Dr. Troy N. Wright September 2017 Principal 12301 Spotswood Furnace Road Cherilynn Bickerstaff, Assistant Principal Fredericksburg, VA 22407 Michelle Gordon, Instructional Coordinator Rod Goode, Assistant Principal Tim Stimmell, Athletic Director Brian Lutterbie, Assistant Principal Phone: 540.548.4051 Fax: 540.548.2964 LaTonya Parker, Counseling Director Christine Rogucki, Assistant Principal http://www.spotsylvania.k12.va.us/rhs FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL IS TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 5, 2017~SCHOOL STARTS AT 7:35 A.M. BE ON TIME! Greetings Bears: Ninth Grade & NEW STUDENT Welcome to Riverbend High School and what I hope will be our best year yet. Our staff is dedicated to helping your student be successful, ORIENTATION our parent community is highly supportive and our students are driven to be successful. This combination creates a wonderful environment to Wednesday learn and work and a place where I am very proud to serve as your principal. August 30, 2017 I would like to begin by celebrating some of Riverbend’s achievements from 2016-17. Several of our academic and athletic teams were highly 6-8pm successful last year. DECA, the co-curricular club for marketing, took a record number of 15 students to the DECA International Competition Please come out to last spring, placing two to those students 4th. Our music programs had an outstanding year at assessment with many superior ratings, and our drama department entertained the community with wonderful plays culminating with a crowd favorite “Shrek.” RHS won several athletic Ninth Grade & New conference championships including football, field hockey, girl’s cross country, boy’s and girl’s indoor track, girl’s swim (also regional cham- Student Orientation. pions), girl’s soccer, and girl’s tennis. RHS had a record number of 702 students taking at least one AP test for a total of 1532 AP exams This is a great oppor- taken. Over 60% of the scores were high enough (3 or higher) to earn college credit in most colleges and universities. The continued effort of Riverbend students to challenge themselves was recognized recently by The Washington’s Post Most Challenging Schools. Riverbend contin- tunity to get your ues to be one of the few schools in Virginia offering the AP Capstone Program, a rigorous program through College Board that helps demon- schedule, locker, and strate a high level of college readiness for prospective colleges. meet your teachers. There will also be New this year is our implementation of “Fresh Start,” a freshmen transition program designed by RHS staff and students. We kicked off the program on July 25 with over 220 incoming freshmen participating in transition activities with student mentors. This program will continue opportunities to meet throughout the year with periodic meetings led by student mentors designed to help students maximize their high school career by focusing on with representatives positive relationships, good choices and making connections. from student organi- For the past three years, Riverbend has been focused on literacy. Each year, we add a different strategy as a focus for our teachers and con- zations and athletics. tinue to use all strategies to help our students. The last two years we worked on strategies for comprehending test questions and strategies to PE uniforms, PTSA teach vocabulary words. This year, our teachers will be working with students on strategies to assist them with the skills needed for public and Class Dues can speaking. We feel that a continued focus on literacy strategies will provide our students with skills and strategies that can be used for a life- time. also be paid. RHS will be joining all other Spotsylvania County Schools in establishing a renewed focus in the program known as Positive Behavioral Inter- ventions and Supports (PBIS). We are excited to be taking part in this program as it offers proven strategies to help the school become more consistent with behavioral expectations in a manner than highlights and models the expected behaviors without lessening accountability meas- Welcome to our beautiful ures. This is an area where Riverbend needs to improve, and we will be communicating with parents and students about the program through- school! School starts at out the year, so I hope that you will notice an improvement in our effort to create a better system of accountability that is easy to follow and 7:35 a.m. All visitors clear to all students, staff and parents. please use the Main En- I would like to encourage parents to be actively involved in your student’s school life. This year we had several parents who volunteered their trance located behind the time on a consistent basis to help in the office. Our counseling department is always looking for parents to share with students about career flag poles. YOU MUST opportunities during Bear Block, our activity period. We could also use parents to assist with proctoring the PSAT on Wednesday, October HAVE A PHOTO ID To 11, 2017. If you would like to volunteer this year, either in the office or for any other program, please contact Ms. Dickinson at cdickin- Enter Our School. You [email protected] must also ring the bell inside the lobby and wait I feel that the more parents we have involved in our schools, then the more accessible our school will be to parent feedback. One great way to to be buzzed in. Thank get involved is by joining the PTSA. There are several events throughout the year for which the PTSA is responsible that need parent support. you for understanding the Two of the biggest of these events are the homecoming dance on October 21, 2017 and the After-Prom on April 28, 2018. If you are inter- ested in becoming a member and/or volunteering your time, please contact the PTSA at [email protected]. They will also be avail- need for these safety able to answer questions at New Student / Freshmen Orientation on August 30 from 6-8pm. If you are a new student or a freshman, I encour- measures. age you to attend the orientation on the 30th, and I look forward to meeting our new Bears. We are excited about this year and the many opportunities that are available. Thanks for all your support in making RHS the best, and let’s have a great year! Sincerely, Troy Wright, Ph.D. Riverbend Principal Don’t Cheat the Bears! Riverbend's mission is to prepare all students to excel in a diverse, dynamic and global society. Core Values: Character, Community, Inclusion, Rigor, Safety, Spirit, Teamwork Page 2 SAVE THIS NEWSLETTER! STUDENT SERVICES School Testing Class Schedules (See Page 8 for Dates) Counselors Students will receive their schedules SAT/ACT Testing the first day of school. Adjustments to Dontee Sylvester Testing dates and registration materials student schedules have been made for are available online at (SAT’s) failures and Summer School. Regis- Counselor A-C www.collegeboard.org, (ACT’s) tration drives the development of the Ext. 5328 www.actstudent.org Seniors should take master schedule and teacher assign- the SAT in October or November. ments. Therefore, schedule changes Kimberly Rolling Please be sure to register online, as the can only be guaranteed under the fol- deadline for the first testing date is early lowing circumstances: Counselor D-HR September. Ext. 5325 PSAT Testing Failure of a course which is a pre- Jenna Haley requisite for a scheduled course or Testing will be given at Riverbend on graduation requirement Wednesday, October 11, 2017. Payment Counselor HU-N Clerical error information will be available during Sep- Ext. 5326 Change in course availability tember. All 10th and 11th grade stu- Joanne Rahm dents should take the test. It is a good Balancing of class size opportunity for Juniors to identify weak Level changes (ex. English 9 to Counselor O-S areas before taking the SAT. **This Advance English 9) Ext. 5324 test is FREE to Sophomores for the Once a change is made there will be no Tonya Parker 2017-2018 school year. reversal back to the previous class. A stu- dent who withdraws from a class after the Director & Counselor T-Z ASVAB Military Testing first 14 weeks of a yearlong course or after 7 weeks of a semester course will receive a Ext. 5323 The Armed Services Vocational Aptitude “WF”(withdrew failing) or “WP” (withdrew Battery (ASVAB) will be given at River- passing) which are treated as an “F” when Counselors are available for bend in the fall. Anyone thinking about a students and/or parent con- calculating the grade point average (GPA). military option after graduation must take A student may not drop a required course ferences during the hours of the ASVAB. Others may wish to take at any time. Please refer to the “Catalog of 7:15 A.M.- 2:45 P.M. Please this test as well because it provides the Secondary Course Offerings and Related call Ms. Bohnstedt ext. 5321 student with information about career Information” for additional information or for an appointment. Students interest. Register in Student Services. contact Student Services. Please note, students may not leave school early on a are assigned to a counselor Selective Service daily basis unless enrolled in a school/work according to the student’s last If you are a male, 18 years of age or program or with permission from the prin- name. older, you are required to register with cipal. Selective Services. The school will have a representative here periodically to assist in registering 18 year olds for selective College Night service. For more information check: Wednesday, October 18, 2017 www.sss.gov. 6:30pm-8:30pm The College Board Advanced Placement College Night will be held at Spotsylvania Program (AP) provides an opportunity for Towne Center.