Upper School Blast Apr 12, 2024
Dear Families,
I wrote last week about some of the exciting events that were right around the corner. Since a picture is worth a thousand words, below please find some photos of last weekend’s Prom and last Monday’s Upper School eclipse viewing. Up next, tomorrow’s 50th Anniversary Celebration and Wednesday’s Family Food Truck and Youth Spirit Night. Hope to see you there!
Best,
Matt
Key Dates & Events
Monday, April 15 — B1. Advisory
Tuesday, April 16 — A2. All School
Wednesday, April 17 — B2. Extra Help
Thursday, April 18 — A3. Class Meeting
Friday, April 19 — B3. Extra Help
Announcements
Third Quarter Report Cards
Third quarter report cards are now available. Please log into Veracross to view your child’s report card.
Rescheduled — Family Food Truck and Youth Spirit Night — Wednesday, April 17
All Seven Hills families are welcome to come celebrate our spring athletes and have some fun! Cheer on Upper School baseball, softball, and tennis teams and the JV and Middle School girls’ lacrosse teams. Youth spring athletes in kindergarten through sixth grade will be recognized at 5:45 p.m. on the upper field. Food will be available for purchase from four delicious food trucks: Big Dogs Pizza, Maya Indian Food, Kona Ice (at the Pavilion) and Quite Frankly (at the baseball field). Check out the Family Food Truck and Youth Spirit Night flyer for more details. See you there!
Senior Baby Photos — Last Day to Submit
As we approach graduation and bid farewell to the Class of 2024, we would like to honor these seniors on Seven Hills’ social media with a fun game called “Guess That Senior.”
We kindly request that you take a moment to email us a baby or toddler photo of your senior. The communications department will then share these student photos on Seven Hills’ social media in May, inviting followers to join in the fun of “Guess That Senior.” Participation is voluntary, but we encourage you and your student to take part and engage with us via Seven Hills’ Instagram and Facebook!
Here’s a guide for submitting your senior’s baby photo:
- Please email one photo before the end of the business day on Friday, April 12.
- Before sending the photo, ensure it is saved with your student’s last name and first name (e.g., Maggard, Hannah).
- Photos should be in .jpeg or .png format.
- Submit your senior’s photo by emailing seniorbabyphotos@7hills.org.
Note: This request for baby photos is independent and not related to any previous requests you or your student may have received for the yearbook.
Mamma Mia! — Upper School Musical, April 19 and 20
Advance reserved tickets for Mamma Mia! are now on sale! Tickets are going fast — the center section of seats is already sold out for both nights and we’ve already sold over 550 seats! So, act fast! Get your advance reserved tickets today through Ticketleap.
Once on Ticketleap, choose the date of the show, then select “choose your own seats.” Performances are Friday, April 19 and Saturday, April 20 at 7:30 p.m. All tickets are $10. Come join the Seven Hills Upper School theater department for one of the most popular high school musicals of 2024 —Mamma Mia!, featuring the music of ABBA! Join us on April 19 and 20. We look forward to seeing you there!
Final Course Requests Due by End of the School Day on Friday, April 19
Student course requests for next year are due by the end of the school day next Friday, April 19. All students completed initial requests with their advisers, and many have worked with their college counselors to make changes since then.
You can see current course requests on your Veracross Parent Portal by clicking the links tab to the far right of your child’s name and then clicking “View Course Requests” (instructions in gray box on portal page as well). The week of April 22, you will receive a printed version of the final course requests with lines for you to sign and date. More information to come next Friday. Feel free to contact Caleb Paull, the registrar, with any questions.
Arts Alive Coming Soon!
Mark your calendars for the third annual Arts Alive celebration. On Friday, April 26, from 3:30-8:40 p.m., first through 12th grade students will showcase their artistic talents throughout the Hillsdale Campus. There will be games, arts and crafts, live performances, food trucks, and much more! Join us for an evening of festivities for the entire family. Food trucks and desserts will be available from 3:30-8 p.m. Stay tuned for more details. View the schedule.
Note for Chorus Students for Arts Alive
OMEA soloists should report to Stage 1 (outdoors, next to the Lotspeich Fine Arts Building) at 5:30 p.m. Chorus students should report to the chorus room at 7:30 p.m.
Call for Volunteers for Arts Alive
We would love your help making Arts Alive a fantastic day! Several volunteer shifts and activities are available from set-up on Thursday afternoon to tear-down on Friday evening and so much in between.
Check the sign-ups available on SignUpGenuis for ways you can help, or feel free to reach out to Anne Luecke if you have any questions. Thank you
Upper Spring Chorus Concert — May 16
The Upper School spring chorus concert will be on Thursday, May 16 at 7:30 p.m. Students should report to the chorus room by 6:45 p.m., dressed in concert attire.
May Term Dates — Friday, May 24, and Tuesday, May 28-Friday, May 31
May Term is quickly approaching, and we’re excited to have our students enrolled in an impressive array of deeply immersive courses. A reminder that students are expected to attend and fully participate in all five days of May Term and that passing three May Term experiences is a graduation requirement. Contact Karen Glum with questions.
Volunteer Sign Up — 2024-25 School Year
Upper School parents, are you interested in volunteering for the Upper School Parent Community for the 2024-25 school year? Please sign up for the role or committee that interests you via SignUpGenuis.
Senior Graduation Reminders
- Diploma name preference entries have now been closed, as the deadline was April 1. If your senior did NOT enter in their preferred name, we have used their legal first and last name that we have in our system.
- The graduation announcement poll has also closed. As previously mentioned we will be going with the majority vote, which was to NOT receive announcements.
- Cap and Gown: Reminder, your caps and tassels are yours to keep. The gown is rented and will need to be returned the night of graduation. You normally will receive your cap and gown during May Term week. We will keep you posted.
- 2024 Senior Key Dates and Events
Senior Photos for the showcase are due the last week of April. The criteria for these are as follows
- 4×6
- Black & White or Color
- Vertical
- Printed, as we do not have the capacity to print these in the office.
April Parent Connext: Getting Kids Outdoors — From the Counseling Department
Seven Hills values partnering with parents to address the development of the whole child. Parent Connext allows us to explore some of today’s most relevant topics in your child’s social-emotional development, while offering practical tools for parenting. Please feel free to connect with your student’s building counselor if you would like more conversation or support around this month’s topic, Getting Kids Outdoors.
Introduction to the ACT
Thirty-Six Education is offering an Introduction to the ACT prep course from July 29 to Aug. 2, 9:30-12:30 p.m. The class costs $699 and financial assistance is available to students who qualify. This 15-hour, in-person course will introduce students to the format and content of the English, math, reading, and science sections of the ACT. Students will learn key test-taking strategies, review high-impact content areas, and complete nightly homework assignments. Students will be given access to Thirty-Six Education’s extensive library of proprietary lessons, practice questions, and answer explanations, and they will receive personalized recommendations for areas of further study based on nightly homework assignments during the course. At the conclusion of the week, students will take a full, proctored practice ACT and receive a score report with detailed feedback to help guide further study. This course is perfect for rising juniors getting started with their test preparation. Class size will be limited to 12 students. Register for Introduction to the ACT.
Introduction to the dPSAT
Thirty-Six Education is offering an Introduction to the dPSAT prep course from Aug. 5-9, 9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. The class costs $699 and financial assistance is available to students who qualify. This 15-hour, in-person course will introduce students to the format and content of the digital SAT (dSAT) and PSAT (dPSAT) Reading and Writing and Math sections. Through proprietary Thirty-Six Education instructional materials and official College Board SAT/PSAT practice questions, students will learn the tests’ most commonly tested question types and key strategies for navigating the dSAT/dPSAT. Students will complete nightly homework assignments. This course is perfect for rising sophomores and juniors looking to familiarize themselves with the structure of and strategies for tackling the dPSAT in advance of its administration in October 2024.Class size will be limited to 12 students. Register for Introduction to the dPSAT.
Reminder: Walking Club
We are a group of parents that get together bi-weekly after morning drop off to talk and walk the lower soccer field. All divisions are welcome and no RSVP required. This group provides you a great opportunity to connect with other community members all while getting your steps in! Please park in the lower field parking area. When inclement weather occurs, we get together at The Madison Place, 4200 Plainville Road, to chat. Our next meet up is scheduled for Thursday, April 25, from 8:30-9:30 a.m. Subsequent dates are: Wednesday, May 8, and Wednesday, May 22. I look forward to chatting with you soon. Carolyn Klein (mom of Spencer, 11th grade, and Courtney seventh grade)
Fifth Annual Panel Discussion with Parents of “The Namesake”
A few years ago, in order to broaden and deepen the tenth-grade experience, we began supporting our English curriculum with a community-wide event.
This year, we are thrilled to again invite parents to join a panel discussion addressing issues related to immigration, culture and identity, and issues that appear in the tenth-grade English class capstone text, Jhumpa Lahiri’s “The Namesake.”
Below you will find details about the panel and a short questionnaire you can use to express interest. Before walking you through the particulars, we would like to take a moment to say how excited we are about this program that seeks to bring us together in service of our goal to engage students’ hearts and minds.
As part of their English class, all tenth graders will read a number of postcolonial texts. The capstone text, “The Namesake” was written by Jhumpa Lahiri, who was born in England to Bengali parents and now lives and writes in the U.S. She is also the director of the creative writing program at Princeton University. Her work serves as the bridge between the postcolonial unit in the sophomore year and the American literature course in the junior year.
To help students understand the novel’s themes of identity, diaspora, and the immigrant experience and to bring the Seven Hills community closer together through a meaningful, cultural conversation, we are inviting parents to discuss their experience, strength, and hope as first- and second-generation immigrants in the United States.
As we have in past years, we will finalize the panel discussion with input from the panel members, but in broad brushstrokes, here is the plan. We will …
- Hold the session during the school day, Friday, May 3
- Hold the session during Upper School lunch so all the sophomore students can attend
- Serve students lunch early at 10:45 a.m. and then run the panel discussion until 12 p.m.
- Empower students to engage in the event by having them moderate the discussion
In past years, the event has been a huge success, and we know that, with your help, it will again be a highlight of the year. This year, we would again like to open up the program to parents who simply want to join the student audience in order to better understand and support our diverse community. If you are interested in attending as an audience member or participating in the panel itself please fill out this short questionnaire. If you have any questions, email Mark Beyreis.
Here is a link to the version of “The Namesake” students will read in class. The movie is available on Prime Video, Vudu or Apple TV on Roku devices. You can participate in the discussion even if you do not have time to read the book or view the film based on it. We are reading the book in class. We want to understand your experience in the discussion.
One final update: we had hoped to arrange a student trip to India as part of this program. We were not able to finalize that in time, but we continue to explore options. Stay tuned.
In closing, our commitment to diversity states, “Guided by our mission and values, The Seven Hills School is committed to preparing its students to play an active role in making the world a more just and equitable place.” We believe events such as these demonstrate that we are bringing that commitment to life in ways that engage the hearts and minds of our students and gather us together as a larger community.
Best regards, Mark Beyreis, chair of the English department, and Matt Bolton, Head of Upper School.
Exciting Opportunity to Host Visiting Danish Students Next November
Next November, The Seven Hills Upper School will be welcoming a small group of students (17 to 19 years old) and teachers from Høje-Taastrup Gymnasium, just outside of Copenhagen. Dr. Caleb Paull will be coordinating and overseeing the visit along with faculty from Denmark. He will be in regular contact with host families and students prior to and during the stay. There will be virtual events in the time leading up to the visit and in-person events during the Danes’ time here.
This is the second time we are hosting students from this school, and the feedback from all involved was extremely positive the last time. We hope you will consider being a host family. Please see the letter from Dr. Paull for more information on the visit and on being a host family.