Duke Update February 15, 2026
Hello GHS Dukes!
GHS recognizes School Resource Officer Appreciation Day this week! This recognizes law enforcement officers working in schools. It honors their role in keeping campuses safe, mentoring students, and bridging the gap between youth and law enforcement. Thank you to our SRO's!
Monday, February 16th is an early release day for students and a Professional Day for staff. Students will be released at 12:15 pm.
Attention Sophomore Parents and Guardians: In compliance with Virginia State Code, all 10th grade students will receive a hearing and vision screening during school hours beginning Friday, February 20. Screenings will be conducted by the Registered Nurses in the school clinic. If a student is identified as having a vision or hearing concern, parents/guardians will be notified in writing. For questions, please contact the clinic directly at 804-693-2641.
Parents and Guardians: This is a reminder that a valid photo ID is required when picking up your student or entering the building for a meeting or appointment. Thank you for your cooperation in helping us maintain a safe and secure environment.
The next NHS Chapter meeting will be held in the courtyard on Thursday, February 19th at 2:50 pm. Attendance is mandatory.
Congratulations to the Varsity Smash and Mario Kart ESports teams for securing victories on Wednesday and Thursday of this week for the first matches of the regular season. Stephan Arnold, Paul Trotman, and Marcos Puentes Rosario were all able to 3 stock their opponents. Paul continues to maintain a 100% win rate with Banjo Kazooie.
Congratulations to Mackenzie Santodomingo for being accepted to join the statewide Y-Street Leadership Team. Great Job!
Congratulations to the wrestling team for placing 3rd at the region tournament last Saturday. Congratulations to Chase Adams, Karl Dean, David Lewis & Kenneth Hamilton for finishing in 1st place in their weight classes.
Oliver Ramos finished 3rd.
Logan Hudgins finished 5th.
Ryder Talbott & Nolan Leffel finished 6th.
4A Indoor Track Championship Recap - Team Highlights
Our 17-girl regional squad showed incredible depth and grit, bringing home 9 Personal Records and 6 Season Bests.
Hannah Mullis put on a clinic in the Shot Put, throwing a New Personal Best of 37-5. She finished as the 4A Regional Runner-Up and punched her ticket to the State Meet!
Relay Strength: The girls proved their collective strength by running Season Best times in all three relay events: the 4x800m, 4x200m, and 4x400m.
⚡ Boys Team Highlights
With 18 guys competing, the energy was electric. We walked away with 10 New Personal Records, 4 Season Bests, and 2 New School Records.
Izak Smith had a historic day, setting a New School Record in the 500m (1:07.14) and qualifying for the State Meet. He followed that up by qualifying for States in the 300m with a blazing 35.98—nearly breaking a second school record!
Relay Dominance: Our relay teams defined "teamwork." The 4x800m and 4x400m both clocked Season Bests.
The Record Breakers: The Boys 4x400m team—Greyson Shield, Brayl'n Johnson, Elijah Lemaster, and Izak Smith—ended the meet with a massive statement, achieving their goal of breaking the School Record and qualifying for the State Meet!
Attention Juniors Class: Votes have been tallied and the winning theme for this year's Ring Dance is Met Gala! Interested in being a part of the Ring Dance Committee? There will be a meeting on February 19th. See the Junior Class Page in Canvas for more details. This is a reminder that there is still time to purchase your Junior Class ring! Please visit Jostens.com to place your order.
Families, students and community members are you still looking to go somewhere warm and tropical this summer? Come to Costa Rica and Panama! There will be an All-Aboard meeting on Thursday, February 19th at 5:30 PM at the High School in room 139 (Ms. Falkenberg's room) for families and students already signed up. Families who have not signed up can still enroll and learn more about this amazing Caribbean trip!!
Click here for more info:
https://www.eftours.com/2814681HK
Click here to RSVP to the meeting to learn more about our Costa Rica/Panama trip this summer of 2026.
Lace up, Gloucester! Join the Gloucester County Educational Foundation 3K or 8K Run/Walk on Saturday, March 14—or go virtual anytime from February 27 through March 14. Sign up online through the Canvas announcement and run for a great cause supporting Mini-Grants and Teacher of the Year!
Athletics
Field Hockey: UPDATE - The field hockey meeting on 2/17 is for players only, who next year will be in grades 8 – 12, who have an interest in field hockey, this meeting will go over spring and summer conditioning and camp information.
Tryouts for spring sports will start 2/23 – dates, times and locations are posted on the GHS athletics page. All students must meet GCPS eligibility requirements and have a valid sports physical on file and approved in the new Arbiter Registration Program – steps are on the GHS website under athletics. Coaches emails are listed on the GHS Athletic page.
All student-athletes currently playing or planning to play a sport must complete the Arbiter registration to be eligible to participate in conditioning, tryouts, practice, or competition. The registration link and tutorial can be found on the GHS athletics website, and info flyers are located outside room 314. See Dr. Croft or Ms. Hunter in the athletic office if you have any questions. Anyone that has already completed Arbiter registration for this school year does not need to do it again.
Counseling
Parents and guardians of current sophomores. School Counselors began scheduling for students last week. We would love for you to participate alongside your student. Please check out the GHS School Counseling Hub in Canvas for a sign up genius link for your student’s school counselor. Alternatively, you can send an e-mail to your child’s counselor as well to set up a time that works best for you.
Are you looking for healthier ways to manage anger or practical tools to calm yourself when you’re feeling worried, overwhelmed, or sad? Starting March 4th, our Anger Management and Managing the Uncomfortable groups will begin meeting. If you’re interested in joining either group, please email your school counselor or Ms. Morris or you scan the QR code on Canvas to sign up. We’d love to have you participate!
Seniors
The senior class is selling tickets to win one of 7 raffle baskets. This money is to help raise money for prom and senior week events. Tickets are 1 ticket for $2 and 3 tickets for $5. There are three ways to buy! Tickets will be sold during all three lunch breaks, you can locate a Senior class officer or come by room 249A to purchase tickets. The winner will be drawn on Friday, February 27th.
Daily Reminders:
The GHS cafeteria will offer Second Chance Breakfast for students who have a late-in or may have missed breakfast earlier in the morning. The cafeteria doors will open from 9:10 a.m. until 9:20 a.m.
Yearbooks are available for pre-order at yearbookordercenter.com using code 4758. Less than 50 copies are available, so order soon!
📣 Attendance Notes Now Accepted Online!
Parents and Guardians — GHS now accepts digital attendance notes. If your student is absent or tardy, visit the GHS website, click the “Digital Attendance Notes” button in the top right corner, complete the form, and submit. Notes are received instantly and can be submitted 24/7 for your convenience.
If you need to pick your student up early, please arrive PRIOR to 2:20 PM.
Parking passes for the 2nd semester have been reduced to $25.00 and are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Parking pass application forms may be picked up in the Main Office or found on the GHS website. Please bring your completed application along with a screenshot or printed copy of your receipt to the Main Office.
The Care Closet will only be accepting new, high school appropriate clothing for the remainder of the school year. The Care Closet can not accept perishable food items or food items in glass containers. Thank you for your generosity.
Lost and Found: Students, check the Lost and Found daily if you have misplaced any items.
Bus Notes Reminder: All students who need to submit a bus note must turn it in to the Main Office in the morning to allow time for review and approval. Submitting notes later in the day may result in delays or the note not being approved.
The Activity Bus departs GHS at 5:30 p.m. for the remainder of the school year. The bus runs Monday through Thursday only. Please see the link for scheduled Activity bus stops: https://5il.co/3sjxt
Parents/guardians must be at their student’s designated stop when they arrive. If a student will not have a ride from their stop, a completed permission form must be turned in. Copies of the form are available in the Main Office, and completed forms should be given directly to the Activity Bus driver.
Safety: All GCPS students go through security and weapons detectors each morning. Please continue to encourage students to be careful not to bring prohibited items to school such as vapes and lighters. Students, Follow the Duke Way! Don't give in to negative trends on social media encouraging behaviors that violate the code of conduct.
That concludes our Duke Update. Let’s Go Dukes!!