BHS Bucks Principal's Update

We are rounding the corner and sliding into home! Spring sports are here and we are on the home stretch for this school year. It is important to remind all students to finish strong, continue to work, and don't give up.

Students in grades 9-12 who need to make up credits from previous classes should look at registering for summer school classes. We are able to offer them free this year with the help of some grant funds. Students in 8th grade who have failed 3 or more core classes in a semester will need to take summer school to help build skills to prepare them for high school. Taking summer school does not ensure a student will be promeoted to the next level; student effort and skills building will determine that. Summer school information can be found on our school website. 9-12 grade registration form can be found by CLICKING HERE or by visiting the counseling office. A student contract will be signed before classes will be assigned.

Michigan College Access Network announced the latest cohort of Year 2 Reach Higher high schools. Since 2015, MCAN has provided funding for high schools to improve college access through the Reach Higher High School grant program. This year, MCAN awarded 10 schools into the second year of the Reach Higher Grant program. BHS completed the first year of the Reach Higher High School grant program in December. BHS will receive $5,000 to improve and strengthen our postsecondary advisory council, build College Bound Michigan initiatives, collaborate on sustainable action plans, analyze postsecondary outcomes data and develop plans to sustain this work in our community.

HIGH SCHOOL

Due to the large amount of course failures, Buchanan High School will once again offer summer school for students who need to recover credits due to failed courses over the year. This is a great opportunity for students to keep the pace and earn credits to be able to graduate with their class. The district has applied for grant funds to help pay for this cost. Courses will be online using the Edmentum platform. All courses will be made available free of charge.

8th GRADE

We will offer an in-person 8th grade summer school that will focus on English and Math. Any student who has failed three or more semester courses in a core area will be retained. Students who failed a class during the first or second semester of 8th grade are strongly encouraged to attend.

Last month students were given a preliminary schedule survey. This is the first step in the process for creating a schedule for next year. Students choose courses that interest them that they would like to be scheduled for. Once these have been completed, our staff looks at the number of students requesting courses and we decide which of those has the most students interested. Those that only have a few interested students do not get put on the final schedule. Once this second step has been completed, our staff takes the students first and second preferences for courses and begins the scheduling process. Student will know their tentative schedule before we leave for summer break. During the summer, many scenarios can happen with staffing that would prevent us from running some courses. In that case, student schedules are redone. Those changes will be made available in PowerSchool in August. An instant alert will be sent out to have students check thier schedules in PowerSchool before the start of school in the fall.

Malayna Craig, a freshman in Basic Art, is our artist spotlight for the month. Malayna enjoys drawing realistically and is especially talented in portraiture.

Over the course of theyear each student has participated in collecting and analyzing data to form conclusions about the health of the McCoy Creek. We have this data spanning the last 9 school years. Over that time the stream has improved!

Students at the table below are identifyiing macroinvertebrates that live in the stream The type of macroinvertebrates indicate stream health. Students at the bridge are conducting habitat analysis by collecting data about the physical charateristics of the stream.

Congratultions to Lexi Herrman on her State Championship win in the Greenhand Conduct of Meetings category! Lexi is a member of the Future Farmers of America youth organization that prepared members for leadership, personal growth, and career success through agricultural education.

We have some good news from the Art Dept this morning. We received the list of winner's for the Buchanan Youth Art Exhibition today. If you see Jordan Bauer and Tyler Balam give them a shout out for winning Special Merit awards for their artwork in the exhibition. They are two very deserving students for this award as they work every second in art class for every day that they are here. Great kids and talented artists.

Another round of students were inducted into the National Honor Society last month. Congratulations to all of the new inductees. We are proud of your successes and look forward to your leadership in our school!

Congratualtions to the foloowing seniors for being named an Outstanding CTE Student for the 20200-2021 school year! These students have gone above and beyond in their CTE courses! Congratulatioins Bucks! (To read the full article and see pictures, please visist this link.)

Ethan Valentine

Hailey Jonatzke

Jordan Bauer

Dwayne Ridgeway

Austin Sebasty

Our prom has been rescheduled for May 15th from 7-9. Buchanan High School JUNIORS AND SENIORS only will be allowed to attend. No guests. Tickets may be purchased from Mr. Wegener or Mrs. Cantu for $15.00. Students must be academically eligible to attend. Masks must be worn and students will practice social distancing. Anyone who has tested positive, is in quarantine or has symptoms will not be able to participate.

Any student who is looking for a summer job can check out their student homepage for a listing of job opportunities.

If you have a job that needs workers, please email Mrs. Cantu at acantu@buchananschools.com and send her a copy of your job description or flyer. We would be happy to post the position for you on our job board.

May 23 - Baccalaurreate

May 28 - Senior Last day of school, all work must be completed

May 31 - No School: MEMORIAL DAY

June 3 - Senior Drive-thru and dinner

June 11 - Commencement

June 15 - Half Day (exams 1-3)

June 16 - Half Day (exams 4-6), Last day of school

June 21 - Summer School begins

July 5 - No Summer School sessions

August 13 - Summer school ends, all work must be completed

At Buchanan High School, we strive to prepare students for life outside of the academic setting. We are always looking for partnerships within our community to bring real world life experiences to our students. Please reach out to us if you have an idea you'd like to discuss to help our students become successful.

If you call our office, our phone menu has changed, please listen carefully to the new option. Please check out our new Facebook page and like us!

Email: sdemaio@buchananschools.com
Website: www.buchananschools.com
Location: 401 West Chicago Street, Buchanan, MI, USA
Phone: (269) 695-8403
Facebook: facebook.com/BuchananHSBucks
Twitter: @BHS_Bucks