High School News
October 2023
Hello Agora!
I’m so glad you’re here! My name is Heather McCormick, one of the 9th grade Assistant Principals. January marks my 23rd year as an educator, and 14 of those years have been happily spent here at Agora! When I’m not working, I love to hike, bike, and watch my two boys participate in their favorite activities! My son Kyle is 14 and enjoys martial arts, cross country, and track, while Jackson, 11, loves soccer and martial arts. Our family loves animals. We have two golden doodles, a bearded dragon and several fish. My husband and I have been married for 20 years in June. To celebrate this milestone, we will be taking a trip to Aruba!
Fall is my favorite season! I love the cooler weather and everything that comes along with that—corn mazes, fires, football, and apple picking! In just a few weeks, my husband and I will be taking our annual fall trip to Penn State University where we earned our undergraduate degrees. Here, we’ll enjoy college football and the beauty that the university has to offer as the leaves start to change color each fall.
I genuinely look forward to getting to know the 9th graders that I will work with this year! I would love to hear how your year is going—what’s going well and ways we can improve. Feel free to email or call at hmccormick@agoracyber.net or 610-230-2668. Wishing you all the best!
Heather McCormick
Assistant Principal
Dear Parents, Caregivers, and Students,
I have been part of the Agora family since August of 2007 working in a variety of capacities in the High School and Middle School. Two of my four children have also attended Agora spanning from 5th grade to High School, and they are both in college in Idaho this fall! When not in school, we love to play board games and spend time outside in nature! Most recently, my family returned from an Eastern United States/Canada trip where one of our favorite parts was exploring the rocks and lighthouses on the coast of Nova Scotia and in Acadia National Park.
This year with Agora I am looking forward to working closely with 9th grade students helping them to make plans for graduation and success beyond! I also look forward to overseeing the science teachers in the High School, Computer Literacy, Game Design and Driver’s Safety. So students might see me popping in and out of those classes this year!
In my spare time, I often tell people that I haven’t yet figured out what I want to do when I grow up, but more accurately, I should say I collect hobbies. Every couple of years I pick up a new hobby, so I have an office filled with things I love to do: writing books, drone photography, pottery, box puzzle solving, wood working, bean to bar chocolate making and running a youtube channel or two. I also have a yard that is quickly getting filled with my outdoor projects, like a high ropes course, gaga pit, chicken coop and pig pen we have affectionately named HOGwarts!
This year I’m hoping to polish and re-release the final book in a young adult fantasy trilogy I’ve been working on for a while called “The Changing,” and one unfinished book I want to finish reading is, “Start With WHY” by Simon Sinek.
Eric Buffington
Assistant Principal
Reading plays a strong role in developing lifelong learners. At the high school, our days are busy--but we value any chance we get to read after hours. Here are some of the page-turners your high school administration team has been enjoying!
Erin Hilson - A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J. Maas
Heather McCormick - Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng
Holly Allen - A Step-by-Step Guide to Conducting Applied Research by Claxton & Michael
Jeff Miller - The Gunslinger by Stephen King
Eric Buffington - writing The Changing and reading Start With WHY by Simon Sinek
Paul Harkins - The Wager by David Grann
Erinn Slacktish - Introduction to Statistics by David M. Lane
Morgan Witman - Written in My Own Heart's Blood by Diana Gabaldon
Valerie Natale - The Hate You Give by Angie Thomas
Danielle Schall - Trust-Based Observations by Craig Randall
Research shows that extracurricular activities such as student clubs have a positive effect on students' academic performance. Students who participate in extracurricular activities tend to possess higher self-esteem and attend school more regularly with lower drop-out rates. That's why Agora is proud to offer our high school students 30 club options where they can achieve, exercise leadership skills, find friends and make connections, broaden their interests, and more! Next week, a High School Club Fair will be held virtually where students can learn more about our clubs. Breakout rooms will allow students to see and hear details about clubs that interest them and give them opportunities to chat with club advisors. The Club Fair details are below along with a list of our club options. Students are encouraged to sign up for the clubs that interest them--but please limit those signups to no more than TWO clubs (so that academics can remain a priority!) 😊
Date: October 3
Time: 3:00 - 4:00 PM
- Agora Car Club
- Agora Theatrics Club - pending approval
- Anime Club
- Art Club
- Astronomy Club
- A Time For Christ Club
- Book Club
- Chess Club (combined with middle school participants)
- Coffeehouse
- Cooking Club
- Debate Club
- Equine Club
- FBLA - Future Business Leaders of America (Agora chapter)
- F.I.R.E. Club - Female Initiative, Respect, Empowerment)
- Gaming Club
- GSA - Genders & Sexualities Alliance
- Girls Who Code
- Global Awareness Club
- HOSA - Future Health Professionals Student Organization (Agora chapter)
- 4 Diamonds Mini-THON Club
- Photography Club
- Poetry Club
- PYLN - Pennsylvania Youth Leadership Network
- Pursuing Joy Club
- RAKA - Random Acts of Kindness at Agora
- Sable Alliance - fostering unity in our school community through exposure to Black culture
- Spanish Club
- The Agora Times - e-newsletter by and for Agora high school students
- Travel Club
- Writing Club
Act 158 of 2018 (Act 158), signed into law by Governor Tom Wolf on October 24, 2018, provides alternatives to Pennsylvania's statewide requirement of attaining proficiency on the three end-of-course Keystone Exams (Algebra I, Literature, and Biology) for a student to achieve statewide graduation requirements.
In order to graduate from high school, students must meet all local graduation requirements related to credits and coursework along with the state requirements outlined in Act 158. Students must score proficient or advanced and/or score within a specific target range on Keystone exams to meet either the Keystone Proficiency Pathway or the Keystone Composite Pathway. There are alternate pathways that students may be eligible to complete if their Keystone scores do not meet the testing requirements.
Administrators and school counselors are working closely with each high school student to review Keystone scores and help students determine which pathway they are eligible to complete to meet graduation requirements.
- Tuesday, October 3:
- Full day advisory conferences (more information will be sent by advisory teachers)
- High School Club Fair at 3 PM (link in students' online school schedule)
- Wednesday, October 11: Half-day class schedule in AM (see schedule below): asynchronous PM (assignments will be posted in students' courses)
- Friday, October 20: Charter Day - schools and offices will be closed
- Wednesday, October 25: Half-day class schedule in AM (see schedule below); asynchronous PM (assignments will be posted in students' courses)
- Looking ahead: Academic Quarter 1 ends November 2 - Students should be up to date in course work
Occasionally, high school students will follow half-day schedules with abbreviated classes that are completed by noon. The next half-day for students is scheduled for Wednesday, October 11; students have classes in the morning only, and staff in-service takes place in the afternoon. The half-day academic schedule for students is detailed in the image to the right.
Agora's Positive Behavioral Interventions & Supports (PBIS) framework was designed by teachers and students to create a common way for all learners to feel safe, to know what is expected of them, and to be rewarded for meeting those expectations. Our PBIS framework is based on the shared core values of our school: learner centeredness, wellness, responsibility, and engagement. High school teachers have already begun to work with the students in their classes to collaboratively develop and maintain a PBIS matrix featuring expectations unique to that group of learners. Throughout the school year, teachers and their students will frequently review the PBIS matrix to maintain the positive behavior norms each class has established.Teachers will select a few students each month to receive a special postcard in the mail to encourage continued effort and acknowledge positive behavior being demonstrated in class.
The PBIS All-Star student acknowledgement program will continue at the high school this year. The program is intended to reward positive behavior--specifically, demonstration of Agora's core values. High school students are encouraged to nominate classmates who demonstrate learner centeredness, wellness, responsibility, and engagement in their classes. Each month, five students' names will be randomly drawn from the pool of student nominations (one from each of the five content areas), and those five students will be recognized as the PBIS All-Star students for that month. Last year, we celebrated THIRTY PBIS All-Star students! Monthly All-Star students will be announced in a future issue of this newsletter and celebrated in live class sessions and in The Agora Times, our high school newsletter for students.
In addition to being recognized publicly within our school community, PBIS All-Star students receive a t-shirt designed by our PBIS staff and student core teams (see image below). We are grateful for the commitment of our PBIS teams and appreciate their efforts in helping to energize student recognition in our school. High School students who are interested in being a member of the PBIS student core team can contact Assistant Principal Holly Allen at hoallen@agoracyber.net
