It's been an incredible few weeks at Henley and I hope that I can give a brief summary here of all of the events that have taken place. Let's start with some of the highlights that have meant the most to me:
- Make a Difference Day--This year's focus was a shoe and belt collection for a Haitian orphanage. Our students came through with around 200 pairs of shoes for these kids who have virtually nothing. Sometimes it's easy for us to forget just how difficult life can be for those who are less fortunate than many of us are in this area. It's great to see that so many of our families took the time to give.
- The annual Henley magazine drive--The drive ended about a week ago and was a great success once again. Our kids worked hard and raised a great deal of money for our PATSO that will be used to benefit all of the students and teachers at HMS in myriad ways.
- Cyber-Safety Forum--This was held at WAHS a few nights ago and really provided some important information to our parents and students. The figures they shared with us about the number of Americans using social networking sites such as MySpace and Facebook were staggering. I think that many kids who use these sites don't realize that what happens on the web stays on the web. Literally. Forever. Colleges and employers search these sites to find out what they can about potential students and employees. Posting pictures or information that are inappropriate can have some real long-term repercussions. And of course, while these sites can be very beneficial to our kids, they can also be used as contact points for predators. Please make sure that you are monitoring what your children are doing on these sties.
- The first edition of the "J.T. Journal," our student newspaper has been published. I'm always incredibly impressed with the products that our journalism and yearbook students create.
- And of course, we have marked the end of our first marking period at Henley. Report cards will be coming out at the end of this week. One quarter of the school year is behind us, and as of this Thursday, Thanksgiving is three weeks away. The madness of the winter holiday season will be upon us before we know it.
- Finally, I've made the move into my new house and my transition to Albemarle County is finally complete. It's been a long few months since we first moved into some temporary housing in July, and, although we've still got a few boxes to unpack, it is truly wonderful to have a place to call home. Especially a place like Albemarle County.
Until next time, and I hope that next time will be very soon--Go Hornets!
