Totem Talk: November 18, 2025

Posted Date: 11/18/25 (5:01 PM)

A football player in an orange uniform runs with the ball during a game.

The words 'TOTEM TALK' are displayed in large white letters on an orange background.

Community Brief

November 18, 2025

Boone High School Principal, Dr. Maestre, in a gray suit smiles at the camera, wearing an orange patterned tie.

Message From Dr. Maestre

This is our last school week before Thanksgiving and for the month of November. Every instructional day is important, but these are especially so in that next month we will have both Progress Monitoring Assessments (PMA) and Common Final Exams (CFE).

I hope all of our parents will review the second quarter progress on Skyward. (Two minute OCPS YouTube video for parents to help them access both progress reports and student report cards on Skyward.) Now is a great time to talk with your child about each class and make plans to end the quarter and semester on track with their personal goals (both academic and non-academic).

Thanksgiving break takes place November 24th through November 28th. Enjoy this time off, spend time with family and reflect on all you are thankful for. The Thanksgiving Holiday presents an opportunity to reflect and express gratitude.

I know some of our Boone families will be leaving town this coming weekend for Thanksgiving. Therefore, as an early Thanksgiving message, please remember that we at Boone High School are thankful for the support of our parents, students, faculty and community who make our school one of the best high schools in Florida!

As always, thank you for reading!

Forever Brave,

Dr. Maestre

Principal

Braves Advance in Football Playoffs!

This past Friday night your Boone Braves defeated the Winter Park Wildcats in the Regional Quarterfinal, 24-12! Before the game, Fox 35 was on campus LIVE highlighting the matchup. Click here to view to broadcast!

Now we hit the road for the Regional Semifinal versus the Deland Bulldogs. The game will be on November 21, at Deleand and kickoff is at 7:00 pm. Good luck Braves!

Football players in action during a night game on a green field.

Football players in orange and black uniforms compete on a green field.

Boone High School FFA

This past week members from the Boone FFA attended the 2025 Fall Session of the University of Florida Agriculture Education Institute! At this event members learned from the Agriculture Education/Communication (AEC) Teach Ag and College of Agricultural and Life Sciences (CALS) Ambassadors about student life at UF, heard from agriculture teachers about their experience, received a tour of the campus, and heard from other UFCALS staff about the admission process.

Three young women pose in front of Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, wearing blue shirts.

A large group of people in matching shirts pose for a photo indoors.

October Students of the Month

We has so much fun celebrating our Students of the Month Nominees and Winners!

Each month teachers are able to nominate students who are demonstrating academic excellence and/or are making significant gains and showing growth in academic improvement. These students should also regularly exhibit characteristics outlined in our Guidelines for Success: Braves RAISE Expectations!

Respect

Accountability

Integrity

Service

Engagement

Congratulations to our Winners:

9th Grade - Benjamin Miller

10th Grade - Eliza Salazar-Bohorques

11th - Javian Vargas

12th - Christian Gomez Badia

A group of students hold certificates, likely for an achievement, in a school hallway.

Freshmen Nominees

A group of students stand together, holding certificates in a school hallway.

Sophomore Nominees

A group of students hold certificates, posing for a photo in a school hallway.

Junior Nominees

Senior Nominees

Teach-In 2025

Every year, schools across OCPS host community members for the annual Teach-In, which is a special event focused on intensive learning, discussion, and community engagement for students. Presenters come in and speak with students about what they do in their organization. It provides students with insight into various organizations in our community. Thank you to the volunteers who came in to speak with our students this year!

A teacher smiles, holding an 'Honorary Teacher' certificate in a classroom.

Matia Timon in Coach Tatro's room talking about career paths with certifications and Associate Degrees.

A teacher holds an award in a classroom, surrounded by students.

Mark Harmon in Mr. Moore's class talking about the history of American currency.

A teacher points at a space shuttle image on a screen in a classroom.

Tony Shahmani in Ms. Doman's class talking about critical inventions and successful college pathways including Valencia College to the University of Central Florida.

A woman in a wheelchair smiles, holding an 'Honorary Teacher' certificate, with a golden retriever dog.

Susan Napier and her service animal Disco in Ms. Mauldin's class talking about service dogs, what they can do, how to train one, and possible career and volunteer opportunities.

A man and woman smile, holding an 'Honorary Teacher' certificate.

Quinlan Sayers-O'Neill in Ms. Bailes class talking about types of careers in therapy with a focus on young children and autism.

Two men pose in a classroom, one holding an 'Honorary Teacher' certificate.

Retired Lieutenant Colonel Steve Beres talking to Mr. Grimm's class sharing his personal story of overcoming obstacles. He was tragically injured in Afghanistan while serving in the U.S. Army as a Green Beret. His injuries should have killed him but he miraculously survived. Despite losing his sight as a result of his injuries, he has gone on to earn 2 Master's Degrees and a Doctorate in Occupational Therapy. He is the Service Member and Veterans Affairs Manager for Regions Bank. His daughter, Emerson, is a junior here at Boone.

Boone Outfitters Holly Jolly Donations

Boone PTSO needs your help to spread the holiday cheer to some special students! Please consider supporting our annual Holly Jolly event in one of the ways listed below. All donations are due by December 5th.

Holiday celebration flyer from Boone Outfitters with gift ideas and ways to support.

A glass display case showcases various ceramic pumpkins and a floral mug.

Pottery Patch by Erin Dalbey

Fall-ing into autumn, new artwork from all levels of ceramics classes finds its place in the art building displays. Each piece is carefully positioned in the glass cases that line the interior windows surrounding the front entrance of the 1100.

The selection, decided by Ceramics instructor Jenna Chastain's careful eye, showcased first-level students’ fall-themed assignment: pumpkin pinch pots.

Students start by forming two pinch pots, the fundamental building blocks for beginning ceramicists, before scoring them together. Once this chamber is created, the grooves and intricate details are carefully added.

“I love that imperfection makes it look more like a pumpkin, so I don’t have to worry about keeping it symmetrical or even,” senior Claire Figliola said.

The beginner class plans to fire under ten projects throughout the year, not including the extra pieces crafted during spare time.

After their pieces have been thoroughly dried to the bone-dry stage, they are then placed in the kiln and fired.

“My favorite part was glazing it and seeing the results after taking it out of the kiln, how it was near perfection. Even if it was simple pumpkin quality,” senior Darius Johnson said.

For utilitarian purposes or artistic expression, once glazed, the pieces are thoughtfully selected and arranged on the shelves outside the classroom.

From artists’ hands to the kiln and finally to the display shelf, this collection welcomes visitors with the festive hues of fall.

Casino Night event flyer with poker chips and event details.

The Boone Foundation Fundraiser

It is time for our annual Boone Foundation fundraiser on December 4!

For Tickets Visit WWW.BooneFoundation.Net

A choir performs on stage, promoting a winter concert.

Chorus Winter Concert

Come join us on December 9th for our Winter Concert, Songs of the Season! Tickets are on sale now on TeachTix.

OTC Dual Enrollment Applications for 2026-27 Now Avaiable

Current sophomores and juniors are invited to apply for Orange Technical College (OTC) dual enrollment for the 2026-27 school year. If you are interested in applying you can sign up to attend an informational session at www.tinyurl.com/boonehsde. If you have any questions you can reach out to our CTE Career Specialist, Ms. Borden, at seante.borden@ocps.net.

Flyer for Orange Technical College dual enrollment program, with details and contact information.

A blue background with graduation cap illustrations and text promoting cap and gown orders.

Seniors - Order your Cap & Gown!

You can order online by scanning the QR code in this post. Any questions, email michelle.rojas@ocps.net

Yearbook Senior Ad Night Dates

Listed below are all of the remaining senior ad nights. December 1st will be your final chance to create your senior ad with the yearbook staff. We hope to see you at one of our ad nights!

Google Form Link: https://forms.gle/wztNeNTQfPVdX8SR9

Email us at boonepubs@gmail.com with questions.