Eager to discover what the new school year had in store for their students, parents arrived at the West Ranch High School campus to partake in the annual Back to School Night on Tuesday, Aug. 27. Parents were given the opportunity to visit the classrooms of each of their students’ teachers to become better acquainted with their policies, procedures, and expectations.
At the start of the evening, attendees were guided towards the amphitheater. With an ROTC presentation, ASB-lead Pledge of Allegiance, Jazz compositions and a welcome speech from our principal, Mr. Fisher, parents were shown some of the opportunities West Ranch has to offer.
Jenny Choi, mother of West Ranch junior Joseph Lee, shared, “I wanted to get more involved with [his] surroundings and teachers. Learning more about the opportunities provided by the school is a reassuring aspect to trust in West Ranch.”
Back to School Night offered parents the opportunity to experience a snippet of their students’ daily school routine. Depending on their child’s schedule, parents would visit each respective class, and get to learn more about their student’s teachers in the allotted 10 minutes.
During each period, parents had the opportunity to learn about the teachers, their courses and the overall plan for the school year. Teachers made presentations as a way to show off their personalities and course descriptions, allowing parents to trust that their students are in good hands.
ASB director and Culinary teacher Mrs. Priske emphasized the importance of Back to School Night: “This night is more of a way for me to introduce parents to the ASB system and my Culinary classes. It’s an opportunity for me to convey my classroom environment and teacher personality. Especially this year, with the addition of a new class, Introduction to ASB, I’m able to let parents know of the wide variety of experiences their students have access to.”
Regardless of the subject, every teacher was able to portray their classes and plans, sharing any information to ease parents’ anxiety and reassure them of the high school process. Aside from teachers, other on-campus program sites were open for visits, such as the career center and the library. Parents had the opportunity to familiarize themselves with West Ranch’s campus, conversing with staff along the way.
Mrs. Gibson, director of the Career Center at West Ranch, shared her goal for events like Back to School night; “Apart from showing parents how everything works, I want to show them that the staff here really love their jobs, and can assure that each student has equal grounds on reaching whatever goals they want.”
The event’s block period schedule lasted for seven different periods, with WRTV being played during period 3, and periods 0 and 7 being a chance for parents to ask all their questions. Nonetheless, as the night came to an end, each parent gained a better understanding of their child’s academic baseline, to allow them to better help their students throughout the school year.
