11/21/16 PTSA E-Blast

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KEY DATES (complete calendar at ptsa.westfieldhs.org):

11/22 – Academic Letter Ceremony

11/23 – 2 Hour Early Dismissal

11/24-25 – Thanksgiving Holiday

11/26 - Football Regional Semi-Finals, 1:30 at Madison HS

11/29 – Partners for Safe Teen Driving, Doors close at 7 pm

12/3 – BITS Tutoring returns

12/6 – Pie and Punch for teachers/staff (Donations requested)

 Here are several updates from around the school:

1. Pie and Punch Dessert Hour for Teachers and Staff:  The PTSA is sponsoring the 2^nd annual Pie and Punch Dessert Hour for all WHS teachers and staff members on Tuesday, December 6^th! Donations of a variety of desserts have been requested. To see what is needed and to sign up, please click here. If you have questions, please contact Jennie Joiner at hospitality@westfieldhs.org  Thank you!
2. “A” Raffle:  Last week, the PTSA sponsored a raffle that recognized students who earned an “A” during 1^st quarter. Congratulations to the winners of the gift card drawings!  Chick-fil-A: Grace S., Kenya B., and Aleena F.; Starbucks: Devina B., Luis T., and Sabeeka K.; Sweet Frog: Thomas N., Emma G., and Sam L.; Game Stop: Will M., Casey H., Colin B.; and Sunoco: Shreya M.   Thanks to the parent volunteers who made this possible! Andrea Jacobs, Kristi Finn, Mary and Scott Rubens, Renee Ohanian, Lisa Zimmerman, Nancy Loebl, Marcia Pokrant, Liz Knabe, Kristin Robinson, Nitsa Woodward, Carol Engelbrecht, Mindy Conway, Lois Hale, Donna Dayhoff, and Tricia Monroe.
3. Honor Roll:  Congratulations to all students who earned a 3.3 GPA or higher and earned a spot on the honor roll! Magnets were given to students who requested them during the “A” Raffle last week. A complete list will be posted outside the main office in the near future. Congratulations and keep up the good work!
4. Kids in Crisis Gift Card Collection:  It is the time of year when requests to help individual WHS students and families in need increase greatly. The Kids In Crisis program helps counselors give baskets at the holidays. If you are able, please consider donating a gift card or two. Please keep the balances on the cards to $25 or less from stores such as Wal-Mart, Shoppers, Giant, and Target. Many of our students do not have access to cars and walk to the closest stores. Please send any donation to the main office to the attention of Meg Crossett. Thank you for supporting the Westfield community.
5. WeStep Community Sponsors Needed Please: Westfield High School is looking for business partnerships to participate in our WeStep Internship Program from Thursday, May 25^th through Friday, June 9^th. All interns meet high qualifications including a review of grades, attendance, and discipline records. You would have an intern for a minimum of 60 hours in your organization. We seek both paid and unpaid internships in a wide range of fields. The program was such a success last year that over 36 of our seniors were offered summer employment! Please contact Patricia Lee at pylee@fcps.edu for additional information on the program and how we can help you find an intern(s). Your collaboration is an important phase of the education of our seniors and we look forward to working with you.
6. Library Volunteers Needed:  The WHS library seeks volunteers!  Please email Mrs. Lesser at jtlesser@fcps.edu and/or Mrs. Koenig at amkoenig@fcps.edu with questions and to volunteer! Please include your availability when you send your message. Thanks!
7. BITS Tutoring has returned!  BITS tutoring for 2016-2017 has started!  BITS runs up to 3 Saturday mornings per month. Student tutors are needed and earn service hours for their time! To be eligible for tutoring, students must attend Westfield or any of the schools that feed to Westfield (elementary and middle). For information and to see the required forms, click here   Everyone must arrive on time. No late arrivals will be admitted.

8. Academic Letter Ceremony: Students who finished the 2015-2016 school year with a 4.0 GPA or higher will be recognized at the Academic Letter Ceremony on Tuesday, November 22^nd. Invitations for qualifying students were sent to the address on record. Congratulations to all who earned the Academic Letter!
9. Turbo-Tutoring: ACT and SAT prep classes will resume in the new year and spots are already filling up. Students can reserve spots now and pay later. To see the calendar and to register, click here or see the flier attached at the bottom of the eblast.
10. News You Can Use: If you haven’t already done so, please consider registering to receive PTSA updates through the FCPS News You Can Use program. It’s a bit cumbersome to register but this is the main way the PTSA will be able to send messages (other than the eblasts and Facebook).  To register: Go to FCPS.edu; Scroll to the bottom then click on the mustard yellow banner “Stay Updated with What’s Happening at FCPS with News You Can Choose; Click the “Sign Up Now box; Enter your email address and click “submit”; Find the button for “High Schools” and select “Westfield”; Choose first line “News and Announcements” then choose second line “PTSA” and click submit. You will see a green banner with a check mark and “Subscriptions Updated”.  While in the system, you can opt for other areas of interest as well.
11. After School Concessions Volunteers Still Needed:  Are you looking for a regular (every-other week) volunteer spot? There are several openings for the after school concessions stand which runs through May! Please contact Amanda Bremer with questions or to volunteer.
12. Yearbook Orders:  Save $10 by ordering a yearbook by December 31^st!  For details, visit here
13. Athletic Teams Calendar:  To see the games/matches/meets for all WHS athletic teams, click here!  
14. Amazon.com Ordering:  If you order from Amazon.com, please access the website through the link on the right side of the PTSA webpage   Every order placed earns the PTSA much needed funds, at NO cost to you! Thank you!
15. Silent Fundraisers:  We participate in several store school support programs, such as Giant’s A+ School Rewards and Harris Teeter’s Together in Education program. You DO have to relink your Harris Teeter card each year but you do not have to relink your Giant card (but please check to ensure that you’ve designated Westfield!)  Please check out this link for more information!
16. Have something about a club, team, or class at Westfield that you’d like in the e-blast? Send a request to newsletter@westfieldhs.org