eWAG from Twin Rivers Unified School District

Twin Rivers Unified School District

eWeek At a Glance

Week of

October 5, 2009

Welcome to the TRUSD eWAG. We hope you find this electronic week at a glance helpful.

We are actively soliciting information on events and news items from our schools, departments and community organizations. Please send them to Kathy.Young@twinriversusd.org or call our Communications Department at 916.566.1628.

Quote of the Week

"There are no problems we cannot solve together, and very few that we can solve by ourselves."

-Lyndon B. Johnson (1908-1973)
36th U.S. president

Events, Gatherings & Meetings

Saturday, October 3
~ TRUSD Boys and Girls Kickball Tournament for grades 2-3, Strauch Elementary, 9 am to 2 pm, for details call Gewon Richards at 916.566.1600 x 1264
~ Yard/Craft Sale to benefit Foothill Farms Cabana Club #2, 6300 Matterhorn Drive, Sacramento, 7 am to 2 pm, call 916.313.8787 for information, space rental or making donations
~ Del Paso Heights Farmers' Market, Robertson Community Center, 3525 Norwood Avenue, Sacramento, 7:30 am to noon, WIC (Women, Infants and Children) vouchers and Golden State Advantage cards (Electronic Benefit Transfer) accepted
~ Elkhorn Farmers' Market, Towne Center, Watt Avenue and Elkhorn Boulevard, North Highlands, 8 am to noon
~ Arden Arcade Rotary Youth Fishing Derby, Howe Park Pond, 2201 Cottage Way, Sacramento, registration at 8:30 am, derby from 9 to 11 am, call Roy Imai at 916.927.3802 x 120 with questions
~ "Electric Circuits" professional development for educators of grades 4-8 at SMUD (Sacramento Municipal Utility District), 6301 S Street, Sacramento, 8:30 am to 3:30 pm
~ Concert in the Park featuring John Skinner's Fabulous Band and sponsored by Supervisor Susan Peters, Foothill Community Park, Foothill Farms, 2 to 5 pm with music starting at 3 pm

Monday, October 5
~ Tick or Treat for Hunger canned food drive kickoff sponsored by TRUSD to benefit North Highlands Christian Food Ministry, Rio Linda/Elverta Ministerial Association Food Closet and TLC Soup Kitchen in Del Paso Heights, drop off sites are at our District Office and each high school, for details call 916.566.1758 or e-mail Zenobia Gerald
~ Registration deadline for Youth Engagement Training and Service Learning 101 scheduled for October 13, call Keenya Powell at 916.566.1600 x 1303

Tuesday, October 6
~ CAHSEE (California High School Exit Exam), English language arts
~ Board of Trustees Meeting, Foothill High School, 6:00 pm

Wednesday, October 7
~ CAHSEE (California High School Exit Exam), mathematics
~ Bright Beginnings for parents with children ages 0 to 5 years, Firehouse Community Center, 810 Grand Avenue, Sacramento, 10 am to noon, call 916.567-9567
~ Dare to Be You free family workshop, Kohler Elementary, free family dinner at 5 pm, workshop from 6 to 7:30 pm, free childcare and children's activities, call 566.1600 x 1553 to register
~ Parent/Guardian Information Night for elementary English Language Academics and English Language Development textbook adoption, North Avenue Parent Center, 1281 North Avenue, Sacramento, 6 to 7:30 pm, call 916.566.1600 x 1245 with questions
~ School Library Reopening Ceremony, North Avenue Elementary, 6 to 7:30 pm
~ Squire Booster Club, Rio Linda Junior High Library, 6:30 pm

Thursday, October 8
~ TRUSD Open Enrollment Deadline
~ Read for the Record, Woodridge Elementary, guest readers welcome, call 916.566.1650
~ Community Farm Stand, Las Palmas Adult School, corner of Las Palmas Avenue and Fairfield Street, Sacramento, 8:30 to 10:30 am, Golden State Advantage cards (Electronic Benefit Transfer) accepted
~ SES (Supplemental Education Services) Provider Fair for parents/guardians of K-12 students, Oakdale Parent Information Center, 3708 Myrtle Avenue, North Highlands, 9 am to noon
~ Community Farm Stand, Freedom Park Head Start, 6015 Watt Avenue, North Highlands, noon to 2 pm, Golden State Advantage cards (Electronic Benefit Transfer) accepted
~ Parent/Guardian Information Night for elementary English Language Academics and English Language Development textbook adoption, Smythe Academy of Arts and Sciences, K-6 campus, 2781 Northgate Boulevard, Sacramento, 6 to 7:30 pm, call 916.566.1600 x 1245 with questions

Friday, October 9
~ Homecoming, GUHS vs Rosemont, Grant Union High School, Junior Varsity at 5 pm and Varsity at 7 pm
~ Homecoming, HAAD vs Golden Sierra, Highlands Academy of Arts & Design, Junior Varsity at 5:30 pm and Varsity at 7:30 pm
~ Noche de Ciencias, family science night for the Hispanic community, California State University, Sacramento, Riverside hall, 6000 J Street, Sacramento, 5:30 to 9:30 pm, call Francisco Ramirez at 530.329.1858 or Ruben Velazquez at 530.908.7396

Saturday, October 10
~ Flea Market, Smythe Academy of Arts and Sciences (elementary campus), 7:30 am to noon, call Vera Morris @ 916.449.8622 for information or to rent a table
~ Del Paso Heights Farmers' Market, Robertson Community Center, 3525 Norwood Avenue, Sacramento, 7:30 am to noon, WIC (Women, Infants and Children) vouchers and Golden State Advantage cards (Electronic Benefit Transfer) accepted
~ Second Saturday Seminar, free professional development for TRUSD teachers and administrators, featured speaker Jo Gusman presenting Foundation - Framework - Tools: A Brain-Based Approach for Meeting the Needs of Your Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Students, District Office, 8 am to 10:30 am, click here for more information on this as well as other October 10 sessions
~ Elkhorn Farmers' Market, Towne Center, Watt Avenue and Elkhorn Boulevard, North Highlands, 8 am to noon
~ Homecoming Parade, Grant Union High School, 11 am
~ Foothill High School Class of 1984 25th Class Reunion, Jerue Residence, 8143 Daisy Hill Drive, Sacramento, 5 to 10 pm, click here for details

October 10-November 7
~ TRUSD Boys and Girls Soccer league play for grades 4-6, for details call Gewon Richards at 916.566.1600 x 1264

Sunday, October 11
~ Safety Fair, Public Safety Center, 5770 Freeport Boulevard, Sacramento, 11 am to 3 pm

Looking Ahead

Now through October 16
TRUSD Essay/Poster Contest for grades K-12, for details call Gewon Richards at 916.566.1600 x 1264

October 30
  Fall Carnival featuring over 20 games with stuffed animal prizes, Creative Connections Arts Academy, 6 pm, bring Trick or Treat for Hunger canned food donation, free carnival ticket for each can donated, spare change collected for UNICEF (United Nations Children's Fund)

October 31
   Del Paso Heights Farmers' Market, Robertson Community Center, 3525 Norwood Avenue, Sacramento, 7:30 am to noon, WIC (Women, Infants and Children) vouchers and Golden State Advantage cards (Electronic Benefit Transfer) accepted
   Elkhorn Farmers' Market, Towne Center, Watt Avenue and Elkhorn Boulevard, North Highlands, 8 am to noon

October 31-November 1
   Disney On Ice, ARCO Arena, One Sports Parkway, Sacramento, 11 am Saturday and 4 pm Sunday, special offer for TRUSD employees, click here for order form

Around Twin Rivers

Westside Elementary hosted Grandparents' Day on Friday, September 18. The festivities included a social in the quad, Morning Sing, classroom visits and a picnic lunch. See more.

See slide show of Good Day Sacramento's visit to National Blue Ribbon School, Frontier Elementary.

Uve Dahmen, Director of Assessment and Accountability, has announced that a Twin Rivers student received two perfect scores of 600, one in the math portion and one in the science portion of the 2009 California Standards Tests, and 97 other students had a perfect scores on one portion of the tests. Eighty-six of these were in math, grades 2-6; eight were secondary students with perfect scores on the No Child Left Behind 8th grade test; two had perfect scores in 5th grade science; one had a perfect score for Chemistry and the last two perfect scores were in English/Language Arts.

Woodridge Elementary is participating in Jumpstart's Read for the Record on Thursday, October 8 and would like to thank the Pearson Foundation for their generous donation of one copy of The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle for every Pre-K and Kindergarten student. Read for the Record is the world's largest single-day book reading. Volunteers wishing to read are asked to call the school office at 916.566.1650.

Watch Channel 31 for an early morning airing on Friday, October 9 of Madison Elementary 6th grade student and mother who were treated to a surprise make over.

Twin Rivers offers a variety of Adult Education classes at the Winona Center and Las Palmas Center. Classes include Citizenship Preparation, Medical Billing and Coding, Electrician Training and Forklift Operator Certification. View Adult Education schedule.

Volunteers are needed for a Shoulder to Shoulder school beautification project at Fairbanks Elementary, Martin Luther King Jr. Technology Academy, Noralto Elementary and North Avenue Elementary scheduled for Saturday, October 17 from 9 am to 5 pm. Call 916.285.5422 or send e-mail.

Join our Trick or Treat for Hunger food drive from October 5-23. We're collecting nonperishable food to benefit three pantries in our community - the Rio Linda/Elverta Ministerial Association Food Closet, the North Highlands Christian Food Ministry and the TLC Soup Kitchen in Del Paso Heights. You can drop canned goods off at any school in our district. With your generous help, we were able to collect more than 10,000 cans last year. Our goal this year is 15,000 cans. Local food pantries say they desperately need the food as we head into the holiday season. Please contact Zenobia Gerald with questions.

Foothill High School paraeducator, James Letoa, is very connected to the tsunami that hit American Samoa this week. His dad, Reverend Koroseta Letoa of the Sacramento Samoan Church of the Nazarene, was on a church-building trip to the island when the tsunami hit. He is now visiting a hospital to provide spiritual comfort for survivors and will be assisting with relief efforts. His church is accepting donations. Read more.

Congratulations to Rudy Puente, Director of Student Services, who is the proud father of new baby, Aidan.

Foothill High School junior, Tyler Bewick, recommends patience with Technology Services during the transition from Aeries to School Loop. Read more from fhspress.com.

Noche de Ciencias, a family science night for the Hispanic community is being held on Friday, October 9 from 5:30 to 9:30 pm in Riverside Hall at California State University, Sacramento. For more information, call Francisco Ramirez at 530.329.1858 or Ruben Velazquez at 530.908.7396.

Twin Rivers recently received funding to organize school site service learning activities. Teachers wishing to participate must attend Youth Engagement Training and Service Learning 101. The first workshop is Tuesday, October 13 at the Sacramento County Office of Education. Substitute teachers and registration costs for up to 30 participants will be covered by the Service Learning grant. If a teacher is interested in developing service learning projects at their school, contact Keenya Powell, 916.566.1600 x 1303. Registration deadline is Monday, October 5.

Learn more about the Superintendent's Facility Advisory Committee (SFAC).

All our schools' clubs and organizations are invited to participate in Foothill High School's Holiday Craft Fair on Saturday, November 14. To sign up e-mail or call Leisa Machado at 916.286.1314.

Teachers and administrators are invited to the Twin Rivers Second Saturday Seminar, free professional development, on Saturday, October 10. The featured speaker, Jo Gusman, will present Foundation - Framework - Tools: A Brain-Based Approach for Meeting the Needs of Your Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Students from 8 to 10:30 am. Other outstanding sessions, from 8 to 10 am and 10:30 am to 12:30 pm, include Culturally Responsive Instruction, 21st Century Learning, Tips for Parent Conferences and more. Click here for details.

Our Facilities Planning and Construction Department is sponsoring a bus trip on Sunday, October 25 to the Oakland Raiders vs. New York Jets football game. Proceeds will benefit the Grant High School Sports Health Academy.

Employees and visitors to our district office at 5115 Dudley Boulevard are invited to visit our Mobile Caff� located in the courtyard behind Bay A. Our Nutrition Services Department has also opened a deli, Caff� Winona, at 3222Winona Way.

Foothill High School Class of 1984 25th Reunion will be celebrated on Saturday, October 10 from 5 to 10 pm with a catered BBQ. Click here for details.

Our condolences to the family, friends and former co-workers of Joyce Metzker, who passed away on October 1. Prior to working at the district office in North Sacramento, Joyce worked at Noralto Elementary, where her children attended school. She will be missed.