Cardinal Call

Homecoming is right around the corner! You can find all the information about next week's festivities in this newsletter. Also, thank you to all our students that took the Pre-ACT last week. We appreciate all the hard work and effort you put into the exam. Finally, let's celebrate our community's growth around limiting cell phone use during instructional time-- Food Truck Friday is this week. Way to go, Cards!

Sincerely,

Jim Ertel

Principal

• Currently - Homecoming Guest Forms are available in the main office
• October 2 at 3:45 pm - Guest Forms Due

• October 6 at 8 am - Homecoming Tickets go on sale via GoFan

• October 8 - Homecoming Parade, 6 PM on Main Street
• October 9 at noon - Ticket Sales End
• October 10 - Homecoming Football Game, Kickoff 7 PM
• October 11 - Homecoming Dance, 7 PM - 10 PM

This year's theme is Cardchella! Information on the plans for the week are below and linked here!

If you are interested in purchasing a homecoming-themed shirt, you can follow the link below.

5th Hour Tutoring is up & running for 2025-2026! 5th Hour Tutoring runs Tuesdays - Thursdays from 3:50-4:40PM in the LMC, with teachers from English, math, science, social studies, art, and more available to work with students. Students are able to take the activity bus (which leaves at 4:45PM) home after 5th Hour tutoring.

The AVID Apparel Store from Ameriprint is now open through October 6th! Here is your chance to snag some awesome AVID gear while supporting a great program!

Additionally, mark your calendars for our Fall Fundraiser Night at Burrachos on Wednesday, October 1. Make sure to show your flyer (attached below) or mention SPASD AVID in order for proceeds from your purchase to go towards supporting our amazing AVID scholars!

Looking back at the month of September, our average for phones turned into the main office is 8.9 phones per day. Again, great work by our entire cardinal community in making this happen. Moving forward we will be providing monthly updates on collection data. Great work!

The staff have been so impressed with our students' work on improving their engagement and reducing cell phone use, we have arranged a Food Truck Friday. On Friday, October 3 we will have seven food trucks available for students to purchase items from. We will also have school lunch available for students as usual in the commons. Well done!

• Free Vaccination Clinic in Sun Prairie at the Professional Learning Center (Door #28) 220 Kroncke Dr. Wednesday October 1st, 2025 3:00 to 7:00 pm
• If you’re unable to attend the Sun Prairie location, please click here to see other Madison area opportunities

Linked below is this month's French newsletter.

Linked below are the band program updates for the week of September 15th.

Stop by Meadow View Elementary on October 2nd for Hispanic and Latino Family Night!

• Purchased parking passes were distributed last week. If you have not picked up your pass, please stop by the main office.
• Please make sure you have paid your parking fee in IC.
• Students will need a parking pass to avoid getting a parking citation. Officer Davis will issue warnings before citations the week of 9/29.

Thank you to all our students for their hard work on this fall's Pre-ACT test. For students who missed testing, we will be running make up testing this week. If you have questions about Pre-ACT testing, please reach out to Ms. Looper.

Cardinal Families, strong attendance is essential to student success, and we want to keep you informed about how the district monitors and supports attendance. Families will receive letters when students reach certain absence “trigger points” (5 or 10 days, unexcused and 10 days, excused); these are automatically generated and meant to keep communication open. Please call the attendance line by 9:00 a.m. to report absences, and know that you can check your child’s attendance anytime through Infinite Campus. Caregivers play a key role in helping students stay engaged, and we value your partnership. Please read the FULL attendance process HERE.

PSAT registration officially closed on Monday, September 8th. Students who registered should log into Infinite Campus to pay the $18.00 testing fee as soon as possible.

The PSAT will be administered on Wednesday, October 15th, from 8:45 AM to 12:00 PM in the Library. Students are expected to arrive by 8:25 AM on the day of the test.

A reminder email will be sent to all registered students as the testing date approaches

Attention Juniors and Senior Students!

If you have not signed up to attend the WEF (Wisconsin Education Fairs) happening at Sun Prairie West High School on October 2nd, 2025. Please fill out the Google Form below so you can be added to our roster of students attending the WEF. The deadline to sign up with the WEF field trip is on Monday September 29th, 2025 at 3:45pm. We will NOT be accepting any late registration past the deadline.

Google Form: LINK

If you already signed up for the WEF, the next step you need to complete is registering for the WEF. Please Note: This is different from signing up to attend the WEF!!! You must complete the student registration for the WEF in order to easily share your information with colleges you are interested in.

After registering, you will receive a barcode via text and email, that colleges can scan. When a college scans your barcode, they will receive your information and send you details about their school. You will be able to use your phone on the day of the WEF for educational purposes. No backpacks allowed. You can leave your backpack in Student Services.

As a Member of Congress, Representative Pocan has the honor of nominating outstanding young people from the Second District for an appointment to one of our nation’s service academies. Although a nomination is not a guarantee that a student will attend a U.S. Service Academy, it is required to apply to the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis, U.S. Air Force Academy at Colorado Springs, and U.S. Merchant Marine Academy at Kings Point.

Our office is accepting nomination applications through Friday, October 17th. Please let any interested students know that they can contact our office at 608-258-9800 or email the Service Academy Nominations Coordinator at Diego.Benitez@mail.house.gov with questions.

Ms. Leja has access to copies of the application for interested students.

Athletes and families, thank you to those who attended and supported us and our students at our East/West competitions last week. We had successful events and fun for our youth and community. THANK YOU!

Jenna Boberg, CAA

Athletics & Activities Director

Tuesday 9/30 during WIN time, all student-athletes are required to attend our annual Code Meeting in the PAC. We will discuss the importance of being a leader, what it means to be a Cardinal, review the code of conduct and have a few surprises. Students will need to sign up with Ms. Weber for WIN.

The Sun Prairie East Multipurpose Turf Field is nearing completion and will be ready for use by Oct. 1!

The fall sports teams will be headed into the playoffs in October, follow along on the WIAA site HERE

Winter Sports registration begins this Wednesday on October 1st on Infinite Campus for high school students.

We will offer the following sports:

Adapted Indoor Floor Hockey

Basketball - Boys

Basketball - Girls

Gymnastics - Girls

Hockey - Boys

Hockey - Girls

Swim/Dive - Boys

Wrestling - Boys

Wrestling - Girls

Come check out the school store during events- it’s open! Students and staff can also shop before school or during lunch (limited hours/days). A naming contest for the "school store" is currently underway.

If you are interested in purchasing a yearbook or or submitting your senior photo, please take a look at the informational flyer below.

• Currently - Homecoming Guest Forms Are Available
• September 25th - Club Expo during lunches
• October 1st - Winter Sports Registration opens
• October 2nd at 3:45pm - Homecoming Guest Forms Due

• October 6th at 8am - Homecoming Tickets Go On Sale

• October 8th - Homecoming Parade
• October 9th at noon - Ticket Sales End
• October 10th - Homecoming Football Game
• October 11th - Homecoming Dance

Come show your school spirit and support our athletes in the East vs West competitions!

Our athletes and families are invited to join Influential Athlete’s monthly virtual NIL Masterclasses to learn how to navigate NIL safely while maximizing opportunities and building skills for life after sports. Sessions take place on the last Tuesday of every month (except December) at 6 PM CST.

2025 – 2026 Schedule:

• Sept 30, 2025: NIL 101 & Personal Branding Fundamentals

• Oct 28, 2025: Social Media for NIL Success

• Nov 25, 2025: Storytelling & On-Camera Presence

• Dec 16, 2025: Identifying Potential NIL Partners

• Jan 27, 2026: Pitching & Negotiating NIL Deals

• Feb 24, 2026: Protecting Yourself in NIL Deals

• Mar 31, 2026: Financial Management for NIL Athletes

• Apr 28, 2026: Maximizing Media Exposure

• May 26, 2026: Life After Sports – Using NIL to Build Your Future

Please see the linked information for upcoming contests.