Class of 2017 - Commencement

June 2017

Delta celebrates it's 5th annual commencement ceremony on Thursday, June 1st, 2017, at 7:00 p.m., at the Three Rivers Convention Center. This year we are celebrating 87 graduates, a 97% on time graduation rate, and nearly $2.2 million in scholarships and grant awards. Way to go, Class of 2017 Deltonians!

State NHD Finals

May 2017

Congratulations to Delta students Jeaziree Salise, Rudy Garcia, Anthony Chung, and Zac Matson for placing at State National History Day competition, earning the right to compete at this year's National History Day competition at the University of Maryland - College Park. These students will take a once in a lifetime trip to our nation's capital, in addition to competing for various awards and prizes at this year's competition in June 2017. Good luck, NHD competitors!

STEM-Con

March 2017

Delta joined Chiawana High STEM program students for a day filled with learning at this year's annual STEM-Con event. A big thank you to WSU Tri-Cities for provideing facility space, and to all of our amazing community partners for facilitating fabulous hands-on workshops! Students explored career areas, met mentors, and learned new skills.

Student Showcase Night

February 2017

Delta students and families are invited to attend our National History Day Student Showcase Night, Wednesday, February 22nd, from 6:30-7:30 p.m. Student projects, including exhibits, documentaries, and websites, will be on display throughout the school. Come check out the entries before students head to regional NHD competition at Eastern Washington University on Saturday, February 25th. We hope to see you there!

Calendar Update

February 2017

We will have school on Friday, March 3rd. The trimester break day is cancelled, in order to utilize the day as a snow make-up day. Thank you!

Graduation Date Update

February 2017

All three of our partner districts have determined that graduations will be held as scheduled. Our Delta Class of 2017 graduation ceremony will still be on Thursday, June 1st, 7:00 p.m., at the Tri-Cities Convention Center. (Re)mark your calendars! 

With regards to the final day of school and make-up days for seniors, a decision has not yet been reached. School districts seeking a waiver of the 180-day requirement must submit this request in mid-March, so we expect to hear more about this in the coming weeks. Once the final day of school is determined, a plan will be developed for senior make-up days; seniors are required to complete 175-days.

2017-2018 Lottery Now Closed

February 2017

This year we visited 11 public middle schools, 4 private schools, 2 home-school cooperatives, and hosted 2 family information nights - that's a lot of presentations! We hope you enjoyed learning more about our school. A big THANK YOU to our fabulous Delta High Ambassadors for all their help with the recruiting process!

Applicants will be notified in early March if they are selected in the lottery. Students who are not selected will be notified of their wait list status by mail.

The application period is now closed. Thank you for your interest in joining our school! If you still wish to submit an application, please contact our office. Late applications will be placed at the bottom of the wait list.

School Cancelled, Wed. 2/15

School is cancelled for Wednesday, February 15th, due to poor road conditions throughout the region. Thank you.

School Cancelled, Thurs. 2/9

School is cancelled for Thursday, February 9th, due to poor road conditions throughout the region. Thank you.

School Cancelled, Mon. 1/23

School is cancelled for Wednesday, January 18th, due to icy conditions throughout the region. Thank you.

Congrats, Delta Robotics!

January 2017

Congratulations to our Delta Robotics team! The FIRST Tech Challenge team will be heading on to state, after receiving the following awards at this year's regionals:

• PTC Design Award, 1st Place
• Rockwell Collins Innovate Award, 2nd Place
• Inspire Award, 2nd Place
• Motivate Award, 3rd Place
• Finalist Alliance Captain

School Cancelled, 1/18 & 1/19

School is cancelled for Wednesday, January 18th, due to icy conditions throughout the region. Thank you.

We have to again cancel for Thursday, January 19th, due to icy conditions. Thanks!

2-Hour Delay, Thurs. 1/12

A 2-hour delay has been called for Thursday, January 12th. Please watch for updates in the morning, in case this changes to a cancellation. Thank you.

School Cancelled, Mon. 1/9-Wed.1/11

Due to our continuous winter weather ... school has been closed January 9th - 11th. Please watch for updates. Stay safe!

2-Hour Delay, Wed. 1/4

Due to cold temperatures and poor side road conditions, a 2-hour delay has been called for Wednesday, January 4th. We look forward to seeing you back at school!

2-Hour Delay, Friday 12/16

Due to road conditions, a 2-hour delay has been called for Friday, December 16th. Please watch for updates in the morning. Thank you!

School Cancelled, Thurs. 12/15

Due to road conditions, school has been cancelled for today. Stay warm and safe!

School Cancelled, Monday 12/12

Due to hazardous and difficult road conditions, school has been CANCELLED for Monday, December 12th. Thank you!

2-Hour Delay, Friday 12/9

There will be a 2-hour delay on Friday, December 9th, due to inclement weather. Thank you!

Celebrating Winter Wishes!

December 2016

On Monday, December 19th, we celebrated our annual Winter Wishes program, honoring those who give to help others. This year we received 93 wishes for 77 items for 61 Delta students. Thanks to our many donors, we were able to fulfill so many requests! Donations totaled over $4,000 - wow!

Thank you to this year's Winter Wishes sponsors!

• Delta PoDS (Parents of Delta Students)
• Battelle / PNNL
• Numerica Credit Union
• Best Buy
• Bullock Eye Care
• Gesa Credit Union
• Carin Hotelling
• Angie Furbotten-LaRossee
• Tina Torricellas
• Lisa Ahrendt
• The Horn Family
• Shelly Manlove Thompson
• Carrie Hallquist
• Bob Talbert
• Mike & Bev Anderson
• Lori Aronson
• Nancy Hess
• The Lugo Family
• Karla Kane
• Richard Job
• Michelle Coy
• The Bender Family
• Barb & Steve Smith
• Bobbi Miller
• The Southworth Family
• Jade Davis
• Mrs. Adams
• Mrs. Hoppe
• Ms. Muir
• Dr. Rodriquez
• ... and several anonymous donors

Career and College Exploration @ Delta High School

October 2016

On Tuesday, October 25th, 420 Delta High School students participated in the 3rd annual Fall Field Trip Day which included events related to career and college exploration.  While juniors and seniors set out across the state on college tours, 9th grade students attended Nuke Tech Day at Washington State University Tri-Cities and 10th grade students stayed on the Delta campus for Health Science Day. 

Both Nuke Tech and Health Science Day invite guest presenters to lead workshops with our students focused on aspects of nuclear or health/science related careers.  Nuke Tech Day presenters included:  Bechtel National, Inc. Energy Northwest, the Herbert M. Parker Foundation, and the CBC Nuclear Technology Program.  Students also toured the AREVA site in Richland, WA as well as the Atkins Engineering Laboratory near the WSU TC campus.  Health Science Day presenters included: Tri-Cities Cancer Center, Kadlec Regional Medical Center, Tri-Cities Laboratory, Pre-Health Club at WSU TC, Perry Technical Institute, Heritage University, and the Benton-Franklin Health Department.  Students also toured the Health Science Building at the CBC Richland Campus.

College tours across the state included:  University of Washington, Washington State University (Pullman), Eastern Washington University, Whitworth University, University of Idaho and Perry Technical University.  Delta students toured college campuses, met with admission counselors, and in some cases went on tours of specific departments that were of interest to them. 

“We’d like to extend our sincere thanks to the many community organizations who spent the day providing interactive, hands-on and relevant activities for our students, stated Dr. Jenny Rodriquez, Delta High School Principal.  Fall Field Trip Day is about sparking interest for careers that our students have yet to be exposed to.  When students get the chance to learn from industry professionals and to tour labs that they might one day work in, something resonates, and a passion begins.”

Thank You, Fall Field Trip Partners!

October 2016

Our Fall Field Trip day was a big success, in large part to our great community and regional partners! Thank you to the following organizations and companies for your support of Delta students:

Nuke Tech Day

• AREVA
• Bechtel National, Inc.
• Energy Northwest
• Herbert M. Parker Foundation
• CBC Nuclear Technology Program
• Atkins Engineering Laboratory
• WSU Tri-Cities ... for hosting our group!

Health Science Day

• Kadlec Regional Medical Center
• Perry Technical Institute
• Heritage University
• Pre-Health Club at WSU TC
• Tri-Cities Laboratory
• Tri-Cities Cancer Center
• CBC Health Science Program
• Benton Franklin Health District

College Tour Locations

• University of Washington – 100 students!
• Washington State University, Pullman
• University of Idaho, Moscow
• Whitworth University
• Eastern Washington University
• Perry Technical Institute

Jaxon Dean, Delta High Senior, Named KSD School Board Student Representative

September 26, 2016

We are excited and proud to announce that Delta High Senior Jaxon Dean will serve as the student representative on the Kennewick School Board for the 2016-2017 school year!  Jaxon will serve as a resource to board members regarding student reaction and perspectives to board policy and other student issues.

Jaxon is well prepared for this opportunity.  He served as the Delta High Senate Treasurer last year, and is an active member of several student clubs, including Key Club and National Honor Society.  The role will also help him learn more about public service and local government, as one of his goals is to serve in the Washington State House of Representatives.

Parent Workshop on CyberSafety, Wed. 9/21, 6:30-7:30 p.m.

September 15, 2016

Delta is hosting a free workshop on helping your teen navigate the digital world on Wednesday, September 21st, from 6:30-7:30 p.m. All Delta parents/guardians are welcome.

Does managing your teen’s relationship with technology cause friction in your home?  Are you concerned for their emotional and social well being within digital spaces?  It doesn’t have to be this painful…

CivilSchools Presents: Helping Your Teen Navigate the Digital World: Moving from Hurtful to Healthful.

Rather than spending an evening discussing the dangers of social media, which are vast, we are going to equip you with the high leverage skills and interventions that are critical to your adolescent’s well being. We have arrived in the digital world without a map or compass, thus putting many parents behind the eight ball. As with many of life’s challenges, they produce some of life’s greatest lessons.

With a good strategy, the digital world can be a perfect place for your child to develop self-regulation and self-awareness. We will focus on the pro-social behaviors that will help your family not only successfully handle cyber-bullying, sexting, and other negative elements of the online world but how to design a plan that prepares them to thrive within it.

Presented by Eric Thompson, Co-Founder/Director of Leadership Development at CivilSchools.    Eric is a Silicon Valley based executive coach, socially conscious parent and entrepreneur.  For the past 10 years Eric has served the business and educational community by teaching advanced leadership and influence techniques that build psychologically safe environments. He and his team at CivilSchools have developed an evidenced-based bullying prevention curriculum that has been used across the United States as well as in 18 different countries to increase acts of civility. Eric has a passion for teaching people the critical skills necessary to be able to act as UPstanders rather than bystanders. 

Delta Building Safe for School on Tuesday, 9/6

September 2, 2016

Late this morning, Delta students and staff were again evacuated due to a continued intermittent "gas smell" in the building.  After this second evacuation, a determination was made to move students to our neighboring school, Chiawana High.  Any student that reported any medical symptoms was checked by Pasco Fire Department Emergency Services and cleared; no students or staff required transport to the hospital.  Nursing staff were available to monitor and wait with any student feeling ill until they could be picked up by family members.

Many families were welcomed at Chiawana to pick up their Delta student.  Students remaining at CHS were returned to Delta at the end of the day, to pick up vehicles or take regular school or transit buses home.  We want to send a big THANK YOU to the staff of Chiawana High, as well as Pasco School District, for welcoming us, feeding us, and keeping us safe!  

After a thorough investigation by Cascade Natural Gas, Pasco Fire Department, and school district personnel, it was determined there is no further cause for concern on the Delta campus.  School will resume on Tuesday, 9/6/16, as scheduled.

Thank you for your support on this challenging day!  We appreciate everyone's commitment to our students' and staff's health and safety.

Evacuation Today at School - All Clear! 

September 2, 2016

This morning we evacuated Delta High School due to reports of a gas odor. Students and staff evacuated quickly and safely, and remained out of the building until cleared to return by Pasco Fire Department, Cascade Natural Gas, and Pasco School District officials. Students returned to class to continue their day. A few students reported headaches and other minor symptoms; all students reporting symptoms were checked by Pasco Fire Department Emergency Personnel, including trained medics. All students were cleared. Continued reports of odor were further investigated by CNG personnel and fire department; no leaks were found in the building.

Please stay tuned for further updates.

The New Year is Coming!

August 2016

We can't wait to see everyone when school opens this fall! Freshmen orientation will take place on the first day of school, August 30th; all students are back to school on August 31st.

We are thrilled to welcome the following new faculty this year:

• Adrian Paulakis, 9th grade social studies
• Cameron Greminger, 9th grade science
• Marc Dowd, 10th grade English language arts
• Rychell Hayes, 10th grade mathematics
• Celeste Frisbee, 11th-12th Spanish
• Jonet Sudduth, Special Education teacher
• Katie Deffinbaugh, Special Education paraeducator

See you soon, Deltonians!

A little STEAM from the STEM School

March 2016

We are thrilled with the amazing graphic art coming out of Ms. Edmunson's multi-media arts class! This year, Deltonians competed in the ESD-123 High School Art Show. Congratulations to the following recognized artists: Milla Roberts, Superintendent's Choice Award; Alex Tonthat, Judge's Choice Award:, and, Erick Leal, Judge's Choice Honorable Mention.

NHD - Victory is Ours!

February 2016

Congratulations to all our Delta NHD competitors! You made us proud at the Eastern Regionals competition at Eastern Washington University on February 27, 2016. Shout-out to students moving on to state competition at Green River Community College this April:

o   Freshman Jeaziree Salise, 1st place, Individual Website

o   Sophomore Leslie Esquival, 3rd place, Individual Website

o   Sophomores Ben Southworth and Linnea Walter, 1st place, Group Website

o   Sophomores Tina Tran and Jazmin Mejia-Villa, 2nd place, Group Website

o   Sophomore Auna Pippins, 2nd place, Individual Documentary

o   Senior Erma Choice, 1st place, Individual Exhibit

o   Junior Olivia Coleman, 2nd place, Individual Exhibit

o   Freshman Lydia Mitchell, 4th place, Individual Exhibit

o   Seniors Rachel Rodney and Nelly Garibaldo-Hernandez, 1st place, Group Exhibit

o   Juniors Daisy Cardoso, Jennifer Tene, and Joseline Tene, 2nd place, Group Exhibit

o   Sophomore Zach Matson, 1st place, Historical Paper

o   Junior Sanjay Philip, 1st place, Historical Paper

o   Sophomore Samuel Lewis, 2nd place, Historical Paper

o   Junior Leah Snyder, 2nd place, Historical Paper

o   Sophomore Hannah Doyle, 2nd place, Historical Paper

16-17 Lottery

January-February 2016

It's official! The 2016-2017 Delta lottery for the Class of 2020 is now closed. All applicants selected in the lottery will be notified before Spring Break; students not selected will remain on the wait list.

Good luck, Class of 2020!

MAC Mondays

January 2016

Come check out MAC MONDAYS! We will have open Mac Lab in room 208 Mondays after school until 5:00 pm. Students and staff can test for MOS certifications and student tutors are available upon request for Microsoft Word, Excel, Power Point, and more. Get your creative on and come practice Photo shop, Illustrator, Premier, Light Room, and more, or come create video and audio projects with iMovie, Windows Movie Maker, Audacity (sound editing) and Garage Band. Come hone your skills and have some fun creative time on Monday afternoons!

NHD News

January 2016

Congratulations to Delta High School sophomore Hannah Doyle and Social Studies teacher David Blacketer on their selection for the National History Day Albert H. Smalls Sacrifice for Freedom Normandy Institute! Doyle and Blacketer are one of 15 student-teacher teams from across the United States selected for the prestigious program. They will spend the year investigating the historical story of a Washington WWII veteran, culminating in research time at the National Archives in Washington D.C. in June, followed by a trip to the beaches of Normandy and the US Cemetery in France, where Doyle will deliver a eulogy to the selected WWII hero.

Read more at: http://www.tri-cityherald.com/news/local/education/article55104190.html

Winter Wishes Campaign Makes Dreams Come True

December 2015

We are thrilled our first annual Winter Wishes campaign fulfilled nearly 50 wishes for 37 of our Delta students. Donations exceeding $4,100.00 were accumulated to fulfill wishes, ranging from new shoes, to laptop computers. Students received business clothes, gas cards, and groceries, too. A big thank you to our Delta Natural Helpers and Parents of Delta Students (PoDS) groups for spearheading this campaign! Special thanks to Ms. Janett, Mrs. Hoppe, and Mrs. Muir for lots of behind the scenes work, and to the Delta Key Club for gift wrapping all the items for our wishees.

New Website Revealed!

December 2015

A new look for the Delta website was revealed this month! Thanks, SquareSpace, for a fresh new look! Have feedback on the new site? E-mail our webmaster, aka our principal, at jenny.rodriquez@thedeltahighschool.com.

National Merit Deltonians

November 2015

We are pleased to announce that three Delta seniors have been named Commended Students in the 2016 National Merit Scholarship Program. Congratulations to Aaron-Michael Sintay, Samuel Taylor, and Michael Warner! In addition, Connor Gill has been named a National Merit Semi-Finalist, and is currently in the competition to become a National Merit Scholar. We are proud of each of their accomplishments! For more information, see the press release here.

Delta Dedication Ceremony

October 2015

The Delta High School Dedication featured special guest, Washington Superintendent of Public Instruction Randy Dorn. Our students did a great job representing us, and it was wonderful to thank all of the partners that led to our school and our new facility. Special thanks to ASB President Adrianna McKinney, Delta Sea Cadets Bethany Frazier and Jade Noggles, singer Milla Roberts, and student speakers Seth Tieman, Jeaziree Salise, Austin Benoit, Shade Dudley, Max Reathaford, Danielle Bradley, Pedro Salazar, and Jennifer Cassidy. Shout out also goes out to our Delta High Ambassadors and National Honor Society for helping with building tours and event clean up.

Check out KEPR news coverage here. A great article was also featured in the Tri-City Herald; read it here. To read more about Superintendent Dorn's visit, check out the press release here.

NukeTech Day

October 2015

Delta 9th Grade students enjoyed the annual NukeTech Day event, including hands-on workshops presented by CBC, Bechtel, and Areva. For an inside look, check out this video from Bechtel:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e93dONDCMoQ&feature=youtu.be

Delta Recognition Program

September 2015

As many of you know, we have a great program to recognize students at our school. The Kindness Pays It Forward program, ran by our Delta Student Senate, recognizes students who embody our Delta Habits of Mind, and demonstrate showing respect, making good decisions, and solving problems. To spread the joy, we are starting a Delta staff recognition program. Students, families, community members, and staff can nominate any Delta staff member for our Delta Superhero award. The weekly superhero will be announced each Thursday during our school announcements. Has a Delta staff member made  difference for you? Nominate that teacher, lunch lady, secretary, counselor, or custodian who made a difference for you! Forms can be found in the office or by clicking here. You can turn a hard copy in at the Delta office, or e-mail your nomination to corina.schirmer@thedeltahighschool.com. 

Deltonian @ College!

September 2015

We recently heard from one of our Class of 2015 seniors, who is attending one of the most prestigious engineering schools in the country. Read on to see how she is faring at her first year at college!

Hello All,

I hope everyone had a great summer! I am going through my first week ... and thought I would give you all an update on how much Delta has helped me. All of the credits that I received for English were accepted and I do not have to take any English classes, unless I want to for an elective. My Calculus 1 credits were accepted and my Calculus 2 were accepted on the condition that I pass a Calculus 2 short form class. This means I am taking Calculus 2 until the end of September and a Calculus 3 class for engineers the entire semester. This also means that I get to take physics early. I also have the opportunity to test out of Chem 121 and into Chem 122 because of the level of difficulty of the classes I took at Delta. Thank you all for pushing me to be the best that I can be, because I am way ahead at one of the top engineering schools in the country.

Great job! We are so proud of our graduates. :)

Delta Senior Serves on PSD Board

August 2015

Abraham Mendoza, Delta High senior, was selected to serve as a student representative on the Pasco School Board. Abraham applied for the position in spring 2015, and after an application and interview process, was selected for the prestigious position. He will spend a year learning about board operations, attending district functions, and even have the opportunity to visit our state capital on Olympia. Way to go, Abraham - we are proud of you!

Delta Partners for CS Camp

August 2015

More than 20 students favored cyber security over lazy summer days as they learned, hacked, fixed and explored the timely topic in a safe environment. There is a national movement among educators to bring computer science to all high school students and to increase the numbers of women and other groups underrepresented in tech fields.

The free camp was led by Pasco School District teacher Maya Donnelly and guest instructors Penny McKenzieand Dan Sanner of PNNL. In addition, several staff from PNNL (David McKinnon, Sarah Adkins (Delta High alum), Daisy Quiroga (Delta High alum), Michael Patterson, Darlene Thorsen, Jacob Waddell (Delta High alum), Nathan Krussel, Marshall Smith, Mary Sue Hoxie and former PNNL employee Peter Neorr (Delta High CyberPatriots coach)), the Columbia Basin College Tech club with the Computer Science Department Head, Don Humphries, also participated in portions of the camp.

Instructors used open courseware developed by Sandia National Laboratory and other materials provided by Pace University. Students explored Linux, networks, biometrics, cryptography, binary, servers, firewalls, passwords, digital safety and ethics, scripting, forensics and more as they prepared for a digital “Capture the Flag” event.

The camp was part of the Computing the Future (CtF) project by the Mid-Columbia STEM Education Collaboratory. CtF is entering phase two of a multi-year effort to expand computer science education access in the Mid-Columbia. The new phase will focus efforts on teacher professional development for grades K-12 and out-of-school computer science educational opportunities for grade 6-12 populations currently underrepresented in computer science and technology fields.

Held at Stevens Middle School in Pasco from August 10-14, the camp was made possible with support from PNNL, Battelle, the Washington State STEM Education Foundation, CBC, the Pasco School District, Delta High School and others.

-Reprinted from Inside PNNL-

The Delta High School

5801 Broadmoor Blvd.
Pasco, WA  99301

509.416.7860 (phone)
509.416.7861 (fax)