In this issue...

March 20, 2008
Editor's note: Schools and the District offices will be closed Friday, March 21 for District Recess. Classes will resume on Monday, March 24.

Facility Usage Community Forums

Scottsdale Unified School District is hosting Facility Usage Community Forums at each complex to inform the community about proposed options and offer the community an opportunity to provide input.

All meetings are scheduled at 6 p.m. The dates and locations for the five meetings are:

View the Superintendent's Blue Ribbon Advisory Council Facility Utilization Presentation that was presented to the Governing Board on March 4^th.

back to top

Coronado Dedicates New Eugene L. Hanson Performing Arts Auditorium and Gatti Mosaic

Hundreds came to Coronado High School on Wednesday evening to pay tribute to Eugene L. Hanson and Joe Gatti at the school's dedication ceremony for the new Eugene L. Hanson Performing Arts Auditorium and unveiling of the re-constructed Gatti “The Seven Arts” Mosaic.

Eugene L. Hanson was Coronado's original band and orchestra director when the school opened in 1961. He wrote Coronado High School’s fight song and hymn and he helped design the school’s original auditorium. Hanson created the Donettes, a dance group known for their twirling capes. He was the first band director to lead a high school in the Parada del Sol, and wrote the song “I Want to be a Cowboy Out in the West” for the Parada del Sol. He also helped form Arizona’s All-State music festival and the state’s first school directors’ association. Hanson retired from Coronado in 1982 after teaching 32 years in Scottsdale Unified School District.

Hanson family members were in attendance for the dedication.

Saving the "The Seven Arts" mosaic, designed by former Coronado art teacher Joe Gatti, was the top concern of the Coronado community when construction began at the school in the summer of 2006. “The Seven Arts” was designed with 133,000 Venetian glass tiles depicting flowing dancers, musical instruments, vocalists and dramatic arts. The mosaic is 20 feet wide by 26 feet tall and was laid out in square-foot sections. The school’s first art club, comprised of approximately 10 students put the project together. The mosaic took a semester of preparation instructing the students about the process and another semester to put it together. The process and the installation took approximately a year to complete in 1961 and 1962. The mosaic was restored and rededicated in 1998.

The ceremony included performances by the Coronado band, choir and the Dancing Donettes. In addition, an open house followed the ribbon-cutting and unveiling ceremony so that attendees could see the new drama classroom, the DoNews television studio/classroom, the dance studio and the band, orchestra and choral classrooms.

back to top

Scottsdale All City Athletic Awards Banquet

Scottsdale All City Athletic Awards Banquet is at 6 p.m. on Monday, March 24 at Chaparral Suites, 5001 N. Scottsdale Road.

This new, tri-annual banquet is a way for Scottsdale citizens and businesses to recognize and honor the accomplishments — both academic and athletic — of athletes within SUSD’s sports programs. More than 40 athletes will be honored and scholarships will be handed out by the Scottsdale Charros and Scottsdale Healthcare. Winter sports will be honored during this banquet. These sports include: basketball, wrestling and soccer.

The next banquet will take place on May 19 for spring sports (track, baseball, softball, tennis).

back to top

Attendance = Learning and Successful Testing

Each day our teachers plan new and important lessons to help SUSD students gain mastery of the subject matter in their classes. That is why it so important for children to be in school every day.

Due to the increase in rigor of state standards, it is more important than ever that students are in school so they have ample opportunity to learn. Because new skills build on skills already acquired, students are more successful on tests when they have consistent classroom attendance.

April Testing Dates to Remember:

• AIMS, Dual Purpose Assessment (DPA) and Terranova will be administered April 7-18.
• Elementary and middle school students will take the DPA April 7-11 with make up tests the following week.
• All 2nd graders will take the Terranova April 8-9.
• All 9th graders will take the Terranova April 8.
• All 10th grade students will take the AIMS math test April 8. Any 11th or 12th grade students who haven’t met the standard or wish to retake the AIMS test to exceed the standard may do so.
• All 9th and 10th grade students currently enrolled in a Biology course will take the AIMS science test April 9.

To view testing calendars, please visit: www.susd.org/district/assess/index.cfm.

back to top

News from the SUSD Foundation

The Scottsdale Unified School District Foundation (SUSDF) celebrated its first year of grants funding with “Quest for Student Excellence Grants.”

The selection committee met over Spring Break and reviewed all applications. SUSDF was delighted with the initial response received. They reviewed more than 40 grant applications from 18 schools and will be issuing more than $31,000 in 24 grants to 16 schools. The process has heightened the awareness of both the needs and the vast creativity among SUSD teachers and administration and inspired the foundation to continue its efforts to raise more funds for more causes.

The SUSDF will announce a new grants application process in the Fall of 2008.

back to top

Southern Scottsdale Community Area Plan

The City of Scottsdale is seeking extensive public participation as part of the Southern Scottsdale Community Area Plan. The plan will be a tool used to guide future development and redevelopment in Southern Scottsdale. It will include long-range goals, policies and maps addressing important community topics ranging from sustainability, to economic vitality, to land use and mobility. If you live south of Indian Bend Road, now is the time to get involved in Scottsdale’s planning process.

To kick-off the process, the City will be hosting a Southern Scottsdale Vision Week from Wednesday, March 26 through Saturday, March 29. Vision Week will offer numerous opportunities for discussion between community members and the City. The goal of the process is to achieve workable visions, values and ideas for the future of Southern Scottsdale that will provide a framework for preparing the Community Area Plan.

For more information and to register, visit www.scottsdaleaz.gov/planning/areaplans or call 480-312-7990.

back to top

Scottsdale Republic to Feature SUSD Teachers

Do you know an outstanding teacher in the Scottsdale Unified School District? Would you like that teacher to be recognized in the newspaper? The Scottsdale Republic is running a weekly feature highlighting a different SUSD teacher each week. To nominate a teacher for this feature, simply fill out the online Teacher Nomination Form.

*Please note that a high resolution photo must be submitted to be considered for publication.

To view Chaparral teacher Twyla Preising's nomination that ran in the Scottsdale Republic , please visit: http://www.azcentral.com/community/scottsdale/articles/0318sr-teacher0319preising-ON.html

back to top

Kindergarten Round-Ups

Schools throughout the District will be hosting tours and open houses in preparation for enrolling children in Kindergarten for the 2008-2009 school year. Come visit us to meet teachers and principals and learn about great features offered by schools in the Scottsdale Unified School District.

For more information, please view the schedule for Kindergarten Round-Up at a school in your area.

back to top

Comprehensive Gifted Self-Contained School Tours

Gifted Services is hosting Comprehensive Gifted Program Tours at the following schools:

• Desert Canyon Middle, 10203 E. McDowell Mountain Ranch Road, Scottsdale, from 2-4 p.m. on March 26^th, April 23^rd and May 21^st
• Zuni Elementary, 9181 Redfield Road, Scottsdale, from 1-3 p.m. on April 16^th, and May 14^th
• Mohave Middle, 5520 N. 86th St., Scottsdale, from 11 a.m.-12:30p.m. on May 7^th

Reserve your seat today by e-mailing your name, address and phone number to Robin Madison. Also, indicate the location and date you plan to attend.

You may view frequently asked questions, the criteria for acceptance into the program and download the application at www.susd.org/district/gifted/Comprehensive.cfm.

back to top

Upcoming Events

• Scottsdale Parent Council meeting is scheduled at 9:30 a.m. on March 26 at the Education Center, 3811 N. 44th St., Phoenix.
   
• Valley residents are joining millions of people around the world on Saturday, March 29 by turning off their lights for one hour from 8-9 p.m. to bring awareness about climate change. Earth Hour will show that by working together, each one of us can make a positive impact on a global issue.

  You can sign up at www.earthhour.org and then turn off your lights from 8-9 p.m. local time; during that hour, replace your old light bulbs with energy efficient compact fluorescent bulbs and commit to reducing energy consumption in the year ahead. Earth Hour is sponsored locally by the City of Phoenix, APS, SRP and other businesses and organizations.

• Scottsdale Unified School District and Kaplan are offering SAT Classes at Arcadia, Chaparral and Desert Mountain High Schools in the spring. For dates and times, please view the flyer.
   
• Scottsdale Community College (SCC) Piper Scholars Program will offer scholarships to eight Scottsdale Unified School District Seniors (Class of 2008). Scholarship recipients will receive $1,500 for the Fall semester and $1,500 for the Spring semester for a maximum of four semesters if all eligibility requirements are maintained.

  This unique program is only available to students in the Scottsdale Unified School District. The application deadline is May 9, 2008. Application process and complete details for this and any other SCC Scholarship can be found by clicking on “Available Scholarships” at www.scottsdalecc.edu/financial or calling 480-423-6549.

• AAA Arizona and the Maricopa Association of Governments are currently seeking candidates for the 2^nd Annual Crossing Guard of the Year Award. Applications are due no later than May 31. For more information and the nomination form, please view the flyer.
  

back to top

Excellence in the Classroom

The Qwest Foundation and the Arizona Technology in Education Alliance (AzTEA) announced the second wave of teachers to be awarded grants in the Foundation's $100,000 Teachers and Technology program. Teachers are awarded grants for innovative use of technology in the classroom. The grants, which range in amounts from $2,500 to nearly $10,000, were awarded to eight educators in five different Arizona counties.

Linda Schallan, Desert Mountain High School, was awarded a $9,771.99 grant for her project Classrooms Without Borders: Using Learning 2.0 Tools to Promote Global Dialogue. Her Spanish students at DMHS will increase their fluency in Spanish and expand their global awareness by partnering with students studying English in Chile. Students in both countries will use Learning 2.0 technologies such as VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) communication, screen casting, podcasting, blogging and Wikis to help students in both schools significantly increase their abilities to converse, interpret, read and write in a foreign language and to develop an appreciation and understanding of the culture of the foreign country. Students will blog after reading Chile's national newspaper, La Tercera, and the Scottsdale/East Valley Tribune.

Students who attended were Melinda Blain, EJ Borroughs, Tiffany Colson, Laura Herman, Alexandra Hoffman, Noubar Manoogian, Maxwell Robins, Desiree Summers, Conner Wareing, Jonathan Whitby, Brian Ahern, Patrick Almhjell, Bailey Archer, Anthony Berti, Joshua Brody, Jonathan Croom, Isabella Germinario, William Gilbreath, David Ingraham, Tessa Jessup, Aidan Levine, Dakota McPherson, Keegan Moss, Jackson Pfundheller, Boston Scott, Landon Snodgrass, Samantha Surk, Hector Torres and Katelyn Whitmore.

back to top