Helix Charter High School welcomed back our students earlier this month with one of our new traditions – Welcome Back Days.
As we adjust to a new normal after COVID, we decided the best way to start the school year is with team-building and connection. These first two school days were low-pressure and focused on building meaningful connections among students and their teachers. We hope it made the transition a little smoother for everyone.
Our annual Scottie Pride Day was held a few days before school started, where our incoming freshmen were greeted and guided around campus by nearly 100 Link Crew leaders.
Link Crew is a new leadership training program on campus for upper-class students. They spent time over the summer learning leadership skills in preparation for mentoring incoming freshmen in their transition to high school and making sure they have a positive experience and learn the Helix way. They will also follow them through their entire first year of high school, doing periodic check-ins and inviting them to Link Crew events.
We had our huge ASPIRE kickoff party where people were available to answer questions and register students for different ASPIRE programs.
The ASPIRE program is a federally-funded grant awarded through the San Diego County Office of Education. The county selects a handful of schools and Helix has been awarded this grant for nearly 15 years. This grant affords before-and-after-school programming for students in many areas, including enrichment, sports, and academics.
Our athletics teams and performing arts programs are in full swing and the full schedule can be found on the homepage of our new website. We invite all community members to attend these events and support our students.
We have two upcoming opportunities for parents/guardians and caregivers to join us on campus – Back to School Night on Wednesday, Aug. 17 at 5:30 p.m. and Parent/Guardian Shadow Day on Wednesday, Aug. 31 from 8:30 a.m. – 1 p.m. More information on each event can be found on our website in the announcements section.
Among events happening in early September:
Family First Info Nights
We are kicking off our Family First Info Night series on Thursday, Sept. 1, at 6 p.m. Every Thursday, we will offer Info Nights highlighting different topics we think Helix families will be interested in. The tech night is a very helpful session where we discuss all of the different platforms you and your students will be using for school, including Canvas and Synergy. We’ll also cover ways you can help keep your Chromebook happy and up to date.
Homecoming Events
The homecoming football game is on Friday, Sept. 2, and the dance is Saturday, Sept. 3. The theme and other details will be announced soon; check the Helix ASB instagram for more information.
We will continue with our initiatives to keep families well-informed about everything happening on campus utilizing our website, social media and parent communications.
We’re all looking forward to a great school year.
Editor’s note: This article was provided by Kevin Osborn (executive director) and Lauren Knuth (community relations and engagement coordinator) from Helix Charter High School.
