DUSD NEWSLETTER: MARCH 2019
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DUSD DISPATCH
MARCH 2019 NEWSLETTER
LEADERSHIP UPDATES
Earlier this week, the Board of Trustees issued a letter regarding the district's separation from our former Superintendent and the plan to initiate a process to find and interim and permanent replacement. That letter, and future updates regarding this process, can be found at the following link:  http://bit.ly/DUSD-Sup-Search
NEGOTIATIONS UPDATE
Weekly district updates regarding the status of labor negotiations can be found at the following link: http://bit.ly/DUSD-Labor-Update
FUTURE HIGH SCHOOL UPDATE : On March 21, DUSD held its first parent input meeting with architect David Iwanaga of SIM-PBK as part of the design process for the future Dublin high school. It was a very productive session resulting in a number of promising design ideas. Mr. Iwanaga will return this Thursday to meet with a variety of DUSD staff members to begin gathering their input about desirable design features of specific school spaces, including classrooms, athletic facilities, food service, technology, and more. A second community forum was held on March 28 at Fallon Middle School. During the meeting, attendees were provided with an overview of the design process and timeline. Afterward, participants were invited to view maps of the property as well as the program priorities and design features generated in earlier meetings by parents and staff. Participants were given the opportunity to highlight programs and design features that align with their own priorities and also provide new suggestions. More info at: http://bit.ly/DUSD-Future-HS-Updates
RALLY FOR PUBLIC EDUCATION FUNDING: The East Bay Coalition for Public Education a coalition of Union Leaders, Superintendents, School Board Presidents, and families working together to advocate for increased funding for education. Join them for a rally in Sacramento on April 3. See their video here: https://youtu.be/t6FOLfusKNM
SUMMER SCHOOL: The Dublin Unified School District Summer School program is designed for students who are academically at risk. The K-8 program is designed for remediation of skills prior to returning to school in the fall. The High School (9-12) program provides opportunities for credit recovery. Your K-5 student requires a teacher recommendation to be accepted. Middle school students require a counselor or teacher recommendation. High school students require counselor recommendation. For more information on Summer School, go to http://bit.ly/DUSD-Summer19
2019 CLASSIFIED SCHOOL EMPLOYEE OF THE YEAR: On Thursday, March 28, 2019, the District announced that Custer Rodriguez has been named the 2019 Classified School Employee of the Year. Custer has been with the Dublin Unified for over 16 years and serves as a Network & Technology Coordinator for the district. He is responsible for the DUSD network, working quietly behind the scenes to make sure every student and staff member has a safe, secure and speedy network experience. If you reflect for a moment on the simple statement “Custer is responsible for the DUSD network,” you begin to understand the enormous responsibility he carries. Every student, every staff member, and, every community member that steps onto a Dublin campus has the unconscious expectation of an internet connection. Custer brilliantly manages these expectations daily.  
Thank you, Custer, for everything you do for DUSD!
GOLDEN GATE STEM FAIR GRAD PRIZE: A dozen Dublin High School students recently traveled to Sausalito to competed in the Golden Gate STEM Fair, an annual event intended to celebrate the excellent research completed by students in the San Francisco Bay Area. Dublin High Junior, Aarthi Muthukumar, was named a Grand Prize winner. For more information on her project (An Interdisciplinary Approach to Deforestation and Lung Disease: Using Photovoltaic Systems to Build Low-Cost Solar Cookers) and other Dublin student successes at the event, go to  http://bit.ly/DHS-AM-GGSF
CHEMISTRY OLYMPIAD: The American Chemical Society National Chemistry Olympiad recently held its local competitions, the first step in the U.S. National Chemistry Olympiad. DHS Junior, Tracy Zhao, was selected as a runner-up/alternate. She's on the bubble, and if one of the Northern California finalists can't participate, she will go to the National Exam at Santa Clara University on April 27. Special thanks to Brad Vereen, Jeanne Morgan, and Mitsuke Bude for helping Tracy and our other chemistry students learn, grow, and achieve such great results. More info at http://bit.ly/DHS-TZ-Chem
FRED LAUNCHES ONE SCHOOL ONE BOOK: Frederiksen Elementary recently launched its One School One Book program, as a schoolwide literacy project, initiated by Teacher of The Year, Catherine Brown. For Frederiksen Elementary, One School One Book means that the entire school community, including support staff and families, are reading the same book at the same time to have a shared experience. Classrooms are interacting in person or through technology to discuss ideas in the book. Extension activities such as art and STEM projects have also been completed. The school secured funding from the Frederiksen PFC for the first book, a picture book called After the Fall, which it read in February. The site is now reading a chapter book titled A Boy Called Bat, thanks to funding from the Rotary Club. The goal is to expand this project next school year to include all Dublin elementary schools. 
TUPE PEER EDUCATION PROGRAM: During the March 12 Board meeting, the Tobacco Use Prevention Education (TUPE) program was highlighted. The goal of the program is to reduce youth tobacco use by helping young people make healthy decisions about tobacco, e-cigarettes, and pod-based systems (such as JUULs) through research-validated educational instruction and activities. Through presentations, events and classroom discussions, members of TUPE Peer Education Program deliver healthy decision making messages at secondary schools throughout the district. Thanks to this growing group of students that are working to make Dublin schools a healthier place!
DUBLIN TO DECA: In early March, two thousand students participated in DECA's California State Career Development Conference in Anaheim, Ca. Twenty-six of those were from Dublin High. Ten DHS team members placed within the top four of their competitive event category earning an invitation to compete at DECA's International Career Development Conference (ICDC) next month (April) in Orlando, Florida. Over 20,000 students will compete at the Orlando event. Go Gaels! Go Tri-Valley ROP! Read more at   http://bit.ly/DHS-DECA
DHS TEAMS WITH AVHS: Dublin High video production students teamed up with Amador Valley High School to produce their Every 15 Minutes movie, a short film on the hazards of drinking and driving. NBC Bay Area not only covered the news but also participated in the production. Great work DHS video production students and their teacher, Michael D'Ambrosio! To see the full video visit  https://youtu.be/omSfbADHd3s
TRI-VALLEY SELPA MAKE A DIFFERENCE AWARDS: The “Make a Difference” Awards were established by the Tri-Valley SELPA to celebrate individuals who have gone “above and beyond” to make a difference in the life of a special education child. If you know someone that has made a difference in a special education student, download the award submission and nominate them by April 19, 2019. 
SPELLING BEE CHAMP: Congratulations to local "Spellebrity" Anisha Rao for winning the Alameda County Junior High Spelling Bee on March 16. Her next stop is the State Junior High Spelling Bee which will take place on May 4, 2019, at Miller Creek Middle School in San Rafael. Good luck Anisha!
THE PAJAMA GAME: The Dublin High School Drama Department is bringing The Pajama Game to the Center for Performing Arts & Entertainment. Performances are scheduled for April 19 (7PM), April 20 (2&7PM), April 25 (7PM), April 26 (7PM), and April 27 (7PM). Tickets are $20/$15 w/student ID. Purchase online at  http://bit.ly/DHS-PajamaGame

Conditions at the Sleep-Tite Pajama Factory are anything but peaceful as sparks fly between new superintendent, Sid Sorokin, and Babe Williams, leader of the union grievance committee. Their stormy relationship comes to a head when the workers strike for a 7 ½ cent pay increase, setting off not only a conflict between management and labor, but a battle of the sexes as well. This perennial favorite is a surefire crowd-pleaser and a glowing example of solid, classic musical comedy.
SUBSTITUTE TEACHERS NEEDED : Dublin Unified is always looking for additional classroom substitutes! If you have a bachelor's degree and would like to work with some amazing students, please apply! Substitute Teacher Application
COMMITTEE VACANCIES: Are you interested in serving your community? The Dublin Unified School District currently has vacancies on the Citizens' Bond Oversight Committee and the Parcel Tax Oversight Committee. For more information, visi t http://bit.ly/2EhcT40
ACALERT: Get alerted about emergencies and other important community information by signing up for the AC Alert System. This system provides subscribers with critical information quickly in a variety of situations, such as earthquakes, fires, severe weather, unexpected road closures, missing persons and evacuations of buildings or neighborhoods. You can select to receive notifications for your home city, work location, and other sites of your choice on your home, mobile or business phones, email address, text messages and more. AC Alert is a unified system for Alameda County residents, businesses, and visitors. More information at: https://www.acgov.org/emergencysite/
SPECIAL BOARD MEETING APRIL 1: During a Special Board Meeting on April 1, t he Board will discuss the process to be used in selecting an executive search firm to assist in hiring a new superintendent for Dublin Unified. Open session will begin at 7PM. Did you know all Board meetings are streamed live at DublinUSD.TV and archived on the District website at http://bit.ly/DUSD-Board-Vid ? Special Board meetings are also captured. We recently started posting summary reports from each regular board meeting, those can be found at http://bit.ly/DUSD-Board-Buzz
WETIP ANONYMOUS CRIME/THREAT REPORTING: DUSD has a relationship with WeTip, a service that allows people to share anonymous tips about potential threats or crimes at Dublin schools and facilities. That information is shared with local law enforcement and district officials and responded to immediately. You can share information anonymously online http://www.wetip.com or over the phone 1-800 732-7463 
DO YOU HAVE A TIP?:  Is there is a great story you think we should know about? If so, send us the lead. Include a few sentences of background information and some photos. We can't guarantee we'll cover it (don't take it personally, there is a lot going on in a district with 12K students and just over 1K staff) but we'd love to know. Email your tip to " communications@dublinusd.org ."
IMPORTANT DATES:
  • April 1-5: Spring Break
  • April 1: Special Board Meeting
  • April 9: Board Meeting
  • April 23: Board Meetin
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