CAC High School Principal’s Notes
Dear High School Parents,
Welcome to this week’s edition of Highro-Glyphics!
It was wonderful to welcome our full junior class back to campus as they joined the seniors in attending school four days a week. Thank you to the Booster Club for providing them with tasty donuts to celebrate their return!
We were also happy to see Group 1 students in grades 9 and 10 on campus Tuesday, and we look forward to Group 2 attending three days next week.
Many of our seniors began the week with submission of early college applications. Congratulations to them on meeting their first deadline! Though seniors can find the application season to be stressful, and sometimes overwhelming, our counselors will continue to be there for them at every step of the process.
Thanks for all you do to support your children and CAC.
Stay safe!
Principal’s Notes Highlights:
● Upcoming Grade Level Parent/Principal Virtual Coffees
● Thanksgiving Week Schedule
● Skyward Gradebook
● Health and Safety Checklist
● Winter Break Travel Plans
Upcoming Parent/Principal Virtual Coffees
We will continue to hold parent/principal virtual coffees by grade level to discuss topics particular to each grade. Thanks to all the parents who participated in the coffees for Grades 11 and 12 this week. Next week we will host parents of students in grades 9 and 10. The following week, we will hold a virtual coffee for all HS parents. Here is the upcoming schedule:
● Grade 10: Sunday, November 8, 12:00 noon
● Grade 9: Monday, November 9, 12:00 noon
● All HS Parents: Wednesday, November 18, 9:45 am
Parents will receive a Zoom link via email on the morning of the coffee for their respective grade level.
Thanksgiving Week Schedule
Our next short week of classes will be the week of November 22, as we celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday. There will be no Tutorial Day that week. The rotation will be as follows:
Sunday, November 22: A1
Monday, November 23: A2
Tuesday, November 24: E1
Wednesday, November 25: E2, Early Release Day (Dismissal at 11:30)
Thursday, November 26: No School.
Skyward Gradebook
Skyward is the secured student information system used at CAC. The gradebook section of Family Access allows students and parents to view student progress. Students should speak to teachers individually if they have concerns about assignments or grades in Skyward.
Health and Safety Checklist
Please regularly review the checklists for students and parents (click here) related to health and safety. It is important we do not become complacent. Consistently practice the 4 W’s: Wash Your Hands, Wear Your Mask, Watch Your Distance, and Work Together.
Winter Break Travel Plans
If you are making travel plans for the Holiday Season, a reminder that the first day of Winter Break is December 18. The last scheduled final exams will be on December 16. Students should not plan to travel before their exams are concluded. Classes will resume again on January 10.
Jerry Duggan Rachel McCall
HS Principal HS Assistant Principal
Counseling Department Announcements
Pomona College Town Hall
On Monday, November 9 at 6 pm, Pomona College will join CAC for a Virtual Town Hall. This will be a great opportunity to learn more about Pomona and the value of a Liberal Arts education in the USA. It is located in Claremont, California, about 35 miles east of Los Angeles. With a student-faculty ratio of 8 to 1, they offer a comprehensive curriculum, with 48 majors in the arts, humanities, social sciences and natural sciences. Pomona is a close-knit and diverse community of accomplished scholars, scientists, entrepreneurs and artists who are passionate about making a difference in the world. There are approximately 1,670 students who come from 59 nations and all 50 U.S. states, as well as the District of Columbia, Guam and Puerto Rico.
Register: here
Upcoming Virtual University Events, Visits, and Webinars
Counselors receive many emails and invites to virtual university events happening all over the world. Students and families may now view and register for these opportunities by visiting the CAC HS Counseling Resources Webpage. Upcoming CAC-specific university visits and Town Halls will also be posted here. This document will be updated regularly, and you can find it here: CAC HS Counseling Resources Webpage – University Visits.
Seniors- Some Early Action/Early Decision external (university) deadlines are November 15th. All EA/ED document request forms should have been submitted (online) to the counseling office by November 1 (CAC’s internal deadline).
Claudia Bean, Kasey Semler, Cameron Simon
HS Counseling
General Announcements
The Environmental Action Plan Committee
The Environmental Action Plan Committee has taken the initiative to eliminate the use of single-use plastic on the CAC campus. As a first step, we encourage ALL faculty members and parents to bring their own cups for coffee and avoid using disposable cups. There are cups for sale in the spirit store as well If you would like to buy one!
Environmental Action Plan Committee (c/o NHS)
CAC Libraries Open This Weekend
The CAC libraries will be open this Saturday, November 7. Please see list of open Saturdays here.
You will need to make an appointment for Saturdays through the online booking system on the CAC dashboard.
New York Times access for CAC
The CAC libraries have a digital subscription to the New York Times. To access, go to nytimes.com/passes and create a new account or log in with your CAC single sign on. Follow the prompts until the site says, “Get Started.”
You will need to do this even if you already have an account from the 2019-2020 school year.
Once you have created an account, you will be able to access the NYT from any device and any location. You can also access it through the NYT app.
(Our subscription does not give us access to the NYT crosswords, sorry.)
Josianne Fitzgerald
MHS & Head Librarian
General Services Appreciation Lunch – Nov. 24
The GSS Appreciation Lunch is a whole school event where our entire community of students, parents, faculty, staff and alumni collaborate together. We show our appreciation for these hard-working teams by organizing a special lunch, relying on the generous donations and efforts of our community.
This year, in order to maintain social distance, we will not be having the on-campus lunch but rather providing a hot meal of the GSS’s choice.
Please check this link for more details on how you can join/support: GSS Appreciation lunch
Ereeny Gergess
Service Learning Coordinator
Full Transcript of the Second Q and A Session
The full transcript of the Second Q and A Session organized by the CAC PTO is now available on the PTO blog: https://blogs.cacegypt.org/ptobooster
We at the PTO thank everyone who made this virtual event possible.
CAC Talks
November CAC Talks is not one to miss! Led by counselor and parent educator Carey Harris, “Finding Balance in a Digital World” focuses on the effects of technology and social media on the cognitive functioning of our kids. Carey will provide practical, research-based solutions and strategies families can implement to help our kids and families navigate the pitfalls and potentials of our increasingly digital world.
Join us Tuesday, November 10 at 6pm via the Zoom link
https://fundforteachers.zoom.us/j/95641725891?pwd=Y3N1bWdrK3FReUpEQjdRdG96RlcyZz09
MS and HS students are also encouraged to attend!
Screenwise by Dr. Devorah Heitner and Talking Back to Facebook by Jim Steyer are highly recommended reads regarding this topic. Screenwise is available as both an ebook and audiobook through the CAC library’s Sora app.
Please send any questions you have for our expert, Carey Harris, ahead of time to cacpto@cacegypt.org.
In true partnership,
CAC PTO