Acceleration East High School
Community Brief
Thursday, June 6, 2019
   
With Kennelyth Colon Rivera (left) and Yicsia Cepero 
Collisions definitely have a negative connotation. When we get into an auto accident, perhaps we have to bring our car to a collision repair shop. When we hear about meteoric collisions in space, we think about possible catastrophic consequences of such an occurrence. Will a meteor collide with earth?

Collisions are simply an exchange of energy.

We never think about collisions in a positive sense. In his book, The Culture Code, author Daniel Coyle profiles Zappos Founder and CEO Tony Hsieh. In building the culture for Zappos, Hsieh focused on the interpersonal collisions and how that changes interpersonal dynamics in the workplace, how it sparks creativity, improves the product (in this case customer service), and how it helps spur innovation. Ultimately, these collisions improve the culture of the company.

We talk about collisions as touch points. Sounds much more positive and gentler, doesn't it? However, collisions is more apropos. We want teachers and students to transfer their knowledge, experiences and opinions among each other through interaction. It is funny that "collisions" cannot occur via social media or texting. They can only occur through unfiltered, original personal interaction. The strength of a school's culture is in its students and teachers. Therefore, maybe we need to embrace the collisions on campus more by deterring the silos created by cell phones, thus enriching everyone's experience.   

I hope your summer is off to a great start! 

With Phoenix Pride,   
 
Mr. Doug Loftus
Pictured very top and just below: Pictured at lunch break, our summer school program is well underway!



Summer Reading







2019-2020 Calendar


Summer Lunch
 


This summer, Orange County Public Schools Food & Nutrition Services is touring the county to offer meals at no charge to children and young adults ages 18 and under.

Monday through Friday, from June 4 through August 3*, a food truck, van and bus will visit the library system's Hiawassee, Edgewater, Chickasaw, North Orange, South Creek, South Trail, and Washington Park branches. Follow up your lunch with fun Summer Reading Program events inside the library!

* There will be no service on July 4.
  • Chickasaw Branch: 11 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
  • Edgewater Branch: 11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
  • Hiawassee Branch: 11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
  • South Creek Branch: 11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
  • South Trail Branch: 1 - 2 p.m.
  • Washington Park Branch: 1 - 2 p.m.
  • North Orange Branch: 1:15 - 2:15 p.m.
Rising Senior Class of 2020 - Summer Tips
Students leave on the last bus out heading into a well earned summer break, May 29, 2019.
1. Ask teachers to write recommendations.  Don't wait until the last minute! Generally, they need at least 4 weeks before your deadline, usually in Sept/Oct, and it is helpful to provide your resume. Reach out to them over the summer!

2. Create or continue to update your resume listing all of your extracurricular activities, honors and work experience - be sure to quantify (how many hours a week for how many weeks a year, for how many years).  This will be a great aid for your teachers and school counselor in writing their recs, as well as a helpful aid when you fill out your applications.

3. Retake ACT or SAT if needed. Take advantage of free test prep through Khan Academy, or through the ACT website (follow ACT on Twitter).

4. Narrow down your list of colleges. Obtain application, scholarship, and financial aid info from each.  Note options such as Early Action (non-binding) or Early Decision (binding).

5. Make a master calendar and checklist. Note test dates, fees, deadlines for admissions, scholarship and financial aid applications, transcripts, test scores, etc.

6. Work on your college admissions essays. The College Board website offers tips: https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/get-in/essays/tips-for-writing-an-effective-application-essay-college-admissions Your English teacher will likely start off the year helping fine tune as well.

7. Start/continue researching and applying for scholarships.  

8. Get a job, job shadow/internship or volunteer! Especially if you're seeking to apply for Bright Futures! Speak to your counselor in advance about the service you are seeking to get credit for.

9. Make sure you finish strong this year and stay strong your senior year. Colleges DO care about the classes you take Senior year and they'll want to see your grades at mid-year and final transcripts. Senioritis has caused some acceptances to be rescinded.
Avoiding the "Summer Slide"
* Despite conventional wisdom, six in 10 children ages 6-17 agree "I really enjoy reading books over the summer" (62%), with the main reasons being "I just enjoy reading" and "It's a fun way to  pass the time."

* On average, kids read eight (8) books over the summer; however, one in five 12-17-year-olds and one in five kids in lower-income families did not read any books at all last summer.

* Nearly half of parents with children ages 6-17 (48%) have heard of the "summer slide," with lower-income parents far less likely to have heard of this (38%).

* An overwhelming nine in ten kids say they are more likely to finish a book they picked out themselves.

* Regardless of ethnicity, socioeconomic level, or previous achievement, children who read four (4) or more books over the summer fare better on reading comprehension tests in the fall than their peers who read one or no books over the summer.

* Teachers typically spend between four to six weeks reteaching material that students have forgotten over the summer.

* It's estimated that the summer slide accounts for as much as 85% of the reading achievement gap between lower-income students and their middle- and upper-income peers.

* Third-graders who can't read on grade level are four times less likely to graduate by age 18 than a proficient reader.
 
Source: Scholastic  

Welcoming New Staff for 2019-2020!
Meet Ms. Irizarry and Mr. Barcelo
Our new media clerk is Erica Irizarry and our new uniform security guard is Erik Barcelo. Erica is coming from Timber Springs Middle and Erik is coming from Robinswood Middle. We are proud to have them as part of our Acceleration East family!
 
 
Ms. Irizarry (media clerk) and Mr. Barcelo (security guard)
 
New! Skyward Program
OCPS has a new student information system coming later this summer. The new Skyward system will replace ProgressBook. (Details on the OCPS website this summer here.)
 
 
 
 
 
Closing Images for this Week
Acceleration East High School remembers those that fell on D-Day, 75 years ago today . . .
 
Normandy Invasion, June 1944
Troops crouch inside a LCVP landing craft, just before landing on Omaha Beach on D-Day, 6 June 1944.


 Members of the U.S. Navy plant flags at the graves of U.S. soldiers at Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial, 6 June, 2019 - 75 years later to the day.

Animated US Flag
 
 
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Copyright Notice
Reproduction of this material, either written or electronically, including the general layout, graphics, analyses, and content topics without the express approval of Target Performance Systems, Inc., a Florida corporation, and OCPS - Acceleration East High School is forbidden without written consent.  Thank you for your support of the Orange County Public Schools and especially Acceleration East High School. Please contact douglas.loftus@ocps.net (principal) with any questions or for further information.