Westlake High School PTSA
Wow, March was really busy at the high school, and April will be busy as well.
April Events
April 11- End of 3rd Grading Period
April 11, 12- WHS Musical Performance, 7:00pm, PAC
April 13 – WHS Musical Performance, 2:00pm, PAC
April 18- No School, Good Friday
April 22- WHS PTSA Meeting, 7:30
April 24 – Taste of Westlake, 7:00pm
April 25- Spring Fling Dance, 7:00pm
April 29 – Kiwanis Salute to Excellence, 7:30pm
May Events
May 5-9- Teacher Appreciation Week
May 5-16- AP Exams
May 8 – Fine Arts Luncheon
May 10- Music Ala Mode
May 13- Senior Awards Day
May 17 – WHS Prom
May 21-WHS/LBMS Installation Dinner
May 23 Communicator Deadline
May 26- Memorial Day- No School
May 28- Senior Awards Night, 7:00pm
Prom Assembly – The Senior Prom Assembly was on March 14. Thanks to Susan
Pesta and Kelly Baddour, co-chairs, for organizing this event. The Prom Assembly is an
annual event funded by the PTSA that reinforces the importance of safe, responsible
behavior during prom and graduation season and also mixes in a little fun. Twelve
senior boys and twelve senior girls modeled prom outfits from Mademoiselle at the
Promenade and tuxedos from American Commodore-Great Northern Mall. We would
also like to recognize committee members Chris Sutcliffe, Lisa Murthy, Angela
Wanhainen, Megan Smith, Bernadette Kronz, Beth Malloy and Andrea Rocco for their
contributions that made this year’s Prom Assembly such a highlight!
Dollars For Scholars Basketball Game – The Dollars For Scholars Basketball Game,
sponsored by the Westlake Council of PTA’s, was another successful event in March.
Thanks to the community, volunteers and donors who made this event a success. All
proceeds fund scholarships for graduating seniors.
Green & White Revue-This annual talent show was held the same weekend as the
Dollars for Scholars Basketball Game. We had almost record attendance over the two
performance days. Thanks to Dave and Christy Hooper and Megan Smith for chairing
this important fundraiser for the PTSA.
Wellness Day- Our PTSA also funded Wellness Day on March 18. Speakers were
brought in to give age-appropriate presentations on health and wellness. In addition, at
the Wellness Fair in the Auxiliary Gym 30 venders provided information about nutrition,
fitness, emotional wellness, safety, healthy choices, etc. Thanks to Bernadette Kronz for
helping to make this event happen.
Staff Grants – The PTSA had originally scheduled two round of grants for those staff
members who submitted applications. In light of the late start of the school year and the
upcoming budget cuts, only one round has been awarded in the amount of $4000.
Among these grants were a laminator for the library and an Elmo document projector for
the Math Department. A special thank you to Becky Moldaver, and Lisa Hawkins and
their very talented team of parents who have reviewed Staff Grant Applications and
coordinated the awards.
Taste of Westlake- The Citizens for Westlake Schools will host A Taste of Westlake
at Wagners of Westlake, 30855 Center Ridge Road on Thursday April 24th, 2014
from 7 to 10 p.m. cost: $30 per person. Cash Bar & Casual Dress. All proceeds
support Citizens for Westlake Schools. For tickets, please see order form in the
Communicator below.
Next PTSA Meeting – Please join us for our next PTSA meeting on Tuesday, April 22 at
7:30p.m. in the Library.
Think Spring!
Therese Squeri
WHS PTSA President
t.squeri@wowway.com
COUNSELING CORNER: April 2014
From Your Guidance Department: Counselors – Terry Kennedy, Mark Campo, Erin Pontikos, Joan Jerome
Secretary, Marsha Frazier
Please visit our web site at www.wlake.org.
Phone# 835-6375
IMPORTANT DATES
April 8
Local Scholarship Applications due at noon
Guidance Office
June 3
Senior Honors Assembly
1 PM in PAC
April 29
Kiwanis Salute to Excellence
7:30 PM
April 15
AP Preview Night
7 PM PAC
May 9
Deadline to register for the June 7 SAT
May 9
Deadline to register for the June 14 ACT
Register at www.act.org
May 28
Senior Awards Night – Local Scholarships
7 PM in PAC
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Register at www.collegeboard.com
GENERAL ANNOUNCEMENTS
Schedule Changes: Planning a master schedule for the next school year is a difficult task. The student and parent
are urged not to select courses with the idea that these requests can be changed. The master schedule is
developed on the basis of the courses that students select. Making a change in a selected course will have a
serious effect on class size and teaching assignments and therefore will be approved sparingly.
Therefore, no change will occur unless:
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there is a technical error in the scheduling process
it is clear that the student is academically misplaced as determined by the classroom teacher.
there is a scheduling conflict
College Level Examination Program (CLEP): CLEP is a credit by exam program that is accepted by more than 2,900
colleges in the United States. These exams cover material taught in courses that most students take as a
requirement in their first two years of college. Most exams are 90 minutes in length and are done on a computer
at a participating college or university. For a more comprehensive description of the CLEP examinations and their
cost, a list of locations where students can be tested, and a list of colleges granting credit for satisfactory scores on
CLEP exams visit their web site at www.collegeboard.com/clep .
INFORMATION FOR SENIORS
Local Scholarships: Please turn in your local scholarship applications to Mrs. Frazier, secretary, in the guidance
office. Deadline to submit is at noon on April 8.
College Decision: The National Candidate Reply Date is May 1. By this date seniors must inform the colleges that
have admitted them as to whether or not they will attend. Seniors are reminded that they must notify every
college where they have been accepted as to whether or not they will attend.
Naviance: Seniors are asked to update their college acceptances in Naviance.
INFORMATION FOR JUNIORS
College Planning: Now is the time to begin researching colleges. Juniors are encouraged to use Naviance Family
Connections for their college planning. All colleges encourage campus visits; many have special spring programs for
visiting high school students. In addition, many colleges offer summer academic and athletic programs. Contact the
admissions office at the school of your choice for further information. Remember; as you consider various colleges,
there is no best college. There are only “right” colleges, often several of them. Your task is to discover and choose
a college that is “right” for you. No single college will be perfect in every respect; be prepared to compromise.
ACT/SAT TESTS: Students planning to attend a four-year college or university need to take the SAT and/or ACT
exam. We recommend taking these exams in the spring of the junior year. The SAT now has three sections, Critical
Reading, Mathematics and Writing. More information on this test can be found at www.collegeboard.com. The
ACT Test has four sections, English, Reading, Mathematics and Science. The ACT also has an optional writing
section. Students taking only the ACT should take the writing section at least once. More information on the ACT
can be found on their web site at www.act.org. Both testing companies prefer online registration. The WHS Code
needed for registration is 365450.
SAT II Subject Tests: Many of the most selective colleges in the United States also require SAT II Subject Area Tests.
Students should contact the admissions office or visit their web page to determine the number of tests required.
Each SAT II Test is an hour long and three tests can be taken on a single test day.SAT/ACT PREP: The Guidance
Office has purchased an SAT/ACT Test prep program through Naviance. Students can login to their account to find
this program. Other options for test prep are listed below.
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The ACT has test prep and practice tests on its web site at www.act.org.
The College Board has practice tests on its web site at www.collegeboard.com.
Students can purchase The Princeton Review for SAT/ACT on CD ROM.
Princeton Review is hosting an ACT prep class at WHS that coincides with the June ACT. Go to
www.princetonreview.com to register. Princeton Review also has other products available.
Method Test Prep has many online tools, classes and programs available. Go to
www.methodtestprep.com
Area bookstores have a number of books and other media on this topic.
Should a student take a test prep course or not? That is often a difficult question. The best preparation for
college entrance examinations is enrolling in and excelling in a rigorous college preparatory curriculum.
However, if a student is motivated and willing to put in the time a test prep course demands, test
preparation can be helpful.
World Languages in the
Westlake City Schools
You are constantly learning language, even your native language.
It’s a process! Our goal is to help increase proficiency by studying one
or more languages in our 1st-12th grade program.
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World Language study is a core academic subject which will require time and effort.
Continuity leads to proficiency. The longer you are able to learn a language, (listening, reading,
writing and speaking that language over time) the more it will become second nature.
Students can also choose a different language at the beginning of the 5th and 7th grades.
Many students choose to add an additional language at the high school level.
After having studied one world language, learning a second world language is easier.
The study of World Language is not just another school subject – it is a life skill which is
becoming a necessity in our increasingly global society.
In order to be able to take the Advanced Placement Level of a language during senior year (and
therefore receive college credit for high school world language-- see additional sheet for
example AP credits at OSU ) , students need to enroll in level one of the language for 8th grade.
However, German and Latin, which are offered at the high school, are both available for AP in
the fourth year.
Students generally need 2-5 years of high school credit in a world language in order to be
accepted to most universities (the more selective the school, the more language study is
required). Because continuity leads to proficiency, most universities prefer 2-5 credits of the
same language. It is a good idea to check university entrance and exit requirements. Language
requirements vary per university and majors.
By earning 4 or more of the same high school world language credits, students significantly
increase their likelihood of success on college placement tests. In the past, many students have
waived part of or the entire language requirement at their universities.
Which will you choose?
French? German? Latin? Spanish?
Maybe all four!
GRANT MONEY AVAILABLE!
Is your student interested in participating in a program this summer that
involves music? Did you know that Westlake Music Boosters has grant
money available for students participating in such programs?
We are excited to continue to offer grant money to students currently enrolled in
grades five through eleven who are presently participating in the district music
program(s) and plan to continue next year. Awards will be given for involvement
in music related clinics, honor bands/choirs, workshops and grants. (Grant money
cannot go toward private music instruction.) The amount of the grant will not
exceed one-half of the cost of the program, and the maximum award is $200. We
have $2,225 dedicated to helping students take advantage of music opportunities
this summer, so apply today! Applications are due by April 25, 2014, and are
available on the Westlake Music Boosters website.
Questions? Contact Kathie McNeilly (kathie.mcneilly@gmail.com).
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ATTENTION SENIORS AND PARENTS:
MUSIC SCHOLARSHIPS AVAILABLE!
The Westlake City Schools Music Boosters once again will offer (4) $1,000
scholarships this year. If you are a current WHS senior who plans to be involved
in music during college, consider applying for one of these scholarships. The
Music Boosters scholarship application will be available online on the WHS
Guidance webpage as well as on the Westlake Music Boosters webpage beginning
Monday, March 3rd. Important dates to remember:
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Applications available online March 3
Teacher recommendation portion due to your director by March 24
Completed applications due to the Guidance Office by April 8
Every May at Westlake's Music a la Mode, we offer a wonderful raffle
that raises significant funds to support the music programs in
Westlake. Many students, parents, and grandparents who attend
look forward to purchasing tickets in hopes of winning one of the
great prizes! Now that MALM is less than 2 months away, we are
looking for contributions to this year's raffle. Past baskets have had
themes such as "Movie Night" (several new DVDs and snacks), "Tribe
Fever" (Indians jersey, hat, and flag), and "Date Night" (theater
tickets and gift card to restaurant). Grab a friend and get creative
with a basket idea! Don't have time to put together a gift
basket? Area gift cards and individual items are welcome,
too! Maybe you have unopened Christmas gifts in your closets that
would make great donations for the raffle! If you would like to
donate a basket or item or would like more information, please
contact Kathie McNeilly (kathie.mcneilly@gmail.com). Thank you,
and we look forward to seeing you at the 2014 Music a la Mode!
ATTENTION SENIORS:
Orders for Graduation announcements and
accessory items will be delivered at school on
Tuesday, April 8th during lunch periods. Please
make every effort to pick up your order and
check it immediately. Any questions, shortages,
or corrections to your order should be reported
to the salesman on delivery day. If you have a
balance due on your order, it must be paid in
full before you can pick up your order. Extra
announcements will be sold on a first come first
served basis at $1.50 each. Payable by cash or
check to Herff Jones.