Kickapoo announcements for Sept. 23 - 27, 2024

Hello Kickapoo families!

It appears Fall weather has arrived just in time for our Homecoming activities! See below for the spirit days, assembly schedule, parade, game, and dance. 

* Tip Line - Students and families are encouraged to report any concerns to the Principals or site school police officers at any time in person, via the 24-hour tip line, or contacting me by email (wtpowers@spsmail.org), or by Canvas message. Our 24-hour Tip line is 417-319-2901. The tip line is for ALL SPS schools so please be specific with information so the Dispatcher on duty can easily forward to the correct school officials.

Also, please do NOT post or repost information online or on social media. This leads to the rapid spread of misinformation, it creates unnecessary panic, and also delays any active investigations.

We will ALWAYS communicate with families and students IF there were an active threat to the safety of our students, staff, and school.   

Thank you.

* Announcements - I send these announcements via Connect 5 text & email and Canvas inbox each weekend during the course of the school year. These announcements include several important items, however, they are not all inclusive. Please remember to check our social media and website for the most up to date information about clubs, athletics, and other important announcements.

* Stay connected with Kickapoo in the following ways:

Facebook - Kickapoo High School

X - @KickapooChiefs

Instagram - @KickapooHighSchool

Website - kickapoochiefs.org

Daily Announcements are on our website and linked HERE. Please check these frequently as they are updated daily.

* KHS 24 - 25 Bell Schedule 

* Student Grades - eSchool Home Access Center is the official gradebook. You can login here to check student grades. After logging in click Classes to see the most up to date grades entered. 

* D & F Phone Calls - I make phone calls home for students with a D and/or F in any of their classes each Tuesday after school. These phone calls will began on Tuesday, Sept. 10th and continue through the end of the quarter. These grades come from a report run at 6:30 a.m. each Tuesday morning. 

If you have questions or concerns please contact your students teachers or counselor. Thank you!

* FREE Tutoring available every day after school in the Kickapoo library from 3:25 - 4:25. Students will check in and must stay the full time unless a parent or guardian signs them out.

* Wednesday Late Start - Classes begin at 8:40 a.m. on Wednesday's as our teachers engage in professional learning those mornings. Wednesday bell schedule is at the link above.

Please note BUSSES RUN AT NORMAL TIMES on Wednesday.

* Student Parking - We have approximately 5 spots remaining for the Fall semester. See Mrs. Liston in the Financial Office to purchase a spot.

DO NOT park in another numbered spot, (that becomes a domino effect) but park in a visitor spot. Students will then report the issue by filling out the sheet in the attendance office (door 18).
Students must have an SPS parking decal and KHS hang tag to park on campus. No decal? Park on Jefferson Street in front of the baseball/practice field.
Do NOT park in STAFF, VISITOR, or HANDICAPPED SPOTS at KHS. Also, do NOT park at Gillenwaters tennis courts, Birch Pointe across the street OR any of our local businesses. You may be fined or towed.

* Counseling Corner - Check this link for all things from the Counselors. 

* 2024-2025 School Calendar: The last day of school is Friday, May 23, 2025.

* Class of 2025 Kickapoo Graduation will be Saturday, May 17, 2025 at 7 p.m. at Great Southern Bank Arena

* Parent Senior Meeting slides. Senior parents, please review the slides for LOTS of important information to help you and your senior navigate this year successfully.

* Senior Quotes & Headshots - Senior headshots should be sent digitally in a jpeg or png format to kickapooyearbook@gmail.com no later than Oct. 24th. Seniors may use the school picture day photo in place of a studio photo. Photo should be portrait style, mid stomach and above. No full body, horizontal or selfies. Senior quotes MUST be school appropriate and is subject to omission if it goes against school guidelines. 

* Cox Care Mobile - will be here on Tuesday, Sept. 24, 9 a.m. – 2 p.m. to administer immunizations and provide sports physicals. Parents must fill out the appropriate consent form and turn it in to the school nurse by Monday, Sept. 23. Contact our school nurse at 417-523-8530 to schedule an appointment for that day. Forms can be found at our website on the Nurses Page as well. 

* Explore OTC Field Trip - 10th grade students interested in attending OTC Career Center their junior year should attend the Explore OTC field trip on Oct. 17th. Check your Canvas messages for more details including how to sign up. Interested 11th graders can stop by the counseling office and speak to Mrs. Busboom for additional information.

* SPS College Career Fair - Tuesday, Oct. 1st from 5 - 7 p.m. at Kickapoo High School. There will be college representatives from all over the country here to talk about what their schools have to offer. There will be many local workforce and military branches as well. One lucky Kickapoo student who attends will win a brand new Chromebook just for attending, but you can’t win if you don’t attend! We hope to see you there!

* SPS High School Attendance Requirement for Dances. In order to attend a SPS dance students must meet the following requirements: 

• 90% overall attendance (school-sponsored activities do not count as absences) by a determined date prior to the dance set by the high school site administration. Kickapoo's first dance is Friday, Sept. 27. Students must have 90% or better attendance by end of day Thursday, Sept. 26.

• Must be in attendance the entire school day the day of the dance

• Must not be serving ISS or OSS on the day of the dance

• Major discipline infractions (OSS) will result in non-admittance to the school dance

• Pay ALL fines & fees in Financial office or library before purchasing a ticket

* Homecoming - “Grooving in Greece”

• Assembly Schedule – KHS Gymnasium, Thursday, Sept. 26th. 

1st Block 8:10 – 9:10
2nd Block 9:15 – 11:25
    First Floor Assembly 9:30 – 10:20
    Second Floor Assembly 10:35 – 11:25
3rd Block 11:30 – 1:30
4th Block 1:35 – 3:10
• Homecoming Queen Voting – 3rd block lunches, Thursday, Sept. 26th.
• Game – kick-off at 7 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 26th. 

• Pre-game Float Parade at 5:30 p.m.

• Dance - Friday, Sept. 27th, 9 -11 p.m. 
• Tickets are $10 each and will be sold during 3rd block lunch times on Monday – Wednesday, Sept. 23-25.

• Tickets will be sold on Thursday & Friday, Sept. 26 & 27 for $15 each. Buy your tickets early to save some money! 

• No sales will be made after 1:30 on Friday, Sept. 27th. Plan ahead and buy your ticket early.

• Dance Guest forms are available in the Main Office and must be returned signed to Ms. Bricker prior to purchasing your tickets.
• You MUST be in attendance all day Friday, Sept. 27th in order to attend the dance that night. If you have an appointment scheduled that day, it needs to be rescheduled. If it cannot be rescheduled, then your parent must contact Mrs. Helfrecht to obtain prior approval for your absence by Thursday, Sept. 26th. 

* Week 5 Spirit Week - Homecoming!

* Homecoming Parade - Thursday, Sept. 26

* SPS High School Final Exam Exemption Requirements. Students are eligible for finals exemption by meeting the following criteria: 

• 90% overall attendance (school-sponsored activities do not count as absences) per semester

• Received no ISS or OSS for the semester

• Passing the class with an 80% or greater prior to the final exam

• Exempt students may take the final to improve their grade in a class; in this case, the final grade cannot hurt the student’s overall grade

• Required to attend class during the final exam

block and complete optional enrichment tasks

provided Dual credit, AP, IB, and virtual classes

are not eligible for final exemptions.

* Student Attendance for Week 5 - Our yearly goal is 95% and we have now dropped to 94.47% for the year. Great job by our 11th graders as they led the way last week AND they improved by 2.65% over the previous week!

* Yearbooks are on sale now at www.jostens.com $45 each. * NHS Application Deadline - National Honor Society (NHS) applications are being accepted Monday, September 16 until Friday, September 27. If you are in 10th, 11th or 12th grade and if you have a GPA of 3.5 or better on a 4.0 scale (non-weighted), look on Canvas for an invitation to join an NHS Application course. You must first accept the course invitation in order to access your application. Be sure to complete the application (Google Form) and submit it no later than Friday, September 27 at 5 pm. Any applications submitted after the deadline will not be accepted, no exceptions. If you feel you qualify to apply to NHS but do not see a Canvas course invitation or if you have any questions about the application process, see or email Mrs. Fink in room 226 before Friday, September 27. * Tribe Cards - Counselors gave out Tribe Cards to our returning 10th - 12th graders who earned them for 4th quarter of the 23-24 school year.  Here is how students earn them AND what they can use them for in each of their classes for THIS quarter. * Tribe Cards for current 9th graders - All current KHS students, including 9th graders, can earn Tribe Cards based on their performance during 1st quarter. First quarter cards will be distributed in 2nd quarter. * CANVAS HELP - Need help accessing and checking online learning with your student? Click here for a list of resources from SPS. You can also click here for a guide for “how-to” items for parents. Please be sure to reach out with questions as we navigate online learning.

* Reminders:

• Any students needing WiFi can request a Kajeet hotspot through our library.
• Kickapoo will open our doors at 7:40 a.m. and first block begins at 8:10 a.m. every day Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, & Friday. 
• Wednesday is late start for students so staff may participate in professional learning. Classes begin at 8:40 a.m. ALL BUSSES WILL RUN AT NORMAL TIMES.
• Classes end at 3:10 p.m. every day.
• All students should leave school/campus by 3:45 p.m. unless directly supervised by a teacher, coach, or sponsor.
• Students should take home Chromebooks every day and charge them each night.
• Deliveries to school - Parents/guardians may deliver food and other items to school. We ask that you label and leave them on the table. Please communicate with your student to let them know items have been dropped off for them as we do not contact them. 
• NO FOOD or DRINK DELIVERIES FROM OUTSIDE VENDORS. Thank you! 
• ID badges and dress code - ALL students must have an ID every day. Follow all dress code expectations. Cover ALL B's!
• ALL students will receive a NEW ID & Lanyard on the first day of school. IF they do not please have your student request one from a teacher.

Again, the items I have listed above are NOT all inclusive.

If you have any questions please don't hesitate to reach out to me. I will respond as soon as possible.

Thank you again for your patience, grace, and flexibility. Take care and as always #GoChiefs!

Dr. Bill Powers
Principal
Kickapoo High School