Saddleback Valley Unified School District
Newsletter
May 4, 2018
SVUSD Announces
Congratulations to the
2018
Classified Employees of the Year!
Kendra Taylor - Secretary, Mission Viejo High School
Office / Technical Classified Employee
Kelly Roberts - Animal Care Custodian, Trabuco Elmentary
Maintenance/Operations/Facilities Classified Employee
Alinda Togashi - Library Media Clerk, Cielo Vista Elementary
Para Educator / Instructional Aid Classified Employee
The following employees were the nominees for their school/district site as Classified Employees of the Year:

Tama Adams - Valencia Elementary
Cindy Arnold - Lomarena Elementary
Christina Belida - Esperanza Education Center
Debbie Butler - Del Cerro Elementary
Cindy Cathcart - Laguna Hills High
April Cherry - Del Lago Elementary
Amanda Coats - District Office
Joy Dean - La Paz Intermediate
Renee Derakhshanian - Lake Forest Elementary
Lynda Flynn - Trabuco Hills High
Sahar Gholizadeh - Olivewood Elementary
Kathy Herritt - Santiago Elementary
Christy Keller - Trabuco Mesa Elementary
Linda Knifsend - Serrano Intermediate
Leslie Lyons - Montevideo Elementary
Sophia Maghy - Gates Elementary
Sheila Mansour - Melinda Heights Elementary
Armando Medina - Robinson Elementary
Blas Miranda - Glen Yermo Elementary
Matt Pignone - Los Alisos Intermediate
Jane Pinniger - Rancho Santa Margarita Intermediate
Cindy Porras - La Tierra ECC
Jaime Rios - Maintenance & Operations
Kelly Roberts - Trabuco Elementary
Alison Rose - Cordillera Elementary
Cookie Rustigian - Portola Hills Elementary
Kendra Taylor - Mission Viejo High
Nasra Tobey - Nutrition Center
Alinda Togashi - Cielo Vista Elementary
Holly Vergho - Rancho Canada Elementary
Anne Wieghaus - El Toro High
Janice Zintgraff - Linda Vista Elementary
School Information
Orange County Artist of the Year Finalist
Congratulations to Devoree Shields of Mission Viejo High School for being selected as the Acting Finalist for the 2018 Artist of the Year program. Finalists and winners were announced on April 22, and an OC Register article highlighting Devoree is viewable through the following link:


Devoree had previously been chosen as a semi-finalist in the competition, along with Ben Sellers of Mission Viejo High School (Vocal Music), and Hannah Kantoris of El Toro High School (3D Visual Arts).
Rube Goldberg Competition
Twenty elementary schools competed in the 2nd Annual Rube Goldberg competition and sent teams to the district finals at the SVUSD STEAM Expo on March 24th at Laguna Hills High School. The challenge this year was to pour a bowl of cereal (no milk) with a complicated number of steps. The families of over 260 students were invited to attend the event and celebrate their students' innovation and design process. The gym at LHHS was buzzing with excitement as student teams competed and cheered on their friends. Congratulations to all for their participation and perseverance! This was truly a team effort amongst principals, instructional coaches, teachers, and families in order to showcase such student innovation.

The winning teams were:

3th & 4th Grade - Machine Building - Melinda Heights Elementary
Mitchell Berg / Grant Jacobson / Sophia Moran /   Chloe Shelton

5th & 6th Grade - Machine Building - Portola Hills Elementary
Sarah Lau / Sammy Ornelas / Krista Price / Sophia Pagan

3th & 4th Grade - Blueprint Drawing - Cordillera Elementary
Dylan McKeown / Josue Lagunas Rodriguez / Zoe Barcenas / Valeria Barreto / Emanuel Nunez

5th & 6th Grade - Blueprint Drawing - Melinda Heights Elementary
Daniel Grossgold / Adam Klinge / Om Darji
Esperanza Pancake Breakfast
On April 22nd, the Esperanza Education Center students and staff hosted their annual pancake breakfast, which also serves as a fundraiser for the school. Guests enjoyed a pancake breakfast, musical entertainment, were able to shop from local vendors, and participate in a silent auction. This year's proceeds will go toward improving Esperanza's garden and outdoor learning space. A big thank you to everyone that was able to help support this wonderful event!
Lomarena Elementary Receives PAL Award
Congratulations to Lomarena Elementary School's PAL students and staff for being recognized as having a 2018 "Outstanding PAL Program" by the Orange County Department of Education (OCDE)! PAL stands for Peer Assistance Leadership, and is a " school-based, peer-to-peer youth development program for students in grades 4-12 built upon a philosophy of students helping students. PAL peer leaders help build a positive school climate through youth leadership, mentoring, conflict resolution, cross-age teaching, peer helping, service learning, and prevention activities.”
 
OCDE Staff presented the award to Lomarena PAL students and their coordinator, fourth grade teacher Molli Patterson, on April 23 at the Lomarena PRIDE assembly. 
de Portola Elementary Chalkfest
On April 24th, de Portola Elementary students and volunteers participated in their 3rd Annual Chalkfest. The students worked hard on their class images, and the finished products were on display during Open House on April 25th. The event is a wonderful way for students to use their creativity and also gives them an opportunity to collaborate with their peers to create amazing artwork. This powerful tradition also encourages arts appreciation and community relationships. The finished products are truly unbelievable, and below are a few examples from the 17 class images that were created.
SVUSD Board of Education Highlights
At the April 12th Board of Education meeting, the Board recognized and presented certificates to several SVUSD students and faculty in honor of their outstanding accomplishments. The "Every Student Succeeding" award recipient, High School National Merit Finalists, and the 2018 SVUSD Teachers of the Year were all honored. Many of the recipients have been highlighted in previous SVUSD newsletters, and those stories may be accessed through the following links:


Every Student Succeeding recipient, Danielle Azua
SVUSD Teachers of the Year
National Merit Finalists
Educational Opportunity Offered by the Orange County Sheriff's Department
Parenting in the Digital
VAPING WORLD
"Vaping and marijuana are BIG BUSINESS, and our kids are the target. The drug culture is perpetuated by social media as well as EASY ONLINE ACCESS to vape devices, "vape juice," and other liquefied drugs. Whether you are a parent, relative, or neighbor, we invite you to learn about this FAST GROWING trend and what you can do to help our children stay drug-free."

Tuesday, May 22, 2018
6:30 pm - 8:00 pm
Las Flores Middle School
25862 Antonio Parkway, Las Flores
(Free for all to attend)

Suitable for kids and parents to attend together

Speaker for the evening: Sergeant Clayton Cranford

Clayton Cranford is an Orange County Sheriff's Department Sergeant and supervises the Community Drug Education Program. Clayton is one of the nation's leading law enforcement educators on social media, child safety, and behavioral threat assessments. Clayton is the author of the definitive book on cyber safety for families, "Parenting in the Digital World." He has also authored several articles for the Journal of School Safety. His experiences as a School Resource Officer and a School Threat Assessment professional makes his training timely, relevant, and impactful.
Upcoming Events
May 28
June 14
Memorial Day (District closed)
Last Day of School
Board of Education Information
Superintendent
Dr. Crystal Turner

Board of Trustees

President
Amanda Morrell

Vice President
Suzie R. Swartz

Clerk
Dr. Edward Wong

Members
Dolores Winchell
Dennis Walsh

Student Board Member
Daniel Choi
The Saddleback Valley Unified School District Board of Trustees encourages community members to attend and participate in its business meetings whenever possible.

Closed session board business is typically conducted at 5:00 p.m. followed by open session business typically beginning at 6:00 p.m. Meetings are held in the SVUSD Education Center Board Room located at 25631 Peter A. Hartman Way, Mission Viejo.