Weekly News & Announcements

Junior Class of 2021 Update

Wishing everyone a great 3-day weekend!  We are still in need of help for both the Homecoming football game as well as our home game against Campolindo. Please consider volunteering with us in the Snack Shack!

Sept 27 Homecoming Football Game Concessions: sign up here
Oct 18 Home Football Game vs. Campolindo: sign up here

The Lafayette Art & Wine Festival provides the Class of 2021 a chance to earn $1000!  Grab some friends, work a 2 hour shift selling event tickets and then enjoy the Art & Wine Festival on Saturday, September 21.  Sign up here.  

College Rep Visits A reminder for your Juniors: the following colleges will have Reps on campus and interested students should sign up on Naviance 

Sept 3 University of the Pacific
Sept 3 Savannah College of Art & Design
Sept 4 Vanderbilt
Sept 6 University of Pittsburgh
Sept 6 Johns Hopkins

and

Sept 9 PSAT (sign up via AHS webstore)

Important Dates For anyone who missed them at our BTSN Junior Class Meeting here they are:

Sept 21 & 22 Lafayette Art & Wine Festival
Sept 22 Homecoming Hallway Decorating - volunteers needed
Sept 27 Homecoming Football Game - volunteers needed
Sept 28 Homecoming Dance
Oct 18 Home Football Game vs Campo - volunteers needed
Nov 7 Junior Class Parent Meeting from College & Career Center

Senior Class of 2020 Update

Sept 5 Senior Parent Night.  Come to the PAC at 7pm this Thursday.  AHS School Counselor Anne Schonauer and AHS College & Career counselor Wendy Reicher will present information about college applications, timelines, letters of rec and much more. There will be a preview of all upcoming Senior only events this year.  And you will have an opportunity to purchase tickets for Grad Night too. You don’t want to miss this!

Sept 6 Senior Panoramic Picture.  Senior students will be taking an all class panoramic picture this Friday.  You may purchase a copy of this commemorative photo here.

Grad Night.  The 2020 graduating seniors are invited to come aboard a Commodore Cruise on the Bay.  This fun, safe and stress free celebration is a wonderful way for your Senior to celebrate graduation with their classmates. The evening includes catered food, entertainment, security and round trip transportation from Acalanes.  See the Yacht here.  Tickets are $200 per student (scholarships available); price increases on November 30.  You may purchase a ticket here.

Freshman Class of 2023 Update

Hope you’re all enjoying the long weekend! We have lots of opportunities for you to get involved in the coming weeks, so please check out the below. And a few words about: 

Clubs   We had lots of questions about this topic at BTSN.  Please know that there are no active clubs running at this time. Every club restarts at the beginning of each school year.  Applications are due September 4 and approved clubs will be notified shortly after.  Club Day will be September 13 during Academy.

School Loop  Teachers and staff often use School Loop to communicate vital information to parents, so if you haven’t registered yet, please do so here!

Football Concessions   As we mentioned at BTSN, there are plenty of opportunities for you to get involved and help out the Freshman class. Your time and effort will pay big dividends as these are all fundraisers that contribute toward important events down the road. Shifts are easy and FUN!  

Sept 5 Food Trucks: No concession sign ups but check out the info above and come support your class!

Sept 27      Homecoming Football Game Concessions:   sign up here
Oct 18        Home Football Game vs. Campolindo:        sign up here
Nov 1         Home Football Game vs. Alhambra:            sign up here

Sept 10 Freshman Parent Social at Metro (6:30-8pm). 

Let’s all gather and get to know one another!

Sign up on the Web Store

Sophomore Class 2022 Update

There is a lot going on in the coming weeks, with many opportunities to get involved, especially as we get closer to Homecoming. Speaking of which, if you haven’t already heard, this year’s Homecoming theme is Battle of the Bands and the class of 2022 has AC/DC. The kids are working hard on plans for their skit as well as hallway decorations. Decorating will take place on Sunday, September 22.  We’d love to have some parent help at this so please sign up here if you’re able to assist.

We’re also working football concessions during the following games - click on the date to sign up if you’re able to help: 

September 13 

September 27 (Homecoming!) 

October 18 (Campolindo) 

Our class is also responsible for helping with this year’s Art & Wine Festival. We will receive a portion of the money raised. We need some help at the ticket booths on Saturday, September 21 so please consider signing up here. 

Lastly, please make sure you’ve marked your calendar for our September 10 Dine Out with Chipotle. All proceeds from this will come back to our class.

School Nurse

I wanted to share a few resources on upcoming programs online that I think are pertinent for many students and families:

Sept 17, 5-6:30pm Mindfulness and ADHD

Sept 25, 7pm Recognizing and Managing Teen Anxiety

If you go to these programs, please let me know what you think!

Wellness Center

While it may not be the first stress-reducing strategy to come to mind, connecting with others is easily one of the most effective and available. This is one of the reasons why students set their devices aside when they’re in the center and believe it or not, they’re happy they did. Time and time again, we see students who are overwhelmed connect with us and then turn around and connect with a peer in need. It feels good to talk it out; to learn that many of our experiences are universal; and to both give and receive words of compassion. Next time you’re feeling stressed or overwhelmed, do a scan of your emotions and notice where you feel them in your body. After you connect with a compassionate listener who you can count on to be supportive, scan again with close attention to your experience. If you can identify the feeling of a lowered stress response, share that with your kids and see if together, you can create a new habit!  (CS 8/29)

College & Career

Academies have started with a bang and the students had a fun kick off with a Chick Fil A and Naviance workshop.  Make sure to have your student sign up in advance, space is limited to 20 students. A big thank you to Acalanes Parents Club for making it possible to create these wonderful opportunities for our students.

COMING UP!

Oct  19 PSAT - register on the Web Store. Open to Juniors and interested Sophomores.

Seniors and Juniors please sign up in Naviance for College Rep Visits:

Sept  3 University of Pacific 12:25pm

Sept  3 Savannah College of Art and Design 1:35pm

Sept  4 Lynn University 11:25pm

Sept  4 Vanderbilt 12:25pm

Just a reminder, students need to pick up a pass in College & Career the morning of a college rep visit. Be sure they get permission from their teacher the Monday before the visit. Students may not miss a test for a rep visit. 

Performing Arts students can find their college fit at the San Francisco Bay Area Performing and Visual Arts Fair on September 19, at the Santa Clara Convention Center. Visit the official San Francisco Performing and Visual Arts Fair site for more details.  Students meet face-to-face with representatives from hundreds of colleges—all in one place—and get their questions answered about majors, degree programs, auditions, campus visits, internships, scholarships, financial aid, and much more.

One last thing!  The the College &  Career Center is creating a “Dons in the Workforce” bulletin board. Please bring me a picture of you (or your student!) at work!

As always, email me with any questions!

Wendy 

wreicher@auhsdschools.org

Co-Presidents’ Message

We hope you were able to join us at Back to School Night last Thursday! It was a wonderful opportunity to mingle with other Dons parents, meet our teachers, and get a peek into what’s ahead for our students this year. 

For all APC Donors, if you didn’t have a chance to pick up your complimentary copy of the 2019-20 Parent Handbook and Student Directory, please stop by the Registrar’s Office. We can’t thank new freshman parents Heidi Hambidge and Sharon Hunt enough for spending countless hours putting together the handbook/directory in record time.

A key role of APC is to help AHS parents find ways to get involved on campus. If you would like to volunteer, the best place to start is with your class liaisons (contact info in class sections below). Believe it or not, staffing the Snack Shack at home football games is a great way to connect with other parents while helping to raise money for your student’s class. Additionally, you can always reach out to our APC Volunteer Coordinator, Catherine Habas, for ongoing volunteer opportunities.

Dawn Brightbill & Sarah Cusumano

The Power of LPIE at Acalanes – Donate Today!

LPIE has committed $4.5 million directly to our students and their schools this academic year, with nearly $1 Million of that number to Acalanes alone. Consider what your donation funds for your child each and every day at Acalanes: 16 class sections; iPads and Chromebooks for the 1:1 device program; science, engineering, math and robotics; world languages; the expanded Writing Tutor Program; Wellness Counselors for the new Wellness Center and much, much more. You can find a full listing of what we fund here.

We can’t reach our fundraising goals without your help. Though we ask $1,000 per child, some families donate less, some donate more. Our hope is that ALL families participate in some way, and we value ALL donations.

Make a single payment, 10 monthly payments, or make a pledge. Click here to donate.

With gratitude,

Laura-Kate Rurka & Rachel Berkowitz
Acalanes LPIE School Chairs