New calendar debuts for 2009/2010 school year
The Elk Grove Unified School District and the Elk Grove Education Association agreed to modify the traditional school calendar in 2009-10 and 2010-11. Under the proposal, the school year at all traditional schools will start one week earlier on August 17. The new calendar will afford a two-term model in which the first term ends prior to the winter holiday break and the second term ends prior to the Memorial Day weekend.
To view the new calendars, please click here.
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Kindergarten registration at Elk Grove Unified
The Elk Grove Unified School District begins kindergarten registration for the 2009/2010 school year on December 3, 2009. Parents with children turning 5-years-old by December 2, 2009 can register for kindergarten starting at 7:30 a.m. on December 3, 2009, at all elementary schools.
In past years, kindergarten registration has been held during the first month of the school year. The registration was held early as a result of the rapid growth in enrollment each year. The slow down in growth in the area eliminates the need for the earlier registration period.
Parents with students already attending Elk Grove Unified elementary schools receive sibling priority registration for track schedules at the elementary school, so long as the packet is returned by the first Monday in February. Of the district's 39 elementary schools, eight are on a traditional schedule. Thirty one are on a year-round, four-track schedule.
Kindergarten families registering their first child will have equal access based on date and time of registration. Most families who turn in their registration materials by the first Monday in February are likely to get into their home school.
Registration packets can be picked up on December 3, 2009 at all elementary sites. Numbers for parents first in line will NOT be handed out at any of the district's schools.
To register a kindergartner, parents need to bring proof of residence in the form of a SMUD or PG&E utility bill, rental agreement, or purchase papers for a home. School office staff will give parents a packet, stamped and dated.
Registration materials including the packet, the child's immunization record, birth certificate and proof of residence are due by the first Monday in February.
Incoming kindergartners must live within Elk Grove Unified School District boundaries. Click here to view district and school boundaries or call the Boundary Hot Line at (916) 686-7755. Parents seeking more information about the registration process can call the district's Elementary Education office at (916) 686-7704.
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EGUSD Communications Department earns statewide; national awards
The Elk Grove Unified School District's Communications Department has earned awards at both the state and national level recognizing them for exemplary communications programs and projects.
The Communications Department earned the 2009 Golden Achievement Award from the National School Public Relations Association (NSPRA). The department captured the Golden Achievement Award for their role in the planning and facilitation of the EGUSD 50th Anniversary Celebration.
The Golden Achievement Awards Program recognizes exemplary public relations activities, programs and projects. EGUSD Communications Department was the only school district in California to earn NSPRA's Golden Achievement Award.
The Communications Department also earned the Award of Merit for their 50th Anniversary logo design in the California School Public Relations Association (CalSPRA) 2009 Excellence in Communications Awards Program. The logo was designed by the district's web specialist, Kathleen Watt. The department was presented with a trophy at the EGUSD Board of Education meeting on July 7, 2009.
The Excellence in Communications Awards Program recognizes outstanding achievement in communication and public relation for K-16 educational professionals and institutions. | |
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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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EGUSD students participate in Elk Grove Optimist/Kohl's ChildSpree
It's 6 a.m. on a Saturday morning...yet there is a buzz of excitement in the air as children wait impatiently with their parents for the fun to begin.
On Saturday, July 25, more than 100 lucky Elk Grove Unified students enjoyed a $100 back-to-school shopping spree to purchase back to school clothing at Kohl's on Bruceville Road at the Elk Grove Optimist/Kohl's ChildSpree. This event is for select students who are in need of school clothes, backpacks and school supplies in kindergarten through 5th grade. Students participating in the event are identified through the district's Healthy Start, Project Act and Foster Youth Services programs.
The day started promptly at 6 a.m. as students shopped with chaperones for their new clothes. As an added bonus, Kohl's provided each student with a 15 percent discount.
"ChildSpree is a great opportunity for the community to give back to children and make a difference in their future," said Sandy Waite, a Healthy Start coordinator for the district. "The students remember this day for the rest of their lives."
After students finished shopping, they were treated to a pancake breakfast in the back parking lot at Kohl's, prepared and served by Elk Grove Lions Club and their members. Great Clips offered free haircuts as well for the students. Each student received a backpack - compliments of Project Act - filled with school supplies. The Children's Safety Coalition provided free booster seats and fire alarm batteries to families participating in this event. On the health and safety side of things, the University of California, Davis provided free bicycle helmets to the students and Strawberry Creek Dental supplied them with oral dental supplies.
Event sponsors included: Elk Grove Optimist, Kohl's, Elk Grove Lions Club, Great Clips of Laguna, Lyon's Real Estate, Elk Grove Commerce Bank, Rotary Club of Elk Grove, Paula Maita, St. Mary's Episcopal Church, Elk Grove Radial Tire, Project ACT, River City Bank and the Sacramento County Department of Human Assistance.
Volunteers represented the following organizations: Elk Grove Optimist, Kohl's, Elk Grove Lions Club, Rotary Club of Elk Grove, Great Clips of Laguna, California Highway Patrol, Strawberry Creek Dental, Cosumnes Community Services District, DJ Bobby Reynoso, Elk Grove Police Department, St. Mary's Episcopal Church, It's A Grind, Trader Joe's, Elk Grove Unified School District personnel, University of California, Davis and Sacramento County Department of Human Assistance.
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EGUSD awarded Emergency Management Grant
The Elk Grove Unified School District has been awarded a $467,826 Readiness and Emergency Management for Schools (REMS) grant by the U.S. Department of Education. EGUSD is one of 108 districts nationwide to receive a total of $26 million in grant funding for emergency management.
"Safety is a high priority at the Elk Grove Unified School District. In order for learning to take place, students and staff must feel safe," said Superintendent Steven M. Ladd, Ed.D. "This grant will assist in strengthening our systems in the event that we would need to respond to a major emergency situation."
Elk Grove Unified will use the grant funding to enhance school and district emergency planning and response capabilities through new technology and training. One goal will be to strengthen district and school emergency plans and procedures by increasing the level of technical expertise, research and knowledge that are integrated into EGUSD's crisis management plans. The funding will enable the district to expand training opportunities and practice exercises, to continue to promote coordination and alignment with partner agencies and local and state emergency management plans, and train staff on the National Incident Management System (NIMS).
"Safety has always been a top priority for our district. This grant will allow the schools to focus on enhancing our emergency response plans with the most up-to-date information and resources available," said the grant coordinator EGUSD's Jennifer McCain.
The REMS grants are housed within the U.S. Department's Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools, which supports efforts to: create safe schools; respond to crises; prevent drug and alcohol abuse; ensure the health and well being of students; and teach students good citizenship and character. |
Valley High School Air Force
Jr. ROTC
Cadets clean up school
and community park
Valley High School Air Force Junior ROTC cadets took some of
their weekend time during the annual Summer Leadership School to assist their
school maintenance personnel and the Sacramento Parks and Recreation Department
with cleanup on Saturday, August 1.
"Community service is a basic tenet of Air Force JROTC,"
said Master Sergeant Rudy Garcia, aerospace science instructor at Valley. "One of our cadets suggested a Saturday project
this year to help out our school's custodial personnel and to do some work for
the Parks and Recreation folks during our Summer Leadership School (SLS)."
SLS is an accredited 2-week program to familiarize incoming
cadets with Valley and Air Force JROTC while it gives returning upper class
cadets leadership and management training.
"SLS provides upper class cadets opportunities to present
briefings on various topics and gain fundamental classroom teaching experience,"
said Valley Jr. Air Force ROTC Director Colonel Bill Norman. "It also gives our new freshmen a chance to
familiarize themselves with Valley High while there are no other students
around. Most of them find it an enjoyable
and valuable opportunity."
Two groups of 60 cadets participated in the clean-up
project. The first group cleaned up Valley
athletic fields, backstops, storage containers and rooms, fence lines and the
Valley campus under Garcia's supervision. Garcia coordinated all work with the custodial
staff.
Norman's group proceeded to Charlie Jensen Park near
Freeport Boulevard. There, cadets met a
Parks and Recreation Volunteer Services Coordinator and cut, weeded and trimmed
plant beds, repaired playground equipment and spread truckloads of new wood
chips over the playground's surface.
"We did some serious work at Charlie Jensen Park and the
Volunteer Programs Director was really happy with it," says Cadet Community
Services Officer and Valley senior Alexandra Gutierrez. "She even suggested we come back during the
school year, spread mulch in some of the beds and plant new trees. We all
worked hard and everyone had a good time."
AFJROTC at Valley encourages work on campus and arranges
trips into the local community to carry out projects that might not otherwise
get done, especially in current fiscally difficult times. Through the program, cadets also gain
leadership and management experience by dealing with the community, arranging
projects and trips and making them happen successfully.
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EGUSD student earns silver medal at Jr. Olympics Skills Competition
Isaias Cisneros, a recent student of Samuel Kennedy Elementary School, earned a silver medal in the soccer skills category at the 2009 U.S. Junior Olympic Skills National Finals in Chula Vista, California on July 23-26. Cisneros represented the Western Region in the 12-13 year old boys division.
"This event presented an excellent opportunity for Isaias to meet and interact with students from across the country and Puerto Rico," said Jorge Leiva, vice-principal at Kennedy and Cisneros' former soccer coach. "It also gave him the chance to showcase his excellent soccer skills. I'm very excited to see what the future holds for Isaias, both on the soccer field and in the classroom."
Now in its fourth year, the U.S. Jr. Olympic Skills Competition is the official youth skills competition of the United States Olympic Committee (USOC). A total of 72 athletes competed in four fundamental sports - basketball, soccer, tennis and track & field - for the opportunity to be crowned champions of their sport. This year marked the first time the U.S. and Puerto Rico Olympic Committees joined together for the competition.
The 72 finalists represented the top young athletes from throughout the United States and Puerto Rico who advanced to the National Finals by winning their age and gender category at one of 130 regional events. More than 1.6 million competitors participated in nearly 8,000 local qualifying events hosted by 2,500 community organizations throughout the country.
For more information about the U.S. Junior Olympic Skills Competition, please click here. | |
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