Crawford High Legal Careers Fair

On February 9th, 2018, the Crawford High School Academy of Law and Justice held its 6th Annual Legal Career Fair.   Students learned about careers in The FBI, The San Diego Police Department, The Coast Guard, The Navy J.A.G, The Office of the Public Defender, The U.S Marines, The Probation Department and more.  The Crawford Academy of Law Foundation raises money to support the academy.  The current effort has been aided by a matching funds grant from the Ron and Gaudelupe Cohn Family Foundation. The Cohn's have agreed to match all donations up to $10,000.00.

Vertically Aligned CCTE Program Alive in Point Loma

On January 16th the Point Loma Cluster conducted their first annual PL Cluster CCTE career fair. Students from the PLHS Engineering program organized an event at Dana designed to promote interest in the Engineering, Media Design, and Sports Medicine fields.

• Presenters from Qualcomm, Scripps, Society of Women Engineers, and PLHS (including the Kathy Schulze – PLHS Engineering and Design Teacher) constructed ten separate interest stations
• Dana students explored a variety of STEM careers/pathways as they rotated through the stations
• Children were rewarded with PLHS gear in a raffle and walked away from the event with a one page “cheat sheet” of CCTE elective options at Dana, Correia, and PLHS
• PLHS students from Anthony Palmiotto’s CCTE Media-Design program covered the event and are putting together an informational video to share with students, parents, and community members.

Student Voice Sounds Off at the Equity Coalition

On March 7, 2018, Superintendent Cindy Marten met with student representatives at the already-scheduled Equity Coalition meeting at 5 p.m. at Hoover High School to speak directly with our young leaders about their hopes and expectations for the recent demonstrations against gun violence. Student leaders from across the district, including the Student Equity Ambassadors, ASBs, Gender-Sexual Identity Alliance Clubs, Black Student Unions and the Cesar Chavez Service Clubs were in attendance to ensure their voices were heard.

FC Barcelona Sends FCB Escola Coaches to Porter Elementary School

Porter Elementary School students were excited to discuss the most important value of soccer with coaches affiliated with the best program in the world: HEART (Humility, Effort, Ambition, Respect, Teamwork).  As part of an ongoing partnership between FC Barcelona and the San Diego Unified School District, this was one of the five school visits scheduled for this school year.  In addition to free clinics on the soccer field, coaches are visiting school campuses to teach students Barca methodology and values in a classroom setting.

Expansion of AP computer science courses draws more girls and minorities

From the Washington Post:

Ten years ago, girls were so scarce in high school computer science classes that the number of female students taking Advanced Placement tests in that subject could be counted on one hand in nine states. In five others, there were none.

Latino and African American students were also in short supply, a problem that has bedeviled educators for years and hindered efforts to diversify the high-tech workforce.

Now, an expansion of AP computer science classes is helping to draw more girls and underrepresented minorities into a field of growing importance for schools, universities and the economy.

Testing totals for female, black and Latino students all doubled in 2017, following the national debut of an AP course in computer science principles. It joined a longer-established AP course focused on the programming language Java.

Racial and gender imbalances persist. But education leaders said the data show a significant advance in a quest to banish the stereotype that computer science is mainly for coding geeks who tend to be white or Asian American boys.

“We’re trying to diversify a field that for whatever reason has remained not so for generations,” said David Coleman, president of the College Board, which oversees the AP program. “Really, what this is about is computer science breaking out of its narrow role.”

Coleman acknowledged: “There’s more work to do.”

About 27 percent of roughly 100,000 AP computer science test-takers last spring were girls. Black students accounted for 5 percent of those tested and Latino students for 15 percent, well below their overall shares of school enrollment.

Click here to read the full article.

Brandiose

Developing an effective a marketing campaign is something that marketing professionals struggle with at times. As 10th grade PBL students at Kearny, DMD prepare to reach the Linda Vista community with technical science facts about the ocean and coral in conjunction with their client Scripps Institute of Oceanography, they needed some help from the experts. The E2E lab was able to schedule a visit from Jason Klein, owner of Brandiose, a company that brands baseball teams. Jason, a San Diego native who built this business with his best friend from Kindergarten, was able relate and engage students as he walked them through the design process of the campaigns that he has created for teams that he works with. Then, it was the student’s turn. They used the whiteboard tables in the E2E lab to answer questions about themselves building a personal profile. From there, students randomly mixed around the room and sat in front of someone else’s profile. Using only the content they had in front them, students were tasked with developing a mascot for this mystery person. The results showed creativity, empathy, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills. Students are now equipped to move onto conducting empathy interviews with members of the community as they continue of the journey of showing Linda Vista the importance of caring about the ocean.

It’s never too early to plan for college!

If you haven’t signed up for College Board Access, do it now! 

The College Board Create a Road Map page:

• Guides you through school to college
• Advises you on what to do when
• Tracks your progress

There is also a section for parents on helping their kids plan for college every step of the way starting in middle school.

3rd Annual Meb Keflezighi Invitational

Reality Changers

Reality Changer’s College Apps Academy has helped many students get into college and last year expanded their program to include Kearny High School. The inaugural class is receiving letters of acceptance from choice universities daily and applying for more scholarships each week. As their spring semester focuses on college survival skills, recruitment season is also in full swing for the next class. Current juniors are attending informational sessions and filling out applications for their own chance to have a FREE college application expert mentor. Rosters will be completed by the end of March in order to facilitate a few meet-and-greet sessions with the new class before their senior year. This program is run with the support of Kearny’s E2E lab and all sessions take place in E2E’s innovative learning space.

Learning Your Student’s Genius!

San Diego Unified School District is partnering with Thrively – a personalized learning platform that helps students discover and explore their unique strengths, interests and aspirations. If you are a parent of grade 6-12 students in our Unlocking The Genius experience, you can join Thrively with a free account and follow your child’s progress. The platform at www.thrively.com serves as a digital portfolio archiving student strengths and experiences, and connects students to local opportunities to develop their interests. All parents can use Thrively to gain insights into their children through assessments and digital profiles and then get guidance on resources (online and offline) to help their child explore and develop. Find out how to connect to your student’s account by clicking here.

Let us know if you want more information and we can schedule parent nights with Thrively. You can also learn more at www.thrively.com/parent.

Farb Middle School AVID Students Present to the Board of Education

On Tuesday, January 23, 2018, Farb Middle School AVID students Evelin Salinas, Mercy Tapia, and Ashay Madden presented to the San Diego Unified School District Board of Education with their AVID Site Coordinator Donna Rankin and Principal Courtney Rizzo.  AVID, Advancement Via Individual Determination, is a global nonprofit organization dedicated to closing the achievement gap by preparing all students for college and other postsecondary opportunities.  Farb Middle School is an AVID National Demonstration School and is an exemplary model of the AVID College Readiness System.  Demonstration Schools undergo a rigorous validation process and are required to be revalidated every few years to ensure high levels of implementation, with quality and fidelity to AVID strategies schoolwide.  The students did a wonderful job sharing information about their AVID program at Farb Middle School.

Mission Bay Student Named One of San Diego Hall of Champions February Stars of the Month

REJEAN (BOOGIE) ELLIS, Boys Basketball, Mission Bay

As the season wound down, there was no stopping the Buccaneers’ junior as Ellis led his team to the Open Division championship. The lightning-quick Ellis poured in 35 points to lead the Bucs past No. 2 seeded Torrey Pines 64-62 in the semifinals before lifting the team past Foothills Christian in the title game.

Crawford's Ruby Dircio - Triple Impact Competitor

Congrats to Crawford Senior Ruby Dircio on being selected as one of the Positive Coaching Alliance “Triple Impact Competitors.”  Positive Coaching Alliance, a non-profit organization in the Los Angeles area honored Ruby tonight and presented her with a $3,000 scholarship.  Ruby is not only a stand out athlete and member of the community, but the ASB President at Crawford High School.  Congratulations Ruby!

Positive Coaching Alliance press release:

"Ruby Dircio, a senior who has competed in soccer, cross-country, softball, and track and field at Crawford High School in San Diego, California, was named a Triple-Impact Competitor by Positive Coaching Alliance (PCA)–Los Angeles. Ruby is one of ten Los Angeles high school scholar athletes to receive this recognition, and a Finalist for a PCA-Los Angeles Triple-Impact Competitor scholarship.

PCA’s Triple-Impact Competitor Finalists will be honored by PCA at the L.A 84 Foundation on March 1st by Marcellus Wiley who is a member of PCA’s National Advisory Board.

Triple-Impact Competitors are selected based on their essays explaining how they meet three criteria: personal mastery (making oneself better), leadership (making one’s teammates better), and honoring the game (making the game better).  Recipients must provide testimonials from a school administrator, a coach, and at least one from an individual who is familiar with the student-athlete and able to speak to his/her embodiment of the Triple-Impact Competitor principles.

“Ruby isn’t just a team player, she’s a team leader. Everything about her shows her genuine care and consideration for not just simply winning or being successful, but accomplishing goals collectively as a unit. She wants to win the right way”, said Alan Berkes, Executive Director of PCA’s Los Angeles chapter.  She will be the first in her family to attend college. She uses support from her teammates and coaches as fuel to work her hardest, demonstrating the true meaning of a Triple Impact Competitor.

Current high school juniors can apply for a Triple-Impact Competitor Scholarship between January 1 and May 31, 2018.  Applications and more information can be found at www.positivecoach.org/our-awards/triple-impact-competitor-scholarships/.

Positive Coaching Alliance is a national non-profit working to develop Better Athletes, Better People by partnering with youth and high school athletic programs to provide young athletes with a positive, character-building youth sports experience.

Students Informing Districtwide Wellness

Kearny School of Science, Connections & Technology students, Claire Lytle, Geryka Fortnuato and Jamie Lynn Leano presented at the 2018 California Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (CAHPERD) State Conference in Oakland California on February 23rd. San Diego Unified School District’s Physical Education Resource teacher, Lynn Barnes-Wallace along with Kearny SCT teachers, Corri-Anne Burgess (GIS), Daina Weber (English) and Jennifer Ogo (Biology) have created a cross curricular, multi-grade and multi-year project to engage high school students in the importance of wellness. GIS (geographic information systems) students have been tabulating, mapping and analyzing student BMI data to better understand the relationship between early elementary to high school wellness. This data is being used to implement healthy strategies at younger ages, increasing the awareness of the importance of overall wellness as outlined in the District Wellness Policy. Kearny SCT students are designing elementary school fitness curriculum that incorporates not only movement but the health and science content that goes along with it. The goal is to excite and educate elementary school students while giving high school students the opportunity to enhance their knowledge of wellness and empower them to make change.

The presentation was attended by School Board Members, County Office Administrators, University Professors, district nursing leads, as well as, district physical education leads across the country. Funding for this presentation was supported by the Department of Nursing and Wellness and College, Career, and Technical Education (CCTE).

Office of Secondary Teacher Appointed to Statewide Panel for Computer Science Education

Shirley Miranda from the Office of Secondary Schools was appointed by State Superintendent Tom Torlakson to the Computer Science Strategic Implementation Plan Panel (CSSIPP), which aims to expand and improve computer science education statewide in grades K–12. The panel had its first meeting on March 1, 2018.

Torlakson appointed five members of the 23-member panel. “I’m excited that this panel is beginning the work of strengthening computer science education in California,” he said. ‘We are preparing students for today’s and tomorrow’s career and college opportunities—and for the jobs of the future that haven’t yet been invented. Jobs and skills we must have in a fiercely competitive global economy.”

The panel will submit recommendations for a computer science strategic implementation plan to the Superintendent, the State Board, and the Legislature. The plan will include, but not be limited to, recommendations to broaden the pool of teachers to teach computer science and to ensure that all pupils have access to quality computer science courses.

Reach Higher Expo

YOUR PREPARATION FOR COLLEGE STARTS BEFORE HIGH SCHOOL
This EXPO has been designed for you, our Middle School students and families! Join us for a day of learning! Learn about available educational programs in High School, become aware of your options and the strategies you can do to have a successful transition to High School.

The transition from Middle School to High School can represent a BIG shift in your life, either as a parent or student. In collaboration with CAL-SOAP, the San Diego Unified School District has designed a day for YOU. Our goal during this EXPO is to support you as you learn about your educational options and some of the things you and your family can do to continue your growth and educational success.


Workshops:

• A Parent's Guide to Surviving MS Years 
• High School and College Student Panel 
• College Access, Financial Aid & DREAM ACT 
• Finding a Career Pathway 
• High School. What to Expect? 
• Want to Play College Sports? 
• Restorative Practices & Equity 
• Healthy Relationships & Teens

SATURDAY, MARCH 17 , 2018 

LINCOLN HIGH SCHOOL
4777 IMPERIAL AVE,
SAN DIEGO, CA 92113
8:00 AM. - 1 :00 PM 

Please RSVP by visiting:
http://sandiegocalsoap.com/star/Events/register/574 

    

Career Resources

Free Career Resources for Grades 5 to 12

The California Career Resource Network is a program within the California Department of Education that provides free career development information and resources. Students can create accounts and take assessments, and there are lesson plans for grades 5 to 12. The CalCRN Resource Handbook is a great place to start and learn all the valuable resources available.

Workforce and College Guidance Resources Available

The San Diego Workforce Partnership website has great resources for educators and students such as current labor market information and links to community colleges' offered majors and assessments for students to take to understand their passions.


CTE Professional Learning Opportunities and More

Did you know you can find great resources for counselors at www.sdcoe.net/cte? There are links to past workshops and resources to help you support students to find their right path.

English Learner Support on the ACT Test

English learner (EL) supports are now available on the ACT® test to U.S. students. The goal of the supports is to help ensure that the ACT scores earned by English learners accurately reflect what they have learned in school. EL supports are limited to students in a local school district's EL program who meet the current definitions of an English learner under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). Students must apply for the English learner supports through their high school counselors' office. For more information, visit the ACT website.

E2E Ribbon Cutting

The Education to Employment lab at Kearny High School quietly opened its doors to students in the fall of 2017. Since then students have had numerous opportunities to engage with industry and essential skills workshops that prepare them for college and career life by increasing their self esteem, self efficacy, and mindset. The mission of the lab is all about bridging the gap between education and employment. It is now time to share this innovative approach to learning with the community. E2E will host a Ribbon Cutting ceremony where it will be possible to get an inside look into how the lab functions. Students will engage in a signature lesson entitled “Let Them Play!” where they will have the opportunity to try out 15 different stations aligned to the RIASEC codes. In this way students are literally able to discover what they are interested in. E2E is making the impossible possible!

SDUSD Unified to Finish Chelsea's Run

Students across San Diego Unified School District came together the morning of Saturday, March 3rd to "Finish Chelsea's Run".  The 8th Annual Finish Chelsea's Run, in partnership with the Girl Scouts of San Diego and in honor of Chelsea King, brought over 8000 people out to Balboa Park for a 5K walk/run in memory of Chelsea King.  The annual event serves as a fundraiser for the Chelsea’s Light Foundation, a non-profit organization created by Chelsea's parents, Brent and Kelly King, in memory of their beloved daughter.  The foundation aims to support youth and spread positive change in the community.

https://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/San-Diegans-Plan-to-Finish-Chelseas-Run-2018-Chelsea-King-Tribute-475699793.html

FC Barcelona Provides Soccer Clinics

FC Barcelona coaches and the
Marshall Middle School Admin Team 

On Tuesday, October 24, 2017, the Board of Education approved an agreement with FC Barcelona to provide free soccer school visits and soccer clinics to San Diego Unified School District students. Under this partnership, they will be hosting 6 free clinics this school year and Area 6 had the first opportunity to take advantage of this agreement. The free clinic was held for Area 6 students ages 6-16 at Scripps Ranch High School on Sunday, February 25, 2018. 

On Friday, February 23, the FC Barcelona coaches came to visit students at Marshall Middle School to discuss the importance of teamwork, dedication and work ethic.

Students at the 2/25 Scripps Ranch Clinc