Friday 9/4 Family Message

Happy Friday!

We did it! We made it through the first three days of school. School is alive and filled with great energy. I appreciate that students are working hard to get to school on time. This year one of our areas of focus is attendance. We want students in school, working hard, learning, socializing, and enjoying their time with peers and Hale staff. High school goes by fast and this is an important time in their life. Together we can help make their journey positive and memorable.

A few shifts we made this school year are moving to a Lower House (grades 9/10) and Upper House (grades 11/12) service model to better support students across our system. Ms. Tia Yarbrough is our lower house AP, and Ms. Andrea Dailey, is our upper house AP, subbing for Mx. Zoba until Winter Break. Please make sure you connect with the right administrator to best support your student. Mr. Krsto Budech is our lower house school counselor, and Ms. Kelly Creech is our upper house school counselor. Please work directly with your student’s school counselor for guidance, support, and direction for success in graduation and beyond.

While our service model has shifted, we also had to make some changes to how we support students and families. We now have one Main Entrance into Nathan Hale. We no longer have a counseling office/attendance office, we only have a Main Office. All school business will be handled via our main office. You will find Ms. Rae Keyes, administrative secretary, Ms. Courtney Clark, ASB, athletics and student services, Ms. Martha Cunningham-Daniels, attendance and counseling support, Ms. Emily Wong, fiscal support, ASB, fines/fees, scholarships, school resources, and Maria Guiterrez, registrar, transcripts, NCAA, volunteer service hours, scheduling etc. Please stop in and meet our wonderful staff ready to serve you. Be patient as we work on smoothing out our operation details.

This week it was nice to step into classrooms and see staff doing a variety of team building activities. Our theme song this school year is “Whole Team Up.” Meaning, everyone moves together and no one gets left out. It is very important that students get to know one another and value the importance of community. I want all students to feel seen and valued at Nathan Hale. I encourage all students to join 2-3 clubs and/or join an athletic team, or school program, such as theatre, music, robotics etc. to find their people. We have our NH Club Fair on September 30th during Mentorship. Please contact Mr. Leland Swarts for ASB information, Ms. Katrina Sibicky for Music, Ms. Audrey Delaney -Hanna for Theatre, and Ms. Milanese for Choir, if you have any questions. There is something for all students at Hale.

I know students are anxious to get their schedules finalized. We had over 250 schedule change requests. Our school counselors are working hard to support each student. Not all student requests get honored as they had the opportunity last spring to pick the classes for this school year. I understand the chips do not always fall how students wish, but we work hard to balance classes to ensure students get at least their top 2-3 selections. We have done some shifts in course offerings to support larger class sizes, and student request needs. We added another Spanish 3, Financial Algebra, and Creative Writing to our master schedule. I look forward to getting all the master schedule business completed by the end of next week. Thanks in advance for your patience.

Lastly, we wrapped up our 11th and 12th grade Rights and Responsibilities Conversation on Thursday and the 10th grade class meeting today. The 9th grade weekly meeting series will start when we return to school on Tuesday. It is important that students know and understand their rights and responsibilities as young adults. Some items reviewed included: Harassment Intimidation Bullying (report, tell an adult, will not be tolerated), Bus Ridership (on/off public transit, bus stops), Respect the House (clean up after themselves), Drugs, alcohol, weapons (will not be tolerated “fake, look-alike, or real” and are not allowed on campus), and cell phones (no cell phone bell to bell, not allowed in PE locker-room, or on student person during PE activities),and hallway expectations (no running, horse playing, throwing balls, riding scooters/bikes etc.)

May everyone have a nice three-day weekend in observance of Labor Day. I look forward to seeing students back in the building on Tuesday, September 8th at 8:50 am. Hale Yeah!

In Partnership,

Ms. Jolene Grimes
Proud Principal

Date: Fri, 9/4

First football game at home against Lakeside at 7:00 p.m. Tickets are $10 for adults and students without ASB card and $7 for students with ASB card. For this game only, all students can get in at the ASB card rate.

Date: Sun, 9/6

Families have until 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, 9/6 for the lowest price for yearbook. Books are $55, or $50 with purchase of ASB activity card. See the NHHS yearbook webpage for more info and SchoolPay link.

Date: Mon, 9/7

No school due to Labor Day holiday.

Date: Tue, 9/8

First 9th grade class meeting during the school day.

Date: Fri, 9/11

Schedule change requests due by 9/11 at 11:59 p.m. PST.

Date: Wed, 9/30

Club Fair during Mentorship

Date: Thu, 10/1

Curriculum Night. All families invited to spend about 10 minutes with their student's teacher over course of evening. Senior Meeting for Parents will be held before Curriculum Night begins.

Date: Wed, 10/7 (& 10/21)

Senior Meeting for students during Mentorship. Jostens (senior graduation cap/gown orders, etc.) will be present at lunch.

Date: Thu, 10/8

School Day SAT and PSAT Testing for all juniors and seniors. See more info below under Important Announcements.

Date: Thu, 10/15

Make-Up / Retake Photo Day. See more info below under Important Announcements.

Start of School Packet should have gone home this week with your student. The FERPA form is due back by 10/1. The online data verification form accessed through the parent's Source account can be completed once by a parent; this is due by 9/30. There are other forms that may apply to your student; return those as appropriate. There is a lot of other information to read. Please review the neon green checklist in the paper packet for more information.

You can access the district Start of School information from the SPS Start of School Forms webpage. A separate email will go home to families next week with links to forms including those specific to Nathan Hale.

SAT and PSAT is coming! Seattle Public Schools provides a day in school and covers the entire registration fee for all juniors to take the PSAT and all seniors to take the SAT. Nathan Hale will hold its SAT/PSAT testing administration on Thursday, 10/8. This is an amazing opportunity for all students. More information and preparation about adjusted schedules will be provided by the school in the next few weeks. In the meantime, please read through the below FAQs. Also, note that if your student requires testing accommodations because of a qualifying disability or because they are new to speaking English, for example, please be sure to take action ASAP on the items highlighted in yellow below.

SAT/PSAT School Day 2025 FAQs

What are the benefits of taking the SAT in SPS?

From SPS Website:

• No cost. The school-day test is free for SPS juniors and seniors.

• Students may also send up to four score reports for free. The school-day test permits students to send score reports to as many as four colleges or scholarship programs.

• Additional pathway to graduation. A qualifying score on the SAT can be used as a graduation pathway for ELA and/or math. Current qualifying scores are 410 for ELA and 430 for math.

From SPS Website:

• The (Preliminary SAT) PSAT provides valuable feedback on strengths and the skills necessary for college study . Students can then focus their preparation on areas that could most benefit from additional study or practice. The PSAT measures critical reading skills, math problem-solving skills and writing skills.

• Gives insight on how a performance on an admissions test compares to others applying to college .Helps students prepare for the SAT. Students will become familiar with the kinds of questions and the exact directions they will see on the SAT.

• Could help juniors qualify for scholarships . The Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT) for juniors is a program co-sponsored by the College Board and National Merit Scholarship Corp. (NMSC)

• As a student with a qualifying disability?

• Parents/guardians must provide consent for the school to release information about the student’s private IEP or 504 accommodation information.

• Parent consent required for us to release the accommodation information to the College Board.
• The Consent Form for Accommodations Request is on the College Board website. Paper copy of the form is available in the Main Office.

• As a student who is new to speaking, reading, and writing in English?

• Multi-lingual learners are provided time and a half and a word-to-word bilingual dictionary.

Raider Day was on Tue, 9/1. If your student missed Raider Day and did not get their photo taken for their student ID card and the yearbook, there is one more photo day scheduled with the photographer, Yuen Lui, on Thursday, 10/15. Please note this date in your calendar and remind your students to take their photo that day. Those students should come to the office to get a temporary paper ID card which is needed to allow them in and out of the building.

To order photo package from Raider Day, please go to the Yuen Lui Photo ordering page. Packages will be mailed to your home address. If you have questions about photo packages, please contact Yuen Lui Studios.

Student schedules are available on the Source (for students & parents). Schedules are subject to change throughout the first 2 weeks of school due to class balancing. Please make sure you have access to the Source prior to the start of school. Learn more about how to access the Source.

Please complete the schedule change request online form if you need a correction to your schedule for the 2026-2027 school year. Use this link to complete the form: NHHS 2026 Schedule Correction Request Form - Fill out form. We cannot guarantee your requests will be honored, and we will do our best to make the appropriate adjustments. Counselors will not respond to individual emails about schedule change requests.

Schedules will only be changed primarily for the following reasons:

• Course is at the wrong level (ex: student needs Algebra 1 instead of Geometry)
• Duplicate courses (ex: ceramics scheduled twice)
• Course already taken (in previous years or in summer school)
• Student has a hole in their schedule
• Student is missing a graduation requirement

Other schedule change guidelines:

• Schedules are not changed for teacher preference.
• SENIORS- there is no Late Start/Early Dismissal
• Schedules are not changed because of athletics or other after school activities.
• Classes will not be overloaded even with teacher permission.
• There are no waitlists for full classes.

Other elective preference schedule change requests may require administrative approval.

Students should remain in assigned classes until changes are made. You will receive an email response from your school counselor to your school email address. Please check school email regularly. Counselor response times will be longer than usual. Please be patient.

The deadline for schedule change requests is Friday, September 11 at 11:59 p.m. PST.

We look forward to working with you all this year!

Add more relevant information from counselors about service hours, internships, and more!

Fall sports are in full swing. Tonight is the first football game v. Lakeside at 7:00 p.m. on Raider Field. We recommend pre-purchasing tickets online for easier entry. Tickets are $10 for adults and $7 for students. Come out and support our Raiders! All fall sports game schedules can be found on the Metro League website. Go Raiders!

ASB ACTIVITY FEE: The $75 ASB Activity Fee must be paid by 9/11, or you will not be eligible to participate. We are aware of some incoming 9th graders being unable to access SchoolPay and hope to have this resolved soon. If you have not yet paid the ASB fee, you still need to sign your name and submit form at the bottom of the Sports Registration Fees form. Purchase the ASB Activity Fee here.

If you think you may be eligible for Free & Reduced Meals, please complete the application. Info can be found here and below. If approved, the ASB Activity Fee will be waived. If you do not qualify for FRM, but are experiencing a hardship, email Courtney Clark at ccclark@seattleschools.org for help requesting a partial scholarship.

Find out what's being served for breakfast and lunch this month. The City of Seattle announced that all students will receive one free breakfast and one free lunch each school day this year.

However families who qualify based on income should still complete the CNEEB Application form (the form used in the past for Free and Reduced Lunch linked below) for the other benefits that qualification can provide including possible assistance with ASB fee, yearbook for seniors, discounted AP test fees, etc. Application must be submitted new each school year even if approved in the prior school year.

Raider Gear sales are an important Sports Boosters fundraiser. 100% of proceeds from sales go directly to NH Sports Boosters and support athletics for all Hale student-athletes. To prevent discontinuation of Raider Gear, the Sports Boosters is looking to fill the following role to prepare orders and keep us stocked with gear. The average commitment is approximately 1 hour per week, plus sales at Raider Day in September and New Family Night in June.
Role 1-Website & Email

• Manage Raider Gear website and email.
• Process online orders and respond to inquiries.

Role 2- Fulfillment & Inventory

• Work with distributor to fulfill orders
• Deliver gear to school and manage inventory

Concession Stand Coordinator(s) - 1-2 Volunteers

Bring big energy, big smiles, and big Costco carts to the Nathan Hale concession stand. This role blends community building, logistics, and fundraising to keep students, families, and fans fueled - all while supporting Nathan Hale Boosters.

• Recruit & Support Volunteers
• Keep the Stand Running Smoothly
• Champion Fundraising
• Stay Connected with the Booster Club

Read more about each of the above on the Nathan Hale Sports Booster sheet in the start of school packet.

Contact nhsportsboosters@gmail.com with questions or if interested in these volunteer roles.