Photo Credit: Karin Goodwin Photography

Hope for Sun!

Graduation Slated for Wednesday Evening…Outdoors?

Don’t speak too soon, but the forecast looks promising for an outdoor Commencement Ceremony this Wednesday, June 19, at 4:15. The exercises will take place in front of the school, with the proceedings happening a bit earlier than in the past to account for this year’s Project Graduation, an all-night graduation party for the Class of 2013. The Commencement Address this year will be delivered by Mr. Todd Bryda, Professor of History at Northwest Community College, and student essayists will include Hannah Domingue, Elise LaFosse, Salutatorian Becket Harney, and Valedictorian Matthew Matsudaira. Parking is available in designated areas on campus, and handicapped-accessible seating is available for our guests with special needs. We look forward to seeing everyone – under the sun – on Wednesday night!

iPad FAQ Now Available Online

In response to some questions by community members about the 1-1 iPad initiative, we have developed a resource to answer the most Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs). Click here to view the .pdf file.

From left, Housatonic Valley Regional High School students Samantha Rand, Kelly Monty, MacKenzie Considine and Hannah Domingue at the State Capitol. Photo Credit Damon Osora

 Sexual Assault: A Campus Crisis

Civic Life Documentary Now Available Online

Groups from Torrington, Stamford, Marvelwood, and our own HVRHS class with Mr. Osora and Mr. Lizzi screened their films at the Salisbury Forum last Friday. In case y0u missed it, here is the Housatonic film. Read all about the experience in last week’s Litchfield Times.

Gelbrich Wins Class S State Champion

Straight Sets Victory Sends Ferdi to State Open This Week

Ferdinand Gelbrich, our exchange student from Hanover, Germany, has been the talk of the courts this season, and on Saturday he capped his magical season with a straight sets victory in the Class S State Tournament. Read about it in the Republican American, along with video of Ferdi on the court. Ferdi will head to the state opens at Yale this week to vie for the overall title. Good luck!! Updates are available on our Twitter feed as they happen; click on the link in the upper right hand corner to subscribe.

Becket Harney

Willie Yahn

Ferdinand Gelbrich

Winner, Winner, Winner!!!

Harney, Yahn, and Gelbrich Make Headlines

Congratulations to an HVRHS trifecta: Becket Harney, Willie Yahn, and Ferdinand Gelbrich. This week, Becket was honored with a Halo Award for “Best Performance by a Male Comedic Actor” at the ceremony/show last night in Waterbury. His performance in this year’s production of “Fiddler on the Roof” was outstanding, and the rest of the state recognizes it! On the athletic fields, the Berkshire League announced Willie as the Pitcher of the Year, and his efforts carried the Mountaineers into the state tournament, where Portland scratched out two runs to earn the win and put an end to Housatonic’s season. Fortunately, we have one more year to watch Willie work his magic on the mound. Meanwhile, Ferdinand (or “Ferdi,” as he prefers) is working his way through the state tournament in tennis. Ferdi, who comes to us from Germany, has had a remarkable season, losing only a handful of games, and not a single set. We’re rooting for his run to continue in the days to come. Congratulations to all of the boys!

Arts Fund for Region One Announces Scholarship for Summer 2013.

This opportunity is open to all students in Region One who wish to explore and develop their interests in the arts. Scholarship funding is available through the Susan Fillman Memorial Scholarship for the Arts as administered by Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation. Click here for more details!

PowerSchool Parent Portal Now Open

Access Your Student’s Grades and Other Data

As you may have heard, HVRHS moved to PowerSchool, a student information database, at the beginning of the year. Part of the reason for this move was to allow students and parents  greater access to their own records. After a marking period of working with the program, we are now allowing both parents and students to access the database. This week, we sent out directions through the mail for accessing the portal. If you need a copy of the directions, please click here for a PDF copy that takes you through the enrollment process, step-by-step. The system will prompt users to enter an email address along with a security code that was included with that mailing. There is a separate access code for the parent and the student. If you did not receive these codes by 12/10, please contact the school. Studies have shown that parental involvement is one of the most important factors in a student’s academic success, and we hope that this new level of access will allow you to have more informed discussions with your students about their schoolwork. Additionally, you may configure the program to send daily, weekly, biweekly, or monthly updates, depending on your needs.