Weekly News & Announcements

APC in Action

December APC Dons Dialogue
Thank you to all who attended our Dons Dialogue on Friday, Dec 20. This month's topics included learning about elective courses for 2025-26 and highlighted some of the engineering and STEM electives offered at Acalanes.  If you were not able to attend, slides from the discussion are available here.
Thank you to our APC Hospitality Co-Chairs, Mia Heglie and Monica Stassi, for providing the welcoming coffee and treats! The next Dons Dialogue will be on Friday, Jan 17.  Click here for the full schedule of upcoming Dons Dialogues.
 
Thank You for Making Finals Fuel a Success!
We want to extend a heartfelt thank you to everyone who participated in Finals Fuel last month and made it a huge success!  Whether it was donating snacks, funds or volunteering your time to hand things out, we could not have done without all of you!  Thank you for putting smiles on a lot of students’ faces during finals week.  We also want to give a shout out to our amazing APC Co-Chairs Regan Scovic and Stephanie Asadorian for organizing and leading such a special Acalanes tradition!  Finals Fuel will be back in the spring!


Follow Acalanes Parents Club on Instagram. Please reach out to APC here with any questions.

Contact Regan Scovic and Stephanie Asadorian with any questions. Thank you in advance for your support!

Campus Culture Committee

Important January Dates

• Jan 13: Korean American Day
• Jan 20: Martin Luther King Jr Day
• Jan 25: Mahayana New Year
• Jan 27: APC Campus Culture Committee meeting
• Jan 27: International Holocaust Remembrance Day
• Jan 29-Feb 16: Lunar New Year

The APC Campus Culture Committee hopes everyone had a wonderful break and is excited to learn more about one another in the new year! Please reach out if you have any suggestions for upcoming newsletter updates.
 
Korean American Day is on Jan 13 and commemorates the arrival of the first Korean immigrants to the United States in 1903. The day also honors the Korean American's immense contributions to every aspect of society.

If you’d like to be a part of the upcoming 2025 celebrations, such as Black Excellence Month and Lunar New Year, please contact the DEIB committee here.

Don’t forget to follow us on Instagram and Facebook to keep up to date with what the students are doing to celebrate all of these wonderful cultures and special dates.

Student Activities

It’s 2025! Welcome back to 2nd semester. Let’s make it a great one!
 
January brings the start of league for our winter sports, spring club day, an all school rally and the 2nd round of class cup. Encourage your student to opt in and get connected (or reconnected) - and please let me know if I can be of any help.
 
BIG 10 in January
Students have designed the BIG 10 as a way for our community to SHOW UP & SHOW OUT to these 10 events that take place across campus. Here is the schedule for January:
Wednesday, Jan 8 at 7pm: Girls basketball vs. Heritage
Monday, Jan 13 at 7:30pm: Boys basketball vs. Las Lomas
Thursday, Jan 16 at 5pm: Wrestling vs. Campo
Thursday, Jan 23 at 7pm: Girls soccer vs. Miramonte
Friday, Jan 24 at 7:30pm: Boys basketball vs. Campo
Wednesday, Jan 29 at 7pm: Girls basketball vs. Clayton Valley
 
New Clubs and Spring Club Day
Club applications for any students looking to start a new club will be available this week in the Daily Don and due Jan 21. We have our spring club day at lunch on Wednesday, Jan 29. It is a great opportunity to connect with our clubs and the leadership teams.
 
Class Cup: Family Feud
Classes will come together to compete in Family Feud - Acalanes style. Encourage your student to come watch Jan 13, 15 and 22 at lunch in the big gym.
 
KEY 2ND SEMESTER DATES:
Jan 24: Senior Breakfast + All School Rally + Boys basketball vs. Campo
Jan 29 @ lunch: Spring Club Day
Jan 30: Open House
March: 1st ever community rally (date TBD)
Mar 18: Talent Show
Ap 18: Special Olympics
Apr 19: Junior & Senior Prom
Apr 23-26: School Musical
 

Looking to stay informed? Follow us on Instagram for the latest on student activities and class happenings.
 
Katherine Walton, Activities Director

College & Career

Senior Scholarships

• Outstanding musician scholarship with a disability (deadline Jan 8)
• AAUW scholarship for a female senior with significant community service
• Tri Counties Bank scholarship for seniors with financial need or merit

Frosh/Sophomores: Parents, please join us for our 9th and 10th Grade Parent Night on Thursday, Jan 16 from 6:30-7:30pm in the library. We will cover essential information on course selection, graduation/4-year college requirements, and provide a brief overview of course offerings. We will also introduce our College and Career Center and highlight the resources available to support your student’s academic and career planning. Looking forward to seeing all of you.

Counseling

Counselor assignments are by student last name:
A-F Anne Schonauer  
G-Ka Erika Vasquez
Ke-Re Marissa Meadows 
Rh-Z Susan Martin

Final semester grades will be available on Friday, Jan 10. Transcripts will be updated, and mid-year reports for Common Application schools will be sent for seniors’ college applications. 

Juniors ONLY SAT in March - REGISTER NOW: The webstore link is now live/activated to pay for SAT fees for juniors only. The price per exam is $60 and is scheduled during the school day on Wednesday, Mar 5, 2025. The deadline to submit payment through the webstore is TOMORROW, Monday, Jan 6, 2025. Your webstore receipt is your confirmation of your registration. If you have any questions, please contact our Testing Coordinator, Jamielle McDonald by email jmcdonald@auhsdschools.org.

Frosh/Soph Parent Night - Thursday, Jan. 16 at 6:30pm in the Library Come hear Counselor Marissa Meadows and College and Career Advisor Debbie Levy speak about the Course Selection process coming up as well as things to be thinking about for college.

School Nurse

Dear Acalanes Families,

Happy New Year! As we begin a new semester in January, it’s a great time to reflect on health and wellness as a family. The start of the year often inspires resolutions, and I encourage you to approach these with a focus on small, sustainable habits that promote long-term well-being.

Think about how you can integrate the “pillars” of a healthy lifestyle—nutrition, physical activity, sleep, stress management, and connection—into daily life. This might look like preparing simple, balanced meals together, taking evening walks, setting consistent sleep schedules, or even creating a new family tradition of unplugged time to relax and reconnect.

The new year is also an opportunity to model intentional wellness for our children. By prioritizing self-care and balance, we show them the value of taking care of both body and mind. Remember, small, consistent efforts can lead to meaningful changes over time.

Let’s embrace this season of new beginnings as a chance to cultivate healthy habits, resilience, and joy as a community. Please reach out to me for any support your students or family might need. Here’s to a healthy and fulfilling start to 2025!

My office hours are:
Tuesdays, Wednesdays and some* Thursdays
Tuesdays & Thursdays:  8am - 3:50pm
Wednesdays:  7:30am - 3:20pm

Always Your School Nurse,
Dvora Citron, RN, MS
dcitron@auhsdschools.org, 925-280-2970 x7128
IG: acalanesschoolnurse, ​School Nurse Website

Wellness Center

When making a new year’s resolution, the key to success is setting realistic goals. How many times have you or people around you made a resolution so extreme that it is out of the window by Jan 7? It happens often because people either make goals that are too broad or make goals that require a complete lifestyle overhaul. First, set an extremely specific goal. Note that there is a major difference between “exercise more” and “exercise 20 minutes each day.” By creating specific goals you are able to measure progress. Next, take baby steps. If you are someone that has not previously prioritized a major facet of your resolution, start by gradually increasing your goal. For example, if you currently spend 3 hours on your phone each day, creating a resolution to completely stop spending idle time on your phone is unrealistic. Maybe you can cut down your time spent by 30 minutes each week to reach your overall goal. Small changes to habits you wish to kick are changes nonetheless.
 
Finally, a great way to preserve mental health in terms of new year’s resolutions is to accept that changes take time and persistence. If you happen to fall off of your resolution there is no shame in picking back up. If your goal is valuable to you, getting back on track should be a sign of persistence as opposed to a sign of failure. Accepting setbacks is key in making positive changes since for any given goal someone had to start, and even restart, somewhere. Be gracious because nobody is perfect!
 
Happy New Year!

LPIE

Pinstripes in Walnut Creek is OPEN and the LPIE Bowling Tournament is ON!
Kick-off Super Bowl weekend on Friday, Feb 7, 2025 at 6pm by joining us for some bowling fun! We will take over the 2nd floor of Pinstripes, enjoy an evening filled with bowling, drinks, a delicious buffet-style dinner from Pinstripes’ scratch kitchen, and vie for a chance to be the LPIE bowling champ! Tickets go on sale Tuesday, Dec 17 at 9am. Grab a friend and check out the new Pinstripes while raising money for our schools!

Sports

SAVE THE DATE for fun night celebrating sports at Acalanes!

*The game schedule below reflects dates and times as of last Friday. Games may change for several reasons, including weather. If you have questions or comments, please contact Acalanes Sports Boosters.

This week’s can’t miss events:
 
Girls basketball
Wednesday, Jan 8 host Heritage HS. JV at 6m and Varsity at 7:30pm.
Friday, Jan 10 host Berean Christian HS. JV at 5:30pm and Varsity at 7pm.
Saturday, Jan 11 at St. Mary’s HS, Stockton. JV at 12:30pm and Varsity at 2pm.
 
Boys basketball
Wednesday, Jan 8 at Ygnacio Valley HS. JV at 6pm and Varsity at 7:30pm.
Wednesday, Jan 8 Frosh at Campolindo HS at 4:30pm.
Friday, Jan 10 at Berean Christian HS. JV at 6pm and Varsity at 7:30pm.
 
Boys soccer
Wednesday, Jan 8 host Mt. Diablo HS. JV at 5pm and Varsity at 7pm.
Thursday, Jan 9 Frosh at Emerald HS at 6pm.
Saturday, Jan 11 host University HS. JV at 2pm and Varsity at 4pm.
Saturday, Jan 11 Frosh at College Park HS at 11am.
 
Girls soccer
Thursday, Jan 9 at Clayton Valley Charter HS. JV at 5pm, Varsity at 7pm.
Saturday, Jan 11 at California HS. JV at 10am and Varsity at 12pm.
Saturday, Jan 11 Frosh-Soph at Las Lomas HS at 9am and at Piedmont HS at 2pm.
 
Wrestling
Friday, Jan 10 and Saturday, Jan 11 Girls in the Napa Valley Classic at Vintage HS.
Saturday, Jan 11 Varsity in the Mat Classic at Granada HS.
Saturday, Jan 11 JV in the Red Devil Classic at Mt. Diablo HS.
 
You may view the full 2024-2025 Athletic Schedule by clicking HERE.

Finals Prep

Finals week is here! Tomorrow, Dec 16 is the regular class schedule and then the finals schedule begins on Tuesday, Dec 17 through Friday, Dec 20:

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES FOR STUDENTS:

• Teacher Office Hours: Tuesday, Dec 17 from 8:30-10:20am during 0 period final
• Peer Tutoring: Finals Week Hours
  • Monday, Dec 16, regular hours (academy, lunch, 7th period and 1 hour after final school bell)
  • Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday (Dec 17-19) from 12:50-3pm

• Wellness Center: Finals Week Hours
  • Monday, Dec 16, regular hours (8am-4pm)
  • Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday (Dec 17-19) from 8am-1pm

• Acalanes Library: Finals Week Hours
  • Monday, Dec 16, regular hours (7:30am-5pm)
  • Tuesday (Dec 17) and Thursday (Dec 19) from 7:30am-3pm

Wednesday (Dec 18) and Friday (Dec 20) from 7:30am-1pm

Check out our Finals Prep Webpage for more information and resources!