Student Life

This year, the Orono High School school day will run from 8:00 a.m. to 2:40 p.m. This change is grounded in a growing body of research that highlights the benefits of later start times for adolescents. Studies have shown that students in middle and high school who start their day later experience better academic performance and increased overall well-being. 

In conjunction with the later start time, we will also revise our bus schedules. Morning bus routes will be adjusted so that students will be picked up a bit later and arrive at school closer to the start time. These changes will allow students to take advantage of extra minutes to sleep or prepare for the school day.

Please note that 7:40-8:00 a.m. and 2:30-2:50 p.m. are very busy times with buses, student drivers, and parent drivers for both the High School and Middle School coming and going from campus at the same time. Please allow extra time to navigate traffic. Morning and afternoon drop off should occur in the driveway in front of the main entrance. Please do not park on the right (west) side curb that is painted yellow. This area needs to be clear for our special transportation buses to drop off. Students should not be dropped off on Old Crystal Bay Road, or in the middle of the staff parking lot— both of these are very dangerous for students.

• Tuesday, September 3: First Day of School - first hour begins at 8:00 a.m.
• Monday, September 9: School Pictures with Jostens
  • View and order photos: 

     https://shop.jostenspix.com/login

  • Event code: FE172124
• Monday, September 9 at 6 p.m.: Freshman Parent and New Parent Night
• Monday, September 9 at 7 p.m.: Back-to-School Night for all parents/guardians. Follow your child's schedule to meet the teachers. 
• September 23-28: Homecoming Week
• Monday, October 7: Picture Retake Day

Student schedules and bus routes will be available beginning Friday, August 16 at 9 a.m. Please check StudentVUE and ParentVUE after this date.

Athletics and Activities Fee Payments

Orono Schools uses MyPaymentsPlus to collect fee payments. Please visit the MyPaymentsPlus webpage for details on setting up an account. Already have an account? Please sign in here. You can register and pay for athletics and activities programming fees through MyPaymentsPlus.

Don't let cost be a barrier! Even though breakfast and lunch meals are funded through the state, we encourage families to apply for Educational Benefits if they think they might qualify. Educational Benefits include sports and activity scholarships, discounted internet service, and so much more. Benefit information is kept confidential and requires annual renewal. 

School meals for 2024-25

Breakfast and lunch meals are fully funded for all students by the state of Minnesota. A breakfast includes a minimum of 3 items including ½ c fruit and a lunch must include 3 components including a minimum of ½ c fruit or vegetables. Breakfast will be served in the cafeteria at 7:40 a.m.  

Ala carte items will be available at cost, and students must have funds in their account to make these purchases. Meal payments can be made using MyPaymentsPlus or submitting cash/check to the deposit box located within the cafeteria. We recommend that all families set up low-balance reminders and Autopayments to keep track of student balances. Parents will have access to purchase history through MyPaymentsPlus. It is the parent’s responsibility to discuss a spending plan with their students. The concessions stand in the mezzanine during snack break to help decrease the congestion in the cafeteria. Breakfast and ala carte options will be available during this time and charged to student meal accounts (no cash/credit card sales available).

Please visit the Orono Child Nutrition webpage for complete information on meals, ala carte items for purchase, and the importance of completing an application for educational benefits if you feel you may qualify (see videos in English and Spanish). 

You may view daily menus on the OHS Nutrislice page. 

Please remind your student of their lunch PIN number so they are prepared to use it in the breakfast and lunch lines, even when meals are free. Any questions related to school meals can be directed to jacklyn.deroma@orono.k12.mn.us or lauren.spoke@orono.k12.mn.us. Thank you!

Lockers will be assigned to OHS students upon request. Students may request a locker at ANY time during the school year. The Google form to request a locker for this school year must be completed by the student. Students will be able to view their assigned locker number and combo in their StudentVUE account on Thursday, August 29, or 5 days after requesting a locker if later in the year. If you have any questions, please visit the main office.

Students: Request a Locker for the 2024-25 School Year

Parking Pass Applications Open Monday, August 12

Applications for student parking passes will open on Monday, August 12, 8:00 a.m. through My Payments Plus. The parking pass fee will be $240, due at the time of application. Note: Parking permits will be assigned by lot, not as individual spaces. Once students have a permit for a lot, they are able to park in any available spot in that lot only. Students with permits parking in a lot other than their assigned lot will receive a ticket.

Parking passes are issued on a first-come, first-served basis. (Students must wait until they have their valid driver’s license before applying as we cannot reserve parking permits.) Make sure you and your student driver have read the information form. Questions can be directed to the Main Office at ohsmainoffice@orono.k12.mn.us.

All students interested in purchasing a parking pass must make sure all detentions have been served, and all fees and fines have been paid. We have many outstanding fees, and permits will not be available for purchase until all detentions are served, and fees and fines are paid. 

How to apply

Beginning Monday, August 12 at 8:00 a.m, please log in to My Payments Plus (link also found under the Quicklinks icon in the district website header). 

Passes will be distributed from the Main Office Monday, August 19 - Wednesday, August 28, from 7:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. Students must show a valid ID in order to obtain their parking pass. Beginning Tuesday, September 3, students may pick up their parking pass before 7:50 a.m. or after 2:40 PM.

Technology is a crucial part of our teaching and learning program at the high school. Every student will need a working device for the school year. For high school students, there are two options: bring your own device or reserve a school-issued device. If you choose to bring your own device, please view the recommended device page below.

Recommended Devices for Families

Students will typically need their device, notebooks, paper, and a pen or pencil for each class. On the first day of school, individual teachers will explain any materials needed for their specific class- no need to purchase a lot of supplies in advance.

We will continue to use pickup and dropoff tables in the front entryway for student items.

Attendance. If you would like to report an absence for your child(ren), please see the options in the table, below.

NOTE: Always report the student's full name, grade and reason. If a medical appointment, please indicate “medical” appt (no details needed, but this is coded as excused, while “appointment” is unexcused). If it is a partial day, please indicate time leaving/returning. 

For attendance questions/concerns please reach out to: Pam Byrnes at 952-449-8408 or pamela.byrnes@orono.k12.mn.us

Class period hours: 7:50 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Log in to the ParentVUE App and set up notifications to get attendance alerts (please contact the OMS main office if you need help with this).

Attendance FAQs

If you have attendance questions/concerns please reach out to: Pam Byrnes at 952-449-8408 or pamela.byrnes@orono.k12.mn.us. Daily attendance will be recorded by 4 p.m. All attendance concerns/issues should be addressed within 48 hours.

Why is my student marked “absent unexcused” even though I notified the school?

There are 6 state excused absences.  All other absences called in by parents will be marked as absent unexcused.  There is no detention assigned to these absences unless they become habitual. The only consequence for absent unexcused is a teacher could withhold the option to make up missed homework, or a test/quiz.

What are the six state-excused absences?

Illness, family emergency, death of family member, military, ongoing medical condition, religious observance.

What are district pre-excused absences?

College visits, vacation, sporting events (non-OHS sports). All must be pre-excused one day prior.

What if my child needs to leave early or arrive late?

Please email HSattendance@orono.k12.mn.us or call 952-449-8400.  Students must enter and exit the building through the main office. 

What if my child does not feel well at school?

Your child MUST report to the health office and the school nurse will handle their attendance (student may not just leave the building and have a parent call in later).

School breakfast and lunch meals are fully funded for all students by the state of Minnesota. A breakfast includes a minimum of 3 items including ½ c fruit and a lunch must include 3 components including a minimum of ½ c fruit or vegetables. Breakfast will be served in the cafeteria at 7:40 a.m. 

Ala carte items will be available at cost and students must have funds in their account to make these purchases. Meal payments can be made using MyPaymentsPlus or submitting cash/check to the deposit box located within the cafeteria. We recommend that all families set up low-balance reminders and Autopayments to keep track of student balances. Parents will have access to purchase history through MyPaymentsPlus. It is the parent’s responsibility to discuss a spending plan with their students. 

We will be opening up the concessions stand in the mezzanine during snack break to help decrease the congestion in the cafeteria. Breakfast and ala carte options will be available during this time and charged to student meal accounts (no cash/credit card sales available). In addition, we will be switching up our serving lines in the near future to accommodate more student meals. This adjustment will allow an additional serving line in the cafeteria to allow more time for students to eat.

For more information about the Orono Child Nutrition program and/or the application for Educational Benefits, please visit the Child Nutrition webpage.

Student Drop-off

For students not riding the bus: Please note that 7:40-8:00 a.m. and 2:30-2:50 p.m. are very busy times with buses, student drivers and parent drivers for both the High School and Middle School coming and going from campus at the same time. Please allow extra time to navigate traffic. Morning and afternoon drop off should occur in the driveway in front of the main entrance. Please do not park on the right (west) side curb that is painted yellow. This area needs to be clear for our special transportation buses to drop off. Students should not be dropped off on Old Crystal Bay Road, or in the middle of the staff parking lot- both of these are very dangerous for students.

Item Drop-off

We will continue to use pick-up and drop-off tables in the front entryway for student items. 

• UPDATE 2024-25 V2 Orono High School course catalog and registration guide
• View the 24-25 Student/Parent Handbook

For unique questions about your child, please start with your child's classroom teacher(s) or school counselor. For general questions, you can email ohsmainoffice@orono.k12.mn.us. 

Hello, seniors and families! This is going to be a wonderful year for you. To help you get underway, please visit the Senior Year Planning page for information about all things yearbook: senior photos, baby photos, and recognition/parent ads. We will continue to update this page as we move through senior year. 

Visit the Senior Year Planning webpage

AP Exam Registration

Visit the PSEO webpage for more information and a link to the recorded presentation. 

Visit the PSEO webpage for more information and a link to the recorded presentation. 

College & Career Planning

Visit the new College & Career Planning website to learn more about college and career pathways, admissions testing, college visits, college admissions, college essays, highly selective admissions and paying for college. 

Visit the PSEO webpage for more information and a link to the recorded presentation. 

Students may come to the media center before, during, and after school to check out books, work on class projects, or receive assistance from Media Center staff. We invite you to learn more about the OHS Media Center Remodel that resulted in more collaborative learning spaces, flexible classroom space, and space-saving book storage.

Visit the OHS Media Center Website

For a complete profile that includes academic data, median GPA, AP scores and more, please download the current OHS Profile. This document is updated in September of each year.

Transcript How-to's

Current Seniors:

1. Pay the Transcript Fee in MPP under "Activities." Seniors, there is a $40 senior fee that will cover the costs to send all official transcripts for your college applications, mid-year reports, final transcripts and scholarship transcripts. Please visit MyPaymentsPlus. You can pay the transcript fee under "Activities."
2. Sign in to MaiaLearning to request a transcrpt. Once this fee is paid, sign on to your MaiaLearning account. Once you add a college to your list of "Applying List" under the "Universities" tab and choose the appropriate deadline dates, select "request transcript" when you are ready for us to submit. We will send your transcript to the college once the transcript and letters of recommendation are all ready to go. For special requests (e.g., international destinations or rank requests), please visit the High School School Counseling Office.

Alumni:

Requests may be submitted by one of the following methods:

1. U.S. Mail: Orono School Counseling Office, 795 Old Crystal Bay Road, Long Lake, MN 55356
2. Email susan.mccabe@orono.k12.mn.us and drop off the $7 fee (per transcript) to the OHS School Counseling Office
3. Visit the OHS School Counseling Office in person

All Requests Must Include:

• A written and signed request that includes your name at the time of graduation, date of birth, graduation year, name/s and address/es of the institution/s to which you would like the transcript/s sent, and your phone number or email address.
• $7.00 (per transcript, cash or check made payable to OHS)