Recently TUSD's CFO (Yousef Awwad) distributed to all schools the School Funding Formulas ("Budget Standards") for SY 2013-14.  Given the monstrous budget deficit TUSD is facing (approximately $17 million); each school will now have the daunting task of making site reductions in order to adhere to the Standards.  While my administrative team and I will be working closely with Sabino's Site Council to "navigate" through the budget process, please remember that you have representation on Site Council that you can voice your concerns through.  We have one of the most phenomenal schools in Tucson, and my hope is that once the budget is completed, Sabino can still deliver the quality instruction (and services/activities) we are so well known for.

On February 12, High School Director Bob Rossi visited Sabino for the purpose of outlining the upcoming process to hire your new Principal.  His goal is to have the interviews completed and a candidate ready to go forward for Governing Board approval well before the end of this school year.  Again, you have parent and community reps who sit on Sabino's Site Council that you can express your thoughts and ideas to...as to what you would like to see in your new Principal.

In closing, I would like to thank all of my students, staff, and community members who worked to make our Welcome to Success night (on 1/30/13) one of the greatest events we've held all year.  The changes that were made to this year's program should be the beginning of bigger and better things to come!

Yours in Education,

SPRING TESTING INFORMATION

Mark your calendars for AIMS and Stanford 10 testing!  Passing all three sections of AIMS is a graduation requirement in Arizona.  All sophomores will take AIMS tests for the first time this year.  In addition, juniors and seniors who have not yet passed one or more sections and those who requested us to order materials for them to try to exceed will retest on these dates.

Monday, February 25, 2013                 AIMS Writing

Tuesday, February 26, 2013                AIMS Reading

Tuesday, April 9, 2013                       AIMS Math

Wednesday, April 10, 2013                  AIMS Science (all sophomores who have not taken it and all 9th graders in biology)    

Thursday, April 12, 2012                    Stanford 10 (grade 9)                                 

**Please note that this year the AIMS Writing and Reading tests are on Monday and Tuesday after Rodeo Break

SAT & ACT

All college-bound Juniors should take an SAT or ACT Test by June, 2013. Having a score on file will allow students to apply early for college admission and scholarships.

SAT Registration

Test Date: May 4th                       Registration Deadline:                                                            April 5th

Test Date: June 1st                       Registration Deadline:                                                            May 2nd

ACT Registration

Test Date: April 13th                     Registration Deadline:                                                            March 8th  

Test Date: June 8th                      Registration Deadline:                                                            May 3rd

ACT AT SABINO

In addition to these national testing dates, all Sabino juniors will take the ACT (without the writing portion) during the school day on April 23rd.  Students do not need to sign up for this test, and students in other grades cannot participate.  ACT preparation materials will be distributed to students.

UPCOMING COLLEGE REPRESENTATIVE VISITS

Sign up in the counseling office

Mar 11 - University of Arizona

             Grand Canyon University

March 6th

5:15 - 6:15 PM - Financial Aid Presentation Room 206

6:15 - 8:00 p.m. - College Information Night/ Mini College Fair

April 18th - Grand Canyon University

April 25th - University of Arizona

COLLEGE INFORMATION NIGHT - SAVE THE DATE!

College Information Night is a time for students and their parents to learn more about post-secondary options.  This year's expanded program will be held on Wednesday, March 6th. 

5:15 - 6:15 -  Financial Aid Session for juniors and their parents (Room 206)

6:15 - 6:35 - Introduction of guest representatives

6:40 - 7:50 - Breakout sessions and browse sessions

Participants will have an opportunity to browse information tables and speak with college and military representatives in the cafeteria as well as attend information sessions for our state universities.  This year we will have over 25 representatives, including from military academies.

JTED OPPORTUNITIES

Pima County JTED (Joint Technological Education District) offers students the opportunity to participate in career and technical education programs outside of their regular school day at Sabino.  The enrollment period for programs for next school year has started.

Current freshmen are eligible to participate in Multimedia Technologies, Culinary Arts, Early Childhood Education, Agriscience (Plant Systems), and Graphic Design.

Current sophomores are eligible to participate in those programs as well as Cosmetology, Law and Public Safety, Aviation Technologies and Healthcare Foundations.  Sophomores who are interested in participating in Health Sciences programs (including Certified Nursing Assistant and Medical Assistant)  as seniors will need to sign up for the Healthcare Foundations course for their junior year.  Sophomores who are considering the Cosmetology program need to sign up for the 2-year program, which will start in their junior year.  JTED is not offering the 1-year Cosmetology program for seniors.

Current juniors can apply to participate in the programs listed above, as well as Fire Science.  Current juniors who wish to participate in the Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) program or the Medical Assistant program need to have passed the Healthcare Foundations class their junior year.

Complete program descriptions can be found in the 2013-2014 Enrollment Process/Class Schedule form located in the Programs and Classes section of http://www.pimajted.org/.  This site also has a link to the 2013-2014 Enrollment Form, which must be completed online.  The classes are on a first come, first serve basis so apply as soon as you can.  If you have questions, you can contact Mrs. Allen at jacqline.allen@tusd1.org or 584-7743.

OPEN ENROLLMENT

If you know someone who is interested in attending Sabino and does not live in the attendance area, invite them to the complete an Open Enrollment form.  This form can be obtained at Sabino or on-line at http://www.choicenow.org

We will be offering tan evening session for Open Enrollment students and parents to obtain registration information.  The meetings will take place in the Sabino cafeteria on Tuesday, March 12th, at 6:30 pm.

(Reprinted from the News You Can Use online newsletter available at http://www.act.org/news/use/pdf/nov06.pdf)

Why do I need to know this? When am I ever going to use this in the "real world?"

Do you often feel like that as you slog through another round of algebra problems? You might be surprised to know that yes, you will use skills and knowledge from your high school classes in real life, even though it might not seem obvious now.

Here are some things you need to know:

- People who take challenging courses and study hard in high school tend to have better jobs and make more money in their careers. Some of the jobs that require the most education, such as doctors, lawyers and engineers, pay well and rarely suffer job layoffs.

- Having knowledge and skills in all areas helps you in all jobs. For example, if you want to be an attorney, you may not need to use calculus on a daily basis, but if you want to specialize in patent law or to represent a pharmaceutical company, the ability to grasp math and science concepts will be very valuable.

- If you want to be a journalist, math will help you to better understand corporate and government documents and see beneath the surface of the numbers to get a good story. 

You never know exactly what career path you'll follow. By working hard in all the core subject areas, you will be prepared to make more choices about a career.

Financial aid planning can be intimidating, and you may not know where to turn for answers. The financial aid officers at colleges and universities are there to help. Below is a list of questions that the Associated Colleges of the Midwest suggests families ask:

1.    What kind of financial assistance does the college offer: need-based, merit-based or both?
2.    Can the college provide an early estimate of what our financial aid award might be?
3.    What forms are needed in order to apply?
4.    When are financial aid applications due?
5.    What student costs are taken into account by the financial aid office? Tuition, room, board, transportation? What about additional expenses such as books, fees, computers and personal expenses?
6.    What's included in the comprehensive fee? For example, do students have to pay extra for computer time or to attend campus events (concerts, plays, films, lectures, athletic events, etc.)?
7.    When will we be notified about the amount of assistance we can expect?
8.    Does the institution have an appeal process to review special circumstances?
9.    Is there a commitment for financial assistance beyond the first year.

10.How and when do we apply for financial assistance after the first year?

    11.What if we do not qualify for need-based aid? Are there alternative financing options available?

    12.What grants, loans and work-study opportunities does the college offer? Are there any we might be eligible for?

13.What's the average student loan indebtedness amount for the college's graduates?

14.Is there a restriction to the length of time that financial assistance will continue?

15.How long does it typically take a student to graduate from this college? Four years? Longer?

16.What impact do scholarships from outside sources have on other financial aid?

17.Can we apply financial aid toward an off-campus study program, either in the U.S. or another country?

18.What happens if our family's financial situation changes substantially during the school year?

19.Are there payment options available, such as monthly or quarterly?

UPDATED COUNSELING INFORMATION

The Sabino Counseling Page http://sabinocounseling.weebly.com/

has important information including tutor lists, scholarship information, college visitation information, and much more.  This is updated on a regular basis.  Visit us! 

 _______________________________________________

What is Sabino Jump Start?

            Jump Start is a summer academic academy being offered at Sabino High School for all in-coming freshmen, whether the student plans on, or is considering, attending Sabino High School for the 2013-2014 school year, or a different high school in the Tucson area.  This academic academy has been a part of Sabino's summer school program for more than ten years and has helped students transition from middle school to high school utilizing various educational and extra-curricular activities.  This year Jump Start will be independent from the summer school program because TUSD is combining the Sabino, Sahuaro and Santa Rita programs and students will take summer classes at Santa Rita High School.  However, our Jump Start program will still take place on the Sabino campus and TUSD students who successfully complete our program will earn .5 elective credit.

            The academic academy will consist of two classes: (1) Academic/Study Skills/Learning to Learn, and (2) Mathematics Camp-Jumpstarting High School Math Success.  Students can register for either the First Session, (May 30 to June 13), or the Second Session, (June 14 to June 28), and both sessions will be 11-days from 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. each school day.  For each day of both sessions one-half of the students will spend the first 2 hours in the Academics class, while the other one-half will spend the first 2 hours in Mathematics Camp.  At mid-morning break the students will change classes and spend the second 2 hours in the other class, (Academics students go to Mathematics Camp, and vice versa.  Three 10-minute breaks are also provided for the students during the day).  The curriculum for each class is set forth in the Jump Start flyer that is posted on the Sabino website, (http://edweb.tusd.k12.az.us/Sabino/).  You are encouraged to review the flyer and complete the registration form that is also posted on the website.  While Jump Start provides a relevant and rigorous educational curriculum to help prepare students for high school, we also provide time for students to make new friends, become familiar with our Sabino campus, and enjoy extra-curricular activities.  Learning and fun are both important components of our program.

            Sabino's Jump Start program is self-supporting, which means we rely on tuition paid by students to finance the program.  Tuition is $110 for a session and students can select one session only.  Registration started on January 30th and continues until both sessions are full, as there is a limit of 50 students per session, (total of 100 for both sessions).  You are encouraged to submit your registration form and $110 check made payable to Sabino Jump Start as soon as possible by delivering both to the Sabino Attendance office or mailing them to: Alex Sierra, Sabino High School, 5000 North Bowes Road, Tucson, Arizona, 85749.  If you want more information, or have any questions, you may contact the Academics class teacher, Alex Sierra, at alexander.sierra@tusd1.org, or the Mathematics Camp teacher, David Klees, at david.klees@tusd1.org.  

Seniors Learn American Government Through

Student-Based Learning Projects

            Seniors in Mr. Sierra's American Government class successfully completed their one-semester in American Government, learning about the Judicial, Executive and Legislative Branches through student-based learning projects.  Through these challenging projects students learned more about how our government operates than they would have by just reading a textbook and articles or searching the Web.  Students actively participated in the Supreme Court Simulation Project, the Political Parties and Elections Project, and the Senate Simulation Project.

            During the Supreme Court Simulation Project students played the role of attorneys representing either a student or the school in a public school free speech or religion case.  Students were assigned their roles and had the responsibility of researching and understanding U.S. Supreme Court decisions involving student First Amendment rights in public schools.  Students had to then apply their learning to a set of facts involving students exercising free speech and religion rights in school and present arguments on behalf of their clients to the Sabino Supreme Court, which consisted of Mr. Sierra's former students who participated in the project when they were seniors.  The students did an outstanding job of presenting valid arguments, with supporting evidence, and they were able to answer challenging questions from the Supreme Court Justices.  Through this project students learned the meaning of judicial review and how important decisions are made by our Judicial Branch and also how they impact all of our lives.

            Since 2012 was a Presidential election year students were interested in understanding the political and election process.  In the Political Parties and Elections Project students in each class worked in cooperative learning groups and first researched the various Third-Parties that exist in America, they then chose a Third-Party to join.  Each group was instructed to "live and breathe" the political party they chose to join and each group did a presentation to the class, providing details about their political party and their position on certain issues.  This project led to the Elections Project where the political parties decided to either advance a Presidential and Vice-Presidential candidate or join together to promote candidates.  The candidates took part in political campaigns, which included making posters, campaign commercials via video and/or PowerPoints, which then culminated in a debate between the competing candidates.  A President and Vice-President were elected in each class.

            The Senate Simulation Project was the students' last project and they learned first-hand how the U.S. Senate operates.  Each student played the role of an Independent U.S. Senator who had to propose a Bill to be passed by the appropriate Senate committee and the entire Senate.  Students submitted proposed Bills on current issues facing our Nation including: stem cell research, child abuse, gun control, animal testing, tax reform, ocean and air pollution, and many other interesting and challenging issues.  Each student-Senator was assigned to be a member of a committee and each student-Senator had to present their proposed Bill to the committee his/her Bill was considered by during the committee work.  Each committee had to pass at least six Bills which were then considered by the entire Senate.  The students engaged in respectable heated discussions and debates on the Bills, just as occurs in the real U.S. Senate.  Students also learned how politics plays a critical role in our legislative process.  After the committee work was completed the passed Bills were presented to the entire class-Senate by the student-Senator who proposed the Bill.  Students again engaged in respectable heated discussions and debate on the Bills and voted to either pass or not pass each Bill.  The Vice-President of each class controlled the debate process as President of the Senate and after the Senate passed the Bills they were given to the class President to either, "sign into law," or to veto.  Throughout the project students were fully engaged and learned the difficult process of getting a Bill passed through Congress.

            Student-based learning projects are used as learning strategies by Mr. Sierra and other teachers at Sabino High School.  It is always our hope that students will have an enriching learning experience with these projects and discover that learning can be enjoyable.  Second semester is dedicated to learning the concepts and principles of Economics, with a focus on America's mix-market-capitalism system and our interconnection with other economies around the world.  If you have any questions or desire additional information about what we do in our class please contact Mr. Sierra at alexander.sierra@tusd1.org.