Celebrating our Students

Seneca Valley High School Celebrates Students Awarded with Academic Honors from

College Board National Recognition Programs

Awards recognize high-performing students and help them stand out to colleges

Eleven Students at Seneca Valley earned academic honors from the College Board National Recognition Programs. These programs celebrate students' hard work in high school and showcase their strong academic performance. The academic honors for rural area, Black, Indigenous, and/or Latino students are an opportunity for students to share their strong academic achievements with colleges and scholarship programs that are seeking to recruit diverse talent. Awardees at Seneca Valley are:

• Ava DeJesus: NHRA

• Cynthia Edeh: NAARA

• David Salinas: NHRA

• Derek Gomez: NHRA

• Donovan Harrington: NAARA

• Feben Fekadu: NAARA

• Isabella Silva: NHRA

• Juan Vera: NHRA

• Nilgun Colak: NAARA

• Samantha Snyder: NAARA

• Taylor Ince: NAARA

Award Key:

National African American Recognition Award (NAARA)

National Hispanic Recognition Award (NHRA)

We’re thrilled to celebrate our students and recognize them for the great work they’ve been doing. We’re proud of their strong academic performance in the classroom and on College Board assessments like AP exams. There’s so much that makes our students unique, and receiving this honor reinforces this as an asset for their future.

The criteria for eligible students include:

• GPA of 3.5 or higher

• PSAT assessment scores that are within the top 10% of assessment takers in each state for each award program

• Earned a score of 3 or higher on 2 or more AP Exams in 9th and 10th grade

• Attend school in a rural area or small town, or identify as African American/Black, Hispanic American/Latino, or Indigenous/Native

Opportunity for Input: School Calendar

MCPS provides a school year calendar that allows for effective use of time for teaching and learning, professional growth opportunities, and planning instructional strategies focused on improving student achievement while maintaining an equity lens for all students, and commitment to community engagement in the MCPS Antiracist System Action Plan. We will consider educational interests, operational needs, mandated school closures by state law, compliance with minimum instructional days and credit hour requirements, contingencies for inclement weather and other emergencies, staff professional days and early release days, and alignment with assessment schedules. 

Action Required: Share the Feedback and Stakeholder Survey below with staff and families through October 1, 2023, via Connect-Ed, school website, Remind 101 App, Back-to-School Night event, and/or other opportunities in which you engage the community. The 2024–2025 MCPS School Calendar Stakeholder Survey is also available via QR code in handouts and in multiple languages. MCPS is seeking input about the 2024–2025 school year calendar! Please take a moment to complete the MCPS School Calendar 2024-2025 Feedback. Your input will be used to select the first and last day of school, as well as other important dates for the coming school year. 

Notes From the SVHS College and Career Center

SVHS Required Senior Post-Secondary Interest Form

If you have yet to do so, please fill out the SVHS Required Senior Post-Secondary Interest Form.

All SVHS Seniors are required to complete this form to indicate their post-high school plans.  This is an important part of the SV college application process in order to help ensure all high school documents are submitted in a timely fashion.  This information will also help us support you as you plan for life after high school.

Applying to College

Any Seniors interested in applying to college should start familiarizing themselves with the SVHS College Application Packet document.  This document is a step-by-step guide to applying to colleges.  It has information and instructions on how to apply to college, including Montgomery College.  If you plan on applying to any four-year schools, you should start working on this process ASAP!  Feel free to reach out to your counselor or Mr. Nalda if you have any questions.

College Representative Visits in the College & Career Center

Juniors & Seniors are encouraged to participate in visits to learn more about colleges and universities.  Students interested in participating in visits must register in Naviance.  

Click here to learn more and see who is scheduled to visit SVHS this Fall!

Next Week’s College & Career Center Visits:

• Purdue University, Main Campus - Mon September 18 @ 9:40 AM

• McDaniel College - Mon September 18 @ 10:30 AM

• University of Maryland-College Park* - Mon September 18 @ 12:05 PM

  • *This presentation will take place in the SVHS Auditorium

• Florida Institute of Technology - Tue September 19 @ 12:05 PM

• Mount St. Mary's University - Tue September 19 @ 12:55 PM

• University of Miami - Wed September 20 @ 10:45 AM

• William & Mary - Wed September 20 @ 12:15 PM

• Trinity Washington University - Thu September 21 @ 10:30 AM

• MD Army National Guard, Lunch Visit* - Thu September 21 @ 11:12 AM - 11:54am

  • *No registration in Naviance needed. Stop by the cafeteria anytime during lunch to learn more about the MD Army National Guard or the military.

Upcoming Scholarships 

• September 17 - We The Future Contest - 1-$1,000 award for each project categories; grades 9-12; ages 14-19 at time of entry; U.S. Cit. or legal res.; submit an original work one of the following about the First Amendment: essay, song, STEM, short film, or PSA; see link for full rules and guidelines.

• September 26 - QuestBridge National College Match - recipients are granted early admission to one of QuestBridge's college partners with a full four-year scholarship, worth over $200,000; any high school senior, regardless of citizenship, currently attending high school in the U.S. is eligible for the National College Match (should review the Additional Citizenship Requirements); have earned primarily A's in the most challenging courses available (usually including Honors, AP, and/or IB level courses); financial need as finalists typically come from households earning less than $65,000 annually for a typical household of four and have minimal assets.

• September 30 - Don't Text and Drive Scholarship - $1,000 award; 9-12 grade; U.S. Citizen; submit a 140-character personal statement that completes this sentence: "I pledge to not text and drive because...."

• October 01 - Golden Door Scholarship - funding for a four-year degree at Golden Door partner schools and access to mentors, fellowship, and career support; must have DACA, TPS or be undocumented (if you are a current US citizen or permanent resident, you are not eligible to apply); high financial need; transcript; leadership and extracurricular activities; essay - you can use one written from one of your college applications or use one of the prompts from The Common Application.

• October 02 - Coca-Cola Scholars Program* - (*deadline is 5pm on 10/02) 150-$20,000 awards; senior; U.S. Citizen, legal resident, refugee (see link for full eligibility list); min 3.0 GPA; achievement based scholarship; planning to pursue a college degree after high school; involved in school and community activities; transcript.

Click here to see the SVHS Scholarships Page for more opportunities.

Other Info & Opportunities

Post High School: Planning for Accommodations in College - Webinar for Families

This webinar will be a session on planning for post secondary accommodations for your student with disabilities. Tuesday, September 19, at 7:00 pm. The session will cover:

• Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 protections and definitions

• The American with Disabilities Act of 1990 protections and definitions

• How to prepare before your student leaves high school

• When to disclose and how to disclose a student’s disability and needs

• Evaluations that may be needed

• Parents role once a student enrolls in college

• What types of accommodations are reasonable

Please complete this form to register for the event. The Zoom link for the webinar will be sent upon form submission.  (Flyer)

Comprender las admisiones universitarias

¿Interesado en aprender sobre el proceso de admisión a la universidad? Participe junto con CDI y la Universidad Carnegie Mellon de una conversación sobre lo que los estudiantes y los padres deben saber. Miguel Alvarez, Director Asociado Senior de Admisiones de la Universidad Carnegie Mellon y Wendy Ayala, directora del programa de becarios de Collegiate Directions, Inc. hablarán sobre cómo encontrar la escuela adecuada, completar la solicitud para la universidad y pagar la universidad. Toda la velada se presentará en español.

19 de Septiembre de 2023 a las 6:30 pm  |  Northwood High School  |  más información (folleto)

¿Tiene preguntas? Envíe un correo electrónico a jsemmens@collegiatedirections.org

UVA Society of Women Engineers - High School Visitation Program

The Society of Women Engineers at the University of Virginia invites high schoolers to apply to our High School Visitation program on Saturday, October 21st, 2023 held on our Charlottesville Grounds. The program provides young women and genderqueer high school students a comprehensive look at engineering fields and UVA’s engineering curriculum through informative speakers, an interactive design activity, tours, and much more. The program is designed to benefit participants with all levels of engineering experience, but we particularly target those students who are not yet familiar with the field and may be interested in applying to engineering schools or pursuing a STEM career. 

HSV is geared toward girls and genderqueer students in their junior or senior years of high school; however, freshmen and sophomores are welcome to apply as well. 

Click here for more information and the link to apply.  The online application must be completed by 11:59 pm on Sunday, September 24th, 2023. 

Questions?  Please email uvaswehsv@gmail.com.

Mentor Opportunity for High School Ladies (Stipend Available)

The STYLES girls mentoring program is looking to partner with local high school young ladies to be mentors to girls in middle school. They would meet with the middle school girls at their local school one day a week from 3:30pm-5:30pm. There are four local middle schools that are participating in this after school mentoring program. The schools are Roberto Clemente, Neelsville, Forest Oak, and Montgomery Village Middle School. The program runs from October 2, 2023- December 21, 2023. Each mentor will be given a stipend. 

STYLES has been operating in Montgomery County Public Schools and Community Centers for the past 10 years. 

Interested or have questions?  Please reach out to serenityinsis@gmail.com

University of Rochester’s Multicultural Visitation Program (MVP)

Are you interested in a free trip to Rochester to learn more about our welcoming community?

University of Rochester’s Multicultural Visitation Program (MVP) offers a funded campus visit for prospective students from a wide range of backgrounds and allows them to experience Rochester on a more personal level. We invite current high school seniors attending school in the United States who otherwise financially might not be able to visit campus to apply for MVP.

As a participant in MVP, you will receive free transportation to and from campus, a one-night stay in a residence hall with a current student, and specialized programming on top of our Research Rochester Open House events. MVP will take place Thursday, November 9– Friday, November 10. 

Learn more about the program and application details at admissions.rochester.edu/visit/multicultural-visitation-program.

Space is limited, so apply by the deadline on Friday, October 6. The application requires two brief essay responses, a permission slip, and your unofficial transcript, so we recommend reviewing the application in advance.

If you have any questions, please contact mvp@rochester.edu or (585) 275-3221. 

National Hispanic College Fair

We are excited to announce the Hispanic College Fair will take place at Bohrer Park on Friday, October 13, 2023! Admission representatives will be there to answer your questions about Admission Requirements, College Essays, Financial Aid, Scholarships and more. This college fair opportunity is open to students in 9th, 11th, and 12th grade. Students of all races and ethnicities are welcome to attend this fair. This will be a field trip during the school day.

Field Trip Details:

• Date:   Thursday, October 13, 2023

• Location:  Bohrer Park, 506 S Frederick Ave, Gaithersburg, MD 20877

• Time:  Students will depart SVHS at 11:00am and return to school at 12:30pm

• Cost:  FREE (MCPS bus transportation provided)

In order to participate in this field trip, students need to return a Signed permission slip to Mr. Nalda in the College/Career Center, Room 2408. Click here or students can obtain a paper copy from the Career Center.

Signed permission slip is due to Mr. Nalda (Room 2408) by Thursday, September 28. 

Click here for more information

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

¡Nos complace anunciar que la Feria Universitaria Hispana se llevará a cabo en Bohrer Park el viernes 13 de octubre de 2023! Los representantes de admisión estarán allí para responder sus preguntas sobre los requisitos de admisión, ensayos universitarios, ayuda financiera, becas y más. Esta oportunidad de feria universitaria está abierta a estudiantes del grado 9, 11 y 12. Estudiantes de todas las razas y etnias son bienvenidas a asistir a esta feria. Esta será una excursión durante el día escolar.

Detalles de la excursión:

• Fecha:  Viernes, 13 de octubre de 2023

• Lugar:  Bohrer Park, 506 S Frederick Ave, Gaithersburg, MD 20877

• Horario:  Estudiantes saldrán de SVHS a las 11:00 a. m. y regresarán a la escuela a las 12:30 pm

• Costo:  Gratis (se proporciona transporte en autobús de MCPS)

Para asistir a este feria, estudiantes tienen que entregar una hoja de permiso firmado al Sr. Nalda en el College/Career Center, Room 2408. Haga clic aquí o los estudiantes pueden obtener una copia de la hoja de permiso en el Career Center.

Estudiantes deben entregar la hoja de permiso antes de que finalice el día jueves 28 de septiembre. 

Haga clic aquí para más información

SVHS College & Career Monthly Newsletter

• September, 2023-24

How to order photos without a QR code:

• Go to Legacystudios.com and scroll down to the FAQ's section at the bottom of the page

• Select What do I do if I don't have my gallery code

• You'll then see: Follow this link: FIND MY CODE 

• Click on the FIND MY CODE link - or simply click here: Legacy Studios Find My Code

• Enter the required information for your student, (name and student id number) to access your images

• If you do not know your child's student id number, please contact our Customer Care team for assistance at:

• • customercare@legacystudios.com

  • 716-512-6336

A Message from the PTSA 

SAVE THE DATE - 9/19/23, 6:30 PM

Please join us in person at #SVHS in the media center for the first #PTSA meeting of the year on September 19th at 6:30 pm. Your opinions matter to us and we will need your vote on our proposed #PTSA budget for this new school year. In the next week or so, we will post the agenda for the meeting. Parents, we hope to see you there, bring your feedback, concerns, or questions. Please let your student(s) know that we value their opinions too as they are welcome to attend the meetings to speak up about things that concern them and provide feedback! Yes, they can earn (Student Service Learning) #SSL hours!! #GOEAGLES!

A Message from the Boosters

SAVE THE DATES:  

September 21st- Boosters Meeting- Open to the public.   7:30 PM in the Media Center- PLEASE join us in person or by zoom:

Topic: SVHS Booster Club Meeting

Time: Sep 21, 2023 07:30 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us05web.zoom.us/j/83899553967?pwd=n0KTQCusFL6QfmGGwWWh8IQrfoTwSv.1

Meeting ID: 838 9955 3967

Passcode: 1KACXR

2023-2024 Booster Membership is now open to join!

Please use this QR code or link to sign up and send your $15 membership fee

https://square.link/u/7qiWt8kq

Membership gives you voting rights for decisions in Boosters, changes, and how to disperse money to clubs and athletics. You will also receive a Seneca Valley bumper sticker.

Sign up genius is LIVE for our fall season:

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0e4fadaf2ca1fc1-svhs#/

Please know that Boosters needs a ton of volunteerism and in turn, this allows our clubs and teams to achieve requested grants.

Visit us on social media!

IG: #seneca_boosters and #stormtheeagle

Facebook: Seneca Valley HS Boosters

Twitter: @svhsbooster

November 4th- SVHS Boosters Community Yard Sale.  

Library Media News: Celebrate Hispanic Heritage!

National Hispanic Heritage Month Reading Promotion ☀️

Help us celebrate LatinX history and culture — come “check out” our book promotion celebrating authors and stories from 21 Spanish speaking countries!  Books featured include biographies, histories, anthologies of poetry and short stories, and fabulous works of fiction.

Book Club Discussion October 16, 2023 🌻

We had a fantastic turnout for our book club interest meeting, and participants selected our first read for this year - House of Hollows by Krystal Sutherland.  It’s a creepy book that will help set the mood for Halloween!  The book discussion will take place on Monday, October 16th during lunch and ALL ARE WELCOME!  We have print copies available, but students may also read the book in audiobook or eBook format.  For information about accessing books in Sora, our online reading app, please click on the READ Online! flag in the Virtual SVLMC or stop by the LMC for assistance.

Gaithersburg Book Festival Announces Poetry Contest 📚 

High school students from across the Washington Metropolitan Area are invited to submit poems to the Gaithersburg Book Festival Poetry Contest. This year’s theme is Envision a Better Future.  Entries must be no longer than one page, single spaced, 12-point Times New Roman and are due by February 22, 2024. 

ACTION: Complete the Google, YouTube, and Online Digital Tools Consent Form

Parents and guardians - if your student is in grade 9, new to MCPS, or if you have not previously submitted the G-Suite for Education: Additional Services form, please give your student(s) permission to access and use technology resources as part of their learning experience.  Access to the form is via ParentVUE, as part of the Annual Verification process.

From Technology Information and Support for Parents:
What is Annual Verification and how do I do this in ParentVue?

In the past, yellow emergency cards and a variety of other forms were sent home with students on the first day of school so that families could communicate updates about contact information, health, directory withholdings, emergency contacts, and more. This process will now take place in ParentVUE using Online Registration. 

News from the Business & Finance Offices 

Business Office: Monique Riddick, Business Administrator, 240-740-6413

Finance Office:  Tara Owens, Financial Specialist, 240-740-6414

Important Dates to Remember:

• Senior Portraits - January 8-9, 2024

• Senior Panoramic Portrait - October 15, 2023

• Picture Make-up Day - October 11

• Last Day Seniors may pay with check - May 1, 2024

Finance Office Hours: Monday through Friday 7:15 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

• The window is closed daily from 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m.

• Students may visit the finance office before school, during lunch, and after school. 

Payments may be made using School Cash Online or in cash, check, and money order at the finance window.   All checks should be made payable to Seneca Valley High School or SVHS.  Please include the student’s name and ID number on all checks.  Returned check fees are $25.00 per check and are obligated toward the student’s account until paid. This includes checks collected as part of fundraisers. 

Obligations: All outstanding obligations must be paid in order for students to participate in extracurricular activities such as athletics, clubs, Homecoming and Prom.  Seniors with outstanding obligations will not be permitted to participate in senior activities including the graduation commencement ceremony.  Outstanding obligations may be viewed and paid at https://mcpsmd.schoolcashonline.com/.

Parking Permits: The Student Parking Application Form must be completed and submitted to the Business Office for approval. The Seneca Valley High School student parking information and regulations can be found here. 

SV Cluster Resources Fair!