Husky Highlights
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COMING THIS WEEK |
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SCHOOL NEWS
New! Support Your Local String Players. The Seventh Grade Orchestra will perform at the district Large Group Performance Evaluation on Tuesday, March 9. The performance takes place at Dickerson Middle School at 7:50 PM. Come out and support the orchestra and hear some great music!
Band on the Move. The 8th grade band will be going to a national convention in Indiana March 4 thru 7. One of the pieces they will perform at the convention, "Ginger Marmalade," was written by the well-known contemporary composer Warren Benson, the grandfather of HTMS 8th grade clarinetist Danielle Allers. Good Luck to the Band from HTMS PTSA!
Wanted: Artists. Attention parents and community: Hightower Trail is looking for visual or performance artists to volunteer and share their skills at this year's annual Night of the Arts celebration on Thusday, April 22. We want the experience to be interactive for the students, parents and community who will be in attendance . . . what a great way to get yourself out there! Please contact Judy Condon for more information at judith.condon@cobbk12.org
New! Haiti Relief Update. During the last two weeks in January, Hightower Trail joined with several area churches, Wal-Mart and the Home Depot in a Haiti Relief Effort. Hightower Trail was the receiving center for donations to the effort. Not just one Walmart truck, but two were filled and traveled to Miami. Royal Carribean Cruise Lines transported the 41 pallets of cargo from there to Labadee, Haiti. An article with pictures is on the front page of the school website http://www.cobbk12.org/HightowerTrail/ (click on the pictures to enlarge them).
Georgia Natural Gas - TrueBlue Schools Program. Hightower Trail MS can make up to $100.00 a year from our parents and staff that are or thinking of becoming Georgia Natural Gas customers. It is really easy! For each new customer, GNG will give our school a $40.00 donation upon enrollment and then $5.00 for each month the participant remains an active GNG customer. This equals $100.00 per HTMS GNG customer per year. They will also reward HTMS $5.00 per month for current loyal GNG customers that select our school to benefit from the TrueBlue Program. So, please contact Georgia Natural Gas today and tell then that you are a Hightower Trail Husky and our school can start earning the big bucks
Search AR Tests--Free Trial. Hightower has started a 30-day trial of QuizList Interactive, a program which allows students to search our database of AR tests by title, author, subject, lexiles, and AR book levels. They can search in all tests we own or they can search in just the tests for which our Media Center has the book. There is a link on our web page. We are thinking of purchasing this program and would love to hear input from students and parents. Email pam.sheridan@cobbk12.org
Registration Now Open for Middle School Courses with Georgia Virtual School. Georgia Virtual School (GAVS), part of the Georgia Department of Education, offers fully accredited online courses taught by certified teachers. All courses follow Georgia performance standards. Middle school courses are offered in science, math, language arts, and electives like health care science and career management. To register, go to http://gavirtualschool.org/. You will need your childÕs GTID (Georgia Testing Identifier) number. If you do not know it, contact your childÕs school counselor. Questions? Contact paula.galland@doe.k12.ga.us.
PTSA NEWS
New! Legislation & Advocacy. While the revenue numbers from existing sources of revenue are down, GA PTA is asking legislators to consider possible new sources of revenue to address the shortfall. Call your legislators today and ask them to support the passage of HB 39. Your legislators are shown at the end of this email. If they are not listed, go to the Grassroots section of Capitol Watch and update your profile with your address information.
HB 39: Increases the tax on cigarettes by $1. There is a dual benefit to this bill: first, studies show that as the cost of cigarettes rise, consumption decreases thereby improving public health and, second, even with reduced consumption, estimated revenue earned would be $354 M. The budget needs every dollar it can get.
Got Pictures? Attention parents & staff . . . if you have any pictures from any school events over the course of this school year please email them to Ann Dominguez, our scrapbook chair, at amd2612@bellsouth.net or put them in one of the Co-PTSA Presidents' boxes in the teachers lounge. This will help us create our fabulous scrapbook for this past exciting school year! Thank you for your help!
PTA Takes Action - Advocating for Every Child. The Georgia PTA Legislative Update is now available to view on our PTSA website: http://www.hightowertrailptsa.org/ Please contact your local representative and take action to advocate.
The PTSA Nominating Committee is currently accepting nominations for the following positions to serve on the PTSA Executive Board for the Õ10-'11 school year: two Co-Presidents, two Vice Presidents, Treasurer, Recording Secretary, and Corresponding Secretary. If you or anyone you know might be interested in one of these positions, please contact Maria Bowie, 770-992-3170 or wemabral@comcast.net. If you have questions about any of these positions, please feel free to contact any of the current Executive Board (names and numbers listed in the Hightower Trail Calendar and on the PTSA website at www.hightowertrailptsa.org).
Uniform Survey Results. Thanks to all the parents who voted on www.surveymonkey.com. during the last few weeks concerning school uniforms. Your PTSA thought the results were interesting at 59% for school uniforms and 41% against. Needless to say, nothing will be done at this point, but thought you would like to know.
Box Tops and Campbell Soup Labels. Keep clipping those Box Tops for Education. Every one counts and is total profit for our school. You can also shop the Marketplace online for all sorts of items, stores include Aeropostale, Justice, Kohl's, The Gap, Old Navy, Banana Republic, Lands End, Wal-Mart, Target, Under Armour, UGG Australia and many more. For Valentines Day there is also Victoria Secret, 1-800 Flowers, Red Envelope and Origins. So much to choice from. Just remember when shopping online our school can get a portion of your purchase. Box Tops 4 Education even has a place to print out coupons for your use on grocery items Ðready to print . ItÕs so easy. Bookmark in your favorites: www.boxtops4education.com
Publix School Cards. DonÕt forget to swipe those school cards every time you check out at Publix. We actually get 1/2 percent of your total purchase. Please remember you can pick one up on the inside of Publix on Shallowford Road at the customer service counter.
FOUNDATION NEWS
Husky Hut Hours: Tuesday through Friday 8:30-9:10 AM
Spiritwear Days are the 2nd and 4th Friday of the month
GUIDANCE NEWS
New! Counselors Suite Looking for Makeover. Spring cleaning? Are you remodeling? We are looking for very gently used furniture to update the Counselors Suite. Specifically: 4 comfortable lobby or office style chairs, 2 end tables, 1 coffee table 1 or 2 table lamps, a floor lamp and a 5 x 7 rug. Our color scheme: burgundy/cranberry, hunter green, navy and cream/beige/khaki. If you know of any business offices that may be closing and have furniture or of any household furniture that may be suitable, please contact Windsor McFadden at 770.578.7228 or windsor.mcfadden@cobbk12.org We hope to complete this project this spring!
The Last Notebook Busters Meeting of the year is March 31 for all students who wish to come and organize their notebooks and lockers. A counselor will pick you up in the theater at 8:20 am.
The Last Coffee with the Counselors is March 10 in the large conference room at 8:30. Mark your calendars to come by and chat with a counselor about anything you want over coffee and light refreshments.
Eight Grade Counselor's Corner. Mrs. Reichenbach, the eighth grade counselor, would like to call the attention of all eighth-grade students and parents to the following important dates:
March 8 at 7:00 PM at Pope Parent Curriculum meeting with Department Chairs.
March 11 from 8:30-3:30 at Hightower, Pope counselors will meet with parents about specific questions by appointment only. Call (770) 578-7228 to set up an appointmentMarch 12 students' schedules are due back to their homeroom teachers
All other students will be registered by Mrs. Reichenbach. Campbell H.S., this week. Osborne H.S., March 5. Other schools as received. Please let Mrs. Reichenbach know if you have moved into another school district so she can help you get registered.
Tennis Anyone? Hightower Trail USTA registration begins March 1. This program is a coed league in which 6th, 7th, and 8th grade students represent their schools and compete against other schools within their community. The focus is on participation and sportsmanship. ALL skill levels are welcome!. Register online at http://www.eteamz.com/middleschooltennis/ or contact Kim Griffin at hightower_tennis@yahoo.com
New! Teen Job Fair. Saturday, March 6, 11 AM to 1 PM at the Mountain View Community Center.
New! The Cobb Schools Foundation has once again worked to secure $15 tickets to outstanding arts performances for our students, teachers and families! Ticket order forms can be found at www.cobbschoolsfoundation.org . Our Spring offerings include:
African Children's Choir - March 8 at 7 PM @ Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre
Aida, presented by The Atlanta Opera - March 5 at 8 PM @ Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre
Carousel, presented by the Cobb Symphony Orchestra & Chorus - March 13 at 8 PM & March 14 at 3PM @ Murray Arts Center
Pope Cheerleading. The informational meetings for rising 9th graders will be held on March 8-9 at Pope, and cheerleading tryouts are March 29-April 1. For more information, contact Ashley Cochran at ashley.cochran@cobbk12.org
Pope Junior Cheer. An information meeting for rising 6th, 7th, and 8th graders from the Pope district who are interested in middle school cheerleading will be held Wednesday, March 10 at 7:00 PM at the Pope High School Media Center. Come learn about the tryout process for 2010 - 2011 season, and pick up a tryout packet. Pope junior cheerleading cheers for football and basketball, and fields a competition team. For more information, visit: http://popejrcheer.com
New! Electronics Recycling and ÒOn-SiteÓ Document Shredding will take place (rain or shine) in the Pope High School parking lot from 9:00-4:00 on Saturday, March 13, as a fundraiser for the Pope Band. Shredding is $5 per standard-sized file storage box (10 x 12 x 24 inches). TVs can be dropped off for $5 each. Minimum donation is $10. To ask questions, or to schedule a pickup of electronics at your home or business ($15 charge), please contact Brad Roberts 770-565-1194 (nilesrob@gmail.com)
YMCA Middle School Nights. The Northeast Cobb YMCA will be holding Middle School Nights on March 27, and April 24 (Saturdays) from 8-11 PM. Events include a free throw tournament, a dodgeball tournament, and a kickball tournament. Admission is $5 for members and $10 for everyone else; you can register online or at the Welcome Desk, or pay at the door. The Northeast Cobb YMCA is located at 3010 Johnson Ferry Road, next to Wal-Mart.
The East Cobb PTA Needs Officers. It is that time of year again...time to find officers to lead our wonderful council! ECCC PTA is currently looking for candidates for officer positions for the 2010-2011 school year. We would love to have all the clusters in our council represented in our leadership, so consider stepping up. If you would like to nominate yourself or someone you know, please complete the form attached and send your reply directly to the ECCC PTA Nominating Committee chair, Cindy Brown at treasurer@ecccpta.org. She can also be contacted at 770-984-9015. Thanks
Stand Up & Be Counted: Participate in the Census. Every year, the federal government can allocate awards of more than $400 billion to states and communities based, in part, on census data. Census data affect school budgets, including the distribution of Title I funding and college tuition grant and loan programs. Community planners use census data to determine where to build new schools, develop public transportation and create new roads. Census data affect your voice in Congress as well as the redistricting of state legislatures, county and city councils and voting districts. For more information http://2010.census.gov/2010census/why/index.php .
Husky Highlights is a weekly e-publication of the Hightower Trail Middle School PTSA, designed to keep you up-to-date on all the exciting activities happening at Hightower. It appears in subscribersÕ email boxes each Thursday.
Subscribe at: http://www.hightowertrailptsa.org
Submissions to: highlights@hightowertrailptsa.org [deadline 6 PM Tuesday]
Highlights Editor: A. Bowdoin (ÒBowÓ) Van Riper highlights@hightowertrailptsa.org
PTSA Co-Presidents: Susan Welborn and Beth Russell htmsptsa@hightowertrailptsa.org