“Show respect even to people who don’t deserve it; not as a reflection of their character, but of yours.”
~Dave Willis
Welcome to October! We are off to a great start to the school year and we would like to thank you for your cooperation in getting your children to school in a timely manner and ready to learn!
We thoroughly enjoyed seeing so many of you at the VTHS Back-to-School Night. We hope that holding the evening early in the school year was beneficial to you and your family. The large number of parents and guardians who attended sent a clear message that you want to be involved in your child’s education. Thank you for attending!
To continue with that positive trend, we have reinstated one evening to this year’s Parent/Guardian-Teacher Conferences. VTHS conferences will be held on: Wednesday, October 24 from 3:00-7:00 pm; Thursday, October 25 from 12:10-2:00 pm: and Friday, October 26 from 12:10-2:00 pm. On each of these days, our students will be dismissed at 11:25 am, which will allow our teachers to be prepared to conduct conferences. In an effort to assist our student-athletes, parents/guardians and coaches, athletes who do not have rides back to school following dismissal may remain at school if they have notified their respective coaches. Administrators will monitor the athletes until the conclusion of the conferences each day.
VTHS SPIRIT WEEK was organized by the Student Council and included numerous opportunities for students to show their school spirit! At its culmination, all students were invited to participate in a Pep Rally, which introduced the VTHS Marching Band and all of the fall sports teams! We have received lots of positive feedback about all of the activities planned for the week. We would like to thank Mrs. Kristy Riegler, the advisor for our Student Council, in addition to all of the students who worked so hard to make the week a great success!
October 1 through October 5 is the WEEK of RESPECT. Please encourage your child to participate in each of these activities:
- Monday – Stand Up To Bullying (wear a blue shirt)
- Tuesday – Everyone Counts Day (wear a shirt with a number on it)
- Wednesday – Dare To Be Different (wear mismatched clothes)
- Thursday – Stand Up Against Bullying (wear blue/gold school colors)
- Friday – Be a Hero Day (dress like a superhero)
On Columbus Day (October 8) this year, students will attend school and follow an early dismissal schedule; students will dismiss at 11:25 am. The afternoon will provide time for faculty members to participate in professional development opportunities.
On Wednesday, October 10, the sophomores and juniors will be taking the PSAT. Some alterations to the schedule will be made available to the students prior to the testing date.
The photographer will be here for re-takes on Thursday, October 18 for students in grades 9, 10 and 11. Please mark your calendars and remind your children to get their photo taken if they were absent on the original picture day or if you were not pleased with their original photo.
Our Guidance Department is hard at work developing informative workshops for our students and their families. Please be sure to mark your calendars and participate in the following:
- October 3– College Q&A/Financial Aid Information night from 5:00 – 7:00 pm at VTHS
- October 16- College Fair from 7:00 – 9:00 pm – in VTHS cafeteria
- Monday, October 22-Friday, October 26 – COLLEGE WEEK at VTHS – staff and students are encouraged to wear a college sweatshirt or t-shirt of their choice to promote and celebrate education beyond the high school!
- October 25– College Application Night from 5:00 – 9:00 pm
- October 29– Senior FAFSA Workshop from 6:30 – 8:30 pm
Congratulations to all of our sports’ teams for a great fall season. The hours of practice and dedication of our coaches and athletes does not go unnoticed and/or unappreciated. I would also like to thank the parents/guardians who are our biggest fans! Please visit their wonderful website, which is updated daily at: https://vernontownshiphs.rschoolteams.com/
Congratulations, too, to everyone who was involved in Music in the Mountains! It was a proud day for the Vernon Township School District and the high school to see the exemplary performances by our students and to witness the cooperation between our staff members and our parents/guardians to make it a memorable–and delicious–event for so many bands and their families. Thank you, one and all! Here are some additional highlights and upcoming events:
- 9/15 – The Marching Band competed at Northern Valley Old Tappan’s marching band competition and received 1st place and all caption awards (best music, best overall effect, meet color guard and best percussion) in group IV A.
- 9/22 – The Marching Band competed at Lenape Valley Regional High School’s Marching Band Competition and revived 2nd place in group IV A
- 9/29 – The Marching Band hosted its 17th Annual Music in the Mountains Marching band competition. In attendance were Vernon Twp., Lenape Valley Reg., High Point Reg., North Warren Reg., Pequannock Twp., and Kittatinny Reg.
- Upcoming performances include Pequannock Twp. HS band competition on October 6 and the annual Yamaha Cup competition on October 13 at Rutgers University’s High Point Solutions Stadium.
If you are attending any VTHS sporting or musical events—or have some excellent photos that you have already taken—please share them with me at panderson@vtsd.com. I would welcome the opportunity to share our students’ accomplishments beyond the classroom on our website. Thank you!
Congratulations to 3 of our seniors who have recently been named as Commended Students in the 2019 National Merit Scholarship Program. Daniel McKeon, McKayla Van Orden and Maxim Yacun placed among the top 50,000 scorers of more than 1.6 million students who entered the 2019 competition by taking the PSATs. According to a spokesperson for the National Merit Scholarship Program, these students represent “a valuable national resource.” We are very proud of each of them!
The deadline to complete a free or reduced price breakfast and/or lunch is rapidly approaching. Applications must be completed no later than October 18, 2018. Please log onto the Parent Portal, Select Forms, and then select Lunch Applications. If you need additional assistance, please contact the VTHS main office and someone will assist you.
Please be sure to check the VTHS website and calendar regularly for updates about our upcoming events.
Thank you for all of your cooperation in ensuring that your child’s educational experience is a quality one!