THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW: 

• Tomorrow we will host our Glow Party!  Please remind your student(s) to wear white or neon and help celebrate the ways we glow together 
• Next week we will experience our first standard bell schedule! 
• Student Activities & Athletics will host their Athletics/Activities Fair the week of August 20 - 23 

If these hallways and classrooms could talk, they would tell you all about the buzz in the building based on the return of our students.  Staff were glowing to welcome students back with smiles, laughter and greetings of familiarity.  We will spend time with all of our students on Friday going over what it means to live in our House on Vine.  We have a strong vision for how we want our students to experience school.  We want our students to create new relationships, appreciate the rich diversity that exists in this school, work hard and be proud of themselves for their efforts and exploration, grow through challenges, and find many moments of joy.  This is affectionately known as our Glow House Party on Vine.  During this time we will talk about what it means to be a Giant.  This means we are generous, inclusive, accountable, nurturing, teammates.  We ask that our students think about how their actions can help to create a better Highland Park High School, one moment, one laugh, one question at a time. Feel free to use some of this language at home in regards to our values.  The more we support each other in messaging, the more it will stick!! Thank you for sharing your students with us this week and beyond.    

COUNSELING

We are so excited to welcome you back to HPHS.  Over the past week counselors have been busy at work helping our freshmen and new transfer students settle in our Giant Home and  assisting any students who are experiencing challenges to our new school year.  We appreciate our community's support as we continue shifting our practice to "critical course schedule changes" only.  Keep an eye out for our amazing Post Secondary Team and their first presentation of the year for seniors and their families on August 19th at 6:30 on zoom-Completing College Applications.  We look forward to sharing more about our support in counseling as the year unfolds.  In the meantime, go giants.

PTO

Welcome back HPHS Families! We invite you to get involved with HPHS PTO this year. PTO membership registration is now open at www.hphspto.org and we are grateful for your support. Your membership enables HPHS PTO to provide hospitality for our 300 incredible HPHS staff members, support staff and student activities through grants, host events such as Homecoming Paint the Town Blue, Parents Night Out, Senior Grad Night, and more!

FOCUS ONTHE ARTS

Video link

ACTIVITIES

On Friday, August 16 we will be having a BE GIANT GLOW assembly to start the school year in a fun and exciting way. We will be sharing with students how to get involved, opportunities and expectations and what it means to BE GIANT! STUDENTS PLEASE WEAR WHITE OR NEON ON THIS DAY TO GLOW IN THE AUDITORIUM!

• Yearbook Distribution will be on Friday August 16th in the cafeteria during ALL lunch periods for students who missed yearbook distribution. If you didn't purchase an Activity Ticket for the 23-24 School year and still want a yearbook you can purchase a 23-24 yearbook for $50 cash in the lunchroom. Any questions please email Mrs. Meyer at Lmeyer@dist113.org
• Picture day is August 22 and 23. Click here for more information.

Student Activities & Athletics will host their Athletics/Activities Fair the week of August 20 - 23 during lunch periods.  All Students attend and meet/greet members of the various clubs and teams HPHS has to offer.  All coaches and club/activity sponsors are expected to have a stationed table to recruit and promote your sport/club/activity at HPHS. Let’s get all students involved! Click here for the lineup for the week!

Charity Drive 2025 is now seeking applications.  Visit the Charity Drive website for criteria and the application.  Applications must be submitted by September 6, 2024. 

ATHLETICS

The Fall Sports Kickoff Meeting will be held on Saturday, August 24th at 10:30am in the student cafeteria.  All Fall athletes and caregivers are encouraged to attend.  

Please consider joining the Giants Club, our volunteer parent booster organization.  You can find information about the Giants Club, as well as details about membership here.  The first Giants Club Meeting will be Wednesday, August 28th at 7:00pm in the Giant Conference Room at HPHS.

Wolters Field Tips

• Drop off and pick should occur by the yellow gate next to the 1st base dugout of the varsity baseball field.  Please avoid blocking the gates to the bus parking lot.
• There is a Shuttle Bus Monday-Friday from HPHS to Wolters Field at approximately 3:20pm.  If the shuttle is full, a 2nd bus will come to pick up student-athletes.
• There is also an Activity Bus available to take athletes home.  It leaves the H entrance at HPHS at 5:45pm.  It also makes a stop at the center gate at Wolters Field.  Athletes need to be waiting on the southside of Park Avenue by 5:50pm at the latest.
• There is no parking or drop offs on the side streets to the east of Wolters Field.
• Lockers are available for athletes at Wolters Field.  Students should talk to their coach about being assigned a locker to store valuables while practicing and competing at Wolters Field.
• We love dogs, but unfortunately we cannot allow pets at athletic contests at Wolters Field and at HPHS.  Sorry!

HOMEROOM @ HOME

Homeroom was a great way to begin our day and kick off the new year together! In addition to taking the time to connect as a community, students had the opportunity to preview the new schedule and ask questions.  With next week’s first standard bell schedule, students will begin to meet with their homeroom four times.

Dist113 Education Foundation Board is accepting applications for student representatives for the 2024-2025 school year. Interested Freshmen, Sophomores and Juniors should complete the application by August 25th. The application can be found here. If you have any questions about the program you can email Mrs. Meyer at LMEYER@dist113.org