Dear Towson High School Community,
This year, our students are engaging in 5-STAR Towson General work each day! STAR stands for Self Awareness, Total Engagement, Academic Initiative, and Respect. To be Self Aware, students are working towards recognizing and regulating their thoughts, actions, and emotions, and seeking out trusted resources to support them. To demonstrate Total Engagement, students are taking an active role in their learning by fully participating in all class discussions and activities, eliminating distractions (ex: cell phone use), and showing up to class on time and ready to learn. To foster Academic Initiative, students are monitoring their academic progress, advocating for themselves by communicating with their teachers, and attending Coach Class and Peer Tutoring sessions. To demonstrate Respect, students are displaying positive behavior and all times and respecting themselves, their peers, their educators, their families, and their shared spaces.
Throughout the school year, students will have many opportunities in Advisory, as well as in class, to build their STAR skills. We look forward to seeing all the wonderful things our 5-STAR Towson Generals accomplish this year!
With gratitude and appreciation,
Dr. Kim Culbertson
The 2023 PSAT will be administered during school on Tuesday, October 17th. There are several changes to the PSAT (Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test) administration this fall.
Here is a summary of the changes in the PSAT administration for 2023:
The PSAT will be administered online and will take approximately 2 ½ hours to complete.
Students in grade 9 will NOT take the PSAT
All students in grade 10 WILL take the PSAT
Students in grade 11 can OPT-IN to take the PSAT by signing up on this link. This form must be completed by Friday, September 22nd if an 11th grader wishes to opt-in to this test. There will be no exceptions to this deadline.
Students that are testing will need to bring a fully charged device on test day. Testing will occur at the start of the school day. When finished, students will return to their regular class schedule.
All students will need a College Board account in order to promptly see their scores. If students do not have a College Board account, please go to www.collegeboard.org or call the College Board at 1-866-630-9305.
Students that are not testing will follow their regular class schedule on October 17th.
Please click here for information about the PSAT. If you have any questions about the PSAT and the changes to PSAT day, please contact Mr. Tormey stormey@bcps.org, Ms. Smith lsmith21@bcps.org; or Dr. Hobbs shobbs4@bcps.org.
Over 1.3 million juniors in about 21,000 high schools entered the National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the 2022 PSAT/NMSQT. The nationwide pool of Semifinalists, representing less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors, includes the highest scoring entrants in each state.
We would like to congratulate our two semifinalists, Mansoor Johnson and Frank Zhang. We are proud of your 5-STAR accomplishments!
Destruction and/or vandalism of school property is a Category II offense. This includes the destruction of technological devices. The student's responsible use of technology/internet is described in the 2023-2024 BCPS Student Handbook.
Specifically, it indicates that students shall be held responsible for the appropriate use of BCPS technology and will be subject to disciplinary action for any violation of the Technology Acceptable Use Policy (TAUP). Students are required to be safe, secure, and responsible digital citizens when using BCPS electronic devices, networks, and the internet.
Acknowledgment of the Student Handbook indicates that students agree to the following:
Protecting school property and understanding that vandalism is prohibited. This includes, but is not limited to, accessing, modifying, or destroying equipment, programs, files, or settings on any computer or technology resource.
A replacement device will not be provided for intentional damage to a BCPS issued device until the financial obligation ($355) has been satisfied. Please contact Mr. Ickes (bickes@bcps.org) with questions.
Research has shown that attendance is a leading predictor of academic achievement and adult success. Students who find attending school important are more likely to attain goals like attending trade school, college, or getting a job. By showing up to school every day, students develop a positive work ethic and prepare for future success by developing healthy and productive habits.
Our attendance goals this year are for students to maintain at least a 94% attendance rate and to reduce chronic absenteeism. A student that misses 10% or more of school days in chronically absent. By missing just 2 days a month, a student will be chronically absent. Use the "Attendance Tracker" and "Parent Tips" below to support your student in maintaining satisfactory attendance. Additionally, we will send parents/guardians a "Weekly Attendance Report" each Friday afternoon so you can track your student's daily and period attendance.
