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Gold Fun Facts
In 1865, the Enterprise district was formed. The Sierra district followed in 1912. In 1950, Sierra and Enterprise merged - creating the Sierra Enterprise district. This district joined the Elk Grove Unified School District in 1959. |
| Honoring Our Volunteers
Sheri Hoppner of
Joseph Sims Elementary School
Sheri Hoppner was recognized as an Education Partner at the December 16, 2008 meeting of the Elk Grove Unified School District Board of Education.
Hoppner and her husband Russ are the proud parents of two children, Troy and Rachel - both of whom are students at Joseph Sims Elementary School.
Since 2002, Hoppner has been a fixture on the Sims campus. She began volunteering at Sims when her son began kindergarten. She has consistently worked in his classroom every week and added a second classroom to her volunteer schedule when her daughter started kindergarten in 2004. In addition to volunteering in the classroom, Hoppner took on the role of Art Docent in 2003.
In 2006, Hoppner was elected PTO president - at the first PTO meeting she ever attended. Now in her third year as PTO president, her leadership in this position has become known as second to none. For three years, she has facilitated the largest fundraiser - and now famous - "Movie Night" that the community has come to enjoy.
Every Friday at school assemblies, Hoppner enthusiastically greets nearly 900 students and motivates them to participate in school-wide functions to support Sims. She is known for her stage presence, as visitors often assume she is a teacher or administrator by the way she commands the stage. |
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Community board meetings to return in February
Community members will have an opportunity to ask questions and get answers from EGUSD board members on February 3, 2009, at Community Board Meetings. Each year, EGUSD's seven trustees hold individual meetings at seven school sites as a way of bringing the board to the community.
The meetings offer an opportunity for the board to give an update about the district and the budget and to answer questions. In honor of the 50th Anniversary, this year's meetings will also include a screening of the fourth segment of a student produced film honoring the district's rich history.
The meetings are from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. Trustees will be holding meetings at the following locations:
Jeanette Amavisca - Isabelle Jackson Elementary School
Pollyanna Cooper-LeVangie - Elliott Ranch Elementary School
Priscilla Cox - Joseph Kerr Middle School
Pamela Irey - Helen Carr Castello Elementary School
William Lugg, Jr. - Florin High School
Chet Madison, Sr. - Charles Mack Elementary School
Brian Myers - Arnold Adreani Elementary School
If you have any questions about the meetings, please contact the EGUSD Communications Department at (916) 686-7732 or communication@egusd.net. |
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EGUSD elementary schools named to statewide honor roll
Cosumnes River Elementary School
and Pleasant Grove
Elementary School have been named to
the 2008 Honor Roll by the California Business for Education Excellence (CBEE)
and Just for the Kids - California
(JFTK-CA).
Cosumnes
River and Pleasant Grove
elementary schools were recognized as CBEE/JFTK-CA Scholar Schools. Scholar Schools are consistently high academic achievers that do
not have a significant population of students in poverty.
The Honor Roll includes 911 California public elementary,
middle and high schools that have been recognized by California's business
community for having demonstrated consistent high student academic achievement
and have made significant progress toward closing achievement gaps among all of
their students.
CBEE's mission is to raise student academic achievement and
close achievement gaps in California
public schools by ensuring every student reaches a minimum of grade level
proficiency. This is accomplished by providing a voice to high performing, high
poverty public schools so that all schools can replicate their best practices.
Since 1998, CBEE has worked to focus businesses around a common agenda for
better public schools and serves as the business community's leading voice in
education.
JFTK-CA provides a powerful on-line data and school
improvement system free of charge to California's
public schools and communities. JFTK-CA promotes measurably improved academic
achievement in public schools through focused use of achievement data, research
and replicating effective school improvement strategies from across the state
and nation. The JFTK-CA school improvement system has become the largest
longitudinally linked, student academic achievement database in California and is receiving three million hits per month from
California
schools.
For more information on the CBEE/JFTK-CA Honor Roll, click here.
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Welcome to eguNews, an EGUSD email newsletter published every two weeks. If you have questions about eguNews, you can email communication@egusd.net or call (916) 686-7732.
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Budget Update
On New Year's Eve Governor Arnold Schwarzennegger's staff rolled out a budget proposal that attempts to deal with California's $42 billion deficit over the next 18 months. The largest state program to be cut is public education.
The Governor and legislators have very different ideas of how to address the growing state deficit. However, both the Governor and the legislature's proposals contain significant cuts to public education.
While California seems to be a long way from a final budget or any state decisions about mid-year cuts, school districts are forced to comply with several legally required timelines. These timelines include a legal requirement to provide a preliminary notification of possible layoffs to certificated staff (i.e. teachers, counselors, administrators) by March 15. Certificated staff must receive final notification by May 15. Classified staff (i.e. clerical, instructional aides, maintenance and transportation) must receive a notification 45-days in advance of the layoff.
The Board of Education must adopt the district's final budget for the next fiscal year by June 30. Due to these requirements, school districts must plan and take action based on the best known current information which is incomplete and volatile. In addition, it has often been the case that the state's budget is not adopted and signed by the Governor until well beyond the statutory requirement of July 1. Based on the Governor's January 2009 proposed budget the Elk Grove Unified School District faces a 16 percent deficit factor to its revenue limit. In order to submit a balanced budget, based on the most current information available, if the proposed budget is approved, the district would have to make $15 million one-time mid-year cuts for 2008-2009. In 2009-2010, EGUSD would need to make about $26 million in ongoing cuts and an additional $24 million in ongoing cuts in 2010-2011. Please know that district staff monitors the financial crisis on a daily basis and are involved in on-going discussions regarding the recommendations that will go before our Board of Education. EGUSD has a budget committee comprised of 60 representatives who are working to identify possible cuts. In addition to these discussions and contemplating necessary reductions, EGUSD is also exploring ways to enhance revenue and operate even more efficiently. Examples of these efforts are the implementation of an energy management program and finding ways to provide services in even more economic ways. Parents, staff, students and community members can find more information and share their thoughts on the budget at the district's Budget Watch webpage.
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EGUSD to offer Open Enrollment at eleven middle and high schools
The Elk Grove Unified School District is accepting applications from district students who wish to apply for Open Enrollment at eleven EGUSD middle and high schools.
Six middle schools will offer Open Enrollment: Harriet Eddy, Samuel Jackman, Joseph Kerr, Elizabeth Pinkerton, James Rutter and T.R. Smedberg.
Five high schools will offer Open Enrollment: Cosumnes Oaks, Elk Grove, Florin, Laguna Creek and Valley.
Open Enrollment applications for students currently enrolled in the 6th and 7th grades for the 2008-2009 school year will be accepted for the following schools: Eddy, Jackman, Kerr, Pinkerton, Rutter and Smedberg middle schools.
Open Enrollment applications for students currently enrolled in the 8th, 9th, 10th and 11th grades for the 2008-2009 school year will be accepted for the following schools: Elk Grove, Florin, Laguna Creek and Valley high schools.
Students currently enrolled in the 8th, 9th and 10th grades for the 2008-2009 school year are also eligible to apply for Open Enrollment at Cosumnes Oaks High School.
To apply for Open Enrollment, parents/guardians should complete one Open Enrollment form for each student. If applying to more than one site, parents/students will be asked to identify their first and second choice. Copies of the form are available at schools, by calling the Secondary Education office at (916) 686-7706 or online at www.egusd.net.
Parents/guardians of students granted an Open Enrollment Transfer are responsible for providing transportation for the student to and from school. EGUSD will not provide transportation for these students. In addition, Open Enrollment Agreements only apply to the student submitting the application. It does not include siblings.
For students currently enrolled at a secondary school on Open Enrollment who intend to continue at their current school DO NOT need to reapply for Open Enrollment.
The deadline for submitting the application is 5 p.m. on Friday, February 13, 2009. Late applications will not be considered. Questions can be directed to the Secondary Education office at (916) 686-7706.
No elementary schools are included in Open Enrollment for the 2009-2010 school year.
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EGUSD students earn Golden State Seal Merit Diplomas
Elk Grove Unified School District graduating seniors have achieved another academic milestone.
The total number of graduating seniors in the Elk Grove Unified School District who have earned the Golden State Seal Merit Diploma has continued to steadily grow over the past six years. This year, a total of 468 EGUSD seniors have qualified to receive the Golden State Seal Merit Diploma.
Issued by the California Department of Education each spring, the Golden State Seal Merit Diploma was established in 1997 to provide recognition to public school graduates who have demonstrated mastery of the high school curriculum in English, history, mathematics and science. Students qualify for the diploma by achieving high scores on six California Standards Tests (CSTs).
Students earning the Golden State Seal of Merit will receive special recognition in the form of an official insignia on their high school diplomas and an insignia on their transcripts. In addition, each student will receive a certificate of recognition personally signed by the superintendent and a letter from the superintendent congratulating them on their accomplishment.
To view the students who received the Golden State Seal Merit Diploma, please click here.
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Girls on the Run at Mary Tsukamoto Elementary School
Twice a week after school, a dedicated group of fourth, fifth and sixth grade girls can be seen running the track at Mary Tsukamoto Elementary School. These young ladies are participants in Girls on the Run, a specialized program for girls in grades fourth through sixth that trains them for a 5k event through self-esteem enhancing, uplifting workouts.
Helen Carr Castello Elementary School also participates in the Girls on the Run program.
"Currently, 23 girls participate in our program," said Kristin Petrinovich, a teacher at Tsukamoto. "We have two practices/classes per week and a culminating run, as well as an end-of-the year awards banquet."
The Girls on the Run program, created in 1996, is a national organization. Tsukamoto and Castello both belong to the Greater Sacramento chapter. The goals of the program are to encourage positive emotional, social, mental and physical development.
The 12-week character building program teaches the following three concepts:
Weeks 1-4: All About Me...Getting to Know Who I Am and What I Stand For
Weeks 5-8: Building My Team...Understanding the Importance of Cooperation
Weeks 9-12: Community Begins with Me...Learning About Community and Designing Our Own Community Project
Tsukamoto students raised money through selling pencil grams and hosting a movie night to purchase running shoes for students at Oakridge Elementary School in Oak Park as their community service project. The girls raised $500 and donated the money to the Running Zone to assist in purchasing the running shoes for Oakridge Elementary.
In addition to Petrinovich, four additional staff members at Tsukamoto assist in training the girls - Clarise Ng, Camille Chorley, Kara Steele and Karen Malia. Over 13 staff members from Tsukamoto ran or walked the girls' culminating race last year.
Petrinovich has great visions for the future of the program at Tsukamoto.
"Eventually, we'd like to grow our program to be a 'Sharks on the Run' program," she said. "This way, we would be able to incorporate both fourth through sixth grade girls and boys."
For more information on the Girls on the Run program and how to start a chapter at a school, click here. | |
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