Mustang News
November 20, 2020 edition
Final Day - Learning Preference Survey
Friday, November 20th is the final day to complete the Learning Preference Survey for second semester. Please make sure to fill out ONE form for EACH RVHS student. We will use this information to build our classes based on current health guidelines. Therefore, we cannot accommodate any changes from the remote to hybrid learning environment once the classes have been built. If a preference form is not filled out for a student, their second semester schedule will default to the learning model (Hybrid or Remote) in which they finished the first semester. Please contact your grade level administrator with any questions.
Health Related Information
Please contact Ralston Valley’s District Registered Nurse at christy.leblanc@jeffco.k12.co.us for any health related issues or diagnoses including: COVID positive students, diabetes, seizures, asthma, allergies, and any other health updates for your student.
School Supply & Awards Pickup
To support the transition from Hybrid Learning to 100% Remote Learning at Ralston Valley High School, we will be conducting item Pick-Up Days. The purpose of these two days is to allow students to pick up the follow:
Academic Letters and Awards from the 2019-2020 School Year. These would normally be handed out in the Fall.
Athletic recognitions from this Fall and the 2019-2020 School Year.
Additional supplies from classroom teachers to support all students during Remote Learning. (Your student's individual teachers will communicate if there are materials needing to be picked up.)
The next pick-up date is:
Friday, December 4th from 12:00-3:00
Please enter the parking lot through the west entrance. School personnel will be present to assist in handing out materials.
Free Meals Available for all ages 1 - 18
Thanksgiving Baskets for Families in Need
Student Government needs your help in supplying Thanksgiving Baskets to 12 families in the Arvada community. We are asking for donations so that we can go and purchase a hearty Thanksgiving meal for these families. Traditionally, we have had classrooms "adopt" a family and bring in food donations directly to the classroom, but this year we are unable to do so. Please consider donating to Student Government so that we can go and provide a Thanksgiving meal to these families in need. Thank you!
To donate, please click here
Accountability Meeting
The next virtual accountability meeting is Monday, November 30 at 6:00 p.m. Please contact Jay Charness at jay@ape-strangerawareness.com to receive the meeting link.
2020-21 Semester One Finals Schedule
Finals Schedule is available by clicking here
NHS Food Drive Totals
Thank you, students and parents of Arvada! Together with your support and generous donations, the NHS RV CARES food drive was able to collect just over 3,300 items for the Arvada Food Bank (Community Table). It is very special that we could come together as a community during this time where many of us feel divided. Thank you for supporting us and the Arvada community at large. A special thank you to our middle school partners: NHJS at Three Creeks, Oberon and Excel Academy and our Elementary school partners: Three Creeks, Meiklejohn and Van Arsdale! We could not have done it without you!
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 - please click on this link.
Yearbooks
Don’t miss the opportunity to purchase a yearbook for your student on Jeffco Connect. Purchase today as the price goes up December 1st.
Athletics
Season A of the CHSAA Athletics and Activities calendar closed out last night with the varsity football team cruising to a 41 – 21 win over the Legacy Lightning. Congratulations to Coach Loyd and the entire program for completing a successful season despite trying circumstances. Thanks, Mustangs!
The Jeffco School District has temporarily suspended any off-season workouts for sports in Seasons B, C, and D as we follow local health directives and try to minimize contact at this stage of the pandemic. Still, athletes who are planning to try out for a sport during Season B (basketball, ice hockey, wrestling, competitive spirit, and girls swim/dive) can begin the registration process by accessing the registration link on the school website, rvmustangs.org.
Attention 9th graders interested in baseball during Season D (May and June): Coach Madden would like to get any prospective freshman baseball players into his database. Please email him at bmadden@jeffco.k12.co.us if you are planning to try out for baseball in the spring.
Mustang Mentor Program (MMP)
MMP is required of all Freshman students and students who are new to RV. Attendance is taken! The remaining MMP date is December 4 from 2:00 - 2:30.
PTSA News
SUPPORTING STUDENTS DURING A TIME OF DISRUPTION will be the topic of discussion for the PTSA meeting on Tuesday, December 1 at 7:00 p.m. In this virtual session, we will reframe and qualify some of the social and emotional challenges facing our students. We will review some lessons learned from Semester 1 and some opportunities to better support our students during Semester 2. Please RSVP to this important virtual meeting by clicking on this link.
Counseling Department
Free Application Days for Colleges
The Counseling website has a new page dedicated to providing information on free application days, as well as schools that always have free applications. A notable school with fees waived coming up is the University of Northern Colorado on December 1st. Head to the website to check out the numerous schools in Colorado that your student can apply to for free at any time. Students may contact their counselor should they have further questions.
Seniors!
With many college visits this year held virtually make sure you don’t miss out! Students can sign up to visit via zoom will college representatives through their Naviance account. These visits are open to ALL students. We strongly encourage juniors to enhance their college search using the virtual visits. Students should contact their counselor should they need more information.
Log into Naviance from the RVHS homepage.
On your Naviance homepage, scroll down to What's New, click more info in the visit box.
Click Register in the top right.
When it's time for the virtual visit to start, the virtual link will be accessible.
Scholarships
As seniors continue to submit their college applications through the end of 2020, we are approaching the heart of the scholarship season with many deadlines around mid-March. We will be posting Colorado-centric and other relevant scholarship opportunities to Google Classroom and the Friday Newsletter for students who want to apply. If your student is interested in working on scholarship applications over the upcoming breaks, please direct them to Naviance where they can find thousands of opportunities under the Scholarship tab. Additionally, on the Counseling website we will be highlighting some of these scholarships which can be found on this page under the “Current Scholarship Opportunities List”. Students may contact their counselor should they have further questions.
Warren Tech Update
Please click here for more information if you have a student attending Warren Tech.
Jeffco Public Schools has allowed and advised certain Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs to continue in a hybrid model for the time being to ensure that students can meet the requirements for college credit and/or industry certifications. Therefore, some WT programs will stay hybrid and others will go remote. There are also a few programs that will stay hybrid for a short time to complete a targeted learning objective, and then will switch to remote.
Transportation will still be provided to and from WT; buses will run on the same schedule. Students will need to get to their home high school in order to catch the WT bus.
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
Mental health
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.
Building Resiliency in Parents and Children During Covid
Who: Joy Wishtun, LPC, is a licensed professional counselor serving as an Infant & Early Childhood Specialist with the LAUNCH Together initiative. Joy has provided clinical services to children and families and consultation services to education providers in a school-based setting, with an emphasis on child development, social emotional growth, parenting and caregiving support, attachment, and the impact of trauma and toxic stress. Joy is passionate about supporting families and caregivers through the strengthening of and connection to community providers.
What: This training will discuss the realities of living during a pandemic and its impact on caregivers and families. We will focus on mental health and wellness during stressful times – how to “build your bank” to withstand the challenges that may or are occurring. There will also be a discussion of protective and resiliency factors, as well as when to seek out additional resources. This training will be facilitated over Zoom.
When: December 10th, from 11:00-12:30 OR 6:00-7:30
RSVP at this LINK, space is limited to allow for an interactive and engaging experience!
Please contact your student's counselor should you need additional information.
Mental Health Support
Did you know that there is a robust collection of mental health resources on the Counseling Department’s website? To find them, go to the RVHS homepage, click on Counseling & Registrar, and select Social/Emotional Resources.
In addition to the resources on the Counseling website, it is also the best place to locate Counselors' contact information. On the homepage you will find our phone numbers, emails, and how to set up an appointment with us. Our doors are always open virtually and in-person.
Technology resources & Help
Slow Chromebook?
If your Chromebook is running slow, here are 3 easy maintenance & care tips to improve performance.
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
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.
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.
Need Tech Assistance?
Visit our Remote Learning Tech Help Page to view the status of our core tools, access how-to and troubleshooting information, and find out how to get in touch with someone ASAP for tech help.
Please encourage your students to reach out to us for tech help right away so we can get them connected ASAP. It's generally easier to troubleshoot over the phone as opposed to email, so have your student call the school at 303-982-5600 so they can be connected to someone who can assist.
Quick Reference
Administration
Principal - Ms. Buenning, (303) 982-5600
12th Asst Principal - Mr. Litzau, (303) 982-5611
11th Asst Principal - Mr. Ackerman, (303) 982-5595
10th Asst Principal - Mr. Pergola, (303) 982-5604
9th Asst Principal - Ms. Kline, (303) 982-9378
Athletics Director - Mr. Hynes, (303) 982-3563
Counselors
A - Da: Ms. Siegert, (303) 982-5639
Db - Je: Mr. Merkel, (303) 982-5602
Jf - Mi: Ms. Belmear, (303) 982-5680
Mj - Se: Ms. Weber, (303) 982- 5597
Sf - Z: Mr. Giese, (303) 982-8110