WHS Parent Newsletter
From the desk of Shannan McKenna
January 9, 2026
Happy Friday!
I hope everyone had a restful holiday break. It was great to welcome staff and students back to the WHS in 2026. It is hard to believe that we only have one more week of Semester 1 prior to Midterm exams, which will take place from January 20-23!
On Thursday, January 8, Windham High School proudly hosted the 21st Granite State Invitational Music Festival. 240 student musicians in choir, band, and orchestra from 8 schools across the state came together to rehearse and perform challenging repertoire under the direction of esteemed guest conductors. WHS was honored to welcome and host these outstanding high school musicians! Thank you to Mr. Blake Leister, Ms. Becky Pierce, and Ms. Susan Kalil for bringing this opportunity to our school and to our facilities team for making it possible!
Finally, as a reminder, starting this week, all school newsletters will only be posted to the Newsfeed section of MyPowerHub. MyPowerHub enables our district to utilize a centralized platform from PowerSchool, consolidating school communication, grades, assignments, forms, meal balances, and direct messaging capabilities all within a single login to help streamline parent communication into one central location. You will receive an email notification once it is posted to your newsfeed. If you do not receive these notifications, please check your notification settings. Also, if you have not logged into MyPowerHub yet, please follow these instructions.
Have a great weekend!
In this edition (*new information is bolded)
- Shout Outs
- Senior Information: Yearbooks
- School Counseling Information: Applying to College 101; Class of 2026 Scholarships; Therapy Dogs
- ELOs: Class of 2027 Apprenticeships; Parkland Summer Program; Marine Industry; CIEE
- Community Service Opportunities
- Athletics: Winter Sports; January Weight Room Schedule
- Personalized Yearbooks
- Technology: School Messenger Text Opt-In; MyPowerHub Notifications; Parent Portal Information (PowerSchool and Schoology)
- General School: Free and Reduced Meal Options; Student Arrival and Dismissal procedures; Reporting Absences/Tardies/Dismissals; Bus Tracking App
- Free Tutoring Resource- SAT and CTE offerings
- Volunteer Information
- We're Hiring!
- WHS Events: Lunch Group
- Outside Events: Robotics-Capri Pizza Fundraiser; Last Night- You're Fired Fundraiser; Windham Youth Lacrosse; FLOW Events; Windham Helping Hands; Join the PTA; WMAA Fundraisers
Important Dates
- January 12: Applying to College 101 (more info. below)
- January 16: End of Quarter 2
- January 16: Senior Directed Shows at 6pm
- January 19: No School
- January 20-23: Midterm Exams (please see January calendar below for specific times)
- Shout out to WHS students, Kate Dunham and Noah LaSpina, whose articles were featured in the first edition of the greet Windham magazine.
Windham High School received notice that the artwork of 24 students has been selected for recognition in the Scholastic Art Awards of New Hampshire. Among those recognized, one senior portfolio earned special distinction. In total, 32 individual works of art by Windham students will be displayed at the Stockbridge Theatre at Pinkerton Academy. The exhibition opens on January 19 and will conclude with an awards ceremony on February 8. The Scholastic Art Awards program is the largest high school art competition and exhibition in New Hampshire. Artwork is chosen by a panel of art professors, retired teachers, and art educators from neighboring states, with selections determined by majority vote. We congratulates the following students on this prestigious accomplishment: Destiny An, Silver Key; Kiley Candon, Honorable Mention; Chloe Cassotis, Honorable Mention; Eleanor Chadwick, Honorable Mention; Charlotte Conrad, Honorable Mention; Lukas Cooper, Honorable Mention; Phoebe Cunningham, Silver Key; Zac Hussey, Silver Key; Brynn Johnson, Silver Key; Tyler Jordan, Gold Key; Alexander Koulichkov, Honorable Mention; Maura Lamb, Silver Key; Claire Levine, Honorable Mention; Alice Li, 3 Honorable Mentions; Aliya Miller, Honorable Mention; Chelsea Offersen, Gold Key, Silver Key Portfolio, Honorable Mention; Courtney Offersen, Honorable Mention; Colton Oliver, Honorable Mention; Addison Reinhart, Honorable Mention; Riley Sawyer, Gold Key, Silver Key, Honorable Mention; Dante Simione, Silver Key; Abby Tieman, Silver Key; Sunny Wilkerson Honorable Mention; and, Lauren Zachas, Gold Key
The Windham High School Football field was named this year’s winner for best high school football field by Sports Field Management. This prestigious award spotlights the individuals and programs that excelled in providing quality, safe playing surfaces. The SFMA Awards Committee reviewed each submittal and independently rated applicants on field quality as impacted by staffing, budget, use, monthly maintenance, and a visual story that documents challenges and successes. We are so fortunate to have been awarded this title, and we thank our hardworking and dedicated facilities team including Robin Wilson, our Head Groundskeeper.
WHS Math Teacher, Mr. Steve Latvis, was featured in the weekly Superintendent newsletter's Staff Q&A. Learn more about Mr. Latvis’ vital role in supporting Windham High School.
Yearbooks
Your graduate will treasure their senior yearbook forever! You can make it even more special and tell your student just how proud you are of them by purchasing a SENIOR RECOGNITION AD that will be featured in the yearbook.
It is hard to believe how quickly the past four years have passed. This is a great way to write a personal message to your senior that will live forever in their yearbook. The hard deadline to purchase a senior ad is February 1st. This date is determined by our yearbook publisher, Jostens, and CANNOT be extended.
To purchase the yearbook and/or senior parent ad, please go to www.jostensyearbooks.com . At checkout, you can pay in full or enroll in the Jostens payment plan with 4 monthly installments!
Applying to College 101
Where: Windham High School
Date: Monday, January 12th
Time: 6:30 p.m.
Selecting colleges and applying for admission can be overwhelming. There are applications to be completed, deadlines to meet, essays to write and policies to understand. This session is intended to educate the student and family about the college admission process and is appropriate for high school juniors and parents, but all high school freshmen, sophomores, and juniors are welcome to attend. Topics include: narrowing your list, questions to ask on a college tour, college essay pointers, the application timeline and the basics of financial aid. Attendees will receive The College Insider, which you can scan with the QR code.
Therapy Dogs
As a district we will be having therapy dogs visiting the schools. At WHS these dogs visit advisories, as well as classrooms that sign-up for a visit. If you would like to opt your child out, please contact our guidance department (kkennedy@windhamsd.org). Thank you!
Interested in the Marine Industry?
Students or anyone who may be interested in the marine industry, the trades, or engineering and design - Are you working with students who are not sure what they want to do but enjoy boating, like to work with their hands, and would thrive in a small learning community? If so, The Landing School might be the perfect fit.
The marine industry needs skilled tradespeople. Students of all ages at The Landing School are career-ready in just 9 months. Financial aid, including veteran’s benefits, are available to those who qualify.
Contact:
Steve Parello
Admissions
The Landing School of Boatbuilding & Design
286 River Rd
Arundel ME 04046
207-810-2288
www.landingschool.edu
sparello@landingschool.edu
Community Service Opportunities for WHS Students
WHS students have access to a wide variety of community service opportunities in our community. These experiences help students give back, explore interests, and build skills that will benefit them beyond high school.
Opportunities are updated regularly and can be found here:
👉Current WHS Community Service Opportunities Folder
Please remind your student that volunteer hours should be logged in x2VOL through Clever within 30 days of completion.An accurate email address is required for hour verification. Hours are verified & approved before they can count toward graduation requirements.
Encourage your student to get involved—volunteering is a wonderful way to grow, connect, and contribute!
Any questions or want some assistance, please email us!
Kimber Leuteritz & Laura Boyd
School to Career Office
Friday, January 30th is the last day you can order your 2026 yearbook with your student's name and activities on the yearbook cover. This is a firm day with our yearbook publisher and cannot be extended. Order your 2026 yearbook at Jostens.com or call 1-877-767-5217!
MyPowerHub
Instructions for adjusting parent notifications in MyPowerHub are available here.
We are proud to introduce a new parent platform, MyPowerHub. This platform enables our district to utilize a centralized platform from PowerSchool, consolidating the flow of information from schools to parents and guardians. In MyPowerHub, parents/guardians can:
See their child’s progress in one place
See school, classroom, club, and district communications in one place
Get direct messages from teachers and staff
Submit forms
View fees
Sign up for parent/teacher conferences
View transportation information
If you have not logged into the platform yet, please follow the instructions below to log in:
Parent Portals
PowerSchool Parent Portal
- Used to view your student's
- Report cards
- Course and assignment grades
- Lunch balances and other school fees
- Attendance
- Schedules
- Need to Sign in to the PowerSchool Parent Portal for the first time? Follow these instructions to activate your account. Please complete this process on a laptop or desktop for the best results! If you encounter any difficulties, please complete the Parent PowerSchool Account Support form.
- App vs. Website: Here is a helpful guide comparing when to use the PowerSchool app versus when to use the website.
- Questions?
- If you need assistance in viewing a student’s information, please contact PowerSchool@windhamsd.org and include your student’s name and grade level.
- If you need assistance signing into your PowerSchool parent portal, please contact PowerSchool@windhamsd.org.
Schoology Parent Portal
- Used to view your student's
- Courses
- Upcoming, current, and overdue assignments
- Daily/weekly student agendas
- Set up weekly notifications within the platform
- In order to gain access, all parents (K-12) will need to log in and use the password Changeme1 the first time they access their Schoology Parent account this year. Please make sure to follow the instructions on how to reset your password after logging in.You will need to use the same email from your PowerSchool Parent Portal Login. Please read through the instructions carefully in order to successfully activate your account. The login link is provided within the instructions. We recommend you complete the reactivation/set-up on a laptop/desktop for the best user experience.
- Questions?
- If you need assistance in signing into your Schoology, please contact PowerSchool@windhamsd.org.
- If you need assistance in viewing a student’s information, please contact PowerSchool@windhamsd.org and include your student’s name and grade level.
- If you have questions about the classroom page content, please contact your student's teacher directly.
Free and Reduced Meal Options
We understand that some families may be affected by the upcoming changes to assistance programs beginning November 1, 2025. In the event of a prolonged shutdown, November’s SNAP food benefits may not be issued until federal funding is restored. Families participating in the SNAP program are considered Directly Certified and are unaffected by the shutdown through NSLP. Federal workers who are not being paid or have been laid off and need assistance should complete an application.
We want to remind families that applications for free or reduced price meals are available for any family who wishes to apply. Applications are sent to each household at the beginning of the school year and are available throughout the year at each school cafeteria, at the SAU office, and online.
Student Arrival and Dismissal
The first bell rings at 7:47 a.m., and students are considered tardy after 7:52 a.m. Students are dismissed at 2:17 p.m. All parent pick-up should take place behind the school building. Please do not pick up in front of the building or in the Visitor Parking lot at the front of the school. This causes safety issues in an area where students are walking and buses are operating.
Reporting Absences, Dismissals, and Tardies
We will continue to utilize PickUp Patrol as the preferred method for reporting student tardies, absences, and early dismissals.
Changes can be entered into the system from a smartphone or computer days, weeks, or months in advance, and at any time up until 1:20pm on the day of the change. After 1:50 pm, changes will not be accepted except in the case of an emergency. Such changes can be made via phone directly to the main office. The end of the school day is a busy time, so to ensure the safety of all students, please plan accordingly and limit these exceptions to emergencies only.
Alternatively, you may use the attendance email, whsattendance@windhamsd.org, or call the main WHS line at (603) 845-1558, Option 1.
If you need any assistance with PickUp Patrol, please reach out to Mr. Keshigian (mkeshigian@windhamsd.org).
Bus Tracking App
Top 10 Facts
How it works...
How it works (cont'd)...
Interested in Volunteering?
Our volunteers are a critical component of our school district's success, and we appreciate and thank them for their time and commitment! Beginning in late August, returning designated volunteers will receive notifications from the online training system. If you are interested in volunteering or are new to our district, please follow the process outlined on our website. If you have any questions about this process, please email hr@windhamsd.org.
Where to find us
Location: 64 London Bridge Road, Windham, NH 03087, USA
Phone: 603-845-1558
Email: smckenna@windhamsd.org
Website: https://whs.windhamsd.org/
Facebook: https://facebook.com/WindhamHighSchool
Twitter: @WHSJaguars