Aspen High School

January 21st

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Dear students and families,

I hope everyone enjoyed the long weekend. Despite the lack of snow, the cool temperatures and sunny skies felt like winter, so hopefully you were able to spend some time outdoors. Students have settled into their semester two schedules; we had a very successful lockdown drill yesterday thanks to Hannah Chaffey & Kendyl Young who spearheaded the effort to have a drill during lunch to increase student awareness and safety. Our seniors are hearing from schools, applying for local scholarships, and trying to stay strong for their final semester of high school. Pray for snow!

IB Spotlight

John Norman approaches Language and Literature with genuine curiosity, exemplifying the core attributes of an IB student. He consistently demonstrates the willingness to move beyond surface-level thinking and deeply consider complex perspectives. Beyond his analytical skills, John is a powerful creative writer who uses humor to explore philosophical ideas. Since day one, he has engaged with challenging texts in a mature, critical, and thoughtful manner.

Jesse Shiflet has shown himself to be the kind of human who chooses to navigate his learning and place in the world from a stance of thoughtfulness, responsibility, and honesty. He has approached Year 1 with a sense of determination and openness. What stands out most is Jesse's integrity and empathy; he extends deep care not only to his classmates but also to the diverse figures we study in literature and our non-literary texts. On top of this, Jesse is consistently doing the hard work of a "Thinker", challenging his own perspectives, stepping out of his social/community bubble, and engaging deeply with the complexities of the world.

Skier Spotlight

Kate Korn brought juniors Alexa Yang, Kieron Byford, and Hayleigh Walker, who are leaders of the AHS Drug & Alcohol Awareness Club, to present to the Pitkin County Board of Health to advocate for a full flavor ban on all tobacco products. They were so articulate and persuasive that the Board determined, on the spot, they would send this proposed flavor tobacco ban to the Pitkin County Commissioners. Kudos to these students for their advocacy!

Cell Phone and Airpod Reminder

Cellphones & airpods must be put away BEFORE students enter the building. We are 100% cellphone/airpod free until after 3:20pm when classes end. Students need to remember to put their phones away and remove their airpods before they enter or their phones & airpods will be turned into the main office for parents to retrieve.

Athletics

We had a GREAT week in sports. Hockey picked up a couple wins against Durango, The boys Basketball team moved to a record of 10 and 3. Nordic’s Katie Goldfarb picked up a win and second place in the last 2 races. Alpine won both the Girls and Boys Races at our home Race on Friday. Swim keeps winning individual races. We also named Meredith Elwell as our Interim Girls’ LAX Coach. She will be a great addition!

We are working hard to make sure your kids have the proper equipment and team gear for their respective sports season. What makes that possible is the $200 participation fee. We have all the kids for fall and winter sports fees loaded on power school and I am asking that you go in and pay your fees. This will help with eliminating supplemental fees that might get assessed at the end of the year. We can not run a successful sports program without funds and the $200 dollar fee is what helps us become successful. Please pay your fees.

If you have any questions, please contact AD Brett Beville or Assistant AD Bryce Sandoval. bbeville@aspenk12.net and bsandoval@aspenk12.net

UPDATE: Senior Yearbook Deadlines + Yearbook Purchase Information

UPDATE: We sincerely apologize for any misinformation shared regarding senior yearbook deadlines. Please see the corrected dates below.

BABY PHOTO: Due Friday, January 30th-

Every senior needs a baby photo
Middle and Elementary school photos are not required.
While baby photos should be of you alone, all other school photos can include friends and classmates!
Email Submissions to: aspenhighyearbook@gmail.com

SENIOR ADS: Due Thursday, February 12th-

The perfect way to commemorate achievements and celebrate milestones.
Revenues from Recognition Ads help our school create a better yearbook.
To purchase your ad online, go to the website below.
Order Ads Here: jostensadservice.com/student

Click here to purchase your yearbook!

Business Ads on Sale!

Yearbook Business Ads Are Now for Sale! Click here for instructions.

Student Opportunity! City of Aspen's Tomorrow Youth Ambassador Grant

The Environmental health and sustainability team at the city of Aspen is launching new community grants and incentives for 2026, including an opportunity for youth age 24 and under to apply for a Commit to Tomorrow Youth Ambassador Grant. This grant will support youth with mentorship and funding (up to $1500) to implement environmental and climate action projects within our community.

The goals of the program are to:

foster understanding of local climate initiatives
engage the community on climate issues through real world projects and
empower and amplify local climate leadership.

The eligibility requirements are:

Youth ages 24 and under
Submit a winning sustainable project for the community.
Reside in the Aspen urban growth boundary and/or attend Aspen Public Schools

The application form is linked here and applications are due January 26, 2026.

Any questions, please contact Clare McLaughlin: clare.mclaughlin@aspen.gov

2026 Normandy Academy Scholarship at ACF- 10th and 11th Grade Students

Thanks to the generosity of the Normandy & WWII Education Fund at Aspen Community Foundation (ACF), there is another opportunity in 2026 for high school students to apply for a scholarship to receive tuition assistance to attend the Normandy Academy summer tour with the National WWII Museum. Aspen Community Foundation’s vendor for this scholarship program is the National WWII Museum. Learn more on the museum’s website: Normandy Academy 2026 | The National WWII Museum | New Orleans

If accepted for this scholarship program:

This scholarship covers 80% of the total cost of the trip. This scholarship fund will award $4,695.00 in tuition assistance for the student to attend the National WWII Museum’s “Normandy Academy” summer tour.
$1,200.00 is the cost to the student. This partial tuition is required to be paid to Aspen Community Foundation by all students accepted to the Normandy Academy.
Full tuition cost is $5,895.00, which includes your airfare, lodging, meals, and museum admission during the full tour. All flights are planned in/out of Denver Intl Airport.
ACF handles all museum payment processes on behalf of our scholarship students.

Normandy Academy 2026 tour dates:

June 24th – July 5, 2026, or,
June 30th – July 12, 2026

How to apply – Deadline for submissions is January 23, 2026 at 5:00 PM Central Time

Go to application website: The National WWII Museum Submission Manager
Select “Normandy Academy 2026 Application - High School.” Sign up and register an account with the National WWII Museum website

Complete all application requirements, select preferred tour dates, answer all required questions.
You are required to have a letter of recommendation submitted on your behalf.

This year, students need to apply first through the National WW2 Museum’s website. We are in coordination with the National World War 2 Museum to review the applications.

Tell ACF that you’re interested – All interested students/parents should email scholarships@aspencommunityfoundation.org or call the ACF Grants Manager on 970-925-9300 (extension 214) to let us know you have applied or plan to apply through the museum’s website. Send anyone with questions our way!

Eligibility Guidelines:

To be eligible, students must be 16 years of age by June 24, 2026. ACF requires that you are currently sophomores or juniors in high school.
Eligible high schools to receive this scholarship: Aspen, Basalt, Roaring Fork, Bridges, Yampah Mountain, Glenwood Springs, Coal Ridge, Rifle and Grand Valley.
Accepted students will be required to pay $1,200 to ACF to cover their portion of the overall tuition cost of $5,895. The student’s payment will be due to ACF in March after confirmation of the scholarship award. Installment plans can be setup.
Students are expected to fulfill post-trip responsibilities in fall 2026 after they return.

What we ask of you to help raise awareness at AHS:

Print and share the attached flier for the 2026 Normandy scholarship opportunity
Promote this scholarship opportunity in your history/social studies classrooms and where info is public shared.
Consider writing a letter of recommendation for student(s) who are most aligned with this opportunity and trusted to travel internationally with the museum cohort. The application requires at least one teacher recommendation.
Continue to do what you do best as an educator! Thanks for everything you do for our community!