General Announcements

A few housekeeping items for the end of the year:
 
Finals Schedule – There was an error in our Student Planner with the Finals Week Schedule. Please access the current Finals Schedule by clicking here.
 
Books – If your student has any books they are not currently using, please have them turn them in. They do not need to wait until the end of the year! 
 
Devices – Acalanes will collect all school-owned chromebooks, chargers, and other devices. These electronics can be returned to the library anytime Monday, May 16 through Friday, May 20.
 
Should your student(s) want to keep their device, etc. to study for finals, the last chance to drop these items off is during Finals week, from 12:30 to 1:30pm on the following days:

• 12th grade – Monday, May 23
• 11th grade – Tuesday, May 24
• 10th grade – Wednesday, May 25
• 9th grade – Thursday, May 26

On Friday, May 27 the library will be open from 8am to 4pm in case a student misses their assigned day for any reason.

A few housekeeping items for the end of the year:
 
Finals Schedule
There was an error in our Student Planner with the Finals Week Schedule. Please access the current Finals Schedule by clicking here.
 
Books
If your student has any books they are not currently using, please have them turn them in. They do not need to wait until the end of the year! 
 
Devices
Acalanes will collect all school-owned chromebooks, chargers, and other devices. These electronics can be returned to the library anytime during the week before Finals (May 16-20).
 
Should your student(s) want to keep their device, etc. to study for finals, the last chance to drop these items off is during Finals week, from 12:30 – 1:30pm on the following days:
12th grade – Monday 5/23
11th grade – Tuesday 5/24
10th grade – Wednesday 5/25
9th grade – Thursday 5/26
 
On Friday 5/27, the library will be open all day (8:00am – 4:00pm) in case a student misses their assigned day for any reason.

Parents of juniors and seniors! CAASPP testing continues through this week. We have enjoyed excellent participation in testing thus far and appreciate the continued support from our Acalanes families.

Juniors will finish the ELA portion of the testing by this Wednesday. After that, both Juniors and Seniors will begin the Science testing, CAST, on Thursday Apr 21. All Juniors AND Seniors will take this portion of the test.

• Most students will take the CAST in their science class, but some students may have to change rooms/locations for testing.
• If your student is NOT enrolled in a science class, they will be assigned to either a 6th period or 7th period cohort to complete the testing.

Room assignments will be posted on the front of the counseling office as well as sent to your student’s Gmail inbox. 
 
Parents of Seniors- testing requires either a school-issued Chromebook or, if using one’s own laptop, the installation of a designated, secure browser. Please have your student look for posters around campus explaining how to download a secure browser, if needed. All students need to come to the test prepared with the appropriate technology! Again, this testing is mandatory and the goal is to get every student to complete the testing. Once again, thank you for your support!

Acalanes Attendance Procedures
All absences, including full school day, late zoom arrivals and early zoom departures need to be called in at 925-280-3973. Remember, it is the responsibility of parents to call the message recorder for each and every student absence including dental and medical appointments. All absences not cleared within 48-hours are turned into cuts. For your convenience, the AHS message recorder is available 24-hours a day. Please bookmark and refer to the AHS website for detailed instructions and additional information. 

Textbook Return & Pickup
At last count we have over 1000 unreturned textbooks and novels out from last year. Our fellow Dons need these books! Please find those materials and drop them anytime outside the AHS Library. For students missing textbooks for the current year, please visit campus this week, Tuesday through Friday from 2-4pm in the Library, to collect outstanding materials.

Thursday, Aug 20 Virtual Back to School Night
Watch your email this week for agenda details and instructions on how to participate. 

If you’re looking for something to lift up your spirits, this year’s Time of Reflection will not disappoint. Click here to watch a recording of the event and enjoy a written recap from Blueprint. 

Graduation is Thursday, June 4th, and Lafayette retailers have put together some great gift ideas to congratulate our AHS graduates. You’ll even find some great ideas for Dads too (Father’s Day is June 21). Additionally, local restaurants have created special family meals to celebrate. You can find more info on the Lafayette Chamber’s website. Buying local helps our Lafayette businesses survive and provides sales tax dollars to the City of Lafayette.

It’s time for parents to show their spirit and #DonsShowUp. We have two open volunteer positions to finalize our team and we need your enthusiasm and great ideas to make it happen. If you’re interested, email Nominating Committee Chair Meg Fellner. Don’t delay, these positions are first-come, first served!

• Student Directory/Parent Handbook Coordinator We are considering an online directory option and are looking for someone who can research options and manage the student directory and parent handbook process. 
• Co-Chair Parent Education Join Anna Eppinger in overseeing the parent education calendar for the upcoming school year. It’s a great way to get involved by sharing relevant content and speakers to the AHS parent community.

Applications have been reviewed and if the committee had questions, students were contacted over email. Please encourage your student to check email in case we’ve requested a response. Additional information regarding awards will be emailed to students mid-to-late June. Questions? Please contact us.

To the Class of 2020,

It is with teary eyes that we make the announcement that due to Shelter in Place orders for Contra Costa and surrounding counties, we have been advised that we cannot legally plan or host a grad night for your class. 🙁 Unfortunately the “Don Voyage” celebration on the Commodore Cruise boat in Alameda has been canceled. With the future SIP protocols unknown, it makes it difficult for us to set a date, even this summer, to celebrate your graduation as we had so dearly hoped!

As parents of the Class of 2020, we are equally crushed by this decision but we want you to know that we have done everything we could up to this point to fight to make this night happen. But sadly, it’s now beyond our control.

As SIP restrictions lift, we hope you will celebrate your success as a class. You deserve only the very best of all celebrations. As you graduate on June 4th, we will be cheering you on and saluting the incredibly dynamic and impressive class of 2020. We would like to congratulate you all on your amazing journey in high school and wish you a very heartfelt “Don Voyage” as you set sail into your bright futures!

For information on how to receive a refund, please fill out the Grad Night Refund Form.

All the Best,

Your 2020 Grad Night Committee
Julie Bishop, Lulu Braunstein, Carrie Daughters and Alison Minden

We have one open position to finalize our team for next year. Please let Nominating Committee Chair Meg Fellner know if you’re interested in the following role:

• Student Directory/Parent Handbook Coordinator. We are considering an online directory option and are looking for someone who can research options and manage the student directory and parent handbook process.
• Co-Chair Parent Education. Join Anna Eppinger in overseeing the parent education calendar for the upcoming school year. It’s a great way to get involved by sharing relevant content and speakers to the AHS parent community.