Weekly News & Announcements

Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion (DEI)

Upcoming Important Dates:

• Women’s History Month (March)
• Disability Awareness Month (March)
• Gender Equality Month (March)
• Mar 11 Ramadan Begins
• Mar 19 Nowruz - Persian New Year
• Feb 14 - Mar 28 Lent
• Mar 25 Holi Celebrated
• Mar 31 Easter and Trans Day of Visibility

Please join us as we celebrate the many religious holidays and festivals in our world this month. Along with that we will spotlight some amazing women and celebrate those with disabilities. If you have someone or something you would like to highlight please let us know here.
 
Do you use Facetime or Zoom? Thank prolific inventor Marian Croak, owner of 200+ U.S. patents. Croak was one of the first two Black women to be inducted to the Inventors Hall of Fame. She is best known for developing Voice Over Internet Protocols (VoIP), technology that converts your voice into a digital signal. Among her inventions is the text-to-donate function, which has helped to raise millions of dollars for disaster-relief efforts.

Upcoming Important Dates:

• Black History/Excellence Month (February)
• Women’s History Month (March)
• Disability Awareness Month (March)
• Gender Equality Month (March)

As we wrap up celebrating Black excellence this month, we ask each and every one of you to reflect on what makes this part of our culture so special. Black innovators have shaped our American culture in so many incredible ways, from the traffic signal to the Super Soaker, our refrigerated trucks to our long lasting light bulbs. And if it wasn’t for George Washington Carver, we might not have our good old PB and J or Reese's Peanut Butter cups.
 
As we look into the month of March, we hope to celebrate women for their history month, and those with disabilities for their awareness month. It is also Gender Equality Month. If you have a story to share or someone special to highlight, please let us know!

Please check out the new AUHSD DEIB website for many great resources and events! And follow us on Instagram and Facebook

Performing & Visual Arts

Student Activities

This week is ALL about our school musical! Don’t miss a chance to watch the incredible production from Mar 6-9.
 
On Sunday, Mar 10, 130 student players and 20 student coaches will play in the annual POWERpuff tournament beginning at 3pm in the Acalanes stadium. Come out and watch!
 
Join us on Tuesday, Mar 12 at 6:30pm in the library for our Feminism and Black Student Union collaboration speaker event! Listen to Regan Bradley-Brown talk about her experience and work as a Supervising Attorney at Children's East Bay Law Office since 2019.
 
Acalanes High School is having its annual Color Run on Sunday, Mar 24 at 9am. This is a super fun 1 or 2 mile walk or run around the Acalanes campus with stations of different colored powders scattered throughout the course. This event is inspired by the traditions of Holi, the Hindu Festival of Color. Holi celebrates the arrival of spring and its beautiful harvests and colors with festivals involving colored powder. The Color Run is a community wide event and we encourage you/your friends/family members to run or walk! You can register on Go Fan and payment includes a t-shirt, a gift from Zoonie's and snacks at the end of the race.Hope to see you there!
 
We still have 2028 frosh spirit packs available for purchase. Spirit packs feature a limited edition 2028 hoodie, string backpack and lanyard. The last day to order these is Thursday, Apr 18 and items will be available for pick-up beginning Wednesday, May 1. All proceeds benefit the class of 2028.

College & Career

The Acalanes College and Career Center will host a Creative Arts and Design Career academy at 10am on Wednesday, Apr 10. One of our committed speakers is Joel Flory, the co-founder of VSCO. We would like to invite other interested parents, alumni, and community members to share their career experiences/pathways in graphic design, film/screenwriting, animation, sculpture, painting, fashion, photography, graphic design, etc. with our students. If you would like to be a presenter or know someone who would be a good fit, please email Debbie Levy, dlevy@auhsdschools.org and provide your name, industry, and phone number. We will follow up with all contacts.
 
In addition, we are hosting a Trade Fair during lunch on Wednesday, Apr 24 and we are looking for more organizations to be represented. Please email Debbie Levy, dlevy@auhsdschools.org with any suggestions for us and we will follow up.
 
SENIORS:
The Matt Lynn Memorial Scholarship is now available. It will be awarded to college-bound seniors from Acalanes who have participated in a high school varsity sport(s) and who intend to continue playing a varsity or club sport in college. Student athletes who expect to receive an athletic scholarship from a NCAA Division I school are not eligible for this award. The award will be $2500 - $3000.
 
The Bose Lamont Scholarship is available for $1500. To apply, your student needs a 3.0+ GPA and the essay question is “how have you been brave”? Email dlevy@auhsdschools.org for submission details.
 
JUNIORS, SOPHOMORES, FROSH:
SAT/ACT Free Practice Exams: Practice ACT and digital SAT exams are available with Revolution Prep. Click here to register. The ACT practice exam is on Saturday, Apr 20 from 9am - 1pm. The SAT practice exam is on Saturday, Apr 20 from 9am - 12pm.
 
Google Doodle Scholarship: This is a creative scholarship opportunity to create a google doodle and win $50k.
 
Camp Venture is a business leadership program sponsored by the Rotary Club and runs from June 19-23. You can email dlevy@auhsdschools.org for submission details.
 
Please visit our College & Career Counseling website any time for additional information and support.

Counseling

Counselor assignments are by last name:
A-Em Anne Schonauer  
En-Kr Erika Vasquez
Ku-Rog Marissa Meadows 
Roh-Z Susan Martin

Course Selection for 2024-2025 School Year
Students may still request to change their course requests for next school year. Counselors are keeping a wish list of student requests and will fill these requests as we are able. 
 
3rd Quarter Ends on Friday, Mar 15
Two more weeks until the end of the third quarter!  This is the drop deadline as well - if students want to drop a class, they may do so until Mar 15. After that, any drop will be an automatic F on the transcript. This deadline is also the cut off for continued athletic eligibility for all spring sports. Students need a 2.0 average or higher to remain eligible for their sports. 3rd quarter grades will be used for this purpose.

School Nurse

How many servings of fruits and vegetables do you eat each day?
I ask this question to many of the students I meet with. Some of them barely have one of each per day. I ask them to consider where in their day they might be able to include an extra fruit and vegetable at each meal. Do you have fruits and vegetables readily available for your students? HERE is a great resource I found on seasonal produce that also has great educational information for each fruit and vegetable.

FUN FACT:  Did you know that broccoli has 3gm of protein per serving?
What is your favorite bean? Mine is GARBONZOS!

See my website for more information.

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

Wellness Center

With SAT’s right around the corner, it may be beneficial to discuss test anxiety with your AHS student. Test anxiety is actually a form of performance anxiety that affects 25-40% of students. While it’s perfectly normal for a student to feel nervous before a test, test anxiety can be overwhelming for students and disrupt their concentration and ability. Here are a couple steps you can take to support your student in combating their test anxiety:
 
- Positive Self Talk can go a long way in altering one’s perception of their ability. Encourage your student to talk to themselves about how they would talk to a friend or loved one experiencing the same anxiety. We are often our own worst critic and in many instances, we talk to ourselves more negatively than we would ever talk to someone else.
 
- Acceptance of mistakes can also shift your student’s mindset around their ability. First, remind your student that trying their best is realistically the most they can do. Even when trying our absolute best, people still make mistakes. Second, model this behavior for your students. Are you shaming your student when their best effort isn’t “good enough” or beating yourself up when you make a mistake? Offer grace in the face of mistakes. We’re all human after all.
 
-Teach test taking basics to your student so they might feel more confident
when the time comes to take a test. Believe it or not, study skills and test taking strategies are learned. Just because students have to take tests, doesn’t mean they are actually equipped to do so successfully.

LPIE

The 6th Annual LPIE Gala Online Auction CLOSES Friday, Mar 8 at 5pm
Don’t miss out on the chance to bid on exciting vacations, special experiences, autographed items, golf rounds, spa services, Warriors tickets, and a whole lot more. All incredible, all unique, and all available for bidding in support of our students! Click HERE to bid! 

Jocelyn Werner and Jaime Roder, Acalanes LPIE School Chairs
www.lpie.org, Follow us on Instagram

Sports

This weeks can't miss events:

Girls Basketball
Tuesday, Mar 5 CIF Championship
Friday, Mar 8 or Saturday, Mar 9 CIF Championship

Baseball
Monday, Mar 4 Petaluma HS at 3:30pm. Varsity is away and JV is home.
Thursday, Mar 7 Tamalpais HS at 3:30pm. Varsity is home and JV is away. Frosh play at Dublin HS.
Saturday, Mar 9 Varsity host Vintage at home at 12. Frosh visit Livermore for a doubleheader at 11 and 1pm.

Softball
Tuesday, Mar 5 Deer Valley HS at 3:30pm. Varsity is home and JV is away.
Thursday, Mar 7 Mt. Eden HS at 3:30pm. Varsity is home and JV is away.

Track & Field
Tuesday, Mar 5 host Clayton Valley Charter HS at 4pm.
Saturday, Mar 9 Marsh Creek Invitational.

Boys Tennis
Tuesday, Mar 5 Varsity at Benicia HS at 3:30pm.
Thursday, Mar 7 Bishop O’Dowd HS. Varsity is home and JV is away.

Boys Volleyball
Wednesday, Mar 6 v. Oakland Tech HS. JV at 5pm and varsity at 6:30pm.
Thursday, Mar 7 v. Heritage HS. JV at 5pm and varsity at 6:30pm.

Girls Lacrosse
Wednesday, Mar 6 at Piedmont HS. JV at 5:30pm and Varsity at 7pm.
Friday, Mar 8 host Northgate HS. JV at 5:30pm and Varsity at 7pm.

Boys Lacrosse
Friday, Ma 8 at Northgate HS. JV at 5:30pm and Varsity at 7pm.

Competitive Sport Cheer
Friday, Mar 8 host Concord HS at 5:30pm and Miramonte HS at 7:30pm.

Parent Education

Powerful Community Education Event.

"Paralyzed to Powerful" with Robert Paylor. RSVP here!

Tuesday, March 19
7:00pm
Acalanes Performing Arts Center, PAC
Event is free and encouraged for all Parents and Students. 

General Administration Announcements

ACALANES JOB FAIR!
Do you own a business or work somewhere looking to hire this spring or summer? Acalanes will host a Job Fair on Wednesday, Mar 20, from 10-11am in our front quad. If you want to recruit some fantastic Acalanes High School student employees, we would love you to join us!
 
Please email any of the following for more information:
Katherine Walton at kwalton@auhsdschools.org or
Debbie Levy at dlevy@auhsdschools.org or
Nicole Singleterry at nsingleterry@auhsdschools.org
 
CAASPP TESTING IS COMING FOR ALL 11th GRADERS!
All Acalanes 11th graders will participate in CAASPP assessments during Mar 11-29. This assessment provides an important overall reflection of the academic success of our Acalanes community. To learn more about these assessments, please see below for the video recording or slides from our Dons Dialogue discussion on Friday, Feb 23. More information will be shared with our 11th grade students soon.

APC in Action

PEER TUTORING PRESENTS:  Tips for Organizing Your Schoolwork, Wednesday Feb 28
 
Peer Tutoring is excited to host “Tips for Organizing Your Schoolwork” on Wednesday, Feb 28 at lunch. Acalanes Department Chair, Amy Bellomo, will teach students tools to organize schoolwork and stay on track. Ms. Bellomo will show students how to use Google Tasks and Better Canvas, as well as how to merge Google and Canvas calendars. Pizza will be provided to the first 40 students who attend.
 
Peer Tutoring aims to better the educational, social and emotional well-being of all Acalanes High School students and gives students the skills necessary to succeed in academics and life post high school. Thank you to the Acalanes Parents Club, who fully funds this important student program.
 
Peer Tutoring is located in Room 107 and the hours are: academy, 7th period, lunch and every day for 1 hour after school.
 
Please contact Kristen Labrosse or Angela Ketcham with any questions.
   
DONS DIALOGUE - Listen to the Recording!
Don’t miss the video or slides from our most recent Dons Dialogue on Friday, Feb 23.
This month we discussed the importance and plans for CAASPP testing in March for all 11th graders. We also heard invaluable department highlights from;

• Mr Clark on PE
• Ms Johnson on Science Offerings and
• Mr Buchel on Math Pathways

And as always, we closed out the morning with a fun overview of student activities!

The next Dons Dialogue will be Friday, Mar 22 at 8:45am.
Follow Acalanes Parents Club on Instagram. Please reach out to APC here with any questions.