Mustang News

Self-Report Positive COVID-19 Cases

Student Positive Self-Report: During remote learning periods, families can use this form to report a positive case of COVID-19. This was shared in the Community Update on Friday, November 20th. If you have specific questions, please reach out to Christy LeBlanc, RVHS District Registered Nurse at christy.leblanc@jeffco.k12.co.us.

Special Education Virtual Community Forums

Please see the upcoming Special Education Community Forums by clicking on this link.

PTSA News

On Wednesday, December 1st, RV Counselor, Mr. Scott Merkel, in conjunction with PTSA, gave an outstanding presentation for our school community about supporting our students though the tumultuous school year. He uses data from our students, observations from his day spent shadowing a Ralston Valley student, as well as the latest research to give us insight into the struggles and successes of being a high school student in a pandemic. There are also resources provided to help you dive deeper into issues that may pertain to what is going on in your own household.

The presentation also gives insight into Ralston Valley's new Peer mentoring Program. Mr. Merkel discusses how students have been selected and trained to do the important work of supporting all of our Ralston Valley students at a peer level. Ralston Valley is excited to see this program kick off in January.

Thank you to PTSA for hosting such a wonderful evening! If you would like to become a member CLICK HERE

Thank you as well to Mr. Merkel for your dedication to our students.

To view the full presentation, click here: PTSA Zoom Presentation 12-1-20

To view the accompanying Slide Show click here: Scott Merkel Pres 12-1-20

LifeTouch Pictures

For your convenience, Lifetouch is providing an opportunity for retakes in their studio on Saturday, December 5. To maintain social distance, please call (303) 565-5203 for an appointment. The studio is located at 6510 W. 91st Ave. #130, Westminster, CO 80031.

Jeffco Drug Intervention Services

Resources for Parents

The University of Colorado and Children’s Hospital: is currently offering a couple of wonderful opportunities for parents to participate in virtual workshops:

Substance Use and the Adolescent Brain, noon Wednesday Dec.16th

Dr. Thurstone, Associate Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Colorado, will provide facts about how substance use can affect the developing brain. Dr. Thurstone is one of about four dozen physicians in the United States who are board-certified in general, child and adolescent addictions psychiatry. Register here

Did you know… JCPH offers class on how to talk with teens! Visit: www.twelvetalks.com

Topics include Friends, Mental Health, Prescription Drugs, Sources of Strength, Corona Virus, Tobacco and Vaping, Hopefulness and Coping, Sex and Consent, Marijuana, Dating, Boundaries, & Gender Identity.

Click on this link to register for the virtual workshop on Wednesday, Dec 16th.

College Application Deadlines Approaching!

Seniors - College Application deadlines are approaching, so be sure to leave plenty of time to get your Transcripts and Letters of Recommendations sent in. If you used Common App, you will need to ‘Match’ it to your Naviance account. Remember, requests for transcripts and letters need to be at least 2 weeks prior to your deadlines. Deadlines for January 1^st and January 15^th applications need to have requests in prior to December 16. Any request made after that date will most likely not be processed until after Winter Break. Remember our offices are closed December 23, 2020 – January 4, 2021.

For information about Requesting Transcripts, Letters, or Matching accounts, visit the Senior Seminar tutorials in your Counselors Google Classroom.

Important local college deadlines coming up: Deadline of Jan 15^th:

• CU - Boulder

• University of Denver

• Colorado College

Deadline of Feb 1st

• CSU – Ft Collins

Deadline of March 1^st

• UNC - Greeley

Applying somewhere else? Visit your Naviance account, or a college’s webpage to find out when the deadline to apply is.

Halston's Scholarship

One local scholarship we wanted to highlight is provided by Halston's Hope Foundation for students impacted by anxiety, depression, or other emotional hardships and who have an interest in the animal service industry. The deadline to apply is January 13, 2021and you can be awarded up to $2500. Please see their website for more information or if you are interested in applying.

ICAP Update

Before Thanksgiving Break, 9^th and 10^th graders completed their first ICAP sessions of the year in class. The Counseling Department released screencasts to help provide context and instructions for how to complete their respective ICAP tasks. Students took assessments in Naviance to learn more about themselves and how it connects to their academic and career journeys. To view the results, please login to Naviance, select the “About Me” tab, click “My Assessments,” and choose Learning Styles Inventory for 9^th graders and Career Interest Profiler for 10^th graders.

Warren Tech Applications - Now OPEN!

The 2021-2022 Application is OPEN! Priority Deadline is February 18, 2021.

Warren Tech offers over 35 state-of-the-arts programs (some brand new this year) that allow students to earn both high school and college credit. There are also opportunities to obtain industry certifications, internships, and real-world experience. Contact your counselor if you have questions.

Apply online

Warren Tech Infographic

Universal Human Rights Month

This month is Universal Human Rights Month and December 10 is International Human Rights Day. “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” –Martin Luther King, Jr. This year’s theme is Recover Better with the goal of looking at how COVID-19 has impacted individuals around the world and how we can come together to support one another better than we did before the pandemic. The United Nations is encouraging everyone to keep human rights at the forefront of their minds in the COVID-19 and post COVID-19 worlds. We can get through this together and can connect through our common humanity.

Preparing for the Holidays

Given the CDC’s guidelines for gatherings the next couple months, it is likely that holidays are going to look a lot different for everyone this year. For some families it will take big adjustments, whereas for others it may be a welcome change or opportunity to do something different. On top of the higher levels of stress many people are facing these days, the thought of having to cancel or alter holiday plans can add even more anguish. No matter how you feel, take a moment in the coming weeks to share your feelings with family and friends about the holidays this year, focus on what you can do, and consider creating new traditions.

For more, take a look at this article released by the Boston Children’s Hospital for how to prepare your kids for the holidays during COVID-19. And, another article from the Cleveland Clinic about how to cope ahead of time, the importance of managing expectations, and how to have a productive conversation with your family about the adjustments.

Slow Chromebook?

If your Chromebook is running slow, here are 3 easy maintenance & care tips to improve performance.

1. Clean out your downloads - Chromebooks have very little actual storage space. Downloads might be bogging your system down, so delete downloads you don't need. Written directions |Video

2. Cut down on Extensions - Having too many open extensions is the most common cause of Chromebook slowness. Each extension uses some memory, and having several open causes the browser and computer to be sluggish. Disable all extensions you're not using; delete any game extensions. You generally only need 2 extensions: Google Docs Offline & Zoom. Written directions.

3. Shut your Chromebook down once a day. Closing the lid doesn't shut off your Chromebook; it just puts it in sleep mode. Use the on-screen power options to "Shut Down" your Chromebook. This clears working memory and allows any pending updates to be applied on your next startup.

Chromebook Troubleshooting Tips