Dear MTUESD Community,
Yo! Ho! Here we go! Measure A is on the ballot and the mail-in ONLY date for the election is May 6. Please make sure you are registered to vote. Voter applications are available in the school office or you can use this link–Voter registration
I want to be frank. In this community, one or two or 10 votes can make the difference, so don't sit this one out. I want to remind everyone that this is a $65 payment for four years by property owners that can only be used to support math and reading intervention, smaller class sizes, and supervision. ALL PEOPLE, PROPERTY OWNERS OR NOT, CAN VOTE ON THIS. Senior citizens can apply for an exemption and that is totally OK. Please highlight that with seniors because we need their vote, and it won't take any income away from them. There is an informational meeting tonight at the Mark Twain library at 5 o'clock. I will also be hosting one in Copper at the PTC meeting in the Library on February 5 at 5:30, February 27 at 1:30, and March 12 at 5:00!
The repair for the beams at Copper started this week. The kids are eating lunch elsewhere because of the smell of the epoxy. It is not dangerous. It just isn't really conducive to having a good appetite and we also don't want there to be any issues with equipment and kids. That part of the repair takes an estimated two weeks and then the general contractor comes in and does the metal plates around the beams and then removes the support beams and also patches the floor. This should rectify the significant safety problem that was presenting itself and ensure our kids are safe from building collapse.
The track at Mark Twain has been scraped and the decomposed granite installed. I wish we had the money to install rubber surfaces at both campuses, but we don't. What this mitigation did was take away the safety hazards of that highly deteriorated and hard and rubberized surface that was causing a lot of bloody knees. I'm a runner and I took a couple laps around, and it felt safe on the legs. If anyone knows a company that might be willing to support a rubber surface with a donation, let me know and I will pursue that. You never know unless you ask sometimes.
Science Camp is fast approaching. Thank you to Kurt Schneider and Tyler Rosen for organizing this. This is an important event for our sixth-graders and I want to shout out our team members that take time away from their own life and family to go away with your kids. These things have been going on for 30 years and life was a little bit different and less stressful, and we still keep up with these great things and I do want to acknowledge those staff members for doing it.
Summer school is only a few months away. I met with the team members from both sites who will be joining forces at Mark Twain and they are stellar. Turn in those reservation forms, so we can make sure that we have room for your student. We have buses coming from Copper in the morning and going home after lunch. If you want your student to stay for the whole day and you are from Copper, there will be no after school 5 o'clock bus run so please make sure you make arrangements for pick up. My goal for this program is academics, intervention, extension, and enrichment. It's for all students, not just students who are needing extra support. As you know, much to my chagrin, the state is funneling money into after school and summer school programs, instead of where we need it in the school day, so we are going to go all hog on that dime and make it a great program. You can register for one or two sessions, but if you register, please come. I don't want to waste money with someone that doesn't intend to show up. We are excited about this opportunity and food service is also included. We are working with our community partners to develop some activities both on the site and out in the community to provide a change of pace.
You may have heard of a Federal funding pause. I had some questions about that. The Federal income is a lot of money, but not HUGE proportionate to the total budget amount, so we are okay right now unless the rules change again.
Our peer tutor program is well underway. We had dozens and dozens of applications and Jennifer Landry is interviewing students now. This is a wonderful partnership between Bret Harte in our school system and we are delighted. This is all grant funded. We had a great article in the “Calaveras Enterprise”. Thinking out of the box with local partners can mean great things for kids.
I just want to thank you for your ongoing partnership with our kids. We created some significant change over the past six months in facilities and culture. We are grateful for our families and our staff who work together to promote the best interest of kids. Have a great weekend.
I need you…The staff needs you…Most importantly, our kids need you…
Sincerely yours,
Louise Simson
Superintendent
650-996-3290