The Golden Knight

Welcome to the 2025-2026 School Year

Welcome Back, Rustin Families!
We’re excited to kick off another amazing school year at Rustin High School! The first week of school is just around the corner, and we can’t wait to welcome our students back to campus. This newsletter is full of important information to help your family prepare for a smooth start.

To help students feel confident and prepared, the building will be open on Friday, August 28, from 9-11am or 1-3pm for any student who would like to walk their schedule. Students who were not able to attend orientation, will also be able to pick up their laptops during this time in room A105.

Arrival Expectations

All students are expected to be in class by 7:30 a.m. Students who are not in class when the 7:30 a.m. bell rings are considered tardy. (see Bell Schedule linked here).
Please note:

Students who qualify for late arrival and early dismissal will not see this in their schedule the first week of school. Please see information below for adding a late arrival or early dismissal to a students schedule.
Students must follow their full schedule until PowerSchool reflects any approved changes.
All students are expected to follow attendance guideline and procedures discussed below
There will be two locations for student drop off in the morning the front flagpole circle and the main gym entrance. The front entrance and gym entrance are the only doors students will be able to enter in the morning, including students who drive to campus. The gym entrance will close at 7:25 am. After 7:30 am all students must enter through the front office and sign in.

Knight Time

You may notice "LL" on your student's schedule between 4th and 5th period. This is our "Lunch and Learn" period, which we call Knight Time. During Week 1, students report to their assigned Knight Time advisory. During this week, teachers will share the Knight Time expectations and procedures. After week 1, the students will be expected to use their knight time to get help from teachers, use the gym or outdoor spaces, or eat lunch (if they do not have lunch on their schedule). Lunch & Learn Building Map

Cell Phone

Cell phone will not be permitted during instructional time. Progressive consequences will be implemented for students who do not adhere to this rule. Please read the the Rustin Cell Phone Expectations. We look forward to partnering with our community to focus on proper cell phone usage in school.

Lockers

Over the past several years, we have observed that many students choose not to use their lockers and most high school students choose to carry their belongings. To better align with student preference and streamline hallway space, lockers will now be assigned by request for all students. All students who would like to request a locker can contact Dr. Corey Fields or complete the google form below.

Locker Request Form for All Grades

Stay Informed

School news and updates can be found on the WCASD and Rustin High School webpages.
Look for communication from the district regarding required yearly forms. These forms help ensure your contact information is up to date and confirm how you would like to receive messages throughout the year.

Principal: Dr. Maggie Hunt

Grade-Level Administrators

Mrs. Kristen Chastain - Grade 12 & Grade 9 (A-Ge)
Dr. Tricia Pardini – Grade 11 & Grade 9 (Gh-M)
Dr. Corey Fields – Grade 12 & Grade 9 (N-Z)

Counselor Assignments

Colleen Demers – A–Da
Shaz Brown – De–Hy
Grace Berry – Ia–McG
Casey Cerullo – McH–Sca
Heather Selgrath – Sch–Z

Morning Dropoff and Traffic Flow

To help ensure a smooth and safe start to the school day, we have two designated drop-off locations for students arriving by car:

Front Flagpole Entrance (near the staff parking lot)
Main Gym Entrance
The Front Entrance and Main Gym Entrance are the only doors students can enter in the morning, including students who drive to campus

Please note: The Main Entrance is reserved exclusively for bus drop-off from 6:55 AM to 7:20 AM. Once all buses have cleared (typically after 7:20 AM), parents may use the bus loop for drop-off.

Staff members will be present to help direct traffic and ensure a safe and efficient flow. Please refer to the map below for details on the designated drop-off areas.

Thank you for helping us keep morning arrival safe and orderly!

Attendance Policy Overview for Parents & Guardians

Regular attendance is essential for your student’s academic success and overall learning. To report an absence, email RHSattendance@wcasd.net within 3 days of your student’s return, including their name, date, and reason. Absences without timely documentation will be marked unexcused. Family vacations require pre-approval (max 5 days per year), and college visits must follow the official process. Cumulative absences are limited; beyond certain thresholds, doctor’s notes are required. Absences can only be reported by emailing the Attendance Office or through your Parent Portal on PowerSchool.

Early Dismissal:

Early dismissal requests must be submitted by 8:30 a.m. via email or written note and include student information, reason, and parent contact. Students must pick up a pass before leaving and sign out/in at the Attendance Office.

Students are only permitted 10 "Parent/Guardian Note" Early Dismissal/Late Arrivals per year, after reaching 10 all Early Dismissals will be documented as unexcused.
If a student does not follow the Early Dismissal procedures it can result in disciplinary consequences.

Late to School

Lateness is only excused with documentation for specific reasons (doctor, court, funeral).

Students are only permitted 10 "Parent/Guardian Note" Early Dismissal/Late Arrivals per year, after reaching 10 all Late Arrivals will be documented as unexcused.
All students who are late to school must come to the Attendance Office to receive a pass to class.

Policy 204AG1 (Attendance Guidelines) has been updated for the 2026-2027 school year. Progressive discipline will be followed if a student accumulates unexcused late arrivals.

The fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth unlawful lateness to school will result in detention.
The ninth, tenth, and eleventh unlawful lateness to school will result in one or more of the disciplinary consequences:

1. Detention
2. Saturday School

The twelfth and all subsequent unlawful lateness to school will result a parent/guardian conference and one or more of the following disciplinary consequences:

1. Detention
2. Saturday School
3. Internal suspension
4. Loss of privileges, including but not limited to, revocation of parking/driving privileges for the semester, remainder of the school year and/or the subsequent school year

The number of unlawful lateness to school will be cumulative by semester and will reset at the beginning of each semester.

Any questions about Attendance Procedures can be directed to RHSattendance@wcasd.net.

Please click the link below for updated attendance procedures.

Attendance Guidelines & Procedures

Only student with approval and existing schedule availability may have late arrival or early dismissal placed in their schedule. A Google form will be posted on our website on August 18th for students to sign up for late arrival and early dismissals. The form will appear under News and Announcements on the main page. The form is also linked below. Please check schedules before submitting to verify your child has study hall 1st or 8th period. Schedules will not be changed to accommodate this privilege. A student with late arrival or early dismissal must have their own transportation. All students are expected to be in every class period the first week of school. Requests are evaluated on a rolling basis, and late arrivals or early dismissals will not be added until after the first week of school. Students should follow their schedule until changes are updated in PowerSchool.

Late Arrival and Early Dismissal Form

WELCOME NEW STUDENTS AND FAMILIES!

The administration, staff, and students of Bayard Rustin High School cordially invite all students who are new to Rustin High School to our new student orientation program! We invite students from the Class of 2030 and all students that are new to the district to attend! Our administrative team is eager to meet you, answer your questions, and help you feel right at home at Rustin.

📌 STUDENT ORIENTATION SESSION: Tuesday, August 18, 2026

All students will be attending the afternoon session. They will be broken into groups for part of the orientation. All coaches will allow athletes to attend their orientation session.

Please drop off students at the Auditorium Entrance and pick up students at the Gym Entrance.

Tuesday, August 18, 2026
⏰ 12:00 p.m. - 2:00 p.m.

During orientation, students will be divided into advisory groups and rotate through three sessions:
⭐ Receive their new school laptop (please bring your Stetson laptop and cord to return)
⭐ Tour the building to find classrooms and lockers (bring your schedule!)
⭐ Meet the Administrative Team and faculty/staff to learn about Rustin High School

This approach ensures students get a comprehensive introduction to Rustin while meeting new classmates and staff. New students will also have the opportunity to tour the building and ask questions of current Rustin High School students.

📌 PARENT ORIENTATION SESSION: Tuesday, August 25, 2026

Tuesday, August 25, 2026
🕡 6:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m. in the auditorium

All parents of new students are warmly invited to attend an evening information session with our administration and staff. Students are welcome to attend with their parents. This also gives an opportunity for students that missed on August 18. Please meet in the auditorium at 6:00 pm

Go Golden Knights!

Student schedules were released electronically on Monday, August 10th. Please note that counselors and administrators may need to continue making adjustments after August 10th in order to maximize class and building efficiency, so schedules could change up to the start of school. Please check your online schedule periodically leading up to the start of school. If there is an error with your student's schedule, please complete this Schedule Error Form. All RHS counselors return on August 24th. These forms will be processed by counselors as quickly as possible, and only requests through the form will be completed (do not email requests).

Errors do not include missing an elective that was requested. While we satisfied just under 11,000 individual requests, we recognize it is frustrating not to get a requested class. We empathize with and understand that frustration; however, there are several reasons why it can occur during this process.

Physical Education (PE) classes may not exactly match the student’s original course request. In order to accommodate science lab periods, adjustments were made to ensure students could attend both their labs and a PE class. For example, if a student requested Team Sports but Recreational Sports was the only PE course that fit around their science lab schedule, they were placed in Recreational Sports instead.

Study Halls are built into PowerSchool as sections for each Period, Day, and Semester. For example, Period 2- Day 1- Semester 1. If your child has more than one day of study hall, it may "look like a lot" because each period, day, and semester is listed on the student's schedule. This programming quirk assists us in accounting for students and taking attendance. Study halls will continue to be added to students schedule after August 10.

We appreciate your understanding as we work to create the best possible schedule for all students.

Other Schedule Changes

Students may add electives if seats are available in the place of study halls, lunches, and otherwise unscheduled periods. Students may not drop one elective course and then later schedule a new course in that unscheduled period.

Once the school year begins, student schedules will not be adjusted to accommodate course change requests, including requests to add electives, except as described above. Requests for particular periods and/or teachers will not be considered to ensure an equitable master schedule.

Level changes will be considered after September 11.

Adding a class is permitted to replace an existing study hall or lunch period. The deadline for requesting additional full-year courses is two weeks after the beginning of school. For semester courses, the deadline is one week after the beginning of the semester.

Dropping a class is permitted only with the permission of the Counseling Department and Administration. A course will not be dropped if it reduces the number of credits below the minimum credit requirement.

Juniors and Seniors - use this link to apply for a Student Parking Permit: 2026-2027 RUSTIN Student Parking Application

Student parking permits are valid for the grade level’s assigned lot. There are NO assigned student parking spaces in either lot. Seniors will be given a senior parking permit to park in the student spaces in the lots around the school building. When all senior spaces are filled, over-flow parking for seniors is at the stadium lot. Juniors will be given a junior parking permit to park in the stadium parking lot. Juniors may NOT park in the senior parking lot at any time.

Student parking fee payable on PaySchools: $70.00 for the school year - it is non-refundable.

If you prefer to pay by check, checks will also be accepted for payment of the $70.00 parking fee. Do not mail checks to the school. Complete your registration online and bring your check with you during one of the parking permit pick-up dates. Make checks payable to: WCASD.

Students with a completed application (including the upload of all required documents) and payment may pick up their 2026-2027 parking permit at Rustin's Main Entrance during the following summer pickup dates/times:

Tuesday, August 25th or Thursday, August 27th

8 am - 10 am or 1 pm - 2 pm

Parking permits not picked up during summer pickup hours will be available beginning 8/31/26 in room A333 during school hours.

Rustin Athletics Website: https://rhs.wcasd.net/our-opportunities/athletics

Click here for the 2026 Rustin Fall Sports & Activities Newsletter! This includes key contact information for coaches, club/activity advisors, and all opportunities offered during the fall season at Rustin High School. There is also a lot of key information and requirements for all student athletes for participation in Fall Sports. Fall sports officially begin Monday, August 17th (Football and Golf begin Monday, Aug. 10th). All athletes must be registered in Family ID with an updated physical and PIAA physical form by Friday, August 7th. All physicals must be dated May 1st, 2025 or later.

WCASD Activity Fee Payment: click here for details to make payment and activity fee waiver information.

The Golden Knight

January 10, 2025

Welcome to the 2025-2026 School Year

Morning Dropoff and Traffic Flow

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