Weekly News & Announcements

1st Quarter Ends October 11

Students can still drop a class (depending on requirements and credit status) until the end of the quarter.  Quarter grades will be updated on School Loop by October 16.   Quarter grades are not on transcripts, but serve as a progress report at the half-way point in the semester.

Seniors: Pay for Official Transcripts

A reminder to pay for official transcripts for your college apps on the Web Store.  Registrar Mrs. Finn will make sure they get sent right away or let your counselor know that transcripts are ready to send along with other documents.  

CSF for Juniors and Seniors

The deadline to turn in CSF applications and pay dues is Monday, September 30. (Tomorrow!)  CSF is an honor society and students need to be a member 4 semesters, including senior year, to get the award.  Juniors who are interested need to start now, if they haven’t already.  

Nutrition and Healthy Eating

This week I attended an excellent nutrition conference for healthcare providers on plant-based nutrition.  Including more (or any!) fruits and vegetables in our students’ day (and ours!) is healthy for everyone. DailyDozen is an app that helps keep track of healthy foods to eat during the day, and also includes resourceful videos with nutrition information.

Tomorrow! Fall Choral Classic

Please join Chamber Singers and choirs from Campolindo and Miramonte at the 17th annual Richard C. Hansen Fall Choral Classic on October 7 at Lafayette Orinda Presbyterian Church at 7:30pm. We are excited to have Dr. Jeffrey Benson, director of  choral activities at SJSU, as our guest conductor/clinician. Reserve tickets here.

6th Man Jersey. Students have asked and we are delivering!

Order a personalized 6th man jersey to wear to any athletic event including basketball! Jerseys can be customized with last name and graduation year on the back. Orders need to be placed by October 8 as they take 4 weeks to be produced and shipped (just in time for basketball season!).

Check them out-they are awesome!

Co-Presidents’ Message

The APC Campus Clean-Up last Sunday was a huge success! Over sixty students, parents and community members showed up to help trim trees & hedges, pull weeds, landscape the Main Quad garden beds, paint the Small Gym exterior wall, and power wash key areas on campus. The event was a perfect example of #DonsShowUp! (And make sure to check out the Blueprint’s fantastic article about it!) Thank you to ALL the volunteers who made the effort to participate and a special thank you to AHS parents Matt & Jill Perlman for helping to coordinate the clean-up. 

If you missed our second APC Dons Dialogue last Friday, you can find videos of all past Dons Dialogues on the APC website. Notably, Principal Bell gave an informative overview of the new Sandy Hook Promise Anonymous Reporting System along with our school safety protocols. 

Homecoming is around the corner! Encourage your student (#DonsShowUp!) to participate in all the activities. The events kick-off today with Homecoming Hallway Decorating on campus from 10am-3pm. Homecoming activities are often some of the most fun events of the whole year. 

Speaking of Homecoming, it’s not too late to purchase an ASB Card for your student. ASB stands for Associated Student Body, which is the leadership organization on campus that coordinates student activities. These events include student rallies, Class & Teacher/Student Dodgeball, Powderpuff Football, Club activities, discounted tickets to the upcoming Homecoming Dance & other dances, as well as FREE entrance to any non-NCS sporting event on campus. The card can ultimately save you money on school events. 

Dawn Brightbill & Sarah Cusumano

Last Call for Fall 2019 APC Grant Applications!

Acalanes Parents Club will continue its APC Grant Program this year with a focus on ideas that will enhance the educational and campus experience of AHS students in new and innovative ways. Teachers, students and parents are welcome to submit a grant proposal.

The application and grant criteria can be found on the APC web site. Email completed applications to Laura White or deliver to the APC box in the office.

Grant applications are due by noon this Friday, September 27.

Homecoming Updates

2019 Homecoming kicks off this week and the students couldn’t be more excited! The schedule of events is below. A few things to highlight:

Monday, Lunch: Unified Soccer on the field. Please encourage your student to show up and support our special education students as they compete. 

Wednesday, 7pm: Student vs student dodgeball in the big gym. Please encourage your student to come watch or play. It is a definite highlight of the year for students.

Friday

5:30pm: Tailgate. All of the Lafayette community is invited! We will have games, activities, popcorn, and 2 student bands playing. Please come out!

7:00pm: Football Game

1. Wear blue!
2. Bring 1 or 2 canned foods to donate. This is the last chance for our community to come together and donate food to those who need a meal.
3. There will be a halftime show with cheer, skit performances, Homecoming winner announcement, and a powder toss.
4. Pep band and a DJ will be at the game. 

Saturday, 7-10pm: Homecoming Dance.  Tickets are on sale at lunch and online and prices increase at the door. The dance offers more than just music! There is a game truck, caricaturist, photo booth, air brush tattoos, tacos, boba, ice cream & a hypnotist. If your student wants to bring a guest, guest contracts are in the main office and due Wednesday. 

Homecoming Week Events

Sunday 10am - 3pm

Hallway Decorating

Monday, the 23rd

Dress-up: Earth, Wind, Fire & Water

Seniors -  Blue
Juniors - Red
Sophomore - White
Freshmen - Green

Lunch: Unified Soccer & tailgate

Tuesday, the 24th

Dress-up: Country vs Rock
Lunch: Tie Dye

 Wednesday, the 25th 

Dress-up: 70's (hippie)
Lunch: Student vs. Staff Dodgeball
7 pm: Student vs. Student Dodgeball (class vs. class)

Thursday, the 26th

Dress-up: Subthemes

Seniors - Queen
Juniors - Beach Boys
Sophomores - Red +Devil + Black + Leather
Freshmen - Beatles/60s Fashion + Yellow

Lunch: Karaoke
Last DAY of Canned Food Drive

Friday, the 27th

Dress-up (day): Class Shirts or Class Color

Seniors - black
Juniors - grey
Sophomores -  blue
Freshman - white

Academy: Homecoming Rally (Students only)
Lunch: Carnival
5:30 pm: Pre Game Tailgate for the Lafayette Community
7 pm: Homecoming Game (EVERYONE Wear Blue!)

Saturday, the 28th at 7:00pm
Homecoming Dance
Tickets are on sale via the Web Store or at lunch. Ticket prices are:

$15 with ASB
$30 without ASB
$45 for guests*

Prices increase by $5 at the door.

*Want to bring a guest? Fill out the guest contract (found in room 314) and submit to the main office by September 25th. 

2019 Homecoming Shirt. For $5 Dons can purchase a limited edition Homecoming Shirt, Bleed Blue. Shirt can be purchased on the Web Store and at lunch before Wednesday-we are selling out so buy yours quick! Shirts will be distributed 5th period Friday and at the tailgate. 

Spirit Wear is still available via the Acalanes Web Store. All spirit wear orders benefit the Class of 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023! Spirit wear will be delivered to your students 5th period class. 

6th Man Jersey. Order a personalized 6th man jersey to wear to any athletic event including basketball! Jerseys can be customized with last name and graduation year on the back. Orders need to be placed by October 8 as they take 4 weeks to be produced and shipped (just in time for basketball season!).

What identities does your student hold?

High school is an important, and hectic, time in an adolescent's life.

With all the academics, social and extra-curricular activities they engage in, they hold many identities. Think about your student. What do they do? Are they academically-oriented? Athletic? Artistic? Creative? Politically engaged or social action oriented? Talented at gaming? It is important to recognize these other identities, because solely holding the identity of a "student" can be very stressful. Having a narrow view on the identity of a student can make a low test score, bad quiz, or missing assignment devastating.

Celebrate all of your student’s talents and abilities through the ups and downs of adolescent life and they’ll feel supported as a whole person. (CS 9/17)

From Matthew Gahagan, Wellness Counselor Trainee

Progress Reports

 Teachers updated School Loop this week. Paper report cards were only mailed home if no parent was registered on School Loop.  The next progress report is the end of the quarter, October 11.

School Nurse

I want to share a valuable resource from the American Lung Association that parents can use to begin a dialogue about vaping. The website is very informative and you can download The Conversation Guide HERE. 

I am also including more resources on my Google School Nurse Website.

Please call me to discuss concerns you have if you think or know your student is vaping.

Dvora Citron, RN, MS
Acalanes School Nurse

This Week’s Update

Lots of opportunities to work on college apps at brunch, lunch and academy. Make sure to have your student sign up for academy, as space is limited to 20 students.

Oct. 12 Mock ACT 9-12 ($30 fundraiser for AAUW) Sign Up Here
Oct. 15 AUHSD Military Career Night @AHS Gym 6:30p-8p
Oct. 19 PSAT - register on the Web Store.
Open to Juniors and interested Sophomores.
Oct. 23 SAT/ACT Info Night @AHS 6:30p-7:30p

College Rep Visits this Week! The following schools will be on campus:

• Whitworth
• University of South Carolina
• PItzer
• Landmark College
• Willamette Univ.
• Boise State
• Univ. of Delaware
• Marymount California Univ.
• Puget Sound
• Drexel
• American University
• Vassar
• Worcester Poly
• Indiana
• Elon
• Cal State Maritime Academy

Check Naviance for date//times to sign up...

Important Reminder! Students need to get permission from their teacher the Monday before the visit AND pick up a pass in College & Career the morning of. Students may not miss a test for a rep visit.

We have many students working at local businesses and we want to celebrate that! The College & Career Center is creating a “Dons in the Workforce” bulletin board. Please have your student bring me a picture of them at work!

Did you miss the presentation at Senior Parent Night? Here are the College & Career Center and Counselor’s slides about colleges, the application process, Naviance and all things related to “Life after Acalanes!”

As always, email me with any questions!

Wendy
wreicher@auhsdschools.org