Watertown High School Newsletter
Watertown Unified School District | February 2024
Wednesday, April 10, 2024
Freshman and sophomore students will take the statewide online PreACT Secure test in person at WHS on Wednesday, April 10, 2024. Junior and senior students will NOT report to school on Wednesday, April 10.
On Thursday, April 4, freshman and sophomores had a homeroom in which they received information on practice tests and test tips. Below is the link to the presentation.
All WUSD freshman and sophomore students should report to WHS between 7:30 a.m. – 7:55 a.m. (breakfast provided) on test day, Wednesday, April 10. Testing begins promptly at 8:00 a.m. in all testing rooms, so please remind your student to do everything possible to arrive early so testing can begin on time! Students will be dismissed when testing is complete at appx. 11:30 a.m. Students who need to wait for the bus at 2:15 p.m., can wait in the commons area.
Students are asked to please leave their cell phones, smart watches, electronic devices, and backpacks at home as they are not allowed in the testing room. If a student has any interaction with their cell phone or other device, even during break times, the test will be invalid. Coats can be left in the back of the testing room as lockers will not be available.
Students MUST bring their WUSD Chromebook, Chromebook charger, a student ID/driver’s license, pencil and a calculator with them to the testing room. Students should plug in their Chromebook overnight to ensure it is fully charged on test day. Students will only be allowed to take the ACT on a district issued Chromebook.
Thursday, April 18
Sophomore students will also be participating in the Wisconsin Forward Exam (Social Studies test) on Thursday, April 18 during an extended homeroom period. The Wisconsin Forward (Social Studies test) is an untimed test that has two sessions.
Students MUST bring their WUSD Chromebook and Chromebook charger with them to the testing room. Students should plug in their Chromebook overnight to ensure it is fully charged on test day. Students will only be allowed to take the WI Forward on a district issued Chromebook.
Current Junior Students/Parents
The Watertown Unified School District has partnered with the Universities of Wisconsin to offer a seamless way for all students to access higher education opportunities. Direct Admit Wisconsin is an initiative by the Universities of Wisconsin to proactively offer admission to qualifying high school students in between their junior and senior years of high school. Direct admission removes the traditional application process and instead uses data provided by the high school to admit students to universities. The Direct Admit Wisconsin program will launch in 2024 for the class of 2025. Participating UW universities will proactively admit Wisconsin high school students based on their high school GPA, academic coursework, and graduate from a participating Wisconsin high school.
Direct Admit FAQ
What are the eligibility requirements for students?
· First, you must be enrolled in a participating school district to participate in the program. Then, if you are on track to complete the credits required for admission – 4 units of English, 3 units of approved math, 3 units of social science, 3 units of natural science, and 4 additional academic units – you may receive an admission offer through Direct Admit Wisconsin.
Are students required to participate if the district has chosen to participate?
· No, Direct Admit Wisconsin is not a mandatory program. The student will have the option to opt out of participation.
What do students need to do to participate?
· Students need to be enrolled as a junior (Class of 2025). They will need to meet the direct admission criteria to receive admission offers through Direct Admit Wisconsin.
Is there a cost or fee to participate?
· No. There is no fee or cost to submit the Direct Admit form for students
When and how do students opt-in for the Direct Admit Wisconsin program?
· Students in the Class of 2025 at participating high schools will not need to opt-in. Our district will have an opt-out option for those families not interested in the opportunity.
What are students and families agreeing to when they participate?
· They are agreeing to share information with the Universities of Wisconsin so that we can provide a streamlined acceptance process into participating UW universities. Participating also provides consent to receive communications about Direct Admit Wisconsin.
With whom are student data shared?
· Student data are shared with staff in Universities of Wisconsin Administration by the district to facilitate Direct Admit Wisconsin.
What student data need to be shared?
· The high school will share the following student data with Universities of Wisconsin: High school and district information, student name, WISEid, high school student ID, graduation year, physical address, school email address, GPA, legal sex, and race/ethnicity. Federal guidelines require us to collect race/ethnicity information and will be used in aggregate for federal reporting. Demographic information is not a factor in the direct admission decision process.
When and how do students get Direct Admit letters? Who are they from?
· Students will receive their Direct Admit letter in a communication sent through Skyward in late July. The letter is from the Universities of Wisconsin and will list the UW universities/campuses that the student is admitted to.
What if a student wants to attend a university that is not participating in Direct Admit Wisconsin?
· Students continue to have the option to complete the Universities of Wisconsin online application for universities that are not participating in Direct Admit Wisconsin. Some universities also accept the Common App. Students can wait to receive admission decisions from other schools before accepting a direct admit or traditional admission offer.
How are Direct Admit offers accepted? Do students still need to fill out an application?
· Students need to complete the Direct Admit form to claim their direct admission offers. The offer letter will link to the Direct Admit Wisconsin online portal for students to provide more information and to indicate which UW universities/campuses they would like to attend, explore, or learn more about. There is no fee for accepting admission offers and no limit to the number of offers that can be accepted. Direct Admit students do not need to fill out the Universities of Wisconsin application.
What if a student fails to graduate from high school or meet the admission requirements during senior year?
· Direct Admit students must complete the requirements for admission during the senior year and graduate from high school. If not, admission offers will be rescinded.
Are there resources to help students choose which UW is right for them?
· UW HELP has robust resources and information to help students and families explore the Universities of Wisconsin and discover which campus is right for them. Students can reach out to the UW HELP team at uwhelp@uwsa.edu, 800-442-6459, or visit the website to access a live chat.
* Opt-out forms will be made available to families in the coming weeks.
Please look for additional information via email and newsletters. You can access more information now through the Direct Admit website.
Graduation Ceremony
The Class of 2024 Graduation Ceremony will take place on Saturday, June 8, 2024 at 10 a.m. in the WHS Fieldhouse. Arrangements are being made to live-stream the ceremony for additional family members.
Graduation Tickets
The Graduation Ceremony will be a ticketed event for guests, with each graduate being allocated 12 tickets. Unused tickets will be made available to families who may want additional tickets at a later time. The form to request tickets will be shared to families in the upcoming weeks. Tickets will NOT be released to students until the beginning of June.
Graduation Video
The Graduation Committee is looking for childhood (baby/elementary age) pictures for the senior slideshow. Pictures can be submitted to whsgradpics@gmail.com. The deadline to submit pictures is Friday, May 3.
Senior Fees
We would like to remind parents that all school fees must be paid in full in order for your child to participate in the Graduation Ceremony. Fees can be paid by cash or credit card and are due no later than Friday, May 17, 2024. Additionally, any fees paid after May 1, 2024, must be paid by cash or credit card - no checks will be accepted.
Caps & Gowns
Seniors who missed the pick up of Jostens senior items, should stop in the Main Office to pick up their items ASAP. Students who didn't order their cap and gown yet, are encouraged to do so ASAP, by calling the Jostens Office at 262-899-8334 or ordering on their website: jostens.com.
The deadline to order a 2023-2024 yearbook is Friday, May 10. No extra yearbooks are purchased so don't delay in ordering yours!
You can order a yearbook by clicking here.
WUSD has the following positions open. If you know anyone interested, please have them contact Sarah Miller at millers@mywusd.org. Applications are also available in the WHS Main Office.
- Part Time Cleaner (Must be 16 years old)
- Monday - Friday from 5:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.
- Wage: $16.65 per hour
- Summer Cleaner (Must be 16 years old)
- Monday - Friday from 7:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
- Wage: $16.65 per hour
- Lawn Maintenance (Must be 18 years old):
- Monday - Friday from 6:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.
- Wage: $16.65 per hour
Graeson Mihalko is the son of Katy Mihalko and Ron Mihalko. Graeson has been a member of the Boys Golf team for four years. He has also been involved in Spanish Honor Society and HOSA-Future Health Professionals. Graeson has also been a volunteer at Cornerstone of Grace. He is currently working at Milford Hills and plans on attending a four year university.
Ava Roberts is the daughter of Stephen Roberts and Kristen Roberts. Ava has been a four year member of the Watertown Blue Revue Varsity Dance Team (Captain) and National Art Honor Society. She has also been involved in National Honor Society and Spanish Honor Society (Secretary). Ava is currently working as a physical therapy tech and a lifeguard. After high school, Ava plans on attending UW-Madison to study Kinesiology and Spanish.
Rae Heier is the daughter of Josh and Stacie Heier. Rae has been a member of the Girls Varsity Swim Team and Varsity Track and Field Team for her four years of high school. Rae has also been involved in the following: National Art Honor Society (President), Spanish Honor Society (President), National Honor Society, INTERACT (Vice President), and Ecology Club (Vice President). Rae is also a member of the Academic Decathlon Team and the Visual Arts Classic Team. Recently, Rae was honored for her work receiving “Best in Show” at this year’s Wisconsin Youth Art Month Show. In her free time, Rae is a barista at Latte Donate and is planning on attending a four year university next year.
