MBUSD Superintendent's Newsletter

Superintendent's Newsletter

March 7, 2025

Dear MBUSD Parents and Community,

I hope this newsletter finds you well. Today’s issue highlights Robinson Elementary, MBMS music students participating in a special Disney Soundtrack Workshop, and how Grand View students showcased their public speaking and writing skills at a red carpet event.

Spotlight on Robinson Elementary (Special Thanks to Science Specialist Christina Ibrahim and Principal Katie Cavallaro)

This week, Robinson TK students had an engaging, hands-on experience in the science lab. The lesson began with full-group instruction, where Mrs. Ibrahim introduced the different stages of the water cycle: evaporation, condensation, and precipitation. Next, students broke into table groups. Each station had beakers filled with water, which were topped with shaving cream, and a palette of colored water with droppers. In this experiment, the water in the beakers represented air, and the shaving cream represented clouds. Students used their droppers to apply the colored water on top of the shaving cream clouds. As a result, they saw the colored water pass through the shaving cream clouds into the water in the beaker, simulating rain. To make the activity even more relevant, it was actually raining outside at the time of the lesson. This was unplanned but a great opportunity for students to connect the concepts they were learning to real-life weather!

In addition to learning science concepts, learners had an opportunity to practice fine motor skills, follow directions, and cooperate with their table group, all of which are important to their overall development.

Thanks to MBEF for funding the Science Specialist position so all elementary students at Robinson and throughout the District have access to a science lab and hands-on learning.

Staff Spotlight: Fumie Kwak | 1st and 2nd Grade General Music

This week’s staff spotlight shines on Fumie Kwak, our 1st and 2nd-grade general music teacher! This is her first year in the role, but she’s no stranger to MBUSD—Fumie previously spent three years as a choral accompanist for 4th and 5th graders. Her musical journey spans both the United States and Japan, bringing a wealth of experience to our students.

Fumie’s background is in piano performance, and she has collaborated extensively with singers, instrumentalists, and choirs.

She grew up in Japan, where she received her early music education, and later earned her master’s degree at the Liszt Academy in Hungary, specializing in the Kodály method. Reflecting on this approach, she shared, “This approach deepened my passion for music education, as its core philosophy—'music is for everyone'—aligns with MBUSD’s strong music program, which provides students with early and meaningful musical experiences.”

Throughout her career, Fumie has taught music in elementary and middle schools while continuing to work as a piano teacher and accompanist. Beyond the classroom, she loves performing and has given solo and collaborative concerts in England, Austria, Hungary, Japan, and the United States.

When asked about her favorite part of teaching, Fumie said, “Seeing my students every day is truly a treasure. I love witnessing their joy and excitement as they discover new musical experiences.”

Outside of work, Fumie enjoys visiting wineries and camping with her family. Her husband, also a music teacher, teaches a middle school choir, and their daughters, Yuna (5th grade) and Hana (1st grade), attend Meadows Elementary.

MBMS Students Visit Disney for Soundtrack Workshop

String Orchestra

Concert Band

For the second year, MBMS Concert Band and String Orchestra students attended the Disneyland Imagination Campus Soundtrack Workshop. Throughout the workshop, they learned a repertoire of Disney music and performed and recorded it with the help of professional musicians working in the music industry. Students also sharpened their skills, including intonation, music balance, and tone quality. While at the workshop, they wore headphones to hear the click track, just like professionals. The session culminates with a screening of their recorded work on a Disney film! One parent chaperone shared, “What a truly unforgettable day featuring such a special, inspiring, engaging, empowering, enlightening, and awesome life experience for the students!”

They also had the opportunity to see what it's like to work in the music industry as a professional and gain insight into careers in the recording and film industry. Thank you to Instrumental Music Teacher Ms. Denise Haslop and UCLA student teacher Emily Taylor for their support of the MBMS String Orchestra. We also extend our gratitude to d’Lainey Forrester for leading the Concert Band.

Showing up! The Importance of Each Student’s Participation, at the Individual, School, and District Levels

We are very excited to begin administering the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC) for English Language Arts this Monday, March 10, for all 11th-graders at Mira Costa High School. There is no need for students to do any extra preparation this weekend. Please help students plan for a good night’s sleep on Sunday and come to school on time with a fully charged device, headphones (wired, not wireless), and pencils.

As we have emphasized in previous communications, the most important piece for students is showing up and giving their best effort. They have done great work throughout the year, and this is their chance to show it. When we get the score reports, we will know their specific strengths and growth areas at the student level. We can see which standards our students mastered most consistently at the department and school level and which we may approach differently next year to increase learning. Finally, as a District, we look very carefully at trends across each grade level, from elementary through high school, to inform our articulation planning for each subject.

Perhaps most importantly, for families, and especially those at Mira Costa now, our participation rates and scores affect our school ranking. School ranking is more than just something to be proud of; it supports all students in college acceptance and access to other post-secondary opportunities.

Thank you for your support, and let’s cheer on our fabulous students!

MBUSD Special Education Staff Honored

Left to right: Markus Heuer, Sara Fox, Special Education Director Dr. Kris Vegas, MBUSD Trustee (Clerk) Jen Dohner, and Asst. Superintendent of Educational Services Dr. Irene Gonzalez-Castillo

The Community Advisory Committee (CAC), in collaboration with the Southwest Special Education Local Plan Area (SELPA), hosted its 12th Annual Staff and Community Partners awards ceremony to honor individuals who have made significant contributions to the academic, social, and/or emotional growth of students with special needs.

Three of our special education staff members are recipients of this honor!

Congratulations to:

Kristin Dailey - Special Education Teacher (MCHS)

Sara Fox - Physical Therapist (Itinerant)

Markus Heuer - Intensive Behavioral Instruction - IBI (Grand View)

The special ceremony also included two Mira Costa student speakers who receive services from District and SELPA staff. They talked about the benefits of this support and the importance of inclusion. We will also celebrate their achievements during our Board meeting on March 12.

We have MBUSD parents who are part of the Community Advisory Committee group that serves the SW SELPA. This Committee is made up of parents, agencies, and school representatives, all dedicated to supporting the Special Education community.

Grand View Celebrates the 5th Grade Oscars

Grand View’s 5th Grade Oscars celebration rolled out the red carpet for an unforgettable event! Dressed to impress in ball gowns, suits, and stylish Nike Dunks, the young stars posed for fans before making their grand entrance into the Performing Arts Center. Thanks to Grand View’s PTA, the venue was transformed into a glamorous, star-studded space, setting the perfect scene for the big day. The celebration marked the culmination of the Common Core persuasive writing and public speaking unit, with students taking center stage.

The event was filled with excitement and pride as students showcased their hard work and delivered carefully crafted acceptance speeches while taking home their Oscars. It was a truly memorable experience for all, celebrating the creativity and accomplishments of these talented 5th graders!

MBMS Students Advance to State MATHCOUNTS Competition

Congratulations to the MBMS Math Club! For the first time in recent MBMS history, the team is advancing to the MATHCOUNTS State competition in Washington, D.C.!

After competing in the Chapter competition recently, four Math Club members have qualified for State:

Rohit S.
Sophia K.
Defne B.
Zoey R.

Fourteen MBMS students advanced from the school’s MATHCOUNTS competition to the Chapter level, and these four exceptional students will now represent MBMS at State.

The State competition will feature thirty-five teams of four, along with individual competitors. Our students also have the exciting opportunity to earn college scholarships, which will be awarded to members of the top four teams and the top sixteen individuals. MATHCOUNTS provides engaging math programs to U.S. middle school students of all ability levels to build confidence and improve attitudes about math and problem-solving.

A big thank you to our dedicated Math Club coaches Michael Unton, Sonal Panchal, Garima Goel, and the MBMS PTA for sponsoring the Math Club. We are so proud of our Mathletes and wish them the best of luck at State!

MCHS Drama/Tech 2024 Fall Production Receives Accolades

Staff and students received awards recently from the California Educational Theatre Association (CETA)! Last year, they received the news that Drama/Tech Fall Play, Anatomy of Gray, earned a superior rating, the highest rating a show can receive. In addition to that honor, staff and students also won many awards in the following categories:

Adjudicator Medals: Chloe E. and Sarah T.

Director Medals: Aaron H. and Maggie G.

Certificate of Achievement for Outstanding Theatrical Work:

CAST: Charlie B., Jackie B., Colin B., Hayley D., Chloe E., Savannah F., Maggie G., Emma G., Aaron H., Emily H., Talia L., Thomas L., Zoë M., Austin O-C, Ryann R., Stella S., Devan S., Karyme V., Donné W.

CREW: Julia B., Cara B., Kai B., Macy B., Peyton B., Nikko C., Emma F., Jia H., Sophia P., Sarah T., Lior W.

PRODUCTION TEAM:

Michael Aldapa, Megan Cornelius, Fritz Davis, Sofia Duran-Kneip, Alison Gerber, Cary Jordahl, Tim Labor, William Lidderdale, Yael Pardess, Kathie Papera, Jonathan Westerberg

(Not Pictured above: Colin B., Julia B., Jackie B., Cara B., Macy B., Jia H., Emma G., Austin O-C, Ryann R.)

This is the second consecutive year that MCHS Drama/Tech production has received this honor. CETA supports and represents theatre educators throughout the state with its innovative programs and activities for theatre teachers, artists, and students.

Build A Bridge Concert

This week, the MBUSD All-District Choir Concert filled the air with beautiful melodies from our talented student vocalists. The annual Build A Bridge concert featured performances by choirs from Mira Costa, MBMS, all elementary schools, and the Elementary Honor Choir.

Throughout the evening, audiences enjoyed a variety of songs, including Song of the Apple Tree by Stuart Chapman Hill, a Wicked medley arranged by MBMS and MCHS Choir Director Kate Crellin, Time by Jennifer Lucy Cook, and many more.

A highlight of the night was the grand finale, when all the choirs united for a combined performance.

A special thank you to our dedicated choir directors, Ellen Christensen (elementary) and Kate Crellin (MCHS and MBMS), for inspiring and leading our students!

Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) Week Celebrated

MBUSD celebrated National Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) Week March 3-7, continuing our commitment to supporting students' mental health and well-being. Each day featured on-campus activities aligned with the District’s SEL Framework:

I Understand and Manage Emotions
I Achieve Positive Goals
I Show Empathy for Others
I Maintain Positive Relationships
I Make Responsible Decisions

At Grand View, students played Healthy Tech Bingo during lunch and wrote gratitude letters. Meadows students completed five intentional acts of kindness. Staff and students also shared compliments by writing them out and posting them in the large bucket for their classmates to enjoy! Over at Robinson, activities included a yoga session and a family playdate.

At Pennekamp, students practiced "I Show Empathy for Others" by writing ideas on seed paper about how they can help others to "grow" an empathy garden and creating a Wheel of Emotions. Pacific students shared self-love messages by crafting heart skewers, building a friendship chain, and even participating in a calming sound bath.

Middle schoolers embraced "I Make Responsible Decisions" through the Battle of the Trash challenge, where they competed to clean up as much trash as possible, encouraging responsible environmental choices. They also joined the Rock, Paper, Scissors Challenge to promote friendly competition and positive relationships.

At Mira Costa, students participated in a reflection and goal-setting activity in the Mustang Mall. A highlight of the week was a special visit from Mira Costa alumna and Olympian Holly McPeak, who shared her tips for developing a successful mindset.

A huge thank you to our dedicated staff and the District’s SEL Committee for their hard work in making this week a meaningful and enriching experience for our students!

Celebrating Cultures

We are currently looking for MBUSD families to share their cultural heritage through food, dance, clothing, art, games, and music for our Celebrating Cultures: A Journey Around the World - International Day 2025.

The special event brings MBUSD students and their families together to celebrate the many cultural traditions that make our school District so vibrant! Don't miss this chance to experience the richness of our community and build meaningful connections. If you are interested in participating, please fill out this interest form.

This is Costa Part 2

Incoming Mustangs and their families visited Mira Costa this week for the annual This is Costa Part 2 event. The evening began with lively performances by the dance and choir teams, along with warm welcomes from band and cheer. Following the spirited kickoff, attendees explored three breakout sessions of their choice, where they received firsthand information from staff, coaches, boosters, and students about various programs.

Classrooms hosted personalized sessions featuring Costa sports teams, academic programs, and MBX Summer School. Forty-two sessions were offered, including Model United Nations (MUN), Girls Flag Football, Track and Field, Band/Winterguard, and Cheer, among others.

Mira Costa hosts two This is Costa events each school year. A big thank you to MBX and Costa PTSA for making this event possible!

MCHS Senior Ronan Curnyn Wins 1st Place in National Sailing Competition

Picture by Quinn Wilson

We want to wish a big congratulations to Ronan Curnyn on winning the 49erFX Nationals in Miami, a three-day race. According to an article written by ussailing.org, the championship title came down to the final race with four teams competing for the title. Ronan and his teammate, Logan Mraz, won with 20 points on the USA 8 sail.

The 49erFX is a high-performance, two-person, skiff sailboat, making this win an impressive achievement.