UPDATE: April 7, 2020

Good afternoon,

Even though traditional schooling at Watervliet High School has been suspended for the remainder of the 2019-2020 school year, we have been hard at work developing a plan to ensure our students are still receiving a quality education.  As every high school student has a school issued Chromebook, we will be utilizing Google Classroom for our coursework.  

If you do not have Internet access, and your student needs paper copies of their coursework, please complete this Google Form by April 11, 2020.  Your response is needed by then as it is our goal to begin remote learning in earnest on April 20; only complete the form if you do NOT have internet access.    

Using Google Classroom- and the entire Google Suite for Education- as our learning management system will allow our teachers to instruct, assess, and interact with our students in ways very similar to what our students are used to in the brick and mortar building.

Our students will have assignments for every class they were enrolled in as of March 11, 2020.  I will be sending out an email to parents and students every Sunday at 6 PM, beginning on April 19, with the Remote Learning Dashboard for the week.  In addition to sending this information out in a weekly email, we will also post the Remote Learning Dashboard on our high school webpage and as a link on our high school Facebook page. We believe the information in our Remote Learning Dashboard will foster a collaborative effort between school and home. 

Click HERE to view a replica of what the Remote Learning Dashboard will look like.  The purpose of this form is for parents to know exactly what is expected of their student weekly in every class. You can click on the Course Link to view the weekly overview, activities, and projects for each particular class.  (Please note, right now the form is NOT active, so the Course Links will not work.) Your student can expect between 20-40 minutes of work per class each day. This amount of time is consistent with what other states recommend for remote learning by high school aged students. You can also email the teacher directly by clicking on the teacher’s email address which is conveniently hyperlinked in blue; our teachers will respond to emails within 24 hours throughout the week.  Finally, the teacher’s virtual office hours are listed so your student can connect with the teacher virtually.  

We are still finalizing what our grading policy will look for the remainder of the year and will communicate it to you and our students prior to April 20.  With that being said, please know that grades will be given based on your student’s performance and level of engagement- just like in the traditional classroom.  Governor Whitmer made it clear that school was NOT cancelled for the remainder of the year, just that face-to-face meetings were suspended. To help you monitor your student’s progress, we will also be opening up PowerSchool toward the end of next week.

Our students who are currently enrolled in programs and courses outside of Watervliet High School such as Vo-Tech, Michigan Virtual, E2020, CTE, Math/Science Center, LMC, and SMC are still expected to complete the coursework for those programs and classes.  Please reach out directly to the specific entity with questions regarding expectations for your student moving forward.  

Governor Whitmer has an entire section of Executive Order 2020-35 devoted to the Class of 2020.  She gives the school district the authority to award credits and grades for courses students were enrolled in as of March 11; Mr. Seager has communicated that our district will be awarding credits and grades to those students who were passing on that date. Please realize seniors who were enrolled in Michigan Virtual, Vo-Tech, CTE, LMC, SMC, and the Math/Science Center are still expected to complete those courses/programs as Watervliet High School does not have authority to grant credits or grades for other entities. She also provides guidance as to how we can work with students who were not passing courses on March 11 and our plan is to have those students continue coursework just like was discussed in the Remote Learning Dashboard information above. In order for every senior to clearly understand where they stand, we will be reaching out to our seniors the week of April 13 thru 17 to go over the specifics in terms of their graduation progress and a possible learning plan moving forward. Please realize we can not add classes for students who may be behind in credits, the classes they were enrolled in as of March 11 are the classes we can work with under Executive Order 2020-35 issued last Thursday. 

The face-to-face closing of school has resulted in the state assessments being cancelled for the 2019-2020 school year.  Governor Whitmer has a provision in her Executive Order that calls for our current juniors to take the SAT this October during the school day.  It also calls for students who would have taken the PSAT this spring to take it during school at that same time. Students who are enrolled in AP Courses are able to take the AP examination at home.  Please click HERE for more information about AP practice questions, test dates and times, and other useful information or email your student’s AP teacher.    

We have been getting questions about accessing the school building.  Until the Stay Home, Stay Safe is lifted we are not able to accommodate these requests.  Once the order is lifted, we will communicate how we will facilitate this for our learning community members.

Finally, we want to make sure we are continuing to recognize and celebrate our students.  To that end, we have several things planned to try and make the rest of the year as normal as the situation we find ourselves in allows. 

Virtual Spirit Week:  April 13 thru 17

Monday:  Wacky Hair Day

Tuesday:  Snap Chat Filter Day (Save a Photo Using Your Favorite Filter)

Wednesday:  Duct Tape Day (Create Something From Duct Tape)

Thursday:  Future So Bright Gotta Wear Shades Day (Dress for Your Future Profession and Wear Sunglasses)

Friday:  Panther Deck Out Day (Decorate Doors, Windows, Driveways, Yourself, Etc.)

We are asking our students to compete in a virtual spirit week by taking photos and emailing them to Mrs. Richcreek (trichcreek@watevlietps.org) so she can post them on our high school Facebook page.  The class that has the highest number of pictures submitted throughout the week will take possession of the Spirit Trophy to begin the 2020-2021 school year.  They will also get cookies once we return to school. *If the senior class wins, we will make arrangements for them to get cookies too! Watch out because the staff is participating and they can steal the trophy and cookies for themselves!  

May 4 thru May 22:  May is Senior Month!

We have creative ways that we will be recognizing the Class of 2020. Recognition will take place via email, our website, and Facebook.  Stay tuned, because we need your help to bring some of our plans to fruition. 

May 4:  Herald Palladium Academic All-Stars and Top 10 Announced

May 5:  Senior Athlete Awards Announced

May 6:  SAC Academic Scholars Announced

May 7:  Greg Chisek Senior Scholars Announced

May 8:  Decision Day Announcements for the Class of 2020

May 11 thru May 22:  Senior Spotlight- We will highlight six or seven seniors every day and will share out their activities, achievements, class awards, favorite high school memory or teacher, and post graduation plans.

May 25 thru May 28:  Senior Surprises- Stay Tuned! 

May 29:  We will share out the complete Slide presentation of the members of the Class of 2020.  

*Graduation is still TBD.  Please know we will do everything we can to ensure the Class of 2020 is able to celebrate their achievement.Jostens is planning on delivering caps, gowns, etc. to the high school after the Stay Home, Stay Safe order is lifted.  We will be sharing more information as it becomes available. 

June is Underclassmen Month!

We also want to recognize the academic achievements of our underclassmen and will be doing so in a creative, fun way via email, our website, and the high school Facebook page. 

June 1:  9th Grade Class Awards Announced

June 2:  10th Grade Class Awards Announced

June 3:  11th Grade Class Awards Announced

Thank you for your patience as we work through this situation. We appreciate your flexibility as new developments may cause our plans to change. Please feel free to reach out with any questions or concerns you may have.

Take care,

Susan Toothman