• SchoolMessenger

Bowie routinely uses the SchoolMessenger system to send emails such as the Bowie Star Newsletter (a weekly-ish communication from me), first day of school instructions, and other important campus-wide announcements. On occasion, particularly if information is time-sensitive or of elevated importance, the emails will be accompanied by an automated phone call. Until Austin ISD “rolls-over'' student data from your child’s middle school at the end of July, however, Bowie does not have your contact information and is unable to contact you using the SchoolMessenger system. You should begin receiving communication from Bowie at the beginning of August. If you find you are not receiving Bowie emails in early August, please look in your email’s spam/junk folders, and then verify the accuracy of your SchoolMessenger contact information and that your settings for “Campus Messages” is activated
(click HERE for instructions). NOTE: If you are still having trouble receiving emails, it is likely that at some point you unsubscribed from Bowie campus messages, and that you will need to contact the Parent Help Desk at 512-414-9187 to request they resubscribe you to SchoolMessenger campus emails.

• Bowie Website bowie.austinschools.org

Beginning in the 2022-23 school year, Austin ISD is taking over website hosting for its campuses to create a standard interface experience for its families. The website tends to house more static information but does have a calendar feature that may prove useful. Bowie’s staff will continue to refine and edit content for the new website in the weeks to come.

 

• BLEND Bowie Community Course

You and your child will be automatically co-enrolled in a BLEND course for each of their classes as well as the BLEND Bowie Community Course. We use the BLEND Bowie Community Course for several purposes. First, it is how we send announcements to students by grade level (you will also receive a copy of these announcements by email depending on how you configure your notifications in BLEND). Campus-wide learning modules are also contained here and are available to you to access so you can view the materials we are using with your child. Finally, we sometimes house documents here that we want students and families to have access to but don’t want to publicly broadcast for safety or security reasons (campus maps, for
example).

 

Our staff is very attuned to the fact that starting high school can be anxiety-inducing for some families. While some schools may opt for a summer transition camp for incoming students, we have concluded that the process is too important to all students for it to be an optional summer
experience. For this reason, we have mapped out an onboarding and orientation process that embeds training in classes during the first two weeks of school. Additionally, in advance of the first day of school, we have
several events scheduled for students and for families to introduce them to the campus and get them ready for a great start to high school. Please refer to the Bowie’s Back-to-School Buzz flier for all the dates and times of these activities.

 

I am grateful to two amazing Bowie teachers, Cindi Carroll and Halle Whittington, for volunteering to serve as the official Class of 2026 faculty sponsors over the next four years! They will be representing the interests of the freshman, helping to garner their school and class spirit, and coordinating fund-raising events to support the class activities, including prom. To get our freshmen off to a great start, consider purchasing an official Class of 2026 t-shirt for your freshman using the SchoolCashOnline link. T-shirts will be available for pick-up during the August 11 Meet at the Tree event.

This invitation is extended to Our Night to Shine to all special needs high school students and older in the Central Texas area. Spread the word!

 

Special Needs Guests please RSVP here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/L2F5R72

 

Event Details:

• Saturday, May 7 from 6 - 10 pm
• Dripping Springs Ranch Park, 1042 Event Center Drive, Dripping Springs, TX 78620

Note: I do plan to attend prom this year to support any students who may need it. In fact, there are a few of us planning to be there - we're looking forward to it! Please reach out if you have any specific concerns or questions regarding support and/or accessibility. 

 

Class of 2022 Senior Prom

Campus/Student Opportunities: 

Camp Evolve 

 

Camp Evolve is excited to announce that we are having Spring Break Camp. March 18-20, 2022; transportation is provided and space is limited. 

 

Camp Evolve is for ages 8-15, females and males, so please consider sending your enrollees who need support and assistance with building social skills and having a fun Spring Break experience. 

 

Please see information, including flyer, attached hereto, or visit https://www.cstrategies.org/camp-evolve.htmlfor more information about Camp Evolve. 

 

1. Application & Consent Form as well as Disclosures & Releases. Please scroll down to the bottom of the pagehttps://www.cstrategies.org/camp-evolve.html to access Application & Consent Form as well as Disclosures & Releases. Please email these encrypted to [email protected] 
2. RAI (Required Authorization Form) Please complete RAI (Required Authorization Form) for each camper. You can find the form herehttps://www.cstrategies.org/required-authorization-information-rai.html and attached hereto. Please email these encrypted to [email protected] 
1. We will need authorization numbers for Camp which is 5202 before we can proceed. Please complete RAI (Required Authorization Form) for each camper. You can find the form attached hereto. You will need 6 hours per day per camper for three (3) days. That is 18 hours per camper. Each of them will need their own authorization number. 

 

Please note: All kiddos will need to be able to wear N-95; KN-95 or surgical masks indoors and inside our vehicles. 

 

Space is limited so please contact Jason Earle at [email protected] if you know of someone who might benefit, it would be great to have the aforementioned information by Tuesday, March 1, 2022. 

Students can now prepare for their EOCs using a practice exam that includes their accommodations. This can help them feel more confident navigating the testing platform on the day of the test(s). 

 

Practice Tests and the Online Platform - Students are encouraged to familiarize themselves with the state’s new digital testing platform using THIS LINK. Students with 504 or Special Education testing support can manually activate digital tools within the platform (they also have the option to enter their first name and unique state TSDS number from their report card to verify their personalized settings).

 

If you have trouble finding your students state ID, please reach out so I can be of assistance. 

Good afternoon! Below are a couple bits of news shared in today's Bowie Star Newsletter:

 

COURSE SELECTION - Over the last three weeks, the Bowie counseling team visited classrooms to discuss graduation requirements and course sequences with all students in grades 9-11. During the counselors’ presentations, students were provided a digital template to plan their courses for the 2022-23 school year. Please take some time to review this document with your child and discuss their course selections. There are helpful course scheduling resources available on the JBHS website for your reference. Note that a few new courses were just added (click HERE for the most recently revised list of
course offerings).

 

Keep in mind that the digital template is for planning purposes only. During their 1st period class on February 9, all students in grades 9-11 will officially enter their course requests into the Frontline Student Self-Serve platform. Within a couple of days of entering their official course requests, you will receive a verification email listing the courses your child selected. Should there be any errors, you can simply email the counselor to request a change. The deadline to submit course changes for the 2022-23 school year is May 27, 2022.

 

 

9TH GRADE SHOWCASE - Current 8th graders and their parents/guardians are invited to tonight’s Incoming 9th Grade Showcase from 5:30-7:30 p.m. to learn more about high school, the Bowie campus, and courses and programs. Know a future Bulldog? Please share the Showcase flyer with them and encourage them to attend!