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BHS Principal Sabrina Westdijk
BHS Principal Sabrina Westdijk
Message from the Principal
Message from the Principal
April 6, 2026
Greetings, BHS students, families and community members. Spring is in the air, and that means that our seniors will be giving their PLP Presentations this week. We encourage parents and guardians to attend their child's presentation; watching our students reflect on their growth and learning over the course of their high school career is always one of the highlights of the school year.
Of course, Spring also means standardized testing. All families have received messaging about this week's testing schedule, but essential info about testing reshared in this newsletter for your reference. We are required to adminster the state standardized assessments to all 9th and 11th graders, aside from a very few who are exempted. We've encouraged all students to arrive prior to 8am if they are testing, ideally with a charged Chromebook and a good breakfast. Thank you for your help to make sure students are ready to bring their full attention to these tests.
We received some good news last week about the new campus, when an inspection of the site resulted in our being issued a temporary certificate of occupancy -- right on schedule. This is an exciting step because that certificate allows us to start shipping in the new furnishings. Those deliveries have begun this week and will continue into early May, so soon the cabinetry, whiteboards and televisions in each classroom will be joined by desks, tables, and chairs. BHS teachers will learn their room assignments later this month, with a full faculty visit in June once we're issued our final certificate. All this is to say, we're truly entering the final stretch of a long process. We've been busy planning our move, and look forward to starting to move into our permanent school home in just a couple months. Keep an eye out for parent volnuteer opportunities as we get closer to summer; relocating an entire school is no small endeavor, and we will be looking for extra help in June. (Please enjoy a few pictures of the new school below: classrooms, a finished hallway, and the beautiful new gymnasium.)
If you haven't yet, please take a moment to complete the BSD Annual Family Survey. BSD and BHS both value your feedback and perspective on your and your child’s experience in our district and at our school. If you need language support to access the survey, please contact your Multilingual Liaison. Responses are used to measure our progress on our Strategic Plan, inform professional development and training, and to identify bright spots and areas of need. The survey window closes this Friday. Thank you for taking the time!
With appreciation,
Sabrina Westdijk
ANNOUNCEMENTS & UPCOMING EVENTS
ANNOUNCEMENTS & UPCOMING EVENTS
Standardized Testing on April 7 & 8
Standardized Testing on April 7 & 8
BHS will be completing spring standardized testing (VTCAP, Pre-ACT, ACT) next week.
Please see a detailed overview below.
Important: School will start at 8am on testing days for Grades 9-11!
Senior PLPs 4/7-4/8
Senior PLPs 4/7-4/8
Seniors will present their personalized learning plans on April 7 & 8. Seniors should arrive 15 minutes before their scheduled time. We encourage family members to attend this culminating event for the senior class. Please email Kimberly Fankhauser with any questions.
Sankofa Poetry Slam on Thurs, 4/9
Sankofa Poetry Slam on Thurs, 4/9
BSD is hosting its next Sankofa event, a Poetry Slam, this Thursday, 4/9.
Come out to the Richard Kemp Center at 5:30pm for an experience of the oral tradition of the African diaspora.
A Night of Talent & Cultural Celebration
A Night of Talent & Cultural Celebration
On April 10th, BHS will host the Mosaic Fundraiser Night of Talent and Cultural Celebration. The event is FREE but balls for the Calcutta raffle can be purchased here: https://omella.com/af8vz. If your student has a talent, please encourage them to sign up! FORM FOR PERFORMING
An Evening of Music & Art
An Evening of Music & Art
Our spring music and art showcase will feature all our ensembles as well as art from all across our visual arts program. This is our final year holding this event in our downtown space, and we look forward to going out strong! An assortment of refreshments will be provided.
BHS 2026 Commencement is Tuesday, June 16
BHS 2026 Commencement is Tuesday, June 16
BHS Graduation is on Tuesday, June 16 -- the day following the final day of school in BSD. The ceremony will be hosted on our new campus this year. Please refer to the last two issues for details about rehearsal and ceremony times; future issues will feature all details seniors and their families will need to know.
SEAHORSE CELEBRATIONS
SEAHORSE CELEBRATIONS
BHS Students Perform at New England Music Festival
BHS Students Perform at New England Music Festival
CONGRATULATIONS to Lisa Zhou-Hackett for receiving the Burton O. Cowgill New England Scholarship at the New England Music Festival last weekend. This scholarship is awarded to one instrumentalist and one vocalist. Both recipients must be seniors who have participated in the NEMFA Concert Festival for all four years and have received the highest performance rating at the solo and ensemble adjudication festival.
CONGRATULATIONS to Arlo Bolles, Nadia Comba, Lily Dantscher, Siena DeMink, Tomas Gaviria Cullins, Louis Napolitan, Brynna Swift-Herzog, Lyla Trigaux, and Lisa Zhou-Hackett (photo left) for their participation in the New England Music Festival in Gilford, NH last weekend. Students were selected after auditioning with hundreds of others throughout New England.
BHS Seahorses Take the (Penguin) Plunge
BHS Seahorses Take the (Penguin) Plunge
Thanks so much to everyone who jumped in Lake Champlain on March 14 as part of the Penguin Plunge to support the Special Olympics and Unified Sports! We ran into the water riding inflatable horses…..”Seahorses”...get it?
Special thanks to Mike Leonard, our fearless Penguin Plunge captain and incredible coach of the Unified Basketball team. We raised over $3800! Go Seahorses! Go BHS Heroes!
Overall, more than 600 people took part in the Cool Schools portion of the event, raising more that $150K to support Special Olympics Vermont.
BHS Philosophy Club Goes to Harvard Ethics Bowl Championship
BHS Philosophy Club Goes to Harvard Ethics Bowl Championship
Over the weekend, BHS students Bernadette Caldwell, Cady Murad, and Zia Grannis, all Class of ‘29, competed at the first Harvard High School Ethics Bowl Championship. Ethics Bowl is an event where students discuss ethical concepts in graded competition with schools from around New England. Students must evaluate different cases and defend their views on ethics and philosophy across many topics.
The team took home 2 wins over 3 matches at Harvard. Philosophy Club will meet as a Friday Connections for the remainder of the year, and returns as an afterschool program next year.
BHS Math League Wraps Fantastic '25-'26 Season
BHS Math League Wraps Fantastic '25-'26 Season
Congratulations to Tank Chandler (10th grade) for finishing first overall in the individual standings! Well deserved!
Congratulations to Kaz Skalka (10th grade) for finishing third overall in the individual standings! A great achievement!
Also in the top 20 overall for the year were Max Reif (11th place) and Elliot Throop (14th place).
Tank and Kaz tied for first in the Arithmetic category for the year, and Tank won the Algebra category for the year. Also receiving recognition this year:
Kezia Grannis (3rd in Geometry)
Elliot Throop (3rd in Algebra)
Max Reif (8th in Advanced Math)
Overall, the BHS Math League team finished in 2nd place out of 14 schools for the 2025-26 season - our best showing in over 20 years! Congratulations to their dedicated and skilled coach, Norm Tremblay, for helping this year’s team reach this accomplishment!
BHS 2026 Spectrum Sleepout Shatters Record for Participants and Fundraising
This year, 200 students in total braved the chill to sleep out on Friday evening. This number of participants not only broke the school record but also Spectrum's record for the past 15 years. The money is still coming in but the students have raised more than $33,000 for Spectrum Youth and Family services so far, which is also a team record -- not only our school but for Spectrum as a whole. Wow! We are very proud of these kids and the Heroes for making this happen, especially on a very, very cold evening. BHS Heroes indeed!
A big shoutout goes to BHS German Teacher Dan Gavin for organizing and supervising this massive event, as well as the amazing and seriously tough staff chaperones: Bowen Stephens, Kate Mastrantone, Ginger Camp, and Myriam Bouti.
BHS Student Artists Honored in the Vermont Statehouse
Congratulations to Josie Hackney (9th) and Winn Mount (10th) whose artworks for the Vermont 250th exhibition were selected by the Vermont State Curator to be permanently included in the Vermont State Art Collection. Only four artworks were selected from across the entire state. Congratulations are also due to their talented art teacher, Misuk Weaver, who has made identifying opportunities for students to publicly display their art an essential element of her courses.
The state show was titled “Unfinished Revolutions”.
BHS Standardized Testing Information
BHS Standardized Testing Information
On Tuesday, April 7th and Wednesday, April 8th most BHS students will engage in one or more of the following tests. Please see the detailed testing assignments for each grade level, each day, in the image at right:
Vermont Comprehensive Assessment Program (VTCAP)
American College Testing (ACT)
Pre-American College Testing (Pre-ACT)
We encourage students and families to monitor your student's email closely to stay informed of your student’s testing plans. It is important to note that students are required to arrive earlier than our typical school-day BOTH DAYS and should arrive on campus beginning at 7:45 am in order to begin testing promptly at 8 am.
NOTE: Though not testing, 12th graders’ attendance is required, as they will be engaged in work on their presentations of learning for their Personal Learning Plans (PLP) each day. PLP presentations are scheduled for the afternoons on April 7 & 8.
BHS Afterschool Program
BHS Afterschool Program
Students are welcome to join any club at any time, or fit clubs in around other commitments like athletics.
Reach out to Paul Jones with any questions, or if you have any suggestions/ideas for new clubs you'd like to see at BHS, this year or next.
NHS Invites BHS Juniors to Seek Membership
NHS Invites BHS Juniors to Seek Membership
All eligible juniors received an email and a letter home inviting them to seek membership in the National Honor Society. Students should follow the instructions in the email/letter to pursue this opportunity. The deadline to submit the required information is 4/13/26 at 3:30pm. Students should contact Ms. Sitek (lsitek@bsdvt.org) with any questions.
NHS focuses on four pillars: Scholarship, Service, Leadership, and Character. You can learn more about NHS and what it stands for here.
Attention 10th Graders: BSD School Board Seeking Student Rep
Attention 10th Graders: BSD School Board Seeking Student Rep
The BSD Board includes two student representatives each year (one 11th grader and one 12th grader). All students in 10th grade are eligible to apply for a two year term beginning this late Spring 2026.
Currently Annie Harte (12) will complete her term at our May meeting this year as BSD's Senior member; Idris Garvey-Ibrahim (11) will continue through his Senior year and mentor our new student member.
If interested, please print this application and turn it in to Principal Westdijk by April 10.
BHS Flexible Pathways
BHS Flexible Pathways
Early College information for Current 11th Graders
CCV is now accepting applications for our 2026-2027 Early College (EC) program. The priority deadline is Friday, May 1, 2026.
EC allows students to spend their entire senior year at CCV earning college credits, finishing their high school diploma, and getting a jump on a college degree...tuition free! (Students are responsible for all textbook costs and applicable fees.)
Continuing this year! Students who complete EC at CCV can finish their associate degree for free through the Free Degree Promise! Visit ccv.edu/freedegree to learn more.
Final deadline is Wednesday, August 5, 2026. Download our Early College Information Sheet to learn more about the program. Should you have any questions, please feel free to contact Brianna Madden, CCV Early College Admissions (brianna.madden@ccv.edu) or your local CCV contact for more information.
BURLINGTON CITY & LAKE SEMESTER
BURLINGTON CITY & LAKE SEMESTER
This week, BCL16 students consulted with Community Economics & Development (CEDO) Director Kara Alnaswari on two essential topics: how to make decisions about Burlington’s budget, and where the city should place the proposed Overdose Prevention Center. We also visited the Off-Center for the Performing Arts in the New North End to play theater games with our artist-in-residence, Amy Riley!
Burlington City & Lake Semester is recruiting for next year’s cohorts, and applications are open! If you think your student would thrive in this program, we would love for them to apply. Here is a link to the BCL application! And here are some links to help students learn more about BCL:
or check us out on Instagram: @btvcityandlake
Summer Opportunities for BHS Students
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Courtesy Posts
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