Honoring Our Volunteers
Susan Parvis of James Rutter Middle School
Susan Parvis was recognized as an Education Partner at the January 4, 2011, meeting of the Elk Grove Unified School District Board of Education.
Parvis has been an active volunteer in the Elk Grove Unified School District for the past 20 years. She has served on the Superintendent's Parent Advisory Committee for 13 years and on EGUSD's Categorical Advisory Committee since her children began attending school - serving as this committee's chairperson several times.
Parvis has been a member of the School Site Council at four different schools and has chaired these councils several times. She participated on the GATE Advisory Committee for seven years, acting as vice chair, chair and past chair. Parvis has also served as a member of the MESA Parent Advisory Committee for five years. Currently, Parvis is serving her first year on the Finance Committee as an appointee of EGUSD Trustee William Lugg, Jr.
In addition to the aforementioned commitments, Parvis regularly helps in the Rutter P.E. departments, serves as a member of the Rutter School Site Council and teaches art and serves as a tutor at Florin Elementary School.
Susan is married to James Parvis. They have three children: Beth - a senior at UC San Diego, Andrew - an incoming UC Santa Cruz freshman and David - an 8th grade student at Rutter.
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EGUSD employee appointed to California Commission on Teacher Credentialing
Mark Freathy, a math teacher and curriculum specialist in the Curriculum/Professional Learning department for the Elk Grove Unified School District, was appointed to the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing on January 2, 2011 by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. "I see this as an opportunity to give back to the teaching profession that I have been privileged to be a part of for the past 34 years," said Freathy. "I am honored to represent Elk Grove Unified School District and look forward to serving the State of California on this commission." Before joining the Curriculum/Professional Learning department, Freathy has worked as a math teacher and math department chair for the Elk Grove Unified School District since 1989. Freathy was also a special day class teacher at Don Lugo High School and vice principal at Ramona Jr. High School in the Chino Unified School District from 1986 to 1989. He is a member of the California Mathematics Council and the California League of Middle Schools. The California Commission on Teacher Credentialing serves as a state standards board for educator preparation for the public schools of California, the licensing and credentialing of professional educators in the state, the enforcement of professional practices of educators, and the discipline of credential holders in the State of California. For more information about the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing, click here. |
Verizon Wireless employee earns $750 grant for James McKee Elementary School
Roger Spieler, a Verizon Wireless employee and a James McKee Elementary School parent, earned a $750 grant for McKee through Verizon's Volunteer Incentive Program (VIP).
Each Verizon employee is eligible to earn two $750 grants in one calendar year for two separate non-profit organizations or K-12 public or private school by logging 50 or more volunteer hours with that organization.
The grant will be used to help finance the sixth grade science camp trip.
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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 highlighted for subgroup academic gains in national brief
The Elk Grove Unified School District is in the spotlight of a new data analysis brief released by the Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation as one of 30 school districts in the United States doing the best job of educating traditionally disadvantaged subgroups of students. The release of this information comes from the process in identifying possible candidates for the Broad prize.
EGUSD and Long Beach Unified were the only two districts in California to be noted for their work in improving reading and mathematics for all three subgroups identified in the data brief, including African-American, Hispanic and low-income students.
The 30 school districts highlighted by the Broad Foundation, selected from a pool of 100 eligible districts - presented high 2009 state reading and mathematics assessment data collected during the 2010 Broad Prize process. Half of these 30 districts are located in California or Texas. Overall, cities in 11 states and the District of Columbia were found to be outperforming their state averages in subgroup achievement.
The Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation annually awards the Broad Prize to a large urban school district that has made the most progress nationwide in raising student achievement, narrowing the achievement gap between income and ethnic groups and improving college readiness. The independent review board and jury that select the Broad Prize finalists and winner each year rely on extensive data collection and analysis of academic performance levels and improvement rates in the nation's 100 largest urban school districts.
For more information about the Broad Prize, click here. |
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EGUSD to offer open enrollment at 14 secondary schools
On January 4, 2011, the Elk Grove Unified School District's Board of Education gave staff direction to open enrollment at seven middle schools and seven high schools for the 2011-2012 school year. The open enrollment applications are posted on the district's website and are available at all EGUSD schools.
Open Enrollment applications for students currently enrolled in the 6th and 7th grades for the 2010-2011 school year will be accepted for the following middle schools: Harriet Eddy, Edward Harris, Samuel Jackman, Joseph Kerr, Elizabeth Pinkerton, James Rutter and T.R. Smedberg.
Open Enrollment applications for students currently enrolled in the 8th, 9th, 10th and 11th grades for the 2010-2011 school year will be accepted for the following high schools: Cosumnes Oaks, Elk Grove, Florin, Laguna Creek, Monterey Trail, Sheldon and Valley.
Parents are invited to attend an informational open enrollment meeting at 6:30 p.m. on January 20 at Monterey Trail High School.
To apply for Open Enrollment, parents/guardians should complete one Open Enrollment form for each student. Parents can get forms from schools, by calling the Secondary Education office at (916) 686-7706 or going online to www.egusd.net.
For the application to be accepted the completed form must be postmarked or delivered to the Secondary Education Office at the Robert L. Trigg Center at 9510 Elk Grove-Florin Road by 5 p.m. on Friday, February 4, 2011. Late applications will not be considered.
In addition, in order for the application to be accepted, the address on the application must MATCH the address that is listed with the district. Parents/guardians can verify that their address listed with the district is correct or change it by contacting their child's school.
Open enrollment is open to all students who live within the district's boundaries as of January 1, 2011. The district reserves the right to limit the number of students transferring into or out of any schools.
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. Open Enrollment Agreements apply only to the student submitting the application. It does not include siblings.
Students currently enrolled at a middle or high school on Open Enrollment, who intend to continue at their current school, DO NOT need to reapply for Open Enrollment.
No elementary schools are included in Open Enrollment for the 2011-2012 school year.
Questions can be directed to the Secondary Education office at (916) 686-7706. |
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Revisions to EGUSD's Facilities Use Policies and Fee Structure
The Elk Grove Unified School District has revised the facilities use policies and fee structure to accommodate the changing needs of community partners and the district. The new fees will be implemented according to the following timeline: January 1, 2011 - First time non-sports related activity users February 28, 2011 - Outdoor sports related activity users March 14, 2011 - Indoor sports related activity users July 1, 2011 - Annual renewals for non-sports related activity users The Board of Education is committed to providing access to the district's facilities when they are not designated for school site curricular or extra-curricular activities. While the district provides access to school facilities, practical economics and California Education Code allow the district to charge minimal fees to cover the associated costs of their use. The changes follow several meetings with community stakeholders who provided input into the fee structure. These stakeholders include: EGUSD staff, the Cosumnes Community Services District, the Elk Grove Youth Sports Association, Southgate Parks and Recreation Inc., Boy and Girl Scout representatives and other community youth groups. Revenues generated by the new fees will be used to maintain the fields, gymnasiums, multipurpose rooms, and other district facilities that incur wear and tear produced by usage beyond the curricular day. Funds will also be designated for the replacement of supplies that are consumed during community activities and equipment that may deteriorate over the course of time as a result of greater than expected use. Community groups interested in using EGUSD's facilities for non-sports related activities should contact the desired school site. Community groups interested in using district facilities for sports related activities should visit the EGUSD Facilities Use webpage. For more information and to view the new fee structure, please visit www.egusd.net/community/facilities_use.cfm.
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California State Senate President pro Tem Darrell Steinberg visits James Rutter Middle School
On January 7, 62 AVID (Advancement Via Individual Determination) students at James Rutter Middle School were treated to a special visit from Senate President pro Tem Darrell Steinberg during class.
Steinberg talked to AVID students about his background and how he rose to serving in the California State Senate. He also shared his top three skills students should master by the time they enter college. After Steinberg's presentation, students were able to ask a variety of questions, including inquires about the current rising of tuition fees at state schools.
"I would love for Senator Steinberg to come back every year to speak to a new class of AVID students to discuss the current state of our budget, educational track and his career story," said Katrina Neill, an AVID teacher at Rutter."He is a motivating speaker and students were enthralled by his enthusiasm to speak candidly about their futures. They also loved hearing about his own personal life, family and how he became a senator."
Steinberg is currently the Speaker pro Tempore in the California State Senate. Steinberg was elected to the Senate in 2006.Prior to joining the Senate, Steinberg served in the State Assembly from 1998 to 2004.He served as an employee rights attorney for the California State Employees Association for 10 years before his work as an Administrative Law Judge and mediator. Steinberg also served on the Sacramento City Council from 1992 to 1998.
For more information about Steinberg, click here.
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