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FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Hello ASA Alumni Students and Parents,
I am enjoying my first full school year at ASA! Fall is traditionally when schools celebrate Homecoming, welcoming their alumni back to campus to rekindle relationships and celebrate school pride. At ASA, we now have 30 years of alumni, and while we do not have the traditional Homecoming Football game to celebrate all of you, we do want to find other ways to stay connected with you.
On Thursday, October 30th, at 8:00 a.m., I will be hosting an ASA Spotlight Breakfast at the school to welcome back ASA alumni students and parents. We would love to have you attend if you are in town and available. It will be an excellent opportunity to hear how you are doing, and for us to share some of the exciting happenings at ASA, including our vision to build a youth arts campus on the properties neighboring our school. This breakfast is open to all ASA alumni students and parents, but you must first RSVP to ASA’s alumni support team by Tuesday, October 28th.
Even if you are unable to attend the Spotlight Breakfast, I encourage you to reconnect with the school and your fellow alumni at other opportunities such as: Choral Collage, the Band Department’s Holiday Spectacular, and the dedication of ASA’s amphitheatre to Leah Fregulia…more about all of these in this issue….and please take a moment to introduce yourself to me.
Looking forward to meeting you,
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David Lujan
Executive Director
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Jalyn McKee | Class of 2013
A year and a half ago, a chance substituting assignment brought Jalyn McKee back to Arizona School for the Arts to teach 7th grade English Language Arts. Last year, she joined fellow alum, Carly McClain, as a permanent member of the 5th grade team.
In a short period of time, she has become a beloved teacher on our staff, part of a 4-person team providing a welcoming, safe presence to our newest and youngest students.
What is your ASA student story? When did you start here, and what was your art focus? Do you still pursue it?
I auditioned to attend Arizona School for the Arts in 2009 to begin my high school career. My original plan was just to show up as a source of support for my younger sister (who was also auditioning), but my parents encouraged me to audition as well. Since I was obsessed with watching movies, and I was pretty sure I didn’t have any hidden ballet skills, I decided to try out for theater.
I had no clue what to expect, but that afternoon changed the trajectory of my life. I ended up pursuing theater until I graduated and even took a few theater courses in college. I loved reading and analyzing plays, and I had the opportunity to meet the most amazing, talented people. It gave me a new appreciation for acting and set production. I loved theater so much that my parents surprised me with tickets to see Anastasia on Broadway for my college graduation!
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Stephen Dabrowski (‘18)
Our 2021 Rising Star Alum Honoree continues his ascent: “I’m excited to share that I‘ve officially begun my Master’s in Artificial Intelligence at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, where I will specialize in AI for Health through a joint collaboration with UvA and Amsterdam UMC. I’m very thankful for my past two years at IQVIA and look forward to driving the responsible development and application of AI moving forward!”
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Monique Flageul Márquez (‘11)
is a Localization Manager at a startup company. “I moved to Europe when I was 20 and have been there ever since. I've lived in Lyon, France, and Stuttgart, Germany. For the past 8 years, I've been living in Berlin, Germany. I loved my time at ASA. The school enabled me to pursue my dreams, like moving to Europe.”
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Emily Pollack (‘15)
is working for the Biodefense Research Directorate as a Senior Scientist for the advancement of research in immunology and microbiology, with a focus on viral detection and quantification.
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ALUMNI HONOREE NOMINATIONS
May and Showcase seem so far away, but Alumni Honor nominations are happening now! It takes a little time to receive nominations, vet them, contact and interview the winners, and announce them to you in the April issue of Pigeon Post.
Can you think of an alum who has taken the Core Values of ASA out into the world in their daily lives, making an impact on their own corner of the world or the wider world of arts, science, academia, philanthropy, or wherever they have landed? There are two classifications for the award:
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The Rising Star has made an excellent start, with strong growth potential, and graduated from ASA within the last 5-10 years.
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The Distinguished Alum is a current positive force on their chosen path who graduated from ASA more than 10 years ago.
Winners are featured all year on our website’s Alumni page, including 2025’s Major Samantha Howard, PhD, Jonathan Salcedo, and UPSAHL.
Please submit a Nomination Form for each alum you wish to be considered for their respective category. The nomination period will end at close of business on Friday, March 20, 2026.
| | SPOTLIGHT BREAKFAST | 10/30
Take the opportunity to meet David Lujan and learn more about the vision for a Youth Arts Campus in downtown Phoenix. This month’s Spotlight Breakfast is dedicated to Arizona School for the Arts alumni and alumni parents who are interested in this next exciting phase in ASA’s partnership with local organizations committed to enhancing the education of Phoenix’s young people through the performing arts. Please join David on campus at 8:00 a.m. on Thursday, October 30th; we will be accepting RSVPs at alumni@goasa.org through October 28th. | | |
CHORAL COLLAGE & ASA COMMUNITY CHOIR
An annual highlight at Choral Collage is all Choir alumni standing with the current choir to sing "Betelehemu”, choreography and all. The tradition continues this year, and we strongly encourage you to be a part of that, but a new tradition is in the works…
The Choir Department invites you to join the inaugural ASA Community Choir! Come SING and perform with us at Choral Collage! This requires a minimal commitment, but it will yield a BIG reward.
Who's invited?
Current ASA Students, Faculty and Staff, Parents and Families, and Extended Community (All Community Choir singers must be connected to ASA in some way. This will not be advertised to the public, so invite your neighbor!
What's the commitment?
We will meet for five Monday rehearsals from 4:45-5:45 p.m. on campus in room A-112, and we will perform at ASA's Signature Series Event: Choral Collage on Tuesday, December 16th. Singers must commit to four of the five rehearsals, plus the performance.
This is meant to be an intergenerational community-building music experience for folks already part of our school, as well as an outreach effort to those loosely connected to our community. No experience is needed — just bring your voice.
We begin rehearsals on November 17th! Sign up below.
Choral Collage
Tuesday, December 16, 2025 | 6:30 p.m.
Camelback Bible Church | 3900 E Stanford Dr, Paradise Valley, AZ 85253
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HOLIDAY SPECTACULAR | 12/18
We don’t want our former Band students to feel left out. Another popular event in December is the Holiday Spectacular. All Band classes will perform on Thursday, December 18th. Band alumni are welcome to watch or participate in this holiday jam during Upper School classes at 1:25 p.m. and 2:25 p.m., but the Band teachers require advance notice if you would like to sit in; please email Department Chair Mr. Derek Sanchez.
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AMPHITHEATRE DEDICATION
The ASA Board of Directors proudly voted to name the ASA’s amphitheatre in honor of Leah Fregulia. Leah’s 30 years of devotion to ASA and the vision and determination she showed in growing the campus to serve a greater number of students in a cohesive environment were rounded out by turning the bandshell into a sheltered, fully realized performance space. Please be on the lookout in your inbox towards the end of this semester for your invitation to attend the dedication ceremony.
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The ASA Board of Directors has adopted a theme for themselves this year, which signifies their commitment to champion the future of our students by:
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Raising One Million Reasons: Securing the $1 million in resources needed to fully fund and expand our arts and academic programs.
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Filling 100 MORE Seats with Opportunity: Ensuring every open seat is filled with a student who is inspired, prepared, and supported to achieve.
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Building One Connected Community: Cultivating meaningful connections among students, families, faculty, alumni, and partners to sustain a culture of excellence, creativity, and belonging.
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They have challenged each other to look at their everyday network to see who could be a good partner in expanding ASA’s mission through their Time, Treasure, Talent or Testimony.
As a member of our alumni community, you can play a significant role in helping the Board achieve its aim.
READ ON TO LEARN HOW →
| | LET THE ARTS PLAY ON — FOR THE NEXT GENERATION! | | |
Can you still hear the sound of tuning up before rehearsal? The pianos you practiced on, the clarinets and trumpets in Band, the cellos and basses in Orchestra, the sheet music marked with your own penciled notes as you lifted your voices in Choir — those instruments, songs, and stage tools carried your ASA story. They’re still being used by students today. Our classrooms echo with familiar rhythms, but the tools that once shaped your artistry are ready for renewal.
This year’s Annual Fund will help replace large instruments like cellos, basses, marimbas, and timpani, many of which are more than 20 years old. It will also allow us to introduce new instruments, such as a piccolo and other specialty additions, to broaden students’ learning and ensemble experience.
We hope to purchase a set of silent classical guitars and amplifiers to strengthen instruction and performance across all our music departments. In addition, Annual Fund dollars will refresh performance dancewear and black tutus for our dancers, who still rely on borrowed costumes, and fund stagecraft tools, lighting, and costume-making equipment for theatre students. It will also provide sheet music, performance scripts, and classroom supplies that elevate learning and creativity across all performing arts disciplines.
Your gift helps today’s ASA students learn deeply, create boldly, and perform brilliantly — just like you once did at ASA!
Let’s make sure the arts — and the magic — play on for the next generation.
| | SUPPORT ASA STUDENTS — AT NO COST TO YOU! | | |
Learning at ASA has always extended beyond the classroom and stage. It happens in the clubs that build teamwork and strengthen our community, in the college and career readiness seminars that expanded important life skills, and in the friendships that turn shared interests into lifelong passions.
Today’s students are building those same experiences: exploring interests, leading teams, finding their voices. You can help make those opportunities possible — at no additional cost to you. Through the Arizona Public School Tax Credit, individuals can contribute up to $200, and couples filing jointly can contribute up to $400, directly to ASA’s extracurricular and co-curricular programs. Your contribution is a dollar-for-dollar credit on your Arizona state taxes — meaning every dollar you give comes straight off what you owe.
When you make your Tax Credit contribution to ASA, you’re supporting ASA’s extracurricular and co-curricular programs, including student clubs, leadership groups, and college readiness initiatives that nurture creativity, connection, and character.
It’s one of the simplest and most impactful ways to keep the ASA experience strong for every student.
Redirect your taxes. Grow curiosity and connection.
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The ASA admissions team attended the enrollment conference held by the Arizona Charter School Association in September, where they learned that low enrollment remains an issue for both public and charter schools across the state due to declining birth rates, the ESA program, and more people working from home since the pandemic. Our team has strategies in place to increase our enrollment, but our most powerful recruitment tool is word of mouth from the very people who know best the powerful educational foundation created at Arizona School for the Arts…YOU!
The lottery application portal for the 2026-2027 school year is open! A new feature lets you refer potential students you believe will thrive in the ASA environment, and our team can take it from there. Or if you prefer, please encourage families in your network with rising 5th through 12th graders to visit the campus at one of our several Open Houses, Campus Tours with Student Ambassadors, or Shadow Days, where a potential student can pair up with a current student to experience ASA firsthand for a day.
| | UPCOMING SIGNATURE SERIES EVENTS | |
FALL DANCE RECITAL TICKETS
NOW ON SALE!
We’ve made it easy to support ASA’s performing arts!
Tickets for our Signature Series are offered on a sliding scale from $5 to $25—or more if you’d like to give a little extra love. Whether you’re an alum returning to cheer on today’s students or simply want to enjoy the show, every ticket purchased helps sustain the program that shaped so many of our memories.
| | | MORE SIGNATURE SERIES EVENTS TICKET ON SALE SOON! | | |
ASA ALUMNI PLAYLIST!
Did you know that we have started a Spotify Playlist for ASA Alumni? Listen to what your fellow musical Pigeons have been creating, and if you have a recommendation to add to the playlist, please email us.
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STAY CONNECTED
Keep us and your classmates up-to-date with all of the happenings in your life using the Alumni Class Note. Location change? Email address change? Life change you would like to share with your fellow alumni? Just submit the Google form or an email, and we will take care of the rest.
| | Arizona School for the Arts inspires creative thinkers and leaders through providing an innovative concentration in college preparation informed by the performing arts. | | © 2025 Arizona School for the Arts | | | | |
