Fund. The application for 2026 scholarships is now open!

All seniors are encouraged to apply. ASF honors the achievements of well-rounded students who balance multiple activities including: academics, sports, clubs, work, volunteer hours and leadership. Scholarships are offered to students planning to continue their education at either two-year or four-year institutions. By completing one ASF application, your student will be considered for over 100 scholarships!

The application was emailed to all seniors and posted on the Arrowhead Scholarship Fund website, under the “Students” header at www.arrowheadscholarshipfund.org. Applications are due February 6, 2026. Students will be notified in early May and presented with awards May 17, 2026 in the North Campus Theater.

The Arrowhead Scholarship Fund is always welcoming new members and donors to support our graduates! If interested, please reach out through the ASF Website!

MARK YOUR CALENDARS!!!

2026 ASF Application Instructions

Parents of Arrowhead Seniors,

The Arrowhead Scholarship Fund has honored the achievements of well-rounded students by awarding scholarships to graduating seniors since 1958. We are excited to begin the application process for 2026!

Attached are the Application Instructions. The application opened on December 17, 2025.

2026 ASF Application Instructions

Additional information about ASF and the application:

Last year, ASF awarded 106 scholarships to AHS graduates.
On the application, there are worksheets to fill out for employment, community service, extracurricular activities - clubs and sports.
Students will need two references - one must be an AHS Teacher.
There is a short essay prompt.
There are a variety of scholarships available, some have specific criteria. Overall, ASF is looking for well rounded students.
By completing one application, you will be considered for all available scholarships

Any questions or concerns, please email asfapplication@arrowheadschools.org

ATHLETICS & ACTIVITIES

MULLETT UPCOMING EVENTS

We have a very busy month at The Mullett. Hope to see you here!

Skate with Santa 12/20, 1:00 to 3:00pm during public skate. 8th Annual event!

Winter Break Public Skate Sessions. Extended times from 1-3pm! 12/20 through 1/4 (no sessions 12/24 or 12/25)

Winter Learn to Skate Class for 4-10 year olds starts. 5:45pm and 6:30pm Class times. Classes start 1/14/26

Winter Learn to Play Hockey Class for 4-10 year olds starts. Classes start 1/14/26. Free Hockey Gear available for Arrowhead School District families!

If you have any questions, please contact Craig Petersen at petersen@arrowheadschools.org

ACTIVITIES OFFICE

Winter 2025

The Football Team is WIAA State Champs!

The Boys Soccer program celebrates two players who have been awarded All American accolades! Keaton Staus and Brody Newton! This is the first time the programs has had 2 All-Americans in the same year. Congratulations!

We recognized several NLI student athletes:

Harper Hughes - Football - Western Michigan

Jackson Tarkowski - Football - Youngstown State University

Natalie Kussow - Basketball - University of Minnesota

Presly Samz - Basketball - Lipscomb University

Emily Muresan - Tennis - Hillsdale College

Alyson Schuster - Field Hockey - Concordia University Wisconsin

Zoe Haeuser - Swim - University of Southern Indiana

Julianna Drake - Swim - Georgia Southern University

Nina Lang - Golf - University of Wisconsin Green Bay

Addison Kruy-Trost - Golf - University of Wisconsin Lacrosse

Claire Wyma - Volleyball - University of North Alabama

Siena MacCudden - Volleyball - University of California Berkeley

Elizabeth Blok - Track & Field - University of Wisconsin Oshkosh

Elise Schroeder - Track & Field - University of Illinois

Payton Eicher - Track & Field - Youngstown State University

Avery Bott - Track & Field - Penn State University

Josie Bularz - Track & Field - University of Wisconsin Whitewater

Amara Leppla - Soccer - Eastern Illinois University

Sam Schneider - Lacrosse - University At Albany

Tanner Buhlmann - Baseball - University of Wisconsin Milwaukee

Olivia Alf - Softball - Augsburg University

Emma Hawkins - Softball - Rock Valley College

Winter Sports Are Off To A GREAT Start!

Girls Basketball 4-0

Boys Basketball 3-0

Girls Hockey 3-4

Boys Hockey 3-1

Wrestling recently won the Lomira Meet. They have some young talent but return some skilled athletes as well.

Boys swim recently battled a strong Brookfield team but came up a little short on their first meet of the season. Their team is small but are training hard and led by strong upperclassmen.

Gymnastics won their first quadrangular meet. Their team is small but mighty.

The Ski Teams are excited for all of this snow! They are enjoying their earlier than normal start to the season.

____________________________________________________________________________

Season Sport Rosters can be found here on the Arrowhead High School Website https://www.arrowheadschools.org/activities/sports/
Scores can be found by following each sports social media handle on Instagram, twitter X, and Facebook.

You can also check out the Activities page of the Arrowhead website for all of our Activities Department information.

Please make sure the athlete's annual online athletic forms are complete. They are the concussion form, the WIAA eligibility form and the athletic permission form. The forms can be found on the FAMILY access skyward account. Please also make sure the athlete has a current green physical exam card on file in the activities office.

All of these items must be current and complete before the first day of practice / tryouts in order to be eligible to participate.

Activities Office Contact Information

Activities Director: Ryan Mangan 262-369-3612 Ext 4203 mangan@arrowheadschools.org

AD Assistant: Patrick Cottrell 8:00am-4:30pm 262-369-3612 Ext 4202 cottrell@arrowheadschools.org

Activities Asst: Jill Bradley 7:00am-10:45am 262-369-3612 Ext 4213 bradley@arrowheadschools.org

Activities Asst: Jill With 10:45am-4:00pm 262-369-3612 Ext 4213 with@arrowheadschools.org

Fax: 262-367-1870

School Year Hours: 7:00am-4:30pm

Click HERE for information on all of our Clubs and HERE for our Fine Arts Programs!

Prior Newsletter Information

PERSONAL COMMUNICATION DEVICES UPDATE

We want to first highlight the great work students and staff have done in the first quarter this school year with the cell phone expectations!

As the second quarter begins, we want to send a reminder of our expectations on personal communication devices (PCD) per School Board Policy 5136 - Personal Communication Devices.

Any PCDs including, but not limited to, cell phones, earbuds, and smart watches, should be stowed in backpacks/lockers or the teacher’s cell phone pockets during academic time. Additionally, artificial intelligence (AI) glasses, such as Meta AI glasses, are not permitted. See School Board Policy 5505 – Academic Honesty for information on Use of Artificial Intelligence/Natural Language Processing Tools For School Work.

We have also emailed the same message to all AHS students.

We thank you in advance for your cooperation with this.

Arrowhead Adopted a New Parent Communication System

We're thrilled to announce an exciting transition that will help us keep you even more informed and connected with our school community. Arrowhead Union High School is adopting a new communication platform called ParentSquare!

ParentSquare is designed to be your one-stop shop for all school and classroom messages. You'll receive important updates, announcements, and information directly to your preferred device – whether that's through email, text, the app, or the web. Plus, ParentSquare offers translation into your preferred language, ensuring everyone stays in the loop.

With ParentSquare, you'll be able to:

Stay up to date on all the latest news and events.
Send and receive messages directly with teachers and staff.
Easily fill out forms and permission slips digitally.
Sign up for parent-teacher conferences and volunteer opportunities.
View important calendar items and see photos from school activities.

We'll be rolling out ParentSquare throughout the 2025-26 school year, with all staff, teachers, and coaches gradually coming on board. Our goal is to fully adopt ParentSquare as our primary communication platform by summer of 2026. This means that by the 2026-27 school year, all school, grade-level, and classroom communications will come through ParentSquare.

To make the most of this new system, we highly recommend downloading the free ParentSquare mobile app, available for both iOS and Android devices. You can also access ParentSquare from any web browser at www.parentsquare.com.

We'll be sharing more information very soon, including detailed instructions on how to set up your account and customize your notification preferences to best suit your needs.

Thank you for your continued partnership in supporting your student's success.

Sincerely,

Donna Smith Director of Library Media and Technology Arrowhead Union High School

smith@arrowheadschools.org

Arrowhead Excelling

in Four Key Academic Measures

Arrowhead Student Achievement Press Release

REMINDER: VAPE SENSORS IN RESTROOMS

This is just a reminder to parents/guardians and students that both North and South campus are equipped with sensors in the restrooms (multi-stall and single-stall) to detect when vaping is taking place. When a sensor is triggered, administration is notified and will check the camera system to see which student(s) entered and exited at the time of the detection. Students are then brought to the office for a conversation on what happened and a search of their belongings is conducted. Parents are notified when this takes place with their student. If a vape device(s) is found, the student will be suspended in school for the remainder of that day and out of school for the following day. A citation can be written and/or the student can be referred to attend a class held at AHS conducted by Mrs. Whyte, School Counselor & AODA Coordinator and School Resource Officer Deputy Dunker. If applicable, the student would also be referred to the Activities Department. With each violation, the outcome would progress.

Vaping on school grounds is not only illegal, but it's a violation of School Board Policy 5530 - Student Use or Possession of Intoxicants, Drugs, or Paraphernalia.

We ask that you speak with your child(ren) about the dangers of vaping and how it can negatively effect their health, well-being as well as their experience at AHS.

SECURING LOCKER ROOM BELONGINGS

Below is an email that was sent to all students from Administration and the School Resource Officers on Friday, November 7th regarding locker room thefts. We are sharing this email with you as parents/guardians so you can help reinforce this message and keep the belongings of ours students safe and secure:

Good Afternoon AHS Students,

This is a friendly reminder to use your locker and ensure it is properly secured at all times. Lockers are provided to help you keep your personal items safe during and after the school day.

If you are using the lockers in the locker room, please make sure to place a lock on your locker and secure it. Simply placing your items inside without locking the door defeats the purpose of having a locker and leaves your belongings vulnerable.

Please do not leave your belongings unattended / laying around or unlocked. Even small items like phones, wallets, and earbuds can easily go missing if not secured. Taking a few seconds to lock your locker can prevent unnecessary loss or inconvenience.

If you need assistance with your locker or have any issues with a lock, please stop by the office.

Thank you for taking responsibility for your belongings and helping keep our school a safe and respectful environment for everyone.

OPEN ENROLLMENT ATTENDANCE

If you are attending AHS through Open Enrollment, we want to congratulate you on your acceptance!

In addition to the information you already received when approved, we want to be sure you fully understand the attendance responsibility of your child(ren) by enrolling in Arrowhead High School through open enrollment.

Wis. § 118.51(11) states if an open enrolled student is habitually truant from the nonresident school district during either semester in the current school year, the student may be prohibited from attending the nonresident school district in the succeeding semester or school year. Therefore, your child(ren)’s open enrollment status can be terminated in January or June if they are considered habitually truant within that semester respectively. Before this would take place, you will be notified by the school if your child(ren) continues to be absent.

According to Wis. 118.15(3)(c), a child may not be excused for more than ten (10) days in a school year, regardless of parent permission. We have the following progressive steps in place to help keep you informed:

Letter sent when absent at approximately 5 days
Letter sent when absent at approximately 10 days
Meeting with School Resource Officer at approximately 15 days
Truancy citation issued when absent ≥ 18 days
Open Enrollment status terminated when absent ≥ 20 days

Each missed class period at Arrowhead is counted when determining the number of days absent. Five (5) missed periods (including Resource period) is equivalent to one full day. Late arrival to class may also count toward their total day absences depending on the severity.

While any/all absences excused and/or unexcused are counted, attendance absences due to exemptions or school events will not be counted against your child(ren)’s attendance record.

An exemption can be issued when you provide the attendance office with formal documentation from a professional such as a doctor, dentist, therapist, etc. It is best to share this documentation as the absence occurs, but a final deadline of January 15th or June 1st is in place before open enrollment status is terminated. If your child(ren) is absent 20 or more days as of January 15th or June 1st, their open enrollment status will be terminated. You will be informed of this status change from both the Associate Principal and the District Office.

SKYWARD APP FOR PARENTS ATTENDANCE USE

Skyward App for Attendance/Absence Procedures for Parents

In an effort to create an easier and more efficient process for families to enter absences, AHS will be using the Parent Access to Skyward via the app for submitting student attendance. We still accept phone messages but it is our hope that the Skyward App becomes the main method of absence notification.

Skyward App Absence Reporting

Log in
Select Main Menu
Select Attendance
Select Add Absence Request
The following will automatically be entered
1. Student Name
2. School
3. Current Date
The date can be changed to enter a future absence
If absence is not all day, click green switch to enter time period of absence
1. It is critical that you enter the time in and out, if not all day, so we have an accurate picture of the time your student will be gone (for example, part of a class period or only part of a day).
Select Reason (drop down box)
1. If you select “other” please enter comments on the reason
Comments (optional unless you selected “other” for the absence reason)
If you want siblings to be absent on the same time and day, click the green yes by that child’s name

Absence Requests from Guardians within Skyward Mobile App VIDEO

ePass

The following information was sent as a Parent Skylert email in September. We're just sharing the information again to keep families informed!

Arrowhead High School recently implemented an electronic hall pass system (EDLASTICS - ElasticPass, also known as “ePass”). This system is designed to strengthen student safety, reduce classroom disruptions, and ensure accountability. A recent, inaccurate and intentionally devoid of facts news article by TMJ4 news has created an unnecessary storm of questions and concerns regarding the new system and, we want to provide context and accurate information to our community and families.

It is important to note that hall pass systems, whether paper or digital, are not matters of “policy.” The School Board governs at the policy level, while daily operational decisions are made by teachers and administrators. Just as staff determined that the paper-pass system was sufficient for decades, it was again a team of teachers and administrators who determined that the ePass system would be beneficial.

The decision came after identifying a clear concern: too many students were in the hallways during class and outside of the capacity of our teachers and administration to monitor and ensure a safe and appropriate facility. This contributed to vaping in bathrooms, vandalism, bullying and harassment, meeting up with friends, and other unsafe behaviors. Traditional paper passes cannot provide accurate information and data on where students are when they are not in class. Accurate information is critical for safety, learning, and liability reasons. If knowing when students are in class is important enough to dedicate staff to supervise and manage attendance, it is even more important to know where students are when they are not in class.

Every student in a classroom has a supervising teacher. Students in the hallways are unsupervised, and unsupervised students pose safety and liability concerns. Nothing good comes from students being unsupervised in hallways. The ePass system helps prevent unsafe behavior, and it is working. Another major benefit is that, in an emergency, administrators can determine where students are quickly and accurately. Paper passes cannot do that.

The system is not unusual. It has been implemented successfully in many schools across the country, including a number in Wisconsin and in our area. The limits in place were identified as the average among schools already using this system, are reasonable to accommodate students’ needs, and do not impact the significant majority of our students.

Some concerns have been raised about student restroom access. To be clear, Arrowhead students have more opportunities than most to use the facilities without needing a pass. Students also remain fully accommodated in cases of health needs or emergencies.

Facts About Student Access:

Students have 8 minute passing periods allowing for ample time to use the restrooms. Most schools have passing times of 4-5 minutes. The 8 minutes has proven to be sufficient for students to use the facilities and get to class. Again, compared to just about every other area school, Arrowhead provides TWICE the amount of time between classes to use the facilities and the vast majority of students have no problem going to the bathroom between classes.
All students can use the restrooms during study hall time and it does not count against their pass limit.
Students can use the restrooms at lunch without a pass.
Any student with Phy Ed classes can use the restrooms at the beginning and end of class.
All staff can override the limits as appropriate, especially for any extenuating situations or emergencies.
Students with specific health needs were already, and are absolutely accommodated.
The longest a student would ever have to go without access to a restroom is 85 minutes. They have passes available during instructional time to accommodate those needs.
If students need more passes, they are not denied access to the restrooms; we work with the student and families to determine how to best move forward.
To this point in our school year, we have had zero issues of discipline in the halls and/or bathrooms which is a significant improvement from past years with over a dozen documented issues at this time last year.
The vast majority of students are not impacted by the new pass system. They always have used the facilities during the opportunities described above and will continue to do so.

Arrowhead’s teachers and administrators are in the buildings daily, working with nearly 1,800+ students. Our obligation is two-fold: to keep students as safe as possible and to ensure they are learning in rigorous, supportive environments. The ePass system helps us achieve both goals in a cost-effective way.

Preventing poor decisions and risky situations is always better than reacting after harm occurs. A system that minimally impacts most students, but improves supervision, reduces classroom interruptions, and provides useful data, is a common-sense approach. Importantly, students with legitimate needs continue to be accommodated, just as they always have been.

We know parents and community members care deeply about students—we do too. We want what is best for them, and everything we do is designed to make sure they are safe and receiving the best possible education. We treat our students as if they were our own children.

The ePass system is one tool among many that helps Arrowhead deliver on that responsibility. By reducing unsupervised time, ensuring safety in emergencies, and keeping classrooms focused on learning, the system benefits the entire school community.

RESOURCE PERIOD ATTENDANCE & TARDINESS

Attending Resource Period

Resource period was new to students and staff last school year. As a reminder, students begin their school day in Resource each morning (zero hour / 7:20-7:50 AM). Throughout last school year, teachers and administration stressed the importance of attending the new period and attending on time. With the start of the 2025-26 school year, we want to again express the importance of attending Resource period and what the outcomes will be of repeated absence and/or tardiness to school. Student tardies and absences from Resource Period do count against their attendance expectations.

Firstly, it’s important for students to check eClass each morning to ensure they’re in the correct Resource location. If students are requested to attend a classroom by a teacher and they don't attend, they are marked absent. In addition, students should be signing up for a location if a teacher hasn't requested them. If they don't sign up, students are automatically placed and must go to that location for attendance purposes, regardless of assignment. Lastly, students can sign up for their Resource weeks in advance on eClass both to take ownership of their education and avoid being randomly placed.

Absences from Resource Period

Absences from Resource period are recorded in Skyward attendance and will count towards truancy. In addition to the measures taken when a student reaches the level of truant, students will be assigned office referrals with consequences for missing Resource period. A referral will be submitted when four (4) Resource periods are missed and the student will be assigned a Saturday detention. Continued absences can also lead to conduct unbecoming of an athlete if a student is in a sport or club.

Tardiness to Resource Period

School begins every day at 7:20 AM. Thus, tardiness to Resource period is also recorded in Skyward Attendance. Repeated tardiness to Resource period will result in an office referral being submitted. A referral will be submitted when four (4) or more Resource periods are marked as tardy and the student will be assigned an after school detention. When the student reaches eight (8) tardies to Resource periods, another office referral will be submitted and the student will be assigned a Saturday detention. Continued tardiness can also lead to conduct unbecoming of an athlete if a student is in a sport or club.
REMINDER: You can always check your child's attendance in Skyward so you are up to date to their absences and tardies.
If you have any questions, you can contact the North Campus or South Campus attendance offices.

MORNING DROP-OFF!

Welcome to one of the ongoing challenges of AHS. Last year's adjustments and structures created the most efficient morning traffic flow we've had in years. If all families can support the image below, it makes for the safest and quickest drop-off experience for everyone!

Please only drop off in the green identified areas
Have students walk to the furthest north crosswalk identified in yellow on the map.
Pull all the way forward. Pulling forward allows multiple cars to drop-off and clear out at the same time. Please do not stop short or by the X's on the image as that creates unnecessary backups!
Ensure your student is ready to exit your car when you stop. Keep backpacks
The blue lines should be passthrough only lines watching for students crossing. These are not drop-off locations.

Finally, please proceed cautiously at all times! We have hundreds of students crossing our drives. Please help us in keeping our students safe!

AHS FUNDRAISING

AHS Programs Financial Support

School funding is always a challenging world to navigate. Each year, schools see a set of opportunities with costs associated with them that are unable to be funded by the current state funding and the AHS budget. We often have families with the means to support such opportunities who have expressed that there isn't an avenue to be made aware or to donate directly to a need. Each newsletter, we will list opportunities for our community to consider supporting. There is never an expectation, only an appreciation for considering.

Current Considerations

The Warhawk Rise Program - We are still looking for a committed benefactor who would like to support this great event! A new program we are developing at AHS that will recognize any student who has improved their grade point average by 1.0 or better from one semester to the next. (EX: from a 2.5 Fall semester to a 3.5 Spring semester) This is a significant achievement by students who put in great efforts toward success that may not always receive the recognition they deserve. The annual cost of this program runs about $4,000 each year and includes a semi-formal celebration brunch with their families invited and and gift bags recognizing their efforts. Please contact Principal Adam Kurth at kurth@arrowheadschools.com or North Counselor, Kelly Matthias at matthias@arrowheadschools.org to support.

Arrowhead Scholarship Fund - This amazing program provides an incredible amount of scholarships each year thanks to the generosity of our community. Families and companies have the ability to provide direction as to how their scholarship would be decided and awarded. Please see the ASF Donor Webpage for more information!

AHS Tennis Courts Fundraiser Please consider supporting our tennis efforts to update and upgrade our AHS tennis courts!

Something we missed?

Please email kurth@arrowheadschools.org and let us know! We want this newsletter to have all of the information our families need.