ACLC Newsletter October 2017 


Special Notices:
Close Up Fundraiser Oct 3rd
&
Nea/ACLC College Night Oct 5th
(See details below)
From the Lead Facilitator
Hello ACLC Community!
 
We have had an exciting and productive first six weeks of school!
 
We started this year with many new faces on campus, both adults and learners. I'm happy to say that the overwhelming majority of these new community members have been settling in well, and coming up to speed on the many strong traditions that ACLC proudly boasts.
 
I personally have loved watching the democratic tradition and sense of shared ownership as we work to make the Center a more productive and inclusive space. Learners are taking the charge to help refine the system, upperclassmen are working with the younger learners to teach them the "ACLC way", and facilitators are working to ensure that everyone is working on growing academically or socially!
 
I also wanted to take a minute to thank everyone that has made the start of this year so successful. CAP and CCEF did an incredible job hosting Back to School Night. Our facilitators have universally been the wonderful combination of hard working and flexible, approaching every little thing that has come up with a great attitude and sense of purpose that has spread to the learners. I have been most appreciative of the learners, who work every day to not only further their own ambitions, but the school's as well.
 
Jeremy Goodreau
Lead Facilitator
ACLC 

ACLC's Hurricane Outreach



Dear amazing ACLC team,

Last week, Puerto Rico was hit by one of the most powerful hurricanes ever recorded in the Atlantic - losses are expected to be massive. The unprecedented destruction has knocked out access to power, water, communications, and roads across the entire island. Authorities have described conditions as apocalyptic for the island's 3.4 million US citizens.

Because of the island's existing economic crisis, electricity and critical infrastructure will be down for months and many towns that have been washed away will take years to rebuild.

In a personal note, some of my family members had damages to their houses and/or work places, but there are lots of people that lost literally everything.

I'm sharing this to clarify the gravity of the situation and ask you for help. I've organized with fellow Puerto Ricans in the Bay Area to create #SF4PR & action steps you can help with:

  • Donate to ConPRmetidos : 100% of donations will go to sanctioned organizations doing on-the-ground and long-term work. We personally know the people behind ConPRmetidos and can vouch for its integrity and their commitment to Puerto Rico.
     
  • Spread the word : Help us reach others in the Bay Area by posting your support on social media with #SF4PR and sf4pr.com - our info hub. Here's a tweet & image for quick sharing: Join me in supporting Puerto Rico as it recovers from the devastation of Hurricane Maria. How to help: sf4pr.com #SF4PR
     
Your support would provide urgently-needed food, power, and building materials to the island - and would be greatly appreciated by our communities across the Bay Area and Puerto Rico.

Thank you all for your time and compassion,
Michelle Bonnelly, Speech-Language Pathologist

Admissions Dates Set
On October 17th, ACLC will open its Priority Application for the 17-18 school year. This application will be open until January 31st, when we will conduct our lottery. We will be mailing out flyers, putting up flyers around town, and taking out ads online and in print.
 
All of this pales in comparison to the power of your words and stories. I ask you all to tell your friends, families, and strangers you meet waiting in line at the grocery store about your wonderful experiences here. We will be hosting several information sessions and tours for future Hawks! Those dates are included below.
 
We are also still accepting applicants for this year. Please refer anyone with questions to Kira, Jeremy, or Dave. 



Site Tours.
All tours start promptly at 9 am.

Thursday, October 19, 2017
Thursday, November 16, 2017
Thursday, December 14, 2017
Thursday, January 18th, 2018
Thursday, February 15, 2018
Thursday, March 15, 2018
Thursday, April 19, 2018
Thursday, May 17, 2018

 
Family Info Sessions.
Middle school presentations 6:15 pm
High school presentations 6:45 pm

Tuesday, November 7, 2017
Tuesday, December 5, 2017
Tuesday, January 9, 2018
Tuesday, February 6, 2018
Tuesday, March 6, 2018
Tuesday, April 3, 2018
Tuesday, May 1, 2018

From the College Counselor
Please join both Nea and ACLC families at College Night on October 5th at 6 pm in the Nea Tree.
 
We are also happily preparing our juniors to take the NMQT/PSAT on October 11th. This exam allows learners to qualify for the National Merit Competition, which can lead to college acceptances and scholarships. All of our juniors will be studying hard in this last push before the test, and they need your encouragement! Wish them luck!



Hawks in the Community
About a week ago the front office received a call from a very grateful ACLC neighbor. She reported that two very kind ACLC learners helped her with spilled groceries outside the grocery store. She wanted the learners to know how much she appreciated their help and for the school community to know how impressed she was with our learners. Sometimes, it's the smallest things.
____
 
This year the Environmental Science class is partnering with Crab Cove in an ongoing study of biodiversity.  The Crab Cove Marine Protected Area was the first California estuary marine reserve.  Crab Cove has collected data for years, but does not have the personnel to analyze this data.  The Environmental Science class plans to conduct a resource inventory of marine life once a month.  At the end of the year we will be analyzing this data.  Over time the data may help Crab Cove better understand the health of this protected area.  One of the main concerns is the impact of human visitors to this protected environment.


Close Up
This year ACLC will be hosting its 4th annual 8th Grade DC trip the week of  March 25th. In the past 4 years, over 90 learners from ACLC have got to visit our nation's capital. If have an 8th grader and are interested in participating, please send an email to Daniel ( daniel.cabrales@alamedaclc.org)

This year we will be doing a group fundraiser night for the trip. Come in to the  Chipotle at  2610 Fifth Street  in Alameda on  Tuesday,October 3rd  between  5:00pm and 9:00pm . Bring in the flyer below, show it on your smartphone or tell the cashier you're supporting the cause to make sure that 50% of the proceeds will be donated to the 8th Grade families participating in the DC trip this year.


Hannah Camp
For well over a decade, as their senior project, ACLC seniors have planned, organized and run a three-day, two-night camping adventure at the beginning of the school year for incoming 6th-graders called "Hannah Camp."

This unique experience helps orient incoming sixth-graders and seventh-graders to the ACLC culture, create lasting friendships among our new learners, establish mentoring relationships between older and new learners, alleviate the anxiety associated with entering a new school, and gets the school year off to a great start.

Hannah Camp involves bonding over campfires, creating wacky skits, team-building exercises, nature hikes, spirited games and sports, friendship bracelet-making, and s'mores (of course!) and has become a beloved and honored tradition at ACLC.

This year, Hannah Camp will take place on October 19th and 20th. We are all excited to see our youngest and newest learners take part in this wonderful tradition!


CCEF Updates
CCEF has been busy!

Creative Community Education Foundation (CCEF) is a non profit which fund raises and then distributes monies to fund all of the wonderful ideas that our Learners and Facilitators have. This includes big projects like Graduation and the annual 8th Grade DC Trip, and smaller projects like contributions to Club activities, field trips, campus beautification, Eagle Scout projects, the lending library, and middle and high school sports.

We want to keep saying YES! But we need your help. 

CCEF has begun our Annual Fund Drive. Our goal is to raise $70,000 for 2017-2018. We need your help to make this happen. We are asking each ACLC family to donate $500. For those that can donate more please do! For those who can't quite get to that amount- we're greedy- every dollar helps! Please remember to check with you employer about matching. This year we will also be accepting stock donations (please talk to our Treasurer, Tony Steuer, at  toneysteuer1@me.com to make arrangements). You can write a check to CCEF and leave it with, or snail mail it to, the ACLC office, or you can visit us on-line. You can make a one time donation or a monthly contribution. Thank you for helping us to keep saying YES!

The CCEF meetings are open to the community. If you'd like to see democracy in action come to our next meeting on  October 25th at 6:45pm in The Center. We'd love to get you involved.

Save the Date! for the ACLC Annual Chili Cook off to be held on  March 3 at the Elks Lodge in Alameda. If you are interested in being part of the planning committee please email me at  jgbleecker@gmail.com. We are currently seeking event sponsors. If your company is interested in marketing to the 400 ACLC families and you want to support your Learners and Facilitators please let us know. We currently have the following available:  Ghost Pepper Sponsor  (2 available) $2,000 includes logo on marketing materials; event signage; acknowledgment on website, shout out at event and 5 event tickets.  Habanero Sponsor  (2 available) $500 includes logo on marketing materials; event signage; acknowledgment on website and 2 event tickets.  Jalapeno Sponsor  (4 available) $250 includes name on marketing materials; event signage; acknowledgment on website and 1 event ticket.  Chipotle Sponsor  (unlimited) $100 includes event signage; acknowledgment on website and 1 event ticket.

The ACLC/NEA Pancake Breakfast was held on September 16th. We had about 238 attendees representing both schools. It was a lovely way to spend a Saturday morning. Thank you to the volunteers- parents and Learners who rolled up their sleeves to set up, clean up, flip pancakes, take ticket money and more! Your efforts were truly appreciated by all. Thank you most to the Alameda chapter of the Masons and to Michael Wesley for their generosity in supporting ACLC and NEA.



Thank you for your support,

Juliette Bleecker, CCEF President 

Learning at ACLC
From labs, to field trips to SF, to salsa making (yum!), our learners have been busy both inside and out of the class. Here is a quick snapshot of what some of our classes have been up to:





Staff Update
We are pleased to announce that Laquita Jackson has accepted an offer to join the ACLC community. She comes to us from both a security and customer relations background, and we cannot be more excited to have her working with our learners and keeping our campus secure. She has already been working to meet all of our learners and get familiar with the ACLC vibe, and many community members have already commented about how wonderful she is to work with!
____

Unfortunately and unexpectedly, Mark Rabinovitz has resigned from his position as our 7th and 8th grade math facilitator. We were able to move quickly to secure a long-term sub for the position that has a positive prior history with our middle school math courses. He has brought a measure of stability to the situation as we look to find a
permanent solution.

We have had a few promising initial interviews, and are bringing our top candidates to campus in the first week of October. Both of these candidates have already shown a strong work ethic and high level of responsiveness in the interview process.

Color Run
If anyone is doing, or is interested in doing, the Bay Area Color Run, you can help out ACLC while you run! The color run is a 5k that also involves tossing chalk paint (similar to the Hindu celebration Holi), foam zones, and a dance party. You can use the promo code ALAMEDACENTER for a discount and donation to the school.



Stay Connected at ACLC
STAY INFORMED BY...

...attending a PAC Meeting
Alternating monthly meetings in the morning (8:30-10:30 am) in the art room of the Boys and Girls Club and evenings (6:45-8:45 pm) in the ACLC Center
(See PAC meeting schedule on  ACLC Master Calendar)
 
...joining the ACLC Listserv
Learners, Facilitators and Parents use the ACLC Listserv as an open forum to send announcements and requests to the whole ACLC community.
To add an email to the listserv, send a message from that email to:  listserv@netpals.lsoft.com.    
Put "SUBSCRIBE AACLC-L YourFirstName YourLastName" in the body of the message. No subject line necessary.
 
...Looking for "official" announcements from ACLC arriving in your email sent through Jupiter Grades
 
...Reading the ACLC e-newsletter (once or twice a month) also arriving in your email sent through Jupiter Grades 
...Watching for updates on the ACLC Facebook page. Click on the image below to follow us on Facebook!

Upcoming October Events


Tuesday - October 3, 2017
  • Chipotle Fundraise5:00 PM to 9:00 PM
 
Thursday - October 5, 2017
  • Online Registration Deadline for Nov 4 SAT Test
  • College Information Night 6:00 PM to 7:30 PM
 
Monday - October 9, 2017
  • Indigenous People's Day--NO SCHOOL 6:00 AM
  • Professional Development Day for Facilitators 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM
 
Tuesday - October 10, 2017
  • Volleyball: ACLC/Nea vs. Wood MS 4:00 PM to 5:00 PM
 
Friday - October 13, 2017
  • Healthy Lunch-Italian Goodness
 
Monday - October 16, 2017
  • PAC meeting 6:45 PM
 
Tuesday - October 17, 2017
  • ACLC Finance Meeting 3:30 PM
  • Volleyball: ACLC/Nea vs. Lincoln MS 4:00 PM to 5:00 PM
  • ACLC Board Meeting 6:30 PM
 
Wednesday - October 18, 2017
  • Hanna Camp 1:30 PM
*Depart-Wed. Oct. 18th @1:30
*Pick up at ACLC back parking lot
*Drop off: Anthony Chabot Regional Park-Hawkridge Group Campsite
 
Thursday - October 19, 2017
  • Hanna Camp Hanna Camp Family Potluck 6:00-7:30
  • School Picture Makeup Day POSTPONED: 11/2/17
  • School Site Tours 9:00 AM
  • Volleyball: ACLC/Nea vs.AoA 4:00 PM to 5:00 PM
  • ACLC Board Meeting 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM
 
Friday - October 20, 2017
  • Hanna Camp
*Pick-up - Hawkridge Campsite @12:30
*Drop off - ACLC parking lot @1:30
 
Wednesday - October 25, 2017
  • CCEF Board Meeting 6:45 PM to 9:00 PM
 
Monday - October 30, 2017
  • Independent PE Sept. hours due (15hrs)
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