Horsemen Highlights for week of December 4 - December 8, 2023
Dear Parents,
I hope everyone had a restful and enjoyable Thanksgiving break. What an enjoyable Thanksgiving break it was for Horsemen athletics! Our volleyball team won back to back state championships and our football team won the state championship for the first time in eleven years. A huge congratulations to these student athletes and all their coaches. I would also like to recognize and thank all our parents, alumni, and St. Michael’s faithful who willingly and selflessly shoveled snow off the football field at Ivan Head Stadium for three hours to get the field ready to play without much delay. This was a clear demonstration of what the St. Michael’s community is all about and how we come together for our kids. The support you provide is greatly appreciated. Whether it is an athletic event, a music performance, community service project, staff appreciation, or to support members of our community in need, you are there.
With two weeks left in the first semester, I would again like to point out that we still have several students with missing assignments. Please work with your child to ensure that any missing assignments are completed and turned in by the end of next week so they are all caught up going into finals. I also encourage students to begin preparing for final exams now. Final exams count for twenty percent of the semester grade in each class. Students with a GPA below 2.0 at semester and/or have at least one F at semester will become ineligible and may find themselves on academic probation with the school. Let’s be proactive and prevent this from happening by having our students finish strong. Please check OnBoard and contact your child’s individual teachers with any questions you may have regarding current grades and any missing work.
Winter sports and activities have begun and are already off to a great start. Junior high girls basketball is well underway, girls and boys varsity basketball will be competing in the Capital City Tournament this weekend, swimming/diving will be competing this weekend in Hobbs, and wrestling will begin competing next week. Our guitar program had a wonderful performance at school on Wednesday. Drumline along with band, orchestra, and choir will be having their holiday performances next week. It is very cool to see all their hard work culminate with these beautiful concerts.
Thank you for your understanding of school cancellations and delays due to inclement weather. Enjoy the beautiful snow and thank you again for all your support.
Go Horsemen!
Yours in Christ,
Martin C. Sandoval, Principal
Academics
A Message From the Deans:
Parents, we are one week away from semester exams. Please continue to check grades regularly on OnBoard and communicate with your students’ teachers. We are on a continuous grading schedule. This means that grades have continued since midterm progress reports.
The semester exam schedule is now available. Semester exams begin on Monday, December 11 and will run through December 15. Click HERE to see the schedule in its entirety.
Study Tips for Parents and Students:
Help your students with organization skills.
Have conversations with them about what they learned in each class.
Take some time to review with your students the material as they prepare for their exams.
Please help us remind your students that they are expected to be prepared for class on a daily basis. This means attending class with appropriate materials, charged chromebooks, and cell phones in their backpacks.
Access to grades in OnBoard will be unavailable beginning Monday, December 11, while Semester 1 grades are being processed. Semester 1 report cards will be posted in OnBoard no later than Thursday, January 4, 2024 at 5:00 p.m.
College/Career Corner
FAFSA IS OPEN
The Free Application for Federal Student Aid for the 2024-2025 college year has opened. You can now apply for financial assistance for college! Please note that even if you do not plan on accepting financial aid through the Federal Government, you should still fill out this application as colleges also use FAFSA when awarding their own financial aid (scholarships, grants, and opportunity scholarship).
College Applications and Acceptances
Our seniors have begun receiving their first college acceptance letters. Congratulations! As you begin to navigate through college portals and applications, the academic office is happy to assist your students. Please note we cannot request login information or any other materials from your students’ institutions due to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). It is the responsibility of your students to to contact their colleges’ admissions office for information on how to move forward.
Dual Credit
This coming Friday December, 8 is the deadline for our seniors who want to enroll in a dual credit course through Santa Fe Community College. Please note that there are a few steps that need to be completed by the student before they can enroll so if they begin the process on the 8th, they likely will not be able to finish on time. Please check in with Mr. Gallegos to discuss dual credit if interested.
Activities
Congratulations to the following SMHS Choral Arts Students who were selected from over 2000 students for 2024 All State Choirs.
2024 All State Mixed Chorus:
Francesco Aimale, All-State Mixed Choir-Bass 1
Molly Knowlton, All-State Mixed Choir-Soprano 2
Colten Saville, All-State Mixed Choir-Bass 2
Dominic Serrano, All-State Mixed Choir-Bass 2
David Velasquez, All-State Mixed Choir-Bass 1
Isaac Vincent, All-State Mixed Choir-Bass 2
2024 All State Treble Chorus
Ansley King, All-State Treble Choir-Soprano 1
Abigail Contella, All-State Treble Choir-Alto 2
Elise Gutierrez, All-State Treble Choir-Alto 2
Charlie Ortiz, All-State Treble Choir-Alto 2
Jaslene Ramirez, All-State Treble Choir-Alto 1
Clare Velasquez, All-State Treble Choir-Soprano 2
Athletics
It is our honor and privilege to inform you that on behalf of the NFHS Coaches Association, Coach Joey Fernandez was selected as the 2022-23 New Mexico Girls Track & Field Coach of the Year!
This year's honorees were selected based upon their coaching performance in the 2022-23 school year, lifetime community involvement, school involvement and philosophy of coaching.
Congratulations Coach on being selected as the New Mexico Coach of the Year!
Parents Association
Next Parent Association General Meeting: December 12 , 5:30 p.m.-
6:30 p.m. in the SMHS Library.
Get involved with The Parent’s Association!
If you would like to become involved in the SMHS Parents Association please
contact: or contact Annette Legits, Parent Relations Coordinator at
[email protected] or 505-466-5088.
Alumni Association
Arts n’ Crafts Fair: Saturday, December 16
The Alumni Association is sponsoring an Arts and Crafts Fair from 8:30 a.m.-3:00 p.m. at St. Michael’s High School! Visit with vendors, get yummy refreshments from the Concession stand and find that special gift for Christmas. If you are a vendor and would like to participate, please contact Carmela Quintana: [email protected]
Alumni Brick Patio Capital Campaign
Still looking for that perfect Christmas gift? Buy a Brick for the Patio!
The Alumni Association has begun PHASE IV of the Brick Project!
Please purchase a brick for the Alumni Patio overlooking the SMHS Football Field.
See the school website under the Alumni Tab for further details.
To order a brick please click on this website:
https://www.bricksrus.com/donorsite/horsemenpatio
For information regarding the Alumni Association, update your contact
information or if you want to become involved with the Alumni, please contact:
Annette Rivera-Legits, Alumni Relations Coordinator, [email protected] 505-
466-5088.
“Once a Horsemen, Always a Horsemen!
