Bellringer Newsletter

Good morning. It's hard to believe, but this past Friday was the 100th day of school for our students. We are busy preparing for scheduling for the 2023-24 school year as well as a full slate of year end activities for our students. Please continue to check the Important Dates and Reminders section of the Bellringer Newsletter for a schedule of upcoming events. If you have any questions or concerns do not hesitate to contact me directly at everner@easthamptonct.org.

• February 15--EHHS Band and Choir Concert--6:30
• February 16--19--French Club Trip to Quebec
• February 17--No School EHHS--Professional Development
• February 20-21--February Recess--No School EHHS
• March 10--Professional Development--No School EHHS
• March 20--23--Senior Class Trip to Washington D.C.
• March 22---SAT School Day Testing (11th Grade Students)
• March 24--Early Dismissal--Professional Development
• March 29 + 30---EHHS Parent-Teacher Conferences
• March 31--April 2--Spring Musical--"The Adams Family"
• April 4--NGSS Testing (11th Grade Students)
• April 5--EHHS Music Department Cabaret
• April 7--Good Friday--No School---EHHS
• April 10---April 14---April Vacation
• April 20--Senior Capstone Expo
• April 26--NHS Induction Ceremony
• May 25--EHHS Academic Awards Ceremony (6:30)
• May 26--Senior Class Picnic---Lake Compounce
• May 26--Sophomore Class Trip--Holiday Hill
• May 29--Memorial Day--No School EHHS
• June 2---EHHS Junior-Senior Prom

Graduation for the Class of 2023 will be set by the Superintendent, EHHS Principal, and the Board of Education in early March.

Boys Varsity Basketball defeated H-K on the road 68-67, lost at The Morgan School 71-83 and lost at Valley Regional 51-64. Their current regular season record is 8-7. They are scheduled to play at home vs The Morgan School on Monday and at home vs Cromwell on Thursday.

Boys Junior Varsity Basketball defeated H-K on the road 57-38, lost at The Morgan School 53-65 and defeated Valley Regional on the road 48-39. Their current regular season record is 8-5. They are scheduled to play at home vs The Morgan School on Monday and at home vs Cromwell on Thursday.

Girls Varsity Basketball defeated H-K at home 47-23 and defeated Valley Regional at home 44-39. Their current regular season record is 15-1. They are scheduled to play at The Morgan School on Tuesday and at Cromwell on Friday.

Girl Junior Varsity Basketball was defeated by HK 38-52. Their current regular season record is 6-5. They are scheduled to play at The Morgan School on Tuesday and at Cromwell on Friday.

Boys Varsity Ice Hockey Co-Op defeated Sheehan at home 3-1 and defeated Lyman Hall on the road 2-1. Their current regular season record is 8-5-1. They are scheduled to skate at home vs Hand on Monday, at home vs Guilford on Wednesday and at Woodstock Academy on Saturday.

Girls Varsity Ice Hockey Co-Op was defeated by Simsbury on the road 1-2. Their current regular season record is 9-4-1. They are scheduled to skate at home vs Avon Co-Op on Monday, at Suffield Co-Op on Wednesday and at Wilton/Norwalk/McMahon on Friday.

The Boys and Girls Indoor Track Teams competed in the Shoreline Conference Championships in New Haven. The boys team finished 5th and the girls team finished 7th. They are scheduled to compete in the CIAC Class S State Championships on Thursday in New Haven.

The Cheerleading team competed in the Windsor Warriors Challenge on Saturday and placed 3rd. They are scheduled to compete in the Shoreline Conference Championship on Saturday at Westbrook High School.

All athletic schedules and results may be found at CIACSPORTS.com.

Congratulations to Emma Braga. Emma' sculpture received the Scholastic Silver Key Award. Her work will be displyed at the Silpe Gallery at the University of Hartford.

First Line Face-off

Freshmen and sophomore English classes added a little competitive spirit to library book selection day! In First Line Face-off, groups of students examined the opening pages of a variety of library books, ultimately selecting their favorite. Then, the groups “faced off” one-on-one to read their chosen lines aloud. The class voted, and the winner from each round advanced in the bracket until one first line earned the title of class champion. It was a fun way for students to evaluate how authors craft opening lines and how readers react to them while getting a chance to explore books they might not have picked up otherwise.

Course Selection!

School counselors will be guiding students in grades 9-11 in their course selections for the 2023/24 school year on Monday, February 6th, Tuesday, February 7th and Monday, February 13th. The course selection portal will be closed after each session, however, on Monday, February 13th the course selection portal will be opened for students and families to view course selections and make any desired changes. The course selection portal will be closed on Wednesday, March 1st. All desired course selection changes should be completed before the end of the school day. Please reach out to your students school counselor with questions.

Course Selection Override Information:

During course selection, students must select the course in which they were recommended for by their teacher. If students wish to take a level other than the one they were recommended for, they should see their school counselor for a Course Selection Override Form. The student must have a conversation with their teacher and obtain their signature. Parents must also sign the override form, and the form must then be returned to their school counselor. The priority deadline to complete the override form is March 15th. After that date, requests will be fulfilled on a space available basis.

Upcoming College Fair!

Xavier and Mercy are hosting a College Fair (at Xavier) on April 5th from 6pm-7:30pm. This is a great opportunity to begin exploring and learning about colleges! If you are thinking of attending a 4-year college, we encourage you to attend.

Learning Styles Inventory:

On February 1st and 2nd students in grades 9-12 completed a Learning Styles inventory on Naviance. This inventory identifies each student's learning style and gives suggestions for students to maximize their learning. Please view the following presentation to learn more about interpreting your student's results.

• https://drive.google.com/file/d/1kngzhpnxqJyJfqupK-qd3ePCDJKNv8aj/view?usp=sharing
  

The East Hampton Public Schools is proud to introduce School Based Health Centers in each of our schools. Soon, enrolled students will be able to receive behavioral health services during the school day. The School-Based Health Care (SBHC) staff are licensed health care providers, who are able to deliver behavioral health services to students during the school day. They work in conjunction with the student’s primary care providers to support their social, emotional, and behavioral health care needs. SBHC is proud to serve over 17,000 students throughout Connecticut.

EHHS Project Graduation need your help!!!!

We are looking for parents to help support our programming.

Next Meeting--February 1--6:30 in the EHHS LMC

ehhsctprojgrad@gmail.com

Please e-mail our group if you are interested in the following:

• Secretary – take notes at meetings. Send them out. Attend every meeting
• Treasurer – count. Mange spreadsheet of finances
• Social Media/website - promote group/events on Facebook and website
• Find corporate donations (work) -matching donations (United way)

The East Hampton Arts & Culture Commission is accepting applications from East Hampton High School Juniors and Seniors for $200 grants to support an annual East Hampton High School Capstone Project. The grant will help support two student's proposed Capstone Project, a multifaceted assignment that serves as a culminating academic and intellectual experience for students. Capstone projects may take a wide variety of forms including a long-term investigative project that culminates in a final product, presentation, or performance.

Applicants for the EHACC Capstone Grant will be invited to present his/her Capstone Project idea to commission members during an agreed upon commission meeting. Deadline to apply is Feb. 1.

Applications are available at www.artsforeasthamptonct.org and can be submitted to arts@easthamtponct.org or can be mailed/dropped off at the town manager's office at the East Hampton Town Hall, 1 Community Drive, East Hampton, CT 06424.

During student drop-off in the moring and pick-up in the afternoon, please refrain from using the Bus Lane. At these times (7:00--7:25 and 2:00--2:25) cars are not allowed in the Bus Lane as vehicles block the busses and present a safety hazard to students. Thank you in advance for your cooperation in keeping our students safe.

Please review the EHHS Attendance Policy and Student Handbook as they contain important information.

Per the East Hampton Board of Education’s Attendance Policy and Connecticut statute, parents and guardians may only approve the first 9 absences of the school year with a parent note. Absences 10 and above can only be excused with further documentation and under specific circumstances.

In addition, if a student has four unexcused absences in one month or 10 unexcused absences in a year they are classified as truant. If a child misses 18 or more days in a school year – excused or unexcused absences – the student is classified as chronically absent.

Access to the East Hampton attendance policy is available HERE

It is also necessary for a student to be present at least half of the school day for the student to be recorded as present. When a student arrives after the mid-day point or leaves before it, the day cannot be counted for that student. Building principals will share the specific times in their communications with families.

A student is considered to be “in attendance” if present at his/her assigned school, or an activity.

sponsored by the school (e.g., field trip), for at least half of the regular school day.

At East Hampton High School, half of the regular school day arrives at 10:55 a.m. This means that if a student arrives after 10:55, even with a note, the student will be marked Tardy Absent. If a student dismisses prior to 10:55 and does not return to school, the student will be marked Early Dismissal Absent. Please contact the school with any questions regarding our attendance policies.

To increase the ease of reporting an absence and documenting parent approval of the absence for a student’s first 9 absences, the East Hampton Public Schools has created email addresses that parents can use to contact their student’s school and report an absence. Effectively immediately, the following email addresses can be used by parents to report and document their approval of an absence:

EHHS_Attendance@easthamptonct.org

If you have successfully emailed the school, you will receive an autoreply that notifies you that the absence communication has been received and recorded. This process is effective for your student’s first 9 absences. After your student has more than 9 absences, additional documentation or communication will be required to excuse the absence. Please use the email to continue to notify the school that your child will not attend. You may call your child’s school at any time to report an absence, as well.

Students, parents, and community members will have access to an anonymous tip line on the front page of the school district website to report self-concerns, mental health concerns of a friend, or concerns of violence. Please view the front page of the website at https://www.easthamptonps.org

We are excited to launch our new Bellringer Sideline Store! The store is available 24/7 and ships directly to you!!!

Please see the link below to grab your Bellringer gear

https://sideline.bsnsports.com/schools/connecticut/easthampton/east-hampton-high-school

Students who are being dismissed due to illness, MUST FIRST see the School Nurse. Additionally, we ask that parents familiarize themselves with our attendance policy which is in the EHHS Student Handbook. Some of the main policies/procedures that we are mut be followed are listed below:

• EARLY DISMISSALS: A written request (no phone calls) from a parent or guardian must be presented to the main office before school begins so student may obtain an early dismissal slip. Students will wait in the main office for their parent/guardian to call the office and we will send your child out to meet you after they sign-out.
• NURSE DISMISSALS: In case of illness during school, dismissal will be arranged through the school nurse, or in her absence, through the office. Students feeling ill should report directly to the nurse's office. Students should not be texting or calling home when not feeling well.

Please note that having a parent’s written request before the start of the day allows the students name to appear on the Daily Attendance sheet so their teachers will be aware that they may not be in class on that day. This also eliminates the office staff from calling in and disrupting a classroom to dismiss the student. We do realize that there may be occasions when you may need to unexpectedly pick your child up early. In those cases we will call the student down when the parent/guardian arrives to the school.

Students that are dismissed from school will not be allowed to return without appropriate documentation from their visit/provider. In the event that doucmentation is not available, a parent will be required to sign their student into the main office upon return.

1. Dropping off on items--the table to drop off items for students has been moved inside the first set of doors. Parents will be able to drop items of for students, but will no longer be admitted to the main lobby.
2. Appointments--for security reasons, parents and visitors who are requesting to meet with a teacher or administration should call in advance to ensure that the requested party is available to meet rather than show up unannounced.
3. Effective immediately, there is an anonymous tip line to enhance a safe environment in our schools. Students, parents, and community members have access to the front page of the website to report self-concerns, mental health concerns of a friend, or concerns of violence. https://www.easthamptonps.org/

The East Hampton Board of Education is committed to a safe and secure learning environment that honors and celebrates the diversity of our students, our community, and our nation. The Board of Education in partnership with the school community will not tolerate any threat of violence in the schools or any hate speech that targets any race, religion, sexual orientation, or disability. Each student is held to the highest standards of responsible decision making within a culture that is expected to foster compassion, caring, and empathy.

As a reminder to members of our school community, Board Policy #5145.122 allows the schools to work with the East Hampton Police Department to protect the health and safety of students and staff by conducting sweeps of school property by trained sniffing dogs. Please review the policy and procedures below. Our goal is to ensure that the East Hampton Schools are free of illegal substances. Annually, we provide notice of this policy to our school community. Should a sweep be conducted, parents and the Board of Education will be notified upon completion.

Use of Dogs to Sweep School Property

The Board permits the administration to invite law enforcement agencies to sweep school property with dogs trained for the purpose of detecting the presence of illegal substances, when necessary to protect the health and safety of students, employees or property or to detect the presence of illegal substances or contraband, including alcohol and/or drugs. The use of trained canine sniffing dogs and their associated law enforcement personnel is for the purpose of “alerting” on property only, and is subject to the following:

1. Parents and students shall be notified of this policy through its inclusion in the student/ parent handbook and the Superintendent and Principal or their designees, shall explain the policies and procedures followed in sweeps and searches to students and staff on an annual basis. Once notification has been given to parents and students through the handbook and assembly respectively, the school district will have met its obligation to advertise the sweep and search policy and associated procedure. Additional notices need not be given and actual times or dates of planned sweeps need not be released in advance.

2. The Superintendent or designee shall authorize the sweep. Immediately prior to the sweep, an announcement will be made for students and staff to ‘stay put’ in their classrooms while the sweep is taking place. Representatives from school administration shall accompany dogs and handlers while on school premises.

3. The Board shall be informed by the Superintendent of Schools that a sweep has taken place.

4. Parents shall be informed through the school’s mass communication system by the Superintendent of Schools that a sweep has taken place.

5. All school property which students have access to during the day, such as lockers, classrooms, parking areas and storage areas may be swept.

6. Individuals shall not be subjected to a search by dogs.

a. Dogs shall not be used in rooms occupied by persons except for demonstration purposes. The handler and representative from school administration will always be present with the dogs

b. When used for demonstration purposes, the dog may not sniff any student and/or staff.

7. Only the dog’s official handler will determine what constitutes an alert by the dog. If the dog alerts on a particular item or place, that locker or vehicle will be identified for later search. Upon completion of the sweep, the school administration will then search the identified property in the presence of a witness.

8. Searches that disclose evidence of misconduct shall result in disciplinary consequences in accordance with Board policy and may also result in referral to law enforcement agencies.

Legal Reference: Connecticut General Statutes

Policy adopted: March 15, 2016

10-221 Boards of education to prescribe rules.

New Jersey v T.L.O., 53 U.S.L.W. 4083 (1985)

54-33n Search of school lockers and property

The school community of East Hampton is committed to the mission of honoring and celebrating the diversity of our students, our community, and our nation. We strive to guide our students to conscious, deliberate, individual and collective actions that cultivate the respect of all races, religions, and social backgrounds. Our school community endeavors to produce graduates who are equipped with a greater understanding of the concepts of diversity, equity, and inclusion.

The East Hampton Board of Education, in compliance with federal and state law, affirms its policy of equal educational opportunity for all students and equal employment opportunity for all persons. It is the policy of the District to promote nondiscrimination and an environment free of harassment regardless of an individual’s race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, national origin, ancestry, disability (including but not limited to, intellectual disability, past or present history of mental disorder, physical disability, or learning disability), genetic information, marital status, or age or because of the race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, national origin, ancestry, disability, genetic information, marital status, or age of any persons with whom the individual associates. The District shall provide to all students without discrimination, course offerings, counseling, assistance, employment, athletics, and extracurricular activities. The District shall provide equal access to the Boy Scouts and other designated youth groups. The District shall make reasonable accommodations for identified physical and mental impairments that constitute disabilities, consistent with federal and state statutes and regulations.

Email: everner@easthamptonct.org
Website: www.easthamptonps.org
Location: 15 North Maple Street, East Hampton, CT, USA
Phone: 860-365-4030
Twitter: @EH_CTPrincipal