EAGLES NEST
January 28, 2021
Dear Centennial Families,
Beginning February 8, 2021, Howard County schools will begin participating in the use of Lightspeed, a platform and instructional support tool that helps teachers keep students on track and safe as they navigate online learning. Teachers at Centennial will have the option to use the tool as they complete the required training in its use.
Lightspeed enables teachers to link students’ HCPSS or personal Chromebooks and HCPSS Dell laptops into a single virtual classroom for synchronous lessons, giving teachers the ability to monitor students’ screens and share resources.
Lightspeed allows teachers to:
Assist students with using the technology
Monitor live independent work
Lock screen to transition between live whole group activities and live independent work
Close browser tabs and automatically navigate to websites
Teachers will only have access to Lightspeed during regularly scheduled class time.
Teachers do not have the ability to control computer screens, including clicking buttons and changing settings. However, teachers can direct and lock a student’s computer to specific websites. If the website turns on the student’s camera and/or microphone, the teacher would be able to observe the video and audio the web camera picks up. For example, if a student was on a site viewing their own image via the web camera the teacher would be able to see that content.
Additionally, to comply with the Children’s Internet Protection Act, HCPSS uses Lightspeed to filter inappropriate content and monitor general usage of the Chromebooks, during and beyond the school day.
There will be no opt-out option for Lightspeed. HCPSS-issued devices and accounts are governed primarily by HCPSS Board policies: 8080 Responsible Use of Technology, Digital Tools and Social Media, 3040 Technology Security, and 3060 Student Data Governance and Privacy.
We’re looking forward to offering this additional platform for our teachers at their option to better provide support for our students. Thank you as always for being our educational partner during this unprecedented time of virtual learning.
If you have any questions, you can contact your students Assistant Principal for support: Mr. Cameron Rahnama (A-G), Dr. Tracy Scaltz (H-N) and Mrs. Sandra Suber (O-Z).
Sincerely,
Cindy Dillon
EAGLE NEWS
Textbook/Materials Return
It’s time for students to return their materials! Drop-off at CHS will be held from January 19th through February 5th between the hours of 7:00 am – 6:00 pm.
Procedures:
Drop off will be contactless.
Complete a Material Collection Form.
Place all items in a bag together with the form.
Follow routine traffic patterns to enter the parking lot.
Drop your books into the gray collection bins in front of the building.
If you are unable to come to the building during the drop-off window please send an email to Marie_Dow@hcpss.org. We will do our best to accommodate your scheduling needs.
Semester 2 Textbook/Materials Distribution - Read more
Student Parking Permits - Read more
CHS Film Festival - Read more
Leadership U Class of 2021 - Read more
Virtual BINGO Fundraising Night Friday, Jan. 30 - Read more
AP Comp Sci Female Diversity Award - Read more
Auditions for Student Speakers for Senior Events - Read more
AP Exams - Read more
Be a part of the CHS Pyoneers! - Read more
GT Independent Research and GT Intern-Mentor Courses Offered for 2021-22 - Read more
Senior Parents –Time to Order Cap & Gown! - Read more
Save the Date for Back to School Night Part II - Read more
CHS Yearbook News - Read more
Maryland Seal of Biliteracy Program Expansion - Read more
Technology Questions, Concerns and Issues
Parents and/or students, if you are experiencing technology issues or have questions: Read more
Log in Now to Identify Need for Chromebook and/or Internet
UPCOMING EVENTS
See what’s happening at CHS! (and add our Google Calendar to your phone!)
CELEBRATE CENTENNIAL:
Got great news about our students, staff, or community? Send it our way and we’ll shout it out!
Centennial Speech and Debate started the new year off on a high note at their fourth BCFL tournament of the season, this past Saturday, January 23rd! Once
again, Centennial HS had a great showing with nearly 20 different CHS students competing. We are so proud of our team for collectively winning 3 medals!
Congratulations to every student who competed; great job!
Looking at debate, the first-time partnership of Rishik Bandakunta and Jesse Zong won a bronze medal in Varsity Public Forum. Also in debate, Matthew Liu and Lucas Yang received a perfect 30-score round, and Shriya Reddy and Olivia Ju finished the tournament on a 2-1 record, placing in the top 12 as well. Moving to Junior Varsity Public Forum, the pair of Allie Liu and Zoomel Ghauri earned a silver medal, a huge accomplishment for first-time competitors. Additionally, Maya Santhanam placed 4th in Junior Varsity Lincoln Douglas Debate. Last but certainly not least, Christly Bright-Agindotan won a gold medal in the speech event of Oral Interpretation with three 1st place rankings!
We’d like to give a special thank you to our parent and volunteer judges for their time and efforts this weekend. We wouldn’t have been able to have so many of our students compete without your support and help!
Our team looks forward to competing next month at our next tournament on Saturday, February 13th – Go Eagles!
PTSA/Boosters
See what’s happening with CHS PTSA or CHS Boosters by clicking the names or by visiting our website.
Please visit the Community News and Programs page on the HCPSS website for announcements of upcoming events and programs sponsored by non-profit organizations (http://www.hcpss.org/community-news-and-programs/).