Dear Members of the AUSD Community,

Serving our remarkable students, regardless of the circumstances, is what drives the Alvord Unified School District. The experience of pandemic schooling forced school districts everywhere to shift towards a reimagined learning model in which technology was no longer a supplementary resource, but instead a core tool to ensure student success. As a result of the pandemic, every student in Alvord now has a laptop computer and is connected to the Internet. The 1:1 technology allows our students to access the tools they need to develop 21st-Century skills. Technology in the home has also helped many of our parents develop 21st-Century skills to support their student's success. We have had a great turnout for our Family Engagement workshops on supporting technology in the home.

There are many benefits of the 1:1 technology environment. Primary among them are the opportunities for students and teachers to collaborate on common documents and assessments, and for teachers to enhance curriculum beyond the textbook and other tradition materials. In addition, instant assessment tools are easily accessible for teachers and students to monitor progress.

Equally important, has been increased stakeholder engagement as the result of connecting our families. Providing connectivity for families started with school districts and has now expanded to community and business partners who have joined the race to provide equitable access for families to the global network accessible through the World Wide Web. With tools such as GoGuardian, parents have direct access to student online activity. Together we can prepare students for the 21st-Century and keep them safe too. To that end, students may retain their laptops for summer learning, whether they participate in our summer school programs or plan to learn independently during the summer months. Schools are taking inventory of the laptops so we can plan ahead. Principals and their teams will work with families on the summer loaner program.

As we strategically plan for the future, we forecast an increase in the use of technology as an effective learning, teaching, and communications tool. While we intend to be fully in-person when we return to traditional school in 2021-22, we also intend to continue to leverage the high-tech skills we developed this past year. We also intend to provide alternative learning environments for students with a preference or a need to learn in a non-traditional environment. As I have recently reported, based on our 2021-22 interest survey, about 500 elementary school students, about 300 middle school students, and about 200 high school student have expressed an interest in some type of a virtual learning environment in 2021-22.

We are blessed to serve incredible children and teenagers. This past Tuesday, the City of Riverside recognized four "remarkable" Alvord high school students during their annual 25 Remarkable Teens celebration at City Hall. The program is a partnership between the Riverside Police Department and the Office of the Mayor, in conjunction with the Riverside Youth Council, which empowers and encourages Riverside’s best and brightest students to have a voice in public policy and other decision making that directly impacts the lives of young people. Congratulations to all 25 remarkable teens, especially our four distinguished students: Allison Fischang and Steve Deras De León from La Sierra High School, Vivian Shepherd Mayen from Norte Vista High School, and Shayda Abdurahman from Hillcrest High School. See the slides with their biography from Tuesday's presentation at City Hall below in the News section.

Visit our YouTube channel this coming week to view a compilation of musical performances by our elementary schools' students. See the flyer below in the News section for additional information.

Q. Is there a vaccine for children 12 years of age and older?
A: Yes. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has expanded the emergency use authorization (EUA) for the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine for the prevention of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) to include adolescents 12 through 15 years of age.

Q: Should children 12 years of age and up get the COVID-19 vaccine?
A: It's a family decision. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), children should get the COVID-19 vaccine as soon as it is available to them. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also recommends that adolescents ages 12-15 should get the vaccine.

Q: Will a COVID-19 vaccine be required for school entry?

A: State governments decide which vaccines are required for school entry. At this point in time there is no COVID-19 vaccine requirement for this coming school year.

More good news on the COVID front. The case rate this week has improved from 3.4 to 2.7. The positivity rate has improved from 1.9% to 1.6%. While we still remain in the Orange Tier, we continue to trend towards the least restrictive Yellow Tier. To transition to the Yellow Tier we would need to meet the following criteria:

• Less than 2.0 daily new cases (currently 2.7)
• Less than 2.0% positive tests for entire county (currently 1.6%)
• Less than 2.2% positive tests for health equity quartile (currently 1.8%)

If we do move to the Yellow Tier (Moderate) we will be able to double the number of graduation tickets we distribute per student. High schools will communicate exactly how they will get additional tickets to families if we switch tiers after the initial tickets have been distributed. Remember, the State announces Tier assignments on Tuesdays.

The graduation events are held at 6 pm in Zack Earp Stadium on the campus of Norte Vista High School. Dates are as follows:

• Alvord High School graduates on Monday, May 24
• Alvord Alternative School graduates on Monday, May 24
• Alvord Community Adult School graduates on Monday, May 24
• La Sierra graduates on Tuesday, May 25
• Hillcrest graduates on Wednesday, May 26
• Norte Vista graduates on Thursday, May 27

We recognize and celebrate our classified employees this coming week. These unsung heroes work hard to make sure our school district operates and functions at the highest level. We would not be able to serve our students and their families without the many hardworking employees who get their jobs done so that we can fulfill our promise to prepare our students for college, career, and life.

On behalf of the Board of Education, thank you for choosing Alvord Unified School District as your education partner. We look forward to working together to serve our students so that each and every one of them can make their dream of a bright future come true.

Let's finish the year strong!

Stay positive. Stay safe. Be well.

Sincerely,

Allan Mucerino

The Riverside County Department of Education (RCOE) also provides many services for school-age children and their families. Click on the image below or here to visit the RCOE Parent Portal. To browse by topic, click on the links below for detailed information.

Child Care for Essential Workers

Child Care Assistance and Resources

Child Care Finder

Head Start

Migrant Head Start

State Preschool

Teen Parent Program

Infant/Toddler Special Education Programs