News & Announcements

Parent Education

ICYMI, here is a recording of Ron Lieber’s talk based on his book “The Price you Pay for College.”  Ron gave an informative and eye-opening talk on additional factors to consider when choosing colleges and universities.
 
Tuesday, Oct 12 at 11:30am Navigating Trauma for Kids and Teens: Back to School and COVID, presented by Mental Health America.  Some of us may still be struggling with the impact of this 18 month long ordeal. Registration link here.
 
Finally, as parents we may not know the best way to talk to our teens about drug use, but it’s important that we do as the news reflects why.  Recently, there was a crackdown on fentanyl-laced pills that has already led to numerous deaths and has been predicted to have the potential for thousands more. Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid typically sold on the streets and through social media; it has been made to look like other prescribed medicines like Xanax and Percocet. Also, it has recently been shown that cannabis can increase risk of breakthrough COVID cases as presented in this article.
 
Here are some tips from Harvard Health Publishing on how to talk to your teens, prevention tips for teen drug use, as well as additional resources on having honest and important conversations about drug use.
 
Feel free to reach out and connect with us with ideas for future topics, shareable resources, or thoughts at parented@acalanesparentsclub.com.

 
Read more

Student Activities

Homecoming 2021 Wrap-Up
Again, thank you for all of your support with Homecoming. From hallway decorating to lunchtime activities to watching students at student dodgeball to the rally and Saturday night event, it was a great week at Acalanes. Ultimately, the Class of 2022 won HOCO 2021!
 
Homecoming Recap Videos
If you would like to watch Homecoming class skits or a HOCO recap video, check out the videos here. A big thank you to video production teacher Mr. Morford and students Jack Dunne, Cormac Maher, Yasmin Ward for filming & editing this year. Our hope is we can take the spirit, connection, and community, and continue to build in ways to create ACA Moments throughout the second quarter.
 
Acalanes Canned Food Drive
Thank you to all who donated to the Acalanes canned food drive! As a community, we are donating 15,028 cans to the Contra Costa Food Bank at a time when they can really use these resources. We are grateful for your support and for giving to our Contra Costa neighbors.
 
Sept 15 through Oct 15 Latine Heritage Month
Why celebrate Latine Heritage Month at Acalanes? As a school, we are dedicated to making all of our students feel welcome, safe, and appreciated, for we are all unique individuals. Our purpose with this month is to educate students and celebrate the different cultures in Latin Heritage.
 
Our culminating event will be:

  • Thursday, Oct 14 at Lunch (1pm) Guest Speaker Alberto Ledesma in room 314 (will be on Zoom). All students and parents are welcome!

Friday, Oct 15 Football Game vs. Campolindo
Let’s honor our heroes! Acalanes and Campolindo are coming together for the Oct 15 football game to honor the heroes in our Lamorinda community. Both schools will be doing a joint tailgate before the game!
 
2021-2022 Clubs
Clubs are continuing to meet and it is one of the BEST ways for students to get connected at Acalanes. Club meeting times and contact information are in the spreadsheet.

Thursday, Oct 14 at 6:30pm Brighter Days Concert
AHS is excited to announce Brighter Days, a charity concert benefiting local suicide prevention organization A Brighter Day. With recent suicidal passings in our school district, Acalanes students felt compelled to do something positive. With this in mind, they came up with the idea of a charity event to benefit A Brighter Day. 

The Brighter Days concert is being held at the Acalanes front quad on Thursday, October 14th at 6:30pm. Entry is free and donations are welcome. All proceeds will go to A Brighter Day.  

Follow @brighterdays_fest on Instagram for updates on the concert and artists performing. Artists are welcome to reach out to @tylersingh_ on Instagram if they wish to perform. We hope to see many of you at this student event!

As always, I am here to support you and your students. If there is anything I can do, please don’t hesitate to reach out via e-mail.

Katherine Walton, Student Activities Director

Read more

College & Career

Seniors

  • College Visits in the CCC (have your student come by for a pass before school)
    • Tuesday: Saint Edwards, Sacred Heart, Lafayette College, Goucher, Landmark College, Linfield University
    • Wednesday: Middlebury, Lehigh, Duke Kunshan, St. John’s College, Washington & Jefferson, Fordham
    • Thursday: DigiPen, University of Connecticut, Franklin University-Switzerland, Claremont McKenna College
    • Friday: Dickinson, Oberlin, Georgetown
  • ACADEMY This is a great time to get application support. Encourage your child to sign up for Levy’s Academy on Wednesday and Friday! We will continue working on Cal State Applications this week!
  • Virtual visits are upcoming. These are quite engaging!

Juniors

  • Virtual College Visits Check out these interesting virtual visits. Oct 14 – Midwest Colleges, November 2 – Art and Stem Fair

Sophomores/Freshmen

Resources:

Read more

Counseling

Counselor assignments are by last name.
A – Dr  Anne Schonauer
Du-Kr  Christine Todd
Ku-Rog  Marissa Meadows
Roh-Z  Susan Martin

Counselor Appointments
Counselors are checking in with all 9th graders during October. We want to start getting to know them and help them as best we can! We are always seeing any student for drop in appointments.

End of the First Quarter News
We are at the halfway point of the semester! Quarter grades will be posted by Friday, Oct 15 in Canvas and Aeries. Report cards will only be mailed home to families that are not observers in Canvas. Students that drop classes now will receive an F on their transcript. Sports eligibility will be checked on Thursday/Friday of this week. Students need a 2.0 GPA and no more than 2 “F” grades. Ineligible students will be able to play this weekend, but will not be able to play in any games after Oct 18.

October is Letter of Recommendation Writing Season!
Counselors are busy working on writing letters of recommendation for their students with ED/EA deadlines of Nov 1. If you are applying early to a school that needs a counselor letter, please see your counselor ASAP!

Ordering Official Transcripts for College Applications
Please go here for step by step instructions if you or your student needs to order transcripts to be sent to colleges. Official transcripts are sent electronically in most cases, so physical addresses are not necessary. 

Read more

School Nurse

DO NOTHING for health!

  • Try practicing “non-doing” with your family to reap the benefits of calming down our nervous system. Try this sample practice.
  • CALM: calm.com is a free app but there is a paid version also. There is currently a very well-priced promotion for the “student” version of the CALM app available via Amazon. My favorite feature is “The Daily Calm” – it’s just 10 minutes.

Did your student get both COVID-19 vaccines? 
Yes: Please submit vaccine record here: COVID-19 Vaccination Record Submission Form
No:  Please consider getting your student vaccinated – it’s so easy now. Vaccines will soon become available for the younger children as well.

Does your child have any ILLNESS SYMPTOMS? We are trying to be very vigilant about keeping our population at school healthy and safe. Please keep your student home if they are ill.

Reminders

  • Need more masks? Many students are arriving at school without a mask. Please make sure to have a generous supply of clean masks at home for your students. Everyone wears a mask indoors (outdoors optional with social distancing) and is encouraged to practice good hand hygiene.
  • Any student that has illness symptoms should stay home until they have been symptom-free for at least 24 hours.
  • If your student has a medical condition and/or needs medication available at school, please go to this link on my webpage to get the appropriate forms. All forms need to be filled out completely and signed by both the parents and the physician. Please bring any/all unexpired medication in its original bottle directly to me so that I can review the required medical documentation at that time.
  • If there are any updates to your student’s vaccination record, please send me a copy. If your student is missing any required immunizations, they may not be able to be at school until those are complete. Please get in touch with me as soon as possible.

Quick Links

Please be in touch with me to discuss any medical, health, or wellness concerns.

Stay healthy and be well,
Dvora Citron, RN, MS
dcitron@auhsdschools.org
925-280-2970 x7128
Acalanes School Nurse Google Site
IG:  acalanesschoolnurse

Read more

Performing Arts

Acalanes Instrumental Music is excited to present two concerts for October 2021!
 
The first concert features the Acalanes HS Wind Ensemble performing with the amazing Diablo Wind Symphony. 
Date: TONIGHT! Sunday, Oct 10, 2021
Time: 5:00pm
Location: Acalanes HS Performing Arts Center (Face masks are required inside the PAC)
 
The second event will be the Pops Concert, featuring the wonderful talents of Symphonic Band, Wind Ensemble, Orchestra and Choir.
Date: Thursday, Oct 21, 2021
Time: 7:00pm
Location: Acalanes HS Performing Arts Center (Face masks are required inside the PAC)
 
Please join Director Lauren Gibson and her talented students for a magical evening as they perform a variety of well-known pop music and movie theme songs! This concert will be dedicated to Ashley Dias, an alum of Acalanes and a former music student, who died in a tragic accident. 

Read more

Sports

This week’s can’t miss events:

Girls volleyball
Tuesday, Oct 12 host Northgate HS. Freshmen at 4pm, JV at 5pm, and Varsity at 6:30pm.
Thursday, Oct 14 at Alhambra HS. Freshmen at 4pm, JV at 5pm, and Varsity at 6:30pm.

Girls tennis
Tuesday, Oct 12 v. College Park HS at 3:30pm.  Varsity is away and JV is home.
Thursday, Oct 14 v. Las Lomas HS at 3:30pm. Varsity is away and JV is home.

Boys water polo
Tuesday, Oct 12 host Davis HS 5pm.
Wednesday, Oct 13 host Las Lomas HS. Varsity at 6pm and JV at 7pm.
Thursday, Oct 14 host Tamalpais HS. Varsity at 4pm and JV at 5pm.

Girls water polo
Wednesday, Oct 13 host Las Lomas HS. JV at 4pm and Varsity at 5pm.

Football
Friday, Oct 15 host Campolindo HS. JV at 4:30pm and Varsity at 7pm.

Here are the Fall sports schedules (subject to change):

Read more

Things to Know this Week

  • Lunch Volunteer Opportunity (12:30-1:30, Mon-Fri) – Our Administration need our help with serving lunch and providing crowd control so they can focus on other areas on campus.  Please sign up here if you are able to lend a hand any day of the week. Questions? Contact Caroline Volk cvolk@auhsdschools.org or Rebecca Ward rward@auhsdschools.org.
  • Substitute Teachers Needed – Ever thought about being a substitute teacher? Flexible schedule, great academic environment, and earning potential! If so, now’s your chance. Acalanes Union High School District is in need of substitute teachers for all four high schools.  Criteria and requirements have changed so if interested, please call (925) 280-3900 x6623 to inquire further. 
Read more

APC Membership

Sunday, Oct 24 Lafayette Res Run for Education – How Sweet!
Help promote Lafayette’s diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, show your community spirit, and support YOUR school (Go Dons)! Registration is now open for the 5k, 10k, or 2 mile fun run/walk option on Race Day, Sunday, October 24, or join the virtual Reservoir Challenge which “runs” Oct. 13-23.  In 2020, Acalanes received a check for $2209.08 thanks to your registrations! Make sure to select “Acalanes” when you register!
 
Need a sweet reason to register? The first 100 students from each school will get a voucher for 1/4 lb of bulk candy from Zoonie’s Candy Shop at packet pickup!
 
Kelly Daggs, VP Fundraising and Corporate Match

Read more

APC in Action

APC Fall Grants: Submissions are Open! Applications due Oct 8, 2021
All ideas are welcome. Acalanes Parents Club is pleased to invite all AHS teachers, staff, students, and parents to submit a grant application for programming, materials, or projects that enhance the educational experience for our school community. Click here for criteria and application. Completed proposals and questions can be submitted by emailing APC Grants Coordinator Catherine Habas. Proposals can also be delivered to the APC box in the front office. 

Read more