Dear Falcon Families,
It was a lot of fun seeing students during our incoming 9th grade Falcon Pride Day as well as Kickoff. Check out the picture of our Link: Class of 2026! We have an amazing group of students in all grade levels and I know we are going to have a great year. Today, I’ve tried to include as much information as possible so you feel ready for the first day of school. In today’s update, I’ve included our bell schedule, the latest safety updates, directions for the first day of school, details describing our inaugural Week of Welcome, the new student parking lot designations, directions for pick-up and drop-off, and more. See below for the latest updates as of 8-21-22.
* Please forward this message to your child’s email account so they have all the latest info.
Upcoming Calendar Events for August/September
8/22: 10th grade Kickoff
8/29: First day of school
9/5: Labor Day – No School
9/14: Tentative Fall Open House (Last week this was listed as the 15th. Tentatively it is now the 14th in order to limit conflicts with athletic and extracurricular activities)
9/26: Late Start Modified Monday
Bell Schedule and Important Dates
See Link: Falcon Time Schedule 2022-23 for this year’s bell schedule. School will begin at 8:45am and end at 3:33pm. To allow for staff professional development as well as student opportunities for revision and reassessment, there will be 18 “Modified Mondays'' interspersed throughout the school year. During “Modified Mondays,” school will begin at 9:45am and end at 3:33pm. The dates and times for “Modified Mondays” are in the Falcon Time Schedule document.
Safety Updates
Most of the safety and health guidelines are the same as last year. One big update is the masking requirement. The last few weeks of summer school we were required to mask indoors, but, this week SDUSD rescinded that mandate. See this Link: SDUSD Health Update 8-15-22 for the latest message. Also, see this Link: Health and Safety Guidelines for the overall health and safety guidelines for your reference.
Directions for the First Day of School August 29th
The first day of school is August 29th. For the first day of school, students will report to advisory before they attend first period. We will not be printing schedules for students this year, so students should check PowerSchool the morning of August 29th to see their final schedule. See this Link: First Week of School 2022-23 for detailed instructions and the bell schedule.
Week of Welcome
This year, we are excited to start our school year off with our “Week of Welcome.” During the first week of school, we will have various activities to help students build relationships with their peers/staff, review our Falcon Pride values, build school spirit, increase student connection with the school, and more. During Monday and Tuesday, teachers will give a brief overview of their classes as well as take students through various fun and informational activities. Wednesday and Thursday teachers will begin their classes and students will continue with school culture building activities during their advisory period. The week will finish with a fun mini pep rally on Friday at lunch. We’re looking forward to an exciting week of bonding and fun activities to get the school year started off strong. Students, your teachers will fill you in on the information once you report to class on Monday, August 29th.
Student Parking
We’ve improved many of our safety procedures to ensure our campus is as secure as possible. For safety reasons, we have moved the student parking lots to inside the campus gates, and the gates will be closed during the school day. Students are no longer allowed to park in the North Parking Lot (this was the senior lot last year). Student parking lots will be the South Parking Lot, the west side of the Bungalow Lot, and certain spots in the parking lot outside of the 700 building. See the Link: Student Parking Lots 22-23 for a visual.
Student Drop-Off and Pick-Up
At Scripps Ranch High, traffic during pick-up and drop-off times has been a problem since our school has “one way in and one way out.” In order to limit traffic as much as possible, we are asking parents/guardians to drop off their students in designated locations on the East Side of Falcon Way, Scripps Lake Drive, or Treena Street. See this Link: Student Drop-Off & Pick-Up for details. The link can also be found under the "FOR PARENTS" tab on the school website.
Courses Taken Outside of the District While Enrolled in a District School
Please be aware that grades from other institutions outside of SDUSD authorized classes/programs will not be added to the student’s transcript at SRHS. Students taking these classes will get the recognition when they apply to college by adding the institution to their college application and including the course title and grade earned. SDUSD classes and authorized programs (e.g., Level-up summer classes offered through our district) can go on the transcript per usual. Students may speak with a counselor if they have any questions.
Food and Nutrition Services 2022-23
During the 2022-23 school year, students will receive one breakfast and one lunch at no cost. Students will be required to use their district pin number to receive the meals. For details, see Universal Meals (FAQ).
Counseling Updates
New Counselor Caseloads
Counselor caseloads have changed slightly to best serve our student population this year. Please note which counselor will be working with your student in the 2022-23 school year. The letters represent the beginning of your student's last name. https://www.srhscounseling.com/who-is-my-counselor
Jane Morrill: A - Dek
Justina Estrada: Del - Jof
Leslie McDonald: Jog - Mop
SaraBeth Hatfield: Moq - Sen
Matthew Johnson: Seo - Z
Class Schedules
Students have been able to view tentative unofficial schedules since last Tuesday. However, we will be shutting down the Parent/Student Portal after Kick-Off on Monday afternoon to work on student class change requests, balancing classes, fixing holes and errors, etc. Please note that although some students have seen changes in their schedule during Kick-Off, their schedules could continue to change while we address the tasks listed above. Parent/Student Portal will become available again on Sunday, August 28th at 5:00 P.M. We recommend students view their official schedule in the morning on the first day of school in case there were any last minute changes made on Sunday evening.
Class Change Requests
As advertised, class change requests were taken in person at Kick-Off this year. It has proven to be very helpful for counselors to speak directly with students about their requests. Students who could not attend in person did make their requests through friends and family members, so their requests are also being honored when possible. Counselors will not be able to accept class change requests via email or once Kick-Off has concluded, so they are able to work on all tasks needed to open the school and complete the scheduling process.
College Classes
This year we have been able to offer several CCAP college courses, but due to the availability of some professors we have a few classes being taught asynchronously. Asynchronous classes will be indicated by the classroom "HOME" and those students will not be on campus during that period. Asynchronous means the course is not taught at a specific time and students are able to view the material on their own time during the week. The professor will make themselves available to work with students during office hours.
Counselor Availability
Counselors were available to meet with students to discuss schedule change requests during Kick-Off. Due to the large number of items needing to be addressed to open up the school year, we kindly request that families wait until the school year starts to reach out to counselors.
Seniors
We understand that college and college applications are on the mind of many seniors. Counselors will be supporting this process through a presentation, one-on-one meetings, application labs, and providing informational materials on how to navigate the application process (e.g. transcript requests, letter of recommendation requests, etc.). Please reference the Senior Page on the counseling website for information about the supports and important upcoming dates.
That’s all for today. Thanks and I hope you have a fun filled last week of summer. Go Falcons!
Sincerely,
Matt Lawson, Ed.D
Principal
Scripps Ranch High School