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Greetings, Falcon families! 

News of the week

• Marching Falcons in two St. Patty's Day parades – The ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú Marching Falcons will put on their collective Irish on Saturday (TOMORROW) at two local St. Patrick's Day parades: The first is at 11 a.m. in North ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú, starting and finishing at American Legion Post 1610 on North First Street. The second is the annual city parade, beginning at 2 p.m. at Central and Lexington avenues and proceeding down Central to State Street, finishing by Broadway. This year, they will march with the UÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú Marching Great Danes!
• Attention seniors and their families – It's time to place your online cap and gown order. You can do that at albanyschools.org/2024, a web page that will contain cap and gown info and important dates, deadlines and activities leading up to graduation. Place your cap and gown order by March 28!  
• Robotics gears up for contest – Team 1493 is getting ready for the New York Tech Valley First Regional Robotics Competition March 22-23. Learn more about the team from a recent news profile.
• In the food pantry – The school food pantry behind the Citizenship Office is open Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 3:45-5:30 p.m. or by appointment. Specials next week include sour cream, juices, Lactaid, milk, dishwashing soap, alfredo pasta sides, ziti, cake mix and frosting, romaine lettuce, strawberries, cheddar cheese, meat, and frozen vegetables.
• Seniors nail JA CEO contest – Two ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú High seniors beat out 100 students from four area high schools to win the 2024 JA Titan CEO Challenge. Congrats to winners Oliver Alvarez and Padraig LeBuis, students in Christopher Austen’s college-level Business Concepts and Applications class.
• Spring sports begin – Check out highlights from and .
• Unified bowling ends – The unified bowling team officially wrapped up their 2024 season on Wednesday with – what else? – The team is coed and made up of students from grades 9-12. Unified sports are Special Olympics programs that combine athletes with and without disabilities on sports teams for training and competition.  
• Falcons are 2024 county Mock Trial champs – The ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú High Speech and Debate/Mock Trial Team defeated the ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú Academies on Tuesday night, becoming the 2024 ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú County Mock Trial champions. On to regional competition in April!
• Falcons compete in nationals – Congrats to Samir Gardner, Malachi Young, Jahcere Laboy, Elijah Temple and Darron Harrell on an impressive finish to the indoor track season at the Nike Indoor Nationals last weekend.
• Autism Spectrum Fair is March 26 – This event geared toward students on the autism spectrum and their families will feature sensory stations, community resources, raffles and products to buy, and more. It will be held from March 26 from 5:30-7 p.m. at Montessori Magnet School. 
• – The Capital District YMCA will hold two informational meetings this month about its Black and Latino Achievers Program for students on March 21 and March 28.
• Community forum in April – A second community meeting is planned to provide updates on our partnership with the National Coalition Building Institute and its work with our school community following last December’s student conflicts. The meeting is April 16 in the library at 6:30 p.m.
• Entering the College Zone conference in April – The district is partnering again with the Black Child Development Institute to offer students in grades 6-12 and their parents and guardians an opportunity to attend the free Entering the College Zone Student Conference on April 27 from 9:30 a.m.-3 p.m. at Hudson Valley Community College.
• Sign up for city summer jobs – The City of ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú is accepting registration through March 31 for the 2024 LIGHT Summer Youth Employment Program.
• A word about June 4 – ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú High will be administering the Algebra Regents on Tuesday, June. 4. Only students taking the exam need to report to school on that day.

Upcoming events

• Saturday, March 16
  • Marching Falcons in North ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú St. Patrick's Day parade, 11 a.m.
  • Marching Falcons in ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú St. Patrick's Day parade, 2 p.m.
• Monday, March 18 – Booster Club meeting, library, 6 p.m.
• Tuesday, March 19 – PTSA meeting, library or attend remotely, 5:30 p.m.
• Wednesday, March 20 – All-City Strings concert, William S. Hackett Middle School auditorium 6:30 p.m.
• Friday, March 22 and Saturday, March 23 – Robotics Team 1493 in , MVP arena
• Tuesday, March 26 – Autism Spectrum Fair, Montessori Magnet School, 5:30-7 p.m.
• Wednesday, March 27 – All-City Band concert, ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú High auditorium, 6:30 p.m.
• Thursday, March 28 – Seniors: Online cap and gown orders due.
• Friday, March 29-Friday, April 5 – Spring Break, no school
• Tuesday, April 16 – Community forum, library, 6:30 p.m.

Important reminders

• Next Gen Barbers is open for business – Students, staff and community members can get haircuts Thursday and Friday afternoons from from 1:15-2:45 p.m. at Abrookin. Cost is free for students, $5 for staff and $10 for community members, and an appointment is required.
• Student ID reminder – Please see this important information about student ID cards.
• Free salon services for 55+ – Attention ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú residents age 55 and up: Get free beauty services from aspiring beauticians every Thursday at ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú High!
• Leaving school – ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú High School is a closed campus. Students are not allowed to leave campus for any reason without parent permission. This includes during lunch and study hall. If a student has an appointment, i.e. doctor, medical, family matter, etc., they must have a note or phone call from a parent giving permission to leave. All students also must be signed out by a parent in order to leave school grounds. Students who leave campus without a valid reason will not be allowed to re-enter without parent contact.
• Traveling to and from Abrookin – All students must take the bus to and from Abrookin Career and Technical Center and the main campus for any classes. This will prevent students from being late and having to go back through security, and ensure student safety. Students who do not take the bus will not be allowed to re-enter without parent contact. The bus is available at Building 2, Stair 2-2 and at the Abrookin entrance.