As we said last week, it’s registration time! Please read
these important tips from Student Services and “veteran”
parents:
1. Do your registration homework! Attend the
Registration Fair on Monday, February 10th at 6:30 in the auditorium. Talk to your student about courses, levels (regular, honors, seminar, AP) and location (RJR vs. Career Center). Talk to current teachers and department heads about course offerings and placement.
2. Map out potential course selections for each remaining year of high school – consider graduation requirements, pre-requisites required next year in order to take a class the following year, post-graduation goals and requirements for college admissions/acceptance.
3. Study all registration materials and complete your registration worksheet, including questions for your counselor, BEFORE your registration appointment.
4. Attend your student’s registration appointment! While not required, parents are welcome and encouraged to attend. Please remember, each meeting is 15 minutes and for registration topics only.
5. When choosing courses, don’t make assumptions about when a course will be taught, who will teach it or when your student wishes to attend Career Center (AM or PM). These are all unknown at this time and driven by the registration process. You are not choosing teachers or creating a specific schedule.
6. Choose your alternate courses carefully and thoughtfully. These selections DO matter and if your child gets one, it is NOT considered a scheduling issue.
7. Be specific with your counselor and on the registration worksheet. For example, if changing from seminar to honors in order to schedule a particular arts class is acceptable, make sure this is indicated on your card. RJR students have more course offerings than students in any other high school, but many can only be offered one or two periods.
8. “Change of mind” requests will NOT be accepted after the March registration deadline. Counselors must give priority to true scheduling issues such as graduation requirements and incomplete schedules.
Invest time NOW to ensure a successful schedule next year!
Lisa and Greg Carter
Greetings Parents,
Second semester is off to a good start, although old man winter provided a reprieve for a couple of days. As you have heard often already this year, migration from NC Wise to Power School continues as we complete each yearly task for the first time in Power School. This holds true for first semester report cards.
Please know that the district’s grading calculation process has remained unchanged. Power School calculates grades using percentages (numerical values) entered by the teacher. Once these values were finalized with exam and quarter grades, grades were converted to a median value following the same process as in NC Wise. Teachers then completed grade verifications and documented any changes prior to report cards being printed and distributed. These semester grades are then posted to your child’s historical grades so GPAs and class ranks can be calculated as well as transcripts updated.
I know there may be many rumors and stories floating around. Please know that specific directions and instructions were provided to and were followed by all our teaching staff. Every effort was made by our staff to accurately reflect student’s academic achievement levels.
Should you have questions about grades earned for first semester, I encourage you to contact the teacher directly. They have access to your student’s individual scores earned in the class. In Student Services and the main office, staff members are unable to see the same details and can only verify quarter, exam and final letter grades.
As Dr. Emory alluded in her letter to parents that went home with students’ report cards, there may be discussion regarding future grading practices and potential changes with regard to Power School.
Finally, as we enter into “registration season”, I want to extend a big thank you to the parent volunteers who have signed up to help with the process. It is one of the most time-consuming efforts every year and at the same time, one of my favorites. Building the Master Schedule is one of my favorite things to do, and I am looking forward to building a new one for next year.
Mr. Pat Olsen, Principal
Congratulations Dancing Boots!
The Dancing Boots just returned from an outstanding performance and a "superior" rating as semi-finalists in the Varsity High-Kick division of
the Universal Dance Association National Championships in Orlando, Florida. Congratulations to the girls who competed against the top 20 high-kick teams in the country and proudly represented R.J. Reynolds in the Dancing Boots' first performance on a national stage.
Campus-Wide Spring Arts Series Reaches Beyond RJR
Our Spring Campus-Wide Arts Experience will continue the 2013-‘14 focus on self-expression and awareness as we bring Electrify Your Strings (EYS) to R.J. Reynolds on March 24th and 25th for musical workshops and two concerts — one during the day for students and staff, the second on March 25th at 7:30 p.m. for the community. You can help support this program by purchasing a ticket to the public, ticketed event. Tickets are $10 in advance and $15 at the door. You may also place a “shout-out” to a special student or teacher, or place an advertisement in the concert playbill.
Through collaboration with the Arts Council and Wells Fargo, funds raised for this program by February 28th will be matched dollar for dollar. Click here to donate and learn more about this exciting opportunity for ALL of our students. Note: The campus-wide event will be for students/staff only and will be at 10 a.m. on March 25th.To donate, use this link: http://power2give.org/WinstonSalem/Project/Detail?projectId=2812#play.
Click here for information about placing a “shout-out” or ad in the Spring Playbill: http://wsfcs.k12.nc.us/Page/82241.
Hunter Safety Team
February 15: hosted by Forbush High School (off-site location)
March 22: District Tournament at Hunting Creek Preserve in Harmony
Teacher Sponsor: Mr. Paul Hill
For directions to tournament locations or more information, contact Stephen Joyce r336-399-2523.
RJR Student of the Week
Congratulations to RJR Student of the Week Montay Berger. He is being recognized by Ms. Hennie for his contributions to going above and beyond to help around the school. Thanks for making RJR great, Montay!
Central Public Library Offers “Preparing for College” Series
The following programs are free and open to the public and will be held in the Central Library auditorium located at 660 West Fifth Street.
SAT/ACT Reading Strategies:Monday, Feb. 10 at 6:15 p.m.
Discover strategies to preparefor the reading comprehension sections of the SAT and ACT exams.
College Study Skills: Monday, March 17 at 6:15 p.m.
Find usefulstrategies including time management, tackling large assignments, communicating with professors, survival tips away from
home and more.
No registration is required for these programs. For more information, call 336/703-3020 oremail .
Panel Discussion for Parents
Building ResilienceIn Children - A Road Map for Parents will be presented on February 11 at 7:00 p.m.in theLoma Hopkins Theatre at Summit School. The panel discussion, whichis free and and open to the public,will be led byErin Bonsall, LPC - Behavioral Health Counselor at Robinhood Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine and include Tony Da Luz - Women's Soccer Head Coach at Wake Forest University, Ted Dougherty, PhD - Psychotherapist, Marriage and Family Therapist and Ticia Kribbs, MD - Pediatrician at Novant Health Arbor Pediatrics.
Travel Abroad in 2015
It’s not too late to sign up for our 2015 trip to France and Spain! We will be visiting many of the cities that we study in classes including Paris and Barcelona! Take advantage of this awesome opportunity for your student (and even yourself!). Please visit our tour website: www.eftours.com/1389737 or email Madame Matisko: for more information.
Pre-Calculus and AP Calculus Study Sessions
The next pre-calculus study session is set for February 22nd from 11 a.m. until 12 p.m. in the media center. For details, see Ms. Apel’s faculty webpage calendar (http://www.wsfcs.k12.nc.us/Page/9393) or e-mail Ms. Apel at . Check the calendar for future study session dates and times.
NEW! AP Calculus Study Sessions: First date/time is set for February 22nd from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. in the media center. For details, see Ms. Apel’s faculty webpage calendar (http://www.wsfcs.k12.nc.us/Page/9393) or e-mail Ms. Apel at . Check the calendar for future dates and times.
French at RJR
Parlez-vous français? Are you and your student deciding what language to study at RJR? Why not take French? French is the international language of cooking, fashion, theatre, the visual arts, dance, and architecture. Knowledge of French will open doors in these industries and help you in your arts courses.
Did you know that France is the world’s fifth largest economy? French is the working language and/or the official language of many organizations including the United Nations, the European Union, UNESCO, NATO and the Olympics. RJR offers French levels 1-5, including AP (the only school in the district besides Career Center). Please e-mail Madame Matisko if you would like more information about our French program ().
Thanks to our Legacy Corporate Sponsors!
R.J. Reynolds is extremely grateful for the generous donations these corporate sponsors gave to this year’s Legacy Campaign. Please show them your support and thank them for supporting RJR!
This Week’s Schedule
Feb. 11 9th Grade Basketball vs. West Forsyth, 4:15
JV Girls/Boys Basketball at West Forsyth, 5:00/6:30
V Girls/Boys Basketball vs. West Forsyth, 6:00/7:30
Feb. 12 1st Day of Spring Sports Tryouts
Feb. 14 9th Grade Basketball at Reagan, 4:15
JV Girls/Boys Basketball vs. Reagan, 5:00/6:30
V Girls/Boys Basketball at Reagan, 6:00/7:30
Feb. 15 Baseball Scrimmage vs. Surry Central, 12:00
Spring Sports Tryouts will begin on February 12. Students must have a current physical to try out. Contact coaches for details about when and where tryouts will take place.
Demon Shop Sale
The Demon Shop is having a Valentine's Sale during the month of February. Short-sleeve T-shirts are $10; long-sleeve T-shirts are $12; and sweatpants are $15. Don’t forget that we can now take credit cards! The Demons Shop is open on Wednesdays and Fridays from 12 to 2 p.m. If you would like to volunteer, contact Melissa Workman at .