Highland County Public Schools

You know it’s peak fall when the teachers start syncing wardrobes. 👯‍♀️🎃
Hello, Pumpkin!

Our Small Animal Care class had a special guest this week — Mr. Johnson, and his Maine Coon cat, “Saint”! 🐱

Students learned all about grooming, breeding, and general care for cats, along with some fascinating facts about the Maine Coon breed, known for its gentle personality and impressive size.

Thank you, Mr. Johnson, for sharing your expertise (and Saint’s charm!) with our students! 🐾💛

Mrs. Hupman's Spanish 2 students explored real social media posts about Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead), a traditional Mexican holiday that honors and celebrates loved ones who have passed away. They analyzed comments, looked for patterns, and created colorful graphs to show what people think and how they celebrate this meaningful tradition! 💀🌼📊

🎨 🪟 Our high school art students recently explored the process and craft of stained glass art! After learning about traditional techniques, they had the chance to create their own modified versions.

Students designed their own patterns, outlined them with “leading,” and selected vibrant colors to bring their unique stained glass creations to life. 🌈✨

We love seeing their creativity shine—literally! 💡

🇺🇸 Veterans Day Celebration 🇺🇸

Please join us as we honor the brave men and women who have served our country. ❤️💙

📅 Tuesday, November 11, 2025
🕙 Program begins at 10:00 AM
📍 Highland High School Gym

🥞 Breakfast will be served in the Cafeteria from 8:30–9:30 AM.

We invite all veterans, families, and community members to attend as we come together to celebrate and express our gratitude for their service. 🇺🇸✨

Our students were hard at work last week, putting their creativity to the test with Halloween posters and treat boxes! 🎃🖌️🍬 Their spooky and fun designs really brought the Halloween spirit to life!

🚌💎 Our 2nd graders had an amazing adventure exploring Seneca Caverns! They learned all about the underground rock formations, discovered how caverns are formed, and got to see some incredible natural wonders up close.

It was an exciting day of hands-on learning and exploration! 🪨👏

📢 Parents & Educators: Your Voice Matters!

The Virginia Board of Education has updated math and reading SOL cut scores to better reflect skills students need for success. The VDOE is hosting listening sessions to gather feedback on implementation.

Parent Session:
🗓 Nov 5, 2025 | ⏰ 5:30–6:30 pm
💻 Meeting ID: 230 998 444 924 3 | Passcode: ui9mv9Nz

You can also share your input using the feedback form: https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=qeUKYsFOoE-GQV2fOGxzCbjPWMMb9nlDh6ehV4UR7M5UN1dDMk1KUkg4RFNQNkkzMDBORU82SUhPVy4u

More information: https://www.doe.virginia.gov/Home/Components/News/News/496/227

📢 Meeting Reminder

The Highland County Board of Supervisors will hold a meeting on Wednesday, November 5, 2025, at 6:00 p.m. at the Highland Modular and Conference Center.

The Highland County School Board will join the Board of Supervisors for a financial discussion during this meeting.

Agenda: https://aptg.co/YFZvc1

💻 Join Virtually:
Google Meet: meet.google.com/woj-rmce-mxj
📞 Join by Phone: +1 443-776-0845 PIN: 472 230 548

We have been putting together a special video to honor the brave men and women who have served our country. If you’d like to include a photo or short video of a veteran in your life, please submit it by this Friday!

Email submissions to Mrs. Springer at kspringer@highland.k12.va.us.

Let’s come together to celebrate and thank our heroes. ❤️🤍💙

#VeteransDay #ThankYouVeterans #HCPSProud

📢 Reminder: Tomorrow is a Teacher Workday – no school for students! 📝 Enjoy the day off!

📢 Important Update for Virginia SNAP Recipients!

Governor Glenn Youngkin has launched the Virginia Emergency Nutrition Assistance (VENA) program to ensure families continue receiving food benefits during the federal shutdown. 🍎

✅ Uses the same EBT cards and beneficiaries as SNAP
✅ Fully funded by Virginia’s state budget surplus—no federal funds
✅ Benefits will now be issued weekly instead of monthly
✅ $37.5 million per week in support, plus $1 million to Virginia’s food banks

🗓️ New Benefit Schedule:

1st Third: Monday, Nov 3
2nd Third: Wednesday, Nov 5
3rd Third: Friday, Nov 7

Keep your EBT card secure—switch it off in the ConnectEBT app until checkout.

🔗 Learn more and get updates: DSS.VIRGINIA.GOV

🎄✨ Spread Some Holiday Cheer! ✨🎄

The Highland High School Junior Class is hosting a Poinsettia Fundraiser! 🌺
These beautiful holiday plants make the perfect seasonal decoration or gift.

🌿 Available Sizes & Prices:
6.5” – $12
7.5” – $18
8.5” – $24

🌸 Colors: Red • Pink • White • Marble

🗓️ Orders & Payment Due: November 10th

To order, reach out to any Junior or email:
📧 Ms. Megan Botkin – mbotkin@highland.k12.va.us
📧 Ms. Pitsenbarger – wpitsenbarger@highland.k12.va.us

Support our Juniors and brighten your home for the holidays! ❤️💚

☀️🥞 Breakfast isn’t just the most important meal of the day — it’s also one of our favorite times at HCPS! Each morning, students enjoy a nutritious meal and a few extra minutes to sit, talk, and laugh together before the school day begins. 🥣✨

It’s a great way to start the day — full bellies & smiling faces.💛 Thank you Lisa, Laci, Tish, and Diane!

You can view our breakfast menu anytime on our website 👉 https://www.highland.k12.va.us/dining

or through our Highland County Public Schools app, available in the App Store — just search Highland County Public Schools! 📱🍽️

🧡 A huge thank-you to the Highland Parent Teacher Partnership for treating our staff to some “Freshly Boo’d Coffee” today! 👻 Your thoughtful surprise brought big smiles (and much-needed caffeine!) to our halls.

Today wasn’t just about costumes and candy for our students — our staff got a little Halloween surprise too! Administration rolled through the halls with a Halloween Treat Cart filled with goodies for our incredible teachers and staff. 🍫🧡

It’s our small way of showing how much we appreciate everything they do each and every day. From the early mornings and late nights to the endless patience, care, and creativity they bring to our students — you truly make HCPS a special place.

Thank you for all that you do to make learning fun, meaningful, and full of heart. Happy Halloween from all of us at HCPS! 🕸️👩‍🏫🕷️

👻🎃Our halls were filled with laughter, creativity, and a little bit of spooky fun today as students and staff celebrated Halloween! From clever costumes to festive classroom activities, everyone got into the spirit and made the day a memorable one.

We love seeing our students express their imagination and school spirit — thank you to everyone who helped make today such a treat! 🧡🕸️🕷️

🎃👻 Our PK–5th graders had a spooktacular time trick-or-treating through the high school yesterday! 🍬🕸️ Thank you to our amazing SCA for sponsoring and organizing such a fun event! 🧡