Animas High School prepares all students for college and postsecondary success by creating critical thinkers and engaged citizens through an innovative, student-centered, project-based curriculum.

Greetings Ospreys,

We hope to see you at tonight's Exhibitions of Learning, with student artists at Zia Cantina from 5-7pm and student musicians at iAM Music's Indigo Room from 5:30-730pm!

And tomorrow, we look forward to celebrating with the juniors and seniors at the AHS Prom from 8-10pm at the Strater Hotel.

Monday is a Professional Development Day for staff, with no classes for students. We will welcome students back to the Nest on Tuesday. Please note there is also a Professional Development Day on Monday, May 5. Teachers are using this valuable planning time to finalize Fall 2025 Osprey Blocks, our three-week elective classes designed to engage students through academically rigorous, cross-disciplinary, immersive studies that connect classroom learning to powerful, real-world experiences. They will take place from September 8 through 25. Read fall 2025 Osprey Block course descriptions here.

All current 9th, 10th and 11th grade students plus new students enrolling for the 2025/26 school year will have the opportunity to select their top three Osprey Block choices as part of the course request process in the next few weeks. Save the date: Dean of College and Career Counseling Erin Cummins Roper will offer an Online Academic Advising Session for New Families on Tuesday, May 6, at 6pm designed to guide our newest Ospreys through the process of selecting classes.

Our juniors are off to their three-week LINK Internships! At the end of the day today, our school community gathered in the Commons to hear all their internship placements and celebrate this Animas rite of passage. The class of 2026 will be in the professional work world full-time through May 9, with mentors from a wide range of career fields. Their internship placements are both local and further afield, including:

• shadowing a public defender in the Durango Colorado Public Defender's Office
• checking out various departments at Animas Surgical Hospital
• studying funeral direction at Hood Mortuary
• shadowing a mentor in the City of Durango IT Department who happens to be an AHS alum
• heading to Outerbanks Center for Wildlife Education in North Carolina
• flying to Italy to intern at Tessilform SpA, a fasihon company

We're so grateful for all the organizations and LINK mentors hosting juniors as they explore careers and test out adulting as part of their AHS preparation for postsecondary success! Thank you to our Work-Based Learning Coordinator Elliot Baglini for shepherding them all through the process.

Last night's well-attended Admissions Case Study Workshop was another outstanding example of how we're preparing students for success after high school. Dean of College and Career Counseling Erin Cummins-Roper invited 21 college reps from around the country to lead students and families from AHS, Durango High School, Bayfield High School and Pagosa Springs High School through the exercise of evaluating mock college applications in order to demystify the application process.

Today's visit to San Juan College School of Energy in Farmington, New Mexico gave our sophomores a valuable opportunity to hear from professionals in the energy field as part of The Energy Project while visiting another college campus.

Finally, this is the time of year we turn to our families with several requests to pitch in, as we host many end-of-year events. Thank you to those who contributed hoards of delicious and healthy snacks for PSAT and SAT testing day this week! Next up, we'd love to encourage folks to contribute to the AHS Teacher and Staff Appreciation Week Sign Up so we can shed our faculty with treats May 5-9. Junior parents--look for an invitation to help organize the Senior Supper, coming your way next week!

Coming Next at the Nest

Seniors will wrap up their TED Talks next Tuesday and Wednesday. It's not too late to view the Senior Project TED Talk Schedule with Research Questions and drop by to attend.

Once finished with these presentations, seniors turn their full attention to their Action Projects, putting what they've learned through their research into practice. Senior Hayden Bicknell, who is headed to Smith College in Massachusetts next fall, is hosting an Open Mic next Thursday evening at The Subterrain for her Action Project. Her thesis examined how the female body has been portrayed in feminist poetry across the 2nd through 4th waves of feminism. Stop by the event to contribute or support those who read.

We look forward to inviting a host of industry professionals in for the 9th Grade Career Fair next Wednesday morning.

AHS Yearbooks Now on Sale!

Buy the 2024/25 AHS Yearbook! Yearbooks are $45 and will be on sale from now until graduation. They can be purchased through Jostens at this link. 

Student artists are invited to submit original artwork to the Quill; the art will be printed out as stickers to personalize our yearbook covers! The yearbook will arrive in early August, and the Quill will host a signing/decorating party. Stay tuned for more details!

We're thinking there aren't that many public high schools in the nation where students can sign up for an Avalanche Awareness course that meets during the school day (and sometimes beyond) and helps them earn their American Institute for Avalanche Research and Education Level 1 certification. If you're curious to learn more about the class, what it entails and why students sign up, have a look at this short video from senior Mitchell Bidart. Thank you to our community partners and sponsors Know the Snow Fund, San Juan Expeditions, Pine Needle Mountaineering and Backcountry Experience, and to Dean of Experiential Education Ashley Carruth for helping this group of outdoor enthusaiasts travel safely in the mountains!

We're Hiring!

We hope to add Woodworking class to our 2025/26 Course Catalog and are seeking a Woodworking Instructor. Spread the word if you know a great candidate to teach the course, which would meet four days a week in our beautiful Makerspace. In addition, we are hiring a Special Education Teacher for the 2025/26 year to support individualized instruction and support to diverse learners.

See Employment Opportunities on our website for full details and how to apply.

Fall 2025 Enrollment

Enrollment is open for Fall 2025! We strongly encourag families to visit our school. View the Campus Tour/Online Information RSVP Form to see dates/times and to sign up. Complete Fall 2025 Intent to Enroll Form to indicate your interest. We will contact you to let you know if there is a waitlist for the grade your student is entering in the fall. Reach out toour Dean of Enrollment and Community Outreach at libby.cowles@animashighschool.com with questions.

Now is the time for current families to re-register for the 2025/26 school year. Complete the re-registration steps for all current 9th, 10th and 11th grade families now--it should take just a few minutes. Email Heather Prekup at regisrar@animashighschool.com with questions.

Enjoy the long weekend and thanks for all you do to help the Ospreys soar!

Upcoming Events

Senior Project TED Talks: Fri. 4/11 through Wed. 4/23; see Senior Project TED Talk Schedule with Research Questions

Animas Wilderness Experience: Outdoor Leadership Class Backpacking Trip: Thurs. 4/17 through Mon. 4/21

Osprey Art Exhibition: Fri. 4/18, 5-7pm at Zia Cantina

AHS Student Showcase: Fri. 4/18, 5:30-7:30 at iAM Music Institute's Indigo Room

AHS Prom: Sat. 4/19, 8-10pm

Professional Development Day (no classes): Mon. 4/21

LINK Internships: Mon. 4/21 through Fri. 5/9

AHS Campus Tour: Tues. 4/22, 5:30pm; RSVP here

9th Grade Career Fair: Wed. 4/23

Senior Project Action Project: Feminist Poetry Open Mic: Thurs. 4/24, 7-9pm at The Subterrian

9th Grade Camping Trip: Wed. 4/30 through Fri. 5/2

AHS Campus Tour: Thurs. 5/1, 8:45am; RSVP here

Academic Advising Online Session for New/Transfer Students and Families: Tues. 5/6, 6pm

AHS Student Film Festival: Tues. 5/13, 6-8pm, Durango Arts Center

All School Exhibition: Thurs. 5/15, 4-7pm

11th Grade Camping Trip: Mon. 5/16 through Wed. 5/21

Senior Supper: Thurs. 5/22, 6pm

AHS Graduation: Fri. 5/23, 4pm at Community Concert Hall

Memorial Day Holiday (no school): Mon. 5/26

Transitional Presentations of Learning: Tues. 5/27 through Thurs. 5/29

Educational programs, activities, and employment opportunities at AHS are offered without regard to disability, race, creed, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, family composition, marital status, national origin, religion, ancestry or need for special education services.