We will kick off our school year with Raider Day on Tuesday, September 1^st. See schedule below for student arrival times. Please note that this information is posted on our website and is translatable via the Google G in the upper right corner of the page.

The first day of school is Wednesday, September 2, 2026. School starts daily at 8:50 a.m. Dismissal time for the first day of school is 3:40 p.m.

Raider Day Arrival Time and Entry Point

All students enter through Main Entry on 30th NE after taking their ID/Yearbook photo. All other entries will be closed.

9:00AM-10:30AM – Ninth Graders
9:00 – 9:30 AM – Last names A-F
9:30 – 10:00 AM – Last names G-M
10:30 – 11:00 AM – Last names N-Z
Ninth graders should allot about an hour and a half to complete all Raider Day activities.
10:30AM-12:00PM – Tenth Graders
12:00PM-1:30PM – Eleventh Graders
1:30PM-3:00PM – Twelfth Graders

Raider Day Tasks

Here are the tasks/items that students should take care of on Raider Day:

• School photo for ID card and yearbook – DO THIS FIRST!
• Purchase ASB card (sticker) and Yearbook
• Final schedule – 9^th grade schedules will be printed. All others on the Source. Walk your schedule.
• Ninth grade lockers assignment pick-up
• ORCA card
• District laptop and charger pick-up
• Meet Community Partners
• Raider Gear – pick up pre-ordered Raider Gear items

See below for more info about each bullet point as well as additional need-to-knows.

If your student will not be attending Nathan Hale HS this fall, please email our registrar, Maria Gutierrez at mjgutierrez@seattleschools.org.

We look forward to seeing students on Raider Day!!

Do First! SCHOOL PHOTO at Main Entry – 30th Ave NE

Take student photo FIRST before entering the building. ID card will be issued to student. Student ID card is needed to enter the building.

• Appropriate dress requested.
• Students’ faces (including eyes) must be visible in the photo. Students will be asked to briefly remove mask, dark glasses, hat, etc. If hair covers eyes, we will ask student to adjust it such that eyes are visible.
• School portraits are available for pre-order through the Yuen Lui online ordering website. Read more about Yuen Lui portrait ordering by going to the School Photo page on our website. ID cards need to be shown to enter the building.
• Students do not get a separate activity card. An ASB sticker will be available shortly after school starts for all students who purchased their ASB card.

Buy ASB card & Yearbook

• Activity Card/ASB Sticker $75 Also known as ASB fee (in FinalForms for those who participate in athletics). If purchased through SchoolPay (accessed through the Source), look for 2026-27 NHHS ASB Activity Card. (funds from these cards support all activities, clubs and sports at NHHS).
  ASB sticker goes on student ID card.
• Yearbook $55 -OR- Buy Yearbook/ASB card bundle for $125, which is a savings of $5 off the current price for a yearbook. Bundle price is good through September 6th. Yearbook prices increase throughout the year. Bundle online goes live on Monday, 8/17
• Paying by check? Make check payable to Nathan Hale High School (NHHS). One check for $125 for both the Activity Card and the Yearbook is acceptable.
• Save time waiting in line by buying online! Go to the parent school portal, The Source, and click the SchoolPay Link to pay all of your student’s fees or fines via credit/debit card. We will be able to accept payments via debit/credit cards at school.
• If you are new to Seattle Public Schools and did not attend a SPS school last year, you will not have access to the Source until the first day of school.

Final schedule

• Ninth graders pick up final schedule in the Commons.
• Returning SPS students can access their schedule on the Source  starting Tuesday, September 1^st. If you are new to SPS and did not attend an SPS school last year, you will not have access to the Source until the first day of school.
• All students are encouraged to take a photo of their schedule on their phones.
• Walk through your schedule to find your classes

Ninth grade locker assignment & ORCA Card

• 9th Graders receive locker assignments in the Activity Center. Find your locker and practice opening it. 10th-12th Graders can get their locker assignment from custodial window in the morning before the first bell or during lunch starting 9/2.
• Pick up student ORCA card. You may also order one online by going to the myORCA.com website for information on how to order a Youth ORCA card. These cards are free for youth. Metro also accepts current student ID card.

Laptops

• Pick up your laptop in the Library. All students have a laptop waiting for them in the library.
• Bring your fully charged laptop to school every day.

Community Partners

• A number of community partners will be available in the Commons to connect with parents and students. Many of them will be resources who participated this past spring with our Mental Health Resource Day.

Pick-Up Raider Gear

• PRE-ORDER your Hale spirit gear and pick it up on Raider Day! Go to the Raider Gear website to place an order. Check the “Raider Day” box during checkout and we’ll have your purchases ready for pickup! Freshmen wear RED, sophomores wear WHITE, juniors wear BLUE and seniors wear BLACK & GOLD.

Other Info

Parent Coffee – 9:00-10:30am

The Nathan Hale Community Organization and Nathan Hale Foundation will be hosting a coffee for parents from 9:00am to 10:30am on Raider Day in the Activity Center. Look for signage in the main hallway. All are welcome to attend!

School Supplies

Students should be prepared with basic school supplies: pens, pencils, highlighters, and notebook paper or spiral-bound notebook. Teachers will inform students of any specific school supplies needed in their classes. Students should bring their fully charged SPS-issued laptops to class daily.

Early Release Time & Wed, 9/2 exception

• The district has a 75-minute early release time on Wednesday afternoons at 2:25PM
• First day of school, Wednesday, September 2^nd dismissal is 3:40PM.
• We will follow a special schedule the first 3 days of school.
• Daily bell schedule will be distributed on Raider Day and can be found on bell schedule page of website.

Parking information on Raider Day and during the school year

Safe and secure bike racks are located on both sides (east and west) of the building. Student drivers are to park in our Student Parking lot located south of the building – NOT the Staff lot or the east lot by the football field. If you plan to drop off your student, please do so on the east side of 30th Ave NE or the south side of NE 110th. Please do not park on the west side of 30th Ave NE or along the red curbs in the student parking lot. Handicapped parking is available in all parking areas for those with valid permits.

Hale Mail

Sign up for Hale Mail to receive the daily bulletin and other important school information. Sign up for Hale Mail. If you are currently in a Hale Mail group for an older student and would like to add a younger student’s graduation year to get the Hale Mail specific to that year, go to the “Update Subscription Preferences” link that is at the bottom of a current Hale Mail to update your Hale Mail groups.

Volunteer Needs:

• Raider Day volunteers – email Rae Keyes if available to help with handing out photo cards to students.
• Start of School packet collating – forms and information sent home the first week of school need to be collated. Meet other parents while doing it!
  Wed, 9/2 in the Library from 9am until finished.

Parent volunteers will need to have completed volunteer application and have background check cleared by the district. Please email Rae Keyes to confirm approval status or to receive link to application online.

Start of School Packets

Packets will go home within the first 3 days of school and include a lot of info for students/families. It will include required forms but not all need to be returned. Translations of most required forms are available-please contact the office nathanhale@seattleschools.org if you need translated forms. Follow the neon green checklist in every packet to see what forms need to be returned. The start of school packet will also be emailed as well but return rate is MUCH higher when paper forms are sent home.

Save the Date:Open House/Curriculum Night will be on Thursday, October 1st

Classroom visits will start at 7:00PM. Families of seniors are invited to the “Senior Year – September to June” meeting in the PAC at 6:15PM. (This time is subject to change so please check the school calendar webpage closer to mid-September to confirm time.) Families of juniors who would like to get a preview of senior year are more than welcome to join us.