Dear MTUESD Community,
I hope your family had a happy Halloween. Thank you to all the family members that attended the Halloween parade at both sites. It was a good time.
THIS IS AN IMPORTANT NOTICE ABOUT PARKING. Please do NOT park in the nearby medical lots. YOU WILL BE TOWED by the building owners and they are using a service out of the Valley and the tow bill will be HUGE. I know that parking is limited in this area, but do not park in the businesses please. This includes special events such as back-to-school night and Halloween etc… The building owner is really kind, but he was dumbfounded that a parent swore at him repeatedly in front of kids when he requested that the car be moved. Folks, please we can’t act like that. It reflects so sadly on our school and our kids. Please be respectful in our interactions and please don’t park in those lots. I would hate for your family to receive a tow bill. I know that our school was built 70 years ago and the traffic flow was for when we all walked to school, but we have to be respectful of private property and be a good neighbor.
There is an important event coming up that is sponsored by our law enforcement agencies and the school districts on November 19 at 5:30 p.m. at the Bret Harte theater. In the current climate of school threats across the nation, this is an opportunity for you to learn more about how law enforcement agencies evaluate and respond to threats. They'll share some of the information related to the threat assessment process and also the response process. They'll also share information about potential consequences and responses to students' making/posting/repeating inappropriate threats. The superintendents of the county are working together to unify messaging when we get these specific threats, especially of the type that emerged from another county several months ago. Please join us and just learn a little bit more about what goes on behind the scenes and what we can do as a community to ensure our students attend a safe and secure school environment. We have dramatically increased our camera and vape detector presence this year. We do everything we can preventatively, but it's a great opportunity to hear from law enforcement their perspective and knowledge related to the landscape of school safety. Join us!
Please join us also for the board meeting on Thursday, November 14. Open session will reconvene at approximately 5:30 p.m. One of the discussions will be related to the possibility of considering a parcel tax to create additional programmatic funding for our schools. Parcel taxes fund PEOPLE/PROGRAMS not buildings. This is a heavy lift, but as I look at the landscape of our student needs and available resources, we are just looking at all options. You may or may not say “yes”, but we sure need to look at options to get our kids on level with Vallecito and Bret Harte.
I also had some questions about professional development from the candidates night related to what we do on the early release Fridays. I will be the first to admit that Fridays for a professional development day is unusual. Typically, districts hold those days mid-week. This year, our professional development calendar is particularly full as our teachers spend that time working on learning how to administer and interpret the new I-Ready assessment procedures, and how to use those assessments to inform instruction; teach the new SAVVAS science curriculum; implement the Character Strong curriculum; navigate the new Beyond SST reporting procedures; and attending their grade level meetings across the district. Additionally, that day is used for special education meetings and staff meetings, as well, if we are not able to fit them in in the school calendar. The classified staff support the teachers and prepare materials, or support our afterschool program. I want to assure everyone that it's not an afternoon off. If staff take the day off for any reason, they sign out and it is personal time.
We do have an update to the volunteer process. The site secretaries are now going to run most of the process as we have streamlined the procedure. The volunteers will pick up a packet at the school site. Volunteers will be reminded to make an appointment for a TB screening or bring in a valid TB test. When the packet is returned with the TB screening, the volunteer will be given the live scan document for the fingerprints at the county office. At the same time, the site office will request that the mandated computer training be provided to the volunteer. Once the packet, TB clearance, fingerprint clearance and training have been completed, the volunteer is ready to roll–whew! We need you. I know it is a lot. Not my choice--it is the insurance JPA that dictates these requirements.
At the Mark Twain site, we are still seeking some part-time employees to work in our ELOP after-school program. This is a great opportunity to impact student achievement and enrichment and we could really use a couple of dedicated employees. Reach out to lstewart@mtwain.k12.ca.us.
A huge thank you to the staff that took the kids on the field trip to the zoo this past Friday. What fun.
We have received prices to replace the playground surface material. We will be moving forward with the large playground at Copper pending board approval and the kindergarten and elementary sites pending board approval and some scheduled retrofits. The smaller playground at Copper is more problematic due to the septic plate lids and also the old age of the equipment contributing to it not worth the investment poured in place at this time. The right time to do that is at an equipment replacement cycle or redevelop its use.
We are also working with the architect to get an old sunshade permit signed off at DSA. This is really painful when old permits were not closed out. We are going to have to do some corrective work related to an ADA parking space to satisfy the requirements that 20% of the cost was spent on the path of travel. This is one of these state requirements that makes no sense, but we just have to walk the walk.
Finally, I want to share with you that the district did send a letter requesting support from the city related to the health and safety conditions of a neighbor next to the school property. I appreciate that the city officials did respond. I want you to know that I recognize that the condition of that property affects the learning environment of your students every single day and it simply is not okay in its current condition. We will continue to work with the city to get this addressed.
Please mark your calendar for November 11 as there is no school in honor and appreciation of our Veterans.
Sincerely yours,
Louise Simson, Superintendent
650-996-3290