Elk Grove Unified School District

Excellence by Design

EGUSD News and Notes

August 12, 2013

We apologize for any inconvenience our broken links might have caused you. All links have been fixed in eguNews by Constant Contact, the email vendor.

In This Issue

Big Lots "Lots2Give" Contest Winners

Free Immunization Clinics

Class of 2013 Scholarships

A New School Year

Helpful Links
District Event Calendar

College and Career

Common Core State Standards

Internet Safety Tips

TIP: Keep the computer in the family room or another open area of your home.

EGUSD Superintendent serves as featured panelist at

Comcast Youth Tech Summit & Expo

On Thursday, August 8, EGUSD Superintendent Steven M. Ladd, Ed.D. served as a panelist at the 3^rd Annual Comcast Youth Tech Summit & Expo at the Sacramento Convention Center. Ladd joined moderator Diane Dwyer (Anchor - NBC Bay Area) and fellow panelists Lindsay Hopkins (Director, Students & Community Engagement - Discovery Education), Merve Lapus (Education Manager - Common Sense Media) and two youth representatives from New American Media to address the impact of cyber-bullying on youth.

The panelists also discussed ways to equip youth, parents and educators with the tools and information to create a safer cyber environment. Superintendent Ladd shared EGUSD's work on digital citizenship as well as the district's successful #UnfollowBullying campaign.

The Comcast Youth Tech Summit & Expo brought together experts and more than 500 local children for an update on broadband adoption efforts in the Sacramento area and in California, as well as discussions on creating 21^st Century learning communities, digital literacy, cyber-bullying and Internet safety; and to kick off year three of the Internet Essentials Program. Internet Essentials is an initiative that helps connect low-income families to the Internet and seeks to close the digital divide in America.

EGUSD shines the "Spotlight on Scholars"

The Elk Grove Unified School District, Elk Grove Regional Scholarship Foundation (EGRSF) and the Elk Grove Citizen have partnered on a new "Spotlight on Scholars" peer program. Through this program, students talking to students are featured about the road to academic success.

The first step is a monthly column in the Elk Grove Citizen called, "Spotlight on Scholars." Each month, the Citizen will feature a 2013 Elk Grove Regional Scholarship recipient. In these articles, students will share their paths to success. Two students have already had their chance in the "spotlight:" Felicia Chan, a 2013 graduate of Florin High School and Lloyd Chen, a 2013 graduate of Laguna Creek High School.

In the future, the partnership hopes continue to promote this peer program through videos, social networks and student speakers.

On Thursday, September 12, EGRSF will hold their annual Spotlight Elk Grove event from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the S.E.S. Hall in Elk Grove. This premier event helps raise funds for scholarships for EGUSD graduating seniors. Spotlight Elk Grove blends a "Taste of...." type event with a service industry tradeshow with more than 60 vendors. Click here for more information about the event.

Stay up-to-date on the latest news at Elk Grove Unified

Parents, students and community members can now keep up with the latest news and updates about the Elk Grove Unified School District through a variety of communications tools:

For more extensive news on activities and events throughout the district, Elk Grove Unified produces eguNews, an email newsletter published every two weeks. eguNews includes highlights from around the district and information about upcoming events. Archive copies are also available to read on the district's website. To sign up to receive eguNews, visit http://www.egusd.net/news/egunews.cfm.

The EGUSD website offers a wealth of information for parents, students and community members. In addition to an Internet Spotlight story - that features different programs and events from throughout the district, the EGUSD website also contains information about each EGUSD school, information about district initiatives, enrollment procedures, information about the EGUSD Board of Education, as well as a selection of other topics and facts. You can visit the EGUSD website here: www.egusd.net.

Twitter allows the district to send short, concise updates on a variety of topics, including: upcoming events (graduations, etc.), activities, emergencies and breaking news, budget updates, district awards, weather reports and school closures, board meeting updates and weekly topics (i.e. character education, energy conservation, Internet safety tips). To follow Elk Grove Unified on Twitter, visit http://twitter.com/elkgroveunified.

On Facebook, users can not only get updates like they can on Twitter, but they will also find links to feature stories about the district, view photos from district events, view upcoming district events on the calendar and read about new awards and honors earned by our students, teachers and staff. You can "like" Elk Grove Unified on Facebook here: http://www.facebook.com/ElkGroveUnified.

These communications tools do not replace any of the information channels the district currently has in place. They serve as a supplemental tool to reach individuals who currently do not access the communications tools the district already has.

Questions? Comments? Concerns? Please email the Communications Department at communication@egusd.net or call (916) 686-7732.

Welcome to eguNews, an EGUSD email newsletter published every two weeks. To subscribe to eguNews, click here. If you have questions about eguNews, you can email communication@egusd.net or call (916) 686-7732.

Three EGUSD schools to receive monetary prizes from Big Lots Lots2Give video contest

BigLots

Three Elk Grove Unified School District schools have won prizes in the Big Lots Lots2Give video contest. Arlene Hein Elementary School has won a $5,000 second place prize and Prairie Elementary School and Edward Harris, Jr. Middle School have each won a $2,000 third place prize in the video contest. All three school were recognized at a check presentation on Saturday, August 10 at local Big Lots stores.

The Big Lots Lots2Give video contest asked schools to submit a short video and a brief essay explaining why their school is in need of financial support. From June 10 to July 7, the public could vote for their favorite video online. More than 405,000 votes were cast to determine the 37 winners, which include one $20,000 grant prize winner, two $10,000 first place winners, four $5,000 second place winners and 30 $2,000 third place winners from across the country. Along with the Lots2Give video contest, Big Lots collected in-store donations to help 250 schools participating in the Lots2Give program.

From April 29 through July 7, Big Lots customers were invited to make $1 or $5 donations at participating stores. Due to the generosity of the public, this initiative raised more than $277,000 to help participating schools. Samuel Jackman Middle School and Valley High School also participated in the Lots2Give program and will benefit from donations made at local Big Lots stores.

EGUSD to offer free immunization clinics

The Elk Grove Unified School District will hold free immunization clinics for eligible students on August 15 and 16 at several locations throughout the district.

Parents must bring their child's Immunization Card (yellow card) or "Out of Compliance" letter from their school to the clinic. No appointments are needed to attend the immunizations clinics.

To be eligible to participate in the immunization clinics, families must meet the following requirements:

Have no health insurance or insurance that does not cover vaccines
Are Medi-Cal eligible
Are American Indian or Alaskan Native

For the 2013-2014 school year, incoming 7^th grade students will need to provide schools with proof that they have received an adolescent pertussis (whooping cough) booster shot (Tdap) prior to starting school. California Law AB 354, the law enacting this requirement, has been in effect since July 1, 2011. School nurses will be hosting a Tdap only (Pertussis) clinic for incoming 7^th grade students at each EGUSD middle school from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Thursday, August 15 (click on the school name to view the school address):

A district-wide immunization clinic will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Friday, August 16 at the Robert L. Trigg Education Center (9510 Elk Grove-Florin Road, Elk Grove 95624). Eligible EGUSD students in all grades may attend this immunization clinic.

For more information about the immunization clinics, contact Tami Silvera in EGUSD's Student Support & Health Services at (916) 686-7568.

2013 EGUSD Scholarships

For many students, obtaining scholarships and grants can be the difference between pursuing a post-secondary education and not having the ability to do so. It's never too early to start looking for scholarships - and Elk Grove Unified has the perfect resource to start the search.

EGUSD's College and Career website features six sections to help students chart the course to a successful future: college prep, testing, college choices, the application, financing and career planning. These sections delve deeper into sub-sections, covering such topics as information on scholarships and other financial aid, graduation requirements, year-by-year planning guides and how to write a college essay.

In addition to using EGUSD's College and Career website, there are many other options to aid students and their parents in the search for financial aid for their post-secondary education. There are also popular websites to help students look for scholarships. Scholarships.com and FastWeb.com are search engines that gather information on scholarships from a variety of sources in one location. Students should also search the financial aid section of a college's website for scholarship options as well. Many schools offer their own scholarships for admitted students. These scholarships are often sponsored through donations from a school's alumni.

Locally, the Elk Grove Regional Scholarship Foundation (EGRSF) plays a large role in providing scholarships for EGUSD students. Since its beginning, EGRSF has generated, managed, endowed and distributed post-secondary scholarships to the area's youth. Click here for more information about EGRSF.

The Class of 2013 recognized the importance of obtaining scholarships, earning over $23 million in scholarships and Cal-Grant Awards - slightly surpassing the Class of 2012. Out of the 3,957 graduates last year, an average of 18 percent received scholarships. Scholarship awards for the Class of 2013 averaged around $31,911 per student. Laguna Creek High School had the highest percentage of graduates earning scholarships at 51 percent and Pleasant Grove High School graduates earned the most scholarship money with $5,112,000.

A New School Year Begins at EGUSD

WelcomeBack

The 2013-2014 school year has begun! To help you start the year on the right track, here are a few helpful tips and reminders to ensure a successful start to your student(s) school year.

Start Dates for 2013-2014 School Year
The remaining start dates for the 2013-2014 school year are as follows: year-round schedule (Track A): August 12, 2013 and modified traditional/traditional schedule: August 15, 2013. Click here to view the 2013-2014 school year calendar.

Are You New to EGUSD?
Registration
You may register your child for the current school year at any time. Registration can be done at your child's home school as soon as residence within the district can be verified. Click here to locate your child's school, if needed. The following documents are required to register your child:

Birth Certificate
Immunization record
Proof of residence within the district (i.e. bill of sale, lease agreement, a SMUD or PG&E bill.)*
For the 2013-2014 school year, all students entering 7th grade will need to provide proof that they have received an adolescent pertussis (whooping cough) booster shot (Tdap) prior to starting school.

*NOTE: Schools may ask for a utility bill or mortgage statement to verify residence within six months if a bill of sale was provided for proof of residency or within two months if a lease agreement was provided.

If your child will turn 5 years old on or before October 1, 2013, they are eligible to register for kindergarten for the 2013-2014 school year. If your child will turn 5 years old between October 2 and December 2, 2013, he/she is eligible to register for a Transitional Kindergarten class for the 2013-2014 school year. To learn more about Transitional Kindergarten, please call the PreK-6 Education office at (916) 686-7704.

Boundaries
The Elk Grove Unified School District must periodically change its school boundaries. Every time a new school is built, or the population in a particular area changes significantly, school boundaries must be adjusted. In practical terms, this means some students may have to change schools.

Please know the district cannot guarantee any child attendance at a particular school, regardless of where the child lives. However, every child is guaranteed a place somewhere in the district. In addition, there may be instances when a secondary school is filled to capacity. This could result in new students being offloaded to another school in the district.

Registration is completed at the home school of the residing address. Click here to use the School Locator Tool to find your child's school.