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Campus Connections
is the newsletter of the Milpitas Unified School District. If you have stories for our next issue, please send them to
Scott Forstner
.
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2019-20 Launches New Year of Learning and Discovery
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The beauty of being human is that we are constantly learning, which means every moment is a new opportunity to realize the joy within that makes us who we are. The launch of the 2019-20 school year ignites 180 days of learning, possibility, discovery, and self-actualization for our learners. We are constantly evolving in our work towards achieving our
MUSD Strategic Goals
, particularly in
building a Culture of We
,
innovating for personalized learning pathways
, and
building creative learning environments
.
Our Culture of We overlays everything we do in student, parent, and community engagement. This year we are building on new initiatives for deepening our understanding of how to use our diversity to uplift our students, families, and team members. We have formed the African Ancestry Success Committee, adopted social studies texts that are inclusive of our learners’ cultural experiences and ethnicities, launched the inclusion model for special education, and established a Diversity Discussions series for educators and community.
Innovation to establish personalized learning pathways is occurring in all of our schools. This year we begin our work in implementing the
CA K-12 Computer Science Standards
. Students at MHS now have computer science AP classes as an option for their high school curriculum. We will expand the number of elementary schools implementing the
Girlstart
program sponsored by KLA. Middle school students participated in a pilot computer science (CS) program developed by the Silicon Valley Education Foundation, and we will continue our work with them in this area. While classes in CS are readily focused on CS, the
CS K-12 standards
are more about integrating CS skills within the core subject areas, which is what our teachers will be exploring this year.
All of these learning experiences take place in environments that are being modernized and secured with funds from Measure AA, for which we are grateful to our community for its approval in November 2018. At half of our schools students were welcomed by newly painted buildings, updated HV/AC units, completely new piping, new roofing, and smoothly paved walkways and play areas. For our students interested in bio-technology, they will enjoy our new bioscience lab!
MUSD is a school community engaged in every moment, providing pathways for our learners to become their best selves in 2019-20!
Sincerely,
Cheryl Jordan
Superintendent
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Superintendent Cheryl Jordan and Board of Education President Chris Norwood greeted hundreds of Milpitas Unified School District staff with words of encouragement and appreciation during the annual Welcome Back rally held the morning of Aug. 12 at Milpitas High School.
“Together we help our students become who they are supposed to be,” said Superintendent Jordan as she reviewed the district’s strategic goals and offered examples of how staff and students have been accomplishing them. “Together, we are MUSD and 2019 is going to rock because we are a championship team!”
President Norwood, a sixth-year trustee who attended MUSD schools as a student-athlete and also both coached and volunteered during his 46 years and counting in Milpitas, described staff members as “modern, real-life, unsung and super heroes.”
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Back-to-school with MUSD principals
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We've been interviewing principals across the district to find out about all the new things that will be transpiring at each school site this year.
So far, we've collected 7 interviews. You can click on the principal's name below to read more!
We will feature the remaining principals in the next issue of Campus Connections.
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Students take advantage of City's Youth Force work program
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This summer, the City of Milpitas gave a group of MUSD students the opportunity of a lifetime.
Through their Youth Force work program, the City matched 18 students from both Milpitas High and Cal Hills with different employers.
The program went from June 10-August 2, and had students working at places like the Milpitas Sports Center, City Hall, Milpitas Library, Milpitas Fire Department, a dental office, a speech pathologist’s office, and even school district offices.
All students worked from Monday to Thursday, about 24 hours a week, and received $15 an hour in payment from the City.
During the first 2 weeks of the program, students received training and engaged in work-based learning to better prepare them for their first day on the job. Andrea Hutchison, who worked as a Coordinator for the Youth Force program this summer, led the training, guiding students through team-building exercises and activities, and engaging them in discussions to deepen their understanding about how to function in the workplace. Hutchison has also been a teacher at MHS for the past 19 years, and loves working with students;
she is also MUSD's Digital Business Academy lead and is focused on building partnerships with our city and businesses to support student internships, mentoring, and career pathways.
“This has been one of the most enjoyable summer jobs I’ve ever had,” said Hutchison.
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Summer programs on MHS campus wrapped up end of July
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Not everyone may be aware of this, but the Milpitas High School campus bustles with activity during the summer season.
And this summer’s been no different.
Students from elementary school, middle school, and high school all took part in one (or more) of the various programs and courses offered across MHS grounds. Almost all programs wrapped up on Friday, July 26.
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MUSD's transition partnership program makes an impact on special education students
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Through the Department of Rehabilitation, the Milpitas Unified School District (MUSD) runs a summer Transition Partnership Program (TPP), through which special education students go out and work in the community.
This year, 23 students, ages 16-18, were involved with TPP.
The program started on July 8 and officially wrapped up on July 26.
MUSD’s Vocational Specialist Annette Rodarte, along with her staff of three, spent the last few weeks facilitating the program, and even worked to train students in soft skills like communication, professionalism, and teamwork.
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Exciting summer bond projects across MUSD school sites
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Over the Summer, MUSD kicked off a series of bond projects. Painting, paving, roofing, and HVAC/galvanized pipe replacement projects happened at various school sites from June to August. The sites were:
- Milpitas High School
- Pomeroy Elementary
- Burnett Elementary
- Curtner Elementary
- Rose Elementary
- Sinnott Elementary
- Russell Middle School
Summer bond work concluded before the first day of school on August 15.
Read our last bond update from a few weeks ago, in case you missed it. You can find it
here.
And we'll have another bond update to sum up all the progress soon!
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Check out our District Calendar
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Have a look at our District Calendar for information on upcoming events, such as annual Back-to-School Nights, meetings and more. Here's the
link.
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MUSD | Phone: (408) 635-2600
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