Monday Message
4/23/18
Testing/Class Calendar for May 2018
Important!
Here is the testing/class calendar for the month of May, which will affect all students' schedules. Please review it carefully!
Next week, elementary students in grades 3, 4, 5, and 6 will report to school at 9:00 am, Monday through Thursday.
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Japanese Internment Camp Speakers
Mits Mayumi Kawamoto spoke to our school community about her experiences before moving to Poston Internment Camp, spending some of her elementary years in the internment camp, and what life was like for her family after leaving the camp.
Getting a Close-up View of Nature with Exhibits from the NAT
Kids are fascinated by the exhibits on loan from the San Diego Museum of Natural History. The Nuttall's Woodpecker display with it's nest in an oak was example of how birds from the forest can become urbanized as humans plant trees. Mr. Richard, who recently completed his docent training, brought the presentation to Mt. Everest Academy on Tuesday, April 10, 2018.
Movie Night
Mt. Everest Academy had our very first outdoor movie night, thanks to parent Ernie Navarro, who is the owner of Sundown Outdoor movies. Thank you Mr. Navarro!
******** UPCOMING EVENTS & ACTIVITIES ********
AP Exams Pre-Administration Session
Wednesday, April 25 / 11:55am / Cafeteria
For students that have signed up to take AP exams, please plan to attend this mandatory AP Pre-Administration Session. If you are unable to attend, please contact Principal Browne or Mr. Zappala.
SSC/SGT Meeting
Wednesday, April 25 / 2:00-3:00 / Room 17B
All parents are invited to attend the School Site Committee (SSC) meeting. The SSC is a shared decision-making body composed of parents, staff, and students. Our Council identifies needs for academic programs and sets budgets to support these programs. More information, agendas, and minutes can be found on our SSC/SGT webpage. For questions, please contact Principal Browne at cbrowne@sandi.net
MEA Family Fundraiser at Souplantation
Thursday, April 26 / 11:00-9:00 / Souplantion
Help support activities at Mt. Everest Academy by going out to eat at the Souplantation in Kearny Mesa! They are well known for their delicious salad bar, soups, pasta, bakery items, fresh fruit, and desserts. Souplantation will give our school 20% of what we spend there on April 26. The location is at 7095 Clairemont Mesa Blvd., 92111. All participants must purchase a beverage with their meal in order to receive credit for MEA.
Bring in this attached flyer, or show it on your phone.
Thank you, as always, for your support!
Improv Competition
Friday, April 27 / 6:45 pm / MEA Auditorium
Our MEA Improv team will be competing against Clairemont High & La Jolla High this Friday night. Come watch them for an evening of hilarity and fun!
High School Prom
Friday, May 11 / 6:00-10:00pm / Mission Bay Yacht Club
Hey High Schoolers! Get ready for your High School Prom, which will be held at the beautiful Mission Bay Yacht Club. All high school students are invited and encouraged to attend...no prom date needed!
You may make your reservation in advance for a discount:
- $30 (purchase from 4/2 - 5/4)
- $35 (purchase from 5/7 - 5/10)
To make your reservation, please bring this permission form with a parent's signature and payment to the front office. This form is also available in the front office. Please pay with either cash (EXACT CHANGE ONLY) or a check made out to "Mt. Everest Academy." Tickets will not be sold at the door.
The yacht club is located at 1215 El Carmel Pl, San Diego, CA 92109.
Talent Showcase & Silent Auction
Thursday, May 24 / Auditorium
Preparations are in-process for our annual Talent Showcase & Silent Auction, with more details to follow. As this is a school fundraiser, tickets will be $5 a person. Performers and stagehands get in free.
**************** SAVE THE DATE ****************
Link to calendar on school website
AP Exams Pre-Administration Session: April 25
CAASPP / SBAC Testing, grades 3, 4, 5, 6: April 30-May 4
AP Exams: May 7-18
High School Prom: May 11
CAASPP / SBAC Testing, grades 7, 8, 11: May 21-24
RRR Lifeskills/Sexual Education Classes, grades 8, 9, 10: May 21-24
Talent Showcase / Silent Auction: May 24
Art Show: May 31
MEA Family Picnic: June 1
Kindergarten Promotion: June 5
5th & 8th grade Promotion: June 6
Senior Graduation: June 8
************** ANNOUNCEMENTS **************
Talent Show Application
Students, if you'd like to showcase one of your talents, start turning in those applications! It's time to dust off those dancin' shoes, tune up those instruments, and tidy up those costumes! This will be a great opportunity to share your talents for a grand evening of entertainment. The Talent Show/Silent Auction will be on Thursday, May 24, and we want to see YOUR fabulous talent on stage!
Click here for the talent show application, where you can upload a video of your act. This application is also linked from our home page. Due to time constraints, the show will have a limited number of slots available for performances. Applications will be taken into consideration on a first-come, first-served basis. For any questions, please contact Mr. Eric Nielsen at enielsen@sandi.net
Stagehands and MC's are also needed! If you'd like to help out in this way, please contact Mr. Eric Nielsen at enielsen@sandi.net.
Silent Auction Contributions
As well as being entertained by our talented students, part of the fun of this annual event is bidding on exciting gift baskets and certificates. Each grade level teacher is collecting items for a silent auction theme basket. Any items you can contribute to your supervising teacher’s (or any other teacher’s) silent auction basket would be greatly appreciated! Please see the themes listed below, or if a teacher's theme isn't listed, please ask him/her. Also, if you own a business and would like to donate a service or basket item, please let us know!
Teacher Basket Themes
Becerra, Erin - Dining Out!
Cate, Aaron -
Finney, Rachel - Toys for Girls (more specifics to follow), Pokemon, Superheroes
Greenwood, Jim - Games Galore
Mech, Deborah -
Nielsen, Eric - Music
Pachon, Trudy - I Love Coffee
Patterson, Linda
Rice, Laurel - Foodie Delight
Rodenberg, Kris - Italian Dinner Night
Spiegelberg, Daniel -
Tran, Huy - Video Games
Yssel, Flo -
Ideas for Requesting Donations
- Gift certificate for one month of classes where your child takes a class (i.e. - karate, dance, etc)
- Donation of service from a friend or family business (i.e. hairstylist could offer one shampoo/cut/style)
- Donation of an electronic device from someone who has 'perks' through their office (i.e. IPOD, tablet, digital camera, etc)
- Donation of an overnight stay or your timeshare you never use (do you have points or a timeshare you never use that could become a donation/staycation?)
- Donation of tickets (Do you have tickets to a game or show you are not able to attend after 4/22?)
- Photography (Are you a photographer looking to donate a session and get some advertising by putting your name out in our event?)
This is an ASB sponsored event and all donations go directly back to our student body. Thank you in advance for supporting our school!
Parents Help Needed for Silent Auction
MEA PARENTS!
We currently have donations from businesses coming in and will be collecting more. We will need parent volunteers to organize donations into baskets so they can be auctioned off during the Talent Show. Will you be able to help? Please contact Principal Browne at cbrowne@sandi.net.
deadline to order yearbooks online: May 1
2017-18 school yearbooks are now available to purchase online. The cost is $30, and the purchase deadline is May 1, 2018. For any questions, please contact Ms. Rice, yearbook teacher, at lrice@sandi.net.
MEA Teacher of the Year: Mr. Nielsen
Congratulations to our teacher Mr. Nielsen who has been voted Mt. Everest Academy's Teacher of the Year! Mr. Nielsen teaches 8th grade History, 8th grade English, ASB, Music, Photography, Videography, and Multimedia Production. As our site technician, he offers invaluable technological support to teachers & students. His classroom is a place of creative learning and sharing. Through Mr. Nielsen's vision, we had our very first Mt. Everest Academy Art Galleria, where students showcased their artwork and shared their process and inspirations with attendees. We are lucky to have a teacher with Mr. Nielsen's enthusiasm, dedication, and teaching expertise here at Mt. Everest!
Administrative Professionals Day
"Norma's Day"
Where would we be without Norma? Spare a thought for all the students she's enrolled, finances she's kept track of, report cards she's sent out, and all the other hundreds of things she does that we don't even know about! This is a special day (and week) to celebrate Norma for all the hard work she does all year!
National Administrative Professionals’ Day, also known as Secretaries Day or Admin Day, is observed on the Wednesday of Administrative Professionals Week (April 22-28, 2018).
Fennel in the garden
Everyone is welcome to come harvest some fresh fennel from the MEA garden. One of our parents has been using the fennel bulbs to make Chicken Soup with Fennel Orzo. Fennel has a sweet subtle anise flavor, and also, it's good for you!
Returning to Mt. Everest Academy next year?
If you are planning on returning to Mt. Everest Academy next year, please come to the office to pick up your 2018-19 enrollment packet. These forms must be completed every year. Return completed forms and a current proof of address (i.e. SDG&E, water, cable, or phone bill) to the office ASAP but not later than Friday, May 11.
If you are moving or are planning on attending a different school, please stop by the office and let Norma know, or call her at 858-496-8778. Thank you.
California School Parent Survey
Dear Mt. Everest Academy Parents,
Please take a moment to read this letter regarding the California School Parent Survey. This is an opportunity to share your opinions about the climate of our school. The data is used in a variety of ways including as an indicator on the CA School Dashboard and as evidence for our accreditation process.
It is imperative that we have a high participation rate so please take a moment to complete the survey online at this link: https://surveys.wested.org/csps/QP337DH
If you would prefer, paper copies can be found at the front office.
Please note that parents only need to complete and return one survey - for your oldest child attending Mt. Everest Academy. Thank you!
More info at http://cal-schls.wested.org/
No Skateboarding or Bike Riding on Campus
As a reminder, it is the policy of the San Diego Unified School District Board of Education that unauthorized uses of district property include the riding of any bicycle, skateboard, roller blade, or roller skate type device on any property of the school district at any time.
SDUSD is not responsible for and assumes no responsibility for theft, damage, or loss of use, to any equipment or article left on school property. All such risks are assumed by the student.
Box Tops Bonus App
Box Tops for Education now has a phone app to turn your everyday receipts into cash for Mt. Everest Academy. With this app you can FIND offers, SCAN the receipt, and EARN money for our school. This app also enables you to track MEA's earnings progress.
Clothing Drive for TACO
For the month of April, Mt. Everest Academy is conducting a Clothing Drive for the Third Avenue Charitable Organization (TACO). If you have some gently used donations to give, please bring them to the Makerspace. Thanks!
************* COUNSELING CORNER *************
Summer School
For parents that received a summer school email
If you received an email from Mr. Zappala regarding your student attending summer school, please either contact Mr. Zappala or return this summer school application to him as soon as you can. Thank you.
Still need to choose classes for next year?
For grades 8-11
If you have not yet met with Mr. Zappala to plan your classes for 2018-19, please go see him!
Articulation sheets are available on our school website.
********** extracurricular activities ***********
Please find the most up-to-date schedule here. This schedule is a work in-progress; we will continue to add to and fine-tune the schedule as needed.
If you are interested in offering an extracurricular class or workshop, please contact Principal Browne at cbrowne@sandi.net. All required district volunteer paperwork must be submitted in order to lead a class.
Garden Explorations
Tuesdays / 12:30-1:30 / Garden
Come join us every Tuesday for this hands-on extracurricular activity! This semester we will be planting and tending garden beds, creating art in the garden, and mulching the orchard. Monarchs are already returning to the milkweed!
Grades 5-12 / Grades K-4 welcome with parent
Faith Group
The Faith Group on Wednesdays at 12:00 will not be meeting this week due to the AP Exams Pre-Administration Session being held at the same time.
Sewing Project
******************* LIBRARY *******************
************ STUDENT SPOTLIGHT ************
As Mt. Everest Academy offers students the “flexibility to pursue your passion,” our school has a wealth of students that are pursuing their passions while meeting their educational goals. The "Student Spotlight" is a way to share some of the exciting endeavors our students are involved in with the rest of our school, and a way for students to learn about other students with similar interests.
If you've got a student accomplishment or special activity that can be included in a Monday Message, please email it to Linda Ele, lele@sandi.net.
Gold & silver medals in rowing
David G., grade 10, crewed for 2 races with the San Diego Rowing Club last Sunday at the Empire Sprints Regatta up at Perris Lake, California. His boats brought back a gold medal in the Varsity 4 and a silver medal in the Lightweight 8!
****** RANDOM ACTS OF CAMPUS KINDNESS ******
(Did you know that hand sanitizer works really well for this?)
********* COMMUNITY ANNOUNCEMENTS *********
Summer Camp Aide at the Nat
Love children?
Need community service hours?
The San Diego Natural History Museum is looking for volunteers for their summer camps. Student volunteers can earn valuable work experience.
There are 5 requirements for becoming a camp aide:
- Minimum 16 years old
- Must love children
- Available June 18-August 17 for at least two full weeks; 8AM - 4:30PM
- A personal interview
- Attendance at an orientation (TBD)
For questions contact Romina Cardenas, 619-255-0162, rcardenas@sdnhm.org
Seeking Student Contributions to local newspaper
A new newspaper has started in our area, "Clairemont Connections." One of their goals is to include information about local schools in their publication. We anticipate sharing happenings at Mt. Everest Academy in their paper.
STUDENTS: If you'd like to contribute an article about our school to "Clairemont Connections," please contact Linda Ele at lele@sandi.net to get specifications on what the newspaper is looking for: type of article, length, and photos.