board highlights november 18, 2016 - musdpublic.sharepoint.musd.net/superintendent office...board...

of 42 Super intendent’ s Off ice , Community Outreach

Board Highlights

November 18, 2016 **School Sites/District Office – Closed on November 24 th and 25 th for Thanksgiving**

**No Highlights – Week of November 21, 2016**

Weston Ranch High School Cougar Becomes Hall of Famer

“It’s big for our community, for our school, and for our athletic program.”

-Francine Baird, WRHS Principal

Click here to read full story

Table of Contents Mark Your Calendars! .................................................................................................................................................2

School Events ..............................................................................................................................................................3

LHS Tech Champs Lead Interactive Learning ........................................................................................................... 12

Friday Night Live County-Wide Training .................................................................................................................. 13

WRHS Be.Vital Leadership Conference ................................................................................................................... 14

Cougar Becomes Hall of Famer ............................................................................................................................... 16

FFA National Convention ......................................................................................................................................... 18

East Union Leadership VOLs .................................................................................................................................... 19

Point Break Builds MHS Freshman Friendships ....................................................................................................... 20

Sierra Goes to Neverland ........................................................................................................................................ 22

Veritas has Spirit ...................................................................................................................................................... 23

Guest Speaker at be.tech ........................................................................................................................................ 24

November is Homeless Awareness Month ............................................................................................................. 25

Classified In-Service ................................................................................................................................................. 26

Golden Seed Harvest Award .................................................................................................................................... 27

Center for Ecoliteracy, California Kids Salsa Challenge Award ................................................................................ 28

2016 Best of 209 ...................................................................................................................................................... 29

BROCK ELLIOTT DAY (Manteca Bulletin).................................................................................................................. 30

Great Valley Stages 1st Veterans’ Tribute (Manteca Bulletin) ................................................................................ 33

Manteca Needs to Fill 205 Jobs (Manteca Bulletin) ................................................................................................ 35

Student Trustee Serves as Bridge to Manteca Unified (The Record) ...................................................................... 37

A Special-Needs Student Scored a Touchdown in the Best High School Play of the Season (Washington Post) ... 40


Mark Your Calendars!

be.tech Café – Closed Thanksgiving week (November 21-25, 2016)

Sierra High School-Sober Grad Poinsettias

Fundraiser

Click here to pre-order your poinsettias


Community Outreach Dept.

School Events

Woodward moves on to County Spelling Bee

Congratulations to 5th grader Nolan Marley for competing in

the Manteca Unified Spelling Bee. Nolan was one of three

MUSD students who will move on to the county competition

on December 4th.

Nolan competed against the representatives from the

4th-6th grade students, one from each elementary

school. We are very proud of Nolan and look forward

to watching him at the San Joaquin County Office of

Education in December.

Nolan is pictured with Mrs. Audrey Greene, principal

of Shasta Elementary and the “Spelling Bee” for the

evening.

Sydnee Navarro, 8th grade, also participated in the 7-9th grade round. She did a great

job representing Woodward.

5th Grade Collects Socks for MUSD Homeless

Mrs. Melissa DeMatteo and Mrs. Karah Reeves (5th grade teachers) challenged not only their

students, but the entire Mustang study body, to participate in Socktober.

Socktober is a nationwide student movement that inspires today’s students to be the change

in their world by helping others. Through collecting socks, Woodward 5th graders and

student body answered this challenge.

Socks were collected for two weeks and presented to Mrs. Peg Krueger, MUSD School nurse

and District Homeless Liason. These socks will go to MUSD students and families in need.

The Socktober event

collected over 1,556 pair

of socks!

Students in Mrs. DeMatteo’s class and Mrs.

Reeves’s class performed “Thriller” to the

students and parents in attendance during

the Socktober presentation.

Socktober is student favorite, fun and heart-

warming event at Woodward. Great job 5th

graders!!



School Events

Woodward Jr. High Leadership

Holds Can Election

The Woodward Leadership Class organized a

Can Election, where students of Woodward

were encouraged to donate cans for the KCRA

Kids Can Program.

Mrs. Brenda Madsen and Mrs. Martha

Martinez, student council advisors, decided to

make the donation a mock election to heighten interest and boost

the number of cans. 1 can equals 1 vote. This election helped

students voice their opinion for their favorite USA presidential

candidate.

President-Elect Donald Trump

was the winner of the

Woodward Can Election.

The 8th grade class visited the

California State Capitol on

Monday, November 7th, just

one day prior to the general

election. The students enjoyed

their experience and were able

to bring back lively discussions

regarding our state

government.

Dinner with a Scientist

Three deserving Woodward students had the

opportunity to participate in Dinner with a

Scientist on Friday, November 4th, escorted by

Woodward Vice Principal, Mrs. Chris Benson.

During the interactive dinner, students

engaged in scientific discussions and activities.

The students in attendance this year were

Amiee Farias (8th grade), Karson Condit (8th

grade), and Karlie Spohn (7th grade) and

Woodward parent and scientist, Mr. Mike

Cardenas.



School Events

Shasta Students Are Too Cool for Drugs

Red Ribbon Week was celebrated school wide at Shasta. Students voted and agreed upon

daily themes, a door decorating and poster contest was held, and red ribbons were tied all

over campus representing Shasta’s spirit.

The Red Ribbon Week committee did an outstanding job in organizing and facilitating this event. The committee

was comprised of Mrs. Julie Wakeman, Mrs.

Sherry Hatfield, Mrs. Gina Croslow, Mrs. Rena

Niford, Mrs. Jennifer Moore, and Ms. Jennifer

Beggs.

One winner per grade level was chosen for the

poster contest with a theme of “You Only Live

Once, Say No To Drugs”. Each winner was

treated to a lunch with Shasta Principal, Mrs.

Greene. Winning posters were displayed in the

cafeteria.

Since its beginning in 1985, the Red Ribbon has

touched the lives of millions of people around

the world. Today, the Red Ribbon serves as a

catalyst to mobilize communities to educate

youth and encourage participation in drug

prevention activities. This campaign has

reached millions of U.S. children and their families by delivering a message of hope each year during Red Ribbon

Week. Shasta is proud to participate in this positive message.

Shasta Student Wins 3rd

Place

Shasta second grader Ariana Angel won 3rd place out of over 1,000 posters submitted in the Manteca Fire Department’s Fire Safety Poster contest.

Members of the Manteca Fire Department came to Ariana’s class and presented her with a certificate to acknowledge her award, and provided a treat for her entire class. Ariana’s teacher Mrs. Julie Wakeman shared how proud she is of Ariana, describing her as a terrific student. Shasta is so proud of their little Hornet!

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School Events

Kids CAN Help Kids!

Shasta 8th grade teacher Doreen Bolding, has once again led the charge in coordinating school wide efforts to

participate in KCRA 3’s, Kids Can Food Drive.

This effort produced 852 pounds of canned

goods with a value of $1,388.76. Shasta students

have been collecting nonperishable food items

between October 8th and November 11th.

This school wide Service Learning activity dovetails with Shasta’s focus on learning to be of service to our local community and the world at large, by bringing our best selves forward every day in every way.

The KCRA 3 Kids Can Food Drive has been helping to feed hungry families in our community for more than 20 years. The Shasta Hornets are

proud to be part of this effort.

Widmer Canned Food Drive

The Wild Cats take pride in caring for their

community. Students and staff of Joseph

Widmer donated non-perishable foods to

host a Community Food Night in the

cafeteria on the evening of Nov. 17.

Community Food Night welcomes members

of the community who are in need of a bag of a food. Leadership

students organized the heartwarming evening, and gathered all

leftover items to be donated to Second Harvest Foodbank.

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School Events

Full STEM Ahead!

Stella Brockman School started a

STEM club facilitated by 6-8th

grade science teachers Erick

Kimball, Trevor Small and Lisa

Hoyer.

The club had their first meeting last week, and

their off to a great start! Over thirty 5-8th

grade students came. They will be meeting

once a month to explore and participate in

STEM!

FFA Greenhand

Honorees

The Manteca-Sierra FFA held the

annual fall Greenhand Banquet on

November 10th. There were 42

recipients of the Greenhand Degree.

Manteca High is extremely proud of

the students and are excited to see

them work

towards earning

their Chapter

degree.

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School Events

Peace Signs at Brock Elliott

The third and fourth grade students at Brock Elliott School attended an incredible assembly entitled, “Peace

Signs”, sponsored by Kaiser. Students were entranced in the many messages given to them through this theatrical

performance.

Topics such as conflict resolution, the ‘Stop

Sign’ method of controlling their actions,

and overall taking part in creating a positive

impact, were demonstrated and discussed

in a very engaging way.

The Peace Signs team followed up by

visiting each classroom over the course of

two days, and providing a workshop to

further explore these

topics. It was very well

received by students and

staff. Brock Elliott thanks

Kaiser for sharing the

Peace Signs team!

Brock Elliott ‘Kids Can’ Participation

The Brock Elliott Student Council sponsored schoolwide

participation in “Kids Can”.

They advertised, oranized, and boxed over 900 food items

donated to charity as a community service project. The winning

class for collection was Mrs. Wallick’s class.

The Student Council participates in several community service

projects each year.



School Events

Artist in Residency Program Great Valley’s students get to participate in the Artist in Schools program for the second year in a row through the San Joaquin County Office of Education. Great Valley students in 1st through 8th grades will receive 8 art

sessions with a guest artist. Mr. Filippini’s 6th grade class learned about a variety of lines and created pictures using different types of lines. Mrs. King’s 2nd grade class had guest artist Sonya Huff. Ms. Huff taught the students how to create a landscape portrait with pastel chalks. The program’s goal is to improve art education for teachers and students. Great Valley recognizes the importance of art and the effect that it has on student achievement and will be submitting some students’ artwork to local art shows as well as hosting their own art show in the spring.

Golden West Celebrates Red Ribbon Week

Thanks to our student leadership team, Golden West has had an exciting and eventful Red Ribbon

Week celebration. This year’s theme is YOLO (You Only Live Once).

Students have had daily themed dress-up days, as well as multiple Red Ribbon activities. Students have taken the pledge to be drug free by signing a school wide Red Ribbon poster. Red Ribbon Week is an annual spirit week serving as an opportunity to teach students about drug prevention and living healthy drug free lives.

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School Events

On Tuesday, November 1st all Kindergarten classes

attended a play at the Gallo Center in Modesto.

Students enjoyed the live performance of Daniel

Tiger’s Neighborhood.

Students in 7th and 8th grade enjoyed their Trimester 1 rally on Tuesday, November 4th. Ms. Agdeppa and her leadership students planned out several exciting games and competitions for the students and teachers to participate in. At the end of the day, all the Jr. High students were treated to a root beer float party!

Jr. High students were active participants in a real DUI

case that was held on campus Wednesday, November

16th. Students also participated in a Skype session with

inmates---students were able to ask questions and

learn how choices and consequences can have a lasting,

sometimes lifelong effect.



School Events

Auto Shop Lab at Lathrop High

MUSD Auto Mechanics traveled to Lathrop High School to teach be.Prepared students and Ms. Young’s Special Education students, how to

properly maintain their cars.

A live demonstration was led on areas such as changing a tire, jumping a dead battery, and basic car maintenance.

http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=lathrop+high+school+manteca+ca&view=detailv2&&id=FEAE65E8468F07D093D107EE2FC48A06748C80AF&selectedIndex=0&ccid=2IYZHKxq&simid=608011492600972135&thid=OIP.Md886191cac6aaf58493fbc2a14693250o0



School Events

LHS Tech Champs Lead Interactive Learning Submitted by: Tripti Singh, Community Outreach Intern

Twice a month, Stephanie Gleaves and Heather Anderson get together with the LHS staff and teach them

how to implement more fun, efficient, and helpful technology in their classrooms. This event is known

as the Tech Champ Demonstration.

During this demonstration Gleaves and Anderson offer many different types of websites and tool the

teachers may benefit from. Their goal is to help teachers integrate more technology into their classrooms

so that students can learn more easily and efficiently.

“With the busy schedules that we all have throughout the

day, it is nice to have some time to work together to

collaborate and teach each other some ways that we

implement technology in our classrooms,” says Anderson.

Gleaves, Anderson and Greg Leland get together to

decide what useful tools on the web they could teach the

staff about. They typically do these classes for the staff

on Thursdays after school for about an hour and half. The

staff signs up and information is sent to them about what

they will need to bring with them to the demonstration.

Last week, they showcased the website Socrative.com

which allows teachers to put quizzes and tests online for students to access. Socrative also lets students

study through game play, making learning more interactive for them.




School Events

Friday Night Live County-Wide Training

Tripti Singh, COIP Intern

Lathrop High’s Friday Night Live (FNL) club

hosted the San Joaquin County Adult/Youth Leadership training

on Wednesday, November 9th. Advisors and student leadership

teams from chapters (clubs) around the county came out to LHS

to learn more about Friday Night Live, service and campaign

opportunities, and the logistics of running a youth-led club.

Friday Night Live (high school level) and Club Live (junior high

level) chapters are youth-led groups that advocate education and

prevention of risky behaviors on issues like drugs, alcohol,

tobacco, and distracted driving. Each chapter makes an effort to

impact their local environment based on the issues they see.

About 150 participants attended the day-long training. The

training had two keynote sessions and workshops that varied

from practical topics like how to run a meeting, to fun sessions on

team building ice breakers. Overall, the event allowed leadership teams and advisors to collaborate and

learn new ways of making their own chapters more effective as they plan campaigns for the upcoming

year.

“This was an excellent opportunity for members in our chapter to show their leadership and logistical

skills,” said Lathrop High’s FNL club advisor Laura Freret.

In addition to being room facilitators, the LHS chapter did two workshops, ice breakers and team building

games. They also opened the event with a Kahoot quiz game that shared astonishing drug & alcohol

statistics, FNL history, and important training day information.




School Events

WRHS Be.Vital Leadership Conference

Photo Left: Delta College Medical Students present to Be.Vital Students

Photo Right: Be.Vital students participate in questions and answers.

Joe Contreras

COIP Intern

On Friday, November 4th, over 150 WRHS Be.Vital students gathered in the small gym for the first ever

Be.Vital Leadership Conference.

Be.Vital is a new program at WRHS that allows students that want to pursue a job in the medical field,

to get more hands on experience through courses such as Medical English, Medical Math, and much

more.

Be.Vital students are required to be a part of HOSA. Tamara Basepayne, CO-Director of the Be.Vital

Academy at WRHS explained that HOSA is a student led organization with students getting opportunities

to experience health related Jobs and also get the opportunity to build leadership skills amongst

themselves, their school, and their community.

The BLC included eight different competitions which included Nursing Assisting, Sports Medicine,

Medical Math, Extemporaneous Poster, CPR First Aid, Medical Terminology, Prepared Speech, and

Health Career Poster.

Supreet Sandhu, a Hosa officer, loves to see her classmates strive for placing for competitions they have

never done before as she took first place in the Prepared Speech. Sandhu has plenty of experience in

these competitions as she placed first last year in her premier year at the Area Leadership Conference.

She shared the importance of finding the right inspiration when preparing for the speech, “because if

you don’t really have any faith in what you are saying, you are not going to be able to convey the right

message.”



School Events

Joshua Campus, 1st Place in Health Careers Display and Presentation with partner Gresia Compo, was

excited to have the opportunity to show his dedication toward becoming the type of physician he would

love to become by the poster and personal statement that he included on the display.

The goal of the BLC is to prepare students for Leadership Conferences such as the Area Leadership

Conference and State Leadership Conference. Deepa Sing, HOSA Club President, explained the

importance of BLC, “it is a momentum building and confidence building thing.”

Photo Left to Right:

Supreet Sandu- 1st Place in Prepared Speech

Mykayla Ashford- Placed 1st in Extemporaneous Health

Poster and 2nd in Medical Math

Joshua Campus and Gresia Compo- 1st Place in the Health

Careers Display and Presentations



School Events

Cougar Becomes Hall of Famer Photo Left: Bryant Bowen receives The Defensive

Solomon Award from David Lozano

Joe Contreras

Community Outreach Intern

Bryant Bowen, Senior, is the first student from Weston Ranch High School and Manteca Unified School

District to be honored with induction into the Stockton Athletic Hall of Fame.

Bowen was inducted into on November 16th at the 52nd Annual Stockton

Athletic Hall of Fame Awards Dinner.

He was awarded with the Defensive Solomon Award. The Solomon

Award is given in honor of the late Fred “Solly” Solomon and it is given

to the most outstanding offensive and defensive backfield football

players from the Stockton Metropolitan Area.

Bowen led the team in defensive tackles with a total of 110 tackles on

the season with an average of 12.2 tackles per game.

Bowen said, “I feel very grateful,” after receiving the award. He appreciates everything about the Weston

Ranch Community.

The secret to his success is by having a very dedicated work ethic. He likes to

focus more on the process then the product.

Seth Davis, Head Coach for Weston Ranch Football said, “BJ (Bryant) works

tremendously on and off the football field.”

Francine Baird, WRHS Principal, believes that this award brings positive light to

what is going on in the Weston Ranch Community. She stated that, “It’s big for

our community, for our school, and for our athletic program.”



School Events

Also during the award ceremony, the WRHS 2015-2016 Boys Basketball team was awarded with the

Team of the Year Award for winning the Division 3 San-Joaquin Section Championship.

Photos Left to Right: Bryant Bowen with Francine Baird (WRHS Principal), Eric Duncan (Football Coach-

MUSD Trustee Candidate), and Seth Davis (Head Football Coach



School Events

FFA National Convention Photo (Left to Right): Steven Shatz (Sophomore),

Christian Gomez (Senior) , Shannen Posadas (Junior)

Community Outreach Intern Joe Contreras

Three Weston Ranch FFA members had the chance of a lifetime—attending the 89th National FFA Convention in

Indianapolis, Indiana in October.

East Union, Lathrop and Weston Ranch were the only schools that represented Manteca Unified School District at

the National Convention. However there was a total of 65,000 FFA members in attendance.

The National FFA Convention is the largest student convention in the world.

During the convention students attend seminars, tours, and workshops that

promote premier leadership, personal growth and career success.

Christopher Livengood, Agricultural Educator and FFA Advisor, enjoyed watching his

students meet and interact with members from across the world as there were

representation from every state and even a few foreign nations.

Shannen Posadas, Stockton – Weston Ranch FFA Chapter Sentinel, stated that,

“meeting new people helped break the stereotypes toward FFA members.”

Students were also able to try everything from different food from across the

United States to boot camp style competitions.

California FFA sponsored a trip that allowed the students to visit Washington DC.

The students spent 3 days touring the nation's capital including the Air & Space

Museum, Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, Capitol Building, White House, Jefferson & Lincoln Memorial, Washington

monuments, War memorials as well as many more.

Steven Shatz, Stockton- Weston Ranch FFA Chapter Secretary, enjoyed touring around Washington D.C and seeing

all of the new and old monuments.

Christian Gomez, Stockton- Weston Ranch FFA Chapter Vice President Delta-Cal FFA Sectional Sentinel, explained

that the conventions helped them, “to become better leaders and apply that to our service as FFA Members and

officers such as organizing better events, and being more coordinated.”



School Events

East Union Leadership VOLs By Jessica Pablo COIP Intern The Valley Oak League meetings aren't held just for athletics. VOLs are also arranged for Leadership classes too.

Leadership VOLS are hosted several times a year so that students from other leadership classes can attain new ideas and concepts from their peers and staff members within their community. Students from the Manteca Unified School District, as well as a few other districts, participate in icebreaker games that strengthen their leadership skills and help them connect with the other schools. "We go to interact with other schools, and we all get to know each other. It's a fun way to learn about other schools and see what they do differently. It gives us a fresh perspective and helps us brainstorm ideas for events that we hold here at East Union," said senior class treasurer, Ariana Perez. Many motivational speakers also come to these events and talk about their life experiences and how to become a positive influence on and off campus. One specific motivational speaker especially stood out to elections commissioner, Britney Moneyhun. “The speaker at the Manteca VOL last year knew what high school was about, she knew how we felt. It was so memorable because it was nice to see someone older looking from our point of view, understanding spot on, and encouraging us to be better than we were yesterday.” Audio visual commissioner Jack Weaver spoke about his first time attending a VOL meeting and hearing a speech from a motivational speaker. “I liked how she talked about always being ready for crazy things to happen in your lifetime. You always have to be ready to bounce back from adversity, and to think positive even in the worst situations because it will help you get out of them.” Leadership VOLS are normally hosted by schools in the Valley Oak League, however each one is different in their own special way. Some schools also host invitational meetings. ASB Secretary, Victorio Romo, explained the difference between the two, "The first VOL that's hosted has everyone. The one I went to yesterday, like the rest, only includes seven students from each school. There's a different dynamic between the two types but it still has the same concept." Invitational meetings are known to be more organized and students are able to focus better on the message since there's only a select few chosen to attend. "I feel like we played for games at the first VOL, but we discussed a lot more at this one," explained junior class secretary Seth Lozano. "Essentially the point of a VOL is bettering yourself and your school, to hold more activities to get the entire school involved," said Perez.



School Events

Point Break Builds MHS Freshman Friendships

By Shamyel Rezaye

COIP Intern

Manteca high freshman learned to see each other a little

differently on Wednesday November 16, 2016 by attending

the Point Break seminar.

The purpose of Point Break is to improve the behaviors,

values and attitudes of high school students on their

campuses and in their communities, intervening before acts

of hatred or violence occur. As a result, better learning

environments are created, relationships are forged and reconciliation begins.

Point break has been serving students throughout the United States for more than sixty years.

Point Break is a day-long workshop designed to promote resiliency among students. Through this six-

hour workshop, educational and social barriers that exist between students begin to evaporate. High-

energy activities, interaction with caring adults and relevant discussion—regarding bullying, painful life

experiences and emotional expression—allow Point Break to draw students together, focusing on

empathy and respect.

There were several team-building exercises in the morning. After

lunch, a lot of the sharing happened between students. Students got

into groups and talked.

They shared what they go through every day. In some ways, it was

like taking off the masks they wear that keep them from being open

and connecting with peers. High school can be hard when you feel

judged by your appearance before people get to know you for who

you are.

“I felt safe to tell my group everything that I have never told anyone

else,” said Sophia Cerritos. “They didn’t judge me like I imagined they

would. I trusted them and they trusted me.”

The overall goal is to help students understand empathy, to respect others and to share honestly with

each other about the things in their lives that are causing them fear and anxiety. “I didn’t really know

that people actually go through the same things I go through,” said Destinee Hahnemann. “But point

break helped me realize that I am not alone.”



School Events

At the end of the event, students taped papers on their backs and wrote on each other’s backs. “I didn’t

think that a lot of people would sign my back because I am new here and I don’t know anybody, but I

got a lot of signatures,” said Ella Washburn.

MHS English teacher Sarah Haskett said, "We hope you take

that away from Point Break and can use what you heard

today to help us change the culture at the high school."

Thanks to Point Break, many students on campus have

developed awesome friendships knowing that they have

each other.



School Events

Sierra Goes to Neverland

By Carly Cunial

COIP Intern

Sierra High School held their Autumn Ball at the Manteca Transit Center this past Saturday for their

students.

Over 300 students came out, dressed to impress and ready to dance. Lights twinkled everywhere in

“Neverland” as the students danced. For some it was their last formal and others had never been to a

school dance, but either way it was a night

to remember. “It was a successful event,”

said SHS ASB President Sophia Gunzon.

“We had a better turn out than we were

expecting and there was a lot of students

who came out to dance the night away.

Everyone looked beautiful and it was a

really fun night for everyone.”



School Events

Veritas has Spirit

By Carly Cunial

COIP Intern

Veritas Elementary School students

got to show off their spirit this past

week during the school’s Spirit Week.

The students had the opportunity to

come to school with dress up days like, Ohana Day, Sleeping Beauty Day, Throwback Thursday, Monsters

University Day and Crazy Hair and Sock Day.

According to Veritas Principal Tracie Crawford, Veritas usually puts on a Spirit Week every year for their

students in conjunction with Red Ribbon Week, but postponed it until after parent conferences were

done.

This was a fun week where students had the opportunity to show off their creativity and be a little silly

with their friends.



School Events

Guest Speaker at be.tech Betzy Gutierrez

COIP Intern

Last week Mario Enriquez, a former student of Sierra High school, came to

be.tech to talk about the importance of a higher education.

Enriquez comes from a

very low income family, and he speaks about how

being bullied throughout elementary—and being part

of an immigrant middle class family—were big

obstacles in his life.

He told students, “the hard work that you put in—

whether you’re in middle school or in high school—is

going to pay off.’’

Enriquez explained that after becoming a first-generation college

student at the University of the Pacific (UOP), he wanted to attain

USC. This was one of his biggest obstacles. He applied twice and

was denied both times. His perseverance finally paid off the third

time he applied—he was accepted to the university.

As Enriquez continued to develop more skills, he is now working

for the US Senator from Washington State crafting higher

education policies.

Enriquez mentioned that a lot of the things they talk about are

college debt and how to make college more affordable to

students—especially from low income families.

Enriquez said that

his job is exciting especially by having his perspective as a

central valley person from a middle class family. It’s

important to have that perspective at the table when

people are creating policies affecting everyone.


November is Homeless Awareness Month

District Office

Health Services

Manteca Unified Health Services would like to celebrate national Homeless Awareness Month of

November to make the public aware of the homeless population living in our district. In Manteca

Unified we have almost 550 students living without permanent housing, of which approximately 47 are

unaccompanied youth. An unaccompanied youth is a child experiencing homelessness while not in the

physical custody of a parent or guardian many of those student’s may not even have a bed to call their

own. They may be sleeping on the floor, in shelters, parks, tents, trailers, sheds, garages, cars or even

a few have slept on the tops of local buildings. Some students and their families maybe living with

friends or acquaintances or wherever they can find a space to sleep at night.


Classified In-Service

District Office

Operations

On October 28, 2016, two in-service events were offered to Classified staff, a morning session and an

afternoon session with guest speaker Matt Upton. The in-service was attended by district departments

including transportation, school site managers and secretaries, District office staff and Nutrition

Education staff. More than 140 employees were in attendance.

Matt Upton from Speaking of Success, kept the audience engaged while speaking on the following

topics:

• Maintaining Transformational Partnerships

• Recognizing personal driving forces

• Understanding communication modalities

Event evaluations indicated that the information was inspirational and useful.


Golden Seed Harvest Award

District Office

Operations

11/16/2016

Manteca Unified School District was awarded the Harvest Award by California Farm to School Network

and Community Alliance with Family Farmers. To be eligible for this award the program needed to be

“integrated across three pillars of farm to school which included; gardens, procurement and nutrition

education and demonstrate staying power.” Manteca Unified was one of six California schools to

receive this award.

The award will be presented at the California Farm to School Conference in Modesto, CA, March 27-29,

2017. The first day of the conference, March 27, 2017, Manteca Unified will host a field trip for

conference attendees.


Center for Ecoliteracy, California Kids Salsa Challenge Award

District Office

Operations

11/10/16

The Center for Ecoliteracy notified Manteca Unified Nutrition Education that an award for California

Thursday, California Kids Salsa Challenge will be forthcoming. The entry into the contest was submitted

for the Roasted Tomatillo and Apple salsa. The prize for the contest is $500 to be used in conjunction

with farm and/or cooking demonstrations. Once the activity for students is determined more

information will be presented to the Board of Trustees.

Click here for attachment

ebugarin

Highlight


2016 Best of 209


BROCK ELLIOTT DAY (Manteca Bulletin) School remembers 17 fallen in Vietnam

Brock Elliott third grader Logan Rodriguez, left, stands as the Lathrop High JROTC color guard posts colors during Thursday’s Brock Elliott Day.

HIME ROMERO/The Bulletin

Glenn Kahl [email protected] 209-249-3539 November 11, 2016

Charleen Carroll listened intently from her front row seat hearing memories and tributes to her brother Brock Elliott who was the first soldier to die in the Vietnam War from Manteca as some 800 students Thursday crowded into an outside assembly quad at the school named in the fallen Marine’s honor.

Carroll said she hadn’t missed but a couple of the tributes to her brother over the years at school built in his name on land where he once played with friends as a boy.

Elliott was a rifleman and point man with his advancing team when he was killed May 26, 1967 by a sniper. It was almost a year to the day later when Marine Pfc. David E. Gore, of Manteca, was killed on May 24, 1968. Gore’s Gold Star mother Dorothy sat with Carroll during the hour-long ceremony in the school quad. The names of Gore and Elliott along with 15 others from Manteca that died in Vietnam are set in plaques on individual rocks at the entrance to the elementary school.

Brock’s sister – one year his junior – said they were always together and even cruised Yosemite Avenue from the Foster Freeze at Walnut Avenue to the west to Ed Bumgarner’s Patio hamburger stand at Fremont Avenue (now Johnny’s Restaurant) to the east of their Manteca High School. She said he was always happy and could easily make people smile. Both went to Yosemite Elementary School on Yosemite Avenue, graduating from Manteca High in 1965 and 1966 respectively.


Brock and his friends swam and played in the irrigation ditches once located where the Brock Elliott School campus stands today.

“There was a stand of bamboo here and we would all play in this area. The boys would swim in the second and third irrigation ditches as this was all just farmland where they could make their little hideouts,” she recalled.

Their older brother Larry by four years had been in the military in Turkey but was out of the service when Brock lost his life.

“He liked to fish – he liked to hunt – our family vacations were all about trout fishing,” she added. “He was a great and wonderful brother – everyone loved Brock.”

Brock’s sister made note that the other 16 families with sons or brothers who had fallen were all present at the event on Thursday.

Marines, soldiers, sailors and airmen whose names were read off at the microphone by individual students included Charles White, Fredrick Lopez, William McJimsey, David Gore, Jessee Rodriguez, Carl Borgen, Joseph Tafoya, Robert Davenport, Joseph Lewis, Bruce Soares, Larry Motley, Jack Landers, James Lowry, Gale Butcher, Jr.; Leslie Morgan and Captain Grant Uhls. All were 19 and 20 years old except for White, 29, and Uhls, 25.

Brock had enlisted in the Marines at the San Francisco Recruiting Office right after graduating from Manteca High at the age of 17. His father had served with the Marines in World War II and had been wounded in the battle of Guadalcanal.

When he arrived in Vietnam, he was assigned to India Company, 3rd Battalion, 5th marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division. Brock and his future brother-in-law Michael had been in the same area of operation but with a different Marine company. Brock’s Battalion had been participating in Operation Union II, a search and destroy operation against the 21st NVA Regiment operating near the vicinity of Binh Son, some five kilometers from Que Son. Michael was at the Brock Elliott tribute with his wife Charleen on Thursday.

The presentation of the colors at the event was carried out by the student cadets of the Lathrop High School JROTC Color Guard and the Pledge of Allegiance was led by Nolan Bagley, student council president. The National Anthem was offered by the Brock Elliott School Band who later played “We Will Not Forget,” and “Call to Valor” followed by “Rock America.” The band was under the leadership of Melissa Manalastas. Master of ceremonies for the event was fifth and sixth grade teacher Lenn Macky standing in for Principal Debbie Rugger who was ill.

Guest speaker was U.S. Army Reserve Major Clark Burke, deputy superintendent of the Manteca Unified School District who said he was touched at the playing of the National Anthem.

Major Burke served some 20 years in the Army with three different commands and taught Military Science at the University of California at Davis. He told students that the military teaches valuable traits including loyalty, duty, respect, selflessness, honor and integrity.


He said the military has sent him all over the world on assignments where he has seen war, poverty, hopelessness and desperation, having also seen love, compassion and personal courage.

“Our country is a place of dreams and opportunities,” he said. “Sometimes the road to the future may not be clear to everyone. Selfless service is seen every day from teachers to families. It doesn’t have to be a career or a uniform. It can be a simple act in helping parents, community and helping one another.”

At the conclusion of the ceremonies, Brock’s great niece Ella Juarez presented Brock’s sister with a bouquet of flowers.

To contact Glenn Kahl, email [email protected].

http://www.mantecabulletin.com/section/1/article/139192/



Great Valley Stages 1st Veterans’ Tribute (Manteca Bulletin)

The Junior Reserve Officers Training Corp at nearby Weston Ranch High provided the colors for the special Veterans Day event at Great Valley. VINCE REMBULAT/The Bulletin

Vince Rembulat [email protected] 209-249-3537 November 11, 2016

For the first time, Great Valley Elementary School put together a fitting tribute for Veterans Day on Thursday.

This special school-wide morning assembly featured plenty of the Stars and Stripes. Included were members of Karl Ross Post American Legion Post 16 along with the Junior Reserve Officers Training Corp’s honor guards from nearby Weston Ranch High.

“Three of the four honor guards were once students at Great Valley,” said Connie Thompson, who is president of the school’s Parent Teacher Committee.

She and Tricia Rascon were the organizers behind this inaugural event. Justine Almanza, who is a special education teacher at the school, also helped out, performing the National Anthem.

Veterans Day is officially observed on Nov. 11, honoring military personnel who have served in the U.S. Armed Forces.

“Even though we all served in the military, we’re Americans, first,” said Henry Adame from the Stockton American Legion.


Karl Ross Post 16 at 2020 Plymouth Road will be conducting its own Veterans Day event today beginning at 1 p.m. Dignitaries who include Susan Eggman of the 13th Assembly District are expected to be on hand.

At Great Valley, each student received a miniature U.S. flag to mark the occasion. They also learned the significance of the “13-Fold” ceremony used for the Stars and Stripes on special occasions.

Adame noted that members from his Karl Ross Post 16, as part of their mission statement, take part in a variety of special events throughout the year.

“We’re also there for those in assisted living facilities,” he said.

Those from his American Legion, in addition, are involved in American Cancer Society, Catholic Charities, and the Red Cross events, to name a few.

Adam Daniels and Derek Lutz from the JROTC at Weston Ranch High were honored to be part of this first-ever Veterans Day event at their old school.

“(Great Valley) is much smaller than what I remembered,” said junior Daniels, who went from kindergarten-through- eighth- grade.

Ditto that for senior Derek Lutz, who attended Great Valley for seventh- and eighth- grade years.

To contact reporter Vince Rembulat, e-mail [email protected].




Manteca Needs to Fill 205 Jobs (Manteca Bulletin) Dennis Wyatt [email protected] 209-249-3519 November 12, 2016

Manteca jobs paying $15 an hour for 20 hours a week are going begging.

The jobs — paraprofessional aides for classrooms including bilingual aides — are among 205 vacancies the Manteca Unified School District is struggling to fill.

And while the list includes many jobs that are just two or three hours a day, those who have taken the positions in the past advance fairly quickly into other classified support positions such as clerical jobs as they open up.

“It is common for those we hire for jobs that are a few hours a day to apply for other jobs in the district when they hear them come up and get more hours,” noted Ruth Baker, the Manteca Unified School District Director of Classified Personnel.

In addition to the 205 jobs the district is looking to fill now, they are gearing up for the 2017-2018 school year when enrollment could jump 1,500 students due to housing growth triggering the need for more certificated positons for substitute and fulltime teachers as well as additional support personnel.

Manteca Unified is holding two informational meetings on Monday, Nov. 21, from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. and 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. so potential applicants can learn what it takes to get started in the district. Those interested are being asked to sign up by Thursday, Nov. 17, by going to Event Bright and registering at http://bit.ly/edwant

Baker said the bilingual paraprofessionals at the No. 1 position in terms of difficulty to fill.

All of the paraprofessional jobs — bilingual included — requires some college units or passing a test.

Deputy Superintendent Clark Burke said the positions dovetail well into some college students’ schedules giving that they start at $3.95 to $15.03 an hour and are only for a few hours a day.

“They are an ideal experience for those that are working toward becoming a teacher,” he said.

Besides bilingual aides and classroom aides there is a pressing need for yard duty supervisors and nutrition services employees. The frequent vacancies are the function of two things: a job with more hours elsewhere comes up or the employee takes advantage of the ability to move into other classified jobs as they become available with more hours, and better pay. In many cases, the current fulltime classified employees started in the district in jobs that had only several hours of work a day.

One of the biggest sources to fill the positions lately has been retired people that are only looking for a few hours of work a day.


Cooks and bakers start at $15.41 an hours. The pay steps based primarily on longevity go as high as $21.50.

Campus monitors start at $15.80 an hour. The pay steps top out at $22.04.

Classroom aides start out at $13.95 an hour. The pay steps top out at $19.46.

Bilingual aides in specific languages start out at $14.66 an hour. The pay tops out at $20.45

Baker notes all open positions in the district are posted on EdJoin that in turn advertises on various online sites such as Indeed.com and Monster Jobs. They also post jobs in the newspaper, with educational agencies and in school site newsletters and on campus marquees. They also advertise jobs on the school district office campus marquee visible from Louise Avenue and occasionally on the district Facebook page.

To contact Dennis Wyatt, email [email protected]




Student Trustee Serves as Bridge to Manteca Unified (The Record) By Nicholas Filipas

Record Staff Writer

MANTECA — There could be a million other things Sophia Gunzon would rather be doing on this particular

Tuesday night in early October.

Finishing homework, starting a new series on Netflix or practicing her tennis swing are only a few options. But

there she is, doing her best to keep up with Manteca Unified School District trustees on a discussion with the

Business Services department on budgeting, skimming through a textbook-sized report.

“I try to follow along, and sometimes when they drag on and use huge vocabulary, (I) pretend (to pay attention)

so it doesn’t look like I’m dozing off,” Gunzon sheepishly said. “But I try to understand as much as I can so I can

report back to the students.”

Earlier this fall, Gunzon, an 18-year-old senior from Sierra High School, was selected by her peers to represent

the district’s 23,000 students on the Board of Trustees as a student board member.

To become one, high school students were required to submit an application with a letter of interest, two letters

of recommendation and a resume for peer review by Associated Student Body leadership class members

throughout the district.

Voting anonymously, leadership students elected Gunzon and an alternate, 17-year-old Manteca High School

senior Andrew Brunn. Both students will participate by sitting on the Board of Trustees for one semester.

Born in the Philippines, Gunzon has participated in leadership for the past three years, serving as sophomore

class treasurer, secretary and, currently, as Sierra's class president.

When she’s not competing on the swimming and tennis teams, she volunteers at Doctors Hospital of Manteca

and in organizations such as Students in Prevention, educating her peers on drug and alcohol abuse and mental

health issues.

mailto:[email protected]


Being named to serve and be a voice for her classmates district wide helps Gunzon progress as an individual and

as a leader, she said.

“I hope to serve as a role model to students who feel like underdogs,” she said. “You can become something

bigger, and you can achieve anything you want to.”

Gunzon is not required to stay for entire meetings, especially if there’s an important test the next morning. If

Gunzon cannot be present, Brunn will report.

“It’s really interesting to see all the things behind the scenes — that intrigued me,” Brunn said of the role.

Aside from serving as Manteca High’s class president, Brunn also is part of several clubs, including College Prep,

National Honor Society and the California Scholarship Federation.

Brunn was also on the Buffaloes baseball team that won the Sac-Joaquin Division Section Championship last

year, and he runs cross country.

“I like attention, that’s for sure,” he laughed as to why he filed an application to be the district’s student board

member.

“A lot of people don’t get to have their voice given out there, and decisions are made for them without them

even knowing about it. So just being in that leadership position and letting them know, ‘This is what I’m doing,

and you can bring ideas to me openly and I can present them to board.’”

Brunn hasn’t appeared at a trustee meeting yet, as Gunzon has attended two sessions since being named. She

said while she hasn’t had enough time to pick the brains of current trustees or sought out advice, she said she

feels comfortable and sees herself as an equal.

“At first, I felt like a small ant in a room of adults, because I was just sitting there (and) I was scared to make a

report, even if I was reading it,” she said. “Now that I’m getting used to it, I feel like I’m really part of the board

and almost be at the same level as them — not really — but I feel like I have the same amount of respect as they

do with other trustees.”

Student board members at Manteca Unified can attend all board meetings except closed sessions and can vote

if called upon. In Lincoln Unified and Lodi Unified, student board members also give a report and participate in

non-binding votes.

This year, Stockton Unified started welcoming student board members from its four comprehensive high schools

that change during each meeting, although they do not vote.

Manteca Unified Trustee Stephen Schluer said the position is a great introduction for students into governance.


“Engaging the student body, seeking input, receiving feedback are vital to achieving the district’s mission of

educating students,” he said. “As a trustee, I wanted to ensure there was a policy in place that would allow for a

role for student school board representation.”

Superintendent Jason Messer said it’s essential in education to include student voices to allow for student input

in decisions “that impact and influence their future.”

For life after high school, Gunzon and Brunn are slogging through the daunting task of filling out college

applications. Gunzon hopes to attend the University of California, Davis, or UC Santa Barbara and major in

biological sciences.

“I want to eventually move to pre-med and become a pediatrician,” she said. “I love kids.”

Brunn wants to attend UC Santa Barbara or UC Santa Cruz to work toward law school to become an

environmental lawyer. Being close to the beach would be icing on the cake.

“I like to surf, so doing that after class would be the ideal situation for me,” he said.

For now, it’s making sure they can both best represent their peers.

“I hope to please everyone in the schools and make sure their voices are heard, because I know just because I

represent (Sierra) doesn’t mean Sierra only matters,” Gunzon said. “Every school matters in MUSD, and us

working as a whole, I feel like it’ll make the district much stronger.”

— Contact reporter Nicholas Filipas at (209) 546-8257 or [email protected]. Follow him on

recordnet.com/filipasblog or on Twitter @nicholasfilipas.

http://recordnet.com/filipasblog


A Special-Needs Student Scored a Touchdown in the Best High School

Play of the Season (Washington Post)

By Cindy Boren

November 15

Often, the best moments in football have nothing to do with X’s and O’s.

Witness what occurred during a high school game in California last Thursday. Del Campo, a school in Fair Oaks,

was up by six touchdowns late in the game when its athletic director, Sharon Props, spotted a special-needs

student who was suited up on the sideline for East Union, a Manteca school.

Vinny Torrice, a wide receiver wearing No. 15, had been waiting patiently for a chance to play his favorite sport

and, this being high school football, Props was able to point him out to Coach Mike Dimino, who called a

timeout to speak to East Union Coach Willie Herrera.

What happened after that is probably going to put a lump in your throat, a tear in your eye and a crack in your

cold, cold heart.

With the crowd chanting his name, Vinny ran onto the field and, taking a handoff, was escorted to the end zone by both teams as time expired. On the scoreboard, Del Campo won 49-13, but that isn’t what will stand out for anyone who was at the game.

Click here to read full article

CBS Sacramento – Special Moment for East Union High School Football Team

The Record – TOUCHDOWN VINNY

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/early-lead/wp/2016/11/15/a-special-needs-student-scored-a-touchdown-in-the-best-high-school-play-of-the-season/

http://sacramento.cbslocal.com/video/category/spoken-word-kovrtv/3577250-special-moment-for-east-union-high-school-football-team/

http://videos.recordnet.com/recordnet/gani81

Poinsettia Fundraising Event

Sierra High School Sober Grad Beautiful – Festive – Greenhouse Fresh

The poinsettias are grown in 6 ½” pots and come with a colored pot cover and paper sleeve. Plants will average 16” – 18” tall, depending on variety.

These beautiful, long lasting plants make great gifts and are a lovely addition to any home.

You can pre-order your poinsettias by completing and submitting this form along with your cash payment by Monday, November 28, 2016. The

poinsettias will be delivered December 2-4, 2016.

For more information please call, text, or email Kim Ott * 209-479-3355 * [email protected]

Thanks in advance for your support of Sierra High School Sober Grad! ****************************************************************

Sierra High School Sober Grad Poinsettia Fundraising Event

Name____________________________ Phone Number____________________________

Quantity ( ) x $15.00 each = Total Due $____________ CASH ONLY

Color: Red________ *White________*In the event that white is not available, red will be substituted.

mailto:[email protected]

http://www.duartenursery.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/FundraiserPoinsettia1.jpg



Photo & card design - G Hedges

You will love this fresh new salsa by Chef Ehrenholm, developed to use California grown produce, and to serve in our schools on California Thursdays.

Directions: Pre-heat oven to 350° F Remove outside husk from tomatillos & was Place tomatillos on sheet pan and toss with olive

oil, roast until tender but not mushy While roasting tomatillos, core & chop apples

into ¼” dice—place in bowl, leaving peel on Chop cilantro & add to bowl Fine dice red onion, add to bowl Discard seeds, fine chop jalepeño & add to bowl Once roasted, use food processor to chop into

sauce. Cool to room temperature (place in ice water bath to speed cooling).

Place tomatillo sauce in bowl with other ingredients and toss.

Salt & pepper to taste. Serve cold

Ingredients: (Makes 10 servings)

8 ea (aim for 1 pound) fresh Tomatiillos

1 ea Granny Smith apple

2 ea Red tart crisp apples

Pink Lady & Red Delicious are good choices.

¼ Cup (abt. ¼ bunch) Cilantro

½ medium Red onion

¼ to ½ Jalapeño pepper

Salt ¼ teaspoon

Pepper ¼ teaspoon

Olive oil

Find valuable information about us on our

mobile web site at http://bit.ly/2fQRRui

MUSDnutrition.net

board highlights november 18, 2016 - musdpublic.sharepoint.musd.net/superintendent office...board...

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