February 12th 2021

 

View this email in your browser Join Our Private HTH Parents Facebook Group HTH PA HTH School Storm Athletics No School Friday, Feb. 12th or Monday, Feb. 15th due to President's Day HTH School Calendar 20-21 Click here for the latest information regarding the Corona Virus and HTH "You must never be fearful about what you are doing when you know it is right" -Rosa Parks Fatuma Fadhill '18  says "If I was at any other school, I wouldn’t be as confident/vulnerable and able to share with others." Adrian Rivera '20 says "HTH helped me find my identity and prepare me for college - traditional school is like a step stool, HTH is like a ladder." The 10th Grade Contracorriente Project (Evans-Griffin-Chin-Urie-Dingler) welcomed HTH Alumni Dylan Jacobs ('13), Fatuma Fadhil ('18), Monique Mendez ('18), Tien Brown ('20) and Adrian Rivera ('20) to share about ways that they have had to or chosen to "swim against the current" in their lives, so far.  Their generous storytelling in breakout sessions was the perfect launch for our project, Contracorriente. The Project: “Contracorriente” is a Spanish term that means ‘upstream’ or ‘against the current. In this project, students will explore stereotypes and idealized images of San Diego and the United States, as well as other places in the world, seeking people's histories and counternarratives in contrast to the glossy surface images and stories. We will interview people in our city and around the globe who have had to or chosen to go against the current. Later this Spring, the Contracorriente Project will be a collaboration with teachers and students from Colegio Monte Tabor in Santiago Chile over the course of roughly eight weeks, from March until May. HTH and Monte Tabor students will co-host a weekly hour-long joint discussion on issues related to prejudices and discrimination, marginalized groups, uncovering social constructs at play in our respective societies, the outcomes (positive and negative) of bucking against social norms and societal constraints, and so much more. Those discussions will result in both a digital magazine and an Instagram TV podcast series. When we asked our guest speakers - How did HTH shape you?  Dylan: "constantly rock the boat.  Think about how we liberate education and truly be humans and not just “academics” - bringing back humanity to ourselves.  Bringing curiosity to situations - college, work, society…what else can I do to engage with the community/world?" Monique:  "Shaped academic future - teachers know you, you know everyone.  At Gettysburg College, I am not afraid of professors and office hours.  Not shy or reserved about being vulnerable.  Ask for help - it is ok!" Adrian: "Engaging in class, knowing how to use your resources, connecting with professors." Fatuma: "I knew I wanted to be a teacher in 10th grade because of HTH."  Tien:  "I am never afraid to ask for help - my confidence is high.  Many other college coursemates are afraid to talk to professors.  At HTH I learned how to find things that matter to me in all projects." Thank you to all our HTH Alums who participated in this event! We love you! #hthpride If you are looking for a unique gift idea, Fatuma owns her own Picnic Business - @flcpicnics on Instagram (COVID precautions taken) 9th grade HTH teachers Nira and Amilio got together with a couple of neighbors to create lab kits for our 9th graders. They bagged up 120 kits with materials for 5 different physics labs that our students will be doing from at home. Amilio told us his neighbors graciously offered to help with this task and saved them hours of work. We were outside and all socially distanced to keep it as safe as possible. Storm Sports are back! Swim and Cross Country started practicing Feb. 1st, Tennis and Golf will start on Tuesday, Feb. 16th. Mike Strong, Cross Country Coach "We are really excited to get back together to pursue something student-athletes love. Cross country is an incredible way to learn about ourselves and the world around us." Susan Berardi Swim coach "It was awesome to be back with the team and in the water!!  I saw so many smiling faces.  Swimmers kept saying how great it was to see their friends and get back in the pool.  They loved being able to do something active again.  I’m looking forward to a fabulous season and having lots of fun!!" Nicole Yeager- Swim Junior "New swim season and first swim practice, what a relief! It was great to see my teammates that I haven't seen in person for almost a whole year." If you are interested in participating in a sport, you must be cleared by Coach O'Kelley.  For each student-athlete to start practicing:   NO ONE WILL BE ABLE TO JOIN UNLESS ALL ARE COMPLETED AND YOU ARE CLEARED BY THE ATHLETIC DIRECTOR Clearance paperwork- Athleticclearance.com paperwork is signed and paperwork is confirmed- Send confirmation email to Coach O’Kelley Updated sports physical (year 20-21) completed and uploaded on your Athleticclearance.com profile Access your Powerschool and fill out the in-person agreement.  Upload to your athleticclearance.com profile. Each student-athlete will have to wear a mask at all times.  Yes, even during practice! Important details regarding time and location will be sent by the coach to each student-athlete that is cleared to practice.  All student-athletes will be socially distanced.  All families and guardians will not be able to attend or observe any practices. FUNDRAISING Storm Athletics has not had opportunities to raise money this year to support its athletic program. Please consider donating so we can cover the cost of the facility and league fees.  Any donation is greatly appreciated, the average cost per player is $150-$175.  Click this link to donate!  Michal-Lynn O'Kelley Director of Athletics and Wellness High Tech High https://www.hightechhigh.org/pl-athletics/ mokelley@hightechhigh.org   Congratulations to HTH Math teacher Chris Nho....winner of the People's Choice Awards for the Public Math Postcards! Thank you to everyone who voted! You can check out Chris' Project here.  #hthpride #woohoo The HTH Collaborative distributed two $100 grocery cards to two HTH families who needed some assistance this past month. These cards are in addition to the 40 $50 grocery cards the Collaborative distributed in December. If you know of an HTH family who needs some assistance, please email hthpacommunications@gmail.com  PARENT WORKSHOPS Plan to join us for Ask Andrew Over Coffee (English) on Wednesday, February 17th at 6:30 pm. Our Director Andrew Gloag will update us on the reopening plan, small groups, senior activities, and more. Bring your questions and we look forward to seeing you! You must register in advance for this meeting: After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting. Planee unirse a nosotros para Cafetito Con Andrew (Spanish) el miércoles 17 de febrero a las 7:30 pm. Nuestro director Andrew Gloag nos actualizará sobre el plan de reapertura, los grupos pequeños, las actividades para personas mayores y más. ¡Traiga sus preguntas y esperamos verlo! Regístrese con anticipación para esta reunión: Después de registrarse, recibirá un correo electrónico de confirmación con información sobre cómo unirse a la reunión. The HTH Journalism Club would like to invite students and parents to join us on Friday, Feb.19th at 2:30pm for a very special guest speaker. Photojournalist and HTH alumni parent Sandy Huffaker's photos have been published in Newsweek, The New York Times, USA Today, Getty Images, and more. Sandy will talk to the club about what makes a great photo and how it tells the story. Here's the Zoom link.  HTH COMMUNITY PARTNERS Meet our new HTH Community Partner - Dr. Sabrina Falquier Montgrain is a multilingual and multicultural primary care physician in San Diego, specializes in Culinary Medicine and is the founder of Sensations Salud, LLC. She was born and raised in Mexico City to Swiss and American parents. Dr. Falquier takes this multilingual and multicultural life experience into her expertise in Culinary Medicine. Her focus is awakening the senses around ingredient acquisition and food preparation while empowering people to better health through nutritional knowledge and culinary literacy.   SHOPPING? (EARN FREE MONEY FOR HTH ON EVERY PURCHASE) Set up Amazon Smile with HTH as the beneficiary on your browser AND your mobile app (.5% earned), use this link  Bookmark our HTH Amazon Affiliates link in your web browser for shopping convenience! (avg 5% earned) To make it more convenient, consider making ‘one time’ purchases of a retailer gift cards using Benefit App then use that gift card credit through your Benefit App ‘wallet’ throughout the year. For example, buy a $500 Amazon card and apply it to your Amazon account to use as the ‘payment method’ throughout the year. For example, buy a $50 Starbucks gift card through the Benefit App and apply the code to your Starbucks app for purchases Still have questions, check out this tutorial or email hthpacommunications@gmail.com College News  We hope you joined us for the kickoff College 411 Workshop Wednesday. This is a series of workshops that happens monthly. Plan to join us for the next one in March. Hear from college admissions representatives about timely college topics ranging from Test Optional to How to Make Yourself a Competitive Applicant.  These workshops will be held virtually the 2nd Wednesday of every month. Registration details coming soon.  March 10 at 3pm - How to Stand Out in the Admissions Process How to make your application shine, while remaining true to your genuine self  April 14 at 3pm -  To Test or Not to Test What does test optional mean and how is an application reviewed if test scores are not submitted May 12 at 3pm -  Applying to STEM Colleges Learn more about STEM colleges  and what they for in an applicant This workshop is geared towards students in 9th -11th grade. If you missed the one Wednesday, here is the recording.  As always, you can email me anytime at nwyatt@hightechhigh.org  Nicholle   Seniors College Team Time every two weeks:   12:30pm (Tara/Lucera's); 1:30pm (John/Pat's) • Feb. 23– CC Registration II (1:30pm) • March 9 – College Comparisons • April 6 – Financial Aid Package Review • April 20 – Final College Decisions • May 4 –Celebration!  We will also have a Community College Ambassador from Mesa College who will be taking appointments with seniors on Thursdays from 12pm-2pm, starting Feb. 11.  The Ambassador will help students complete the FAFSA/California Dream Act, community college applications (for ANY local CC), as well as the California Promise.    Freshman-Juniors  The Virtual Webinars and Fairs are kicking into high gear, here is a summary spreadsheet so you can see all the upcoming events.   TeenLife 2021 Guide to Summer Programs - More than 60 Summer Program options.