Tuesday, Nov 16 at 7pm – Jazz Concert in AHS Performing Arts Center
The musical festivities continue in November with a Jazz Concert hosted by our renowned Acalanes High School Jazz Ensemble, led by Music Director Lauren Gibson. They will be joined by members of the Las Lomas High School Jazz Ensemble. Come and enjoy some fabulous music! Free admission, masks required.
This week’s can’t miss events
Girls water polo
Tuesday, Nov 13 CIF NorCal Quarterfinals.
Thursday, Nov 17 CIF NorCal Semifinals.
Saturday, Nov 19 CIF NorCal Championships.
Boys water polo (if qualify)
Tuesday, Nov 13 CIF NorCal Quarterfinals.
Thursday, Nov 17 CIF NorCal Semifinals.
Saturday, Nov 19 CIF NorCal Championships.
Football
Friday, Nov 18 or Saturday, Nov 19 NCS Semifinals at 7:00 pm.
Girls basketball
Wednesday, Nov 14 JV hosts Benicia HS at 5:15 pm and Varsity hosts Terra Nova HS at 7:00 pm.
Saturday, Nov 19 at Windsor HS. JV at 10:00 am and Varsity at 11:30 am.
Here are the Fall sports schedules (subject to change):
APC Fall Grants Awarded
We are pleased to announce two grants have been awarded to Science and Mathematics and Special Education. The two awarded grants will fund pilot programs that may become more widely adopted by teachers beyond our current school year:
Thank you to our APC community, as your donations help fund our grant program.
Hot Lunch Volunteers
Thank you to our parents who have signed up and volunteered to help with our free hot lunch program. There are still slots to be filled so please do sign up here if you are able to help any day of the week, 12:45am to 1:15pm. Thank you for your help!
Last Tuesday night, as election results rolled in, people of color made history. Voters chose leadership roles by minority candidates in Boston, New York, Pittsburgh, and Michigan, among other places. This historic election brings more diverse representation to some of America’s biggest cities, as well as some states. In Massachusetts, Michelle Wu, a daughter of Taiwanese immigrants, is the first woman and person of color to be elected Boston’s mayor.
Some interesting facts for National Native American Heritage Month: Who are the Ohlone? Northern California’s Native American tribes Ohlone is a collective of around 50 separate tribes with related languages that were collectively placed under the umbrella term: Ohlone. The Ohlone are Native American people located throughout the Northern California Coast and have been living in the Bay Area for 10,000 years. Contra Costa County, among other Bay Area counties, is the homeland of the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe.
“American Indian” vs. “Native American”? The term American Indian is recognized by the US government and is more commonly used than Native American. The term Native American was introduced in preference to the older term Indian or American Indian to distinguish the indigenous peoples of the Americas from the people of India. Some believe that the term Indian is outdated or offensive. Many indigenous Americans, however, prefer the term American Indian. A 1995 U.S. Census Bureau survey found that more Native Americans in the United States preferred American Indian to Native American. Most American Indians are comfortable with Indian, American Indian, and Native American, and the terms are often used interchangeably. The traditional term is reflected in the name chosen for the National Museum of the American Indian, which opened in Washington DC in 2004.
Every time I get a gray hair I remember that one of my stem cells is like, “The working conditions here are awful and I am done.” And I respect that, from a labor perspective. -Melissa Florer-Bixter
If you are feeling as harried and burned out as we are, here is a Happiness Calendarcreated by The Greater Good Center to help you remember to breathe and to find your grounding amidst the chaos.
In case you missed it, here are recorded presentations of the talks, hosted by Acalanes Union High School District on Supporting LGTBQ+ students and families: A Conversation with Rainbow Community Center and the Parent Webinar: Equity and Inclusion Lessons by Dr. McPhatter-Harris and Amy McNamara.
Tuesday, Nov 16th at 7pm via Zoom MVLA Parent Speaker Series is hosting Colin Seale -The Question is the Answer. Practical Strategies to Unleash Critical Thinking At Home. Mr. Seale is an educator, attorney, and author of Thinking Like a Lawyer. He will share powerful, yet practical tools to equip parents to foster and engage critical thinking in their children. Registration link for this free event is here.
Finally, if your teen is struggling with academics or feeling down or frustrated about school, don’t forget to connect with our Counselors, our Nurse, and our Wellness Center.
Feel free to reach out and connect with us with ideas for future topics, shareable resources, or thoughts at parented@acalanesparentsclub.com.
November is here and this week is a short one!
Custodial Appreciation
Last week, our community and the students spent some time appreciating our custodial staff through written notes, goodies (including a nice basket from APC) and a video. We appreciate each and everything that they do for our campus.
Fall Sports Highlight Video
Enjoy this quick highlight video featuring fall athletes + highlight footage. Congratulations to all of our fall athletes!
Adopt a Family
With the holiday season approaching, it’s time for Acalanes’ annual Adopt-a-Family event! The mission is to give to those in need during the holiday season and we work with Families First, a non-profit in Concord. If you have the desire to make a difference in the community, we encourage you to sign up to help. We will connect you with families or individuals along with their wish lists to assist you in buying gifts. There are two options for giving:
Acalanes Spirit Wear
As we approach the holidays, we wanted to design and offer five new Acalanes items for purchase. All are designed by our students and all proceeds benefit the classes of ’23, ’24 and ’25. You can order now and items will be available for pick-up December 9th and 10th after school. Check them out!
CARE Leader Applications Now Available
Is your student interested in encouraging equity on campus and continuing the dialogue? They can sign up to be a CARE Leader! The application was sent via Canvas and is also in the daily bulletin. Each year, Acalanes puts on what is called CARE week (Compassion, Acceptance, Respect, and Equality). CARE leaders will lead a CARE Workshop during Academy time in order to continue our education around issues of equity. Students will be trained on the content of the workshop along with facilitation tips and techniques.
2021-2022 Clubs
We are just kicking off the 2nd quarter and it is never too late to start attending club meetings. 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.
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
SENIORS
JUNIORS
SOPHOMORES/FRESHMEN
RESOURCES
Counselor assignments are by last name.
A – Dr Anne Schonauer
Du-Kr Christine Todd
Ku-Rog Marissa Meadows
Roh-Z Susan Martin
Tuesday, Dec 14 through Friday, Dec 17 Final Exams
2nd Quarter is going by fast! There are less than four weeks of school before finals week! Here is the finals week schedule: 
Counselor Appointments
Counselors are checking in with all 9th and 10th graders during November. 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.
Progress Reports
The third grading period of the semester ended on Friday, Nov 5. Teachers will enter grades through Wednesday, Nov 10 and progress reports will be mailed home to parents if a student has a D or F grade in any class. Updated grades can be viewed in Aeries and Canvas beginning Monday, Nov 15.
Happy November! Enjoy this Happiness Calendar from GGSC. Check out the links!
FLU SHOT REMINDER: We are still in a pandemic!
COVID VACCINE: I continue to encourage you to get your students and your families vaccinated. Please contact me for support if needed.
Proof of vaccination: Try this site: https://myvaccinerecord.cdph.ca.gov/
Got Ziplocs? Many students are arriving at school without a mask. Please make sure to have a generous supply of clean masks in your car/your student’s car. ALSO in your student’s backpacks and lockers… Everyone wears a mask indoors (outdoors optional with social distancing) and all are 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 NOT been vaccinated for COVID-19 and/or has had a fever, please provide a negative COVID-19 test result before returning to school.
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.
PLEASE EAT MORE PLANTS to keep your student healthier and smarter.
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
Reminder! LPIE Gala tickets go on sale Sunday, November 7th at 9am
Saturday, April 23, 2022
6 pm to midnight
Four Seasons Hotel
757 Market Street, San Francisco
Click here for all the information
Congratulations, Lafayette! We have more than 550 readers signed up for the LPIE Read-a-thon, an impressive start. Keep up the great work!
Do you need more books to keep on reading? Visit the school library, the Lafayette public library, or LPIE’s new business partner Reasonable Books. Fabulous prizes include:
Jennifer Palmer and Michele Colaco, Acalanes LPIE School Chairs
www.lpie.org, Follow us on Instagram
