CAC High School Principal’s Notes
Thank you for reading this week’s Highro-Glyphics!
We hope everyone is healthy and safe!
COVID-19 has obviously had a huge impact on every aspect of our lives. We are still striving to keep our students’ education moving forward in a way that is as close to normal as possible.
At CAC, activities and events are an important element of that education, and they are part of what makes our community so remarkable. Last week we held a lovely virtual induction ceremony for our new National Honor Society members. The attendees heard an inspiring address from entrepreneur and CAC alumna Rania Badreldin, learned about the amazing accomplishments of this year’s inductees, and demonstrated through their online presence their commitment to our school and community. Congratulations and thanks to the NHS students and their advisor, Ms. Gramolini!
We still don’t know when we can return to face-to-face classes, and we don’t know exactly what procedures we will need to follow. Regardless, we have many upcoming events to look forward to, whether they take place online or on campus, such as Student Council elections, High School Recognition Night, and–of course–graduation. Please keep checking the daily HS Morning Announcements and this weekly newsletter for updates.
Next week is Teacher Appreciation Week. The last several weeks have made me appreciate the work of our teachers more than ever. And now more than ever, teachers could use some notes of thanks from students and parents letting them know how grateful we are for all they are doing.
Ramadan Kareem!
Principal’s Notes Highlights:
● Senior News
● High School Parent Virtual Coffee
● Student Virtual Meetings with Mr. Duggan
● High School Recognition Night/Athletic Awards
● E-Learning Reminders
● Skyward Gradebook
● Second Semester Exams
Senior News
IB Year 2 classes are done! Congratulations to the seniors for finishing the second year of their IB classes. With IB exams cancelled, today became the last day of school for many seniors, including almost all IB Diploma candidates. Mabrouk!
Class Meeting: Seniors will have a full class meeting next week, tentatively scheduled for Tuesday from 3:30-4:30. We will be discussing graduation and other important topics. Seniors will receive a Google Meet invitation through email.
Graduation: At present, we plan to hold our graduation ceremony as scheduled June 5 at the Pyramids of Giza. We recognize circumstances may force us to alter those plans, so we are working on contingencies.
Class Rings: At the suggestion of some seniors, the Advancement Office was able to set up a process for students in the class of 2020 to order class rings. Seniors should see the email sent by Ms. Hamza.
High School Parent Virtual Coffee
I will host a virtual Parent Coffee on Wednesday, May 6 from 1:00-2:00 pm using Google Meet. We will be discussing e-learning as well as contingency plans for graduation, final exams, and Week Without Walls. To participate, you will need to use Google Chrome, and it is best to login through your CAC parent email address. You will then need to click here for the meeting link. If you do not know how to access your parent email, contact Mona Abdelhady at mabdelhady@cacegypt.org.
Student Virtual Meetings with Mr. Duggan
I have been holding 30-minute virtual meetings with groups of students by grade level during Flex blocks, to give them a chance to ask questions and share their perspectives. I am hosting these meetings at different times on different days, and over time I have offered every student the chance to participate. I will keep holding them as long as we are on e-learning. Participation is optional. If your child receives a Google Meet invitation, please encourage them to join in.
High School Recognition Night/Athletic Awards
The annual High School Recognition Night will take place May 18. This year’s ceremony will include the End-of-Year Athletic Awards. We will send invitations to recipients and announce the time and format next week.
E-Learning Reminders
● We will continue the 2-day rotation of ABCD/EFGH for as long as we are using the e-learning platform.
● It is important that students try to maintain a regular schedule.
● Though e-learning remains asynchronous, students should make every effort to attend live sessions. When possible, teachers will record live sessions for the benefit of those who have connectivity problems or other issues.
● Remember that if you see an “N” in your student’s attendance in Skyward, it means their participation has been below expectations during that week. Please see the note below regarding the Skyward Gradebook.
● Teachers will continue to be available for office hours for a given class during the block that class would meet according to the two-day rotation. Of course, students may contact teachers by email at any time, but they should not expect to receive replies outside of regular school hours.
● It is very important that students also check email and respond to emails within 24 hours.
Skyward Gradebook
The gradebook section of Family Access on Skyward will remain open as long as we are engaged in e-learning. This will provide students and parents a way to track completion of assignments. Be aware that teachers may post assignments that have not been graded, or even collected, therefore a mark with of * (asterisk) is not cause for concern. However, a mark of “0” means that the work is overdue, and that it has been factored into the semester grade.
Second Semester Exams
Second semester exam dates are currently scheduled for June 1-2 for seniors (in non-IB/AP and year 1 IB classes) and June 3-8 for grades 9-11. As e-learning continues, we are evaluating alternative methods of assessment in case we need to cancel final exams or hold some of them online. Look for updated information on this topic next week.
Jerry Duggan Rachel McCall
HS Principal HS Assistant Principal
Counseling Department Announcements
Seniors, your counselors are staying up to date with the latest developments in university admissions for fall 2020. We will reach out to you with as much relevant information as possible. Also feel free to contact us if you have any questions.
Parents and students, please remember that your high school counselors are here to support you!
We are a resource for questions that you may have about your classes, being organized for e-learning, future university goals, or just to chat about anything in general. We want you to know that we are here for you!
Claudia Bean, Stephanie Barker, Cameron Simon
HS Counseling
General Announcements
Curbside delivery of print library books
The CAC libraries will continue to provide curbside delivery of library books. Patrons need to place a hold on a title by 8 am of the day of pick up, and the book – if it’s in the library – will be delivered to the front gate for pick up between 12 and 3 pm. Please note this is only on business days, so this next Sunday there will not be a curbside delivery.
Please follow instructions here for placing holds.
PARENTS: All parents at CAC are listed in the ES catalog, so you will need to log in on the ES library side even if you wish to place holds on MHS books.
See here for a short video tutorial on how to place holds on MHS books from the ES catalog.
Enjoy our ebooks and digital audiobooks
We have lots and lots of titles available on Sora, the e-reading app. Download Sora to your mobile device or visit soraapp.com. You will need to log in with your CAC single sign on when you are asked for a Follett account.
Here is a brief video tutorial on how to use Sora.
PARENTS: If you would like to see titles for you, please click on the little binoculars at the bottom of the screen on the app, then click on “Preferences”. There you can change the audience to “general adult”.
By default, Sora will limit students in the ES to the “juvenile” audience level so they will not see the young adult and general adult titles.
Josianne Fitzgerald and Nan Miller
CAC Librarians
White Army Appreciation
CAC Shows Compassion: click HERE to know more details about the appreciation visit to Abu El Reesh Public Children Hospital.