RVHS NEWSLETTER - Aug. 23. 2024

August 23, 2024 EDition

Dear Mustang Families,

We’ve had an incredible first week of school, filled with enthusiasm and a sense of community. Our journey began with welcoming the Class of 2028 at Freshman Orientation, followed shortly by the return of our entire student body. The excitement in our halls and classrooms has been a true joy to witness.

I want to extend a heartfelt thank you to our Mustang Mentors, who returned to school two days early to prepare and welcome our freshmen on their first day of school. Their dedication to making our newest students feel supported and welcomed was outstanding. Together, they partnered with our band, cheerleaders, dance team, RVTV, and Student Government to ensure that the Class of 2028 Kickoff Assembly was both fun and welcoming (please see video as they entered the building below). Watching our freshmen interact and bond with their new peers was a pleasure. We are truly fortunate to have such amazing students at Ralston Valley who work together to create positive experiences for everyone. I would also like to thank our families, PTSA, and staff for making the start of this school year an extraordinary one.

As I enter my seventh year as principal of Ralston Valley High School, I am proud to share that we have once again been recognized as one of the best high schools in the nation by U.S News and World Report. This honor is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our students and staff in providing exceptional educational experiences that allow our students to thrive. This year, I look forward to continuing our tradition of excellence. RVHS is an exceptional school, with an outstanding community, and a model for exemplary student culture.

Thank you in advance for your partnership and support as we navigate this school year together, celebrating and supporting our students and community every step of the way.

Warm regards,

Mica Buenning

Principal, Ralston Valley High School

Freshmen Orientation Video

IMG_4767.MOV

Student Insights Tool Available

Student Insights is a resourceful tool for K-12 families and students in grades 6-12 to view current and historical assessment data and plans that are applicable to your student.

2023-24 CMAS student score reports are now available electronically in Student Insights. Our school will also be sharing paper reports with families on August 21st at Back to School Night and September 25th at Parent Teacher Conferences. If you would like your paper reports sooner, please request this with Stacy Young, School Assessment Coordinator at stacy.young@jeffco.k12.co.us

Log in to Student Insights here using your Infinite Campus parent portal login credentials to view the following applicable* information:

Colorado Measures of Academic Success (CMAS) - 2023-24 results now available!
ACCESS for ELLs results - 2023-24 results now available!
MAP Growth results
READ Plan goals and supports
Advanced Learning Plan (ALP) goals and programming supports
Graduation requirements progress report
High School Transcript Grades

Click here to learn more about Student Insights and here to learn more about our state and district assessments.

*Available data listed above is based on student grade levels and programming

Hazel Health

Mental, social, and emotional wellness of students is a priority that we share with our community and one that we are addressing with layers of support including school counselors, social emotional learning specialists, school psychologists, social workers along with partnerships with outside agencies like Hazel Health.

This year, we continue our partnership with Hazel Health’s Telehealth services to provide a free telehealth extension of mental and physical health support for Jeffco students enrolled at district-managed schools accessed at home with a parent/guardian.

Parents/guardians may access these services on behalf of your student by visiting this webpage and following the instructions for – Steps to Access Care.

Parking Information

Any student who wishes to park their vehicle in the RVHS student parking lots, must have a parking tag. All school registration requirements must be met before obtaining a parking tag, including any fees and fines paid. Due to the limited number of parking spaces available, there will be a limited number of tags available to purchase.

Seniors and juniors will be allowed to park in the west and southwest parking lot, as long as there are available tags. The north parking lot (off of Alkire) will be available for sophomores and overflow for juniors and seniors.

To obtain a parking tag, seniors and juniors should fill out this parking registration form. The $125 district parking fee will be placed on all senior and junior accounts. If you DO NOT want to purchase a parking tag to park on school property, DO NOT pay the fee. Any unpaid parking fees will be taken off accounts starting Tuesday, September 3. Students who have filled out the registration form online and paid the parking fee in Campus, can pick up their parking tag in the cafeteria during I.C.E on August 20 and 22 for seniors, and during I.C.E. on August 27 and August 29 for juniors.

Sophomores who would like to park on campus should fill out this parking registration form. Once the form is filled out, the registration fee in campus labeled, "24-25 Gr 10 Lot Fee", will be placed on your account within 1-2 days. Once the fee has been paid, students can pick up their parking tag during I.C.E. on August 27 and August 29 in the cafeteria.

All concerns regarding parking passes should be addressed with campus supervisors.

Parking will be enforced and tickets issued for vehicles not properly tagged beginning on Tuesday, September 3.

Drop Off and Pick Up

It is a great time to remind everyone to be thoughtful of our neighbors and student body during drop off and pick up. We must keep the right of way clear for emergency vehicles and through traffic. With only one road to enter and exit a building this size, with this many people, the roads at the school will always be congested. There are a few things we can do as a Ralston Valley community to help make these busy times of day run as smoothly as possible.

Main Entrance - Dismissal is at 3:30 p.m. and we ask that you do not arrive to pick up your student and park in the loop before 3:00 p.m. Please be sure to pull as far forward as you can in the loop at the front of the school when dropping off or picking up your student. This helps to alleviate backups in the roundabout and get as many cars off of 80th Ave. as quickly as possible. Also, please pick up your student on the outside of the loop, not the inside. We do not want students passing in between cars as this is not safe.

Student Parking Lot - In order to keep our students safe, please do not park in our student parking lot while you wait to pick up your student(s) after school.

Roundabout - The roundabout is part of the road. Please do not park in the roundabout while waiting for dismissal time. This blocks the flow of eastbound traffic and prevents traffic exiting to the east from leaving campus as well. Please do not stop and pick up your student in the roundabout or on 80th Ave.

Fire Station - As traffic backs up on southbound Alkire, please be sure to leave room for our first responders to exit the firehouse safely and without obstruction. Do not block the exit of their garage.

82nd Ave. - Please pay attention to posted road signs along 82nd Ave. There are multiple speedbumps on 82nd Ave., making it necessary to go the speed limit or slower to ensure safe driving and prevent damage to your vehicle. There are also multiple No Parking signs along 82nd Ave. next to the school's property. Please do not park there to pick up your student. Finally, and most importantly, please do not park across the street and ask for your student to run across 80th Ave. to be picked up. This is highly dangerous!

Thank you for your continued diligence when driving in and around Ralston Valley.

FROM THE CAFETERIA

All students in Jeffco Public Schools will have access to free, healthy and nutritious school meals in the 2024-25 school year thanks to the Healthy School Meals for All (HSMA) program approved by Colorado voters.

Meal Service for the 2024-25 School Year

Students must present their school issued ID to receive their free, healthy and nutritious school meals.
Menus will be posted on School Café, as well as in the schools.
On School Café, you may also place restrictions on your student's account regarding what and/or how frequently they may purchase a la carte items.
Contact Erika Edwards, Director of Operations, Food and Nutrition Services at 303-982-6678 with questions about meal service.

We encourage all families to complete the HSMA Combination Form. To access this form, you must log in to School Café or set up a new School Café account (you will need an account and may not complete a form as a guest). Completion of this form will help with additional education funding for schools and may allow for waivers of school-related fees such as:

· AP Fees

· Athletic Fees

· Band/Vocal Fees

· Field Trip Fees

· Graduation Fee

· Parking Pass Fee

· Technology Use Fee

· Testing Fees

· Transportation Fees

All household income information provided through the HSMA Combination Form is strictly confidential and protected by law. Please note: Only one form is required for all students in the household. Contact Lorena Gomez-Vazquez, Free & Reduced Specialist, Food and Nutrition Services, with questions about applications at FreeandReduced@jeffco.k12.co.us
While online forms are preferred, paper forms will be available at the Food & Nutrition Services office located at 809 Quail St., Building 1, Lakewood, Monday-Friday from 7:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. and also at your student’s school.
Additional meals or a la carte items may be purchased by a student using cash or their School Café account.
Contact Katie Jeter, Director of Resources, Food & Nutrition Services at 303-982-6879 with questions about applications.

activities

Ralston Valley Club Fair

Next Friday, August 30th, students will have the opportunity to learn about and sign up for the 30+ clubs that are offered at Ralston Valley during both lunches. Please check out our WEBSITE to see all of the opportunities that students had last year to get involved outside of the classroom. The website will be updated following the Club Fair. Please encourage your student to attend the fair and get involved!

Lisa Nelson 5k Memorial Run/Walk

To wrap up Homecoming Week 2024, we invite you to participate in the Lisa Nelson 5k on Saturday, September 21st. The Lisa Nelson 5k is a community event where we walk, jog, and run in loving memory of a former Ralston Valley volleyball coach, Lisa Nelson. There will be a pancake breakfast and fun activities after the race and during the awards ceremony. We encourage all members of the community to participate in this fun event and help us celebrate such an amazing woman’s life.

Registration Forms

RV Marching Band Featured on 9News

The Mustang band was up early today! Here is the link to their coverage in the 9News Hearts of a Champion segment:

https://www.9news.com/article/news/local/ralston-valley-high-school-marching-band/73-4b472f2d-3932-4388-ac4e-2a6286289ff1

athletics

Welcome to the 2024-25 Sports Season

The 2024-25 sports season is officially underway. Softball, Boys Golf, and Volleyball have already participated in their first contests. This weekend, we will see Flag Football, Boys Soccer, and Cross Country kick off their seasons. Boys Tennis will play their opener on Thursday next week and Football will be the last to start their season next Friday at NAAC. We are excited to see what the fall has in store for all of these teams. The air is electric right now (literally and figuratively).

Good luck to all of our Fall student athletes. We will have sport specific updates for you next week.

off campus policy

Due to the nature of our campus, we do not allow students to walk off campus during the school day.

9th grade students are not allowed off campus at any point during the school day unless they leave with their parents/guardians.

If your 10th grade student is driving, they may leave campus with parental permission. They are expected to follow local and state driving laws. Please click on this FORM to give your sophomore child the ability to leave campus with your permission.

Our campus is not closed to our 11th and 12th grade students and they may leave campus.

Schedule for The week

Monday, August 26 - Silver Day
Tuesday, August 27 - White Day
Wednesday, August 28 - Blue Day
Thursday, August 29 - White Day
Friday, August 30 - Blue Day
Monday, Sept 2 - Labor Day Holiday, NO SCHOOL

Counseling Department

Jeffco Performing Arts College Night

Has your student considered pursing music, theatre, or dance in college? Representatives from the top performing arts programs in Colorado are coming together for an evening to answer your questions and give away some swag!

Date: Tuesday, September 24, 2024

Time: 6:30 - 8:30 p.m.

Place: Jeffco Ed Center, 1829 Denver West Dr, Building 27, Golden

Colleges Attending: CU Boulder, UNC, CSU, DU, UCD, MSU

Transportation & Construction Girl Day

Girls who are interested in pursuing a career in transportation and/or construction are invited to attend an event to learn more through exhibits such as heavy & survey equipment, drones, welding & soldering, computer traffic program, VR design, electrical escape room, pipe bending, and paint & excavator simulators.

Date: Thursday, September 26, 2024

Time: 8:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.

Place: Jefferson County Fairground

**A bus will be provided for students to/from RV and the Fairgrounds**

Upcoming College Visits

Representatives from the following colleges will be in the RVHS Counseling Office on these dates and times:

Colorado School of Mines - Tuesday, Sept. 3 - 8:15 a.m.

Denver National College Fair

The National Association of College Admissions Counselors (NACAC) is hosting a college fair this fall with over 200 colleges. This is a great way for juniors to start building their college list and for seniors to meet with representatives of colleges to which they may/will be applying. Click here to register.

Date: Sunday, September 29, 2024

Time: 1:00 - 4:00 p.m.

Place: Colorado Convention Center, 700 14th Street, Denver

"Cal State Apply" Info Sessions

If your senior is interested in applying to a Cal State school ("the other CSU"), it might be beneficial to attend of their application sessions listed below. Reps from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and San Diego State University will share information about applying to any Cal State school.

Session 1: Thursday, September 5 @ 6:30 p.m.

Koelbel Library (Forum Theater), 5955 S. Holly St, Centennial

Session 2: Tuesday, September 10 @ 6:30 p.m.

Broomfield Library (Eisenhower Meeting Room A), 3 Community Park Rd, Broomfield

Advisement Corner

Advisement

Our 9th and 10th grade students have kicked off the school year in their Advisement Classes. They are building community and learning what it means to be a Mustang! Here are some pictures of them from this week.

Please click HERE to access the course syllabus for Advisement which explains the purpose, key components, and the expectations, including grading and attendance.

Reminder - If your student has Advisement on Thursday mornings, it will be from 8:15 to 9:00 a.m. before the start of I.C.E.

ralston valley HAPPENINGS

Teaching Faculty in Professional Learning

RV teachers are hard at work in professional learning sessions. They are focusing on growing student engagement and elevating student voice in their classrooms and instruction. Here they are working with a student panel as our students share their needs as learners.

Student Government Leadership Retreat

Student Government attended an overnight Leadership Retreat at La Foret Conference Center in Colorado Springs. As a leadership group, they engaged in the planning phases of Homecoming and then participated in a high and low ropes course. Student leaders described the experience as inspiring, fun, energizing, and purposeful. It is going to be an amazing year!

Geometry in Construction Start the Year Hands-on

Geometry in Construction (GiC) students get hands on learning from day one. After first having used a handsaw, students are here practicing using a circular saw and then comparing the efficiency and outcome of both methods. Spoiler alert: Circular saw was faster and more precise. Throughout the year students will learn how geometry can be used to solve real world problems within the construction industry. Stay tuned for updates on our future projects.