September 22, 2023 YHS Weekly Newsletter

Good Afternoon Patriot Families,

Thank you to everyone who attended Back to School Night on Wednesday! We appreciate your partnership to support all learners this year. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to teachers, counselors, or administrators.

We are thrilled to announce that Yorktown High School has been ranked the No. 1 high school in Arlington, the No. 8 in Virginia and No. 345 in the nation among the 2023 Best High Schools by U.S. News & World Report. The rankings evaluate more than 17,600 schools at the national, state and local level. This success is due to the hard work of students, teachers, staff, and families. Congratulations!We wish all celebrating families a meaningful Yom Kippur. Monday there is no school in observance of the holiday. Enjoy the long weekend.

Dr. Kevin Clark, Principal

In this message:

• What’s Happening at Yorktown
• Counseling Corner
• Activities Updates
• Senior Updates
• Technology Corner
• Upcoming Dates

WHAT’S HAPPENING AT YORKTOWN

Excellence in Teaching and Learning Parent & Student Virtual Session with Dr. Willingham, UVA Professor

Please save the date for an engaging presentation on helping your child become an Excellent Learner. Dr. Willingham, Professor at the University of Virginia, will present to Yorktown families and students on strategies from his research and recent book, Outsmart Your Brain: Why Learning is Hard and How You Can Make it Easy. The presentation will be virtual on Wednesday, September 27th from 7-8:30 p.m. Click here for the link to attend.

This Week’s Advisory Plan

Students will participate in the following lessons next week aligned with the “Self-Awareness” SEL competency.

• Tuesday (9/26): A.C.T Video for Suicide Awareness Month-Students will learn about Acknowledge. Care. Tell. (ACT), the acronym used to support students if they’re worried about a friend
  • 10th and 11th grades only: Students will complete a quick check to make sure they have the app needed for the PSAT
• Thursday (9/28): Academic Quick Check Ins

Congratulations Yorktown National Merit Semifinalists

The National Merit Scholarship Program announced that 21 Arlington students are semifinalists in the 69th annual National Merit Scholarship Competition.

• Semifinalists are the highest-scoring entrants in each state and represent less than one percent of the nation’s seniors (approximately 16,000 semifinalists nationally)

• Semi-finalists: Eric Chung, Michael Discenza, Murphy Keller, Elizabeth MacGregor, Leila Silva and Lanyi Stroud

Join the Yorktown Equity Team!

Please consider joining the Yorktown Equity Team to help us advance our vision of an equitable, inclusive, safe, and anti-racist school community.  Apply at this link – applications are due by Wednesday, September 27, 2023.

Hispanic Heritage Month

Did you know… that Hispanic Heritage Month has a different theme each year?  In 2022, the theme was Unidos: Inclusivity for a Stronger Nation.  This year’s theme is Latinos: Driving Prosperity, Power, and Progress in America, a nod to the immense economic and political contributions Hispanics have made in the United States.

YHS continues our celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month with highlights of Hispanic culture on morning announcements, profiles of iconic people on the Dailies, conversational Spanish opportunities (for beginner, intermediate, and advanced learners) during lunches on Wednesdays, music and dancing lessons in the courtyard on Fridays during Patriot Period, and Hispanic treats for students on Wednesdays!  Check out the display cases near the cafeteria for artifacts related to Hispanic culture.

APS Strategic Plan Questionnaire & Engagement Opportunities

APS is developing the 2024-30 APS Strategic Plan, which guides the work of the school division. An important part of this process is capturing the voices of students, staff, families and the community to help guide the future direction of APS. One way APS is collecting input is through an anonymous questionnaire:

• APS Students
• APS Staff & APS Parents/Guardians will receive an individual link to the questionnaire via email
• Community Members

The questionnaire is available to be completed by Oct. 6. It is available in English, Amharic, Arabic, Mongolian and Spanish.

APS is conducting focus groups in the coming weeks with various stakeholder groups that will focus on gathering community input on the hopes and aspirations for APS students, the greatest opportunities and challenges APS faces, and what APS should prioritize in its next strategic plan. Below are two opportunities for parents to provide feedback on the process.

• Parent Focus Group. Seeking 6 Parent Representatives from YORKTOWN for Focus Group
  • The focus group will be composed of parents from multiple schools and will be hosted at Escuela Key Elementary School, Wednesday, September 27, 2023, from 3:00 p.m. – 4:14 p.m.
  • Email Dr. Clark (Kevin.clark@apsva.us) if you are interested in participating
• Community Forum. Tuesday, October 3rd at Yorktown at 6:30 p.m.

PSAT Day Information, October 11th

On Wednesday, October 11th all students in grades 10 and 11 will take the Preliminary SAT, also known as the PSAT/ National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (NMSQT). The PSAT is a practice version of the SAT, and students in 11th grade who take the test could qualify to receive a National Merit Scholarship based on their PSAT score. The PSAT is 2 hours and 45 minutes long (not including breaks) and assesses students’ skills in reading, writing, and math.

In order to provide an optimal testing environment for our students, on October 11, Yorktown will modify the day as follows:

• Only students in grades 10 and 11 who are taking the PSAT will report to school. They will arrive and begin their day at the regular time. Regular bus transportation will be provided.
• Students in grades 9 and 12 will have an asynchronous day of learning. Lessons and activities will be posted on Canvas for students to complete at home.
• When students finish the PSAT (approximately 12:30 p.m.), they may be released with permission from their parent/guardian, or they may stay at school until the normal dismissal time. Bus transportation home will be provided.
• A grab-and-go lunch will be provided for all students at approximately 12:30 p.m. Students in grades 9 and 12 can go to their home school and get lunch if they wish.

COUNSELING CORNER

SEL Screener Coming October 3rd

As an opportunity to provide important feedback about critical Social Emotional Learning (SEL) skills, APS will be administering the SEL screener twice per year, with the first administration on October 3rd during Patriot Period. Please visit the APS Social Emotional Learning page for information about the surveys and how to opt-out.

College/Career Application Help for Seniors

Counselors of seniors will be in the College and Career Office during lunches to assist seniors with applications, or anything else related to graduation and beyond.  Students may drop in during their lunch as needed.

Credit-by-Exam

APS allows students with the ability to understand and communicate in languages other than English to earn high school credits through state-approved world language tests. Registration closes September 28th. Credit-by-Exam measures students’ world language proficiency to award up to four high school world language credits which can be used toward the advanced diploma requirements.

• Who should NOT take this exam:
  • Students currently enrolled in level IV or fluent speakers III class, as they will be given the exam in the spring
  • Students who want to improve their grade in a previous world language course as this is not allowable
• There is no cost for APS students to take the exam
  • Depending on the language, some students may be assessed with an Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI). Students who are registered for this and do not show will be responsible for a $60 no-show fee
• For more information and to sign up, please see the World Languages Office website

ACTIVITIES UPDATES

Upcoming Home Games

Homecoming is October 13th Weekend!

The Homecoming football game will be October 13, at 7 p.m. against Langley with the dance on Saturday night, October 14, from 8-11 p.m.  Tickets will be available beginning on October 4 online as well as in person the week of October 10.  Guests will need to complete a guest pass which will be included in next week’s update.

Where to find Athletics Information

Athletic Website – www.yorktownsports.org

Athletic Twitter/X – @yhssports

Athletic Instagram – @yhssports

Athletic Specific Sport Information – www.teamapp.com

Athletic Registration – https://yorktownhs-ar.rschooltoday.com/

Winter and Spring Sports

For your planning purposes, winter sports (basketball, gymnastics, swim/dive, wrestling, cheerleading, rifle, indoor track) begin on November 6th and crew winter training begins on November 16th.  Spring sports (baseball, softball, soccer, lacrosse, tennis, outdoor track, crew) begin on February 19th.  Please note tryouts and practices will be held on school holidays such as Grade Preparation Day (Nov. 7th), Veterans Day (Nov. 10th), and Presidents’ Day (February 19th).  Students can join www.teamapp.com for specific off-season and tryout information on winter and spring sports, which will be posted as it becomes available.  Please make sure to register on the new athletic registration site before attending any off-season activities or tryouts (see information above).

SENIOR UPDATES

Be sure to bookmark the Seniors website, which is linked on the Yorktown HS home page under Quicklinks and loaded with information for senior year.

Senior Class Meeting

There will be a Senior Class meeting on October 19, during Patriot Period in the auditorium. Along with Senior year topics, the Senior Experience program will be discussed and Caps & Gowns ordered.

Class Rings

A representative from Herff-Jones will be at school to take orders for Junior and Senior Class rings on October 4, during lunch periods and after school from 4-6:30 PM. There will be samples to look at and ring sizing available. Ring brochures are available in the Student Activities office.

Senior Portraits

The 3rd Portrait session will be at school on September 26-29. Seniors who have not yet been photographed will receive their appointment and purchase information in the mail. The appointment schedule is also posted in the Student Activities Office. The final make-up session on site will be November 30-December 1. After this time, Seniors will need to self-schedule an appointment at one of the Studio locations in Hanover or Rockville. The deadline for submitting senior portraits to the Yearbook is December 20th.

Save the Date

Class of 2024 Graduation – Thursday, June 13, at DAR Constitution Hall

TECHNOLOGY CORNER

PSAT Preparation and Practice Exams

Students have worked with their English teacher to be sure the Bluebook App is installed for the upcoming PSAT. If your student misses English this week, please have them connect with their teacher so they can check the app.

Once the Bluebook App is installed and students have created their account if they did not have one (using their personal email), they will have access to the PSAT PRACTICE! Please see the link below to view the slide deck for a walk-through of the access.

PSAT Practice Walk-through

If your student cannot open or access the Bluebook App properly, please be sure they report this to their English teacher ASAP.

UPCOMING DATES

See YHS Calendar for more information

• September 25 – Holiday – Yom Kippur