October 12, 2017
IN THIS ISSUE
UPCOMING EVENTS
Oct. 9-13
Fall Break - NO SCHOOL
Oct. 18
SUSD Police Department Fall 2017 Open House; 
Oct. 19

Oct. 20
PARENT  TIP
Being Tardy Takes a Toll
Missing school-even part of a day-can have long-term effects on your child's academic achievement. Effects such as:
  • Low grades. Students who arrive after class begins miss important elements of a lesson.
  • Poor communication. Tardy students often miss hearing announcements and updates from the teacher. They may also miss hearing about homework assignments.
  • Loss of valuable learning time for all. A student's late arrival affects more than the tardy student. It affects everyone in the classroom as the teacher takes a few minutes to get the student caught up.
If your child is frequently tardy:
  • Monitor your child's sleep. If your child frequently oversleeps, then you may need to establish an earlier bedtime.
  • Make mornings go smoothly. Give your child an alarm clock. If necessary put it across the room so your child will have to get up to turn it off. Allow plenty of time for using the bathroom, eating breakfast and gathering items for school.
  • Ask for help. If family problems interfere with getting your child to class on time, make an appointment to talk with your child's teacher.
PHOTO GALLERIES
El Dorado and PYA Display Pinwheels for Peace


Students at  Primary Years Academy  and El Dorado Elementary celebrated International Day of Peace by creating and hanging pinwheels along the school fence after enjoying a kick-off event led by a representative from  Assemblymember Susan Eggman 's office. 

Franklin High School Competes for First Time in a Decade


The Franklin High School Marching Band competed in their first competition in 10 years on Saturday, September 30! 


PYA Holds Literacy Night


Primary Years Academy had a great time hosting Literacy Night for students and their families! The western-themed event also featured other activities, such as ring and bean bag tosses. 

"Get in the Game- READ" Program Launched in Five SUSD Schools

Stockton Unified School District is proud to partner with the Stockton Heat and the Office of Mayor Michael Tubbs to launch the "Get in the Game- READ" program in five SUSD schools!

During this "Reading Face-off" challenge, 2nd grade 
students at Hamilton, Monroe, Van Buren, Taft, and Fremont elementary schools will "score a goal" for each book they read between now and the middle of March. All participating students will receive free tickets to the April 14th Stockton Heat game and the winning school will go down on the ice to be honored. Stockton Heat hockey players will be visiting schools twice a month during the challenge to read to students.

"I am happy that Hamilton School was selected to be part of the Stockton Heat Literacy Program," said Hamilton Principal Mary Pedraza. "It is exciting when the community partners with schools and invests in our students. Our students are looking forward to reading and interacting with the Stockton Heat players."

Thank you to Stockton Heat CEO Brian Petrovek for coming up with this idea and for showing SUSD such support.

The scoreboard is updated every month and can be viewed online at 
www.stocktonheat.com/read. Best of luck to our schools!

1852 Foundation Fundraising Campaign
The SUSD 1852 Foundation has launched a fundraising campaign to raise money for the foundation's teacher grant program aimed at helping schools pay for extra curricular activities that advance student achievement.

This year the Foundation holds its second annual Casino Night on October 20 at the Stockton Golf and Country Club starting at 6 p.m. The event honors Rio Calaveras teacher Jennifer Duren, who led her Academic Pentathlon team to a national win last spring. Participation in those kinds of programs inspire success and enhance learning.

The 1852 Foundation is so-named for the year Stockton council leaders donated money out of their own pockets to start the first public school district in the region, SUSD! Today the district serves 38,000 students in 54 schools located throughout the city.

The foundation is governed by a board and includes a working subcommittee. The not-for-profit organization maintains a savings account with Community Foundation of San Joaquin and distributes about $20,000 annually to teachers for programs that advance academic achievement.

To RSVP for this year's Casino Night, make a donation or learn more, call Dianne Barth or Veronica Lynch at 933-7025.

Amani Children's Choir Returns to August Elementary

The Amani Children's Choir from Kampala, Uganda raised their voices and everyone's spirits when they returned to August Elementary School to perform earlier this month. It's been two years since the choir, made up of fifteen children ages 10-16, last visited the school.

Students clapped and swayed along to the choir's rhythmic dancing, singing and drumming performances, which included a beautiful rendition of the U.S. National Anthem and a routine performed for Africa's King. August students were also invited to the stage to dress in costumes and learn how to dance and play drums.

The choir visits were made possible by sixth-grade August teacher Michelle Soggs, who formed a relationship with the choir on one of her visits to Uganda. The first visit was to thank August Elementary for raising money to help a village about an hour from Kampala build a well for fresh water.

The Amani Children's Choir is a ministry of the Kampala Community Church and Light Africa Ministries that travels around the world singing songs of praise and love. The choir raises awareness of the needs of children in Africa, raises funds and provides training for the choir members. The choir is currently touring the U.S. to raise awareness of their projects and money to build a girls' dormitory at their school so that the students are safe. To learn more about the Amani Children's Choir, please visit www.amanichoir.org.

View video of choir performance >
Bush Wears Pink for Support

Bush Elementary students and staff held a "Pink Day" during spirit week to honor Breast Cancer Awareness Month and their principal's battle with it. Last year before Thanksgiving, Bush Elementary Principal Youlin Aissa told her staff that she had been diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer. Every Wednesday after that, staff wore pink to show their support. Students sent pink cards and asked to also wear pink on Wednesdays to show their support, thus forming "Ms. Aissa's Pink Army."

"There were many people who were praying for me and supporting me, how could I go wrong?" Aissa said. "I just put my head down and did what I had to do and trusted that God was carrying me through. And here I am."

In January, Aissa had a double mastectomy procedure, followed by five months of chemotherapy. She  returned to work July 25 and went straight into radiation for six weeks. As of today, her hair is growing back and follow-up scans show she is cancer-free. Our best wishes for Ms. Aissa and bravo  to her Pink Army for always showing their support!

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
Parent Empowerment Upcoming Workshops

By: SUSD Parent/Community Empowerment Department
_______________________________

RAD Parent Academy 
In the RAD classes, parents learn how to:
  • Make an Academic Success Plan to prepare their student for college.
  • Become partners with their students' teachers and the school.
  • Motivate their student to do his or her best.
  • Encourage good homework and study skills.
  • Communicate effectively with their student.
  • Establish and maintain firm, fair and consistent discipline.
  • Make sure their student develops excellent reading skills ... and more! 
Registration is required to attend/Space is limited!

Time: 8:15 a.m. - 9:45 a.m.
Date: Thursdays, October 19th, 26th, - November 2nd, 9th and 16th, 2017 
Register here  or by phone: Stephanie Zulueta (209) 933-7470 ext. 2228

Reading for Success Parent Workshop

In the Reading for Success class, parents will:
  • Learn the importance of building reading skills for lifelong learning and success.
  • Learn how to encourage a love of reading.
  • Learn ways to boost your child's literacy skills.
Registration is required to attend/Space is limited!
 
Time : 7:45 a.m. - 9:00 a.m.
Date: Wednesday, October 18, 2017 
Register here  or by phone: Stephanie Zulueta (209) 933-7470 ext. 2228
 
Empowering parents in Influencing 
their children (E.P.I.C.)

Be an EPIC Parent: 

Stockton Unified School District's Educationally Related Mental Health Services (ERMHS) presents: a four week parent training program designed specifically for parents and caregivers of strong-willed or out-of-control children and is available to parents of all students attending  SUSD schools.

Victory School  - Tuesdays 9-11am, October 17 - November 7, 2017

For more information, please contact:
- Monica Radoc, LCSW
209.933.7120x2502 

 
- Justin Sunseri, LMFT 
209.933.7120x2589 
Fall 2017 Open House: Trunk-or-Treat!

By: SUSD Police Department
_______________________________

All SUSD students and their families are invited to attend the Stockton Unified Police Department's annual Fall Open House and Trunk-or-Treat on October 16 from 4pm-6pm! Mo re than 200 attended the fun event last year to tour of the department, including the mobile emergency unit, visit with the officers, see demonstrations by the K9 Officers and get Halloween candy. We hope you will join us this year!
W ant your news in the next issue of SUSD Connects? Email your stories and events to the SUSD Connects team at  susdconnect@stocktonusd.net ! Due to space limitations, we may not be able to share all of the news we receive, but we will do our best to share it with as many people as possible. Thank you!