#ThisIsWhoWeAre
PXU Newsletter November 10, 2022
Happy Native American Heritage Month!
PXU Land Acknowledgement Ceremony at the Governing Board Meeting
See below for a video of the Land Acknowledgement:
EXPO 2022
PXU United Way Campaign 2022
Phoenix Union is excited to announce our 2022 Valley of the Sun United Way Campaign Kick-Off. Your support for the United Way provides vital resources that directly impact our community. This year, our campaign will run through Wednesday, November 30. Your generous gift to the United Way helps fund community health, workforce development, student scholarships, and basic needs like food and shelter for Phoenix families.
In addition, you can direct your donation to the Phoenix Union Foundation for Education. These funds play a critical role in supporting our mission to support PXU students’ success in college, career, and life. To donate to the Phoenix Union Foundation for Education, follow the steps listed under “Click here to direct your gift.” We will also send paper packets to your campuses soon if you prefer that method. Please visit www.PXU.org/UnitedWay to donate today. We ask you to make plans to complete your pledge by Wednesday, November 30.
Please watch the video above featuring our Superintendent Dr. Chad Gestson explaining the program and ways you can help.
Academies at South: Lunch and Learn with AZ Cardinals and United Way
Danielle Smith Awarded $2500 from Fiesta Bowl Charities Wishes for Teachers Program
Recently, Danielle Smith from Camelback High School was awarded $2500 from Fiesta Bowl Charities as a part of the wishes for teachers program (pictured above). Ms. Smith’s wish that is now granted is “to purchase flags to represent Arizona tribes and create a library of Native American authors.”
Click here to learn more about the Wishes for Teachers Program: Palo Verde Fiesta Bowl Charites Wishes for Teachers program.
On this seventh year of the program, Fiesta Bowl Charities in partnership with Palo Verde, are granting $2,500 classroom wishes to 400 teachers across the state of Arizona for a total of $1,000,000.The Fiesta Bowl organization saw that many teachers spent their own money to enhance their classroom experience and in 2016 developed this program to aid teachers in that effort. As a way to support, celebrate and honor Arizona educators, teachers were invited to fill out an online application detailing their school and classroom wish. Wishes are randomly selected to receive a grant and teachers are notified and surprised in our Palo Verde Fiesta Bowl Charities Wishes for Teachers Draft Day presented by SRP event. Over the past 6 years, Palo Verde Fiesta Bowl Charities Wishes for Teachers has granted $4.7 million to Arizona teachers, impacting 500,000+ students across the state.
Click the button below to see the ABC-15 story about Ms. Smith's wish and surprise:
This Is Who We Are Magazine 2022
We hope you enjoy!
PXU Employee Wellness Support
Do you or a PXU Employee you know need any support? PXU has Health and Wellness Clinicians on staff to support our staff with difficult times. If you or a colleague are in need of emotional or mental health support, please click the link below to be directed to a form for support. A Staff Health and Wellness Specialist will respond to you within 24 hours (Monday thru Friday).
Jean Kilker named Arizona School Librarian of the Year
Alhambra's 60th Anniversary Celebration
All PXU Arizona RBI Baseball Team
This past summer the Arizona Diamondbacks sponsored the first-ever Arizona RBI Baseball team consisting of all PXU players. The team traveled to Compton, California for the RBI Western Regional Baseball Tournament. They played some great games, however, did not reach the RBI World Series, losing to Hawaii in the round-robin tournament. The Arizona team defeated the Angels from California, the Dodgers from LA, and tied the Mariners from Seattle, before losing to Hawaii. It was an experience the players will never forget. Besides playing in the tournament the Diamondbacks treated the team to a day at Santa Monica Beach and tickets to see the Los Angeles Dodgers vs. San Francisco Giants game at Dodger Stadium.
The team was also featured in the Diamondback Insider magazine, and Univison Deportes. They were also invited to a Diamondback's game and participated in on-the-field pre-game batting practice. AZ RBI Brian Munoz also threw out the 1st pitch. The Diamondbacks continue supporting these young student-athletes as they do community service, attend camps and workshops, and play in tournaments for the AZ Diamondbacks RBI Baseball Team.
Congratulations to them!
Pictured above from left to right are:
Eric Figueroa (AZ Diamondback Coordinator), Coach JD Ramirez (Camelback HS), Jaidan Tafoya (Cesar Chavez HS), Brian Munoz (North HS), Jay De La Garza (Trevor Browne HS), Isaac Balderas (Fairfax HS), Joshua Berber (North HS), Angel Valenzuela (North HS), Daniel Alaniz (Fairfax HS), Kevin Montes (Fairfax HS), Adolfo Pacheco (Cesar Chavez HS), Robert Sahuaqui (Cesar Chavez HS), Paul Robles (North HS), Fabian Martinez (Central HS), Tremale Griffin (Fairfax HS), Jesus Reyes (Maryvale HS), Alfredo Ruiz (Cesar Chavez HS), Coach Armando Tellez (Cesar Chavez HS), and Victor Guerrero (AZ Diamondback Coordinator and Cesar Chavez Alumni).
Bostrom: Fall Festival and Book Tasting Events
Congratulations, Bostrom! Keep up the great work!
Metro Tech Pharmacy Celebrates Pharmacy Technician Day
What a great celebration! See above for photos.
Cesar Chavez Girls Golf Places First in PXU Tournament
The Cesar Chavez Girl's Golf team participated in the PXU golf tourney on Oct. 7th. The Champions came home with the 1st place trophy in the team championship. They also had 3 girls place in the top 10 for the tournament:
Kaileigh Pasesa 2nd Place
Maritza Bautista 3rd Place
Layla Hermosillo 8th Place
Pictured above from left to right: Kaileigh Pasesa (SO), Maritza Bautista (SR), DisMeri Martinez (FR), Layla Hermosillo (FR), and Suraiya Muhammad (FR).
Central Culinary Caters for Nearly 500 People
Carl Hayden Handball Returns to the Court
Congratulations on bringing Handball back, Carl Hayden!
PXU Posse Scholar Finalists
South:
Azmaveth Cruz, a Posse finalist to Davidson.
Coding:
Myles Casteal, a Posse finalist to Davidson
Akshaya Lord, a Posse finalist to Rhodes College
Bioscience:
Kaesy Diaz Castellanos, a Posse finalist to Davidson
Alizza Solis, a Posse finalist to Davidson
Isidro Soto Gutierrez, a Posse finalist to Davidson
Maryvale:
Ashley Renteria – a Posse finalist to Cornell College in Mount Vernon, Iowa
Kevin Zazueta Vega - a Posse finalist to Cornell College in Mount Vernon, Iowa
Jesus Lopez – a Posse finalist to Centre College in Danville, Kentucky
Rhenea Alejandra Moraza – a Posse finalist to St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota
Camelback:
Samuel Hernandez, a Posse finalist to Cornell College
Crystal Sanchez, a Posse finalist to Cornell College
Arturo Delgado, a Posse finalist to Cornell College
Ariel Livingston, a Posse finalist to Center College
Litzy Flores, a Posse finalist to Rhodes College
Ernesto Ramirez, a Posse finalist to Case Western Reserve University
Chavez:
Santino Gregorovic, a Posse finalist to Case Western University
Jedi Rajan, a Posse finalist to Case Western University
Teresa Meija, a Posse finalist to Cornell College
Jorge Garcia Gomez, a Posse finalist to Centre College
Sofia Villagomez, a Posse finalist to St. Olaf's College
Asriyah Sisay , a Posse finalist to Rhodes College
Liliana Vidales, a Posse finalist to Rhodes College
Franklin:
Carol Ibarra Ontiveros, a Posse finalist to Centre College
Sam Le, a Posse finalist to Case Western
Jaqueline Parada, a Posse finalist to Cornell
Congratulations to all!
Betty Fairfax: State Fair Art Contest
Click the file button below to see all of the winners, and see above for a few of the art pieces showcased. Congratulations, Betty Fairfax Art!
Michelle Wagner Published in English Journal
Congratulations, Ms. Wagner! Click the file button below to read the volume of the English Journal that Ms. Wagner is published in:
JROTC Good News
The JROTC Adventure Team competition consisted of 10 events conducted in 2 phases. The first phase took place near Flagstaff over a weekend camping trip in September with events such as Rope Bridge, Land Navigation, Endurance, First Aid Casualty Recovery and a Leadership Reaction Course. Phase 2 was held in October at Trevor Browne with events in Push Ups, Sit Ups, Planks, Sprint Relay and a 1.5 mile distance run. JROTC cadets from every PXU JROTC program along with JROTC units from Tempe and Tucson took part in the competition.
Way to go, PXU JROTC!
PXU Libraries District Library Circulation
During the first quarter of the year, the PXU Libraries were busy promoting books and library programs to all students and staff. Below are the Quarter 1 circulation stats:
Print books: 18,778 books
Digital Books: 1,890 eBooks and eAudiobooks
Database Search: 9,130 research databases accessed by our PXU readers.
Way to go, PXU Libraries!
PXU Visual and Performing Arts News
If you would like to stay tuned with all things PXU Visual and Performing Arts, including photos and videos of past events, information on upcoming events, and more, visit PXU.org/VAPA.
PXU Turkey Drive
Food Services, 4444 N. 7th Street / 5:30 am - 2:00 p.m.
Central High School, Cafeteria / 6:00 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.
Carl Hayden, Falcon Family and Community Resource Center
If you have any questions, contact Cyndi Tercero at Tercero@phoenixunion.org.
PUFE Scholarship Portal Now Ready for Applications
The Phoenix Union Foundation for Education is excited to announce that the 2022 scholarship portal is now available for the class of 2023. Last year, the Foundation awarded nearly $100,000 in scholarships for PXU students.
Please take a moment to share the attached document below with future graduates so that they can apply for funds to help them succeed in college, career, and life.
Applications close on January 20, 2023, so help us spread the word today.
NetTutor: FREE 24/7 Tutoring Available to PXU Students
PXU is excited to offer NetTutor's 24/7 tutoring services to our students free of charge! We encourage you to share this resource with your students. Students can access NetTutor by visiting PXU.org/NetTutor.
ElevateEdAZ
ElevateEdAZ is an initiative of the Greater Phoenix Chamber Foundation focused on aligning classes and curriculum with workforce needs, creating opportunities for students to apply academics through work-based learning, and increasing student exposure to career pathways. ElevateEdAZ is designed as a model for Arizona schools to better integrate high wage, high demand, high skill career pathways into the K-12 education system. With College and Career Coaches already embedded at the Academies at South Mountain, Metro Tech High School, and Phoenix Coding Academy, ElevateEdAZ looks forward to providing many impactful experiences to students and educators this coming school year.
We encourage you to share with your networks and encourage students to seek out the resources that ElevateEdAZ provides!
October was a busy month for ElevateEdAZ and Metro Tech with many great experiences for their students. They have already kicked off November with events this week. See above for photos from ElevateEdAZ/Metro Tech and click the document below to read all about the amazing work being done by ElevateEdAZ at Metro Tech!
Stay in touch with us!
Email: vherb@phoenixunion.org
Website: pxu.org
Location: 4502 North Central Avenue, Phoenix, AZ, USA
Phone: 602-764-1528
Facebook: Facebook.com/phoenixunion
Twitter: @phoenixunion