Here we go! Let’s make the most of April and May together – we are ACA Strong!

One week away! April 25-30 Homecoming Week 2021 Let’s enter the DECADES together! 

• Class of 2021-The 1980’s
• Class of 2022-The 1990’s
• Class of 2023- The 1970’s
• Class of 2024- The 2000’s

There will be many ways for students to get involved in Homecoming Week, both virtually and on campus. Here is the calendar of events! Mark your calendars! 

• Sunday, April 25 from 10am-4pm – Hallway Decorating

Please encourage your student to sign up! Students will sign up to work shifts to decorate their class hallway. It is transformational, and our students have fun and do a wonderful job.

• Thursday, April 29 at 6pm – Live-Streamed Virtual Rally

An event for the whole family! Complete with class skits, live performances by incredible students, and more. 

Encourage your student to participate! Let’s do the decades, Acalanes! 

Thursday, April 22 from 3:30-5pm “Dog Days are Over” Celebrate the last 25 Days of ACA
Our last ACA Day drive-through will be all about our ACA dogs! Get your students ready to dress up your family dog in their best Don’s blue. There will be a series of awards and treats given out to dogs who join the drive-through and we’ll be posting pictures on our social channels. Start thinking of costumes for your pooch. More details to come regarding the 25 Days of ACA celebrating each day until the end of the school year. Let’s finish the year ACA Strong!

April 12 through April 23 Earth Week Events
The students have planned a robust Earth Week (two weeks actually!). There will be events that feature student clubs, local organizations and nonprofits, dialogues, and education. Please encourage your student to opt in! 

Deadline TOMORROW! Monday, April 19 Acalanes Leadership Applications Due
Is your 8th grader interested in joining student government at Acalanes? Applications are available and due April 19. If you have any questions don’t hesitate to reach out to Katherine Walton.

Deadline TODAY! Sunday, April 18 Order Frosh Spirit Packs
Know an 8th grader? Frosh spirit packs are a great promotion gift and kick off to a career at Acalanes! Each pack is $53 and features a hooded sweatshirt, car magnet & cinch backpack. Proceeds go to the Class of 2025. Order deadline is Sunday, April 18 and packs will be delivered to your house beginning May 7. Order here.

Monday, April 26 (morning) District Diversity Summit
Know a student who is interested in equity work or already engaged in it? On April 26, the District will host the District Diversity Summit, which is a chance to hear a keynote speaker and connect with other student leaders. Students should email Katherine Walton if they are interested in attending.

Join the fun and buy an ACA Parent/Sibling Strong Shirt. This is a grey version of the student/staff ACA Strong shirt.  You can purchase now via the Acalanes webstore for $10 and pick up from Acalanes after you receive your confirmation email. 

2020-2021 Clubs Club meetings continue. Check out our 49 clubs! Clubs continue to be one of the best ways for students to connect as we enter the fourth quarter. 

If I can ever do anything to help you or your student, don’t hesitate to reach out!

Katherine Walton, Student Activities Director

We hope you’ll join us this Tuesday, April 20 at 7pm for our “Angst” Film Screening and Discussion generously sponsored by Parents Club! INDIEFLIX Education has sparked a global conversation about anxiety through screenings of its documentary, “Angst: Raising Awareness Around Anxiety.” Acalanes and Campolindo High Schools will co-host this special screening of the 56-minute documentary followed by an informative panel discussion led by the Wellness Center Teams from both schools. Pre-register for this event here. 

Allen Choi, Wellness Coordinator
Casey Sasner, Intake Specialist

For updates, tips and advice, follow Wellness on Social Media: Instagram @acalaneswellness

Seniors

• Update Naviance with College Decisions/Exit Survey Congratulations to all seniors!  Please 1) log into Naviance 2) Click on About Me 3) Choose Surveys from Your School 4) Click Senior Exit Survey to update the decisions. This is how your students’ final transcripts will be sent!
• Thursday, May 20 at 6pm Senior Awards Night – All Seniors will be invited to the Large Gym to celebrate as fellow students receive awards and scholarships. This will be live-streamed, as space will be limited to students only this year.

Juniors

• Applications due Friday, April 23 Healthcare Internship Opportunity – Junior Achievement is offering a 4 week internship for students interested in medical careers. 
• Stay in the loop – Please follow the CCC instagram to keep up-to-date with college timeline details. Share this with your students too. @ahs_college_career
• SAT Testing Reminder – Although many schools are test-optional, there are 2 upcoming SAT dates for students who may have prepared for these exams already.  Locations are limited, but do check the College Board website to register for the May 8 or June 5 SAT administrations. Deadlines are soon.  
• Wednesday, April 28 from 5-7:45pm Virtual College Visits – Join a Virtual College Visit with your student. Students can interact and ask questions of a large group of college admissions officers. This is a great way to connect and show a college your child is interested! Sessions included on topics such as finding a college that fits, paying for college, and writing a college essay presented by college admission counselors.
• Job Opportunities – Encourage your child to check out Indeed.com for jobs this summer. Enter Lafayette Teen in the search box and see the possibilities!
• Resume Support – Please let your student know that Mrs. Levy enjoys helping students build their resumes. Naviance is also a great spot to work on resumes. 

Sophomores

• Healthcare Internship Opportunity – Junior Achievement is offering a 4 week internship for students interested in medical careers. Application Due 4/23

All Students
Zoom Nights every Monday and Tuesday during the month of April with your new advisor, Debbie Levy, to learn more and ask questions! Both students and parents are invited. We can set more in depth follow-up appointments too! CLICK ON THE LINK on Monday or Tuesday

Freshmen & Parents – 7-7:30pm Monday  April 19
Sophomores & Parents – 7-7:30pm Tuesday April 20
Juniors & Parents – 7:35-8:05pm Monday April 19
Seniors & Parents – 7:35-8:05pm Tuesday April 20

Please follow the CCC instagram to keep up-to-date. Share this with your students too. @ahs_college_career

Resources:

• CCC Website 
• How to request a transcript
• College 101
• Internships and Volunteering Ideas
• Scholarships

June 7 through July 15 – AUHSD Summer School
Summer school is for students who need to repeat a required course after earning a D or F grade. Email your counselor for an application.   

Counselor Appointments
We love talking to our students! Email is the best way to reach us. Counselors have appointment slots for students and will email them a link for signing up.  

A- Ed  Anne Schonauer
Ee-Kr  Christine Todd
Ku-Ros  Marissa Meadows
Rot-Z  Susan Martin

April 29 and 30 – Advocacy Day
This not-to-miss annual event is taking place online over two days this year, so it’s easy to attend and you can pick and choose the parts which interest you. (It’s also free!) Sign up here.

Advocacy Day for Education 2021: Moving Forward with Resiliency  
As always at Advocacy Day, we will have the opportunity to hear from and ask questions of our school superintendents and state legislators. In addition, a panel of highly respected frontline medical and mental health experts will share the most current information and recommendations. Finally, the equity issues at play will be addressed by both educators and corporate professionals. For the full agenda and speaker bios, see here: AD21. 

One of the legislators who will speak at Advocacy Day is State Senator Nancy Skinner, D-Berkeley, who has introduced a groundbreaking bill which would provide free breakfast and lunch for all California school children. Don’t miss the chance to hear about this and other efforts to bring positive change to our education system. 

Questions? Email our APC Legislative Representative.

Students ages 16 and up can now be vaccinated!!! CLICK HERE for an appointment request.

QUARANTINE – What does it mean?
Quarantine means you need to stay home for 10 days because of two possible reasons:

1.  Your student is exhibiting symptoms that fall within possible signs and symptoms of COVID (which is almost everything!).  
   • Without COVID testing, your student can return to school after 10 days and after the symptoms have been resolved for at least 24 hours (without fever-reducing medication).
   • With a negative COVID test result, your student can return to school after the symptoms have been resolved for at least 24 hours (without fever-reducing medication).
2. Your student has been exposed to someone who has tested positive for COVID.  In this case, your student must stay home for 10 days, even if without symptoms or even with a negative test result.

Please see AUHSD Covid Decision Tree for more details.*

*Information will soon be updated for students who have been fully immunized.

Positive for COVID?
Please contact me as soon as possible.

COVID Resources and Protocols
Available on the District website and on my site.

Dvora Citron, RN, MS
Acalanes School Nurse Google Site
dcitron@auhsdschools.org
IG:  acalanesschoolnurse

April 30 and May 1 at 7pm – One Act Shakespeare Live: Macbeth & Midsummer The Acalanes DramaDons are proud to present “One Act Shakespeare Live: Macbeth & Midsummer.” These exciting 40-minute versions of William Shakespeare’s Macbeth and A Midsummer Night’s Dream will stream live on the DramaDons’ YouTube channel. Each play is presented for one night only, so log on to see Macbeth on April 30 and Midsummer on May 1 at 7pm PST.

This is not just your average “Zoom play.” All actors will perform from individual remote studios set up in classrooms on the Acalanes campus. Then, using the magic of technology, actors’ images will be composited into a single frame, giving the illusion of working together, and all of it will happen live, in real time!

If you’d like to learn more, check out the article about our production on page 33 of the latest issue of the Acalanes Blueprint.

May 1 Deadline – Acalanes Performing Arts Booster Scholarship
APAB will award one $1,000 scholarship to a Senior in the Acalanes Class of 2021 who participates in either Choral Music, Drama or Instrumental Music with an intent to major or minor in a performing art at a two or four-year college, university, or performing arts school. Applications are available now and must be submitted by May 1. Click here for the application.

Friday, April 16 from 10-11:30am – Dons Dialogue with Principal Bell
Join Principal Bell online to hear about the following topics:

• End of the Year Events Update
• Athletics Update with Acalanes Athletic Director, Randy Takahashi
• Department Updates from Math and Sciences

Register in advance here to attend this webinar.

Tuesday, April 20 at 7pm – “Angst” Film Screening & Discussion
Pre-register for this event in the Parent Ed section below, where you can find further event details. 

Applications Due Saturday, May 1! Acalanes Volunteer Service Awards Program 
Submit your applications NOW! After applications have been reviewed and qualified all students will be notified, via email, of their award level (Acalanes or President’s).

• Completed and signed Applications (along with any supporting materials from your organizations) should be scanned and emailed here.
• Download application forms here.
• If you have any questions, please email us! 

APC Grants Awarded!
We are pleased to announce that five 2021 APC Spring Grants have been awarded – these projects encourage self-regulation and wellness, celebrate school community spirit, improve our campus experience, and drive thoughtful conversations around diversity and equity. Specifically, the grants were awarded in these areas: 

• A guest speaker for Asian Pacific American Heritage Month in May 
• Wellness tools for each classroom to promote self regulation concerning anxiety and stress
• Signage to celebrate ACA and return to campus for in-person 
• User-friendly bulletin boards across campus to encourage easier communication from clubs, class events, and school-wide happenings 
• Refresh of our Senior Deck (a special spot on campus to celebrate all graduating seniors) to accompany the beautiful new mural that was a gift from the graduating class of 2020

**EVENT FOR INCOMING FRESHMEN & THEIR FAMILIES** Tuesday, May 4 from 5:30-6:30pm Acalanes Athletics & Activities Night, Acalanes Main Quad
This is a “not to miss” event geared towards new Freshmen and their families highlighting ways to get involved at Acalanes. Incoming freshmen and their parents can meet coaches and athletes from all the 22 Acalanes sports, connect with student leaders, and learn more about the numerous clubs on campus. Last names A-L are scheduled from 5:30-6pm and M-Z from 6-6:30pm. Share this information with new ACA families! Questions? Email aca@acalanesparentsclub.com.

Thursday, April 22 from 3:30-5pm – “Dog Days are Over” Celebrate the last 25 Days of ACA
Our last ACA Day drive-through will be all about our ACA dogs! Get your students ready to dress up your family dog (or cat) in their best Don’s blue. There will be a series of awards and treats given out to dogs who join the drive-through and we’ll be posting pictures on our social channels. Start thinking of costumes for your pooch. More details to come regarding the 25 Days of ACA celebrating each day until the end of the school year. Let’s finish the year ACA Strong! 

Questions, comments, or feedback, email aca@acalanesparentsclub.com.

Congratulations Lafayette Community! You Unlocked the $100K Match!Thank you to our community for donating $174,000 in March which unlocked a $100K matching gift from a group of generous donors. You read that right – this equals $274,000 raised in March for our students. Amazing! We received donations from over 120 families. Whether it was your first donation to LPIE this year, or your third, we are grateful for your participation to support our Lafayette students.Thank you for helping LPIE take a big step toward our goal of $4.3M.

Tired of Cooking? Dine & Donate to LPIE with two delicious opportunities.

Visit: www.lpie.org/dineanddonate to order. 

• Mark & Mike’s NY Style Delicatessen – owned by a former Lafayette resident, father to First Grade Burton Valley Elementary Teacher, Leslie Hagel, and grandfather to two current Acalanes Dons!  
• Cuisine of Nepal

As parents, we all have questions about our children after graduation. Take a peek at how Acalanes High School is addressing those questions in Episode 10 of the LPIE Podcast series. Adam talks with Travis Bell, Anne Schonauer, and Wendy Reicher about Career Counseling at Acalanes, which is jointly funded by LPIE. Simple answer: it is a conversation that starts when the counselors meet their students in 8th Grade. This allows counselors the time to truly get to know students, better enabling them to offer choices and support the students’ social emotional development while at Acalanes. That common theme of fostering the whole child is an absolute goal here. An Acalanes graduate will have options. The Acalanes counselors make sure those options are the best ones for that student. Click here to hear more: 

Laura-Kate Rurka & Jennifer Palmer
Acalanes LPIE School Chairs

www.lpie.org

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