September 18, 2009
SUSD Hosts Informal Discussions
Scottsdale Unified School District invites you to join Dr. Gary T. Catalani, Governing Board members and school administrators to attend an informal discussion on several topics including K-3 Override, class sizes, enrollment, budget and goals. The meetings will include a presentation followed by a Q&A session for the public.
The remaining meetings are scheduled for 6 p.m. on the dates indicated for the following sites:
- Thursday, October 1
Desert Mountain Complex
Desert Mountain High School
Cafeteria
12575 E. Via Linda, Scottsdale
- Wednesday, October 7
Saguaro Complex
Saguaro High School
Media Center
6250 N. 82nd St., Scottsdale
- Wednesday, October 28
Coronado Complex
Coronado High School
Media Center
7501 E. Virginia Ave., Scottsdale
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Dr. Catalani's Office Hours at Schools
Superintendent Dr. Catalani will be visiting schools throughout the year.
- September 18 from 8-10 a.m. at Tonalea Elementary School, 6801 E. Oak St., Scottsdale 85257
- September 21 from 8-10 a.m. at Cherokee Elementary School, 8801 N. 56th St., Paradise Valley 85253
View the complete schedule
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Factual Override Information Available Online
On November 3rd, a K-3 Renewal Override will be on the ballot.
The K-3 Override is a continuation of an existing override approved initially by voters in 2005. The K-3 Override reduces Kindergarten class size to a District-wide target of 21 students to 1 teacher. These funds also allow us to reduce class sizes in grades 1-3 below current staffing ratios. Additional funds are used for instructional assistants in Kindergarten and first grade as needed. The override raises about $3.4 million per year.
To view a complete Fact Sheet about the K-3 Override, please visit www.susd.org.
Classroom Technology Installation Update
The Classroom Technology Implementation has been completed at Saguaro, Chaparral and Desert Mountain high schools and Sierra Vista Academy, Supai and Mohave middle schools, ANLC, Copper Ridge and Cheyenne Traditional School and Anasazi, Tonalea, Yavapai, Hohokam, Navajo, Pima, Tavan and Redfield elementary schools. Installation is in progress at Desert Canyon Elementary.
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Yavapai Students Have Fun with Math
 Clowns MAC (Superintendent Dr. Gary Catalani) and Ro (Principal Wendy Cohen) made a special visit to Yavapai Elementary School on Wednesday to kick off the Math Achievement Club by Rodel (MACRo) for 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th graders.
MACRo is a home learning component of the Yavapai Math Program. Students will complete a monthly workbook that is aligned with state standards to help improve their math competencies.
"This is a great math incentive for our students," said Cohen.
More than 400 students at Yavapai benefit from this program. Additionally, math scores on the AIMS test have been strong, and the school was recently recognized by the Arizona Rodel Charitable Foundation for its fourth grade scores. MACRo is sponsored by the Rodel Foundation.
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SUSD Students Succeed with AVID
Scottsdale Unified Schools District (SUSD) is reaching out to students “in the middle” who have academic potential (those with a 2.0 to 3.5 grade point average) through its Advancement via Individual Determination (AVID) program.
Currently, there are 334 students in the program at Arcadia and Coronado high schools and Ingleside and Supai middle schools. Each site identifies and develops an AVID Site Team. This team includes a site coordinator, AVID elective teacher, classroom teachers, counselors and administrators. Site members are also required to attend an in-depth week-long “Summer Institute” training. Read more...
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10 Going on 70: ANLC Students to Experience the Challenges That Come with Aging
Seventh and eighth graders at Arcadia Neighborhood Learning Center will participate in the only senior-sensitivity training program of its kind on September 23. Sponsored by SCAN Health Plan Arizona, the program is designed to educate younger generations about the diverse needs of seniors and to nurture an understanding, appreciation and compassion for the seniors in their lives.
Students will participate in a series of hands-on exercises, led by SCAN Health Plan Arizona, intended to mimic hearing loss, vision changes, loss of dexterity and other age-related conditions. Participants will wear glasses that simulate glaucoma and macular degeneration, use earplugs to experience hearing loss, and put popcorn kernels in their shoes to demonstrate the foot pain that can come with age. In advance of the training, students have been asked to interview an older relative and identify things they can do to be helpful to an older person.
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Kym McQuown, a 6th grade
teacher at Tonalea Elementary
School, modeled the new fashion attire. |
Salt River Project, Honeywell and ASU SkySong to Host High-Tech Workshop for Scottsdale’s Arcadia and Coronado High School Students
For Arcadia and Coronado High School students selected to participate in an innovative program called High Tech U, there is a ray of light in an otherwise gloomy economic picture.
Despite the economic downturn, high-tech and aerospace industries are taking the long-term view and working with the non-profit SEMI Foundation to make sure that when the economy turns around, there will be a supply of young women and men who are prepared to enter the high-tech workforce. For the past eight years, the San Jose-based SEMI Foundation has teamed with the semiconductor, solar and aerospace industries and local education communities to introduce high school students to math and science-based curricula that can lead to high-tech careers. The program recruits a diverse student population, focusing on minorities, girls, and students who show promise, but are not necessarily A and B students.
During the 3-day SEMI High Tech U, sponsored by Salt River Project (SRP) and hosted by ASU SkySong and Honeywell, students will be introduced to high-tech industry careers. The hands-on program, administered in partnership with the Maricopa Community Colleges, runs September 22-24 with a parent orientation on Thursday, September 17 and will also include training on educational opportunities and career planning. Read more...
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Laguna PTO Gets Creative to Raise Funds
 The Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) at Laguna Elementary school has found a few creative ways to raise funds for classroom supplies, water fountains and other needed items during the these tough economic times.
Parent Catherine Griffin and her team run the school’s “Laguna Eagle Wish List” program. The“ Eagle Wish List" was created in 2008 to help meet the classroom and campus needs of Laguna’s students with items that the school has no other way to acquire. In this challenging economy, the PTO is continually looking for innovative ways to meet students' and teachers' needs. The list is varied and comes directly from the staff.
“We have an incredibly dedicated group of teachers who work tirelessly and often contribute their own money toward running their classrooms. We asked our Laguna Community and surrounding businesses to review this list and see what they can do, big or small, to support Laguna. This first year 14 wishes were granted,” said Mrs. Griffin.
Items on the list include ink cartridges, paint, paper, write and wipe answer boards and also larger items such as shade trees, water fountains and hand washing stations. Last school year, Laguna had a parent grant the Kindergarten classes an entire handwriting curriculum called “Handwriting without Tears.”
For the school’s Spring Auction, 28 women donated funds to grant Dr. Root her “Eagle Wish” for water fountains. Two very old corroded fountains were replaced as a result.
In appreciation of their donation, Robin Miller, Laguna mom and star of “Quick Fix Meals with Robin Miller” on the Food Network and cookbook author of Robin Rescues Dinner, is donating her time and talent for “An Evening of Cooking with Robin Miller” on September 25th from 6-9 p.m. at Mrs. Griffin’s home. In addition to her cooking a delicious and nutritious meal complete with cooking tips and techniques, everyone will receive a personalized copy of her new book.
In addition, Laguna is hosting "Eagle Wish List Awareness Week” November 9-13th. Mrs. Griffin and two others will dress up as Snow White, Glinda and Dorothy. They will display signs asking parents to view the list during drop off and pick up times.
To view the list, please visit Laguna's Web site.
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SUSD Foundation Night with the Arizona Diamondbacks
Please join the Scottsdale Unified School District (SUSD) Foundation for a night out with the Arizona Diamondbacks to support SUSD on September 22 at 6:40 p.m. at Chase Field, 401 E. Jefferson St., Phoenix 85004. The SUSD Foundation is a non-profit group that raises money to support teachers, student programs, projects and scholarships that would otherwise be unfunded.
Tickets are available at three different price levels. Additionally, a portion of every ticket sold will go directly to the SUSD Foundation. To purchase tickets, please visit www.dbacks.com/groups.
Sign-in ID : susd and Password : ballgame
For more information, please view Flyer
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The Benefits of All Day Kindergarten and K-3 Override
- The K-3 Override was originally approved to provide all day Kindergarten for Scottsdale Unified School District.
- When the State provided funding for all day Kindergarten, we were able to support smaller class sizes in Kindergarten and grades 1, 2 and 3.
- The current State budget challenges may impact the funds provided by the State for all day Kindergarten. District leadership is continually monitoring the State budget process and will update this information as often as possible.
- If the State does not provide funding for all day Kindergarten, the K-3 Override will be used to continue our current all day Kindergarten program. We would not be able to continue to reduce class sizes in grades 1, 2 and 3.
Thank You
- The K-3 Override was passed by voters in 2005. A voter-approved K-3 Override runs for a period of seven years.
- The first five years of this override allow for a school district to budget an additional 5% of K-8 funding capacity.
- If the Override is not renewed after five years, it will be reduced by 1/3 of the approved funds in year six and an additional 1/3 reduction will occur in year seven.
- The K-3 Override allows $3.4 million per year of additional education funding so that the District has reduced Kindergarten class sizes targeted at 21 students to 1 teacher.
- These funds also allow reduced class sizes in grades 1-3, during the important early years of a student’s education. Funds also provide for instructional assistants in kindergarten and first grade.
The Benefits of the K-3 Override to Our Children Are:
- Better academic preparation.
- The opportunity for enrichment of the curriculum.
- More interaction between teachers and students.
- More focused participation during early childhood education which positively impacts later academic performance.
- A more productive learning environment and the opportunity to learn to work well with peers.
Thank you for your continued support of public education! Your support has made excelling education possible in the Scottsdale Unified School District. Thank you!
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Scottsdale Republic Features 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 runs a weekly feature highlighting a different SUSD teacher each week. To nominate a teacher, simply fill out the online Teacher Nomination Form.
*Please note that a high resolution digital photo must be submitted to be considered for publication.
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H1N1 (Swine Flu) Update
08-09 - Parent Letter Update
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Morgan Tucevich, an 8th grader at Cocopah Middle School, has collected more than 40 pairs of shoes for her Service Learning project for kids in need of shoes. "I am very proud of Morgan. She had her project management shoe drive started the second week of school. She is a very intelligent young lady that is really hoping to make a difference by helping kids that need a pair of shoes to go to school and learn." Her shoe drive still has two weeks left, so if anyone cleans out their closet and has any used or new shoes they don't need anymore, please contact the Scottsdale Unified School District Service Learning Coordinator 
Navajo Elementary School 5th and 6th graders conducted experiments testing one variable at a time. Groups of students made airplanes or coffee can phones or tried dropping Mentos into soda bottles.