10/30/26 Message from the Principal

Dear Hawk Families,

At the start of this school year, our staff established a key focus area centered on strengthening communication between home and school. In reviewing our stakeholder perception data from last spring, parents/guardians expressed a clear desire for more regular insight into your child's learning journey. In response to your feedback, we want to highlight three major action steps we have put in place this year:

First, our district introduced monthly academic and attendance progress reports delivered directly to your email inbox. While many families regularly check PowerSchool, these consistent monthly reports ensure everyone receives a clear, timely snapshot of their student's progress.

Second, our teachers and staff are making intentional efforts to reach out directly to families with individualized feedback and positive student celebrations. It isn’t feasible for each teacher to communicate with all 140-150 students/families, but our teachers are making a conscious effort to reach out via email or phone.

Lastly, our fall and spring conferences remain a cornerstone for deep-dive conversations about student growth. We are thrilled to share that our Fall 2026 Parent-Teacher Conferences were our highest-attended in seven years. This is a testament to the incredible commitment and engagement of our Hawk families!

Please know that our teachers, counselors, and administrators are always open to conversation. Never hesitate to reach out whenever you have questions, concerns, or feedback. We are always happy to connect via email, phone, or in person to ensure your student has the support they need to thrive.

If you have additional suggestions about how we can improve the school-to-home line of communication, please do not hesitate to contact me with ideas.

Standard Response Protocol: This week, we are highlighting our fifth and final response to an emergency according to our Standard Response Protocol.

For more details about our Standard Response Protocol and our other actions, please visit our website. There, you'll find an overview of these actions along with a link to a flyer with information for parents. Thanks for partnering with us to keep our schools safe.

Fall Play: Next week is show week! Our EHS Theater Department is proud to present Murder in the Heir on November 5, 6, or 7 at 7 PM in our EHS Auditorium. Get your tickets to this interactive and crowd-engaging show here!

Tonight marks the first round of the MHSAA Playoffs. Our very own Forest Hills Eastern football team is hosting Big Rapids. Our game has been announced as the 96.1 Game of the Week and we expect a big crowd. Please check out the linked letter outlining expectations for the first round of the MHSAA Playoffs. Tickets can be purchased here: GoFan Ticket Purchase

Sign-up for winter and spring sports now! Athletes and parents are required to register online before a student participates in a 2026-27 sport. Online registration should be completed here. See the Eastern Parent Playbook to start the process. A reminder that athletic physicals must be dated after 4/15/2026.

Fall 2026 test-out will occur on Wednesday, December 2nd from 2:45 PM - 5:00 PM at Forest Hills Eastern for SENIORS only. Students must sign up by Wednesday, November 6th @ 3:00 PM. Please click HERE for more information. Please contact Mr. Yelding (jyelding@fhps.net) with any questions.

Scholarships: Counselors invited all seniors to attend a presentation to learn about researching scholarships during lunches this week, Tuesday through Thursday (10/27-10/29). All seniors, whether or not they attended, were sent the information via email on 10/29, including links for easy access to all of the websites we use to promote scholarships. Seniors are encouraged to check scholarship resources regularly for updates, get links to apply, and review deadlines.

AP Exams Payments: Payment deadline is Nov. 4, 2026 for fall and full year courses without late fees. NO PAYMENTS ALLOWED AFTER NOV. 4th. The late payment window opens Nov. 16th. AP classes that are offered only in Sem. 2 will have a separate payment window in January.

Payments can be made HERE.

Additional information can be found HERE, including reduced exam fees and other second semester date information.

Junior Conferences: Counselors invite families and students to schedule an individual Junior Conference any time from Nov. 3rd through Jan. 22nd. To schedule your Junior Conference, please use the appointment scheduler (available starting Nov. 3rd) on our Counseling Office website, and select the "Junior Conference" option with your child's counselor.

**NOTE: The online appointment scheduler will only show up to 10 days from the date that you are visiting the website. If there appears to be no openings, or you are looking for a date further into the future, please visit the website again at a later date.

Thank you to the families who attended Junior Planning Night on Oct. 20th at FHE! For those who were unable to attend, you can find the video HERE. We encourage families to view the presentation, as this is general information that pertains to the majority of college-bound Juniors. When we meet for your individual Junior Conference, we will focus primarily on your personal future plans.

Thank you for partnering with us every day to support student growth, safety, and open communication. I hope you and your family enjoy a peaceful, well-deserved weekend. As always, please feel free to reach out with any questions, ideas, or feedback.

Go Hawks!

-Dan