No Regents Examinations in January 2022

Next week, Tuesday-Friday, was originally scheduled by the State to administer Regents Examinations. The State canceled the administration, stating that The January Regents Exams cannot be safely, equitably, and fairly administered across the state. We will continue to work with our schools, districts, and stakeholders to ensure they have what they need to provide academic, social and emotional, and mental health supports for our students. 

It is in this spirit of providing LaGuardia students support that we have a special schedule of activities that provides a variety of opportunities for students to connect with their teachers and their peers, prior to starting the Spring Semester.

All students who are enrolled in Regents courses are automatically registered to take Regents Examinations in June when they complete the course. (January Regents Examinations are for students who need to makeup or retake an exam.)  Regents Examinations fulfill graduation and diploma requirements and do not have a fee associated with the examinations. At this time the Regents Examination cancellation is ONLY for January 2022. 

Monday, January 24, 2022, is a Conference Bell Schedule

This coming Monday, students will attend their fall semester periods 1-10, following the shortened Conference Bell Schedule of 8:00am-2:48pm. The weekly allotment of two At-Home COVID-19 Testing Kits is distributed in the lobby at the end of 8, 9, and 10th periods.

Tuesday, January 25-Friday, January 28, are Special Activities Schedules

• The Regents Week Special Schedule shows activities for the week by grade - each grade is on a different tab.

• Every morning before 10am, all students are required to complete the Google Form Regents Week Check In using their laguardiahs.org account to be marked present for the day - even if they are not in the building.

• Participation in certain activities is required, such as: 

• Guidance Post-Secondary Planning Sessions

• Studio evaluations, rehearsals, and work calls

• 9th and 10th grade City-wide Math and English Growth Assessments 

• Participation in certain activities is optional, such as: 

• Academic Support

• Open Gym

• Open Studio 

• Communal spaces will be open:

• The 5th Floor Cafeteria will be serving Grab and Go Breakfast and Lunch

• The 6th Floor Library will be open

• Spring MetroCardS will be distributed by grade on the day students are attending their Guidance Post-Secondary Planning Session. The Metrocards will be active beginning Wednesday, February 2.

• The weekly In-School PCR Testing will take place during Regents Week.

Clarification on CR Selection

The DOE Policy states: When schools transitioned to remote learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, the NYCDOE implemented the parent/guardian choice policy which gave parents/guardians the option to replace their student’s passing final grades with ‘CR’ (credit) to avoid penalizing students for a drop in performance for factors beyond their control. This policy remains in effect for high school students to provide safeguards as students and families continue to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic and manage other out-of-school challenges. 

A parent/guardian (NOT a student) completes the CR Selection Request Form for each passing final grade they wish to replace with a CR. You CANNOT select a CR for a 55, NX, or marking period progress grade. We advise that families discuss with their guidance counselor prior to making the decision to select CR; colleges review the entire transcript and use grades as evidence of progress and persistence through challenges.

Seniors:  Only CR Selections requested by January 30, 2022, will be reflected on the transcript sent to colleges as part of the Mid Year Report.

Dear LaGuardia Community,

We hope this message finds you and your family safe and healthy.  As the fall semester comes to an end we are updating you with some logistical details:

Pupilpath/Skedula Partially Restored

As of this morning, all students and parents/guardians should be able to log into the web and app versions of Pupilpath; all faculty/staff have access to the web and app versions of Skedula/iOEducation. Please note that some functions, such as email messaging and password reset, are not fully operational. We thank you for your patience and understanding with this third-party software glitch.

Regents Week Special Activities Schedule

Friday, January 21, is the last day of the marking period. 

Monday, January 24, is the last day of scheduled classes for the semester.  We will be on a Conference Bell Schedule for students and teachers to wrap up their classes for the semester.

Tuesday, January 25-Friday, January 28, we will be running a Regents Week Special Schedule. 

• Students will participate in activities by grade, art studio, and academic departments.

• Students will attend LaGuardia based on the activities they are scheduled for. Every student’s schedule will be different.  Not every student will come to LaGuardia every day.

• Students also have the opportunity, daily, to meet with their teachers during Academic Support/Arts Open Studio sessions. We encourage students with NX’s and students who have been absent to take advantage of this opportunity.

• Every morning before 10am, students must complete a guidance survey using their laguardiahs.org account to be marked present for the day.

• This Regents Week Special Schedule is in draft format and will be finalized at the end of the week with additional details.

Monday, January 31 is a professional development day for faculty/staff. No students are in attendance.

Tuesday, February 1 is Lunar New Year. School buildings are closed.

Wednesday, February 2 is the first day of the Spring Semester.  MetroCards will be distributed.

Support for Absent Students

PupilPath has been experiencing a disruption this week. LaGuardia and schools from coast to coast that rely on PupilPath to communicate with families are currently unable to send mass emails.

This is the message your children hear during Morning Announcements:

"PupilPath and Skedula are still offline throughout the country. The company is still working on a solution.  As of this moment, there is no additional information."

To email teachers and staff directly:

https://www.laguardiahs.org/directory/faculty

Please see the steps to take when reporting a Positive COVID Case:

Step 1:  Notify your teachers.  And your Attendance Secretary:

             Drama, Fine Arts, and Tech 

             Dance, Instrumental, Vocal

Step 2:  Provide information for reporting to NYCDOH and Testing+ Tracing Corp.

1. Date of last day student was present at LaGuardia:
2. Date student tested positive for COVID: Positive Test Date Received is Day 0

3. Type of test taken by student:
4. Date of onset of symptoms (if any):

Attendance and Make Up Work Policy

Notifying the Attendance Secretary makes sure that the absence is recorded correctly. 

Students should follow the process each teacher has in place for absences, e.g. Google Classroom

The DOE is clear there is no ‘remote option’. 

Students should be mindful of their health and do schoolwork if they feel up to it.  Families and students should not add pressure for the student to keep up at the risk of taxing their bodies.

Teachers are very understanding of individual situations, and students should arrange a timeline for completing make-up work when they return.  The timeline will vary depending of how sick a child was.

Families Keeping Students Home Out of Caution

We understand this is a very stressful time and families are keeping their children home during this surge.  (See above.)

Students are not penalized for absences.  (Keeping a child home is not a long-term solution.)

This can feel overwhelming for everyone, not to mention the stress and fatigue.  Any/all questions to Allison Price, Parent Coordinator Price Allison - aprice7@schools.nyc.gov.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Dear LaGuardia Community,


Safety is always our paramount priority. As such, we are writing to let you know there have been threats against the school which were written and posted at an establishment off of school grounds.  When this threat was reported we immediately contacted NYPD who are currently investigating. We will be provided with additional police presence and the school is following up with appropriate interventions. Classes will be uninterrupted and we will continue to update you as additional information becomes available. 


Best,
Yeou-Jey Vasconcelos
Principal

Jingle Ball Raffle Tickets - One last chance!

Our generous ticket donor surprised us with an extra pair of tickets for tomorrow's concert! 

 Raffle ended Dec 9

iHeartRadio Jingle Ball

The next Parent Association meeting is Wednesday, November 3rd at 8:00pm.

This meeting is scheduled for Wednesday as Tuesday is Election Day.

 Please look out for the Zoom link via email.

If you have not been receiving emails from the Parent Association please make sure you are registered here.

WE’RE BACK!

Tomorrow, October 29th, is the Opening Night of our first in-person Art Exhibition since March of 2020!

THE FACULTY AND STAFF ART SHOW

We are so thrilled to open our Gallery doors to the community and cannot wait to enjoy Art with one another in-person again. Each year we choose the Faculty and Staff Art Show to kick off our exhibition season, to highlight that the talent in our school goes beyond individual studios. This show celebrates talents from all academic and studio departments, and includes teachers, administrators, and support staff. It is a beautiful way to come together.  A huge thank you goes to the incredible Fine Arts Studio faculty for taking on the tremendous task of organizing, coordinating, and executing the show.

This is the first in-person public Arts event that LaGuardia is hosting since 2020. We have made some adjustments to accommodate the NYCDOE’s mandated health and safety regulations to keep our community safe, and ask that you please continue reading so that you are prepared for your visit: