Dear Families,
Next week we will celebrate Homecoming 2021. Our high school student leaders have been working incredibly hard to create a week full of fun events for our entire community. Each school in the district has been invited to participate in a Homecoming Spirit Week. The whole community is invited to join in the celebration during the annual Homecoming Parade and game on Friday, September 24. The parade will begin at 5 p.m. and head west down Grand River from National Street to Center Street. The Homecoming Game will take place in Howell High School’s Memorial Stadium starting at 7 p.m. This is sure to be a great week in Howell.
One of the greatest things about being a superintendent is the time I get to spend in our schools and out in our community. I enjoy learning about our student body, staff, and community members and how we are all different and unique, yet still very much the same. We cannot let our differences divide us, but rather, we should come together to recognize those differences and work to create a learning environment that meets the needs of all of our students. As those needs change, we need to adapt. That is the goal of the #OneHowell Committee that we are forming. To review our current strategic plan and revise it into an adaptive plan that will meet the needs of our district today and in the future. A plan that aligns with our Portrait of a Highlander, which outlines the skills and abilities that our students need when they leave Howell Public Schools for the next chapter of their lives. A plan that will allow us to come together as one community and one district focused on the well-being of our students. To learn more about the #OneHowell Committee and to apply to be a member of it, please visit https://forms.gle/BJnCVovBBarChtqp9.
Saturday, September 25, is Howell Downtown Day. This is a day to celebrate everything great about our downtown area. There will be special offers from downtown businesses and even some give-a-ways. Plus, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., the Highlander Reading Express will be downtown giving out free books. More information on Howell Downtown Day and the location of the Highlander Reading Express will be shared on the Howell Downtown Facebook page.
We learned this week that Elisabeth Bonanni, a senior at Howell High School, has been named a semifinalist in the 2022 National Merit Scholarship Program. Elisabeth qualified as a semifinalist based on her score on the PSAT. She is just one of just 16,000 students across the country to qualify as a semifinalist in the program. For perspective, that is less than one percent of all high school seniors in the United States. To read more about this accomplishment, please visit https://bit.ly/3Ax6pbS.
Our middle school cross country program is hosting an elementary cross country race on Wednesday, September 29, at Highlander Way Middle School. This is a fun opportunity for elementary students to learn about cross country and run a mile race on the middle school cross country course. The race is open to all Howell elementary students. To learn more or to register, please visit https://bit.ly/3zbKaqN.
Please remember that if your child is showing any signs of illness, they cannot attend school. When children attend school showing signs of illness, it dramatically increases the likelihood that other students will be required to complete a quarantine. Additionally, if a student has been tested for COVID-19, they cannot attend school while those test results are pending. Lastly, if your child tests positive for COVID-19, please be sure to complete the Livingston County Health Department self-reporting form at https://bit.ly/3yYRUwc. Regardless of where your child is tested, by completing this form the health department will have a record of the test results, which will allow them to provide an accurate return to school date and exempt your child from having to quarantine for close contact exposures for 90 days.
Sincerely,
Erin J. MacGregor, Ed.S.
Superintendent
Howell Public Schools
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