First-ever Senior Walk with the Class of 2019

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[ image description:   Class of 2019 wears graduation caps with decorative messages: #RIT bound; Can I take a nap now; and Keep smiling beautiful world. Colorful artwork is displayed on the wall behind the graduates.]

Greetings from the land

of ORANGE and BLACK !

 

Adios to the 2018-19 academic year!  I can’t thank everyone enough for your endless hours of volunteering, chaperoning, coaching, reading, organizing, donating and doing whatever was necessary to support our students. 

Families: I would like to thank you for entrusting us with serving your children and allowing them to have access to the high quality instructional and after-school experiences at California School for the Deaf.

Graduates: Thank you for all your hard work throughout the school year. I am so honored to be your superintendent; you make me proud to be an Eagle. I am grateful for your joy, astute insights and amazing talents. 

The month of May was filled with ceremonies celebrating the successes of our students. They earned numerous awards and scholarships by meeting the requirements; however, it is important to remember that every child who attends the California School for the Deaf is a winner, regardless of the number of awards or scholarships they receive.

School Organizations: Special thanks to our Association of Families, Teachers & Counselors; Community Advisory Committee; CSD Alumni Association; Foothills Athletics Association; and all of the employees at CSD who went above and beyond the call of duty to provide whatever was necessary to support our students’ rich school experience. The Silver Eagles are to be appreciated for their continued inspiration and their support towards CSD, as well.

Partners of CSD: I want to thank you for all of the support you have provided for our educational programs through in-kind services, working together in planning events, and providing necessary sponsorship. We aim to continue to collaborate with our partners, and we appreciate how it benefits our students.

Once again, best wishes to the Class of 2019, whom I will miss greatly. Once an Eagle, always an Eagle!

With Eagle Pride,

Clark Brooke, Ed.S.

Superintendent

California School for the Deaf, Fremont

39350 Gallaudet Drive

Fremont, CA 94538

510-344-6010 Videophone

510-823-6071 Spanish Callers

[ image description:  1) Group photo of the Class of 2019. Their gowns are black. Some of the graduates are wearing shiny orange stoles while others are wearing Mexican-style striped stoles. 2) A long line of graduates walks through the CSD Middle School main entrance. They have their arms outstretched to shake hands with onlookers. 3) Director of Instruction Len Gonzales, wearing a suit, has his arms outstretched toward a long line of graduates outside of the Klopping Theater. The graduates are wearing their gowns. There is an arrow on the photo that points to where the seniors are passing the baton.]

Peter Gopez enjoys the appetizers.

Angelinah Lo, Ayisha Yang, and Cruz Ascencio dressed and ready for their banquet to begin.

Banquet Chairpersons Samantha Medina-Vazquez and Anastasia Mena Vergara on the red carpet.

Just a couple of weeks before graduation, the junior class treated the graduating seniors to a banquet. Though this event is an annual tradition at California School for the Deaf, the juni ors wanted to make this year’s Senior Banquet an especially memorable occasion. Banquet Chairpersons Anastasia Mena Vergara and Samantha Medina-Vazquez chose “On the Red Carpet” for the theme of the banquet. Everyone got dressed up for the occasion!

The juniors spent a lot of effort transforming the cafeteria – decorating the tables, putting up decorative Christmas lights and balloons. They even made a wall display that included each member of the graduating class’s senior picture. The juniors also served the food for the evening. They wore matching white tops, black bottoms, and black shoes. (See their photos below.)

Seniors entered the banquet on a long red carpet with stanchions. They had their photos taken, dressed in their fancy attire – just like at the Academy Awards. Next, they were treated to appetizers and a sparkling cider toast (no champagne). After that, they partook of a lovely meal with teriyaki chicken (meat or vegetarian options), followed by crepes for dessert.

Speakers at the banquet were Len Gonzales, Director of Instruction; Ethan Bernstein, Dean of Students; and Clark Brooke, CSD Superintendent who was the keynote. Clark Brooke touched on the class motto: “If opportunity doesn’t knock, build a door,” by Milton Berle, encouraging students to build opportunities for themselves.

Senior Banquet Coordinators Anna Woodbury and Sutha Ramanathan had this to say, “The juniors really stepped up. They had a vision and they fulfilled that vision, from A to Z.”

[ image description:  1) Peter Gopez is standing in front of the appetizer bar with a plate of appetizers in his hand. Tables and other banquet attendees are behind him. Peter is wearing a suit; 2) Two seniors in fancy dresses are sitting at a round table that is nicely decorated. A few other people are standing around the table; 3) Two girls in formal dresses are standing on the red carpet, outside of the cafeteria entrance. 3) Two of the junior servers are carrying plates, while one junior server is waiting at the serving line. All of the junior servers are wearing fancy matching outfits with black aprons, black pants and white shirts. Very stylish; 4) Line of 11   junior servers sipping sparkling cider out of wine glasses. They are standing in front of a Hollywood director's clapboard.]

Junior Servers: Kenasia Brown, Kaitlyn Tietje, Esther Biser, Tiffany Kutsov, Liliana Ortiz, Jaron LeMaster, Samuel Brown, George Quirie, Marcos Aguilar, Maritza Ramirez, Alexis Bravo Calvillo

[ image description:   1) Line of young students with their hands in the air signing. They are standing in front of a wooden bridge with a mural backdrop; 2) Three individual photos of students, all dressed up, standing on a bridge decorated with colorful paper flowers. A mural of a picturesque hillside is in the background. In each of the photos, the child's hands are overhead as they are signing to the audience.]

[ image description:  Fifth grade class all wearing purple. They are taking a group photo on the stage of the Klopping Theater. The students are holding their diplomas, cheering.]

Anastasia Mena Vergara, Julie Wathan, Jordan Tennison, and Janeva Mosher

[ image description:  Four students are seated at a long table in a classroom. They have their cell phones on the table. One student has earphones. Janeva Mosher is wearing a Youth Leadership Camp shirt. She has her hands in the air signing. Two of the students are watching her.]

[ image description:  1) Close-up of the three Eagles Fight Song performers signing; 2) Drummer in the background with two performers signing the Eagle Fight Song at the front of the stage; 3) Poster announcing Eagle Fight Song tryouts August 2019. They are looking for high energy, creativity, and spirit. The poster has the school colors of orange and black. It features the Class of 2019 Eagle Fight Song performers.]

[ image description:  1) Photo of the audience signing "Eagle" in the Elementary Activity Center. Two people sitting in the front row look like they are having a conversation; 2) Retirees posing together: Martha Anabu, Linda Dickinson, Eugene LaCosse, Derek Johnson, Juddie Lamberton, Charles Farr, Thuy Dang, and Daryl Wetzel; 3) PowerPoint slide saying, "Congratulations to our retirees! Thank you for your years of service with the California School for the Deaf 2018-2019."]

A powerful healing day was had on May 4. Deaf Community members from all walks of life came together, at California School for the Deaf, to address the challenges, realities, education and hope for mental health. 

As May is Mental Health Awareness Month, the timing was perfect for the newly established DeafCare Committee to host this event.  DCARA’s Raymond Rodgers, Rosa Lee Timm, and Marta Ordaz teamed up with CSD’s Barbara White and JAC Cook; Deaf Community Counseling Services’ Joni Teague; and private practitioner  Millie Stansfield, MFT to offer this remarkable day of enlightenment, removing the stigma of mental illness. Melissa Yingst of Melmira and Terrylene Sacchetti came up from Southern California to join “Breaking the Silence”. With JAC Cook as the Emcee, videos of well-known Deaf Community members were shown, sharing their own mental health challenges and healing.

Breakout groups with the presenters took place in different areas of the campus, focusing on personal stories of the participants and sharing of solution suggestions.  

At the end, we all came together at the outdoor amphitheater and shared feedback, desires, and a renewed sense of hope and decreased sense of isolation and shame related to mental health challenges among ourselves and our loved ones.  

[ image description:  1) My Mind Matters participants stand in a large semicircle at the amphitheater, at the California School for the Deaf; 2) Woman presenting on the Klopping Theater stage, in front of a slide that says, "Mindfulness: mindful, paying attention, noticing, observing, neutral; No judgement; Being in the present; 3) Schedule of the events (click for enlargement); 4) Refreshment table in the theater lobby.]

Deaf Television Foundation is pleased to announce that Kenneth W. Norton of Fremont, California, was awarded the inaugural Dorothy Miles-Shanny award in Austin, Texas, on May 3.

The  Y.E.S! program was founded at the 1997 National Black Deaf Advocates conference, in Washington, D.C.. It was designed for Black Deaf and Hard of Hearing youths, from 13  to  17 years old, to promote their leadership skills, non-academic educational and social needs, to accomplish their dreams, and to contribute back to the community. It turned out to be a successful program that has fostered leadership development for more than 200  Black Deaf and Hard of Hearing youths across the country, by providing workshops, leadership training and development, and exposure to Black Deaf role models and challenging activities. Upon the conclusion of participating in the 2019 Y.E.S! Program, the youths will gain experience with overcoming adversity and common issues that minority students constantly face in America. We anticipate having 40 to 50 youth participants for this upcoming 2019 National Black Deaf Advocates conference week.

Youth Empowerment Summit 2019 application packet

Meta Metal , Editor

Clark Brooke , School Superintendent