SAUSD E-Blast for August 18 , 2017
The weekly e-blast is designed to keep the Santa Ana Unified School District Community informed of district and educational information, recognitions, opportunities, and resources.  Please feel free to share with others  who  are not on the SAUSD distribution list.
SUPERINTENDENT DR. STEFANIE PHILLIPS TAKES PART IN OPERATION SCHOOL BELL 
Superintendent Dr. Stefanie Phillips, along with many other SAUSD volunteers, donated their time recently to the Santa Ana Assistance League's Operation School Bell campaign, which provides thousands of Santa Ana students with uniforms, shoes, undergarments, toiletries, and backpacks just in time for the new school year. "I'm so happy to be here to interact with our students and their parents in trying to make sure they get a good start to the new year. Thank you Assistance League for all you do for the families in Santa Ana," Dr. Phillips said in a new video about the philanthropic effort. To watch it, click here .
50,000 STUDENTS PROMISE TO STAY IN SCHOOL AND FOCUS ON THE FUTURE AS PART OF I PLEDGE CAMPAIGN 
 
SAUSD staff enthusiastically welcomed 50,000 students back to our campuses on August 14, 2017. The start of the 2017-18 school year also brought with it the launch of the District's new I Pledge campaign, which encourages students to stay in school until graduation day and to plan for the future. To learn more about how SAUSD students and teachers will meet these goals, click on this video. To read the Orange County Register's coverage of our I Pledge kick off event at Santiago Elementary School, click here.
SAUSD STUDENTS ATTEND COMPUTER SCIENCE BOOT CAMP ORGANIZED BY SANTA ANA HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATE
This summer, students from across SAUSD had the opportunity to learn about computer science at the Computer Science Boot Camp hosted at Santa Ana High School (SAHS) through Career Technical Education. The class was the brainchild of Christopher Camacho, a SAHS graduate who has just completed his first year of college at Tufts University, where he is studying computer engineering. Students learned about the fundamentals of computer science, visited the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, attended a weeklong cyber security program at Coastline College and more. To read more about the program, click here.
SPEECH AND DEBATE SUMMER ENRICHMENT CAMP BUILDS ON SUCCESSFUL FIRST YEAR  
 
About 180 students from the District's Speech and Debate program attended a special Summer Enrichment Camp at Santa Ana High School for five weeks to hone their presentation skills for the year ahead. The program, now in its second year, recently sent a team to the National Speech & Debate Tournament for the first time. Over the summer, students worked with some of the best coaches in the country to polish the performances they will give in the second year of the program. To watch a video about what students learned during the camp, click here.
NEW ARTICLE HIGHLIGHTS ACHIEVEMENT INSTITUTE OF SCIENTIFIC STUDIES
  
The Los Angeles Times has published a new story on the Achievement Institute of Scientific Studies, a college-to-career STEM program started by former Santa Ana High School teacher Paul Riordan that serves SAUSD students. Since its establishment in 1997, the program has had more than 150 students attend college, the article states. In addition, all participants have graduated from high school, with most of them living in Santa Ana. To read more, click here.  
SAFETY BULLETIN REGARDING THE GREAT AMERICAN SOLAR ECLIPSE  

On August 21, 2017, Santa Ana will be in the viewing path of the solar eclipse. This event is being called "The Great American Solar Eclipse," because it is the first time since 1918 that a solar eclipse will be visible on a path across the entire continental United States. Safety is very important to us. We will take all precautionary measures to make
this experience both safe and enjoyable. Through a generous donation from Google, 10,000 safety glasses will be provided to our intermediate schools and upper grades at our K-8 schools for students to view and learn about the eclipse. Schools hosting viewing events will send home parent permission slips. Homemade filters or ordinary sunglasses, even very dark ones, are not safe for looking at the sun. Students will not be permitted to look at the un-eclipsed or partially eclipsed sun through unfiltered cameras, telescopes, binoculars, or other optical devices, with or without glasses. For more safety tips, click here. 
CENTURY'S HIGHER EDUCATION CENTER AWARDED BROWN RUDNICK COMMUNITY RELATIONSHIP GRANT  
Century High School's Higher Education Center has been awarded the Brown Rudnick Community Relationship grant for a third consecutive year for nearly $70,000. "These funds will provide early college access for our students. They have funded grade level field trips, SAT and AP prep as well as family University workshops," said Principal Dr. Jonathan Swanson. "Because of our successful program outcomes, Brown Rudnick is committed to helping CHS students pursue higher education." ASB President Danny Alvarado added: "I am happy that the Brown Rudnick Law Firm supports students in our community and helps us get ready for college."
350 ATTEND SANTA ANA VALLEY HIGH SCHOOL ALUMNI PICNIC   
 
About 350 alumni reminisced about their high school days and marveled at the many positive changes taking place at Santa Ana Valley High School during the Santa Ana Valley High School Alumni Picnic, held August 12, 2017 at the Santa Ana Public Schools Sports Complex. Sponsored by the Santa Ana Valley High School Alumni Association, the event was attended by graduates from classes in the 1960s to the 2000s, said association president Alvin Alaman. To join the association, click here.
CALLING ALL SAUSD ALUMNI TO JOIN NEW SAUSD ALUMNI NETWORK 
The Santa Ana Unified School District is proud to launch the SAUSD Alumni Network to stay connected with our amazing alumni. If you graduated from any SAUSD school, please take 60 seconds to complete a short questionnaire so that we can keep you updated with current district information, reunions, and opportunities to give back. Please spread the word to other SAUSD Alumni to join by clicking here.
NEW ARTICLE HIGHLIGHTS ALUMNA'S CULTURALLY RESPONSIVE TEACHING METHODS 
The Orange County Register has published a new story highlighting fourth grade teacher Mayra Castro Orozco, who graduated from Saddleback High School and Cal State Fullerton. In it, Orozco explains why she uses culturally responsive teaching to reach her students. "I keep in mind that as a teacher, I was hired to advance my students' academic success and do so by leveraging their cultural identities and experiences and by promoting equity and social justice," she writes. To read the article, click here.
ADVANCED LEARNING ACADEMY TEACHER SEEKS TO WIN FREE IPADS FOR HER CLASS  
Stacy Kline, a teacher at Advanced Learning Academy, has entered Duolingo's Back to School Contest and is asking the SAUSD community to help her class win free iPads by voting for her cause online. "10 Duolingo iPads will allow my students to rotate through a New Language activity session during the regular school day enhancing their daily learning immensely," she writes. "Studying a second or third language has been shown to increase aptitude in all subject areas." To cast your vote, click here.  
SAUSD DEBUTS REVAMPED WEBSITE TO KICK OFF NEW SCHOOL YEAR  
SAUSD this week launched a more vibrant, user-friendly website design just in time for the start of the new school year. The redesigned homepage highlights District news, programs, events and videos showcasing the high caliber of teaching and learning that occurs daily in SAUSD. It also contains helpful links for parents to school menus, academic calendars, the Parent Portal and more. School web pages have also been redesigned with more room for campus news and videos, and individualized messages from our principals. Visit our site at www.sausd.us. 
BOARD HIGHLIGHTS     

The next Regular Meeting of the Board of Education will be held on Wednesday, August 23, 2017, at 6:00 p.m.

Members of the SAUSD Board of Education

John Palacio, President    
Valerie Amezua, Vice President  
Cecilia "Ceci" Iglesias, Clerk 
Alfonso Alvarez, Ed.D., Member 
Rigo Rodriguez, Ph.D, Member

     Dr. Stefanie P. Phillips, Superintendent
UPCOMING EVENTS 

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