1. Planning for the Freshman Year @ LHS
December 11, 2018
Scott Gillespie, Freshman Counselor

2. Counselors 9th Grade Students Scott Gillespie A-F (grades 10-12)
Tim Anderson
G-K, Career Center, ELL (grades 10-12)
Brenda Wiederholt
L-O, SPED (grades 10-12)
Nikki Junco
P-Z, (grades 10-12)
Trilaina McCallum

3. Counselors are available to…
Help your child with personal issues
Assist your child with academic decisions
Guide your child’s post-secondary planning

4. Graduation Requirements
Total Number of Credits Needed
25.5 Credits

5. Graduation Requirements
ENGLISH LANG. ARTS
4 credits
Social Studies
3 credits
ELA 9
ELA 9, Advanced ELA 9, or Gifted ELA 9
ELA 10
ELA 10, Advanced ELA 10, or Gifted ELA 10
ELA Electives
Two (2) Credits Needed
American History
Honors Am. History
World History
AP World History
American Government and Economics
AP American Government

6. Graduation Requirements
Science
3 credits
MATH
3 credits
Biology I
Honors Biology I
Theoretical Chemistry
Honors Theo Chem.
Students may select their remaining Science course among a list of options.
Sequence of Courses
Algebra I
Geometry
Algebra II
Advanced Math Courses
College Algebra
Pre-Calculus (followed by Calculus)
Prob & Stats/Trig
AP Statistics

7. Graduation RequirementsPE
1 credit
HEALTH
0.50 credit
FINE ART
1 credit
PERSONAL FINANCE
0.50 credit
PRACTICAL ART
0.50 credit
ELECTIVES
9 credits

8. Recommended College Preparatory Curriculum
English Language Arts
4 credits
Math
Science
3 credits
Social Studies
Foreign Language
2 credits

9. Selecting High School Courses
The LPS Coursebook is the online database that houses all of the courses currently available to LHS students.
Can search for courses based on:
Grade Level
Department
Credit Type

10. Selecting High School Courses
Since the goal of high school is to prepare students for post-secondary success, it is our recommendation that students embrace a future-focused mindset when selecting their high school coursework.
Things to consider:
Career Goals
College Admissions Requirements
Eligibility for Extracurricular Opportunities
Prerequisites for Future Coursework

11. Liberty Pathways
To help students plan & prepare for their future career goals, LPS has created a resource for that provides students with valuable information about career opportunities, high school course planning, college programming options, and employment outlook.

12. Challenge & Rigor at LHS
At LHS, we strongly encourage ALL students to challenge themselves academically to the greatest extent possible.
Honors/Advanced
Advanced Placement (AP)
Dual Credit
In general, advanced courses involve more personal initiative, critical-thinking, and require higher-level reading & writing skills.
Not necessarily ”more work”

13. Benefits of Honors/Advanced Courses
Academic challenge
College preparation
Improved ACT/SAT scores
Stronger academic resume for college admission and scholarship consideration
Possibility of earning college credit while in high school

14. A+ Program
State-funded program allowing qualified students to earn two years of paid tuition at any public community college or technical school in Missouri
Qualifications
2.5 GPA or higher upon graduation
95% attendance rate over 4 years
Score ‘Proficient’ or ‘Advanced' on Algebra 1 EOC exam or score above 17 on Math section of ACT
Good citizenship record
50 hours of unpaid tutoring within the district
Applications available on LHS website

15. MSHSAA Missouri State High School Activities Association
MSHSAA-sanctioned activities at LHS include:
In order to be eligible, students must:
Athletics, Cheer, Sapphires
Pass at least 6 out of 7 credit-bearing courses in the semester prior to that activity.
Band, Choir, Orchestra
Debate/Forensics
Robotics
Maintain enrollment in at least 6 credit-bearing courses during the semester that activity takes place.
More…

16. LHS Freshman Course Selection Process
December 3-7: Mr. Gillespie visits both middle schools to present enrollment information to students. ____________________________________________ December 20: Enrollment forms DUE to middle school social studies teachers January 10-11; 17-18: Mr. Gillespie returns to both middle schools to review completed enrollment forms and assist students with entering course requests into PowerSchool.

17. LHS Freshman Course Selection Process
Once all course requests have been entered into PowerSchool, LHS Counselors will mail home a confirmation of each student’s selections.
This is the ONLY time students will be able to make changes to their course selections prior to schedules being created
Important to review courses carefully and submit any changes by the date outlined on the letter.
Final schedules are typically mailed home in May.

18. Course Enrollment Form Details
Discuss course choices with your child and help them complete the Course Enrollment Form
A teacher signature is required for all honors/advanced courses, math courses, and upper-lever foreign languages
Alternates must be selected for elective classes
Only one PE class is allowed per semester
Study Halls are NOT offered at LHS.

19. How Can I Help Prepare My Child for success in High School?
Help your child show up at school with a good attitude and ready to learn.
Help organize time and materials.
Take an active interest and get involved.
Hold your child accountable to their decisions and encourage them to take responsibility for their actions.
This becomes increasingly more important as students grow older and get closer to college and the world of work.

20. LHS will host a Freshman Transition Day on Tuesday, August 13th.
More information on the specifics of this event will come out closer to the start of next school year.

21. Thank you For Coming!!!!