Welcome to Oak Park High School

Principal's Welcome Back Letter

Oak Park High School families,

I sincerely hope that all of you have been enjoying the summer vacation. To say that we are excited to welcome our students back to Oak Park High School this fall is a huge understatement. While the majority of our students have decided to return to face to face instruction in the building, there is a cohort of students who have decided to remain virtual. We remain committed to ensuring that both groups of students have an exceptional academic experience during the 2021-2022 school year.

Superintendent Hitchcock sent out a letter to all families at the beginning of the month outlining the COVID-19 health and safety measures that all students and staff will be following across the district. Please refer back to that letter for the most comprehensive district plan. Below, I have summarized safety measures and other commonly asked questions related to starting this school year.

• Masks are required for all students, instructional and non-instructional staff in all buildings district-wide
• 3-feet of social distancing is to be maintained in all instructional areas
• Please do not allow students to come to school if they are sick or exhibiting any COVID-19 related symptoms
• Lockers will not be provided during the first semester; this plan will be re-evaluated for the second semester. Students should bring only the necessities to school
• Student IDs are to be worn on lanyards around student’s necks on a daily basis; if your student did not attend orientation, there will be an ID picture make-up day
• The bell schedule is back to 8:00 a.m. – 2:53 p.m.; students will be switching classes as normal with a 5-minute passing time between each class
• The updated dress code was sent home to all families; please review this new plan with your student if you have not already done so-it can be found at www.oakparkschools.org
• Students enter school daily through the Student Entrance doors, which are near the student/football stadium lot; all other doors will be locked for the safety of our school community
• Student schedules will be viewable on Student Connect beginning next week; if your student did not receive this log-in information at orientation, please contact Mrs. Lumpiesz at 248-336-7740
• If you have any questions regarding your student’s schedule, please contact the appropriate counselor:
  • 9th grade: Mrs. Winston-McCrary tannille.winston-mccrary@opsk12.org
  • 10th grade: Mrs. Jones rosalyn.jones@opsk12.org
  • 11th grade: Ms. Barnett violida.barnett@opsk12.org
  • 12th grade: Ms. Taylor sheryl.taylor@opsk12.org

• Athletic programs will be running this year with the proper COVID-19 health and safety protocols in place; spectators will be permitted and must follow the district’s protocols
• Extra-curricular clubs/organizations and after school programming will also be running this year with the proper protocols in place
• There will be a senior parent meeting led by senior class sponsor Mr. Palmer scheduled soon; if you would like to assist the senior class this year or have specific questions that need an immediate response, please contact Mr. Palmer at timothy.palmer@opsk12.org
• In order to park in the student lot, students must purchase and display a parking permit; permits are $10 and may be purchased from Officer Koch at lunch time
• Students who need credit recovery for not passing a required class will be given log-in information for e-2020; it is mandatory that students finish these classes immediately to get back on track to graduate on time with their class
• As an attendance incentive, students who attend every day for the first two weeks of school will receive a free fall athletic pass that will get them into any home game

Our ultimate goal is to provide each student with a well-rounded high school experience that prepares them to reach their long-term goals after they graduate. In order to get the most out of these four years, students must attend school daily and join each class on time and prepared to learn. Students who are chronically absent will not learn the necessary skills needed to prove mastery on their assessments. Ultimately, they may fail classes and not be on track to graduate on time. We do not want this to happen to your student. Please ensure that your student is in school each day. If there is something preventing this from happening, contact your student’s counselor to problem solve the situation immediately.

I firmly believe that proactive and positive communication prevents problems from occurring. Please reach out to your student’s teachers any time that you have a question. Likewise, I am always available to assist you at carissa.peterson@opsk12.org. We know that we will need to wrap our arms around our students and reacclimate them to school. Not only is our team prepared to do that, we are excited to do that. The success of our students is at the core of every decision that we make at Oak Park High School.

Thank you for all that you continue to do to support your student and their education. We look forward to partnering with you for a phenomenal school year.

Yours in Education

Principal, Ms. Carissa Peterson