A Pima County Collaboration
August/September 2021 | Issue 8
ASDB Hosts Superintendent to Discuss Mitigation Strategies

The Arizona State School for the Deaf and the Blind invited Superintendent Williams out to tour the campus and showcase the mitigation strategies they are using to keep students and staff healthy and safe.

"The students and staff from ASDB are inspiring & caring. They are shining examples of leaders with no boundaries. I was very impressed with their health center and the variety of mitigation strategies they are using to keep everyone safe. I learned so much during our tour and even got to shop at the student store. Thank you to ASDB for the inspiring tour!" - Superintendent Dustin Williams.

Thank you to ASDB for inviting us out. If you would like to have Superintendent Williams out to your school to see the successful mitigation strategies you have in place CLICK HERE to schedule a visit.

What does COVID quarantine mean for schools?

There is now a “quiz” for parents/guardians to see when their child can go back to school after COVID quarantine. You can access them in both English and Spanish.
New Diploma Recovery Program to Help Re-Engage Youth

The Pima County School Superintendent’s Office has teamed up with Grad Solutions to launch a new high school diploma recovery program.

The PCSS Diploma Recovery Program is a free statewide initiative designed for students between 16-21 who have been out of school for more than 30 days. There are approximately 18,000 young adults in Pima County and more than 100,000 in the state of Arizona who fit this criteria.

“This program is to help our students in need achieve their goals and receive their high school diploma. My first priority as Superintendent is to get students to re-enroll in their district, charter, or private school. If this is not an option, for whatever reason, we now have a program to help these students succeed. I am excited for the impact this program will have in our community and around the state,” said Pima County School Superintendent Dustin Williams.

Register Your School for Walk 'N' Roll to School Week, Oct. 4-8

Calling all Pima County Schools! Join us for Walk 'N' Roll to School Week October 4-8. The purpose of this event is to promote active ways to get to school, such as walking, biking, scootering, skateboarding, or rollerblading, in order to improve student health, reduce congestion and emissions from motor vehicles near schools, and have fun.

Every participating school will receive a banner, flyers, participation tickets, and prizes. Registration is required and can be found at: https://bit.ly/3yIQO7q.
The Pima County Public Schools Task Force Group has reconvened for the 2021-2022 school year. 

The Pima County Public Schools Task Force Group (TFG), started by the Pima County Health Department (PCHD) and to include representatives from all public school districts in Pima County, was created to help the health department deeply understand the perspectives and experiences of schools around vaping in their districts. 

The TFG was launched in October 2019 and made tremendous progress until the work was paused in March 2020 due to COVID. The activities of the TFG are now restarting in order to support our schools and on August 26, 2021 members of our Task Force group met to discuss:
  • Successes of the 2020-2021 school year 
  • Good News & Bad News about youth e-cigarette use during COVID-19
  • Vape device collection and testing pilot program
  • Data collection for tracking vape infractions

We would not be able to move the needle regarding vaping use trends without youth and community partnership and support. The Tobacco Control Program at the Pima County Health Department is looking forward to getting back to school to share tobacco prevention awareness education for students and staff. Please contact Lee Itule-Klasen, 520-724-8619, Lee.Itule-Klasen@pima.gov to schedule a tobacco prevention student training or school staff awareness presentation today.
A new CDC feature article looks at the issue of youth e-cigarette use. About 1 in 5 high school students and 1 in 20 middle school students reported using e-cigarettes in 2020. Now is an important time to help students understand the serious health risks of using e-cigarettes.

Any tobacco use by youth and young adults, including e-cigarettes, is unsafe. Most e-cigarette products sold contain nicotine, which is the same addictive drug found in other tobacco products, including cigarettes and cigars. The nicotine content information on e-cigarette packaging is often misleading or inaccurate.  
 
Luckily, there are proven ways to help reduce use of e-cigarettes by youth. Parents and teachers can talk to young people about the harms of e-cigarettes and can set a good example by not using tobacco products. This resource provides information about e-cigarette products and gives examples of what they can look like.
Healthy & Safe Schools: Meet Monica Wright

Monica Wright is the new director for the Healthy & Safe Schools Program under the Pima County School Superintendent's Office.

Monica has over 37 years of experience in the field of education, serving as a teacher and administrator for the last 26 of those years, in the Vail Unified School District. 

Monica's specialty and passions lie in providing students, whose lives have been interrupted due to trauma or other challenging circumstances, with the resources, support, and motivation needed to achieve success. Monica is eager to serve Pima County Schools, administration, students, parents, and local community partners, with the same energy and dedication in achieving their goals.

Power Over Predators and the Pima County Superintendent's Office present:
THE CITY SAFE SUMMIT 2021
October 28, 2021 | 9 - 3pm
One day only -- $10 -- in person or live stream
 
Connected communities create solutions!

  • Educate -- Increase awareness and stop cyber abuse. Get an in-depth understanding of how to implement the Power Over Predators prevention program.
  • Advocate -- Be a trusted person. Gain skills needed to respond well to a child who discloses abuse including mandatory reporting procedures.
  • Defend -- Stop the rise of predation. Be equipped with additional resources available to protect youth.
 
Supporting Grieving Students during COVID-19, Advice from Parents and Counselors for Teachers

Education Week recognized that educators are now tasked with identifying the many ways that grief can present in students, and then addressing those different emotions and challenges that arise in the classroom. They published a four-part series, with video testimonies from school counselors, a mother who helped her son through the grief of losing his father and sister, and the founder of a camp for kids who have experienced loss. 

All of the four videos provide actionable advice for educators heading back into the classroom for another school year impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, and include:
  • How to Become Trauma-Informed - A school counselor discusses how her school has helped teachers with their own mental health, and empowered them to help their students too.
  • Addressing Students’ Grief and Anxiety - After six of her 500 students lost parents to COVID, a school counselor offers advice for educators trying to meet the needs of students.
  • How Schools Can Support Grieving Kids - The founder of a summer program for kids who are grieving offers advice on how schools can provide similar support to their students.
  • A Widowed Mother’s Advice for Teachers - A mother who helped her son through the loss of her husband and daughter offers advice to teachers working with students who are grieving.

Content from Chicanos Por La Causa
Enroll Your Students in the Great Arizona ShakeOut

Arizona has earthquakes and earthquake hazards. With 37 days to go, registration for the Great Arizona Shakeout earthquake preparedness drill is approaching 38,000! Yuma County leads Arizona with 30,000 enrolled to date– most of those are k-12 students. This year’s ShakeOut is scheduled for Thursday, October 21 at 10:21 a.m.; perfectly timed for the participation of Arizona’s K-12 school children and teachers.

CLICK HERE to see upcoming professional development offered by the Pima County School Superintendent's Office.
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