Dear Families,

On behalf of the Seneca Valley High School (SVHS) staff, it is my pleasure to welcome you to the 2023-2024 school year. I hope that you are healthy, rested, and ready for the new school year. Our students are fond of saying, "Once a Screaming Eagle; Always a Screaming Eagle!"  Whether this is your first time as a member of the Seneca Valley High School community or you are an #SVPROUD veteran, we are thrilled to have your children join us for the upcoming school year. At Seneca Valley, your voice matters. We look forward to hearing from each of you as we continue to build our school culture together.

Our primary goal is to see every student flourish and succeed in their academic and personal endeavors. We firmly believe that every child has the potential to achieve greatness, and with your support and our dedicated educators, we are committed to nurturing that potential.

In this edition of the Green and Gold Community Newsletter, we have tried to anticipate the questions you have at this stage of the summer. Each Sunday, we will send an updated newsletter with additional information on topics including, transportation, bell schedules, student schedules, drop-off procedures, and much more. But don't be shy. If you have a question that you feel cannot wait, or one that you would like to see covered in the next newsletter, please use this link to make a suggestion.

Once again, we extend our warmest welcome to your family and look forward to an enriching and rewarding school year. Together, let's make this a time of growth, learning, and fulfillment for your child.

Best regards,

Marc J. Cohen Principal

Seneca Valley High School

9th Grade and New Student Orientation will be held on Thursday, August 24, 2023 from 7:45 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. School bus schedules for orientation will follow a normal morning pick-up schedule and return students home on a three-hour early dismissal schedule. There is no flexibility on the dismissal time as school buses serve multiple schools. If your child is a walker, then he/she should walk to and from school or you may drop off/pick up students at the car-rider loop in front of the school building.

This program will give students:

• An opportunity to meet school staff and classmates

• A chance to become familiar with the school building (finding classrooms and offices)

• An overview of the academic program

Students will begin arriving at approximately 7:20 a.m. and should report directly to the auditorium by 7:45 a.m. There will be staff members and Eagle Ambassadors stationed at various points throughout the building to help students find their way.

Dads on Duty has been one of the most impactful collaborations we have seen at SVHS in a very long time. This committed group of dads from our school community spends time at SVHS during our lunch shift and at special events. They built relationships with our students, promote a positive climate, and help to grow our spirit of service throughout our school.

Recently, our Dads on Duty program was recognized by Montgomery County Public Schools as an exemplar of parent involvement and our parent leaders are now helping other schools in the district to grow their own programs.

We welcome new dads for the upcoming school year. Your little bit of time is more rewarding than you think and has more impact than you know. Join us!

In the coming weeks, please be on the lookout in this newsletter for how to get more involved. This will include a sign up genius. We are hoping that each of our dads volunteers at least once during the year.

Thanks in advance.

Dear Parent/Guardian,

Montgomery County Public Schools has transitioned to a new online payment system called SchoolCash Online as its preferred method of payment for school-related fees such as fundraisers, field trips, obligations, etc. (Please note that the new payment system is NOT related to school cafeteria accounts)

SchoolCash Online helps parents/guardians and community members pay school-related fees safely, quickly, and easily. SchoolCash Online will help increase efficiency and security at schools by making payments directly into schools’ bank accounts and eliminating the need for teachers to handle money. In addition, once registered, you will be immediately informed about school activities!

Powered by KEV Group, SchoolCash Online is the industry leader in the management of school fees. The new system puts all of the school-related fees online for purchase so users can make purchases online using a credit card or e-check. A processing fee will be included on all items available for purchase, regardless of the type of payment used on SchoolCash Online or at the school.

Parents/guardians can register now at - https://mcpsmd.schoolcashonline.com/

ACT-SO inspires young Black students to expand their horizons and sharpen their skills. From performing and culinary arts to science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM), students can demonstrate their talents in up to three competition areas. Explore the 32 competitive field.  For more infomration on the ACT-SO Program, click here.  For infomration on how to get your child involved in ACT-SO Montgomery County, click here or contact Mr. Grindley in our counseling services office at Seneca Valley High School.  

Three students from Seneca Valley’s Minority Scholars Program (MSP) Leadership Team, Anathea Kinol, Gabriela Saravia, and Fatu Kamara, had the opportunity to be part of the countywide MSP Internship this summer! Here is what they have to say about their experience:

“These past weeks have been so enjoyable. I have developed leadership skills and learned to be more social with others. This whole internship our main goals are to make a change, close the opportunity gap, and create an Anti-Racist school environment. We have learned and listened to many issues our fellow MSP interns have faced and it truly has been eye-opening. During this internship, we have delved into different topics like Restorative Justice, Campaigning and Protesting as youths, documentary creation, Anti-Racist audit, Levels of Racism, how to become Anti-Racist, recognizing privilege and oppression, and Data Analysis in MCPS. We have focused on many issues in MCPS like implicit bias, microaggressions, lack of students of color in AP/IB courses, mental health, lack of privilege, and more. We have also been working on solutions and how to address these issues within our Schools like having more resources, raising awareness, educating staff regarding trauma and stress response, and more. We hope to bring this knowledge back to SVHS and work to improve and educate our school.”  -Anathea Kinol

“It has been an honor to be able to be part of the Minority Scholars Program internship this summer and I have learned a lot over these past 6 weeks. It has all been very eye-opening getting to learn about the issues students of color face in Montgomery County Public Schools. Our goal is to make MCPS an anti-racist system and an inclusive community for our students. To achieve that, we had to first learn about different topics that exist at our schools. These include the opportunity gap, microaggressions, the disparity of students of color in AP/IB courses, restorative justice, implicit bias, mental health, etc. We came up with many ideas on how to solve these problems such as involving more student leaders (student-led activities), having more teachers of color, trauma and stress response, having social workers and school psychologists available at school, making resources easier for students to utilize, and much more. We hope to be able to transform the school system with the help of staff and administrators as well as bring these ideas to Seneca Valley.” - Gabriela Saravia

“So, not only am I learning amazing leadership skills and delving deeper into topics not typically talked about, but I’m also given the chance to form lasting and memorable experiences and relationships with my fellow interns. We’ve created such a safe space that allows everyone to share their story and struggles and I would love to help incorporate that into our classrooms at Seneca. I would like to bring topics (ex. racial injustice, anti-racism, promoting social justice, etc.) that, even if uncomfortable, are important to discuss. I’ve also learned to not be scared to speak out and share ideas, to heal and prosper within myself. I personally believe I’ve become stronger mentally throughout the internship.” -Fatu Kamara

Library Media News

LIBRARY MEDIA NEWS: SUMMER READING RESOURCES 📚

What have you been reading this summer?  If you need some suggestions, please take a peek at our curated list of 10 summer reading recommendations for SVHS students -- we tried our best to find something for everyone!  Please also explore 2023 Summer Reading Resources from the SVHS Library Media Center, which also includes information about accessing free eBooks and audiobooks online, and descriptions of several summer reading programs and challenges. 

Remember that students may continue to access SVHS library books over the summer, in both ebook and audiobook format, using Sora, our online reading app/platform. Directions for accessing Sora are available in the myMCPS Classroom Virtual LMC.  If you have any questions or need help accessing these resources, reach out to our school library media specialist, Ms. Nicole Little.

REMINDER: CLASS OF 2023 GRADUATES - DOWNLOAD YOUR GOOGLE DATA!

Your Montgomery County Public Schools Google Workspace account will become inactive prior to the first day of the 2023-2024 school year. This means that after August 27, 2023, you will no longer be able to check your Gmail or access Google Drive. It is recommended that you do a full data export from your Google Workspace account using Google Takeout as soon as possible. 

You can export and download your data from the Google products you use, like your email, calendar, and Drive files. In a few easy steps, create an archive to keep for your records or use the data in another service.

• Go to the Google Takeout page. You may need to log in with your MCPS Google account. Products that have your data are automatically selected.

  • o If you don’t want to download data from a product, uncheck the box beside it.

  • o If you only want to download some of your data from a product, you may have the option to click List All data included. Then, you can uncheck the box next to data you don’t want to include.

• Select Next step.

• For "Delivery method," select Send download link via email.

• Select Create export.

• Google will email you a link to its location. Depending on the amount of information in your account, this process could take from a few minutes to a few days. Most people get the link to their archive the same day that they request it.