Schedules are in the Mail

On Tuesday June 26th the 2012-2013 class schedules will be mailed. Please remember that all students must carry six academic courses each semester plus physical education and/or health.

Also if there is an error or omission in the schedule you need to make arrangements to correct the problem. If your schedule reads “Please Schedule an Appointment with Guidance” OR " Incomplete Schedule" then your schedule is invalid and it is imperative that you call to schedule an appointment  the bottom then your . There are several options available:

·         Beginning Monday July 9th and continuing through July 26th, then again August 13^th to August 23^rd, Mr. Joseph Attubato, Support Services Coordinator, and several Guidance Counselors will be available (by appointment only) Mondays through Thursdays from 8:00 a.m. to 12 noon. Please call Mrs. Patty Lewis at 781-270-1780 beginning on June 25^th to schedule an appointment. 

·         Guidance Counselors will be available during the week of August 20^th through August 23^rd from 8 A.M. to 12 Noon. During this week, students will be helped on a first come first serve basis.

You are encouraged to correct any problems in your course schedule as early as possible. Doing so will insure a smooth opening of school for you. Also, please be advised that specific teacher requests cannot be honored.

Great Opportunities for BHS Students

We are so excited to inform students of some “new” outstanding opportunities available at Burlington High School for the 2011/2012 school year. Each summer the Guidance Department meets with many students in order to choose available alternate elective courses. Over the years we have been limited to what is listed in our program of studies. However, for the 2011-2012 school year, we have some new and exciting opportunities as part of the course offerings that students need to be aware of. We believe students and parents should strongly consider some of these options. Below are the highlights and details for each unique option. Please don’t hesitate to email or call your son or daughters respective counselor for more details.

This “New” Course just added two weeks ago called “Student Help Desk”. This will be an elective course in the 500-900 range and will be open to students in grades 10-12 to start the year. Students who sign-up for BHS help desk are expected to have an interest in technology and an ability to problem solve and interact with others. Details on registering for this course can be found by clicking here.

A “New” work study program:
CAREER/COMMUNITY SERVICE INTERN PROGRAM!!!!!The Career/Community Service Intern program is a volunteer or paid work experience program offered by Burlington High School for Juniors and Seniors in good academic standing. In this program, students get a chance to gain real-world experience in a career or community service area of interest, assume adult responsibilities, and develop outstanding work habits at volunteer or paid internship sites located in the community. Students will receive quarterly evaluations from their site supervisor and high school coordinator. Students are expected to turn in required paperwork, time sheets and evaluations to the high school coordinator on a regular basis. Students will be expected to complete a resume and cover letter at the completion of the program and will be required to participate in on-line discussion groups. Please see Ms. Robinson in Guidance for more information and program application.

As many know we share a campus with Bay Path College. Bay Path is offering a business course called “Dynamics of Management” available to juniors and seniors. Students can take one less course during the school day and receive college credit. We have been offering this course for the past three years and the benefit here is students leave BHS with 3 college credits. Click here for an application.

Lastly, for juniors and seniors, many students take advantage of the VHS program. The VHS (Virtual High School) Program offers many unique and interesting courses NOT offered at BHS. We have had students take courses such as AP Psychology, criminology, contemporary Irish literature, screenwriting and forensic science. In order to take VHS course students should complete an VHS application by clicking here.

Guidance Breakfast Wednesday June 15th @ 8:30 A.M.

The BHS Guidance Department cordially invites junior parents to join us for our last Guidance Breakfast of the 2010/2011 school year. The topic will be about the "College Topics for the Summer". The breakfast will be held in the BHS Lower Library at 8:30am on Wednesday June 15th.  Please RSVP by calling 781-270-1780. We look forward to seeing you!

College Financing Seminar May 12th

Sophomores, juniors and their parents are invited to attend a free presentation on college financing this Thursday, May 12th at 6:30 p.m. in the BHS cafeteria.

This seminar is offered through the Massachusetts Educational Financing Authority (MEFA), the Commonwealth's resource for planning, saving and paying for college. An experienced MEFA representative, Carla Berg of Bentley University, will provide an overview of the financial aid process, including types of financial aid, how to apply, and determining financing options for your family. 

Families will receive a seminar booklet which serves as a year-round resource. Time is allowed for questions and answers. Please contact the BHS Guidance Department at 781-270-1780 if you have any questions.

" Race to Nowhere" at BHS

Burlington High School will be a host sight for the movie" Race to Nowhere" on Thursday April 28th at 7:00 P.M.The movie offers insight into the high stress environment our students are faced with everyday. We highly recommend students and parents attend. Please click here for registration information.


“Featuring the heartbreaking stories of young people across the country who have been pushed to the brink, educators who are burned out and worried that students aren’t developing the skills
they need, and parents who are trying to
do what’s best for their kids, Race to Nowhere
points to the silent epidemic in our schools: cheating has become commonplace, students have become isengaged, stress-related illness, depression and burnout are rampant, and young people arrive at college and the workplace unprepared and uninspired.”

The Dan Whitehead Memorial Scholarship

Seniors
We have extended the deadline on the Dan Whitehead Memorial Scholarship to May 2nd. We encourage you to apply. The award is for any BHS senior that is majoring in a service related industry (included, but not limited to, education, social services or criminal justice). You may download the application from your Naviance account or feel free to swing by the Guidance office and pick up a copy of the application.

BHS Guidance Breakfast- Wednesday April 13th @ 8:30 A.M.

The BHS Guidance Department cordially invites parents of underclassmen ( grades 9, 10 and 11) to join us for the next Guidance Breakfast. The topic will be about the "Naviance Program". Naviance is our college and career software planning program that we utilize for all students throughout the course of their high school career. We encourage parents to be involved in secondary planning with their son or daughter. The Guidance department feels that advanced planning allows for better post secondary decisions. Statistics show the majority of new students entering higher education leave their initial college of choice without completing a degree. We have found this statistic to be true nationally and locally as well. This is why we feel proper research and planning is increasingly important.
The breakfast will be held in the BHS Lower Library at 8:30am on Wednesday April 13th. Please RSVP by calling 781-270-1780. We look forward to seeing you!

On-Line Course Selections

We uncovered a small bug in the online request portal.
After logging in, when a student clicks on the Request Side Tab it is important that they only click on this button ONCE. It might take a few seconds for the page to load.
Please be patient, because clicking on this button more than once will cause an issue with your course requests.

The on-line course selection process begins today. All students will be responsible for selecting courses on-line. Students are reminded that helpful links can be found on the right hand side of this blog. Also please remember that your log-in information was provided in homeroom. If you don't have your information please see your Guidance Counselor.
After you sign in you will be prompted to change your password. The student portal will be open beginning today and will close day ending March 14th. BHS Counselors will be available during the school day every period and until 2:15 beginning March 8th until March 14th in the BHS lower library. Guidance Counselors will also be avilable for on-line chats. Dates and links for the on-line chats are also on the right hand side of this blog.

2011 BHS Program of Studies Finalized

The 2011 Program of Studies has now been finalized. On the right hand side you will notice three different formats for the on-line BHS Program of Studies. Students and parents are reminded that the Program of Studies will only be available on-line. We have listed some notable changes to the 2011 Program below:

New courses:

Advanced Placement Studio Art- Grade 12

Advanced Placement Statistics- Grade 12

Spanish for Health Care Careers- Grade 11 and 12, and two years of Spanish

Introduction to Health Occupations- Seniors and juniors (space permitting)

Italian IV- This course already exits; we are just adding a level

Other Changes:

Change of senior health requirement:
Seniors are required to enroll in one of the following courses. Each course meets the BHS Senior Health Graduation Requirement:
                                    Introduction to Sports Medicine
                                    Introduction to Health Occupations
                                    Senior Wellness

AP Program Change for seniors ONLY:
Seniors are allowed to enroll in 29.5 credits, if enrolled in two or more AP courses.

The following change applies to the INCOMING Freshman class (class of 2015).
The below chart is the new weighting system used for BHS courses.

Mark                  AP                         Honors                          CP I & CP II

A or A +           5.0                           4.5                               4.0

A-                     4.7                           4.2                               3.7

B+                    4.3                           3.8                               3.3

B                      4.0                           3.5                               3.0

B -                    3.7                           3.2                               2.7

C+                    3.3                           2.8                               2.3

C                      3.0                           2.5                               2.0

C-                     2.7                           2.2                               1.7

D+                    2.3                           1.8                                1.3

D                      2.0                           1.5                                1.0

D-                     1.7                           1.2                                0.7

F                       0.0                           0.0                                0.0

New Facebook Application for the College Admissions Process

Facebook is jumping into the college search and selection process. Since most BHS students and parents have facebook accounts, we recommend taking a look at this new feature. Please click here for access to the article discussing the rationale for creating this new feature. Also please click here for the “Admission Splash” feature on facebook. Although we utilize Naviance for the college search and selection process, we recommend trying other college searches on a variety of web-sites ( some are on the right side of this blog under "College Planning Resources").