-
Performing & Visual Arts
Mark your calendars with these performance dates!
-
LPIE
Save the Date for LPIE's 5th Annual Poker Tournament on Friday, Oct 17, 2025
Get ready to Ante up for a night of fun and excitement! Our 5th Annual Poker Tournament is coming—don’t miss your chance to play, win great prizes, and support our local schools all at once. Tickets go on sale soon, so be on the lookout!
-
Sports
*The game schedule reflects dates and times as of last Friday. Games may change for several reasons, including weather. If you have questions or comments, please contact Acalanes Sports Boosters.
Girls tennis
Monday, Aug 25 Bishop O’Dowd HS at 4:00pm. Varsity home, JV away.
Girls golf
Monday, Aug 25 Varsity v. Clayton Valley Charter HS at Contra Costa CC at 3:30pm.
Girls volleyball
Tuesday, Aug 26 hosts Moreau Catholic HS. JV 5:00pm, Varsity 6:30pm.
Wednesday, Aug 27 hosts Archie Williams HS. Freshmen 4:00pm, JV 5:00pm, Varsity 6:30pm.
Flag football
Tuesday, Aug 26 hosts Pittsburg HS. JV 6:30pm and Varsity 7:45am.
Girls water polo
Wednesday, Aug 27 hosts Archie Williams HS. JV at 4:00pm and Varsity at 5:00pm.
Boys water polo
Wednesday, Aug 27 Varsity hosts Clayton Valley Charter HS. Varsity at 6:00pm and JV at 7:00 pm.
Tackle football
Wednesday, Aug 27 Freshmen host San Marin HS at 5:00pm.
Friday, Aug 29 hosts Archbishop Mitty HS. JV at 4:30pm and Varsity at 7:00pm.You may view the full 2024-2025 Athletic Schedule by clicking HERE.
-
General Administration Announcements
Acalanes Back to School Night (BTSN) is Thursday, August 28 from 5:15-8pm! Please plan to join at 5:15pm in the front quad for a Parent and Staff Reception hosted by the Acalanes Parents Club (APC). Principal Shawn will share some remarks around 5:30pm and classroom visits start at 6pm.
This evening is for us, the parents/caregivers, to experience what our students experience each and every school day - you don’t want to miss it!
A full program, including details about classroom sessions will be available in the APC newsletter next weekend.
See the APC in Action section below for more important dates. -
APC in Action
Join us for the Dons Dialogue Friday, Aug 22 at 8:45am!
Acalanes Parents Club is pleased to invite you to our first Dons Dialogue of the 2025-2026 school year! Dons Dialogues are the best way to find out what’s going on at Acalanes!
These monthly forums provide parents with the opportunity to hear directly from Principal Eric Shawn and other AHS faculty regarding academics, student activities, department information, hot topics on campus, plus open Q&A. APC will provide coffee and treats. All parents/caregivers welcome. This month’s topics include:- Welcome & New Admin Team
- ACA Strong Values
- Student Expectations Review
- Cellphone & AI Expectations
- New Email Protocols & Safety (Move to Personal Email)
- Academic Honesty & Cheating
- Academy Expectations
- Campus Expectations
- Athletic PE Update
- BTSN Reminders
- Leadership Activities Update
Please reach out to APC here with any questions.
Thank you Dons Day Volunteers!
It was wonderful to see everyone at Dons Day this past Monday! We want to give a HUGE thank you to our amazing Dons Day Planning Team: Amber Harley, Ashley Matter, Jess Phillips, Jill Sammons and Ali Krick for making it such an incredible day!! And THANK YOU to all the parents and students who volunteered that day! We could not have done it without all of you! Go Dons!!
Thank you APC Staff Appreciation Team!
APC welcomed AHS staff back to school with coffee and bagels – with all the toppings – to kick off the school year. A huge shout out to Stacey Hastings and Dominique Mickelson, our Staff Appreciation Coordinators, for organizing such a great event for our staff! We also want to thank Jocelyn Werner for bringing in homemade muffins! There will be many more staff appreciation events throughout the year so look for ways you can help donate or bake. It is YOUR donations to APC that help make these staff appreciation events possible. Thank you!!!
Please Consider Volunteering!
If you are looking for fun, easy ways to support our Dons, APC has a wide variety of events throughout the calendar year. The snack shack during football games, community support at the Lafayette Food & Wine Fest and ResRun, passing out snacks during finals weeks, and new volunteer events geared for Dons Dads only are just a few APC volunteer opportunities. Please check out our full list and sign up today - and don’t forget to invite your friends to join you!
Stay Connected: Follow the Acalanes Parents Club on Instagram to keep up to date on what's happening at Acalanes and reminders for important dates. Please reach out to APC here with any questions. -
Acalanes Community Always (ACA)
What is ACA You Ask?
Not only is “ACA” short for “Acalanes,” it is also the overarching, unifying theme that we at Acalanes High School represent on and off campus. Simply put, ACA (Acalanes Community Always) represents:- Connectivity between Acalanes students, teachers, staff members, alumni and the greater Lafayette community
- Spirit and unity
These are characteristics that we all share as part of the Acalanes family, both during our time at Acalanes, and beyond as alumni. Our ACA spirit is on display daily in and outside of the classroom, and within our athletics, performing arts, student government, clubs, and Acalanes support organizations. We look forward to supporting ongoing programming that continues to build school spirit and supports our community and each other!
ACA Student Discounts!
As part of your student’s ASB card purchase, your student can get discounts or freebies at some favorite local business, such as- Diablo Foods
- Johnny’s Donuts
- Local Kitchens
- Sideboard
- And more!
Your student just needs to show their ASB card at checkout. See the full list of discounts here! There is still time to purchase the ASB card in the Acalanes Webstore, this money drives student activities at Acalanes.
A Few Important Dates! -
Student Activities
What a great start to the school year; such good energy on campus!
Peek @ the week:Monday
Lunch: 9th grade non-stanley lunch + canvas tutorial in room 415Tuesday
Lunch: Volunteer service opportunities + Helper Helper info meeting in room 314Wednesday
Lunch: Club Info meeting in room 314Thursday
Lunch: Resource fair in the frosh quadFriday
Academy: Frosh Connect
Lunch: Open Field Day + ACA Buddies
7 PM: Frosh social
9th grade photosMonday 8/25
Lunch: HOCO info meetings for each classIf you have yet to purchase your ASB Sticker, NOW is the time!
ASB cards cost $115 and are available for purchase on the webstore. ASB cards support all student activities at Acalanes, support athletics (25% of every card sale goes directly to athletics) and helps to pay for AHS's finance tech's salary and get students discounts/free entry to the following:
-Home athletic events (Except playoffs). This year we have 6 home football games (totaling $35 without ASB).
-Free or discounted tickets to dances (For Homecoming, you will save $25 with ASB)
-Free Acalanes t-shirt at Dons Day (worth $15). If you didn’t get your black dice shirt, stop by room 314.
-Discounts at 12 local businesses when you show your ASB sticker on your ID card.
Class Shirts & Spiritwear - deadline to order is today!
Didn’t get a chance to order your class shirt yet? You still have a chance via the webstore by tomorrow at 11:59 PM.
Looking for new Acalanes gear? Check out our summer webstore open only until tomorrow, Monday, Aug 18. All proceeds benefit the Classes of ‘26, ‘27, ‘28 & ‘29!. Items will be available for pick-up in September.
New Club Applications
Want to start a club? The time is NOW! Club apps are now available and are due August 25th. If you did spring re-up, you DO NOT need to fill this out.
There is a mandatory info meeting Wednesday, August 20th in room 314 at lunch. Each club needs 1 representative to attend.
Clubs are so important on the Acalanes campus! The work you do within your club is so important and we want to support that. Please fill out this google form in its entirety by 8/25. Fall Club Day is September 5th during academy
Homecoming
Homecoming runs Sunday, Sep 28- Saturday, Oct 4. Informational meetings for ALL grades will be Monday, Aug 25 at lunch and important skit & hallway decorating information will be shared. Homecoming at Acalanes is magical-encourage your student to get involved!
Staying in touch with student activities
Our goal at Acalanes is that every student is connected to at least one adult and one activity outside of school. If I can support you in any way, please don’t hesitate to reach out! There are multiple ways in which we push information out to both students and parents:- Monday morning announcements
- Daily Bulletin
- APC Newsletter
- On campus publicity: posters, weekly flush, bulletin boards, canvas & more
- Instagram (@ahs_dons)
Let’s have a great year, Acalanes!
Katherine Walton
Looking to stay informed? Follow us on Instagram for the latest on student activities and class happenings. -
College & Career
SENIOR PARENT NIGHT- NOTE THE DATE CHANGE to Thursday, September 11 at 6:30pm. Please join Counselor Anne Schonauer, and College and Career Center Advisor Debbie Levy in the library on Thursday, September 11 from 6:30-7:30pm to discuss post-high school planning, details regarding letters of recommendation, sending transcripts, college visits, and more!
SENIORS: College visits begin this week. Students must sign up on MaiaLearning under events in order to attend. They must also communicate with teachers in advance and pick up a pass from the College and Career Center.
Thursday, August 21
WPI (Worcester Polytechnic Institute) @ 9:20am
TCU (Texas Christian University) @ 10:00am
SMU (Southern Methodist University) @ 10:35am
Our friends at Revolution Prep are offering our students a FREE PSAT and SAT practice exam. Please see details below:- PSAT Practice Exam: Saturday, September 6 | 9:00am – 12:00pm PT* | Online
- SAT Practice Exam: Saturday, September 20 | 9:00am – 12:00pm PT* | Online
Register here for exams and other educational webinars: Acalanes High School registration landing page
Navigating the High School Transition: Thursday, August 21, 2025 | 7:00pm PT
Navigating the Critical Changes in Admissions Testing School: Thursday, September 11, 2025 | 7:00pm PT
PSAT, Now What?: Wednesday, October 29, 2025 | 6:00pm PT
College Planning Case Study: Thursday, November 13, 2025 | 6:00pm PT -
Counseling
Counselor assignments are by student last name:
A-F Anne Schonauer
G-Ka Erika Vasquez on campus MWTh
Ke-Re Marissa Meadows
Rh-Z Susan Martin
SCHEDULE CHANGE REQUESTS: All schedule change requests will be reviewed on a case by case basis and approved by the principal only. The schedule change request form is posted on the AHS website and QR codes are in the Counseling Office. Students may submit requests to change their schedule via the form. If a schedule change is approved, the student’s name will appear on a list on the Counseling Office window. We will only be adding new classes during the first 10 days of school. Students may drop classes through the end of the first quarter, October 10.
CLASS VISITS: Counselors will start visiting grade level classrooms next week. We will visit English 4, English 3 and Chemistry classes. We will also visit the Frosh Academy on Friday. All 10-12th graders will get an updated copy of their transcript, and we will review grade-level specific information, such as PSAT/SAT and AP testing signup information, as well as college information for 11th and 12th graders.
Social Media
