Everything you need to know your first day as a Husky

 

by Abigail Wylie and Natalia Martinez    with artwork by Angel Tran

Welcome

Your first day of high school is, hands down, scary. Say goodbye to uniforms and hello to your free dress days. This campus isn’t exactly easy to get around when you’re a fishy in a big tank of water. Just remember that if someone tells you that “It’s just around the corner!” don’t fall for it. There are no corners in the round buildings.

How do I know what classes to go to?

On the first day, all student names will be listed, along with which classroom to go to for first period. These list will be posted on the windows of the school store, which is in the cafeteria building across for the I buildings, and they will be posted inside the cafeteria on trophy cases in the main cafeteria along with the snack bar area. Go to whatever room it lists as your first period. Your first period teacher will have an official, up-to-date schedule for you. You’ll need this schedule all day in order to enter your classes.

First period will be very long on the first day. You will have lots of paper work to fill out. Second and third period will be really short. Make sure to get to those classes as quickly as possible.

How do I get around with all of this construction?

Things are pretty crazy right now with the construction of a new courtyard and fine arts building. The first two to three weeks of school will be especially challenging until more courtyard area is opened up, along with outdoor stairs that connect outside the bottom floor of the B building and the upstairs courtyard with cafeteria access. Don’t be afraid to ask a teacher or upperclassman. 

There are two areas of campus with portables. Portables 1-14 are to the rear of campus behind the H building. The higher numbered portables are mostly fine arts electives and are located at the front of school by the football fields.

The I building is where most of the administration offices are including the attendance office, AP’s offices, and the nurse. The back of the downstairs I building houses our Athletic Training classes and our dance, pep squad, and cheer studio. The upstairs I building is mostly foreign language classes like Spanish and French.

The C building is where the cafeteria is. There is also a school store in the front next to the lunch lines. There is a main cafeteria area and a smaller cafeteria area with vending machines, often called “the snack bar.” The girls gym, also known as the “competition gym” where many games and pep rallies are held is also in the C building, and you can enter through the snack bar area. The girls’ locker rooms are connected to this gym along with the girls’ coaches offices. There is one classroom in the back of the C building known as the “team room,” room C103. This room is mostly used for health classes.

The boys gym, or practice gym, is in the G building, and it includes the boys locker rooms along with boys coaches offices.

The E building is a smaller, one-story building that houses the boys weight room, auto collision classes, credit retrieval, Gifted and Talented, computer maintenance and repair, health occupations, and a few other classes.

The D building has three stories. The bottom floor is only on half the building, and houses our ROTC classes and facilities. The second and third floor is all academic classes, most of which are social studies or English. The second floor is also home to our Communities in Schools office where students can get help who are struggling financially with supplies, clothes, food, and other support.

The B building houses the counseling offices and library upstairs, and mostly Business Careers academic classes downstairs, although some non-BC classes meet there as well. You will have to be upstairs to get from the B building to the cafeteria or I building, and the only stairs available are inside the B building right now. There aren’t exterior stairs to get there.

The F building is mostly math classes upstairs, with a few computer labs and art classes. Downstairs you’ll find journalism, AVID, the special education offices, an art class, and a few other academic classes.

The H building is known as the Business Careers building. Upstairs are BC classes and the BC offices. Downstairs houses many different elective classes including Auto Repair, metal shop, wood shop, cosmetology, fashion design, culinary arts, and a few other classes.

The J building is all science classes, both upstairs and downstairs.

During this school year, the new A building will open and many portables on campus will be taken away. The new A building, once open, will house choir, theatre, tech theatre, band, mariachi, art classes, orchestra, and journalism. It is expected to open sometime during the second semester.

Where are the bus loops and who can I talk to about transportation?

Many students take the bus to and from school which means that it can get crazy and packed. Don’t worry, if you forget what your bus number is or can’t figure out where to go you can talk to Mr.Enderlin. The bus loop is located behind the F and H building and you’ll see a pathway leading to the bus loop where you will see other students heading after school.

How am I graded?

Although some teachers have their own terms and conditions when it comes to grading, they all follow a common grading guide. There are fewer major grades (tests and projects) but they count for 60%-%80 of your grade depending on the class, so they are very important. Daily grades (homework and practice assignments) make up anywhere from 20% to %40 of your grade, and there are quite a few more of them than there are major grades. All classes are required to input at least two grades a week. They also are required to have at least ten daily grades a six weeks along with at least two major grades. If you happen to be absent on a day with a lot of work, fear not, teachers are required to give you make up work. Same goes for major grades. Campus policy is that your teachers offer you an opportunity to retest, and they should also offer some kind of reteach as well. All teachers should have certain times when they are available for tutoring before or after school.

What is the bell schedule and when is lunch?

The school bell will ring at 8:40 in the morning, this tells you that you have 10 minutes to get to class before class actually begins at 8:50. School ends at 4:05. Occasionally, we have what is called s late start day and adjusted bell schedule. This just means that because of teacher meetings, school will start at 9:05 and the first three periods will have an adjusted, slightly shorter schedule to make up for it. After third period, that late start schedule is caught up and the afternoon classes are at their normal times.

How do I get things?

For lockers, you can request them before school, during lunch, or after school until 4:30 in the AP Office in the I building.

For a student ID, you can go before school or after school to the attendance office.

For any issues with receiving a text book, you can contact assist principal Dr. Flores for assistance in the AP Office in the I building.

What lunch am I in?

There are three different lunches, 4th period lunch, 5th period lunch or 6th period lunch. Lunch consists of all four grade levels. Your lunch should end up being on your schedule, but if it’s not you should visit the counselor as soon as possible.

The first day can feel frustrating because you might get lost. But don’t worry, after a couple days you’ll find shortcuts and know where everything is at. If you happen to have any questions that we did not answer, feel free to ask your counselors or your teachers. You can also reach us through our emails listed below.

 

natalia.martinez100@students.nisd.net

abigail.wylie@students.nisd.net