Public hearing on Menlo Mandarin Spanish Immersion Charter Petition Appeal, 7:00 p.m., San Mateo County Office of Education, 101 Twin Dolphin Drive, RWC

Hillview News

6th & 7th Grade iPad Collection: In order to transition over to our new Mobile Device Management (MDM) System, Casper Suite, we will be collecting 6th and 7th grade iPads on December 18. These iPads will be wiped of all content and prepared for reconfiguration, which students themselves will do upon their return on January 6. We are encouraging students to upload any important content to "the Cloud." Our students all have a Google Drive account, and access to other Apps such as Dropbox and Box. Once the iPad is wiped, the content will not be recoverable.

The new Mobile Device Management System promises to be much more useful for our needs and will represent a significant upgrade in our technological infrastructure. 8th graders will continue to have their iPads managed under the current MDM, Meraki.

Mandarin Immersion Charter Petition Appeal

The County Board will be holding a Public Hearing on January 7 at 7:00 p.m. at the San Mateo County Office of Education (SMCOE), 101 Twin Dolphin Dr., Redwood City to discuss an appeal of the Menlo Mandarin Immersion Charter Pertition. The MPCSD School Board unanimously denied the charter petition on November 12, 2014.

The Public Hearing is the community's opportunity to provide input to the County Board, and our District will be presenting information on our denial of MMICS's petition for the County Board to consider. The County Board plans to take action and make a decision on February 4 at 7:00 p.m., also at SMCOE.

The District also received the petitioners' request for District facilities under Proposition 39 on October 31. On December 1, the District denied the petitoner's request for District facilities under Proposition 39. You can find all Board meeting presentations, reports, and additional information related to the Charter Petition on the District's website.

Mini-Course Help Requested

Mini-Course Help Needed: Several of our upcoming Mini-Course planners need parent help in organizing the best program possible for our students.

Play It As It Lies needs help identifying one or more golf courses willing to host 2-3 foursomes of student golfers for a day or two during the week of April 13 for play and, potentially, instruction from a pro or assistant pro. If you have contacts at a local course and would be willing to put us in touch, please contact Kate Kennedy.
Video Game Design would love a tour of Electronic Arts. If you or someone you know can make arrangements for us, please contact Pam Fernandes.
Beyond Scrubs and Stethoscopes is looking for anyone with medical connections in the community that can help out with the minicourse. Please contact Nancy Haight if you can help!

Part of what makes our Mini-Course Program so unique and wonderful is the invaluable support from you, our parent community. We appreciate your help making these experiences possible for our students.

New After School Classes Offered

Information on after school classes has been updated for Winter and Spring Sessions. Please visit our website to see the updated schedule and new classes.

Immunization Records Required

Hillview 6th Grade Parents: All incoming 7th graders in the 2015-2016 school year are required by law to provide proof of a whooping cough booster or Tdap shot (Td does not meet the requirement). Students will not be admitted to school if proof is not received before the first day of school.

Please bring an updated copy of your child's immunization record showing proof of Tdap to the school office by Friday, January 9, 2015. If there is a verified medical condition against vaccination, you are required to provide the school with a doctor's written satement which must include the specific nature and probable duration of the medical condition. If there is a personal belief for not vaccinating, you are required to obtain a personal belief exemption from your child's physician (form CDPH 8262).

Intramural and After-School Sports

Intramural Sports: Lunchtime intramural sports are volleyball, soccer and/or badminton.

Tournament Team Basketball: We congratulate the Girls Tournament Team for their efforts in the annual Notre Dame Invitational over the weekend. The 8th grade Boys Tournament
Team will play this week in the San Jose Tournament December 17 - 20. Best of luck!

Burgess League and MPMSL (8th Grade) Basketball: Teams will continue with practices and league games this week. 6th grade girls play on Tuesday, 6th grade boys play on Wednesday, 7th grade girls play on Thursday, 7th grade boys play on Friday. All 6th and 7th grade games will be played at Arrillaga Gym. 8th graders will play their first games on Monday, December 15 at Hillview, La Entrada, or Woodside Elementary.

Questions regarding any of these programs should be directed to Harry Bell, Athletic Director, or call (650) 483-4049.

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Hillview Spirit Squad

The Dance and Cheerleading Spirit Squad is looking for enthusiastic students to join the team. Students will represent Hillview and learn dance and cheer techniques, stunts, sideline cheers, and pom pom routines while refining performance skills. If you have spirit for our number one school, Hillview, then this team is for you!

Practices are held on Tuesdays from 3:15 - 4:15 p.m. in the Fitness Room at Hillview. Students will attend one practice a week and perform at various school events, basketball games, and Hillview's first annual Dance Show on March 6 and 7. Registration will close on January 13, 2015. The registration fee is $120. Questions? Please contact Katie DeAnda.

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Hillview Music

The Hillview Winter Concert is this Tuesday, December 16. Invite your family and friends! Come and enjoy all of Hillview's instrumental ensembles (Concert Band, Jazz Band, and Orchestra) along with a special performance by the Hillview Chorus. The concert will be held from 7:00 - 8:30 p.m. in the PAC.

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Parenting Workshop at Oak Knoll

Mindfulness and Parenting Workshop to be held January 27, 7:00 - 8:30 p.m. at the Oak Knoll Library. This event will be presented by Dr. Amy Saltzman and is sponsored by the Oak Knoll PTO.

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District Directories Available

By now you should have received a copy of the MPCSD directory, compliments of the PTO, sent home with your youngest child in the district. Directories were delivered to teachers the week of Nov 10th. Extra directories are available in the Front Office for $10.

The data in the directory comes from the PowerSchool Program. PowerSchool is populated with information from district registration forms filled out by parents. Parents are asked annually to update/verify that information through the InfoSnap website. If the information printed in the directory is incorrect, or if you're not listed in the Directory and wish to be, please let us know. The corrections will be made in the PowerSchool database and you will be asked to verify them next summer.

Thanks also to parent John Kelly and Blackstone Discovery for their outstanding service in publishing the District Directory! Questions? Please click here.

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Shop Online and Earn Money for Hillview

Shop.MPAEF.org. MPAEF's new shopping portal! Start your holiday shopping by clicking here. It's easy to earn money (up to 10%) for our schools by doing your holiday shopping through the MPAEF portal. With more than 100 great merchants participating, you can get your shopping done in no time!

Here's how: Start at shop.MPAEF.org, click on your favorite merchant to activate our referral bonus, shop and pay for items as you normally would. Earn up to 10% of your purchase total for our schools. It's that easy!

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Community Events

Elf, a holiday family favorite will be presented at the Menlo-Atherton Performing Arts Center on Friday, December 19 at 7:00 p.m. The movie will be sponsored by the City of Menlo Park Community Services Department. Come dressed as your favorite holiday character! Please visit www.menlopark.eventbrite.com to RSVP and for more information.

Menlo-Atherton Little League 2015 Spring Season is NOW OPEN! M-ALL is offering seven playing divisions to players age 5 to 13. We are also registering youth umpires, age 13-17 as of April 30, 2015. For more information you can download our 2015 Registration FAQ.

Teen Night - DIY Treasure Chests Friday, January 9 from 6:30 - 8:30 p.m. Teens, ages 12-18, take a break and come create a personalized treasure chest for your special keepsakes. Snacks & hot drinks provided. This event will be held at the Menlo Park Library. Please see our Teen Library website for registration.

Teen Winter Book Club Saturday, January 24 from 3:00 - 4:30 p.m. Menlo Park Library's Book Club program for ages 12-18 is set to meet during the winter. Meeting dates are on Saturdays, January 24 and February 28 from 3:00 - 4:30 p.m. at the Menlo Park Library. To register for the book club, please send an e-mail to Sydnee Mardell.

Do you love graphic novels? Teens ages 11-18 are welcome to enter their own comic or manga into the Teen Winter Contest. The public will vote for their favorite. Come by the Menlo Park Library or email Sydnee Mardell or visit our website for more information, including dimensions of the comic.

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Newsletter Details

This newsletter is published by PTO parent volunteers every Sunday of the school year, except for Sundays preceding a full week of vacation. The next newsletter will be published on January 4, 2015.

Submissions: The deadline to submit for the Sunday Hillview Newsletter is Wednesday at noon. Please email your submission to newsletter@hillviewpto.org. Please note that submissions may be edited for content and/or length. Submissions received after the deadline will be eligible for inclusion the following week.

To submit an announcement for an off-campus community event, please email your announcement to communitynews@mpcsd.org. The submission deadline is Wednesday at noon for the following Sunday newsletter.

Archives: Missed an exciting edition of the Hillview newsletter or letters from the school or PTO? Look up past mailings in our online archive.

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