What is ACA You Ask?

Not only is “ACA” short for “Acalanes,” it is also the overarching, unifying theme that we at Acalanes High School represent on and off campus. Simply put, ACA (Acalanes Community Always) represents:

• Connectivity between Acalanes students, teachers, staff members, alumni and the greater Lafayette community
• Spirit and unity

These are characteristics that we all share as part of the Acalanes family, both during our time at Acalanes, and beyond as alumni. Our ACA spirit is on display daily in and outside of the classroom, and within our athletics, performing arts, student government, clubs, and Acalanes support organizations. We look forward to supporting ongoing programming that continues to build school spirit and supports our community and each other!

ACA Student Discounts!
As part of your student’s ASB card purchase, your student can get discounts or freebies at some favorite local business, such as

• Diablo Foods
• Johnny’s Donuts
• Local Kitchens
• Sideboard
• And more!

Your student just needs to show their ASB card at checkout. See the full list of discounts here! There is still time to purchase the ASB card in the Acalanes Webstore, this money drives student activities at Acalanes.

Important Dates!

• Saturday and Sunday, Sept 23-24 is the annual Lafayette Art & Wine Festival. We look forward to seeing many of you there!
• Sunday, Oct 22 is the Annual Reservoir Run. Sign up now and support our local schools.

What is ACA You Ask?
Not only is “ACA” short for “Acalanes,” it is also the overarching, unifying theme that we at Acalanes High School represent on and off campus. Simply put, ACA (Acalanes Community Always) represents:

• Connectivity between Acalanes students, teachers, staff members, alumni and the greater Lafayette community
• Spirit and unity

These are characteristics that we all share as part of the Acalanes family, both during our time at Acalanes, and beyond as alumni. Our ACA spirit is on display daily in and outside of the classroom, and within our athletics, performing arts, student government, clubs, and Acalanes support organizations. We look forward to supporting ongoing programming that continues to build school spirit and supports our community and each other!
 
ACA Student Discounts!
As part of your student’s ASB card purchase, your student can get discounts or freebies at some favorite local business, such as

• Diablo Foods
• Johnny’s Donuts
• Local Kitchens
• Sideboard
• And more!

Your student just needs to show their ASB card at checkout. See the full list of discounts here!
 
Important Dates!

• Saturday and Sunday, Sept 23-24 is the annual Lafayette Art & Wine Festival. We look forward to seeing many of you there!
• Sunday, Oct 22 is the Annual Lafayette Reservoir Run. Signup now and support our local schools.

The 4th annual Senior Car Rally was a HUGE success! We want to thank all of the volunteers who helped greet and park the seniors, decorate the route before and clean up after. APC would like to extend an enormous thank you to Laura Bergman and Lulu Braunstein for organizing the incredible afternoon! And it goes without saying – thank you to our fabulous Acalanes families, Oakwood Athletic Club, Lafayette Police Department, Lafayette Rotary Club, Lafayette Chamber and the greater Acalanes and Lafayette community for making our seniors feel so loved! We all thank you! GO DONS!

See more 4th annual Senior Car Rally pictures here.

Acalanes Garden Update The meditation garden is “done” as much as any garden is ever done. If you happen to be at the school this summer, please come check out the space. It’s across from room 507.

The “farm” is a work in progress and we could definitely use some help! We plan to be there this summer on Tuesday evenings from 5-7pm to weed, harvest and distribute food (when there is harvest available). We also have two larger “work parties” scheduled to help prune pear trees, get a head start on weeds, review and update the irrigation, and plant the last of our plants for this season. These will be on Tuesday, May 30 and Tuesday, June 13 from 5-8pm. Please complete this form if you can help on a regular Tuesday or during the work parties.

We have also updated our wish list. If you have any items you’d like to donate, please email Ms. Tewksbury so we can work out a time for drop off. 

Finally, if you would like to be notified when we have harvested food available for pick up, please complete this form. We are not sure how much food we will actually harvest this season, but we definitely want to share whatever we get with the staff and Acalanes community. 

Looking to next year, we are going to need to replace the beds in the farm so we can eliminate our gopher problem. After that, we hope to have winter plantings for the spring and then spring plantings for the summer/fall. Our art teachers are working on ways to get students involved in making garden art for both the meditation and farm spaces. We also hope to restart the Garden Club to get more students actively involved in both spaces.

Thanks for all of your support! And, thank you to Janet Thomas, Pam Winther and Jeanie Hill from the Lafayette Community Garden for all of the support, guidance and volunteers. These renovations would not have been possible without them.

Have a great summer!

The Acalanes Class of 2023 Car Rally is here – this Friday, May 19 at 5pm! Come out for a spirited Dons send off for our annual, community-wide celebration to cheer on our Acalanes seniors and their families. Join spectators along Mt. Diablo Blvd (from Oakwood to McDonald’s and back) and bring your signs, noisemakers and blue pompoms! It’s also a great night to stay out and dine in Lafayette!
 
Volunteers are needed for the Senior Car Rally! Join one of the best volunteering events of the year. Please consider signing up for a slot to help celebrate our graduates.
 
Dons love Lafayette! There are so many ways to support downtown Lafayette businesses this spring and summer. Consider purchasing gifts and dining out at our local Lafayette favorites.
 
Mark your calendars for some fantastic upcoming Lafayette events:

• Monday, May 15: Auditions begin for Lamorinda Idol
• Tuesday, May 16: Taste of Lafayette restaurant stroll
• Friday, May 19: Senior Car Rally – dine out afterwards at a Lafayette restaurant
• First four Fridays in June: Rock the Plaza – free concerts at the Lafayette Plaza
• Saturday, June 3: Lafayette Community Day – support local nonprofits
• Friday, June 30: Early bird registration for Lafayette Res Run (Oct 22)
• Sept 23 and 24: Mark your calendars now for the annual Lafayette Art Wine Festival

AHS Garden Update – We’ve been busy!!  
We planted most of our summer crops last Sunday in the farm (the garden space across from the autoshop). We received donations from the Moraga Gardens Nursery and have a few more crops still to plant. Our hope is to have summer crops for staff and families to pick up over the summer.  Stay tuned for more details about this.

We have one more major workday and can use your help!  Sunday Apr 30 from 9-12pm we will be adding mulch to the planted area in the meditation garden.  After this work day, the meditation garden should be done (except for the ongoing weeding/maintenance).  If you can come, please complete the form here below.
Any questions, please feel free to contact Lori Tewksbury – LTewksbury@auhsdschools.org

AHS Garden Restoration Update and Work Parties
We are gearing up to put the finishing touches on the “meditation” garden outside of rooms 508/509. On Sunday Mar 26, from 8am – 12pm, we will be planting and can use your help!! If you can come, please take a moment to fill out this form (so we know you’re coming).
 
The garden restoration we are doing would not be possible without grants from the AHS Parents Club and the Lafayette Community Garden Club and the help of all of our volunteers! Stay tuned for more information about spring planting in the farm.
 
Lori Tewksbury, Acalanes Science Teacher

Hi Acalanes Parents! In response to the recent earthquakes in Turkey and Syria, the Acalanes Community Outreach Board has teamed up with World Central Kitchen to provide meals for those affected. To donate to help feed those in need, cash and check donations will be collected in jars throughout classrooms. You can also donate by clickinghere. All donations will be collected through Friday, Mar 17. If you want more information about the earthquakes click here.