Dear Borah Families,
I hope this message finds you and your families doing well. October has been a fun-filled month at Borah!
We have hosted a number of community events this month as we continue to strengthen the connection between our school and the families and community we serve. It has been wonderful to see so many people coming together and building the relationships that make Borah such a special place.
Our teachers and staff continue to do an excellent job of providing our students with challenging, engaging, and hands-on learning opportunities. They are also working hard to provide specific, meaningful feedback to help students understand where they are, what they need to improve, and how they can demonstrate their learning. Please encourage your children to take advantage of these opportunities, seek feedback, and continue working toward their goals.
As our fall athletic seasons begin to wrap up, I want to recognize all of our athletic programs for representing the very best of Borah. I especially want to highlight our swim and volleyball programs for the way they relentlessly support one another and compete with such enthusiasm and sportsmanship. It is awesome to see our students cheering each other on, celebrating one another's efforts, and showing support regardless of who is winning the race or match. That kind of encouragement, teamwork, and pride is what being a Borah Lion is all about. Great job, Lions!
A special shout-out to Ms. Mazile and Mrs. Boeck and their incredibly talented choirs and orchestras for putting on outstanding concerts this month. We are fortunate to have such talented students and dedicated music educators who continue to create wonderful opportunities for our kids to showcase their skills. Thank you for sharing your talents with the Borah community!
Our number one priority will always be to provide your child with a safe, welcoming, and supportive learning environment. We will work hard every day to ensure that every student feels connected to at least one trusted adult.
Go Lions!
Trevor McKenna
Principal
Borah High School
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11/03 - Election Day - No School
11/17 - Wellbeing Survey
11/23 - 11/27 - Autumn Break
12/21 - 01/04 - Wnter Break
04/07 - SAT - more info to come
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The mission of Borah High School is to promote equity through valuing and empowering our diverse, multicultural community. Borah challenges students to problem solve, think critically and creatively, grow intellectually. Borah helps students cultivate an honest work ethic, perseverance and self advocacy, as they discover their potential plan for future success. |
Students whose families have opted them into the wellbeing survey will take the survey on Tuesday, November 17th.
How will it work?
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Attendance: All students will report to their English class first for attendance.
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Survey Participation: Students who are opted in to participate will be released from English class and directed to the cafeteria to complete the survey.
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Students Not Participating: Students who are not participating will have the opportunity to take part in an optional wellness activity or use the time to read, complete assignments, submit evidence, or work on other class activities.
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After the Survey: Once students complete the survey, they will remain in the cafeteria until the survey period concludes.
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In October, our seniors headed to the Career Center for Apply Idaho to take the next step toward their futures by starting college applications and exploring scholarships. Did you know 61% of Borah seniors have applied to at least one Idaho college?
Ask your senior: What are you most excited about after high school, and what goals are you working toward?
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One fun Japanese cultural tradition is making teru teru bōzu, small dolls made from white cloth or tissue paper that children hang up in hopes of bringing sunny weather and keeping the rain away. My Japanese students each made their own doll and hung them up in the classroom on one rainy day last week.
Although they may look like little ghosts, they have nothing to do with Halloween! The students enjoyed making them as they listened to a children's song about the tradition.
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Eden Merritt has been working for a few weeks to create a pitcher (or what she calls a pouring vase). It takes time and practice to create on the wheel, but she is hardworking and persistent in her efforts. This was her fifth attempt, and she is getting close to what she imagines it will be. Students like this are why Mr. Rose teaches. Watching young people with the passion and fortitude to work hard is an amazing thing to witness. Great job, Eden. Keep it up! |
Mrs. Elmer is doing a fantastic job leading Borah’s new Forensic Science class! With support from Borah SRO Officer Moore and Boise Police Department criminologists, students gained hands-on experience processing crime scenes and exploring real-world forensic science. |
For their art unit, Spanish 4 students in Ms. Bianchi's class researched a famous Spanish-speaking artist, painted a painting inspired by one of the artist's works, and wrote an Artist Statement in Spanish. The final products are displayed in the library currently. |
Borah’s Orchestra, led by Mrs. Boeck, is hard at work preparing for its October concert! Our music programs are filled with talented students and supported by incredible teachers and musicians who help them grow and shine. We look forward to celebrating their hard work and talent! |
Our AVID students have had a busy and exciting month! From helping with additional elementary school carnivals and participating in the PSAT to taking part in Trunk-or-Treat, our students continue to stay involved and give back to our community. We hosted a successful Red Cross Blood Drive, collecting 30 units of blood, including 17 first-time donors! Students also learned valuable financial skills during a banking presentation from Westmark Credit Union. To top it all off, our Trick or Eat event brought in enough food and clothing donations to completely restock our school pantry for the next two months! We are incredibly proud of our students' willingness to serve, learn, and make a positive impact both on and off campus. |
On October 29, Mrs. Rue took her AP Government students to a City Club Luncheon at the Grove Hotel. Students had the opportunity to listen to, observe, and ask questions of professionals working in local and state government. It was a wonderful opportunity for our students to engage in meaningful conversations and thoughtful discourse surrounding issues that matter to our community. Of course, our Borah students represented themselves and our school with excellence! Thank you, Mrs. Rue, for providing this valuable learning experience! |
At the October 3rd Boise State game, Mr. Clay joined many other Borah alumni for the Blue Thunder Alumni Band performance! It was great to see our Borah Lions come together through their love of music. Way to represent Borah, Mr. Clay! |
A big shoutout to our STUCO students for showing their appreciation for our staff! They organized and provided a wonderful breakfast of bagels, cream cheese, juice, and coffee. It was a thoughtful gesture and a great example of our students taking care of the people who take care of them every day. Thank you, STUCO! |
We are working hard to build connections with our feeder elementary and junior high schools! On Wednesday, October 21, Borah hosted its first annual Future Lions Fall Festival. Families enjoyed games, dinner, and to experience the diversity that makes Borah special. It was a great evening connecting with our future Lions and welcoming them into the Borah family! |
On October 29th, Borah hosted a Trunk or Treat event for our community, and what a great evening it was! More than 30 creatively decorated trunks were ready to welcome families with plenty of candy, and we also had a couple of food trucks on hand. It was wonderful to see so many Borah families and members of our surrounding community come together for a fun evening. Thank you to everyone who helped organize, decorate, and make this event possible. This is what being part of the Borah community is all about! |
Here are the September Student of the Month winners.
- Student of the Month: Ronaldo Mattei
- Lion's Pride: Abby Voll
- Artist of the Month: Calliope Bradford
- Athletes of the Month: Kylie Pruett & Isa Tucakovic
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On Friday, October 23, our Borah Student Council hosted a leadership summit with Student Councils from West and South. It was a fantastic day of building connections, sharing ideas, and learning what it means to be an effective leader. Thank you to everyone who helped make the day possible and, most importantly, to our student leaders for their enthusiasm and willingness to learn and grow together! |
Readers Club is for avid readers who want to hang out with other readers. They meet each Friday at lunch to share current reads, hear book talks on new titles and enjoy reader-ly activities.
Idaho Battle of the Books (IBOB) is a statewide team reading competition. It’s like sports! but with books! Teams of four divide and conquer twelve books and meet up against other teams to see who can answer the most correct questions about the books. If your student is interested in knowing more, tell them to talk to a librarian! IBOB teams also meet Fridays at lunch in the library.
Labyrinths and Lions is Borah’s own club for tabletop role-playing game enthusiasts. Students meet weekly, Thursdays at lunch, to create new characters and discuss and plan campaigns.
2 Chromebook reminders: Students are required to bring their chromebook and charger to school every day. If your student is having any Chromebook issues, they should bring their device to the Library for service or repair.
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I was honored to be recognized by my fellow coaches last season as the 6A SIC Girls Coach of the Year. Every head coach knows that the kind of success the Borah Lions achieved during the 2026 season is never the work of one person. It takes an incredible group of athletes, a dedicated and enthusiastic coaching staff, and an often-overlooked part of any successful program: a group of parents who truly believe in what we are building. I’m especially grateful for parents and fans who share our vision—not just to make their own player better, but to make the entire team better, both on the court and in all aspects of life. I’m incredibly proud of what we accomplished together and grateful to everyone who make this program so special. |
Congratulations to Mateo Wright and Kate Groenert on qualifying for State Cross Country! Your hard work and dedication have paid off! Best of luck at State! We’re proud of you both! |
The annual Borah Bowl took place on October 5, welcoming student-athletes from West and South to compete on our turf! After the game, all students came together to hear words of encouragement from Head Varsity Football Coach Jenkins and received a Borah Bowl T-shirt. It was a great opportunity to build connections, celebrate our future Lions, and strengthen our Borah community! |
Our football program, led by Coach Jenkins, put on a performance last Friday night at Eagle High School that made our school incredibly proud. They played with grit, fought for each other, overcame adversity, blocked out the noise, and focused on what they could control. We are so proud of our players, who have continued to show up, put in the work, and represent Borah with determination and resilience. They deserved a night like this, and it was a great way to end the season. |
A huge thank-you to the Borah community for your incredible generosity during our 5th annual Trick-or-Eat event! Your donations to the Borah Lions’ Share food pantry and clothing closet have filled our pantry and stocked our clothing closet, ensuring we can provide meals and clothing to students in need for the next several months. Borah truly has an amazing community that just keeps on giving! We are so grateful for your continued support of our Lions! |
Each year, we provide our families with information about our Threat Assessment process. We want to make sure you have the information you need to understand the steps we take to help keep our school safe and support our students.
Please use the link below to review this year’s notification and learn more about our process.
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As we approach the Holiday season, we wanted to share holiday resource lists with you. Both the English and Spanish version are linked below.
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Clothing vouchers are available and ready for your student! The Assistance League of Boise has begun their Teen Retail program, and it has expanded. If your student is in need of clothing, shoes, or a winter coat please reach out because this year we have vouchers to JC Penney, and they are ready to go. -Becky Woodland rebecca.woodland@boiseschools.org or 208-854-6916. |
Borah is offering support groups to all students and are available to those students seeking connections and/or needing extra support. The purpose of a support group within the high-school setting is to provide participants with a comforting, safe environment where they feel free to express themselves. In addition to providing emotional support, group participation also allows students to establish meaningful and trusting relationships with their peers. A voluntary survey will be available to all students through their email during the first weeks of school. If they are interested in participating, students will need a signed permission slip from their parent/guardian. If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to contact our school Social Worker, Becky Woodland, at rebecca.woodland@boiseschools.org or (208) 854-6916. |
Below, you’ll find a collection of photos highlighting some of the great things happening around Borah throughout the month of October! |
Sherise Porchia - Career and College Counselor - sherise.porchia@boiseschools.org
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