- Upper School
June Greetings from the Upper School!
The “finish line” is here, and it’s hard to believe summer is upon us. As I walked the halls during Authors & Artists, I was overwhelmed with gratitude for you, parents, students, and community members and for all you’ve shared with us this year. Most of all, I am thankful for the abundant faithfulness of the Lord to The Bear Creek School.
We have enjoyed special events, activities, and celebrations of so many accomplishments over the course of the 2018 – 2019 school year. Just recently, our Junior/Senior Prom was a blast, and we honored our State baseball, golf, and track athletes.
Additionally, the Upper School community proudly celebrates three young men from the class of 2019 that achieved the rank of Eagle Scout. The national average of scouts that progress to Eagle rank is only six percent, and we are so proud to recognize their incredible accomplishments! Join us in congratulating Will Lutz, Jacob Heimberger, and Cody Clayhold, pictured here at a recent banquet honoring this year’s Eagle Scouts. The saying is: Once an Eagle Scout, always an Eagle Scout. Commendations, Will, Jacob, and Cody!
Class of 2019 Eagle Scouts: Will Lutz, Jacob Heimburger, and Cody Clayhold
Finally, it was a pleasure to work with the ladies in the class of 2020 to plan and design the first “senior girls blazer,” rolling out for the 2019 – 2020 school year! We had a ton of fun choosing blazer styles and designing special trim embellishments for the sleeve cuffs. The blazers are being customized this summer, and we look forward to the first ever girls’ blazer ceremony next fall. What a lovely group of ladies to start this new tradition! To tide them over, the girls selected a special ring to wear to represent their unity, upcoming senior class leadership, and friendships.
June is here, but we still have a few important events and fun activities planned! The final days of schools are action packed and will provide more opportunities for fellowship and memory making. Please read below for information about what to expect this week and some tips as we head into summer.
Final Exams: On Monday, June 10, no classes will be held, and teachers will hold special Office Hours from 8:10 a.m. – 11:40 a.m. so students may get last-minute questions answered before exams. All students are encouraged to attend and should check in at the Upper School office when they arrive.
- Science exam on Tuesday, June 11, 9:00 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.
- Math exam on Wednesday, June 12, 9:00 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.
Students may wear free dress on final exam days, and students will be dismissed at 10:30 a.m. at the conclusion of their exams.
Clean Out Lost and Found: Upper School Lost and Found will be cleaned out by June 12. Please be sure to check for misplaced clothing items, school books or supplies, blankets, coats, and water bottles. We will donate all remaining items after June 13.
Senior Capstone Project Presentations: Seniors class members present their Capstone Projects on June 10, 11, and 12. This is an incredible opportunity for underclassmen and community members to see the diverse and inspiring projects of this year’s seniors—check out the schedule of presentations (includes seniors’ names and topic titles, schedule update June 10, 8:30 a.m.).
Upper School Honors Assembly: Parents are invited to our Honors Assembly on Thursday, June 13 in the Performing Arts Center at 10:00 a.m. We will celebrate students in grades 9-12 and present a variety of honors and awards celebrating their achievements, hard work, and auspicious contributions to our school community. Parents are encouraged to attend, and no RSVP is necessary. The abdication and assumption of our graduating seniors and rising seniors is a special part of the ceremony you won’t want to miss! Students are encouraged to arrive at 9:15 a.m. for donuts and time to sign yearbooks before the assembly begins.
Class of 2019 Commencement: Please join us at noon on Saturday, June 15 at Bellevue Presbyterian Church. Tickets are available in the main offices at Redmond Campus. All are welcome to attend.
Looking Ahead to 2019 – 2020
As we wrap up the year and begin to look ahead to next year, students should be sure to review the Summer Assignments page to find out about any English, math, science, or history optional or required assignments this summer.
Also don’t forget that Bear Creek Summer Camp has many options for Upper School students.
Summer Office Hours: (Main Building and Upper School)
- June 12: Main Building 7:45 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.; Upper School 7:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
- June 13 – 14: Main Building 7:45 a.m. – noon; Upper School 7:30 a.m. – noon
- June 17: 9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. (closed mid-day for employee lunch)
- June 18: 10:30 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
- June 19 – August 13: 9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m., closed Fridays
- July 4: Closed
- August 14 – 23: 8:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m., open Fridays
Regular office hours resume Monday, August 26
Report Cards and Fall Class Enrollment: Look for an email from Registrar James Woollard about next year’s class enrollment as well as spring semester report cards soon after school gets out in June.
Back-to-School Registration: Watch your inbox in mid-July for a Back-to-School Registration email. Most of the information and signatures will be captured online (although you will need to print, sign, and submit a few forms). Get ready to update your Household Profile, complete the online policy form, and submit any paper forms by Thursday, August 8.
New Dress Uniform Days in 2019-2020: Next fall Upper School students will wear dress uniform on Mondays and Tuesdays and casual uniform on Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays. Middle School students will also follow this schedule. As a reminder, we added a few more options for dress pants!
Pants from Lands’ End School Uniforms (School Number: 900033929) and School Uniforms by Tommy Hilfiger (School Code: BEAR01) are available for purchase online only. You may purchase clothing from DENNIS Uniform online (School Code: XSB051) or its brick-and-mortar store in Tukwila. DENNIS Uniform will also hold its annual on-campus sale on Wednesday afternoon, August 7 in the Upper School's Marilyn R. Nagel Commons.
The School Uniform page has been updated to reflect these changes, and Family Handbook (see MyBC/Parents and MyBC/Students) will be updated over the next few months.
2019-2020 Upper School Schedule: We are excited to announce a new Upper School daily schedule beginning in the 2019-2020 school year. The new schedule provides built-in office hours during the school day as well as more time for student life activities. Additionally, it allows special extension time for lab-based classes, such as art and science. As an added bonus, our lunch room will be open daily from 11:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. to provide flexibility for students’ schedules. To accommodate these benefits and flexibility, classes will begin at 8:00 a.m., and school will be dismissed at 3:00 p.m. Many thanks to the faculty members who helped create this new schedule—check it out!
Summer is here! On behalf of the entire Upper School academic leadership team, thank you for your partnership and support this year. We wish you a safe and restful summer. We are celebrating with and fervently praying for the graduating class of 2019. We will miss you and can’t wait to see what the Lord has in store for your futures—go Grizzlies!
All’s joy,
Karen Wright, Ph.D.
kwright@tbcs.org