Almond Campus Open House and Parent Session on Vaping:
Second semester is off to a great start.  The Almond Campus held our second semester Open House on February 7, 2019.  This night allowed for our parents to follow their student’s schedule, meet their student’s teachers and hear important information about each course their student is enrolled in.  Many parents were in attendance, and I always enjoy watching our parents get a snapshot of what their student experiences each day.

We  hosted a workshop prior to our open house for our parents.  It was a session on Vaping and E-Cigarettes: What Parents Need to Know. Our deans presented information from 6:00 p.m.- 6:25 p.m. in the Almond Campus cafeteria.  This short presentation provided parents information on an increasing trend among students across the country.  

Safety Lockdown Drills:
We held our second safety/lockdown drill of the school year today (January 17, 2019) at the Almond Campus to practice our emergency procedures.  This was coordinated with local law enforcement so they could be on campus to participate in the exercise. Earlier this week, we had our staff share information with our students about the “See Something, Say Something” campaign that is promoted by the Department of Homeland Security.  We recognize that we are all responsible for our safety and want our students to know that they play an important role in communicating any concerns they have to our staff. We want them to know that if they see something that concerns them, they should say something to an adult. Our staff also communicated what students should do if they are in locations throughout the building (i.e. cafeteria, hallway, restroom, library, etc.) and an emergency drill took place.  The safety of our staff and students is extremely important to me, and I want you to be aware that we review and practice our plans and procedures on a regular basis.

Perfect Attendance Winners:
As an incentive for students who maintain perfect attendance during the school year, we draw names at the end of each month from those students who had perfect attendance and award 20 of those students’ prizes.  For the month of December, we had 307 students who had perfect attendance! Congratulations to the 20 students who were randomly selected.

Sarah Barbosa, Daniel Bonnot, Sohom Dash, Claire Dunnigan, Reilly Farrell, Bailey Holman, Vanessa Javalera, Daniel Lauer, Cameron Lawrence, Joseph Magno, Emily Makeever, Matthew Mokrzycki, Richard Pena, Gabriel Punzalan, Nathan Rentas, Krista Ross, Aneri Shah, Amelia Steinlein, Roberto Zarate-Gallegos.

Student Diversity Retreats:
We completed the first of two daylong retreats for our students from both campuses this school year to help build leadership in regards to diversity and our inclusive environment. Our goal is to provide activities, discussion, and collaboration on the challenges and benefits that diversity brings. Our retreat was held on Monday, January 7, 2019 at the Almond Campus.  The next retreat will be open for students to on March 1, 2019.

Staff Highlight:  
Thank you to Art Teacher, Mrs. Kate Knutson, who has secured a Grant with Governors State University.  Dr. Katy E. Hisrich, Professor in Education at Governors State University has teamed with Mrs. Knutson to work with students enrolled our Art courses.  This project is about using visual arts to portray social injustices and different perspectives of others, as well as portray empathy towards others. Our students will be able to interact with many local artists and gain perspectives through their work.  Thank you to Mrs. Knutson for seeking out this opportunity for our students.

Thank you and As Always, Go Blue Devils!