Administration

Principal's Bulletin (Principal's Corner)

November 8, 2011

Dear Parents/Guardians:

Our first marking period has now officially ended and student’s first marking period grades have been posted. Our Parent Portal allows you to access your child’s grades frequently and easily, be sure you are registered. Please take time to carefully review this information as first marking period grades may be an indicator of how a student will perform for the balance of the school year. Grades, attendance data and teacher comments provide useful information.

Although I encourage you to contact your child’s teacher whenever you have concerns about classroom performance, evening parent teacher conferences can be scheduled for December 1st beginning at 5:00pm.  Teachers may request a conference via a comment on the student report card. Our teachers and counseling staff are here to work in collaboration with students and families to ensure academic success. Good communication is a vital part of this equation.

Should your child need additional academic support, homework help is provided to our students three days per week, after school, in our Media Center. Peer tutoring is available during our lunch periods. Students are scheduled for structured study hall assistance based on standardized test scores and grades; an intervention aimed at providing extra help in language arts and math.

Please note that there will be a noon dismissal for students on Wednesday, November 23, 2011. Transportation will be provided and modified for the revised schedule that day. Also listed below are mid-term examination schedules and information about emergency school closings. 

I welcome and encourage your comments regarding any items in this mailing or any concerns you may have. Thank you for your continued support of Red Bank Regional High School and enjoy a happy, healthy and peaceful holiday season.

Sincerely,

Risa Clay
Principal rclay@rbrhs.org
732-842-8000 press 1 then 210
Regular updates on my website, The Principal’s Corner

• Mid-Term Examination Schedule 2012

The mid-term examination schedule appears below.  Parents should note that the examinations will be administered over four days. The day prior to exams will be a modified "B" day giving students the opportunity to meet with all teachers prior to exams. There will be an 11:35am dismissal on all exam days. Examinations are indicated by class blocks. The mid-term examination will constitute 10% of the final grade for each course except in classes in which quarterlies are required.

Students will report to class for Exam One immediately at 7:35am
Exam One is scheduled from 7:35 to 9:30am
Break and Passing 9:30-9:39

Students will report to class for Exam Two at 9:40am
Exam Two is scheduled from 9:40 to 11:35am

11:35am DISMISSAL ALL DAYS

Make-up Exams will be done on Thursday, February 2nd and Tuesday, February 7th
after school.

Absences and Make-up Exam Procedures
Students are expected to be in attendance at the time and on the date specified for their exams. In the event a student is absent for a valid reason as stated in the student handbook (illness, death in the family, etc) he/she MUST report to the Attendance Office on the next day and submit a note from his/her parent or guardian explaining the reason for the absence.

Students will not be permitted to schedule a make-up exam unless they are issued a “Clearance Note” from the Attendance Office.

• Parent/Teacher Conferences

The evening of December 1st has been set aside for Parent/Teacher Conferences. Please review the enclosed student report card carefully. Report cards indicate the need for a teacher conference and these may be scheduled through the Principal’s office by dialing extension 202, 207 or 437 (for Spanish assistance) beginning 11/17 through 11/23.  Please call between the hours of 8 -11am.

• Homework Help

After school homework help is offered in English, Math, Science, Spanish and Social Studies.  Teachers are available in our Media Center, Tuesday -Thursday from 2:35-5:15 to assist students.  I urge you to encourage your child to attend.

• Peer Tutoring

Students can receive one to one assistance from peer tutors during the lunch blocks simply by asking for a pass from their study teacher at the start of the study period. They need to go to Room 202 where they sign in and receive tutoring from other students who work with Mr. DeCotis, school counselor to deliver these services.

• Mentoring

Senior Peer Mediators are working with their advisors to mediate and educate their peers on real life issues. The BUC team hopes to be a positive influence on the underclassmen both academically and socially by participating in workshops, assemblies and a new mentoring program. Teachers, counselors and parents can make referrals for students they feel would benefit from having a student mentor.

• Parent Portal/Sign Up

Registering for the Parent Portal provides parents with access to important information such as attendance data and grades. Simply log in to our main website www.rbrhs.org. and follow the link for the GENESIS, Parent Access Request  or visit our guidance office for more information.

• Principal’s Corner

Up to date information can be accessed on my blog, the Principal’s Corner on the front page of the RBR website, www.rbrhs.org.  Find out what is happening in our school and get in contact with me anytime!

• School Closing/Delayed Opening

With winter weather rapidly approaching, a school closing or delayed opening may be necessary.  In the event of emergency closings and/or delayed openings information is available to students and parents on these networks: radio stations New Jersey 101.5 FM and WJLK FM-94.3. You can call the school at 732-842-8000 and access the current school message by pressing 3. Information is always posted on our website at www.rbrhs.org  for information in Spanish please dial extension 1-437. Signing up for a text alert is the quickest form of notification.

• RBR@Alert

Be sure to register for RBR@lert so you can receive important school information.  We use the system for notification of athletic events, Visual and Performing Arts productions and reminders of school events as well as emergency notifications.  

Users of the service can customize their subscriptions to include multiple boroughs as well as school districts and can choose the types of alerts that they wish to receive, such as severe weather alerts. Subscribers can also choose to receive general news, event information and local government updates. Families can sign up for Two River Alert at www.rbrhs.org  or directly at www.tworiveralert.com.

• Cyber Competitions

Many of you may remember last year’s championship Cyberpatriot team. Last month, we fielded two teams for the NYU-Polytechnic University High School Cyberforensics challenge.   Both teams made it into the finals. The teams were coached by Mrs. Galante and Mr. Milonas. Students are eligible for scholarships if they attend NYU-Polytechnic. These students have been working nights and weekends to develop their winning strategies. GO BUCS! We also have a Cyberpatriot team ready for completion this year.

• Athletics

Fall athletics did an outstanding job this year. As we go to press our Varsity Football team is preparing to meet Manasquan in the first round of the States. Congratulations to Coach Giglio and his staff for a fantastic job and to our team who has worked hard and built a strong and competitive force. Good luck, GO BUCS!
Congratulations to:
Boys Soccer and Coach Reid for qualifying for the State Tournament and for their outstanding season.
Girls Volleyball and Coach Ferris for an exciting and terrific season, who also qualified for the State Tournament.
Girls Cross Country Team member Kyrsten Gilmartin and Coach Lagrotteria. Kyrsten placed 4th in the State Sectional Meet.

• Better Bucs

Have you heard about the Better Bucs? A new student movement to increase school pride is underway. The Better Bucs meet weekly to increase student participation at school games and events. Look for our kids wearing “Have you got it?” t-shirts. Their most recent project was the terrarium project which filled our media center with these miniature plants.

• Education Foundation

. The RBR Education Foundation sponsored a new Mac lab, which is a feature of our newly renovated media center. 

• Glamour Gals

This amazing group of young women has been visiting the Chelsea Assisted Living every week working with the senior citizens. There they do the ladies’ nails and their hair and make-up. But the men come down and visit as well. These visits are not about “make-overs” though; they are about the social aspect of the days that are missing for the seniors as well as the intergenerational conversations that are often lacking for our students. Truly a heartwarming experience.

• December Visual and  Performing Arts Events:

Strings Concert – December 2nd, 7pm
Choral Concert – December 7th, 7pm
National Art Honor Society – “Kaleidoscope” – December 8th, 6:30pm
Harp and Piano Concert – December 9th, 7pm
Dance – December 15th and 16th, 7pm