Letter From The Director

Over The Horizon

Vol.2, Issue 2 September/October 2011

Dear Students, Parents, Guardians and the Columbus Community, We are “EXCELLENT” again based on our 2010-2011 Report Card from Ohio Department of Education. I would like to thank all of our students, staff, parents, our management company Concept Schools and everyone who supported our mission to make this happen. While the “EXCELLENT” rating is a strong testament to the hard work and dedication put forward by our staff, we are constantly striving to the better than where we are currently. Please continue to support us, read this newsletter from cover to cover and become part of our school as a parent or a supporter. We are offering Parent classes on Computer and ESL with HSA Elementary and Middle school. This year‟s sessions have already started and the next three sessions are Oct 1

st, 8

th and 15

th. For more

details you can call the school. We would love the receive feedback from our parents to put on our school website. Please feel free to email us your comments and testimonials, send it to school in writing or simply find our school on GreatSchools.org by searching for “Horizon Science Academy Columbus High School” and submit your comments and testimonials as a parent. As most charter schools in OH, our school is part of Race to the Top (RttT) initiative. Our transformation team meets monthly to go over our goals and progress as part of our proposal to ODE. Our transformation team members are Mr. Sechen - Director, Mr. Kapki - Asst. Director, Mr. Kellum - Dean of Students, Mr. Hawley – Social Studies Department Head, Mr. Sheppard - Science Department Head, Mrs. Wilson - Math Department Head, Mrs. Harless - English Department Head, and Ms. Mulay - Activity Coordinator. You made the right decision by choosing Horizon Science Academy so let‟s make it a wonderful

school year together.

Mr. Sechen

Director

HSA Remembers 9/11 By Hawo Dirie On Friday, September 9, 2011, HSA held an assembly in the

gymnasium to commemorate the 10th

Anniversary of the tragic events that occurred on September 11, 2001. The administration and staff shared their experiences and how that tragic day affected them. The director, Mr. Sechen, was among those who shared. He told the students about how 9/11 affected him as a Muslim

and how he views those who committed the violent acts. He stated that “[a] terrorist cannot be a Muslim and a Muslim cannot be a terrorist. It‟s a paradox.” Mr. Kellum shared that he, along with the administration, wanted to help students understand the magnitude of what happened since many students were very young. He wanted them to realize that 3,000 lives were not lost in vain that day. According to Mr. Kellum, “We are one nation, made up of many people with many viewpoints and many religions but the glue that keeps us together is the will to sacrifice for this nation because we are all Americans.” As the students left the as-sembly, they left remembering those who lost their lives and inspired carry on the legacy of those lost.

Top Ten ACT and SAT Tips Brought to you by the American School Counselor Association http://school.familyeducation.com/college-tests/college-tests/37684.html

School HappeningsSchool HappeningsSchool Happenings

Senior Corner By Nimo Ahmed Senior College Fair On September 19th, the seniors attended The Kiwanis College Fair. Thousands of students filed through booths from 165 colleges and universities. Senior Damani Barnes reflected on his experience. “The college fair was a helpful insight on how many different colleges there are to choose from” he stated. The fair was completely inspiring and taught much needed information to get started on applying to college.

CSU & ODU Visit the Seniors Visitors from Cleveland State University and Ohio Dominican University spoke with the students. The admission advisors described how to reach the transition from high school to college smoothly and answered student questions. They were enthusiastic as well as informative. “[The visit] helped me with picking courses to help me get where I need to be. It got me excited about college.” said senior Kivesta Martin.

1. Be Equipped On the night before the test you should gather everything you'll need: the admission ticket, a valid form of photo identification, several #2 pencils, a calcu-lator, a watch, and a rich snack. 2. Don't Cram The best thing to do the evening before the test is to get a good night's sleep. 3. Dress in Layer. You need to be comfortable to do your best, so it‟s best to be well prepared for any weather. 4. Arrive Early Getting to the test should be the least of your concerns. 5. Don't Spend too Much Time on One Question Each question is worth the same number of points. If a question is confusing or too time-consuming, don't lose your cool. Instead, move on to greener pastures. You can come back to hard questions if you have time at the end of a section. 6. Don't Look for Un-scored Questions/Sections The experimental section on the SAT is well camouflaged. Sometimes the ACT contains experimental questions that

are scattered throughout the sections. Do your best on every question--that way, you're covered. 7. Keep Track of Where You Are in a Section On the SAT, obvious an-swer choices early in a set may be correct. Obvious choices near the end of a set are often booby traps. 8. Guess Aggressively If you don't know an answer, don't leave the question blank or guess randomly. Eliminate the choices you know are wrong, then make an educated guess from the remaining options. Remember, if you can eliminate even one answer choice then it pays to guess on the SAT. On the ACT, students aren't penalized for guessing. Only the correct answers count toward their score, so it is better to guess than leave a blank. 9. Be Careful Filling in the Answer Grid Make sure you're filling in answers next to the right numbers.

10. Relax Your attitude and outlook are crucial to your test-day performance. Be confident.

School HappeningsSchool HappeningsSchool Happenings The Sports Report By Julian Johnson and Mr. Green

This year at Horizon Science Academy, our sports teams have started a little slower than last year. Currently the Volley-ball team has started the year 1-4. Led by team captains junior Makela Outlaw and senior Khalia

Willoughby, they hope to get their second victory on September 30th at Columbus International High School. Captain Makela Outlaw states “that the chemis-try is not there yet but everybody is getting better.” Even first year players juniors Briana Scales and Sierra Young have caught on and are a big part of the team. The Soccer team, although they are only 2-3, has shown heart and lost against tough competition. Led by senior captains Damani Barnes and Marc Maitre, they seem to have perfect chemistry. Living up to the hype of the previous years will be hard for the soccer team but it is a task that can be completed. Both teams are looking forward to hard practices and getting a big win October 3rd against Dayton Horizon at Cooke Park. The game begins at 5pm.

The Cross Country team, coached by Mr. Fink, is having a phenomenal inaugural season. Senior Oscar Kamazima and sophomore James Holmes recently medaled at the Lancaster (OH) Invitational on September 24th receiving 18th and 21st place respectively. The Girls Cross Country team, consisting of juniors

Ozsha Armstead and Nikki Johnson and Freshman Christine Johnson, have posted strong times and personal best times this season. According to Coach Fink, “We have had a strong start but the best is yet to come.” The next meet is the Mt. Gilead Invitational on October 8th the District meet at Watkins Memorial High School on October 22nd.

Cross Country October Schedule Saturday, October 8

th Mt. Gilead Thill Invitational

10:00 a.m. Saturday, October 15

th TBA

Saturday, October 22nd

Watkins Memorial H.S. DIII District Meet

10:00 a.m. Division III Girls 11:30 a.m. Division III Boys

Saturday, October 29th Pickerington North H.S. DIII

Regional Meet

Volleyball October Schedule

10/6-@Oakstone-5:30pm 10/12-@Centennial-5:30pm

Soccer October Schedule

10/4-West Jefferson-5pm 10/10-Johnstown-5pm

10/13-Gahanna Christian-5:30pm

All Home Games at Cooke Park

October 2011 Upcoming Dates

October 3-7: NWEA Testing (Grades 9-11)

October 12: PSAT Testing (Grade 11) October 21: Professional Development

Day– No School for Students

October 24-28: Fall OGT Testing

(Grades 11 & 12)

A Message from the Assistant Director

AcademicsAcademicsAcademics

Dear Parents/Guardian, Our goal is to prepare students to go to college. Colleges will be looking at attendance, GPA, and SAT or ACT scores when considering admissions. It is very important that students make it to school on time every day. Students who have academic difficulties (GPA and OGT practice test scores) will be required to at-tend to receive extra help for the tests. OGT PRACTICE TESTS are very important for tracking progress until the OGT in March. Please take these practice tests seriously in or-der to get reliable data. All students will be guided according to the OGT Practice results. There will be in- school and after-school accommodations for lower achievers. Please keep in your mind that the Horizon staff does not want any child left behind. TUTORING: I would like to thank parents for helping their children at home with homework assignments. If there are parents who are not able to help their children at home, Horizon Science Academy teachers dedicate their time during school (Lunch Time) to help students with classroom assignments. SATURDAY SCHOOL is a mandatory morning review session to provide extra help for students who are in behind in their progress on the OGT

Practice. It is essential for the students to strengthen test taking skills and subject knowledge. Horizon will provide free breakfast. Saturday School hours are 9:00am-12:00pm. REPORT CARDS for the first semester will be sent to parents on October 26. If you do not receive your report card, please call and submit

your current address to our secretary, Ms Wallace. ATTENDANCE: We do not want students to fail because of attendance. Students are failing if they have been out of school more than thirty days throughout the school year. A student‟s GPA is very important in

order to get accepted to college. Please pay attention to report cards and make sure to check the School Database. If you do not know your child‟s password and username please call the school for information. I wish success to everyone for the 2011-2012 school seasons. Please continue to strive for good grades and attendance, so we can help you to earn scholarships and

Preparing for the Future By Dr. Hillard, Computer Teacher It is never too early to begin preparing for one's career. What I mean by this is, the process of preparing for one's future profession begins with choosing a field that you not only find of interest but one that you have a passion for. As Confucius stated, "Choose a job you love and you will never have to work a day in your life." Being the process by talking to someone who works in the field you plan to work in to gain information on what the requirements are to enter the said field. Further, have the individual describe to you what the experience of having trained to work in their field was like. In your spare time, learn as much about your field of choice as possible. The information gained will help you in reaching your goal.

Mr. Kellum‟s Corner Each school year brings new challenges and this year is no exception. Our Freshmen Class is certainly getting adjusted to high school life and Ms. Inman and I are looking forward to getting to know each and every one of them. All parents at all grade levels need to know that we now offer" in school tutoring" during the lunch periods. This unique of-fering is for all students. Time is also available to make up tests, homework and assignments. There is no reason for any child to receive failing grades unless they simply are not doing their work. These tutoring sessions eliminate after school issues including transportation, which was a major factor in most students not taking advantage of the after school tutoring last year. Parents will also re-ceive the passwords so they can check their students progress on our website on a daily basis. I use to tell my own children when they said they did their classwork/homework at school, "I believe you but with verification". In other words, I see it be-fore you go out, watch TV, or talk on the phone. This always gave me a chance to see what they were doing and to help with any areas that they just hurried through.

Student SpotlightStudent SpotlightStudent Spotlight Bully‟s Actions By Coty Jude Illustrations by Ms. Shaffner‟s Character Education classes Bully‟s actions Try to hide their insecurities It‟s a cold world for the victims Caught up in a flurry Running to the scene At nights, all alone with their bruises Bystanders‟ conscience will get caught up in the worry Physical, mental Psychological torment Emotional hit list Hellish decision Victims sittin‟ reminiscin‟ Starin‟ out the window wishin‟ Wishin‟ they were different They went to school, Wishin‟ that they didn‟t The tears can‟t talk But they know God listens Bullying is not somthin‟ For a man to do Stop trippin‟ „Cuz like the floor I understand you Bullying leaves a scar, victims Sleepin‟ with nightmare visions Bruises and tears of a victim Just redirects how a bully‟s really livin‟ A bully is in pain too Someone just needs to listen And bystanders are bullys, too If they‟re not helping the victim Be careful how you play your role What if God switched your position?

Horizon Science Academy Columbus High School 1070 Morse Road Columbus, OH 43229