Dear Grosse Pointe South Community,

I hope this message finds you well as we dive into the 2023-2024 school year. It's hard to believe that the first month has already come to a close.



September was a whirlwind of activity, and I am pleased to report that our Mothers' Club has seen tremendous support from our community. During registration 400 families joined Mothers’ Club, and I want to extend my heartfelt gratitude to those who have already joined. Your support directly benefits our school and students through our Enrichment, Scholarship, and Preservation programs. For those who have not yet joined, I kindly ask you to consider supporting us and becoming a member.

Let me take a moment to highlight some of the exciting events and accomplishments that have taken place since our last newsletter:

• Back to School Night was a resounding success, and I want to thank Principal Hamka for acknowledging the invaluable work of the Mothers' Club in his introduction.
• The school store is now open for business, offering not only delicious cookies but also a fantastic new selection of spirit wear. Show your school pride and grab some gear!
• Our first membership meeting drew an impressive turnout, and we were able to approve $11,000 in enrichment grants for our dedicated teachers.
• Our communications team has been hard at work, keeping you informed through our High Pointes newsletter and engaging with you on our Facebook page.
• The GPS Student Directory will be printed and delivered to your doorstep in October.
• Our Community Partnership team is actively collaborating with local businesses to secure advertisements for our Directory and event programs.

Looking ahead to October, I hope your students are settling into their new school routines. We have several exciting events on the horizon, including:

• The Mothers' Club Meeting on October 11, starting with a social gathering at 6:30 pm followed by the meeting at 7 pm in the Student Commons. Join us to connect with fellow parents and stay informed about the latest developments.
• A Community Tailgate before the South/North football game on October 20th.
• Parent/Teacher Conferences on October 18 and 19.

Lastly, I want to mark your calendars for our first major Mothers' Club event of the 2023-2024 school year, The Holiday Walk, taking place on December 3, 2023.

For ongoing updates on all the exciting happenings within the Mothers' Club and at Grosse Pointe South, please visit our website or follow us on Instagram or Facebook.

Thank you for your continued support and involvement in our Mothers' Club

Warm regards,

Michelle Parikh

Mothers’ Club President

[email protected]

Mothers' Club 2023-2024 Executive Board

Grosse Pointe South School Store

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We're excited for the new season of the school store. We have some amazing spirit wear selections this year.

All of our store profits go back to the school, teachers, and students through the Mothers' Club support of enrichment, scholarship, and preservation.

Volunteers Needed!

We are looking for volunteers to take 1-2 shifts per month in the Mothers' Club School Store. We will be using a Google Form to collect availability and compile a monthly calendar. Click here to sign up.

Working at the school store is a great way to meet new friends. No prior experience needed!

Store Shift Times:

• Monday**: 10:15 am-12:45 pm
• Tuesday: 10:30 am-12:30 pm
• Wednesday**: 10:00 am-12:30 pm
• Thursday: 10:30 am-12:30 pm
• Friday**: 10:00 am-12:30 pm

** M-W-F are cookie days.

Questions, please contact:

Jennifer Kelly at [email protected] or Erin DiLodovico

at [email protected]

Thank you! 

The class of 2024 would like to thank our parent sponsors for all of their monetary and time donations over the last few months. Our parent sponsors helped fund, supervise and advise our float parties. Their help allowed us to have a successful homecoming season. From the bottom of of our hearts, thank you! 

Parent Sponsors:

• Bennert family 
• Bryan family 
• Eckert family
• Flores family 
• Haindl family 
• Jakubowski family
• Jogan family 
• Kaminski family 
• Kendall family 
• Schindlbeck family 
• Turnbull family 

In addition to our parent sponsors, we would also like to thank the following families for their generous donations of supplies throughout the homecoming season. The supplies donated were used to create all of our wonderful homecoming creations! 

Please note that several items were donated without names attached. If your name is not listed, please know that we are extremely grateful for your generosity. 

• Brink family 
• Hamilton family 
• Lagrou family 
• Tigges family 
• Webber family 

Lastly, we would also like to thank the following families who made donations to the class of 2024 this year. Your donations allow the class to fund various events throughout the year. 

White Donors

• Adams family 
• Bresser family 
• Chalut family
• Eckert family 
• Fett family 
• Goodman family  
• Huffman family 
• Johnson family 
• Kaspzyk family 
• Link family 
• Mager family 
• Petz family 
• Roberts family 
• Selinger family 
• Tigges family 
• Williams family 

Gold Donors

• Barbieri family
• Biter family 
• Busch family  
• Foondle family 
• Hix family 
• Jogan family 
• Kelly family 
• Leonard family 
• Liu family 
• Piccolo family 
• Rosati family 
• Turnbull family 
• Winn family 
• Woolums family 

 Blue Devil Donors

• Brink family 
• Cavaliere family 
• Conn family 
• Doyle family 
• Edlund family 
• Flores family 
• Haindl family 
• Hampton family 
• Hutchinson family 
• Johnson family 
• Melhem family 
• Messacar family 
• Page family 
• Peabody family 
• Tischbein family

Thank you to all of our parent sponsors for the support for Homecoming. The donations of time, money and food helped make everything a real success.

Please encourage your students to attend the class council meetings on Wednesday mornings at 7:15 am in room 182 (Mrs. Caralis' room). 

Students will be planning fundraisers as the year goes on.

Thank you parents for all of the donations, time and help you provided to the sophomore Homecoming events. A big shout out to Fred and Jeni Nazarko for hosting the Homecoming poster/banner/ float house for the second year and the following parents:

• Jessica Bryan
• Amber Byarski
• Julie Denomme 
• Jennifer Kendall 
• Gordon Meldrum 
• Vikas and Wendy Relan 

Thanks to the Student Council and the students who showed up to help make this Homecoming successful.

Thanks to Laurie Snyder for helping us the the Thirty One tote bag fundraiser.

Stay tuned to more fundraisers this year.

A huge thank you to the following people who donated money to the freshman class at the time of registration. This money helped fund our homecoming endeavors and will be sending representatives from the freshman class to an upcoming leadership conference in October:

White Donors

• Betcher family
• Connaire family
• Cotton family
• Czarnik family
• Draper family
• Fett family
• Fillmore family
• Hanneman family
• MacGillis family
• Rouleau family
• Vollmer family

Gold Donors:

• Berger family
• Bocci family
• Fox family
• Haurani family
• Jakubowski family
• Kuras family
• Leinninger family
• Rosati family
• Timmons family

Blue Devil Donors:

• Adams family
• Cotton family
• Gentile family
• Grabowski family
• Gryzenia family
• Haindl family
• Keagle family
• Korsak family
• Kotsis family
• Leonard family
• Mourad family
• Shine family
• Walsh family

Anyone interested in running for class office (president, vice president, secretary or treasurer) must attend one of the informational meetings listed below. Elections will be held online October 12-13.

Info Meetings (choose one):

Tuesday, October 3 (after school in room 168: 3:10 pm)

Friday, October 6 (before school in room 168: 7:15 am)

October 2023 Counselors' Corner

 SENIOR PARENTS: We met with all seniors on Friday, September 15th, to review the college application process, including how to send test scores, transcripts, and request letters of recommendation. The presentation video is available to you here. The slide deck is available here. Once a senior has submitted their application, they must fill out this form for every college to have their materials sent. Remember that seniors who plan to apply to the University of Michigan (Ann Arbor) and Michigan State University should be mindful of Early Action dates. UM and MSU are on Nov 1. We suggest students submit two weeks before the deadline to be confident about Early Action applications. Students requiring a written evaluation (letter of recommendation) from their counselors must complete a Junior Conference information form on Naviance or paper.

Don’t forget that we have representatives visiting from colleges nearly every day of the week during the fall! Calendars are posted on Naviance, eBlasts, Facebook page, and on the announcements. It’s not too late to research schools! Many students are still finding their direction on this. Counselors are happy to help. We encourage students to use the College Super-Match feature on Naviance.

APPLICATION HELP is here! Every Monday morning in October at 8:00, counselors will be available for hands-on college application help in the library. No advance sign-up is required – just show up! We love to help. October is College Application Month, so loads of FREE college apps are available. Also, with a brand new state initiative, all students with a 3.0 are guaranteed admission to these 10 colleges. We would love for every college-bound student to have at least one application sent by the end of the month.

JUNIOR PARENTS: Friday, September 15, we presented our Junior College Preparation meeting.  The meeting theme was Nuts and Bolts of Junior Year: finding the right fit. We talked about college research, using Naviance, grades, testing, college matching, how to start with online searching, and making the most of college representative visits. The video recording and the slide deck are here.

Mark Thursday, October 12th, on your calendars. That is the day the PSAT/NMSQT will be given at South. This is the practice test for the SAT and the test that juniors take to determine eligibility for the National Merit Scholarship Program. The test format is digital for this test, and all tests moving forward, which means we will take the test online. The school will provide all necessary supplies, including a Chromebook. Students will want to practice for this format. A great way to do this is using Bluebook, an app from the College Board that simulates the online test. Students wishing to get some last-minute review may want to check out Khan Academy online for free test prep and reliable practice tests. You can match your College Board account with your Khan Academy account, and they will customize a free test prep program and help you develop a calendar for practicing.

Juniors will take the SAT (also online) as part of state testing in Spring. This is an official test with reportable scores. Many parents ask if their students should take the ACT and the SAT. Either test is excellent for college admissions, so students should go with the test they feel the most successful taking. Consider the PSAT score as a good baseline for SAT success. It may be wise to take an ACT so students can review both baseline test scores to decide which test he or she will choose to focus on for preparation. 

FRESHMEN PARENTS: If you missed the Freshman Orientation Night, you can see my submission is about transitioning to high school from last year. It is a significant change, and we see this in five main themes: Academic, Social, Emotional, Physical, and Financial elements. I hope you find the video helpful. Please reach out if counselors can support your student in getting comfortable and thriving at South. A great place to start is by joining clubs, teams, and activities. The club list is still growing so check back often to see what new ones pop up. Typically this list will grow to 60 or 70 opportunities. Mrs. Petz in the Student Activities office is a great resource!

ALL PARENTS: Have you checked your student’s grades on Schoology yet? We are at about the middle of the first quarter and an excellent time to look at your child’s progress. Here are a few resources I found helpful in sorting through digital or paper tracking.

1. How to Organize using the Schoology Calendar Function video
2. Schoology workflow and organization video

The Counseling Center continues to post “Wellness Wednesday” updates weekly on Schoology for students, focusing on positive actions to take for health and wellness. Please let us know if you have an idea about something you would like to see on Wellness Wednesday