2025 Graduates

Seniors- If you are interested in doing a speech for Graduation, now is the time to start planning. Signup is now open and auditions will take place after spring break.

Hello seniors,

There will be an informational scholarship meeting for all seniors on Wednesday, February 5 from 10:33 to 11:01 all seniors will be called down to meet in the auditorium. We will go over the local scholarship process and students will be given step by step instructions. Local Scholarships will be available to senior students online at the RHS Student Services homepage website beginning Wednesday, February 5, 2025. All applications must be handed in directly to Mrs. Ketter in the RHS Student Services Office by 3:30 PM on Monday, March 3, 2025. Late applications will not be accepted.

An area that could help ease your application process would be to apply for your FAFSA (Federal Student Aid) ahead of time. This is not required but is needed in order to be eligible for those scholarships that consider student financial need. The FAFSA application may take some time to complete so getting a jump start on this would be beneficial. I have provided the link below to help get you started:

https://studentaid.gov/h/apply-for-aid/fafsa

Best wishes,

Mr. Dornfeld & Mrs. Ketter

Students - Fill Out Google Form with your Diploma Name sent by Mrs. Beran

• Watch for this email Mid-December

Order Cap and Gown

• January 15, 2025 - 11:00AM-1:00PM in lunch room

Pick up Cap and Gown May 12th during lunch with Mrs. Beran

• If you can't make it then, just stop in when you can after May 13th

Pay School Fees - Due May 23rd

• Start College Now Fees will be added if needed once the course is completed.

Pay Lunch Balance - Due May 23rd

Return Locker Keys - or pay for replacement if lost

Return Chromebook

Return Library Books

Pick up Yearbook

Hello Seniors,

Upcoming local scholarship process which will begin on February 5.

A requirement of applying for the local scholarships is that the applicant must plan to attend an accredited college/university during the 2024-2025 school year. Also, the student plans to pursue a certificate program or two- four year college degree and be accepted to a college at the time of handing in the application. This can take some time so you may want to get a head start on applying early.

Also, something to think about that may be needed for applying to colleges is FAFSA (Free Application for Free Student Aid). While it is not required to apply for your FAFSA in order to attend a post secondary school, many colleges require it in order to be considered for scholarships, and it is required to be considered for student loans and grants. Rhinelander Local Scholarships that list financial need as their criteria, will require the FAFSA to be completed in order to be eligible for their scholarship. FAFSA application window will open in December 2023 - please continue to check your email for updates on FAFSA application status.

Link to FAFSA

If you have any questions regarding scholarships, please reach out to Mrs.Ketter.

Dear RHS Seniors and Families,

The afternoon of June 1st will be the graduation ceremony. This newsletter contains information to help you prepare for this important event. If you have questions that are not covered in this newsletter please contact my office.

Seniors, now is the time to dig deep and find the strength to finish strong and finish well. I am proud of all of you and look forward to congratulating you on June 1st.

Shane Dornfeld

RHS Principal

Graduation Rehearsal - mandatory for those participating in the Graduation Ceremony Friday, May 30th, 9:00 a.m. at the Hodag Dome. Please be there by 8:50a.m. You do not need to bring your cap/gown/tassel to rehearsal BUT you do need them right after!

Elementary School Tours

Wear cap and gowns and tassels for Elementary Tours!

Our graduates are excited looking at their future and it is important for them to pause and look back where their education started. It is equally important for the teachers to see former students at the end of their high school educational career. There will be buses available to transport seniors to the elementary schools. Seniors who do not want to go to the elementary schools, can leave following rehearsal.

Graduation Ceremony

Sunday June 1st 2:00p.m. at the Hodag Dome doors will open around 12:30p.m.

Seniors should meet by 1:15p.m., inside the Dome, by the tennis courts to begin lining up. Please be there with your cap, gowns, and tassel. Seniors, please park at the highschool to leave closer parking for your guests.

Graduation Pictures

Graduates will be photographed by a professional photographer as they receive their diplomas. Proofs can be viewed online on Bob Mainhardt Photography's website.

No Graduation Tickets Needed

No Tickets needed! We are not limiting the number of family members for the 2025 Graduation Ceremony. Please note, there is limited number of seating provided in the dome so we encourage you to bring a lawn chair to set up in the designated rows.

The live, in-person, ceremony will be live streamed on hodagtv.com so family members who are not able to attend in person can still view the ceremony live.

Ceremony Location

The graduation ceremony is scheduled to be held at the Hodag Dome.

No spiked heeled shoes - flats, wedges and block heels are acceptable footwear on the turf.

Camp Chairs are encouraged.

No Food allowed in the Hodag Dome

Water is the only beverage allowed in the Hodag Dome.

Caps and Gowns

Wearing the cap and gown is a tradition that represents a common level of achievement and personal worth regardless of the individual differences between people. They are a symbol of academic achievement and has managed to survive over the years and continues here at Rhinelander High School.

All students who choose to participate in the Rhinelander High School Graduation Ceremony are required to wear a cap and gown. Neither the cap or gown may be decorated with slogans, personal items, and/or symbols.

Students should arrive for graduation carrying their cap and gown and use the entrances as instructed at graduation practice.

Diplomas

Graduates are presented a diploma cover during the ceremony. Diploma certificates will be handed out during rehearsal. If you will not be participating in the Graduation Ceremony, you can make arrangements with the office to pick it up after June 3rd at RHS.

Parking

Parking will be limited to James Williams Middle School. Rhinelander High School, and the Dome parking lot. No parking or vehicles will be allowed on the quarter mile road between the middle school and high school.

Entrance

Students and guests will enter through the main Entrance of the Dome.

Parents- We need your help!

Please communicate with your senior that the graduation ceremony is one of the times to show dignity and respect. Those students not willing to cooperate with this request do not have to attend and will be removed from the ceremony. Help us make this occasion one of honor and distinction for students, parents and Rhinelander High School.

School Board Policy P 5459 states that … a student must have met all requirements for graduation in order to participate in graduation exercises, and also that … he/she does not have any outstanding fees, fines, and/or behavioral/disciplinary consequences remaining to be satisfied. Please make sure your senior student checks to see that their obligations are met. All outstanding fees, including food service, must be paid by May 24, 3:30p.m., for seniors to participate in the graduation ceremony. Payments after May 12th must be paid with money order or cash. Personal checks will not be accepted after that date. If there are any questions, please call the high school office.

Class of 2025,

If you are planning to attend a post-secondary school in the fall, the school will require your final transcript to complete your enrollment and sometimes to allow you to sign up for your classes. Please keep in mind that it will be your responsibility to order your final transcript through your Parchment account. This process can be done now so you will not have to worry about it this summer. RHS will hold the transcript request until all of the second semester grades are posted to your transcript and then will release your order (usually by mid June). Click on the link to order your transcript, and follow the directions on the attachment below “Hold for Grades.”

Parchment - RHS

If you do not have a Parchment account set up, please contact Mrs. Ketter in Student Services and she will be more than happy to help you. This can also be used for military and employment purposes.

Best Wishes!

You CAN NOT participate in the Graduation Ceremony if you have any remaining School Fees or a Lunch balance.

More Information Coming Soon