Silas High School—Principal’s Weekly Message—September 21, 2025—

Silas Core Beliefs

Every student can learn and grow at high levels.

Every student brings valuable prior knowledge to school.

Every student shall have a trusted adult at school with whom they connect.

Every student shall have access to guaranteed and viable curriculum.

Every student shall leave Silas High School prepared for post-secondary options.

The September Equity Theme centers around: Listening

Listening lies at the heart of problem-solving and relationship-building. It does not guarantee consensus, yet it enlarges our awareness of others’ emotions, circumstances, and stories, allowing us to glimpse experiences beyond our own. When we honor every voice with patient, compassionate attention, we discover insights that would otherwise remain hidden.

Consider: In what setting do you find you listen best? For me, it’s in a circle—in a class, at a conference, in book club—whether I know the people there or not, if I can see them all and watch their body language as I listen to them, I find that I listen best when I see everyone with whom I am speaking. What works for you?

Important Dates (info for athletics comes in a separate communication)

• Wednesday, September 24—Late Start—Professional learning (PLC) time for staff
• Thursday, September 25—Back to School Night/Open House 5:30-7:00—
  • 5:30-6:15 pm—families visit classrooms. Use the ParentVue or StudentVue app for class schedules. Students are ENCOURAGED to attend with their families to tour guide!
  • 6:20-7:00 pm—3 panel options: 9^th Grade Success Team will be in the Library. We’ll have signage and announcements for the other two panel options.
• Monday, September 29—HOMECOMING SPIRIT WEEK!—Neon Day
• Tuesday, September 30—Tropical Tuesday spirit day
• Tuesday, September 30—Deadline for “Tacoma skategoat” contest—see flyer below
• October is National Principal Month
• Wednesday, October 1—Late Start—Building Staff Professional Development
• Wednesday, October 1—Get Wiggy spirit day—wear a wig
• Thursday, October 2—Senior Citizens spirit day
• Thursday, October 2—Custodian Appreciation Day
• Friday, October 3—Night in Miami Color Wars spirit day and Homecoming Assembly
• Saturday, October 4—Homecoming Dance—8-10 pm in the gym—guest form here:  Silas Dance Guest Request
• Wednesday, October 8—Silas Club Fair at both lunches
• Monday, October 13—Waiver Day—training for staff—no classes for students (also Columbus 
• Day and Indigenous Peoples’ Day)
• Thursday, October 16—Conferences—Any student with a C grade or lower should expect to hear from staff. Of course, families can also reach out to staff to schedule a conference for any reason. Students are released at lunch at 11:15. Lunch available until 11:45.
• Friday, October 17—Conferences—students released at lunch
• Friday, October 17—Picture retakes
• Wednesday, October 22—Choir Concert—details TBD
• Sunday, November 2—Special Education Day
• Friday, November 3—School Psychologist Week
• Tuesday, November 4—Election Day—VOTE!
• Monday, November 10—No school for students and some staff
• Tuesday, November 11—Veteran’s Day Holiday—schools and District offices closed
• Friday, November 14—National Superintendent Day
• Wednesday, November 19—Education Support Specialist (ESP) Appreciation Day
• Wednesday, November 19—Daffodil Princess Selection Night
• Friday, November 21—Sub Appreciation Day
• Wednesday-Friday, November 26-28—Thanksgiving Break

Late Start Wednesdays—what are certificated staff doing on those days? (Certificated staff are teachers, counselors, administrators, and anyone who holds a specific, professional certificate.)

First Wednesday of each month is Building-Level Professional Learning for certificated staff

Second Wednesday of each month—Professional Learning Communities or PLC time

(It’s teacher planning time where they look at student work and tune lessons based on where students are performing.

It gives teachers an opportunity to calibrate so that students taking Geometry—for example—who have different teachers—are getting similar instruction. They also talk about how to accommodate for students struggling and how to accelerate for students needing more rigor.)

Third Wednesday of each month is individual classroom time for planning, grading, reflection—for teachers to be ALONE. 😊

Fourth Wednesday of each month—PLC again

If there is a fifth Wednesday of the month, the staff council (Site-Centered Decision-Making team or SCDM) determines how it is used.

Washington State Healthy Youth Survey 2025

Our school is participating in the Washington State Healthy Youth Survey during fall 2025.  The survey will be given to students in Grades 6, 8, 10 and 12 in large districts

The Healthy Youth Survey includes questions related to physical activity and diet, unintentional and intentional injury, substance use, sexual behaviors, abuse, risk and protective factors, and access to school-based services.  Survey results are used by schools, communities, and state agencies to plan programs to support our youth and reduce their risks.  

Participation in the survey is voluntary and the students' answers are anonymous.  There are no codes or information used to match a survey to a student.  The survey will be administered in English classes on October 16^th (periods 1-3) and October 17^th (periods 4-6). More details to come in October…

Homecoming Dance Guest Form (again)

Silas Dance Guest Request

So What?

1. If I’m a senior wanting to apply to colleges, how should I prioritize deadlines? The Common App is due by September 30? Really? This is because financial aid is available beginning October 1 through the FAFSA (or Federal Application for Student Aid)—the earlier you submit a FAFSA, the more money is available. (The Common App is one application taken by multiple schools—a way for applicants to save time and money…and stress and energy.)
2. NO DELIVERIES TO SCHOOL! UberEats, InstaCart, DoorDash—NO. It’s expensive and a poor use of any budget. It’s inefficient as students often leave class to go outside to meet delivery drivers. It’s unsafe to have strangers interacting with our students on campus. It’s annoying—our main office staff already have full-time jobs. They are not servers or bussers or delivery folks.
3. All Tacoma schools are closed campuses. You eat school lunch (free to EVERY student) or bring what you want to eat. Meals are available on campus three times each day. Breakfast before school. Breakfast break between first and second period. Lunch is during fourth period. Students may eat at two of those three meal opportunities simply by entering their student numbers at the cash register in the cafeteria. Snacks are also available for purchase in the student store almost every day at lunch.

RamTV News: https://youtu.be/soXBP09YAS8

What inspired me this week?

Seniors claiming and painting their own parking spots in the pool lot. (Thanks for your patience and flexibility with the closure.) If you are a senior interested in purchasing a spot for $25, see Mrs. McFarland at the ASB window. This is our first time doing this as a fundraiser. We are tuning and will see how it goes. Will also take feedback. It was fun seeing the seniors excited about it. More spots available!

 

GO RAMS.