Maya Lin School Celebrates Ally Week; AUSD Weekend Events! (Newsletter, May 2, 2019)

May 2, 2019

In This Issue

Maya Lin School Celebrates Ally Week

Make it an AUSD Weekend!

ASTI Students Win Competitions

Homework and Dress Code Surveys

Deadline Extended for Every Pronoun Belongs Here Poem and Poster Contest

Upcoming Events

Maya Lin School Celebrates Ally Week

Affirmation ribbons, loving messages in chalk, and student-led skits were all part of a week designed to celebrate and inspire allyship at Maya Lin School. Learn more about the school's activities here.

Make This an AUSD Weekend!

No need to leave the island this weekend! In the course of 24 hours you can: hear a free student concert in a park; watch a free student play in the Little Theater; attend a free student-organized event that will explore the experience of diversity in our community; and join AEF's annual "Salute to Education" event, which celebrates the wonderful people and programs in our school district! Your full itinerary is here.

ASTI Students Win Competitions

ASTI students placed in two competitions last month!

On April 6 , three ASTI students competed in the BioEHSC competition, a bioengineering high school competition at UC Berkeley. Hosted by the Bioengineering Honor Society, the competition requires small groups of students to design a bioengineering solution to counter a problem in medicine or biology.

ASTI students Saphia Nguyen, Nikhil Parikh, Pamela Quinsay, and Richard Jegers took 2nd place in the Medical Engineering division with their project of building a more affordable, accessible, and environmentally friendly prosthetic. Because the prosthetic is made of chitin from seafood waste and cellulose from plant waste, it is environmetally sustainable. And because it has interchangeable parts that allow for customization, it is also affordable to repair.

On April 12, ASTI sophomores Soeia Ng, Elvis Obiorah, and Vincent Gao placed in the League of Women Voters Speech Contest at College of Alameda. Each student presented a 6-minute speech on this year's question: "What would motivate young people to vote?" Soeia Ng was awarded first place and a $1,000 scholarship, and Elvis Obiorah received $500 for finishing second.

The celebrity judging panel consisted of Alameda Mayor Marilyn Ezzy Ashcraft, Judge Tara Flanagan of the Alameda County Superior Court, Gloria Chun Hoo, First Vice President of the League of Women Voters, and President Tim Karas of the College of Alameda.

Survey on Homework and Dress Code Policies

As part of its ongoing work on AUSD's Homework Policy and Student Dress Code, AUSD is asking parent/guardians to take a survey. Please take a few minutes to take this survey - and encourage your family members to take it, too!

For reference, our current Board Policy and Administrative Regulations as well as the drafts-in-progress for each policy are linked below. Also included below is a brief status update on the Homework Policy process.

The input gathered in the surveys will inform additional revisions to the policies recommended to the Board of Education. Thank you on behalf of all those that have worked over the past years on both of these areas !

Deadline Extended!

Every Pronoun Belongs Here

Poem and Poster Contest

The deadline for the LGBTQ Round Table's 7th annual poem and poster contest has been extended until May 20. The theme: Through your original art and writing show that whether you use she, he, they, ze, or hir pronouns, you are part of our community, a citizen, and we accept all citizens.

The contest is open to all AUSD students in grades 4 through 12. Contestants can write a poem, design a poster, or both. Awards will be given to winners grades 4-8 and 9-12. The overall winning poster will be displayed in AUSD schools and offices.

Submissions can be delivered or emailed to Susan Davis at the AUSD District Office (sdavis@alamedaunified,org) or to Gene Kahane at Books, Inc. on Park St ([email protected]). All entries must include: name, school, teacher, email, and phone number.