Newport High School Newsletter

Welcome to the 2026-2027 school year at Newport High School! We are thrilled to have our Wildcats back and ready to learn. Read on for important updates and reminders to help your family start the year off right.

Homecoming is coming up, and we want to see everyone there. This year's dance is set for Friday, October 24 at 7:00 PM in the Newport High School Auxiliary Gym.

To attend, students need to meet three expectations. First, no suspensions after September 8. Second, at least 90% attendance between September 8 and October 23. And third, no more than one F for the first quarter. All three have to be met to get in the door.

The good news is that all of this is within reach. Show up, stay on top of your work, and make good choices over the next several weeks, and you'll be set for a great night. If you have questions about where you stand, check in with your counselor or an administrator.

Get Your Glamoween Homecoming Tickets!

Homecoming is almost here, and this year’s theme is Glamoween, so start planning your most glamorous (or spookiest) look now. Tickets are $10 each and will be sold Monday, October 19 through Friday, October 23 in the front office. We accept both cash and card.

The dance is Oct 24th from 7:00 to 10:00 PM in Aux Gym. Please remember that tickets will only be sold during this window, so don’t wait until the last minute. We can’t wait to see our Wildcats dressed up and celebrating together!

Newport High School Blood Drive: Friday, November 6

Newport High School is partnering with Hoxworth Blood Center to host a blood drive on Friday, November 6, in the NHS gym. Donation times run from 8:00 to 10:00 a.m. and again from 11:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

A single donation can help save up to three lives, and Hoxworth supplies blood to hospitals right here in our region. This is a great chance for our students, staff, and families to make a real difference for our community.

To donate, you’ll need a photo ID, you must weigh at least 110 pounds, and you must be 17 or older. Students who are 16 can donate with signed parental consent. All donors must also meet Hoxworth’s standard eligibility requirements. If you have questions about whether you’re able to give, you can find more information at hoxworth.org/donors/high-school.

Please eat a good meal and drink plenty of water before your donation. We hope to see you there!

This event is for Newport High School Students and Staff.

Most Valuable Student (MVS) Contest:

The 2026-2027 MVS application is now open. Applications can be found online at https://www.elks.org/scholars/scholarships/MVS.cfm. The application deadline is November 12, 2026 (Counselor Reports due November 19, 2026).

The Elks National Foundation (ENF) awards 500 four-year scholarships based on academics, leadership, and financial need. National awards range from $1,000 per year to $7,500 per year. The national awards will be announced in April 2027. The top three males and top three females among all of the applicants that apply will advance to the District Level of Judging in December. In addition, the Newport Elks Lodge will be giving out local awards between $1,000-$2,000 per school to the highest scoring students.

MVS scholarships are for students pursuing a four-year degree on a full-time basis (minimum of 12 semester hours), at a U.S. college or university next school year. Some important applicant details include:

• Current high school seniors (or equivalent) who are citizens of the United States are eligible to apply.

• Applicants do not have to be related to a member of the Elks.

• Male and female students compete separately.

Complete details can be found at https://www.elks.org/scholars/scholarships/MVS.cfm.

Spookapalooza Is Creeping Up on Us!

Something spooky is lurking in the Aux Gym... and it's our middle school dance! Join us on Friday, October 30, from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. for Spookapalooza, an afternoon of fun, dancing, and plenty of laughs.

Dig out your best costume, because we'll be crowning the winner of our costume contest. Whether you go scary, silly, or totally creative, we want to see it. You can also test your skills in the limbo contest, strike a pose at the photo booth, and join in on some frightfully fun games.

Grab your friends, bring your best dance moves, and get ready for a howling good time. We can't wait to see all of our ghouls and goblins there!

There's a lot happening at NHS after the final bell, and there's something for just about everyone. Whether you want extra help with homework, a creative outlet, a new skill, or just a fun way to stay active, our after-school clubs are a great way to get involved and meet people who share your interests.

Here's what's on the schedule:

Study Tables meets Tuesday through Thursday from 3:30 to 4:30 with Ms. Tasha, offering homework help and a quiet place to focus. Cosmetology Club runs Mondays from 3:30 to 4:30 with Ms. Tasha for anyone interested in hair, nails, and beauty basics. YLD meets Tuesdays and Thursdays from 3:30 to 4:30 with Ms. Amy and focuses on youth leadership. Drama Club gathers Thursdays from 4:00 to 5:00 with Ms. Parr for acting and performance. Variety Club meets Wednesdays from 3:30 to 5:00 with Ms. Katrina and covers life skills like cooking and sewing. Pickleball is Fridays at 3:15 with Ms. Parr. And our Outdoor Adventure Club has a kayaking trip coming up on September 12 with Mrs. Kennedy.

Getting involved is one of the best parts of high school, and it looks great on a college application too. Interested in any of these? Just talk to the club sponsor to sign up. Times are subject to change, and we'll keep adding new clubs and events throughout

Wildcats, it’s a lighter week on the calendar, but a big one for postseason play.

Volleyball opens things Monday by hosting District play right here at Newport. Times are still to be announced, so keep an eye out and come pack our gym to give the team a true home-court edge.

Then we close the week Friday. Varsity football hosts Dayton for a Week 9 conference matchup at 7:00, and our cross country runners head to Regionals as they chase a trip to State. Come out Friday night and send our teams off strong.

Thanks for showing up for our Wildcats. Go get ’em this week. Wildcat Strong.

Newport High School has a Wildly Important Goal that every family can help us reach. We want student attendance at 93.4 percent, which means our Wildcats are here and ready to learn nearly every single day. Hitting that number starts with a few simple habits around excuse notes, so here is how the system works. Every absence and every tardy needs a note. To keep that manageable, each family gets five parent notes for the school year to use however you see fit, no reason required, to excuse any absence or tardy. The one thing to remember is the deadline. A parent note or other valid excuse has to reach the school within five school days of the event. If it doesn't, that event is marked unexcused, and your parent notes are then applied to it automatically until they run out.

Anything past that needs documentation, like a doctor or dentist note, a note from the court clerk or court designated worker, or an obituary or funeral card for the death of a family member. We know life happens, and this system is built to give families flexibility while keeping our attendance strong, because showing up is where learning starts. That goal of 93.4 percent is not just a number on a wall. It is what we mean when we say "Here Every Day, the Wildcat Way," and we get there one day and one Wildcat at a time. If you ever have a question about a note or an absence, just call the front office and we will walk you through it.

Every day is a fresh chance for your student to learn something new, laugh with a friend, and take one more step forward, and it all starts with showing up. When our Wildcats are here day after day, great things happen. They stay connected to their teachers, they keep their momentum going, and they get the full Newport High experience we work so hard to give them.

That is why we are excited about our goal this year to reach 93.4 percent attendance together. It is a goal we know our families can help us hit, and every single day counts toward it. Get your Wildcat here, cheer them on, and let us take care of the rest. Here every day, the Wildcat way.

We want to talk with you about something that quietly shapes almost everything else at school: attendance. It's easy to think of a missed day here or there as no big deal, but the research is pretty clear that those days add up faster than most of us expect, and they matter more than we tend to realize.

Consider a few things we've learned. Missing just two days a month, which barely feels like a pattern, works out to about 18 days a year. That's the line researchers call chronic absence, and it's enough to pull a student's grades down. Attendance in the very first weeks of school often predicts how the whole year will go. And by the middle grades, how often a student shows up becomes one of the strongest signals of whether they'll graduate. The good news buried in all of that is the flip side: when attendance goes up, so do grades and the odds of walking across that stage.

None of this is about blame. We know mornings are hard, and we know that sometimes what keeps a student home has nothing to do with wanting to be here. Transportation falls through. Someone gets sick. Life happens. What we're asking is that we work on this together. Talk with your student about why being here matters. Reach out to us early when something is getting in the way, before a few absences turn into a habit. And when you're not sure how to handle a situation, let us be part of solving it.

Our goal this year is a 93.4% attendance rate across the building, and we genuinely believe we can hit it with your help. Every day a Wildcat is here is a day that counts. Thanks for partnering with us to make sure our students are here every day, the Wildcat way.

Homecoming Tailgate: Join Us After the Parade!

Homecoming is one of the best nights of the year in Newport, and we want to celebrate it together. Right after the Homecoming Parade on [date], come out to Newport Stadium for our Homecoming Tailgate. We’ll be set up between the baseball fields starting at 6:00 PM.

This is a chance for students, families, alumni, and community members to slow down, grab something to eat, and enjoy being together before the excitement of the evening. Bring a chair, wear your red and black, and come ready to show some Wildcat Pride. Whether you’re a longtime Newport family or brand new to our school, there’s a place for you here.

The plan is simple: good food, good friends, and a whole lot of school spirit. We hope to see you there.

Go Wildcats!

The Wildcat Market is open and ready to welcome Newport families. It's a free shopping market available to all Newport students and their families, where you can pick up food, fresh produce, clothing for children and adults, hygiene products, household items, and other everyday necessities. Everything is provided at no cost thanks to generous donations and community partnerships. If you like Plato's Closet or Goodwill, you'll love the Wildcat Market, and new items arrive every month. The Market is open on the 2nd and 4th Thursdays of each month from 12:00 to 4:00 PM, so you can shop twice a month. This year's shopping dates run from August 27th all the way through May 27th, with the only closure on October 8th. For the full 2026-2027 schedule and more information, find us on Facebook. One district, one community, stronger together.

Looking for a new job, a career change, or just curious about who’s hiring in Northern Kentucky? The Kentucky Career Center is hosting its Fall Career Fair on Thursday, October 29, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Campbell County Public Library, 901 E. 6th St. in Newport.

The event is a great chance to meet local employers face to face, ask questions, and learn about openings in our area. It’s also worth passing along to older siblings, recent graduates, or anyone in your circle who’s on the job hunt.

Attendees are asked to register ahead of time at nkcareercenter.org/Fall2026. Bring a few copies of your résumé and come ready to make some connections.