The Celebration Corner will be used to highlight and celebrate our students, staff, and positive ideas at any opportunity that we can! If you would like your student acknowledged for something we may not be aware of, please feel free to contact me (include a picture if possible): alexander.salazar-arbelaez@sweetwaterschools.org

Take a couple of minutes to celebrate our winning team of students and staff at BVM! You won't regret taking the time to read the following section!

Win, lose, or draw --we could not be more proud of the awesome job our Flag Football Team has done this year with their nearly undefeated season. They have worked hard as a team and believed in each other.

This Monday, May 8, 2023, at 5 pm, they will be playing in the Championship Game ready to compete for the title! Please come out and support our team!

My Friday Message to our Teachers on Friday, May 5th:

Team,

Good morning! We have fresh Starbucks Coffee waiting in the teacher’s lounge for all of you. Make sure to stop by and grab a cup! We will meet in the cafeteria at approximately 1 pm for our staff luncheon. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate all of you. It is important to note that all people in the front office have made this week possible. Two people deserve special recognition—Ms. Bishop and Ms. Conlon. These two team members did all the heavy lifting this week in making sure we picked up food, presented food and treats in the most hospitable way possible, and made last-minute errands to ensure that we served our staff with the dignity and respect that you all deserve. Please make sure to thank them when you see them today.

Yesterday evening, I had the pleasure of reading the following Article in the Atlantic magazine that allowed me to reflect on the wonderful teachers that influenced my life like Ms. Cortez in P.S. 123 in Brooklyn, New York who in 1st grade began to teach me the basic concepts of the English language in the most nurturing way possible when I had newly arrived from Colombia and would serenade girls in class totally violating 1st grade American classroom norms, or Mr. Hernandez in the 4th grade who would kindly and patiently put up with my “fart noises” that I would make at the back of the classroom with my classmates at St. Francis Cabrini (also in Brooklyn), or Coach Blum at Lemon Grove Middle School who taught me how to play the game of basketball and the importance of establishing the fundamentals in anything that you do (I still remember all the suicide drills he had us run), and finally Mr. Cloud in U.S. History at Helix High School who forced me to take ownership for my actions, my learning, and most importantly my decisions when he gave me the choice to stay in his class or transfer out for being disruptive in his class. Because of Mr. Cloud, during my Junior Year in High School, I not only decided that I wanted to become a teacher, I read my first book cover to cover The Ugly American as a preface to better understand the Vietnam War Unit.

All the interactions that you have with your students matter more than you know—they will always remember you and what you are teaching them! Yesterday while Cheer practice was concluding a parent stopped by my office and paid our school the biggest compliment when she said “Alex, you have really good teachers here; I know, because my daughter always talks about them.” I know that we have an all-star team here! Our very own board members tout our exemplary staff! I know that we won’t always agree on our ideas, actions, or programs in moving our school forward, but I know that everyone at our school is 100% invested in the success of BVM and invested in making sure we move our school forward. I know that we will continue to work collaboratively. That is what I have come to learn in my short time here. Thank you, everyone!

We wanted to reach out to you and let you know that the Metro Conference will be hosting our 1st Annual Women in Sports event on Saturday, May 13 at Olympian High School.

W have attached the flyer with all registration and the day of information. We will have careers in sports panel and collegiate athletes panel. Our students will be able to ask about the recruiting process, how to level up in their own sport, strength training, injury prevention, and mental health.

Plus, we have some sweet giveaways (Lululemon, Road Runner Sports, & More!). This event is open to middle and high-school-aged female students.

Parents are welcome to come too. Transportation will be provided if a school has a need upon request. I would appreciate it if you can help promote this on your campuses. It is sure to be a great event. Thank you so much BVM Community!

May is Asian Pacific Heritage Month. Efforts in Congress to celebrate the contributions of Asian Pacific Americans began in 1977 but in 1992 President George H. W. Bush formally designated May as the month to publicly recognized the efforts and contributions of Asian Pacific Americans to America. One Filipino whose contributions to organized labor groups have often been shadowed by the great Cesar Chavez is Larry Itliong who immigrated to the United States in 1929 and at the age of 15, he began as a laborer up and down the west coast. His efforts to gain higher wages began in 1930 when he joined the striking lettuce pickers in Washington. This began decades of working as a labor organizer and eventually formed the Filipino Farm Labor Union in 1956. In 1965, along with his union members, Itliong organized the Delano Grape Strike where 1,500 Filipino grape-pickers walked out and demanded higher wages and improved working conditions.

This was the initial grassroots movement that compelled Dolores Huerta and Cesar Chavez of the National Farm Workers Association to join Itliong which led the two union groups to form the United Farm Workers. In 1970, the strike that began with Itliong ended 1970; this led to the first efforts to improve agricultural practices regardless of race; this included higher wages, clinics, daycare, medical plans for workers, and a school for their children. Yes, it took that long! Falcons, as you finish out the year, it is important to look at efforts by Itliong, Huerta, and Chavez and learn from how they persevered and fought for a better life. As we finish out the year, let's remind our students to not give up. Use the perseverance and persistence of the work of Itliong, Huerta, and Chavez to demonstrate how they stayed the course to see their goals through the hardships they endured. Itliong was our students' ages when he began working the fields in the San Joaquin Valley of California. He saw injustice and sought to seek solutions to make life better for his fellow farm workers. The strike alone continued for five years. Let's remind our students to never give up when they are experiencing helplessness in their situations. Teach them to stay in the fight and stay the course. That is where you and I became mentally strong. Let's teach our students to do just that.

This month, we celebrate the enduring heritage of Jewish Americans, whose values, culture, and contributions have shaped our character as a Nation. For generations, the story of the Jewish people — one of resilience, faith, and hope in the face of adversity, prejudice, and persecution — has been woven into the fabric of our Nation’s story. It has driven us forward in our ongoing march for justice, equality, and freedom as we recommit to upholding the principles of our Nation’s founding and realizing the promise of America for all Americans.

For centuries, Jewish refugees fleeing oppression and discrimination abroad have sailed to our shores in search of sanctuary. Early on, they fought for religious freedom, helping define one of the bedrock principles upon which America was built. Union soldiers celebrated Passover in the midst of the Civil War. Jewish suffragists fought to expand freedom and justice. And Jewish faith leaders linked arms with giants of the Civil Rights Movement to demand equal rights for all.

Jewish Americans continue to enrich every part of American life as educators and entrepreneurs, athletes and artists, scientists and entertainers, public officials and activists, labor and community leaders, diplomats and military service members, public health heroes, and more. Last year, I was proud to host the White House’s first-ever Jewish New Year reception. During our Hanukkah celebration, I was also proud to unveil the first-ever permanent menorah at the White House — reinforcing the permanency of Jewish culture in America. In my own life, the Jewish community has been a tremendous source of friendship, guidance, and strength through seasons of pain and seasons of joy.

BVM Community,

As we enter the second week of May, we all feel the anticipation and excitement of our CAASPP English, Math, and Science testing! It's essential to encourage one another during this time, and I urge all of us to ensure that all students are present during this very important week of testing. Please remember that we will have a minimum day schedule for the entire week. For more information see the schedule attached below!

While we understand that taking a standardized test can be a bit pressure-laden, every one of our students is certainly capable of rising to the occasion of the SBAC assessment. I sincerely believe that our school is ready for this assessment! All in all, we simply want our students to do the best that they can and we are confident that they will meet and exceed our expectations!

Let's stay positive this week and let's continue to keep our focus on being kind, our academics, and having a strong finish to our academic school year.

The 8th-grade promotion is right around the corner--May 31st at 3:30 pm and 5:30 pm at Bonita Vista High School. You should have received a save-the-date flyer via Jupiter Grades announcing our 8th-grade promotion. Students with last names A-L will promote at 3:30 pm, while students with last names M-Z will promote at 5:30 pm. As of now, there have been no changes to the participation requirement. Remember 8th graders, you will have to pass all of your classes this semester to participate in 8th-grade graduation. To clarify, passing all of your classes means earning either an A, B, C, or D in all of your 6 classes this semester.

Lastly, please remember to review the 4 Essential Rules at Bonita Vista Middle School that allow us to not only promote our safety on campus, but it allows us to ensure that our students are fully present and ready to learn:

1. No Cell Phones on Campus: We ask that all students placed their cell phones in their backpacks once they are at school and on our campus. We not only enforce this rule during class time but especially during nutrition breaks and lunchtime. We want our students to interact with each other as much as possible as opposed to being on their screens/phones.

2. No IPAD Misuse: Every student is issued an IPAD for educational purposes only. We ask students to use their devices strictly as implements of learning.

3. No Earbuds: Similar to our cell phone rule, we ask that once students are at school and on our campus, they place their earbuds in their backpacks. We have noticed that students are less distracted in class and engage more with each other when they are not using earbuds.

4. No Hoodie (worn on head): Students can wear hooded sweatshirts but in order to be able to identify our students at all times, we ask students not to wear their hoods over their heads. This rule is in place for student safety. Should a non-student sneak onto our campus, we would want to identify them immediately. Also, we need to ensure during class and outside of class that students do not have their earbuds. We prioritize making sure that students are paying attention in class and our fully engaged with each other at all times.

If you ever need to report a disciplinary or safety concern, please make sure to report any and all concerns to our administrative team. Our assistant principal, Mr. Robert Bonilla roberto.bonilla@sweetwaterschools.org oversees students with last names between A-L and Ms. Estephany Conlon Estephany.conlon@sweetwaterschools.org oversees all students between M-Z. Please visit this link to contact any other staff you wish to communicate with: https://bvm.sweetwaterschools.org/staff-directory-2/.

Thank you

Dr. Salazar

At BVM we have made it easy by allowing parents to clear attendance using the following link: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScNUTCCLYdAXHyCVPQqoWHDBmBIfFJsVKOhFfB1ep0Qm5iKXg/viewform

You have access to your student's attendance through Infinite Campus. Please log in and check your student's attendance. We have a number of students with uncleared absences. After a time period, those absences roll over into Absent Unexcused (red). When students are marked absent you receive a call at the end of the day to inform you.

Thank you. Have a good day.

Ms. Ugarte

Please click on the following link to view this week's Week-at-a-Glance:

Below you will find valuable information about our school!

The Sweetwater Union High School District will hold its 7th Annual Solar Sprint Competition on Saturday, May 27 at Otay Ranch High School. This is a program that promotes science, technology, engineering, arts, and math (STEAM). Students work in teams to design, build and test solar-powered model cars. A car race is the culmination of the student’s work. At the competition, students race their solar-powered inventions against other teams for the fastest, more reliable, and good-looking car titles!

If you are interested in participating stop by room IA1 and let Mrs. Velosa know.