Good evening, Piedmont families-

Tomorrow morning, we will begin our first academic day of the 2025-2026 school year.  I am looking forward to having our students back on campus.  As always, we have high expectations for a tremendous year at Piedmont High.  Below you will find several items that will assist in being successful on our 1^st day of school.

MORNING ARRIVAL:  Our building will open at 8:00 a.m. for all students.  For those arriving before 8:00, our cafeteria will be open at 7:30.  Students may enter through the glass doors between the cafeteria and the auditorium.   All car riders need to be dropped off using the Love Mill Rd (Football Stadium) entrance.  DO NOT drop off students using the Sikes Mill Road entrance. 

BUS RIDERS:  We encourage all bus riders to download the Edulog Parent Portal app for the most up-to-date information for bus arrivals/departures.  You can find additional information on the UCPS webpage located here: https://www.ucps.k12.nc.us/domain/125.  Students will also have the opportunity to meet with an Assistant Principal during lunches to confirm their afternoon bus route.  

STUDENT PARKING: As a reminder, all students who park on campus must have a newly purchased 25-26 Piedmont High School parking pass. There are still parking spaces available only in the Stadium Lot. Please visit the Student Parking page on our school website to purchase. Any student who parks on campus without a pass will be subject to fines.  All students who purchased a parking pass and have not picked it up yet are required to pick up their pass in the front office on Monday morning, beginning at 7:45. It is important for all students to park in their assigned parking spot every day.  If you have any parking questions, please get in touch with Assistant Principal Tiphany Speck (tiphany.speck@ucps.k12.nc.us) or call 704-296-3170. 

UPDATED SCHEDULES:  All students will report directly to their Homeroom teacher tomorrow morning.  Students will receive their most up-to-date schedule, as well as several back-to-school documents.

SCHEDULE CHANGES/CORRECTIONS:  The Schedule Correction link will re-open on the first day of school and will remain open for the first five days.  Our counselors are currently working to correct any previous schedule correction requests.  Schedule change requests will only be reviewed once submitted through the schedule change form that will be posted under Quick Links and in the order in which they are received. Schedule change requests will not be reviewed by email, phone, or in person to be fair to all students. 

EARLY GRADUATION AND FLEX FORMS: Seniors who requested to graduate early, or flex for this year, must have a completed form turned in to their counselor by August 28, 2025.  There are copies of the forms available in the counseling office

PASS/FAIL COURSE OPPORTUNITY:  Pass/Fail forms are available for students each day in the cafeteria.  Forms must be submitted to the counseling office by Monday, September 8th.  Students are eligible to take one course per year as a pass/fail.  Graduation requirement courses cannot be taken pass/fail.  For any questions about pass/fail, please see your counselor or an administrator. 

ATTENDANCE REPORTING: UCPS has created an online system for all student absence reporting.  The UCPS Absence Reporting Form is linked here.   You must set up an account in order to report absences.  There is a way to upload medical/court documents in this form as well.  ONLY parents are permitted to set up an absence reporting account, and the email used MUST match the parent's email on record with the school, or the account will be deleted along with any absences reported.  Please be sure that you are using the email account that we send our weekly Connect Ed message to each week.  

ATHLETIC EVENTS:  If you are attending athletic events, be reminded of the UCPS policies:  Clear 4.5" x 6.5" Bags/purses only.  No outside food or drinks - only drink allowed is an unopened bottle of water. No entry after the midpoint of the game unless you have a pre-purchased ticket.

PSAT: Any 11th-grade student who would like to take the PSAT, please sign up via the email sent to your student email by Mrs. Floyd or by going to Quicklinks on our website. The last day to sign up will be on Thursday, August 28^th.  If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to reach out to Erica Floyd at 704-296-3170 or email her at erica.floyd@ucps.k12.nc.us.

FRESHMAN PARENT SITE-BASED REPRESENTATIVE: Any parent of a ninth-grade student is welcome to apply to be a member of our school’s Site-Based Management Team. Please visit the Site-Based Management Team page on our website: Site-Based Leadership Webpage for more information regarding the role of the Site-Based Management Team and the link to apply. All applications must be submitted by September 5, 2025.

STUDENT BREAKFAST & LUNCH:  The federal waiver granting all students free breakfast and lunch has expired.  We encourage all families to complete the free/reduced lunch form found here: https://www.lunchapplication.com.  If students have not been approved for free/reduced lunch, they are expected to pay for their lunch until they are approved.  Families are able to pre-pay for lunch accounts and check student balances using the PaySchools Central website: https://www.payschoolscentral.com/.  We encourage all families to download the PaySchools Central app for real-time updates and notifications. 

FLEX, ACADEMY & ONLINE STUDENTS: For our students with a non-traditional online class or Flex option for 1^st period, we ask that you report to school tomorrow morning at 8:30 to participate in Homeroom activities.  

TECHNOLOGY:  Students who do not have their new laptops will have an opportunity to receive their laptops on the first day of school.  As a reminder, UCPS has implemented a $30 tech fee for all students.  You may pay online at the Infinite Campus Parent Portal or at the school by cash or check.  If you qualify for free and reduced lunch, you will receive a tech fee waiver once you have submitted a copy of the lunch approval letter to our Bookkeeper, Gini Wilson. 

CALENDAR OF EVENTS:  Piedmont High will publish an ongoing calendar of events.  Please click the following link to see all the activities taking place at Piedmont.  The calendar will update as we continue to add events to the calendar.  Event Calendar Link.

We look forward to collaborating and working in partnership to create a successful learning environment for all students.  I hope everyone has a great first day of school, and we look forward to seeing everyone tomorrow morning.  If you have any questions or concerns, please call Piedmont High at 704-296-3170.  Thank you and have a great evening.