Parent Communicator

COVENANT CHRISTIAN HIGH SCHOOL
                                                                                           MR.  RICHARD NOORMAN, PRINCIPAL
November, 2019

Dear Parents,

            The leaves are falling quickly, the temperatures are dropping,  white stuff has made its first appearance and report cards will be sent home this week.  All of this means that the year is rolling along quickly.  We have just started our second term and are now one quarter of the way through our year. 
This has been a rather difficult year for many of us at CCHS as we have seen many within our school community dealing with the loss of loved ones.  Through these times we have witnessed first-hand the sufficiency of God’s grace as he has upheld those who were affected the greatest.   We have also witnessed the body of believers here, young and old, coming together and being used by God as a means to bring comfort to others.  We cherish the love that we see exhibited in our hallways, classrooms, and wherever we go about our work.
It is that same spirit of love for our young brothers and sisters that motivates us to do all that we can to help them to live a life that is honoring to God.   There are always students who get caught up in things that they should not be involved in and act in ways contrary to what we confess to be right and good.  As parents and as teachers we must be committed to praying for strength and wisdom for all of our kids as they face the temptations of this age.  I have heard reports of parents checking with other parents to make sure that a gathering was going to be supervised.  This type of communication leads to peace of mind for parents and reminds the kids that they are accountable for their actions.  
Raising teenagers is a daunting task.  I have a large section in my book case dedicated to books that deal with advice and best practices.  I think I could sum them up with four main thoughts: be involved in their lives, know about their world and culture, set boundaries and goals, and communicate regularly about their social lives and their spiritual lives. 
Our daily faculty devotions include prayers for our homes, our parents, and our kids.   We thank you for the trust you place in us.   May God give us grace to raise up our children in the fear of His name.

Report Cards:  Last Friday was the end of the First Term in our grading system.  Report card grades will be finalized by the teachers this week and posted to FACTS.  The official report cards will be emailed to all parents on Friday, November 8.
Protect Young Eyes--Save the Date! One way to help us be better parents is to keep up on the technology that is such a big part of our kids’ lives today.  To help us with that, we have invited Protect Young Eyes (protectyoungeyes.com) to visit our school. The purpose of their visit is to increase the digital IQ of our staff, students, and families. Led by Chris McKenna, PYE is a team of digital experts who present around the country. Students will hear talks during the day on November 12 and all parents and other interested adults are invited to a presentation starting at 6:30 p.m. in the gym.  Please RSVP at this Eventbrite link soon!
Eventbrite RSVP link: https://covenantchristian_protectyoungeyes.eventbrite.com

Graduation Honor Designation and Speakers:  The School Board has approved faculty recommendations for a new procedure to designate our Honors students at graduation and to select the student speakers for the graduation program.  The new procedures address two concerns that we have had over the past few years.  One concern is the large number of students who qualify as honors students within our 3.5 GPA limit.  Over two-thirds of our 11th and 12th grade students qualify with a GPA of 3.5 or better.  We are thankful for the great work of our students but we also want to make this a meaningful designation.  The other concern is choosing student speakers from those who are at the highest level.  The Senior class currently has 8 students with a 4.0 GPA and the 11th grade currently has 15 students at that level.  Without a new policy, we would have difficulty deciding who would deliver the student addresses at graduation.
Our new policy with regard to the honors designation on the graduation program will have us designate students at two levels.  Those with a 4.0 will be designated as Highest Honors.  Those with a 3.9 will be designated as High Honors.  This change will result in approximately 25% of our graduates being designated.  We will continue to publish our Honor Roll for all students after each term with all those at 3.5 or better listed.
The new procedure with regard to the selection of graduation speakers will be as follows:  A Graduation Committee will be formed consisting of all the department chairs and the Guidance Counselor (8 members).  The sole purpose of this committee will be to select two speakers from the list of those who qualify with Highest Honors.  One speaker will be selected to give the Salutatory (welcome) address and one to give the Valedictory (farewell) address.  The committee will have access to pertinent academic information and will also be able to consider writing and public speaking skills in their decision.  Those chosen by the committee will be notified and will have the opportunity to decline.  If this happens, another student will be chosen.
It is great to have a “problem” of so many high performing students.  We are thankful for the work and the attitude of our students who maintain these high levels of performance in every class that they take.

Khan Academy SAT Test Prep: All of our students in grades 10 and 11 should have received feedback on the PSAT tests that were administered last spring or this fall.  These students are now able to go to Khan Academy and receive a program of instruction, based on the results of those tests, to help them prepare for the next testing that will take place this spring.  This is especially important for our 11th grade students who are planning to
continue on to college after high school.  The SAT test, which will be given in April, will be a determining factor for the level of financial aid for which they qualify.  Working through the test preparation programs will give them the opportunity to work on test problems and to take full practice tests.  There is no charge for any of this.  The only cost is the time that the students put into it.

Curriculum Page Update: Our new Curriculum Director, Mr. Kyle Bruinooge, has completed the update of the Curriculum information on our school website.  This page now contains current information on all of the classes that we offer, including a course description and how it fits within the curriculum program.  You are able to find this by going to our school website and clicking on the Curriculum Tab.

Concerts:  Thank you for the great support shown by your attendance at our fall Band and Choir concerts.  We are looking forward to our Band and Choir Christmas Concert that will take place at Jenison Center for the Arts on December 14 at 4:00 p.m.

Weather Delays:  We are approaching the time of year when the weather can start to affect the traffic patterns which in turn affects when our students arrive at school.  A very high percentage of our students travel to school during the morning on routes that are prone to slow downs.  We would really appreciate it if the students could adjust their departure times from home to compensate for expected traffic delays.  This can be very important for what happens in our first period classes.  In our schedule this year, we have 13 classes that meet first period and are then repeated later in the day.  When first hour students don’t arrive on time, they are going to miss class information that students in later classes are going to get.  It can become challenging for the teacher to fit the same material in a class that is 10 minutes shorter because of late arriving students. 
Our policy is that lateness due to traffic problems is not an excused absence or tardy.  We understand that students will be late on occasion due to unforeseen conditions and that is the reason the School Board has made allowance so that the first four tardies do not carry any consequences.   In cases of extreme weather/traffic issues, we will excuse students who are late.  We generally use the Heritage shuttle bus as our benchmark for being able to arrive on time.  This bus cannot leave Heritage early, therefore students who arrive after the shuttle bus, are either Tardy (arrive within 10 minutes of the tardy bell) or Absent Unexcused (more than 10 minutes late which results in a 0/8th hour).  Our hope is that students will learn to adjust the time that they depart in the morning before receiving the 5th tardy which results in a detention.  Our school is always open early in the morning and it is better to wait around for a few minutes for school to begin than to rush into a class and wonder what is going on.  Thank you for your understanding with this.

School Closings: The words “Are we going to have a snow-day tomorrow?” will again become a popular question around school.  Our decision to close or not to close school is closely tied to decisions of the local school districts in which our families live.  These districts have transportation departments that are in tune with the conditions found on the roads in their areas and will generally make good decisions.  Once this information is gathered, we will make our decision.
When school is cancelled, I will send an email to all parents through FACTS.  The other way to check for a school closing is to go to the “Closings” section of www.woodtv.com or www.wzzm13.com or www.fox17online.com and look for our school or check the TV for the scrolling list.  Many of the media outlets will also allow you to set up an email alert system that ties directly into the decision of your school or they may even have an “app” for your mobile device.  
Please note that for families who live in outlying areas, we will honor your decision as a parent and excuse the student if you are not comfortable with putting your kids on the road and keep them home or send them in a little later.  In these cases, we ask that you notify the office as soon as possible.

The 2019 Craft Show was very successful.  The committee and the groups that benefit from this event would like to thank all of you for your great work on this event.  Our students did a great job with the physical work and with the interaction with our guests.  Thanks to the moms and dads that also pitched in with this work.  The Baked Goods Sale did very well and earned just under $3000 by itself.  All together the event raised just under $12,000 for the Athletic Boosters and the Band program and provided a good project to involve a lot of people.   Thank you for all of your help!   A special thanks must go to events organizers Lydya Hulst, Heather Buiter, Cori Van Putten and to those who chaired the various committees.  Well done by all!

FAFSA—Parents of seniors who anticipate going to college next year should be reminded to complete the FAFSA form.  This Free Application for Federal Student Aid is currently available.  If you have not done this for a few years you should be aware that parents are now able to file using the previous year’s tax information.  It is not necessary to wait for your 2019 tax information.  The process can be started by going to: www.fafsa.ed.gov.

Sports:  Our fall sports are coming to a close.  Our Varsity Soccer team lost to Unity Christian 4-1 in the District Semi-finals to close out their season.  The Boys’ and Girls’ Cross Country teams both qualified for the State meet.  This was held last week Saturday at Michigan International Speedway.  The Girls’ team met their goal of a top 10 finish by placing 10th out of 27 teams.  The Boys’ team placed 14th out of 27.  Senior Ethan Vink earned All-State honors by finishing 23rd overall.  The Volleyball team won their first match of the District tournament and will return to action Thursday at Calvin Christian
Winter sports have begun conditioning and practice will soon begin.  Our first home game for Girls’ basketball will be December 3 against Holland Christian.  The first Boys’ home game will be December 13 against Allendale.  Season passes can be purchased from Travis Van Bemmel and will be available at the admissions table at home games.

Robotics:  Our Robotics program is off to a good start.  This year they have 25 students participating on 4 teams.  They have been involved in several local matches already.  
Their next match will be on November 9 at Jenison High School and will travel to Traverse City for a tournament on November 16.

Mr. R. Noorman

2019-2020 UPCOMING CALENDAR DATES:

November 12                        Protect Young Eyes (students during the day, parents at 6:30 p.m.)
November 28-29       Thanksgiving Break
December 6               Progress Report
December 14             Choir/Band Concert @ Jenison at 4:00 p.m.
December 23-Jan.1   Christmas Break
January 13-16           Exams/ End of Term 2
January 17                 Records Day (No School)
January 27-31           Homecoming Week
February 20              Parent/Teacher Conferences
February 21              Progress Report
February 26              Parent/Teacher Conferences
March 20                    Band goes to Randolph, WI (return on Sat. March 21)
March 20                    End of Term 3
March 25                    Band Concert @ Hudsonville  7:30 p.m.
March 31                    Choir Concert @Jenison
April 3-10                   Spring Break
April 14                      PSAT for 9th and 10th
April 14-15                MSTEP Testing (SAT and Work Key) for 11th
April 16-17                Choir to Dordt College
May 1                          Progress Report
May 1                          Grandparents Day
May 1                          Junior/Senior Banquet
May 14-15                  Senior Class Trip
May 18                       Choir Concert @ Jenison
May 20                       Senior Chapel
May 20                       All Schools Band Concert @ Hudsonville at 7:00 p.m.
May 21                       Senior Honors Convocation
May 22, 26-28           Exams
May 29                       Senior Breakfast and Graduation